Resilient (2) (23 page)

She turned. Another laugh escaped her lips.
 

“For someone with such short legs, you sure are fast.”
 

Katrine tilted her head to one side and took a moment. She looked at the waiting cab and then down at the hand gripping her arm. What to do? When all else fails, just go for it.

So there, on a busy Manhattan sidewalk, she dropped the handle of her suitcase, let her purse fall off her shoulder, and sprang forward. Although he wasn’t expecting that response, he recovered immediately, a chuckle rumbled deep in his chest. He buried his nose into her hair, holding her tight into his body.

“Mr. Abbot, you got this?” a voice boomed from behind.

“Thanks, Winston. I think I’ve got it under control…but I never know with this one.” He grinned down at her. His face held pure joy, it was beautiful to see.

She slid down his tall tailored-suited body, her hands stopped at his broad shoulders and she looked up into his eyes. She took in the contours of his face and the shadow along his jaw. His face made her want to sing or tear her clothes off. Possibly both, maybe in reverse order. And just like that, she knew. The doubt slipped away like pollen in a soft breeze. This moment, even if it was the only one she got, was worth everything. That thought should have scared her, but in a strange way it just bolstered her resolve. She’d made the right decision.
 

“Excuse me, Mr. Abbot. Can’t you see I’m trying to escape with my dignity intact? I guess it’s a little too late for the dignity part.” She grinned sheepishly and looked from side to side. She
had
just jumped him in front of his building.
 

Xander kissed her mouth softly. He kissed her like he’d done so every day for the past year, like she was his to kiss. She sighed and took a subtle sniff of his skin. His light aftershave, she’d know it anywhere, was just as dreamy as it had always been. Her eyes fluttered open as he clenched her sides.

“Katrine.” It came out as a sigh. “You’re here… I can’t believe it. I’d hoped I would see you again, but I never thought it would really happen. Maybe I’m dreaming…Ouch!”

“See, not dreaming.” Katrine lifted her shoulders and grinned. She thought a pinch on the bum was in order. His tight, fine bum.

“What changed your mind? You know what, I don’t care.” He had yet to stop grinning.
 

They stood in the middle of the sidewalk staring at each other, letting the wave of people part as they passed. It could have been seconds, it could have been hours. Katrine now got the saying ‘time stood still’, because in that moment the passage of time was static.

He grabbed both of her hands. “Will you come back inside with me? I have to grab my things, but then we can get out of here.” She nodded and he glanced down at her suitcase. “Do you have a reservation somewhere?”

She looked him in the eye.
 

“Nope.”

“Will you stay with me then?” His voice was expectant.

“Yep.”
 

He kissed her again with feeling.
 

How can a pair of lips be so soft, but firm at the same time? Just like his ass and his abs and his di—

She felt a bit dizzy. And a bit turned on, maybe more than a bit.

“We’ll make this quick.” He winked. She must have had a look.
 

Damn my expressive face.

She walked back through the lobby. It should have been the walk of shame, but she was too excited to care. He was glad to see her, and in her mind that had been the biggest hurdle. Now she was over it and doing the victory dance on the finish line. She did the finger wiggle wave at Winston as she passed. He was shaking his head with a smile on his face.
 

My idiocy is amusing, as usual…

“What, no driver?” she teased as they slipped into a cab forty-five minutes later. She’d sat in front of his desk watching him work furiously to finish up for the day. Watching, drooling, whatever you want to call it. They’d slid into their usual playful banter with ease. It could have been awkward between then, but she was relived that wasn’t the case.

“No, I take cabs like the common folk most of the time, in fact, I even drive myself on occasion.”

“Whoa, I’m impressed. That’s actually great news, I was just gaining an appreciation for the b.o./air freshener combo of these New York City cabs. Really…it’s true.”
 

“Is it possible that you’ve become an even bigger smart ass?”

“It’s possible, but I believe my current level is on par with what you’re accustomed to.” He smiled and pulled her into his side.
 

“Is any of this driving done on your motorcycle?”

