Exploding: A Mafia Romance (The O'Keefe Family Collection #1) (10 page)

She wriggled down from his grip. “I know. Thanks for sticking around to break up the fight. I’m going to bed now, so you can get back to work.”

He kissed the top her head before leaving. “Love you, kiddo.”

“Love you too, Carri.”

After she heard the click of the front door, Fallyn changed back into her pajamas and collapsed into the bed, crying quietly into her pillow until she fell asleep.

A
fter a three-hour
nap and a few painkillers, Fallyn dressed for her date. Thoughts of Vince plagued her as she tried to focus on the date she had been excited about the day before. The drive was nearly half an hour and gave her plenty of time to turn back, but she kept on. She was determined to put her family, Vince and her bullet wound behind her and start afresh. James was normal. He was a successful lawyer. Her fresh start would begin with him.

She handed her coat to the Maître D’ and sat at the table she’d reserved under the name Sally Jones. Her light green silk dress hugged her curves on top and belled out at the waist. The hem fell halfway down her legs, showcasing the silver heels she never had an excuse to wear. She wore the dress because it was beautiful, sure, but it also featured three-quarter length sleeves that hid her wound.

James was not there; she wasn’t sure she expected him to be. The heaviness she tried to brace herself for crashed down on her shoulders and weighted her spirit. She ordered a glass of wine and a salad, telling the waiter she would be dining alone. She had been prepared for this possibility, and pulled a pen and paper out of her purse to scribble lists and jot new recipes on so she could ignore the low candlelight, the romantic wall art and the couples that seemed to be ever more in love everywhere she looked.

Fallyn decided as she wrote down things she needed to purchase for the bakery that a table for one might be the inevitability for her future, and there was nothing she could do to change that. Her father wouldn’t allow a man near her, her brothers wouldn’t tolerate anything short of perfection in her mate, and the only way she managed to steal half a day away from her job was to get shot. Fallyn held her crushing depression at bay just barely, putting her energy into making lists and conjuring up fresh recipes. She called Jen to check in, grateful to hear her assurances that everything at the bakery was fine.

“Killian stopped by and dropped off the desserts from La Cucina Italia. I put them in the case, and they’re almost sold out. Killian mentioned Vince’s people are coming by tomorrow at seven in the morning to drop off more. That okay?”

“I love that you ask me if it’s okay, like I have any say in what my family does with my business. But yes, it’s okay.”

Jen’s voice was reassuring and warm. “Hey, you’re the boss. That’s why I asked you, not Killian. Just please be here when Vince’s guys come by tomorrow. Or send one of your brothers. I don’t like Vince in your place.”

Fallyn cleared her throat. “You don’t have to worry about Vince. He’s trying to make peace, so we’re encouraging that.”

“I don’t like it, Fal. I don’t like him in the store. I feel like anytime he’s around, bullets might start flying at random.”

“He’s not so bad. I’ll see you in the morning.” Fallyn went back to her list as she picked at her salad and sipped her wine. Her mind began to wander to Vince. His lips on hers still felt like a dream. Surely she wouldn’t have made such a terrible choice in real life.

Her phone rang, and she didn’t look at the caller ID, assuming it was Jen calling back with another thing to discuss about the bakery. “Hey, sweetie. Miss me already?”

The voice that answered made her sit up straighter. It was deep and velvety, and she’d known to fear the sound of it since childhood. “I do. But something tells me you were expecting someone else. Who’s my competition?”

“Vince! I thought you were Jen,” Fallyn whispered, ducking down in her chair and glancing around to make sure no one she knew was in the restaurant to overhear her crime. She cleared her throat. “What can I do for you?”

“I want to see you again. That kiss wasn’t enough. Left me wanting more.”

“Well, you can’t have more. It didn’t happen. And if it did, it was a moment of insanity. How did you even get my cell number?”

“How little power do you think I have? You’re thrown by me getting your cell number?”

Fallyn rubbed her hand over her face. “I’m just plain thrown today. The bullet, the kiss, then family drama. It’s been five days all rolled into one.”

“You’ve always been an overachiever.” His tone changed to that of an old friend calling for no reason other than to chat. “Sounds like too much today. How are the guys? Have they bought you a bulletproof vest yet?”

“Aw, you say that like they didn’t already get me one for my eighteenth birthday.”

“Seriously?”

“I wanted a necklace.”

