Can't Fool Me Twice: Sweet Contemporary Romance: Belles in the City Book 1 (2 page)

All the months of Dante's deception flashed through her head, and no matter how much she wanted to say yes, she couldn't. After all, how could she trust a man who pretended to be someone he wasn't?

She was so deep in thought, when her cell phone rang she jumped. It was Miss Lucille.

"I wondered why you dropped off my stuff and took off like a streak of lightening before we had a chance to chat," the woman said. "But I just spoke with Bethann. She says y'all are double-dating tonight."

"Um …"

"Okay, girl, I know you didn't ask for my advice, but you know me. I'm gonna give it to you whether you want it or not. Allow yourself to have a good time and don't think about whether or not you can trust Bubba Dante." She took a breath and continued. "I've always been a good judge of character, and I can tell you without a doubt, he's a good man."

"Okay." Sunny didn't know what else to say.

"What kind of response is that? Are you gonna give the man a chance or not?"

Sunny didn't want to get Miss Lucille riled, so she took a deep breath and slowly let it out. "I can't make any promises, but I'll go out with him tonight and have a good time."

Miss Lucille cackled. "I reckon that's all I can expect from a girl whose pride is too big for her own good, but not as big as her heart. Just don't let this opportunity slip past you. It's not everyday that a guy makes a fool of himself to get a girl to like him. And believe you me, he's—"

"I know." Sunny hated interrupting Miss Lucille, but she didn't want this conversation to turn in the direction it had ever since Bethann and Judd's wedding. "I'll do the best I can."

"That's all I can ask. And if he tries to kiss you at the door, keep it short. It's not good to keep turning him away, but it's okay to let him guess what you're thinkin'."

Sunny let out a giggle. "That won't be too hard since I'm not even sure what I'm thinkin'."

"That's because I'm not there to tell you." Before Sunny could get another word in, Miss Lucille continued. "Oh, by the way, you left before I had a chance to let you know that if the rest of my rehab goes as planned, I'll be coming home in two weeks."

"Great news!" Sunny really was happy. With Miss Lucille in the house, life would be fun again, and she'd have plenty to keep her mind off things she had no business thinkin' about.

"And I aim to make sure you have some social time, which I suspect has come to a screeching halt ever since you've been there all by yourself."

"I'm just so busy."

"Hogwash. A girl as pretty and sweet as you is never too busy to have herself a good time. Now go get ready for your big date, girl. I want a full account of everything when you call me tomorrow after you get off work. And give Bubba Dante a big fat smooch from me … on the cheek, of course."

"Okay. Have fun with your crocheting."

The sound of Miss Lucille's low grumble made her laugh as she hung up. The woman was a delight to be around since she was willing to try almost anything once, but she didn't seem to have a domestic bone in her body. After Bethann got married and moved out, Sunny took over most of the cooking, except on the days when Miss Lucille got a hankerin' for a pizza.

Sunny took a quick shower, reapplied her makeup, piled her hair up in a loose bun, and slipped into a sheath dress. It was cool and crisp outside, so she added a suede blazer that Mama had bought at a thrift store. It might have been secondhand, but it looked brand new. And it made her feel like she belonged in a house like this.

She was ready fifteen minutes before Dante was due to arrive, so she went into what Miss Lucille called her "chat room," a tiny alcove near the front door. She picked up a magazine from the rack beside the loveseat and looked at the pictures until the doorbell rang. Her heart instantly beat faster.

Dante was surprised as the door flung open within seconds of when he rang the doorbell. He grinned.

"Hi." Her voice cracked, and then she cleared her throat. "I'm ready to go."

He felt awkward as he held out the flowers and scarf. She glanced at them before looking back up at him, her eyes wide. "These are for you. We should probably put the flowers in water so they don't wilt." She stared at the scarf before smiling up at him. "This is really pretty."

"Why don't we put the flowers in water before we leave?" he repeated.

"Y-yes, of course." She took a step back. "Come on in. I'll see if I can find a vase in the kitchen."

