Jaded Hearts (7 page)

Our ecstasy bubble was shattered when
Jillian's phone buzzed angrily on my night table. The final snooze
alarm went off at 8:15 am, and I was lethargic and spent. Julian
begrudgingly untangled his body from mine and dragged himself out
of bed. After a brief, but heady kiss goodbye, I watched his
perfectly naked ass walk out my bedroom. I lay there replaying the
previous night's events, and the way he just kissed me. I felt the
butterflies flutter in my belly. I felt giddy. Ugh, please!

I shook off my fairytale fantasy feelings
with a deep sigh. Then I rolled over and set my alarm to meet
Jackie and Vivian for our weekend lunch date, and drifted back into
a much-needed sleep.

My wake-up call came to the tune of my
buzzer going off. I grumbled as my body rejected having to move so
unexpectedly soon, and at the slight soreness that was creeping in
from last night's activities. I glared at my clock when I read the
time. 9:08 a.m. Who the heck?  

I slowly eased out of bed and grabbed my
fluffy cotton robe out of my clean laundry pile. I headed to the
intercom in the hallway above my staircase. Hello! "It's about time
princess! Let me up," Jackie sang.  Oh Great!

I granted her access and made my way back to
bed. Normally I would head down to meet my guest, but she had a key
and I was too tired to play the part of a proper host. I exchanged
my robe for my oversized cotton T-shirt pajama top and crawled back
under my covers. I could hear my cousin make her way through the
apartment like she was searching for me in a game of hide and seek.
She busted into my room and I instantly forgave her early morning
intrusion when I spied the breakfast she was carrying.

"There you are! Good Lord! What the hell
happened to you?" She eyed me curiously as she handed me a to-go
box of French toast with a side of bacon and fruit, and kicked off
her sandals. Then she eyed my bed suspiciously and went to the
closet and grabbed a blanket of her own. Smart girl! I giggled and
groaned again as I stuffed a piece of bacon in my mouth.

"So ... was that a good groan or a bad one?
My groan decoding skills are a little rusty," she joked as she
crawled next to me and grabbed a slice of the thick syrupy toast.
She fed me a bite before devouring it.

"Good,” I replied. I smiled at the pending
frustration I was expecting from her.

"Good... the food or the groan?"

"Both." I could barely contain my amusement
as she poked my side through the covers. "C’mon Jade! You know why
I'm here. I saw Jules carry you out the club last night." She was
practically whiny.

This reminded me of when we were teens and
would stay up all night talking about our crushes. But this was far
more than an innocent crush. My stomach fluttered at the thought of
Julian.

"Are you really going to make me say it?
`Cause I really don't have the energy to." And I really didn't. I
grabbed a piece of pineapple and returned to my pillow.

"Well, judging by the disastrous state of
your hair, and your dress laying in the kitchen, I'm gonna say you
had a very good night."

I blushed furiously as she laughed at her
own joke.

"Yes, I had a very unexpectedly amazing
night,” I confessed.

"Ooh! Amazing, you say?"

"Oh my God... Never in my life have I ever
felt close to what happened to me last night. I lost count after
the fifth orgasm,” I admitted.

"Well, I'm not surprised. I saw you guys on
the dance floor, and I had to get another drink just to cool off.
That's some chemistry you guys have goin' on.  When I saw him
carrying you out and you had that goofy grin on your face, I knew,”
she said.

"Jacks, we had sex, in the bathroom! It's
like my no button malfunctions when he is around. My body just
screams; Yes! Yes!! Yes!!!" I hugged my pillow at the memory of
being pinned against the wall by his hot body.

I shamefully filled her in on the rest of
the details of my night with Julian. She teased me mercilessly as I
maintained my original stance on him and my need to ward of
relationships for now. I had to keep my distance from Julian Garza.
Unless I found the strength to resist his charms, I would have to
avoid him.

Then we wound down to a brief nap until it
was time to meet her mother later that day.