“That’s not exactly a necklace.”

“Nope.” Fallyn sipped her water and checked around the restaurant to make sure that she had in fact been stood up. “I’m sure they’re freaking out, but I left the house so I could get some space. Daddy was in rare form today.”

“Well, his daughter got shot. I think he’s got the right.” When Fallyn didn’t say anything to this, he changed his tone to a lower note. “What are you wearing? You sound like you’re wearing a dress.”

“As a matter of fact, I’m wearing the Kevlar under a ski suit right now. And all that’s underneath a Halloween costume.”

“You minx.”

Fallyn narrowed her eyes and shifted the spring-hued green silk of her dress. “You can’t tell what I’m wearing over the phone.”

“I just did. I can tell because I’m also wearing a dress, so I recognized the similarities in our voices.”

“Stop turning me on,” Fallyn teased, her tone smoldering. “A sexy, built guy all trussed up in a dress? It’s my kryptonite. Don’t ask me for anything – I’ll only say yes if you’re wearing heels.”

“Then I should take my window and ask to see you again. Next time without the gunfire.”

Fallyn’s heart fluttered with nerves at the dangerous game she was playing without a script. “You know we can’t do that.”

“You think I’m sexy and built.” He called her out on her admission with a dark allure to his voice.

Fallyn gulped. “Yeah, well that was when I was picturing you in heels and a dress.”

“What color is your dress?”

She debated for ten whole seconds before whispering like a confession, “Green. It’s green silk.”

Vince hissed. “You shouldn’t have told me it was silk. It’s like you want to torture me.” He sounded amused, as if he wanted nothing more than to toy with her. “I’ve never made out under a desk before. I felt like a teenager hiding from a teacher or something.”

“Yeah? Well, you’re about to get sent to detention if you keep this up, young man.” She shut her eyes in chagrin at the unintentional sexy note her voice took on when scolding him. “I didn’t mean… You can’t call me!”

“But I just did. I can do all sorts of things. I can think about where that kiss might’ve led if we hadn’t been interrupted. I can think about doing it again, only perhaps not on the floor of my office next time. I can think about your legs.”

“No, you can’t! You absolutely cannot think about my legs or any other body part.”

His voice darkened. “Yes, I can. And I’ll keep thinking about you and your legs until I see you again. Do you think about me?”

Fallyn wanted to lie. She wanted to hang up. She also wanted to kiss him again, and was trying everything in her arsenal to not admit that exact thing. “I shouldn’t think about you.”

She could hear the smile in Vince’s voice. “But you do. You’ve never had a kiss like that, either. You want more.”

“I’m on a date!” she confessed, her hand on her forehead.

“You’re out with a guy, yet you’re on the phone with me? Can’t be all that great a date if you’re picturing rolling around on the floor with me.”

“Shut up!”

“Enjoy your second choice, Fallyn. I hope you kiss him tonight. I hope you try to recreate some of the fire we have just so you can see how dim his light is.”

“You’re a jerk!”

Vince chuckled. “Order some wine. It might give the poor guy a fighting chance if you have a bit of alcohol in you.”

Fallyn leaned her elbow on the table and rested her forehead in her hand. “He’s actually not here. I’m pretty sure he’s standing me up.”

“Where can I meet you?” She heard his chair creaking as he stood. “Let me take you out tonight. Anywhere you like. I have to see if your dress is as sexy as I’m picturing it.”

“You know that can’t happen. We can’t… I’ll see you when I see you. And don’t you dare call again. My brothers are no joke, and I don’t want anything to… Just don’t.” Fallyn hung up the phone and pretended to be engrossed in her notes for as long as it took to get her blush to retreat.

Fallyn nearly jumped out of her seat five minutes later when a man’s lips pressed against the back of her neck. “Sorry!” James said with a small laugh. “I didn’t know I’d scare you that bad.” He took the seat across from her, looking every bit as handsome as he had the day she’d been making out with him while perched on his lap. “Sorry I’m late. I had a conference call that ended later than planned, and I hit traffic on the way.”

“I thought you’d changed your mind about me,” Fallyn admitted. “I’m glad you came.” She wondered why he hadn’t called to tell her he was on his way and running late, but didn’t bring it up.

James perused the menu and chose the first thing that looked mildly appetizing. “How was your day? How’s the business?”

