Lucky 7 Bad Boys Contemporary Romance Boxed Set (12 page)

He reached up, placed his large hard hand over hers and bent, brought his lips to within a hair's breadth of her mouth. His breath was sweet and hot against her, but he made no move to get any closer.

"Rey?" she whispered, and at her soft utterance of his name, he closed that final distance and took her lips in a kiss that seared her nerve endings.

She locked her gaze with his as he gently explored the contours of her mouth and the inside edge of her lip as she opened to him. Her breath mixed with his as over and over he tasted her. He bit her lower lip, tugged on it, and a muted groan escaped her.

Rey had never relished anything as sweet and sustaining as Bianca's mouth. Those lips he had imagined in his dreams, fuller and like honey against his tongue. Tender and satiny, he thought as he tugged at her lower lip with his teeth again, and a little whimper escaped her, drove him on.

He grabbed her waist and dragged her against him, deepening the kiss.

The lingering drops of water dampened her t-shirt as he plastered her to him, and Bianca reached beneath the edges of his shirt, ran her hands across his ribs, pausing at the scar along his one side and caressing it. Awakening guilt that what he was doing was so so wrong.

He pulled away abruptly, his breathing hard, and yanked roughly at his shirt to button it closed.

"I'm sorry. Did that hurt?" she asked, totally confused by his withdrawal.

Rey cursed under his breath, stepped closer, and ran his hands up and down her arms. "No, it's just that it's too soon."

Bianca sensed that there was more to it than what his words were saying, but didn't want to press. Trying to lighten the mood, she smoothed away a damp lock of his dark hair that had fallen forward as he stared down at her from his greater height.

"Some things just shouldn't be rushed," she teased him, tossing back the words he had uttered to her the day of their first meeting.

It had the desired effect. He chuckled and shook his head. "You are a dangerous woman to be around. Do you know that?"

She smiled before stepping away to grab the bag with the coffees and bread. Laying the food out on the pastry chef's table, she glanced at him over her shoulder. "I'm hoping that's a compliment, Rey. Otherwise I might not share this wonderful meal with you."

Rey wasn't about to give in and admit that the danger he had meant was the one to his heart. Especially not when there was so much they still had to learn about one another. "Be kind, Bianca. I'm weak from hunger and without something to keep me going. . ."

Her head popped up then and she shot him a look which spoke volumes with its heat and desire.

"A man cannot live on love alone," he kidded.

A lovely blush spread over her face. She dropped her gaze and fumbled with arranging the food on the table. He stepped over and calmed her nervous hands as she played with shuffling the coffee cups for the third or fourth time. She met his gaze and he couldn't resist one last taste. He gave her one final gentle kiss before murmuring, "Feed me, Bianca. Otherwise I don't think I'll have the strength to finish taking down those walls."

Bianca smiled at him and stepped away to pull up two metal folding chairs so that they could sit for breakfast. When he had settled himself in one of the chairs, she made herself comfortable in the other and handed him one of the
cafe con leches
. She took the other one and pulled off the cap, took a sip. It was sweet and creamy, a perfect combo of strong Cuban coffee, sugar, and hot scalded milk.

They both reached for the warm toast at the same time.

Rey smiled and separated the two halves of the long, thin lard bread which had been buttered, toasted, and flattened on a grill. Bianca took the half he offered, dunked it in her coffee, and brought the dripping mass of bread to her mouth.

"Mmm. I'd forgotten how good this could taste," she admitted, having gone too long without a breakfast like this one. In Manhattan she usually grabbed a bagel and coffee from the local deli. Sometimes she'd indulge in a fancy brunch if she was out with friends, but this simple meal brought back memories of mornings in Miami with her family.

"Pretty tasty, isn’t it? I guess you don’t get this often in the big city,” he teased, following her example and dunking the bread before eating it.

"Not enough at all. Sometimes I miss all the things from home. How about you? Did you always grow up in this area?"

Rey shrugged and ate the last bite of his bread. Took a sip of the coffee before he said, "I was born here and so were my parents, but my grandparents are Puerto Rican. We’re part of that big melting pot of immigrants in New York."

“I always thought it was more like a big stew than a melting pot. With a whole bunch of chunks floating around in it. Each chunk is a different nationality and they give some of their flavor to the stew and get some new flavor in return," she said and noticed him eyeing her last bit of bread like a young kid staring in through the window of a candy shop.

She relented and handed him the last piece. He gobbled it down and grinned, that dimple making him look years younger and way more boyish.

"Which is why there's pizza on Fridays, salsa and chips, and the good ol' American burger?" he said.

"Well, if you want to reduce it to that level, yes. We're flavoring that pot with all those differences and making a whole new stew."

He eyed her over the rim of his paper coffee cup. "I think I like your explanation. A nice big chunky stew is way better than melted goo."

She laughed and nodded. "I do, too. It’s nice to think I’m adding something substantial to the mix." She sipped her own coffee, richer now with the remnants of the butter from the bread she had dunked.

He rose and rubbed his belly with a satisfied sigh. "That's a good thing, because I love a good Cuban
cafe con leche
and toast. Thanks for the meal and the company."

Bianca smiled, feeling as if they had finally started down the road to understanding each other better. "My pleasure, but it's going to cost you."

He eyed her curiously and she approached him, rose up on tiptoes and kissed him quickly before pulling away. "That was partial payment. The other half is you getting me lunch."

Laughing, Rey reached for her waist, dragged her close, and opened his mouth over hers. She tasted like sweet coffee and the equally wonderful taste of Bianca. When he finally let her go, he smiled and joked, "We just finished breakfast and you're already thinking about the next meal?"