After lunch the three of us decided to go on
an impromptu shopping spree. Jackie helped me to add to my growing
shoe collection and Vivian helped me pick out a few more outfits
for work. While we took a break to give our credit cards a chance
to cool off I felt the buzz in my purse. I pulled out my phone
expecting a call from Colleen. It was Julian. I hesitated to
answer, but then picked up right on the last ring.

"Hey,” I gushed.

I wasn't sure how to greet him. Did I call
him Jules, Julian, Crazy? I wasn't sure about anything where he was
concerned.  

"Hey, to you too Bella. I just wanted to
make sure you would still be joining me this evening. I will send
my driver to pick you up at eight tonight. I'm going to feed you
tonight if you don't mind." His tone was slightly suggestive. As
usual.

"Oh, OK. I suppose I can't argue with that."
 I agreed.

Would it ever be possible to respond to this
man without feeling so awkward?

"Good, then I will see you later." He
sounded very satisfied with our exchange.

"OK. See you tonight,” I said and then hung
up.

I was proud of myself for uttering a normal
sounding sentence. Jackie and Vivian waited expectantly for me to
divulge the nature of my phone call. I pretended to be unaware of
them and continued sipping my apple martini.

"So...Who will we be seeing tonight?" Jackie
had no patience.

I glared at her and rolled my eyes.

"Please don't pretend as if you don't know
who I will be seeing tonight. Who else would it be Jacks?" I shot
back.

She cocked her head to the side as if it
were a truly difficult question.

"Well, Jeez... I don't know? It could be a
client,” she replied.

She wasn't going to let me off the hook at
all, and Vivian just laughed at us both.

"C'mon Jade, you might as well tell us if we
ever plan to get out of here," she teased.

I let out a heavy sigh.

"If you really just have to know... I'm
meeting Julian for dinner,” I answered.

For some reason it felt like I just said I
was meeting Darth Vader. Jackie nodded her head with a knowing
look, but Vivian's expression was quizzical.

"Julian?" She asked.

I glanced at Jackie for help, not knowing
how I would be able to connect him to anyone I knew. Jackie waved
her mother off with impatience.

"Yes, Mom, Julian-Jules. Ana Garza's son,”
Jackie explained.

I watched as her look went from curious to
slight concern.

"Jules? Why would you be going to dinner
with him honey?" She inquired.

Her tone was as if I had just invited the
garbage man to Thanksgiving dinner. Before I could even formulate
an answer, Jackie was on it.

"She would be going to dinner with him
because apparently Jade is the most captivating woman he has ever
seen and he needs to take her to dinner to prevent from ravishing
her otherwise! He practically kidnapped her last night!" She was
quite pleased with herself. I still didn't know why she was so
thrilled about all of this.

"Kidnapped? Dear Lord.  Jade, are you
sure this is what you want to do?" Vivian asked. "I mean, I
understand he's handsome, but this is New York Honey. I can find
you ten more men just as handsome. You don't need the headache."
 

I just sat back. Clearly this was not my
conversation; I could see Jackie winding up for a rebuttal.

"What, is that supposed to mean? Jules is a
good friend of mine, and I personally think he and Jade make a
great couple. You should see the way he looks at her. You should
see the way she looks at him! Don't let me get started on their
chemistry." She slammed her hand on the table as if she gave it the
stamp of approval.

I burned at the thought of the wanton
abandon we had displayed for the entire club to see. The line to
the bathroom was practically a mob by the time we finished. The
bouncer he paid to stand watch could barely maintain control. Then
he carried me out of the club like Tarzan.

Now Vivian just waved her off.

"Oh, please. Why are you writing her off to
the first man that lays eyes on her? Besides, Jade doesn't need to
be too involved with... Jade, you need to keep your options open.
Take a bite out of the Big Apple; just skip the part with the
worms." Her tone was very telling.

What was up with the worms today?

 Jackie's eyes almost rolled right out
of her head.

"Please don't tell me you're still talking
about mysterious 'underworld connections'. Really Mom. That was his
father's thing, and Jules and Ana don't have anything to do with
it."

Underworld? Vivian stood her ground.

