Whatever You Like (21 page)

A
t the end of February, Lena received a frantic phone call from Zandra. “Do you have any plans tonight?”

Lena chuckled dryly. “Is that a joke?” Zandra, of all people, should know that she'd been living practically like a recluse for the past four months.

“So…does that mean you're free?”

“Yes.” A wary note crept into Lena's voice. “Free for what?”

Zandra sighed. “I need a
huge
favor.”

Now Lena was downright suspicious. “How huge?”

“Well, I have a new client—”

“Zandra.”

“I know, I know. You're retired from the business. Believe me, I wouldn't ask you for this favor if I had other options. But the girl who was supposed to go out with this client had a family emergency, and no other escort meets his specifications. He's hosting a private
dinner party for some clients and he wants someone who speaks Italian. You are—
were
—the only other escort who does. So can you help me out?”

Lena groaned, wavering. “I don't know, Zandra. I really wasn't planning—”

“Please, Lena?” Zandra implored. “You'd really be doing me a favor.”

And because Zandra had been there for her these past four months, always giving her a shoulder to cry on, Lena relented with a deep sigh. “All right. I'll go. But just this once.”

“I'll never ask again,” Zandra assured her.

 

So there Lena was on another Saturday night, preparing to meet her first client in months. She stared listlessly out the window as the limo glided down Lake Shore Drive, traveling past a stretch of elegant houses situated on pristine lawns before reaching a sprawling lakefront property.

The driver pulled into the circular driveway, then climbed out and opened the back door. Lena murmured an absent thanks as she stepped out and started up the cobblestone walk toward the imposing stone house.

She'd just raised her hand to press the doorbell when the door suddenly swung open.

She froze, stunned to find herself staring into the face of the man she'd been trying to forget for the past four months. Four of the longest, most excruciating months of her life.

“I don't believe this,” she whispered, shaking her head slowly. “She set me up.”

Roderick gazed at her. “Lena—”

She spun on her heel and started back down the walk.

“Don't go,” he called after her.

Her heart twisted at the raw desperation in his voice, but her wounded pride kept her feet moving determinedly forward.

“I love you.”

That stopped her cold.

But she didn't turn around. She didn't want him to see the tears glistening in her eyes, blurring her vision.

“I love you,” Roderick repeated in a husky, ravaged voice. “I can't live without you anymore. I don't even know why I tried to in the first place.”

Lena dragged in a shaky breath that burned in her lungs.

“Living in that apartment has been pure hell,” he continued raggedly. “Everywhere I look I see reminders of you. And the teahouse? I haven't stepped foot inside that room since you left. I can't even walk past the closed doors without remembering the night we spent in there. I saw a geisha hurrying down the street one day, and I had to excuse myself from a tableful of Japanese businessmen just to get my bearings. When I came back, they looked at me like I'd lost my damn mind.” He paused, a note of wry humor entering his voice. “If you'd been there, you could have told me just how bad they were talking about me.”

That coaxed a reluctant smile out of Lena.

“I've been going out of my mind without you,” he confessed. “You can't even begin to imagine.”

Oh yes, I can,
she thought.

“I love you, Lena Morrison,” he said thickly, coming closer. “And the best part is, I know you love me, too.”

“You don't know anything,” she mumbled.

“Yes, I do.” His voice softened. “I saw the picture.”

That, finally, broke her.

The tears she'd been keeping in check spilled down
her face. As her shoulders began to shake with helpless sobs, she felt his strong arms go around her and haul her against his chest.

“I shouldn't have stayed away so long,” he whispered fiercely. “I was so stubborn and
stupid!
”

“Me, too,” Lena cried.

He crushed her to him, kissing her forehead, nose and lips, then rubbing his cheek back and forth against her hair as if he just wanted to absorb her into his body all at once.

“I couldn't bring myself to look at the photos we took together,” he confessed. “I wish to God I had. Maybe I would've come to my senses a helluva lot sooner.”

Lena smiled through her tears. “I couldn't bring myself to delete them. Came pretty close several times, but I just couldn't hit that button.”

“I'm glad.”

She lifted her head to meet his tender gaze. “So am I.”

As he gently brushed the tears from her face, she blurted accusingly, “I sent you a text message.”

“You did?” He looked surprised. “When?”

“A month ago. You never even bothered to respond.”

He groaned with frustration. “That's because I never got it. Some asshole hacked into my phone, so I had to get the number changed. I swear to you, Lena, I
never
would have ignored a message from you.”

A wave of relief swept through her, and she gave him a soft, tremulous smile. “I believe you.”

“Good.” He stroked a hand down one side of her hair. “What did your message say?”

“The truth.” She looked into his eyes. “I didn't sleep with my client that night. I only said those things to hurt you, because you'd hurt me. I couldn't believe you'd
accuse me of being with another man so soon after everything we'd been through.”

