She's Got Dibs (22 page)

His eyebrows shot up when she wagged a finger at him.

“You’re good. Because you said we could be friends. That’s what you said, and so I thought okay, it’s okay—but now, I’m not so sure about that anymore, because, to tell you the truth…you flew in under the radar, Dibs. Even though you told me that wouldn’t happen, it did. And so here I am, I mean, here we are, and I don’t know what I’m doing anymore…”

She grimaced and rubbed at a spot between her eyebrows. “You know, I’m usually very articulate, but now, I don’t know, I can’t seem to find the right—”

“Well, it’s about time,” he whispered.

She shook her head. “Sorry, I—”

“I’m not sorry in the least.” He reached up and gently removed her sunglasses, his eyes shining down on her, heightening the timid anticipation in her heart. One step forward and he cupped her cheeks in his hands. “Just so you know? I’m going to come at you like a freight train.”

She smiled, though tears dampened the lashes beneath her eyes.

He swept his thumb across her cheek. Happiness flooded his gaze. And the world inched to a stop as he slowly leaned down and brought his lips to within a breath of hers.

“I’ve been waiting a very long time to kiss you again.” He held her face, keeping his lips near.

A ripple of electricity coursed down her back. She closed her eyes. He swept his mouth over hers. The tip of his tongue slid in…and a long-awaited desire stirred within her soul.

She closed what little space remained between them, grasping his upper arms when he nipped and sucked her bottom lip, wanting him to know she had waited just as long, hoping he could tell by her kiss what he meant to her. She released his arms and encircled his waist, bringing her breasts to the hard wall of his chest.

He combed his fingers in under her hair, dotted kisses at the corners of her mouth. His bottom lip brushed up, captured her kiss, and he tangled his tongue with hers.

Sheer joy rushed her heart at being in his arms. Why…why had she wasted so much time? Two weeks she’d robbed herself of this complete and utter happiness as their lips met again and again.

“I can’t believe you’re telling me this now.” He ran his hands through her hair to the small of her back, tugged her into his hips, and kissed her. “I’m flying halfway across the world and you’re telling me now.” His low chuckle vibrated inside her chest.

“The timing is bad. I know, it’s really, really bad. I just couldn’t let you leave.” She clasped the back of his neck, pulling him down to her. “I’m sorry,” she whispered, showering his cheeks with kisses, his chin, and the sweet, gentle slope beneath his ear.

“I want you to be mine, Tessa.” At his heated request, a burst of glittering sparks showered through her limbs. “No one else’s, just mine.” He crushed his mouth to hers, one hand cupping the back of her head, a strong arm cinching her waist.

In that moment, she knew. They were connected somehow, ever since their first meeting in the airport. Her fear no longer mattered. Because standing in his arms, eagerly awaiting his kisses, she wanted to be his—just his—for as long as they could make it last.

“I’ve been yours since the moment we met, Dibs.” A tear escaped and tumbled onto her cheek.

“Yo, Romeo! We gotta go!”

He held the side of her throat and stepped forward, his lips dancing against hers, trapping her between the firm tower of his body and the car. Tessa gasped and a shudder racked her shoulders when desire surged and bolted down the inside of her thighs. She let her hands roam freely over him, trying to memorize the muscles in his chest and arms, the tension in his back, so she would remember every inch of him while he was gone.

“Come on, Dibs! We’re loaded!”

He smiled into her eyes, cleared the tear from her cheek, and kissed the damp spot it had made.

She caught his lips again, savoring the moment that would have to last until they had returned to one another’s arms.

A shrill whistle pierced the air, and then a few seconds later several raucous shouts and some clapping. She broke away from Dibs, her shy smile breaking into a quiet laugh. He looked over his shoulder at the team. “Yeah, yeah, get on the plane!”

He spun back to her and his velvet lips tended hers again, and then again before he cradled her head against his chest.

“When?” she asked, breathing him into her lungs. “How long?”

“Next Sunday.” His parted mouth grazed and lingered along the side of her throat.

Her knees trembled. She wound her fingers through his hair, closing her eyes when sizzling tendrils of arousal sparked through her belly.

