Seduction (Club Destiny) (7 page)

“Thanks.” Alex
turned the bottle so he could read the label.

“My brother said
you like wine, and I’m not an expert, but I’ve heard that’s a good one.”

“One of the
best.” Alex said, still shocked that she had gone to this much trouble. The
wine she brought was hard to find, and since he hadn’t given her much notice,
she obviously had it on hand.

Tipping the
bottle in the direction of the kitchen, Alex pointed the way. “Dinner’s almost
ready. As a matter of fact, I better check the steaks.”

Alex left
Ashleigh in the kitchen where she was sitting her purse down on the bar and
openly eyeing his space. He hoped she liked what she saw because Alex had
worked hard for his home. Mainly physical work because he had designed the
house himself, hired the subcontractors, and after many hours of blood, sweat,
and tears – his own – he’d finally accomplished what he was going for.

The result was a
three bedroom house that he could guarantee was unlike any other in his small
neighborhood. Sitting on three acres, he had the privacy he desired, along with
a view to rival them all.

Similar to
Ashleigh’s house, Alex’s had an open floor plan and a large manmade pond behind
it. Since he hadn’t wanted to block his view, he had forgone a fence, leaving
remarkably little privacy should one of his neighbors behind him choose to
break out the binoculars.

A pool had been
a must, due to the hot Texas summers, and he had creatively managed to block
the view of prying neighbors by strategically placing various plants and trees.
Not that he had needed any privacy thus far, but if Ashleigh was going to be a
regular guest, Alex knew all bets were off.

Flipping open
the lid on the grill, Alex checked the steaks before removing them from the
grate and sliding them onto a nearby plate.

When he reached the
kitchen, Ashleigh had donned an oven mitt and was pulling the bread from the
oven. His eyes raked over the woman performing a mundane domestic chore, and
another surge of lust zipped through his veins. What was it about her that made
him go up in flames?

Setting the
plate on the table, Alex returned to the stove to get the roasted vegetables
he’d cooked earlier, before following Ashleigh into the dining room once again.

Waiting until
she sat, Alex poured the wine then took the seat across from her. He realized
he’d never invited a woman back to his house for dinner, and having Ashleigh
there was making him nervous. There were so many things to think about – were
the steaks cooked right? Did he forget anything? Did she like wine or did she
just bring it?

Disgusted with
himself for being obnoxious, Alex took a deep breath before filling his plate.
He wasn’t allowed to be nervous. He wasn’t a damn teenager.

“This is great,”
Ashleigh commented, breaking some of the tension.

“Thanks.”

“I didn’t
realize you cooked.”

Alex glanced up
from cutting his steak and noticed the mischievous gleam in Ashleigh’s eyes.
Was she teasing him?

“I bet you
didn’t know that I went to culinary school either, did you?” Alex taunted her.

“Actually, no.”
Ashleigh’s eyes widened like his statement was the most absurd thing she had
ever heard.

“Well, that’s
not surprising since I didn’t actually go to culinary school.”

Her smile lit up
the room, and that seductive laughed warmed him from the inside out. How he had
managed to stay away from her for so long was beyond him. Other than the random
company party that Ashleigh would attend, or an impromptu invite to Xavier’s
house, Alex had managed to keep Ashleigh off his mind. But the moment he saw
her again, no matter how much time had passed, he’d spend days trying to get
her out of his head.

That had all
been up until he had kissed her. Since then, there was no erasing her from his
mind. She was a permanent fixture at this point.

“Dylan tells me
CISS is branching out.”

Alex took the
opportunity for what it was.

“That’s the
plan. XTX is still our biggest client, but we’ve seen an abundance of interest
lately. Cole Ackerley attended a vendor’s conference in Vegas earlier in the
month which seemed to have drummed up some business.”

“How’s Dylan
doing with all of this?”

It was no secret
that Ashleigh and her brother were close. Alex also knew she was concerned
about Dylan and the way he’d been coping with his wife’s death eight years
prior. He wasn’t normally one to share personal information about the people he
knew, but he knew Ashleigh only wanted to know because she was loved Dylan.

“He’s coming
around.” Alex told her as he placed his fork on his plate and reached for his
wine glass. “I think now that he’s close to Stacey, and Nate is doing better,
it’ll get easier for him.”

“He’s had a hard
time since Meghan died.” Ashleigh admitted, a sudden sadness etched into her
beautiful features.

“It’s been a
long time.” Eight years to be exact. And though they had all given him a wide
berth, it hadn’t been easy. Being his friend, Alex had considered interfering
on more than one occasion, but thought better of it. Dylan had been devastated
after losing his wife and Alex figured it wasn’t his place to determine when he
should put the past behind him and move on.

“He’s been
cooped up for years, running that ranch and essentially living in total
seclusion. I don’t see how he could get out from under the memories even if he
wanted to.”

Ashleigh watched
him, her brown eyes full of emotion. “When he tried to talk me into moving
back,” she began, “I told him that the only way I would come back was if he
did. That resulted in a couple of long discussions, but I think in the end, it
all worked out.”

“How does it
feel to be back?”

Ashleigh picked
at the food on her plate before turning her attention to him. “I didn’t think I
would ever want to, but I’ll be the first to say it’s been good for me.”

“How so?” Or
better yet, why hadn’t she wanted to come back? That wasn’t a question he was
willing to ask her yet.

“Dylan isn’t the
only one who’s been isolated. And just like my brother, I brought it on
myself.” She told him, sipping her wine. “Last night’s party? That’s the first
time I’ve been out for anything other than book signings or one of my author
groups.”