Fallyn was awash in a flood of guilt when she thought of Vince’s lips on hers not five hours ago. She straightened when she remembered she and James were on a first date, which did not demand exclusivity. “It’s going alright. A bit messy, but I think that’s to be expected when things are first starting out.”

“Anything I can help with?”

She smiled kindly at him, the candlelight flickering off her face to give it a warm glow. “Luckily you don’t have to worry about my mess. But thank you for the offer.” She picked up her wine glass when the server came by with a highball of scotch for James. “In fact, let’s agree on something off the bat. I don’t want you dealing with my family and that whole mess. If we start heading in that direction, the safe word is ‘legal briefs’. Then we can veer to another topic.”

“You’re serious. You really think it’s going to help to try and start something together while cutting out whole parts of your life from me?”

Fallyn shrugged. “I think it’s the only way. And this is our first date. I think it’s probably normal to hold back the crazy for a while, right?”

James considered Fallyn’s choice, thumbing the side of his glass. “You know, I’m not one for complicated. I’m not one for dates, usually. This is all new territory for me. It’s the first time I’ve ever wanted to know more about a woman, and she says no.”

“You can know lots about me,” Fallyn corrected him, knowing that statement was only half true. “Just not about my family. I don’t know anything about your family. I think it’s safe to take discussion of mine off the table until we see if this is something worth jumping deeper into.”

James eyed Fallyn, watching her declare her preference with unmitigated confidence in the matter. “Alright. I can live with that. You’ll tell me if something important happens though, right?”

Fallyn met his eyes without blinking. “No.”

His face soured. “What? Why?”

“I can’t really say I will. That takes more time clocked in with me than a first date.”

“Huh. I guess we’ll work our way up to that. Why don’t we start with the bakery? How’s work going?”

The urge to claim that was a “legal brief” topic was strong, but she danced around the giant elephant, hoping to make an interesting story without it. “Work’s going well. I just teamed up with a restaurant. They’re going to start selling my desserts to their patrons in exchange for me showcasing a few of theirs in my case. We’ll see if the cross marketing helps. Either way, it’s nice to gain contacts.”

“I love sexy words like ‘cross marketing’. Do me a favor so I have good dreams of you tonight. Say ‘profit margin’.”

She raised her eyebrow with a smirk and said in her most smoldering voice, “Profit margin.”

James threw his head back and laughed. “Oh, you’re evil. I’ve always had a thing for smart girls.”

“You’re just trying to butter me up.” Fallyn talked with her fork. “I mean, it’s working, don’t get me wrong. But tell me something real. Last relationship?”

“Ah. Too real. It was years ago, and ended with both of us holding onto something that was making us miserable. I fought for surface matchups after that. So this whole thing? Sitting down and talking about family stuff and goals and whatnot? A whole new level of intimacy for me.” When his meal came, he ate between asking and answering questions as the two got to know each other by candlelight. He laughed at her jokes and even cracked a few himself. “This is easy, being here with you,” he mused, watching her peruse the dessert menu as if she was studying for an exam. “I haven’t been on an actual date in, I don’t know, a year? Two? This is nice.”

“You say that like it’s a big shock you would actually enjoy spending time with me. What were you expecting?”

“I don’t know. Crickets? Maybe you’d say something completely racist or ditzy? You’re a bit younger than me. I wasn’t sure I’d be able to keep up with all your Facebook lingo.”

Fallyn laughed. “Our family has a no social media rule across the board. And don’t worry about me being younger than you. I grew up with men your age and older, so I’m more at home in your geriatric bracket.”

“None of you use social media?” He wrinkled his nose at her, and then it dawned on him. “Ah. Because of legal briefs?” He invoked their code word with a tilt of his head.

“Yes. Because of legal briefs. And I can’t believe this is your first date in years. I mean, have you seen you?”

James cast her a modest smile. “As I understand it, the difference between a date and a one-night stand is the whole conversation part. It’s the conversation part I’ve been dodging. Work’s demanding, and I didn’t want to get involved with something I couldn’t put energy into.”

“And you’re there now?”

James shrugged. “I think whether my schedule is ready for me to date you or not, I have to make that happen. I like you, Fallyn.”

“I think I might like you, too.” Fallyn dipped her chin down as her eyes fluttered shut for a few seconds, smiling. “What are you getting for dessert?”

“Hadn’t thought about it. Been enjoying the conversation too much to care. But good to know I’ve been such a bore,” he teased.