Kiss of Fire (St. James Family) (12 page)

She stared down at the phone, debating on calling it back. It was almost one in the morning, maybe too late for a callback? Who was she kidding? She was dying of curiosity. She pressed the call button and put the phone to her ear. It rang a few times and she gnawed at her lip, considering hanging up. But then someone answered.

“
Hello?” said the unmistakeable male voice. That Irish lilt would give him away every time.

“
Hi,” she said, all of her breath coming out in a whoosh.

“
You know who this is?” His sexy voice said, teasing her.

“
I think I just figured it out,” she said, rolling her eyes like he could see her.

“
What are you doing?”

“
I'm in the dance studio.”

“
Isn't it a little late for that shit?”

“
Rehearsing? No. I like rehearsing at night. It's quiet.”

“
You need a ride home?”

“
What? Aren't you in Queens?”

“
No,” he said. “I'm in the city.”

“
Um. Okay,” she said, her heart in her throat. She'd let O'Donovan drive her the fifteen blocks home, since he'd gone to all the trouble. No problem. But it was strange, she had to admit. Not that she wanted to question her good fortune. She slid on her boots and was out the door in a flash. She didn't want to seem too eager, so she slowed down as soon as she neared the fountain in the center of the courtyard. She scanned the surrounding area, looking for his red truck. She saw it, parked where he'd dropped her off two weeks before. She took a deep breath, willing herself to calm down. She took her time reaching him, scrolling through her Twitter feed on her phone like she could care less that Sebastian O'Donovan had finally called her.

He opened his door and sauntered around to her side. Dropping her phone into her bag, she allowed herself to look at him. O'Donovan's rugged good looks took her breath away, and it felt like it had been ages since she'd seen him. She felt her mouth curling into a smile before she could even think to react differently.

“Hey, Toni,” he said. He was wearing a faded Pink Floyd shirt that night, she noticed. Dark Side of the Moon. He really was a stoner, she thought with a smile.

“
I'm surprised you didn't toss my number out the window the first chance you got,” she said. “I figured it would be floating in the East river right about now.”

“
I thought about it.” He opened the creaky truck door for her. “But I didn't.”

“
Why didn't you?” she asked, stopping before she slid into the passenger seat.

“
You know why,” he said simply, and that answer sent a shiver down her spine.

Total sap
.

Smiling with satisfaction, she hopped in and he slammed the door behind her. She turned in her seat, watching him walking around the side of the truck. That's when she noticed the fishing gear in the back of the cab. He got into the driver seat, glancing at her out of the corner of his eye.

“Do you normally take the train this late?” he asked.

“
I've sworn off cabs, so pretty much,” she said with a pathetic forced laugh.

“
Not safe,” he muttered, shaking his head as he navigated into traffic. She rolled her eyes at his seeming worry for her safety.

“
New York City is one of the safest cities in the United States, you know. I tell my granny all the time I was way more likely to be the victim of a crime if I stayed in New Orleans.”

“
You're from New Orleans?”

“
Well, outside of the city, but pretty much. Born and raised.”

“
I thought I heard a southern accent in your voice,” he said, getting caught at a red light.

“
It flares up, sometimes. Especially when I'm pissed,” she said.

“
So you were pissed at me in the hospital?” he asked, raising an eyebrow like he didn't know the answer.

“
You know I was.” This time he rewarded her with a full-on grin and she couldn't help but light up like a lightbulb when he did. “I think you've finally realized that the best way to catch a fly is with honey.”

“
Some flies just can't seem to catch the hint.” He slammed his hand against the steering wheel suddenly as they got caught by another light. “Shit,” he mumbled.

“
Are you in a hurry?” she asked.

“
No.” He shook his head, but she could feel the nervous energy coming off him in waves. “Where am I going anyway?”

“
Seventy-eight and Columbus. If you really drove all this way just to take me home.” She watched his profile, but he didn't react. “Are you going fishing?” she asked, motioning to the equipment in the back.

“
What?”

“
I love to fish.” He looked at her like she was a mutant with two heads and she laughed. “Really. I told you I grew up in Louisiana. From the ages of five to ten, all I did was fish and run around in the bayou.”

“
What happened at ten?” he asked.

“
Grandaddy died and ballet took over,” she shrugged. “Where do you fish?”

“
I go down to Howard Beach and the Rockaways,” he said slowly, looking at her strangely.

“
What?”

“
Nothing.”

He made a sharp right and they got stopped by a garbage truck, blocking the road. He slammed the steering wheel again. “Fuck!”

“Okay, what is your deal?” Toni asked. “Why are you wound so tight?”

“
I'm horny as fuck, Toni, if you want to know the truth.” He turned in his seat to look at her. “You've got me so fucking hard and I can't get you out of my head. You want to fuck? I say let's just get it over with.”

Toni felt her mouth drop open. He was finally admitting that he wanted to sleep with her, but in typical O'Donovan fashion, he said it in the most dickish way possible.
Not exactly red roses and poetry, Mr. Romantic
, she thought wryly, crossing her hands over her chest.

“
Let's just get it over with?!” she yelled.

“
Yeah. Let's screw and then get on with our fucking lives.”

“
No, thanks. I think I changed my mind.”

“
Fuck, Toni!” he pounded his hand on the horn, honking at the truck blocking their path. “I'm fucking dying here.”

“
Too bad. You can drop me off on the corner. I'll walk home.”