“You realize this is going to kill me.” He rested his forehead against hers, searching her eyes. “You know that, right?”

“I’ll be here. I’ll be right here waiting for you to get off that plane.”

“Come
on
, Dibs!”

“You know, they are very annoying.” She bit her lip, and then laughed when Dibs picked her up and snuggled her close.

“Okay.” He set her down and slowly withdrew. “I gotta go.”

“Okay.” She nodded, leaning forward to hold his hand until the very last moment. “I’ll be here.”

One long stride and he gathered her back into his arms, kissed her one last time. He walked away backward, grinning, his arms outstretched wide to the sides. Elation bubbled up her throat and she laughed, crossing her arms over her chest, hands on her shoulders, needing to hold herself in his absence. He turned and jogged the rest of the way to the plane, then stopped to smile and wave before climbing the small staircase and disappearing through the door.

She stood near the car, already missing him, as the plane taxied down the runway and lifted into the air.

Chapter Eleven

Never before had Tessa been so grateful for her hectic schedule. A longing ache remained lodged in her chest, an empty place that could only be filled by Dibs. Work was her one relief, when she had no choice but to focus on the tasks at hand, thankful at least the rigorous days made time pass by a bit faster.

The nights, however, were a different story. During those long, dark hours, visions of Dibs overshadowed her every thought. Time stopped at night, and she grew miserable for his return.

Fortunately, only a few days passed before she discovered his plan to show her that she remained in his thoughts, as well.

After arriving at her condo Tuesday evening, she was stopped by the doorman while collecting her mail from the lobby.

“A package arrived for you today, Miss Adams.”

She glanced up from flipping through the envelopes. “Okay, I’ll take it with me.”

“I’ll need to bring it up. It’s rather large.”

“Oh?” She approached the doorman station.

On a rolling cart behind the counter, the bronze sculpture winked at her from under a sheet of bubble wrap, secured to the high black pedestal with clear plastic sheeting.

Her heart warmed and she swallowed back a giddy schoolgirl giggle. “Bring it up whenever you have a moment, Henry. I’ll be upstairs making a spot for it.”

Inside her condo, she went straight to her bedroom and pushed the padded bench under the window to the end of the bed. A few moments later, the doorbell rang.

She spent the next half hour carefully unwrapping, flinging plastic sheets over her shoulder to the floor. When she was done, soft light from the window danced against the burnished bronze. The metal glided under her palm like a cool, sleek sheet of glass. Excitement sparked and flickered in her stomach. Just five more days and she could extend Dibs a proper thank you.

Enjoying a cup of coffee the next morning, she caught a glint of gold from the coffee table. She frowned and picked up her old engagement ring. How bizarre. She’d completely forgotten to return it to her jewelry box.

She spun the band on her index finger. Dibs had suggested she get rid of the ring, maybe buy herself something nice—like a prize from a bubble gum machine. A sly smile stretched her lips and she slipped the ring into her pocket.

At noon on the dot, she left the office and shuffled through the pedestrian traffic to Jeweler’s Row. She entered a small jewelry store and approached the glass-topped case.

A smiling gentleman strolled over from the other side of the counter. “See something you like?”

“No, not yet.” She clattered the ring to top of the glass. “I was actually wondering if I could get anything for this ring.”

“Let’s see.” He lifted a jeweler’s eyepiece and squinted around one end. “We don’t normally buy used jewelry.” He turned the ring back and forth before the lens. “But we may be willing to do an exchange.”

She nodded and moved a few paces away, paused before a case of multicolored stones. Pretty bracelets in both platinum and gold lay displayed inside, some with diamond accents and some without.

Near the end of the case, a box of rings rested on a small raised tier. Nestled inside the black velvet, a platinum band held several marquise-cut rubies, mounted in an overlapping circle to resemble the petals of a flower. Three marquise peridots had been set at a slight angle to represent the leaves. Several brilliant cut diamonds adorned the center, inlaid slightly lower than the rest of the stones. The ring was a perfect little rose.

“Excuse me.” She pointed into the case. “May I see this ring?”

“Sure thing.” The man jingled a set of keys and retrieved the box.