“Yes, when the weather’s nice. Why? Would you care to go for a spin?”

“You know I would.” She was giddy at the prospect of getting on his bike again.

“Aren’t you curious how long I’ll be staying at your place? I mean, what if this is one of four bags I have hidden in various parts of the city?”

“No, doesn’t matter in the slightest. In fact, I need a major fix, so the longer the better. But I would advise against leaving your bags unattended in this city.”

“Well, it would be funny to see a homeless guy wearing my bra.”

She glanced over to find him staring at her. He was looking at her as if she might disappear.

“What? What is it?” she said softly.

He ran his thumb across her cheek bone. “To have my hands on you…it’s just surreal. I’ll be staring at you and touching you a lot, just so you know.”

“I think I can handle that.” She kissed his cheek, the soft stubble tickling her lips. “Thank you for being excited to see me. I should have called first, but I guess I was afraid you’d tell me not to come.”

“See, that shows you just don’t get it.”

“Get what?”

“That I’m in love with you and never stopped. I’m going to make every effort to show you just how glad I am that you’re here. And I mean every effort…” He breathed the last part in her ear. There was no hiding the chills that shot up her arms. But at least the throbbing parts underneath her skirt were her little secret.

“See, now is when privacy glass would come in handy. Maybe I should re-think this whole cab thing. Because the things I want to do to you right now do-not include an audience.” His hand was under her skirt and making its way up her thigh. Katrine let her knees fall to the sides. She wanted his hand on her so bad she almost didn’t care that the cab driver was trying hard not to look in the rear view mirror… almost.
 

“Later,” she whispered into his mouth, nibbling his lower lip. He groaned and pulled his hand away. She didn’t make any declarations of love. He needed to earn that from her. Of course she still did, but he didn’t need to know that yet.
 

A butterfly took flight in her stomach as they pulled in front of his building on the Upper West Side, 65
th
and Central Park West. She was going to see where he lived and Xander was excited about it, eager even. Xander seemed more open than before and she found that very appealing.
 

“You’ve changed,” she said as he took her hand and acknowledged the door man.

“Changed? For the better, I hope.”

“Yes, you seem a lot more, I don’t know, in touch with your feelings, for lack of a better phrase. When I first met you, you would’ve never brought me to your place, let alone be excited about the prospect. It’s nice.”

“Well, there’s nothing like a monumentally humbling experience to soften a narcissistic prick.”

“Wow, that was a mouthful. Ivy league, right?” she said with an elbow nudge. “And what experience was that, pray tell?” She had a few guesses.

“Oh, just losing the love of my life, then pining over her for a year,” his nonchalant tone did not match the emotion in his eyes.
 

“Oh that.” Katrine was cool on the outside, but her insides were undulating. And there may have been some back spinning, too. Yep, he said it. Love of his life. And he was missing her this whole time?
 

She was not expecting that.

“Not to mention a toe punch to the balls.” He looked down at her through his lashes and grinned.

 
She cringed and ducked her head. “Sorry about that, really I am.”

“It actually made me respect you more, and besides, I deserved it. But don’t worry. I’m still a complete dick when it comes to business.” The elevator opened on the top floor of the building. They emerged into a wide hallway with a concrete floor. Xander kissed her head and pulled her towards the unmarked door at the far end of the hall. Why did she feel like she was entering Willy Wonka’s factory or about to go down the rabbit hole?
 

“Katrine, welcome to my home.” He smiled and opened the door.

She stepped from concrete onto a light birch floor. The main living area was spacious with a large modern painting on the largest wall. The yellow background and strokes of red and orange doused the room with color.
 
A substantial flat screen was mounted above the fireplace. The pale sectional furniture was plush and modern in design. There were sky lights and the ceiling had various diagonal elevations. The kitchen was open, with black granite countertops that beautifully contrasted the white cabinets with frosted glass. She walked over to the floor to ceiling window that gave a view to a large terrace.

“I thought New York was notorious for its small spaces. This is huge!”
 