“
You don't get off that goddamn easy,” he said, finally finding an opening around the garbage truck. He laid on the gas and swerved. Toni squealed and held onto the dash.

“
Jesus Christ!” she yelled, feeling her stomach drop. This was why she didn't do cabs anymore, because they all drove like maniacs. He got stopped by the light again and stepped on the brakes. They jerked to a stop. “Asshole!”

He worked his jaw, staring at the road. Toni was already undoing her seatbelt, wanting to be anywhere but in the truck with O'Donovan. He grabbed her arm. “Stop. I'm taking you home,” he said, his voice still gruff, but calmer. She felt herself calm instantly at his softer tone. After a minute, just to let him sweat a bit, she re-buckled her seatbelt. The light turned green. He made a left onto Columbus and they rode in silence for a moment.

“So you want to fuck me, huh?” Toni said, wrapping her mouth around the dirty word, enjoying torturing him.

“
Forget I said anything, lovely,” he said, drumming his fingers on the steering wheel. Toni laughed. No way she was going to do that anytime soon. The more she thought about his words, the hotter they became. She'd been taken aback by his bluntness, but she supposed she should just get used to bluntness when it came to O'Donovan. Lust was already pooling in her stomach as she replayed them in her mind.“Don't,” he said.

“
Don't what?”

“
Don't fuck with me,” he was working his jaw again. “I'm not in the mood.” She could practically hear him grinding his molars together. He really was worked up over her, she thought with devilish glee. How would she make him pay?

“
You know what? I don't want to go home,” she announced. “I'm hungry. Are you hungry?”

He shrugged, giving her the side-eye like she was up to something.

“I bet you're one of those guys who is always hungry,” Toni mused, studying his profile. He snorted out a laugh, but the sound was hardly amused. It sounded pained. Frustrated. “There's a 24-hour diner on Amsterdam. You down?” she asked. After a second, he nodded, running his tongue over his lips. Toni thought she saw a small smile on those lips, but he turned his face away before she could tell for sure. She set her hand on the console, her fingers itching to touch him, but she didn't. That could wait for later.

***

O'Donovan stared at Toni from across the table, feeling that odd mixture of shame, amusement, and arousal that she always seemed to stir in him. What right did she have to act like she was insulted? She was the one that had started this ball rolling. She was the one that had brought it up in the first place! He knew now that calling her had been a mistake. When he'd gotten off work, he'd had the perfect plan for his days off. When he checked the weather and saw that it was supposed to be in the eighties for the next few days, he'd decided to go down to Howard Beach and fish. He loved fishing, and his father had left him a boat and a little shack near the water. The water would relax him. It would be the perfect way to get his mind off of Toni, he foolishly thought.

But after he'd packed up the truck and got on the road, he found himself heading over the Queensboro bridge, on his way into Manhattan. No matter how much he tried to fight it, he couldn't. They'd had a fire late into his shift, and fuck it all if he wasn't horny after he got off. He could've called Brigid. He could have picked up some chick at a bar. But no. He'd had to go and blow it. Antoinette St. James still had a hold on him, and he knew that the only way to break it was for them to fuck. Too bad she was being difficult.

Toni blew on her black coffee, eyes flicking up to meet his. Those damn, sexy eyes. She was driving him insane. He shifted in the booth, his cock reacting to the mischievous look on her face. She was going to make him pay for being an ass, he realized. Over and over. But the thought only made him more turned on. What the hell was the matter with him?

“
You know, that burger is going to kill you,” she said, smiling brightly.

“
Really? Is it going to pull out a knife and stab me?” he said, lifting the rare burger to his lips and taking a big bite of it. She shook her head, laughing softly as she dug into her green salad.

“
You might not keel over right away, but that heart attack is coming.”

“
Jesus, you are a know-it-all, aren't you?” he said.

“
Me? No.” Her eyes widened with mock innocence. “Basic nutrition is a pretty well-known concept.”

“
Know-it-all.”

“
I am not!

“
And a brat, too?” he shook his head, taking another bite.

“
I am a brat, sometimes,” she allowed, taking another sip of her coffee. “Not right this second, but sometimes.”

“
How many siblings do you have?” he asked.

“
One older sister.”

“
You're the baby,” he said. Just as he'd figured.

“
Yes, I'm the baby,” she said, narrowing her eyes. “But that doesn't mean anything.”

“
It means a lot,” he said, thinking of his youngest sister Rory and how she acted like a total princess most of the time. Like moving to California so she could be a damn hippy, on his father's dime.

“
Whatever.” She flicked her fork, annoyed, and he felt a little bit of warmth at having gotten her worked up. “How many siblings do you have?”

“
Two younger, one older,” he said.

“
Any still in New York?”

“
Older brother. A cop,” he said. “He lives on Long Island.” Toni made a little face and he immediately honed in on it. “What? What was that face for?”

“
Long Island?” She made the face again.

“
What's wrong with Long Island?”

“
Nothing,” Toni said, wide-eyed again.

“
I want to live on Long Island. I want to get married and move to Long Island,” he said. “What do you think about that?”

“
What do you care what I think?” she said, scrunching up her nose. He stared her down until she relented. “I think that maybe you shouldn't be looking for a wife if you just got a divorce,” she said, lightly, shrugging her dainty shoulders. “Why are you in such a rush to get married? Why don't you sow your wild oats or whatever?”