She chucked him under the chin and pushed him away with a playful shove. "I'm a chef, Rey. We're always thinking about the next meal."

* * *

The next meal turned out to be some wonderful
arepas
from a little Colombian cafeteria a few blocks away. Bianca enjoyed every last bite of the sweet corn meal pancakes stuffed with white cheese.

"These are delicious. Thanks," she replied as she finished the last bite on her plate and drank down an ice cold Ironbeer soda, another Cuban favorite she’d forgotten about but which was available in the local market.

"Perfect," she added and smoothed a hand across her full stomach.

Rey chuckled and examined her, noting her flat, nearly concave belly and wondering how she managed to keep it that way with how she ate. "Fast metabolism?" he asked, leaning an elbow on the countertop.

She gave him a puzzled look and then realized why he was asking. She stopped rubbing. "Not really. When I'm working, I just end up picking and tasting and not much else. So when I'm free to eat I
really
eat," she said wholeheartedly.

He chuckled again, appreciating her honesty. "I guess the way to your heart
is
through your stomach. I'll have to keep that in mind."

Bianca mimicked his posture, leaning her elbow on the table and moving close before she whispered, "Definitely a way, but not the only way, Rey."

He smiled and cupped her cheek. "You're trying to rush again. Have you always been this impatient?"

"Yes," she answered without hesitation and with a chuckle. "But I wouldn't want to be accused of taking advantage of you, so to preserve your virtue I'll try to wait until at least the third date."

Rey scrutinized her and noted the playfulness in her gaze. "And today would be what date?"

"Date number two if you count the luncheonette the other day," she replied quickly.

"Whoa, that many already? I thought they were business meetings," he quipped and enjoyed seeing the slight blush work up her cheeks.

"Well, I guess you could think of them that way if you want to."

"But I'd rather think of them as dates so that I'm that much closer to having you take advantage of me," he shot back, grinning. "I would like to be able to take the time to get to know you better though."

Bianca narrowed her gaze and shook her head. "Why do I feel as if there's something wrong with this picture?"

He thought about it for a second, then answered, "So you think it's the guy who usually rushes things along while the woman plays hard to get?"

"You might say that," she replied and leaned against the hard metal back of the chair. "I don't want you to get the wrong idea or anything. After all, I was just kind of dating someone and he was kind of expecting we would. . ."

She hesitated and he sensed she was more than a little uncomfortable with being so open with him just yet. "Anyway, I don't think I have to spell it out for you."

"No, you don't. But I think I do have to spell out that what I'm feeling for you is kind of confusing, but really interesting." He didn't add that he wanted her to know the man he had become and not the man he had once been. In the back of his mind was the nagging worry that she would find out about him and it would damage what was happening between them.

"Interesting is a good start," she acknowledged, grinning.

"Yes, it definitely is," he replied and dropped one last kiss on her lips before returning to work.

Chapter Ten

By the time the end of Sunday rolled around, Bianca was too tired to even think about food of any kind. Her arms hurt from the back-breaking scouring of the hoods over the grills and walls above the ovens. Worse yet, they still had to tackle the stovetops, the actual ovens, and the various sinks, drawers, countertops, and refrigerators. And then, when they were close to ready, they’d need to clean and organize the pots, pans, dishes, cutlery and utensils they would bring in. Last, but not least, there were the floors to contend with. Luckily Rey was refinishing those in the public area and the tiles in the kitchen just needed a thorough scrubbing.

It seemed almost insurmountable and yet she knew they had no choice to do all this work themselves. They couldn't afford to hire anyone to do it since the budget just wouldn't allow for it. They were lucky that all of the equipment, despite its age and its disuse, was functional otherwise that would have been another big dent in their finances.

Small consolation, she thought, as she stretched and her back protested the work she had finished. Glancing at her watch, she saw that it was already five o'clock. Nearly time for dinner, but she had little appetite. All she could think about was getting in a nice hot tub and soaking away the assorted aches and pains, and the smells of cleaner, disinfectant and the old stale grease that had lingered on the tiled walls above the cooking area.

"Ready to call it a night?" she asked her two friends, who were busy emptying a large pail filled with dirty, sudsy water into one of the sinks.

"I was ready hours ago," Diana admitted and glanced at Eduardo, who nodded and mopped at his balding head with a bandanna he pulled from a back pocket.

"Ready when you are," he said.

Bianca nodded and pulled off her dishwashing gloves. "I guess I'll just go say 'bye to Rey."

"He left about an hour ago," Diana piped in. "He stuck his head in to say goodbye. I guess you must have been in the bathroom or something."

Bianca tried to not let her disappointment show and mumbled an "Oh," before asking her friends if they could give her a ride to the bus station so she could make the trip back to Manhattan. When they said they could, she grabbed her knapsack, they locked up the restaurant, and headed outside where to both her surprise and pleasure, Rey was pulling up in his truck.

He slipped into a spot by the walkway to the restaurant's door and rolled down the window. Leaning his arm there, he poked his head out, and smiled.

"Thought you might want a lift back to Manhattan," he said.

Bianca glanced at her friends who gave her knowing smiles and excused themselves. She strolled over to the driver's side of Rey's truck.

"It was nice of you to think of me," she said, noting that his hair was damp which made it look an even darker shade of black. He had changed into fresh clothes and looked crisp and clean unlike her bedraggled state.

"I don't want you to go out of your way." Although it would save her a load of time, she thought.

He angled his head in the direction of the passenger side. "Not a problem. I was thinking of heading in to maybe get a bite somewhere."