His brain was oblivious to anything except the way her curves were making his blood rush and his heart beat in an erratic rhythm. God, this felt so good and bad at the same time. Was it possible to send a perfectly healthy man into cardiac arrest from sexual arousal and frustration?
“You earned it. You helped me see why the security upgrades were necessary. You also got your dad to clear his schedule for this consultation. Not to mention the discount. There’s no way your father’s charging me market value for this.”
“That’s probably because of the new lady friend he’s been seeing. He’s giddy enough to be talking marriage. Maybe he missed a decimal point because his head was in the clouds.”
“Cynical much?”
He sliced the fork into the moist cake and shoveled a large piece into his mouth. It was a fusion of sweet and tart, of flaky coconut shavings and chunky pieces of juicy pineapple, and when the rich, soft yellow cake balanced all the flavors together, Jackson felt the satisfaction down deep in his soul.
“About this cake? Not even a little. About people and love? Pretty much all the time. He’s too old to get lost in the foolishness of love. To let someone make him believe in fairy tales.”
He made it halfway through the dessert before regretting that his Coke wasn’t a tall glass of milk, but enjoying it just the same. He turned to find her staring at him. Watching him as if she were trying to figure out the secret to some great mystery.
“What? I have cake on my face?”
She said nothing, tilting her head to the side as she continued to watch him. She took a deep breath, closing her eyes and breaking their connection for a moment. “Why does your father have to be a fool for wanting to share his love with someone else? Maybe it’s not about love and passion at his age. Perhaps it’s about companionship and comfort. Maybe at this stage of his life, that’s something worth having.”
Maybe it was—Jackson couldn’t truly say. He’d had girlfriends before Lana. Nothing too serious, but significant enough he missed them when those relationships came to their amicable end. But with Lana, he’d poured every ounce of his being into loving her, and it wasn’t enough.
“Are you worried about your dad remarrying, or are you a mama’s boy who doesn’t want his dad with anyone else?”
If that wasn’t the most laughable thing he’d ever heard. Jackson was fiercely loyal, especially to his father and brother. Margie, on the other hand, could get as much of his attention as a drop of water in an ocean. As far as it concerned him, she was a useless human being taking up resources on the earth.
“Considering my mother walked out on us when I was a boy, I doubt that’s the case.”
“Jackson, I’m so sorry. I never imagined…”
He interrupted her by picking up his cake and slicing off another piece. This cake had brought him more pleasure in the five minutes since she’d brought it to him than his five-year marriage or his selfish mother ever had. No sense in dwelling on the past when the present was so much more inviting.
“Are you gonna eat some of this with me?” He held up the healthy chunk on the fork and balanced it as he moved it in her direction, hoping it would be enough of a distraction she’d drop the subject.
She shook her head. “No, indulging in that kind of decadence this late is a bad thing for me.”
He held the fork in front of her mouth, trying to tempt her, but she politely declined again. “Please don’t tell me you’re one of these women who can’t enjoy a piece of cake because she’s worried about her figure? You’re gorgeous.”
A soft chuckle left her lips as a spark of something bright flashed in her eyes. “You’re right. I am. Me not wanting cake this late in the night has nothing to do with me keeping my fabulous figure.”
She waved a hand down the length of her sexy lady lumps for emphasis, making it hard for him to chew and swallow his cake without choking.
“I’m happy in my size-sixteen skin. And that’s not me hating on my size-two sistren, but if God intended for us all to be the same, he wouldn’t have made us different. My desirability is not at all tied to my dress size, so there’s nothing to watch.”
On that he could agree. He was sitting in front of her eating one of the most decadent desserts he’d ever tasted, and yet hunger still ravaged his body with a need that contorted his insides into impossible positions.
“So if you’re not watching your girlish figure, why won’t you indulge with me?”
She raised her eyebrow as if silently asking if he’d meant his words to sound as provocative as they had. The truth lay somewhere in the middle.
He liked the flash of interest he saw turning her chocolate-brown eyes to a warm amber. He also didn’t miss the delicious way her knowing smile spread across her thick, full lips.
It was an invitation to keep the double-entendre game going as far as it concerned him. But even with their heightened wordplay, the fact was the cake was good.
“If I give in to something that sweet this time of night, it would keep me up all evening long.” She leaned closer to him, and his pulse sped up. His body responding to her nearness, his length already thickening under the soft material of his sweats. She glanced down, noting his delicate predicament, and her mouth curled into the perfect bow as her smile widened. “As much as I want it”—she looked up, her voice dropped to her lower register, the sultry sound pulling him closer to her without conscious effort on his part—“and believe me I do, tomorrow is an early workday.”
His fingers tightened on the fork, and he figured he’d best put the plate and the cutlery down before he mutilated himself accidentally. He quickly made sure the plate, the fork, and the remains of his cake didn’t end up on the floor. When he turned around, his eyes locked with hers.
She slid her hand from its perch on her lap and reached for his face, wiping a thumb across his mouth. “You had a bit of icing there.”
She went to pull her thumb away, and he couldn’t quite explain what happened next. His tongue darted out of its own volition, because there was no way in hell he told it to do that. It curled around her digit, licking the icing from her fingertip as if it were the secret ingredient to life. And with that one move, something changed in the air.
