Tempting the Artist (4 page)

Luke frowned. “What support
group?”

“
A support group for any
man married to or dealing with a Jenkins woman.” Luke chuckled and
bumped his beer bottle to Zack’s in a toast.

“
Let me know when and where
the first meeting is being held.”

They hung out for another hour, and
Luke realized how much he had missed his old college buddy. He was
also reminded that he needed to get a life.

Luke walked the short distance to what
was quickly becoming his favorite hamburger joint in Mt. Adams. Not
because the food was all that great, but because it was near his
condominium and the service was fast.

He reached into his pocket for a pack
of cigarettes. He had been trying to stop smoking for over six
months, and though the nicotine craving was fading, he hadn’t
totally won the battle. His mind immediately went to Christina.
While they were together, he had come close, only having one or two
cigarettes a day. Once they parted ways, so did his will power to
quit.

Stopping a few feet from the entrance
to the restaurant, Luke lit a cigarette. That first puff always
relaxed him. Not that he was stressed, but there was something
about the smoothness of the smoke when he’d inhale, that brought a
certain peace.

Leaning against the brick of the
building, he took in his surroundings. At nine o’clock at night,
the area was still lively with twenty and thirty year olds bar
hopping. But it was nothing like New York. He had to admit, there
were some aspects of New York that he did miss. The bustling
sidewalks, the Broadway shows, and the food. God he missed the
food. New York had some of the best restaurants in the world, and
it would be worth a trip back for a slice of real pizza.

Yeah, he missed those things but gone
were stressful cases, sleepless nights, and cray-cray clients.
Those things alone made the move worthwhile.

Luke took a long drag from his
cigarette and almost choked on the smoke when he glanced up the
street. He’d know that sexy walk anywhere. The bounce of her hair,
the gentle sway of her hips from left to right, and that long
stride that made her look as if she were gliding instead of
walking.

Christina
.

What were the chances of him running
into her, especially roaming around this time of night? In all the
time of living in Cincinnati, he hadn’t seen her. At first, he had
been glad. Seeing her would bring back memories, and he didn’t want
thoughts of her to distract him from starting his new life. But it
hadn’t work.

He knew the moment she saw him. She
missed a step and almost dropped the paper bag she was carrying.
She slowed, and her mouth dropped open, but she quickly closed
it.

Still
beautiful
.

All the Jenkins women were gorgeous,
but it was Christina who had captured Luke’s attention from the
moment they met. He had never believed in love at first sight, but
that was exactly what he felt when he saw her at Zack’s birthday
party months ago. Even now, his pulse pounded, and his body stirred
with passion at the sight of her.

Picking up dinner all but forgotten,
his gaze took her in. Her head full of curls hanging well past her
shoulders were unruly as usual. Just the way he liked them. He
could still remember how soft they were to his touch, and he
couldn’t help but notice her attire or lack of. She was one of
those women who believed in being comfortable in whatever she wore.
And the fewer the clothes the better, especially when it came to
wearing a bra … or not.

Damn
.

The multi-color T-shirt only
emphasized the fact that she was braless. Her firm,
more-than-a-handful breasts dangled freely behind the thin
material, and of course, his body reacted immediately. Those baggy
cargo pants that he never liked might have fooled some, but he knew
what lay underneath. A tight ass and hips that had just the right
amount of curve, which had brought him more pleasure than any man
deserved.

She stopped two feet away, and they
stared at each other, neither saying a word. Luke could look at her
forever and not get tired. Her exotic eyes with naturally long
eyelashes had brought him to his knees plenty of times. His gaze
took in her perfect nose now sporting a small diamond stud
nose-ring that enhanced her sexiness. And those lips. Good Lord.
Those full, luscious, tempting …

Damn
. Why the hell was he torturing himself? Upon seeing her, he
should have nodded a greeting and headed in the opposite direction.
He also should still be angry with her for the way things ended
between them. Heck, he should just walk away and pretend he never
saw her. But he couldn’t. Like smoking, there was an insatiable
draw. She was an addiction he couldn’t quit.

“
You look good.” The words
tumbled out of his mouth before he could stop them. No hello, no
how are you, and no I’ve missed you like hell. Instead, he said the
first thing that popped into his head.

Real brilliant,
Counselor.

“
Uh, thanks,” Christina
said, totally caught off guard. At first, she thought her eyes were
playing tricks on her, especially since she had been thinking about
Luke only moments earlier. Thoughts of him had plagued her mind
every day since returning from New York. If only she could take
back that night or get a do-over. There were so many things she
would do differently.

“
Hi.”

The one word seemed so insufficient,
but it was the only word Christina could form at the moment. Seeing
him, the light scruff on his jaws and chin making him look sexier
than she remembered, seemed surreal. When she was walking toward
him, he had checked her out from the top of her head to the flip
flops on her feet. Now his penetrating eyes studied her face as if
seeing her for the first time.

“
Hi,” he finally said. His
dark eyes narrowed as he took a long drag on his cigarette and blew
the thin cloud of smoke away from her. His gaze never
wavered.

She hated to see he was still smoking,
but damn if he didn’t look sexy doing it. He had been trying to
quit for the longest and was doing so well before they broke
up.

“
I thought you were
quitting.” She nodded toward the cigarette between his
fingers.

“
I am.”

She waited, thinking that
he’d say more.
Oookay.
Silence stretched between them, and he took two more puffs
before snuffing his cigarette out against the brick wall behind
him.

“
So how have you
been?”