Dante followed her to the back of the house, wishing he knew what to say. But he was tongue-tied.

She opened and closed several cabinets before she finally settled on a large plastic cup. "I have no idea where the vases are, so we can use this for now. Remind me to ask Bethann when we see her tonight." She picked up the scarf, looked at it again as she caressed it, and then draped it around her shoulders. "This is perfect, Dante." Her expression had softened.

"I'm glad you like it." If he knew he'd get that kind of reaction merely by giving her pretty things, he'd shower her with them. But he didn't want to overdo it, or he might scare her away.

A few minutes later, they were on their way to Gramercy Tavern, one of Judd's favorite restaurants. Dante kept trying to start a conversation by asking questions, but she gave him one-word answers. Finally, he sighed and gave up. They rode in silence for a few minutes before she turned to him and flashed him an apologetic smile.

"Sorry," she said. "I'm a little on edge tonight."

"Yeah, me too. Why don't we start over?"

She hesitated for a split second before nodding. "That's a good idea."

He took advantage of her agreeability and reached for her hand. She quickly tensed but slowly relaxed. "So how was your day?"

Sunny blinked a few times before answering. "I took some things to Miss Lucille at the rehab center. She's going to try crocheting."

"Didn't she do that before?" he asked. "As I recall, her last attempt had disastrous results." He remembered Bethann's description of the sweater last time the four of them had gotten together.

"She knitted that sweater that turned out all catawampus. Crocheting is different, and she's going to do something a tad easier this time."

"Don't tell me she's making pants."

Sunny laughed. "No, she's making a scarf."

"I'd like to see it when she's finished."

Her smile warmed him from the inside out.

*

Silence fell between them again for a moment before Sunny decided to try her hand at a fresh topic. "Did you ever look at that property for another restaurant?"

"Do you mean the one in Queens?"

She nodded. "It looked like a nice property."

"On paper, yes," he said. "But I don't think that area can support a Bubba's. I'm still looking, though."

She didn't want another lull in the conversation, so she asked, "Some of the customers are asking about more fried seafood options. And I was thinking that the menu—"

"Sunny," he said softly, holding her gaze, making her stomach churn. "Can we talk about something besides work?"

She swallowed hard. "What would you like to talk about?"

"I wasn't going to do this," he replied as he rubbed his thumb across the back of her hand. "But I'd like to talk about us."

"Dante—"

He gently placed his free hand on her cheek. "Sunny, you know how I feel about you. If I could undo everything I did to make you trust me, I would. I know I made a huge mistake, and I regret it more than you'll ever know."

A lump formed in her throat as she nodded. She'd made enough mistakes in her life to know how quickly things could go bad. But still …

"Maybe," she said. "Let's just see how tonight goes, okay?"

He grimaced and then nodded. "I guess I have to accept that."

She turned and looked out her window to keep him from seeing the confusion on her face. She wanted more than anything to trust Dante and to let their relationship blossom into what it promised to be. But Chase had stolen her ability to trust, and she hadn't managed to get it back … at least not yet. She still had feelings for Dante, but every time she allowed herself to enjoy them, she had moments of fear that were downright debilitating.

Chase's sister Caroline had been a good friend too, but his death had changed their relationship. Caroline became moody and eventually quit returning her calls. Less than a year later, Caroline's family moved away.

At first Sunny had blamed God, and then she blamed his family for leaving town so abruptly after the funeral. She had mixed feelings about Chase, but she still loved his family after he was gone. It confused her that they didn't seem to love her back.

"Sunny," Dante said barely above a whisper.

She turned around and faced him. His attempt at a smile touched her heart, so she smiled back. A look of guarded joy came over him.

"You were so deep in thought I hated to interrupt you." He paused. "We'll be there in a few minutes."

She nodded. "I know." She swallowed hard and lowered her head, asking God to give her the strength to get through the evening without constant reminders of what she'd gone through. She'd been teetering on tears ever since she realized she could fall in love with Dante, but the memories of the past kept popping up.