Deep regret filled Roderick's eyes. “Words can't express how sorry I am for doing that to you. The thought of you being intimate with another man—
any
man, client or not—just drove me out of my damn mind. I flew home that weekend to talk to you, to see if we could work things out. I couldn't get in touch with you, so I cornered Zandra and made her tell me where you were that night.”

He shook his head, his expression turning grim. “When I got to the party and saw you with another guy, it just sent me into a tailspin.”

“Because I slept with Glenn,” Lena stated flatly. “If I didn't already have a track record, you wouldn't have jumped to conclusions about me and Dylan that night.”

Roderick frowned. “I didn't think you had a ‘track record,' Lena.”

“But you
were
angry about Glenn.”

He hesitated, then nodded reluctantly.

“Glenn was a mistake. I'd just started—”

“You don't have to explain anything, Lena.”

“Yes, but I want you to know.” She cupped his face between her hands, pinning him with a direct gaze. “I'd just started working at the agency. I was inexperienced, and I was still a bit dazzled by the idea of rich, successful men paying for my company. Glenn was very sweet and charming. But he had no interest in me beyond that one night.”

Roderick's expression softened with understanding. “I didn't realize he'd hurt you.”

“How could you have? I never told you the whole story.”

“I never asked.” He grimaced. “I didn't want to know.”

“I sensed that. And I was too embarrassed to tell you anyway.”

He searched her eyes. “Is that why you were so resistant to me? Because you thought I was only after one thing?”

“Weren't you?” she countered, giving him a pointed look. “You propositioned me for sex, Roderick.”

He had the decency to look sheepish. “Maybe that's what I was after at first,” he admitted, “but it didn't stay that way for very long. I fell hard for you, Lena, and it scared the hell out of me.”

She smiled softly. “I know the feeling.”

He caught her hands and began kissing her fingertips one by one. “Do you know when I realized that I was in love with you?”

She shook her head, shivering at the warm brush of his lips.

“It was the day we went looking for apartments.”

“Really?” She grinned impishly. “Because of the way I handled your snooty real estate agent?”

Roderick chuckled. “That
was
enjoyable.”

“Very.”

“But, no, that wasn't it. What got to me more than anything was that you cared about my happiness. It mattered to you that my home should be just that—a home, not a showplace. I don't know of any other woman who would've turned up her nose at a luxury penthouse. But you did, and that meant more to me than you can ever imagine.”

Smiling tenderly, Lena curved a hand against his cheek. “I love you.”

He lowered his head and kissed her as deeply and
intensely as he'd kissed her that night in the teahouse. And this time, there was no mistaking the depth of his feelings.

Linking her hands behind his neck, Lena nibbled his lower lip. “You were supposed to keep me warm this winter,” she reminded him.

“Well, technically,” he drawled, low and husky, “winter's not over yet.”

“That's true.”

“So what do you say we go into hibernation for a couple weeks, starting tonight?”

Her belly quivered. “We
do
have a lot of lost time to make up for,” she purred.

“A
lot,
” he agreed, his erection nudging her stomach.

Lena stepped away with a low, naughty laugh. “Down, boy. We don't want to scandalize your neighbors. Speaking of which,” she said, motioning toward the house behind him, “is this your new home?”

He nodded, holding her gaze. “I was hoping you'd share it with me.”

Her heart went into overdrive. She stared at him, afraid to misinterpret what he was asking. “You want me to move in with you?”

He lifted her face in his palms and looked into her eyes. “I want you to marry me.”

Fresh tears welled in her eyes, and she swallowed hard. “Okay,” she whispered simply.

Roderick hesitated uncertainly, as though he hadn't heard her. “Was that a yes?”

“Absolutely.”

Looking both relieved and overjoyed, Roderick hugged her like he'd never let go. She wouldn't have complained if he didn't.

At length they drew apart and smiled warmly at each other.

“So what do you think of our new home?” Roderick asked her. “Did I do okay?”

Lena surveyed the large, beautiful house and grinned. “I'll let you know after I've been inside.”

Roderick chuckled. “On that note…” Glancing over her shoulder, he signaled to the driver that he could leave. As the limo departed, Roderick swept Lena up into his arms, then frowned.

“What?” she asked.

“You've lost a lot of weight.”

She shrugged. “Nursing a broken heart will do that to you.”

His frown deepened. “We've gotta fatten you up,” he muttered, striding up the walk toward the house.

Lena laughed. “No man's ever said
that
to me before. But since you mentioned feeding me, I could go for some Japanese food.”

“I've already got you covered.”

“You do? Is that what we're having tonight?”

“Yep.” Reaching the front door, he said, “I can't wait to show you the garden. And I think you'll be very pleased with the centerpiece.”

Lena stared at him, her heart stirring hopefully. “You built a teahouse? A real teahouse?”