Terrible without you in my
life
is
what she
wanted to say, but instead she said, “I’ve been okay. With the
summer quickly approaching, things have been pretty busy at work.”
She had been assigned the lead on one of their larger projects,
making her days longer and busier than usual. “How are things with
you? Are you all settled in?”

“
I’m getting there. For the
most part, I’ve settled in. Still trying to get acclimated at the
firm.” He shrugged. “But I know it’ll take time.”

He pushed away from the building and
shoved his left hand into his front pants pocket. Of course, her
gaze followed his every move, appreciating how good he looked in
his blue pinstripe suit with a light-blue shirt and a designer tie
knotted perfectly. Most people would’ve rushed home to relieve
themselves of the confining material, but not him. That late at
night, he was still dressed in one of his ridiculously priced suits
looking like a walking marketing campaign for Armani. He definitely
looked out of place.

That area near downtown typically
attracted the hipster, free spirited type who wore colorful, baggy
clothing, and sometimes clothes with holes in them. And then there
was Luke. He looked as if he should be making deals on Wall Street.
But then again, there was a side of him that most people didn’t get
to see. A conundrum, the sexy bad-boy who grew up in Harlem could
freestyle the lyrics to a 2 Chainz song and then turn around and
passionately discuss the latest Senate bill. One of many aspects
about him, which fascinated her.

Say
something
.

They never had trouble communicating.
So his silence was unnerving. Maybe he was still angry with her,
but she wished he would yell, curse her out or something. Anything
to get a conversation going.

Christina shifted the paper bag in her
arms. They needed to talk about what happened in New York. Or at
least she wanted them to talk about that night.

“
I take it you were able to
find an apartment,” she said, assuming he was waiting for her to
get a conversation started.

“
Yeah, a condo about a
quarter of a mile that way.” He gestured with his thumb in the
opposite direction in which she lived. She was surprised to learn
that they lived so close to each other. “I heard you purchased
Zack’s old loft. Impressive.”

She shrugged. “Don’t be too impressed.
He gave me an unbelievable deal.” Christina knew Zack could have
easily gotten a cool mil for the place.

Christina fidgeted under Luke’s
scrutiny. She always felt as if his dark eyes could see into her
soul. But if that were the case, he’d know how much she missed him
and how she regretted the way things ended.

“
It’s good seeing you
again.”

“
Yeah, you too.”

She self-consciously rubbed the back
of her neck, her fingers tangling in her hair. She wanted so bad to
ask him why he hadn’t returned any of her calls. Yet, she kept her
mouth closed. She had hurt him. Why would he call?

Christina couldn’t take it anymore.
The uncomfortable silence was just that, uncomfortable.

“
Well, I’d better get
going. Take care.” She forced her feet to move and started to walk
around him. What she really wanted to do was pull his face to hers
and taste the lips that were just as tempting as they used to be.
She couldn’t. She wouldn’t put herself through that torture.
Besides, one kiss would never be enough.

His brows drew together, but she kept
moving, now anxious to get away from him. He touched her arm. “What
are you doing walking alone this late at night?”

She glanced down at his hand on her
arm, trying like crazy not to show how much his touch affected her.
Following her gaze, he quickly released her.

Hurt lodged in her gut. Luke had
always been a touchy feely person when it came to her. Even after
they had broken up, she had held out hope that they would find
their way back to each other. Now it seemed as if that would never
happen. He didn’t even want to touch her.

Hiding her disappointment, she backed
away and forced a smile to her lips. “I needed some air and wanted
a snack,” she lifted the paper bag of chips and cookies, “and it’s
a nice night. Besides, I only live a couple of blocks—”

“
CJ, we’ve talked about you
walking alone at night. It’s not safe.”

Was that concern she heard? Was it
possible that he still cared?

“
That was in New York.” She
loved walking along Fifth Avenue in Manhattan at all times of the
day, window-shopping, and people watching while Luke was at work.
He hated it. He didn’t care that there was usually a ton of people
out and about. He never wanted her walking alone.

He moved closer to her and she
swallowed hard. His sexy, confident swagger always turned her on.
Tonight was no different.

“
It’s not safe for you to
walk this time of night alone, anywhere.” He reached for her small
bag of food, cradling it in his left arm while his right hand
landed at the small of her back, nudging her in the direction of
her loft.

They had made it a half a block before
he dropped his hand from her back. Immediately she missed the
warmth she hadn’t felt in months. They walked in silence. She
wanted so bad to beg for his forgiveness and ask for another
chance, but he didn’t forgive easy. He had lost so much over the
years. His mother had died when he was ten and his father, former
military who eventually became a cop, had died in the line of duty
the same year Luke graduated from law school. Besides some close
friends who were like brothers, he was alone.

“
Though it’s not necessary,
thanks for walking with me.”

“
It’s not a problem. I just
wish you would take heed to my numerous warnings. We might not be
together, but I still care about your safety.”

“
I appreciate your
concern.”

“
But let me guess, you’re
going to keep doing it,” he said in resignation.

A smile lifted the corners of her
mouth. Apparently, he remembered how stubborn she could be. She
couldn’t help herself. It was in her genes. All the Jenkins women
were stubborn.

They continued walking in silence.
When two guys, who looked as if they had had a few drinks staggered
up the street toward them, Luke moved closer to her. His hand went
automatically to the small of her back, pulling her closer.
Christina’s pulse kicked up. It took everything she had not to wrap
her arm around his waist and never let go. Instead, she molded
against his side, loving the feel of him against her
body.