Alex could
totally relate. “Don’t feel bad. Other than work, I don’t venture out much.
Logan’s always trying to get me to hang out, but now that he’s married, it
isn’t the same.” Alex and Logan had been known to tie one on every now and
then, but since the man up and got married, Alex hardly saw him.

Other than the
party Ashleigh was referring to, Alex hadn’t gone out much lately either. Not
even on a date.

Ever since the
word had gotten out that Ashleigh was thinking about moving home, Alex hadn’t
found much interest in dating. What that said about him, he didn’t know.

“So, tell me
about this book writing business.” Alex said, encouraging her to open up more.

~~*~~

Ashleigh had to
hand it to Alex; he was trying hard to make this as uncomfortable as possible.
It wasn’t working.

From the moment
she pulled into his driveway, she wondered what brought her to this point. Not
to dinner specifically, but to Alex in general. For years Ashleigh worked to
avoid him and he’d returned the favor.

If only she had
forgotten about that one night the same way he had, she might just be able to
sit at the dinner table, carry on mundane conversation and not feel as though
she were not supposed to be there.

She could go on
and on about writing, or any other topic he seemed to be interested in, but in
the end, where would it leave them?

“What are we
doing?” Ashleigh finally asked, sitting her fork down and pushing her plate
away.

“Last I checked,
this was called dinner.” Alex commented slyly, but the concerned look in his eye
told Ashleigh that he was thinking the same thing she was.

“Why are we
doing this, Alex?” She really wanted to know.

The kiss they
shared last night was as unexpected as it was riveting. Having him show up at
her house unannounced, spend two hours running with her, had been overwhelming,
to say the least. And now, here they were attempting to converse over dinner
when it was clear the only thing going on between them was a little chemistry.

Ok, a lot of
chemistry.

Instead of
answering, Alex surprised her by pushing back his chair and taking his plate to
the kitchen. Feeling like she had brought the black cloud over their attempt at
a date, she followed behind him, scooping up her dishes as well.

Depositing them
alongside his on the counter, Ashleigh stopped to look at him. Watching as he
pulled a long neck bottle from the refrigerator, she waited.

And waited.

Instead of
talking to her, he apparently decided to ignore her altogether. Proven when he
opened the beer then continued out onto the back porch leaving her staring
after him.

Figuring he
needed a little space, and she wasn’t opposed to the idea either, not to
mention she wasn’t sure what to do next, Ashleigh busied herself with cleaning
the dishes and putting them in the dishwasher.

That didn’t take
as long as she hoped and she found herself fidgeting as she looked from the
back door then back to the wall. What the hell was she supposed to do now?

If she was
smart, she would grab her purse and walk out the door, leaving Alex to his
temper tantrum. She should pretend this never happened and do her level best to
forget what it felt like to kiss Alex McDermott. Forget how sexy the man looked
in running shorts and a tight t-shirt. And forget that, for most of her adult
life, she had lusted after this man.

Since that
wasn’t likely to happen, she did what her heart warned her not to do. She
turned on her heel and stormed out onto the back porch.

***
~~ *** ~~ *** ~~ ***

“Thank you for
dinner.” Ashleigh stated as the door clicked shut behind her.

She fully
intended to tell him goodbye and then be on her merry way, but a sliver of hope
surged up from somewhere deep inside when Alex turned and shot a glance her
way. He didn’t look happy, and that tiny spark was doused the moment he turned
his back on her again.

“Alrighty then.”
She muttered before inserting some steel into her spine and standing up
straight. “I guess I’ll be seeing ya.” With that Ashleigh turned to go.

“Wait.” Alex’s voice
broke the silence and had Ashleigh stopping in her tracks.

She had one hand
on the door knob, ready to haul ass and pretend this night never happened –
pretend the entire day had never happened. Instead, she stood there,
anticipating what he would say next. To her dismay, he didn’t continue, and
with a suddenly heavy heart, she knew there was nothing left to say.

They had given
it a shot, Alex even more so. After years and years of the chase, apparently
the next step wasn’t all that he thought it would be. She turned the knob and
took one step inside before she was abruptly pulled backward, Alex’s solid body
colliding with her back, his arms wrapping around her.

In that one
instance, all thought was erased from her mind as she allowed Alex to turn her
in his arms, pulling her against him and all of the pent up frustration burst
free when his mouth collided with hers.

Lips, firm and
soft, melded with hers, and she let herself get lost in his kiss. Wrapping her
arms around him, everything she had ever held back came barreling forth in a
rush, leaving her breathless and aching for this man.

Sliding her
hands into the hair at his nape, she let the silky, cool strands caress her
fingertips. When he backed her against the rough stone of the house, his
erection pressing intimately against her lower belly, Ashleigh thought of
nothing more than having him the way she almost had him so many years ago.

When he cupped
her face in a gentle, tender gesture, Ashleigh fought to maintain control. The
heat she could handle. The inferno erupting between them was familiar,
expected, but the way he touched her, held her close, was more than she
expected. More than she wanted. When he broke the kiss and pressed his forehead
to hers, Ashleigh tried to breathe normally.

“I’m sorry,” he
mumbled, his breath warm against her cheek.

“For what?” She
didn’t want apologies, she wanted to go home and forget this night ever
happened.

“For making this
awkward.”

“Well, I think
it’s safe to say it’s not your fault.”

“In a way, it
was.” Alex pulled away, taking her hand in his and walking toward the steps
that led down into the yard. When he stopped and sat, she had no choice but to
follow suit.

“I’ve waited a
long time for this, Ash.”

Ashleigh sat
motionless; her hand enveloped in his much larger, much warmer one. The deep
rumble of his voice was like warm honey sliding over her skin and the remnants
of his kiss had her lips tingling.