Twisted Fire (9 page)

“
If you take up with me, you will come to realise very quickly that I do not share.”

“
I haven’t made up my mind about that yet and I like to keep my options open,” she said flippantly. “Now would you kindly release me?”

“
Mitchell?”

She rolled eyes. “You cannot ban me from talking to your brother.”

“
Watch me.”

She wriggled to see if she could break free and found it to be pointless; he was way too strong.

“
Fine, I’ll stop flirting with him.”

“
That will do for now.”

He grudgingly removed his hands and watched her stroll gracefully back to the party.

Chapter 9

Anticipation

When Charlotte awoke the following morning she wondered for a moment if it had all been real. Realising it actually happened, she touched her fingers to her lips, remembering the feel of his pressing urgently against hers and she smiled. Her thoughts returned to the night before.

For the remainder of the reception, she’d noticed serious dark blue eyes following her movements and couldn’t help notice his scowl when she’d finished her conversation with Mitch. Little did the gorgeous Jared know, she had merely been extracting information about him.

Then, finally, when he’d asked her to dance and his warm hand was on her back again, it took all her self control to refrain from kissing him again. Sparks flowed through their fingertips while chemistry surrounded them. How she’d managed to stay conscious was a mystery as she didn’t remember taking a single breath.

What a surprise he’d turned out to be. Through all the seriousness there appeared to be a softer, more romantic side and she was pleased to learn his thoughts had strayed to her, just as hers had to him, over the past weeks. The anticipation of the coming evening was swirling and building inside of her

There was a whole day to get through and as much as she would have loved to snuggle in bed and daydream, she attempted to focus. She’d promised to help Chelsea pack for their honeymoon which they were leaving for that afternoon. She decided perhaps some studying should be squeezed in at some stage too. With that she dragged herself out of bed to seek out the newlyweds.

She wondered downstairs, rubbing sleepy eyes, to be greeted by the enticing aroma of brewing coffee wafting from the kitchen, a welcome to which she’d easily become accustomed.

“
Morning, newlyweds,” she said cheerfully as she wandered into the kitchen. “How is married life?”

“
Already blissful,” Chelsea said before smiling at her husband. “You’re in a good mood.”

“
Yes indeed, I have a hot date tonight.” Charlotte poured a much needed caffeine hit.

“
Oh really, who with?”

“
Don’t play coy, you probably already know.” Charlotte rolled her eyes.

Chelsea even battered her eyelashes in an attempt to enhance her innocence. “How would I know?”

“
You have an uncanny way of finding out everything.”

“
Well, I thought Jared was judgmental and arrogant so I figured it must be someone else, like maybe Mitch.” An innocent smile adorned Chelsea’s face. Charlotte was tempted to pour coffee over her head. Best not to ruin the honeymoon, so instead she grinned.

“
You know it’s with Jared. It turned out he wasn’t as he seemed and I think he discovered the same thing about me.”

“
He can be like that,” Lucas said. “When I have to work a case with him, I find him really hard to read. If I didn’t know him better, I would think he was aloof. He takes everything very seriously, especially relationships, and has never gone into anything half-heartedly. If he asked you out he’s definitely interested or he wouldn’t have bothered.”

“
We’re not going out. He’s cooking me dinner at his house,” she said with a smirk.

“
He doesn’t sleep around so dinner is all you’ll get,” Lucas told her with a tease in his tone.

“
Of course. What kind of girl do you think I am?” she said coyly.

“
The fun kind.”

“
Lucas,” Chelsea scolded him. “Don’t talk like that about my sister!”

“
Sorry, babe,” he said to Chelsea before he winked at Charlotte, who winked back.

“
Maybe I’m going to turn over a new leaf and be a bit more serious. I
am
ready to settle down into a nice comfortable relationship and maybe this is the guy to do it with.”

“
Don’t get ahead of yourself, Charlotte,” Chelsea advised her.

“
Hey, now who needs to lighten up?” She winked at Lucas.

“
I’m sure Charlotte will be OK, honey. She’s a big girl and you have lots of packing to do,” he told her affectionately.

“
OK, big guy, I’m going.” She placed her coffee cup in the sink and offered Lucas a brief kiss.

“
Do you still need me to help you?” Charlotte asked.

“
Yes, please.”

Charlotte packed while Chelsea retrieved half of her clothes from the cupboard and drawers. As Charlotte had risen late as usual, it took what was left of the morning to complete the task.

“
Are you sure you have enough?” Charlotte asked.

“
You know me, I like to pack carefully.”

“
Carefully! That is an understatement. I have never actually helped you do this before and didn’t realise exactly what it would entail. I don’t know if I will volunteer again.” They both laughed. “What happens if you want to shop while you’re there? You won’t have any room.”

“
I can always buy another suitcase.”

“
Pardon?” Lucas asked from his relaxed position lying back on the small space left on the bed that wasn’t buried in clothes.

His packed suitcase sat downstairs ready for their departure. He’d come up to check on what was holding up Chelsea’s luggage.