“Come on. I want to show you the rest.” He grabbed her hand and they went up a small flight of stairs leading to the bedrooms. There were three total. One he’d made his office, one
 
was a guest room. “This room doesn’t get much use. In fact, I don’t think that bed’s ever been slept in.”
 

“Well, we’ll just have to break it in now, won’t we?” Katrine gave him a sultry look and walked back into the hall.

The final and largest was his bedroom. He held her hand as they walked into his room. The far wall was glass, filling the room with natural light. The king size bed in the center was covered with a white duvet and large brown pillows. The headboard was thick with swirled edges and a hand-carved Spanish medallion in the center. One wall had built-in shelves from floor to ceiling. She made her way over and started to glance at his pictures and books, running her fingers over the worn spines. “Ah, no male library would be complete without Salinger and Grisham,” she teased.

Tucked in one of the alcoves was a picture. It was Xander, maybe eight years old, holding the hand of a woman in a white sun dress. Her dark hair was hiding her face except for an angular jaw. You could see her mouth and the smile that was only for the adoring boy at her side. They were both barefoot in the sand, the wispy beach grass behind them, clear blue sky beyond. Katrine’s heart ached, not for the boy in the photo, but for the man who’d lost his mother way too soon.

Xander wrapped his arms around her waist and rested his chin on the top of her head. “That’s one of my favorite pictures of my mom. You can’t see her face, but the smile. Her smile is what I remember most.”

“Now I see where you get it. You have the most amazing smile. And you don’t just have one.”

“I don’t?”

She turned and wrapped her arms around his neck. “Uh-uh,. You have about a dozen smiles and each one is as adorable as the next.”

“Adorable? Can you use a more manly adjective at least?”

“How about smoldering, captivating…Better?”

“Much.” He gave her one of her favorites, the half smile that showed one deep dimple. Now he really kissed her, the tonsil tickle, molar checking kind of kiss. She gripped the soft material covering his shoulders. It was surprising how natural this felt. It had been forever since they’d kissed, yet it felt as if it were yesterday. Naked was inevitable, that much she knew, but not before some food and some conversation. She pulled back and smiled.

“I’ve really missed those lips,” Katrine admitted, walking over to her bag. A delicate wire frame beside his bed caught her eye , but it wasn’t the frame as much as the picture inside of it. She picked it up and gently swirled her finger tip over her own smiling face. She didn’t remember him taking this one, but she knew it was his bed at the hotel he called home last summer. They’d spent a lot of time under and on top of those soft white sheets.

“I’m glad to hear the pining wasn’t one sided.” He smiled shyly, well as shy as he got, anyway. She placed the frame back on his night stand. “Oh, I haven’t been pining, but I couldn’t exactly forget you, either.”
 

“That’s pretty much the same thing, don’t you think?”

“Nah, but I can’t believe a consummate bachelor such as yourself was crying over me. I’m sure you found ways to warm your bed. So you couldn’t have been pining that hard.” He didn’t correct her even though he’d shed an ocean of tears. He didn’t think she needed every detail of his misery. He also didn’t want to come off like a complete wuss. She may have kicked him in the balls, but he still had them.

Katrine pulled her suitcase out into the hall. She wanted to set up shop in the guest room.

“You’re staying in the guest room?” He was disappointed and didn’t bother hiding it. “I want you in my bed, Katrine. I know I may not have earned that right yet, but I will. Just give me a few hours.” He gave her a look and she rolled her eyes.

 
Cocky as ever.

“Xander, I showed up unannounced and we haven’t really spoken since last summer. I didn’t want to be presumptuous about the sleeping arrangements.”

“Presume away. There’s no way in hell I could sleep knowing you were in the bedroom next to mine. Especially if you still sleep in those tight little tank tops.” He grinned and grabbed her hand. “Do you?”

“I may have a tank top or two in my bag.” She continued her way into the guest bedroom, which had a French blue accent wall, with a white and blue duvet cover. The headboard was light gray with an antiqued finish. He told her he had someone purchase all of the furniture, but he had picked them all out. The man had some serious taste.