Once they arrived, Dante paid the cab driver, and they went inside to find Judd and Bethann waiting. Bethann looked back and forth between them, a curious expression on her face. Judd, on the other hand, appeared normal. He gave Sunny a quick hug before reaching out to shake Dante's hand.

"Haven't seen you in a while. I'm glad the two of you could make it."

Bethann leaned into him as she continued staring at Sunny. A brief glance at Dante let Sunny know that he noticed it too.

Finally, the maître d' motioned for them to follow him to their table. Before Sunny arrived in New York City, she'd never eaten at a restaurant as nice as this … or as expensive. The first time she went, she couldn't even speak, so Bethann and Cissy had to order for her. This time, she was prepared.

"Everything looks delicious," she said as she closed the menu. "Since it all sounds so good, I'd better leave it up to you." She gave Dante a swift glance and hoped he'd accept.

She watched his face as he appeared momentarily concerned, but he quickly recovered. "They have the best sea bass in town. How does that sound?"

Before she could answer, Bethann laughed. "It's not as good as the fried catfish at Bubba's, but I like it too. I think that's what I'll have."

Dante choked on the water he'd just sipped. "I can't believe you'd even compare the food at Bubba's to this."

Bethann shrugged. "It's all a matter of taste. This is more expensive and possibly more elaborately prepared, but some of us like downhome cooking and prefer it to just about anything else."

"I get it," Judd agreed. "Before I met Bethann, I had no idea what I was missing." He cast a loving glance at his wife. "Her great-aunt told me she was a great cook, but I didn't realize how good until that first brunch."

"Love at first brunch," Dante said. "I like the sound of it. In fact, that would make a great movie title."

That started a conversation about movies and titles, buying time to avoid anything too personal. Sunny knew that Bethann was dying to see something—some spark—between her and Dante.

Dinner was delicious, and Sunny finally relaxed as the evening wore on. The one time Bethann started to press for more information, Judd cut a warning glance in her direction, and she sat back and smiled. Nothing else was mentioned about Sunny and Dante being an item.

Finally, Dante looked at Sunny. "I know you need to get up early in the morning. Are you ready to go now?"

She nodded. "I think that would be good. I'll be on my feet all morning and into the afternoon."

Judd's eyes widened with a warning look at Dante. "Cut this girl some slack, man."

Dante shrugged. "She's the one who makes the schedule. I leave it completely up to her."

Sunny knew that her assistant had some medical appointments and needed a little time off, so she'd worked her own hours around everyone else's. But she didn't want to explain anything to anyone, so she just sat there with a smile plastered on her face.

Bethann got the message. "She knows what she's doing."

"Yes, she absolutely does," Dante agreed quickly, and Sunny wondered if there was a double message in his words.

A half hour later, they pulled up to the door of Miss Lucille's big house in Brooklyn. He got out of the cab, helped her out, and asked the driver to wait.

"You don't have to get out," she said.

"I'm walking you to your door." His tone was firm, so she didn't argue.

After they reached the bottom step, he turned her around to face him. As he held her gaze, she felt an uneasy feeling in the pit of her stomach, but she didn't dare look away.

"Sunny, I'll do whatever it takes to make you trust me, even if it takes the rest of my life."

A nervous giggle escaped her lips, but she quickly recovered. "Dante, it's probably more of my problem than yours at this point. I have baggage."

"We all do. But I'm a patient man, and I'm willing to work hard for what I want … what I know I should have."

He leaned over, kissed her on the lips, took the keys from her hands, unlocked the door, and handed them back to her. As she went inside, she was aware that he remained on the steps until she closed the door behind her.

Once she heard the cab door slam and the car pulling away, she closed her eyes.
Lord, I know I'm not perfect, but I need people to be truthful with me. It's so difficult for me to trust anyone anymore, and I don't want to get involved with a man I can't trust.

She'd barely opened her eyes when her cell phone rang. It was Bethann.

"What is wrong with you, girl? Can't you see that the man is madly in love with you?"