“
You heard. Don’t deprive your new wife the opportunity to shop while she’s in Paris.”

“
I wouldn’t do that, babe, but another suitcase?”

“
You never know.” She shrugged, Lucas shook his head and Charlotte laughed.

Charlotte drove them to the airport, and after arriving home found it peacefully quiet and for the first time ever appreciated the alone time. She was starting to feel nervous about her dinner with Jared. What if he realised he’d made a mistake and was just overwhelmed by the romance of the evening? In the cold light of day, would he still think she was beautiful and interesting?

After changing several times, she finally settled for casual - a tight fitting pair of jeans and her favourite red strapless tube top. She was just adding lip gloss after pulling on her black calf length, high heeled boots when she heard the door. A sudden wave of anxiety washed through her again.

Telling herself to stop being ridiculous, she went to answer the door.

Chapter 10

Dinner

Jared waited what seemed like forever for her to answer. He was on edge. Would she still look past his serious exterior, as she did the previous evening, now that the romance of the wedding had faded? As the seconds ticked over, his concern and anxiety intensified.

When she finally opened the door, he was breathless again. Did she have any idea how beautiful she was? He realised once again his imagination while trying to sleep the previous evening had not compared to the real thing, not even close. Yesterday she’d looked positively stunning, today, looking casual and natural, she was amazing.

“
You look beautiful,” he said.

“
Thanks.” She blushed. “You don’t look too bad yourself.”

Tonight he was wearing jeans with a blue t-shirt which once again set off his eyes and she found herself lost for words all over again.

“
Are you blushing?” he asked her, feeling a brand new affection for her. “A demure side, very endearing.”

She continued to blush.

“
Stop it, honey,” he said hoarsely, “or there won’t be any dinner.”

“
Shall we go?” she asked, regaining some self-control. “I’m very interested to try out your culinary skills.”

He guided her out to his car, which in her outlook was more like a truck. It was a black SUV to be precise. It was clean, shiny and immaculate inside and Charlotte was impressed by his obvious diligence with, and pride in, his possessions. The drive over was filled with Charlotte’s nervous chatter, much to her chagrin and his amusement. The short nervous journey seemed to last forever to her and she was relieved when they arrived.

The moment they pulled up at his house, she was instantly amazed. It was a large contemporary home with a terrace which ran around its circumference. The front garden was landscaped and neat and, as a whole, the house gave off a welcoming ambience.

After helping her from the car, he showed her inside where she saw a long, wide hallway. A large sitting room branched off to the left, containing informal furniture which appeared cosy. To the right was what she assumed to be the main bedroom, as she caught site of a very large bed surrounded by smart, uncluttered furniture and what she deduced to be a bathroom at the end of a walk-through wardrobe.

As she followed him down the hall, Charlotte observed a couple of bedrooms along the way, one looking extremely untidy and she was surprised he had a room that unkempt. As if reading her mind, he looked over his shoulder.

“
Mitch is staying here and he has always been messy,” he smiled. “I have sent him out for the evening. I don’t trust him to leave you alone.”

He turned and continued down the hall to the open plan dining area with the kitchen to the left. To the right was a spacious, sunken family room with sliding doors which led out onto a balconied deck and, going by what she could see out of the window in front of her, she assumed it would have a sensational view.

The kitchen was vast and modern and appeared to have all the conveniences of a chef’s haven. It was enclosed by a long breakfast bar with three stools, which in her opinion looked more like lounge chairs than stools. It was luxurious but industrious and she thought this was probably his favourite room.

The dining room housed a large conventional table and chairs while the family room was occupied by a very large television with a surround sound system and what appeared to be more comfortable furniture. She appreciated the home theatre feel. She enjoyed watching a good movie and thought this might be a common interest.

“
Your house is beautiful,” she said to him, “and so … neat.”

“
Thanks, I had it designed so I could choose the décor and have the exact kitchen I required.”

“
Well, you chose well.” She smiled and his heart lurched.

“
Would you like a drink?”

She nodded.

He went to the large stainless steel, two door fridge with what appeared to be an ice and water dispenser in the door, and pulled out a bottle of champagne.

“
How’s this?”

“
Good but bubbles make me giddy.”

“
Sounds … interesting.”

He poured two glasses and led her out the back to the patio and she was immediately amazed by the view. It was better than she’d assumed, no more or less stunning as the view which was visible from the balconies at home except the difference here was he lived closer to the beach, therefore more landscape than buildings could be seen.

“
Wow,” she gasped. “What a view.”

“
You’re telling me,” he replied while looking at her.

He strode towards her to reclaim her glass and positioned it with his on the table. Placing one hand on each side of her face, he gazed into her eyes before whispering, “I have to kiss you again.”

He did just that, his hands never leaving her face, whilst hers hung limply at her sides. She’d lost all ability to move. After bestowing her with another toe curling, passionate kiss, he pulled back to stare into her eyes once more.

“
What are you doing to me?”

“
I could ask you the same thing.”