Roderick slanted her a slow, mysterious smile. “You'll see.”

And then he opened the door and swept her across the threshold. Into their new home. Into their new life.

Four months later

“W
ake up, sleepyhead.”

Lena groaned softly. “Go 'way. You promised to let me sleep in after you kept me up all night.”

Roderick chuckled, gently kissing her bare shoulder. “I
did
let you sleep in. It's almost noon.”

“I don't care,” she mumbled groggily. “I need more rest.”

“Okay,” Roderick drawled, his warm breath caressing her nape, “but we'll be arriving at our destination soon, and ready or not, this love boat's gonna be overrun with our family members.”

Lena rolled over in bed and stared up at him. “Why didn't you say so?”

He grinned. “I just did.”

“You should have said that at first.”

“Why? It wouldn't have gotten you up any faster—you're still lying there, lazybones.”

She poked her tongue out at him, and he laughed.

Sobering after a moment, he gazed down at her. “Good morning, wife.”

Pleasure coursed through Lena's veins, and she smiled shyly at him. “Good morning, husband.”

A broad grin swept across his face. “God, I
love
how that sounds.”

“So do I.” She sighed contentedly. “I still can't believe we're on our honeymoon.”

“It's been amazing.”

“It really has.”

After an unforgettably romantic wedding, they'd embarked on a Caribbean cruise aboard Roderick's yacht. The past two weeks they'd spent alone together had been sheer bliss, making up for the long, torturous months they'd been apart. Lena almost wished they hadn't invited their families to meet them in St. Lucia.

As if he'd read her mind, Roderick chuckled. “Just remember, it was
your
idea.”

Lena grinned sheepishly. “I know. I'm just being greedy, wanting to keep you all to myself a little longer. But I'm glad we invited them. Morgan really needs a vacation from her job. And Poppa deserves a reward for working so hard in therapy.”

Although her grandfather hadn't been able to walk her down the aisle on her wedding day—he'd wheeled alongside her with tears of joyous pride streaming down his face—he was making good progress, thanks to the assistance of Margaret Jacobs.

Everyone believed Cleveland would walk any day now, and because Lena didn't want to miss the momentous occasion, she'd begged him to accept
Roderick's invitation to move in with them. But Cleveland had chosen to remain at Lake view Manor, wanting to give Lena and Roderick a chance to settle into their new home as husband and wife. He'd even hinted that they should get right to work on giving him great-grandchildren.

Roderick smiled, tenderly stroking Lena's cheek. “I love the way you always look out for your family.”

“I'm not the only one.” She gave him a knowing smile. “Isn't that why you invited Zandra on this trip? For your brother's sake?”

Roderick blinked innocently. “Zandra's always been like a member of the family. She goes everywhere with us.”

“Uh-huh.” But Lena knew better. If the dynamic duo of Roderick and Remy Brand teamed up against Zandra, the poor woman didn't stand a chance.

Chuckling at the thought, Lena said, “This ought to be a
very
interesting week.”

“I'm counting on it,” Roderick murmured under his breath.

“What was that?”

“Nothing.” He grinned at her. “Now are you gonna get up, woman, or do I have to drag you out of that bed and carry you over my shoulder to the bathroom?”

Lena sighed in resignation. “Fine, bossy. I'll get up. But first—” She pulled him down for a kiss, then quickly shoved him onto his back and straddled him, startling a laugh out of him.

“Nice moves, samurai,” he told her.

She grinned, blowing her tousled hair out of her face. “Think we have time for a quick game of Capture the Pirate Captain?” she purred seductively. “I brought handcuffs this time.”

“What? Fresh out of manacles?”

She winked. “A girl's gotta improvise.”

Roderick grinned. “And here you've got my mom thinking you're such a sweet, wholesome young lady.
Tsk-tsk.
”

Lena grinned mischievously. “Everyone has their secrets.”

“So true.” His hands roamed up her thighs and cupped her bare bottom. “I suppose it's not too late to ask the captain to slow down.”

“Mmm. That'd be good.” Lena kissed her way down his bare chest, feeling his muscles quiver at her touch. She grasped the waistband of his dark shorts and tugged.

Without warning Roderick flipped her over, pinning her beneath his heavy body.

“Hey!” she sputtered indignantly.

A wicked gleam filled his eyes. “I've got an idea. How about we play Capture the Maiden instead?”

Lena shot him an exasperated look. “I swear, you're such a control freak.”

He grinned. “And you adore me anyway.”

“I do. God help me.”

Sobering, Roderick stared down at her, his eyes tracing her features in a way that made her feel positively reborn. “I love you so much,” he said huskily.

“I love you, too, sweetheart.” Lena closed her eyes, her lips curving in a dreamy smile. “Now stop talking, and get to capturing my vessel.”

“Yes, ma'am.” Without further ado he slid inside her, only too happy to oblige.