Tessa slid the glittering jewels onto her right pinky finger. “How much for this piece?”

“Seventeen hundred. Which, strangely enough, is exactly what I can offer you for this piece.” He waggled the engagement ring on the end of his index finger.

She lifted a shrewd eyebrow. “Funny how that worked out, isn’t it?”

After signing the paperwork, she ended up paying for the tax, but she didn’t care. To her, the new ring symbolized a final farewell to an old chapter in her life. She was finally ready to begin anew, to begin again with Dibs.

She practically floated back to the office, and once there couldn’t help but show off her new purchase.

“That is
gorgeous
.” Tiffany turned her hand back and forth, studying the ring. “What made you decide to get it?”

“Well…I sold Michael’s ring.”

“What?” Tiffany dropped her hand.

“I said I sold—”

“I heard you the first time.” She popped up and rushed around the side of her desk. “I just don’t believe it.” She flung her arms around Tessa’s shoulders and squeezed tight. “Oh, I’m so proud of you. Thank you, Dibs!”

Tessa laughed. “You know what? I’m proud of me, too.”

Later that afternoon the doorbell rang, and Tessa leaned back from her desk to find a bicycle messenger waiting in reception. She signed for the package addressed to her and quickly tore into the brown paper. Inside was a framed eight-by-ten color photograph of her and Dibs entering the gallery.

She grinned, then gasped and crumpled the paper and frame to her chest. Even though she’d made Dibs upset, broken off their kiss that Friday he left her office, he’d still arranged to have the photo delivered.

She kept the picture centered on her desk, glancing at it periodically throughout the day, an effervescent euphoria thrilling through her veins every time she relived their kisses at the airport.

The hours ticked by, most often in slow motion, and by Thursday morning an antsy irritation had leached into every cell in her body. No matter what she did, the closer Sunday loomed, the more cloying the waiting became. Not even work was a significant distraction anymore.

Sitting at her desk, staring at the same invoice she’d been working on for over an hour, she expelled a breath of relief when the phone rang. Maybe
something
would finally break up the monotony. “TNT Entertainment, this is Tessa.”

“So, here’s an idea.” A tinny version of Dibs’s voice echoed through the line.

She hesitated. Her ears must’ve heard wrong. “No way.” She slowly stood.

“Let’s go on vacation.”

Her heart flipped erratically in her chest. “You’re…you’re calling me from
Botswana
?”

“When did you last take some time off, Rex?”

She slapped a palm to her chest. “Where did you even find a phone? And don’t tell me your cell works from there, I won’t buy it.”

“We could go to Vail for a few days after I get back, or even longer if you can swing it.”

“You’re calling from the jungle to ask me on vacation?” She switched her trembling hand to her forehead.

His laugh reverberated through the line. “Yes, so answer the question.”

“You’re completely insane, but it sounds wonderful.” She smiled, lifting their photo from her desk. “I miss you.”

“Three more days, Rex.” A wistful longing softened his voice, so far away.

“Three more days,” she repeated. “Are you being careful out there?”

“Depends. Are you eating?”

They shared a laugh.

“God, I can’t wait to see you,” he said.

She cleared her throat. “I can’t wait to do a little bit more than just see you.”

His chuckle set her heart racing all over again. “I’m starting to think you like to torture me, Rex.”

“I just can’t stop thinking about you.” She reclaimed her chair and ran a fingertip down his cheek in the photo. “All this distance is making me crazy.”

“I know. Me, too.”

“What time do you get in?”

“We should land sometime around two.”

“Okay, I’ll be the lonely-looking girl waiting by the black Jag.”

“I’ll be the happy-looking guy running toward you.”

She laughed.

“I gotta go, Rex. I’ll see you Sunday. And pack your bags.”

“Okay. See you then.”

She slowly lowered the receiver into the cradle, basking in the radiant light thrumming through her heart. She spun away from her desk and marched briskly into Tiffany’s office. “I can’t remember.” She came forward for a seat. “Does it always feel this way when you’re infatuated with someone?”

Tiffany swiveled away from her computer, a clever smirk in place. “You got it bad, don’t you?”

“My head’s spinning. He just called.”