"Yes! That's exactly what I'm talking about.
I'm sure Ana has cut ties with her ex-husband, but I highly doubt
that Julian owns two night clubs and maintains various other
business ventures purely from the help of his mother. These
connections are always passed down to the sons and he seems to have
fallen right in line,” she yelled.

My mind was reeling. Underworld connections?
Since Jackie sullenly gave up her argument, I finally decided to
join the discussion on whether I should date Jules.

"I'm so glad that you two went over all the
particulars for me! Saved me the trouble, really.  I'm not
doing anything. I was planning to tell him at dinner that I wasn't
looking to get into any type of relationship right now. I'm still
dealing with the whole Evan situation, and focusing on work. It's
really not that serious, so you can both put your motions and
evidence away. Case closed." This time I pounded my hand on the
table to reiterate my point.

They both laughed in fun, but Jackie looked
incredulous and Vivian still looked wary.

By the time I made it back home it was
already 6:30 pm. I barely had time to get ready for my non-date. I
poured a glass of the strawberry Shiraz I found at the gourmet
market to calm my nerves even though I was already slightly buzzed.
I wanted to keep it simple but I realized that simple just wasn't
in my repertoire. So I picked out a little black halter dress that
flared out at the waist and stopped at my knees. It showed a little
skin without being skintight. Besides, there was really no point of
trying to play modest with the man who just spent the last night
blowing my mind. Repeatedly. I opted for the path of least
resistance and left my hair curly and pinned my curls up to one
side and let them hang down over the other shoulder. My buzzer went
off and I gave myself a last glance in the mirror before I left. My
eyes held the wariness of this afternoons chat.

*

I walked into Azul trying desperately to
wrestle away the knot of butterflies in my stomach. My nerves were
on edge like never before. 'Just breath' seemed to be my new mantra
whenever Julian was around.  My heart was beating so loud; I
was embarrassed someone would hear it.

Before I could compose myself to even take a
look around, the hostess approached me. She smiled brightly at me
as she asked me if I had a reservation. I informed her that I was
here to meet Julian, and the wattage of her smile lessened a
tad.

"Oh, of course. Right this way. Mr. Garza is
already seated at your table." She said this dryly as she led me to
my waiting dinner companion. Mr. Garza's fan club was seemed to be
growing by the minute.

I followed her into the dining area that was
concealed by a Mediterranean influenced brick wall. To the right of
the wall was a small intimate dining area, and to the left was a
larger room that included the main dining area, a small dance floor
and a live jazz band. I recognized the trumpet heavy
Con Alma
filling the space as a few patrons graced the
dance floor.

The place had a sexy, but laid back
ambiance, and it made me think of Andrew. He would love it here. I
was so enthralled with the lounge that I didn't notice I'd reached
my destination, and Julian was standing to greet me. I smiled
sheepishly, caught off guard and not prepared for the intensity
that I felt when I saw him.

Once again, he was immaculately dressed with
a tailored gray dress shirt with black stitching and a pair of
black slacks. He flashed his usual sly grin as he pulled me into an
embrace and kissed me on both cheeks. It wasn't quite the same way
his mother had done when we met, as she didn't caress each cheek
with her lips after each kiss. The tall leggy hostess with the long
copper hair stood by stiffly waiting as we took our seats.

"Will there be anyone else joining you
tonight, Mr. Garza?" She asked almost expectantly.

"No, Lily. Have a bottle of Perrier-Laurent
Rosé sent over please. I'm sure Ms. Spencer is in the mood for
champagne."

He raised his brow in anticipation of my
probable response, knowing my preferred drink. I smiled modestly at
him and then nodded my agreement.

Damn he is so sexy!

"Yes, I am in the mood for champagne, thank
you," I agreed.

I swear I saw a flash of disapproval on her
face before she garnered a fake smile and went off to fulfill her
duties. Julian never even glanced her way so there was no point in
even taking the thought further.  Was I imagining things?

Jealous!

He was watching me, as usual.

"I can tell that so much goes on in that
pretty head of yours, Jade. I wish I could read your thoughts,” he
lamented.

"I'm surprised you can't. I already made the
mistake of inviting you in,” I retorted.