So Much Trouble When She Walked In (8 page)

“You’re
going on a date, Silken,” she said slowly, carefully, as if speaking to a
toddler.  “You don’t bring your sister along on a date.”

For
a long while Silken just sat there, staring at Suave.  Finally, she gave a hrumph
and hopped off the bed.  “Fine.  If you’re not going then I’m not going
either.  I’ll call Max and tell him right now.”  Holding her head straight, not
giving Suave another glance, she flounced past her and out of the room.

Suave
gasped then ran after her.  “Silken, are you crazy?  You can’t cancel your date
because of me.  You have to go.”

Silken
stopped and turned then she shrugged.  “No, I don’t.  I’ll just tell Max
something came up,” then her eyes narrowed, “or that I have to stay home with
my sister.”

Suave
narrowed her eyes back at Silken.  “Then he’d hate me for ruining his plan. 
You wouldn’t.”

“I
would.”

Suave
began to pout then her shoulders slumped and she expelled her breath in a soft
whoosh, a sure sign that she was accepting defeat
.  Smart girl.

“All
right,” she said.  “I’ll go with you,” she stuck a finger in Silken’s face, “but
we’re going in separate cars.  When I’m ready to leave, I’m leaving.  You’re
not going to have me stuck there till all hours of the night when I want to get
to bed.”

“Fine.” 
Silken turned and set off toward her own room.  She didn’t want Suave to see
her triumphant grin.  “Wear the black dress with the bow at the back.  You look
cute in that.”

That
got her another hrumph from Suave but it didn’t matter.  She’d already won this
battle.  Suave, the consummate homebody, would not be home alone - at least not
tonight. 

***

When
Silken pulled into the driveway of Max’s home, Suave’s car was nowhere to be
seen.  No surprise there.  Her sister, ever the careful one, was probably plodding
along the highway well within the speed limit.  Silken, on the other hand,
never drove at less than ten miles above.  Anything less and she felt like she
was driving backwards.  Settling deeper into her seat she leaned back to wait. 
It would be another five, maybe six minutes before she’d see the Volvo pull up
beside her.  But no worries.  They were early so she’d pass the time catching
up on some good music on KISS FM.

But
when she flipped on the music Silken did not hear a single note.  Instead, her
mind flashed to Max.  So much had happened between them in the last two weeks,
since that day they’d gone out to lunch.

It
had taken a while to get over the humiliation of his reprimand but eventually
she'd relaxed enough to actually enjoy the afternoon at Shiraito Restaurant. 
After a meal of Sushi, Miso Soup and Teriyaki Chicken they lingered over coffee
and dessert and soon she found herself so caught up in the conversation that
she was shocked when he tapped his watch.

“Time
to get you home,” he said, “before your sister sends out the troops.”

That
was when she checked the time on her cell phone and realized that it was almost
eight o’clock.  She couldn’t believe they’d been sitting in the restaurant for
almost four hours.  And not just sitting.  Talking.

Who
could have known that Maximillian Davidoff would be such a funny, down-to-earth
kind of guy?  There was not an ounce of snob about him, no matter that he was
the richest man she’d ever had lunch with.  And he was rich, no doubt about
that.  The owner of Davidoff Cosmetics would be worth billions.  But just
looking at him, lounging in his chair across from her, you’d never tell.

Which
brought her to her next question.  Why had he asked her out?  And he’d even
gone and kissed her.  Her.  The woman who had embarrassed him in public, not
once but twice.

As
she sat in the car waiting for Suave she shook her head, still baffled by what
must be the mystery of the ages…at least as far as her life was concerned. 
Because why would a man like him be interested in a woman like her?

And
he was interested.  There was no doubt in her mind about that.  A man who’d
been acting like he had these past couple of weeks – calls every few days,
lengthy conversations over the phone, one of which had lasted almost an hour,
and now this – an invitation to his house to meet his brothers.

She'd
been blown away but she'd acted calmly and demurely accepted his invitation. 
Suave would have been so proud.

The
lights of the Volvo flashed in her rear-view mirror and she blinked, suddenly
realizing she’d just spent all her wait time daydreaming about Max.  She would
have laughed if it wasn’t just a little bit scary.  Was she going soft on Max?  She
shook her head, knocking the thought loose and dashing it out of her head, then
she got out of the car and waved Suave over.  She wasn’t going to think about
any of that, not tonight.  Tonight she would get to know his family and just
have fun.

When
Silken and Suave walked in, Max introduced them to Duke, the brother who
followed him, the one who had encouraged him to set up his latest business in
Cupertino.  He was tall, almost as tall as Max, with the same jet-black hair,
square chin and long nose.

“So
these are the twins,” he said, looking from one to the other.  “Now let me see
if I can figure out who’s who.”  He wrinkled his brows and tilted his head. 
“Based on what I’ve heard, Silken is the impulsive, saucy one.  I can see the
fire in your eyes. That’s got to be you.”  He nodded his head toward Silken. 
Then he turned to Suave and his lips widened in a smile.  “And you must be
Suave, as serene and silky-smooth as your name.”

Ooh,
he's a charmer, this one
.  Silken let her glance slide away from his face
and across to her sister who had turned a softly glowing shade of pink. 
Oh,
beeswax.  Now he’s gone and embarrassed Suave
.  Silken could only pray that
she wouldn’t get cold feet and decide to take flight.

“Great
job,” she said with a laugh, trying to defuse the tension of the moment.  “It
usually takes people at least a few hours before they can figure us out, maybe
even days.”  Then she shook her head.  “But don’t listen to Max.  I’m not
saucy…” she paused when Max gave her a pointed look, “…at least not all the
time.”

Duke
laughed.  “Don’t worry about it.  Hey, it’s good that the two of you are different. 
At least this way we can tell you apart.”

“Come
on, let’s head over to the den,” Max said, breaking in.  “We can chill there
until Reed gets here.”

It
was after they’d settled down with mineral water and Martinis that Silken saw
Suave begin to relax.  Earlier she'd seemed so tense while Duke's attention had
been on her but now she looked comfortable, laughing at his jokes and even
sitting next to him when he patted the seat beside him.  Silken breathed a
whispering sigh of relief.  It looked like the evening was going to go well
after all.

Duke
was deep in animated conversation, telling them about his work in the field of
computer technology, when Reed arrived.  “Hi, everyone,” he said, bouncing into
the room.  "Sorry I’m late but I thought the runway show would have ended
earlier.” 

"And,
of course, your big brothers aren’t worth missing a fashion show.”  Max’s tone
was dry but the grin on his lips said he didn’t care a hoot that Reed had shown
up late.  He was just glad to see his brother.

Reed
was the total opposite of his brothers.  Where they were over six feet and
dark-haired with craggy features he couldn’t have been taller than five ten or
eleven with brown hair and laughing blue eyes.  And he was young, probably no
older than twenty-five.  “You're the famous twins I’ve been hearing about.”  He
came over and shook both their hands then stood back to regard them with
fascination.  “You guys look so much alike, it’s creepy.”

That
wasn’t the part of his speech that caught Silken’s attention.  “Famous twins?  We’re
not famous.”

“According
to Max, you are.  He said you’re known about town as the best auto repair
operation in all of Cupertino.”  Reed nodded as he glanced over at Max.  “He’s
been asking around.”

Silken
looked at Max, her eyebrows slightly raised.  He’d been asking around?  Now
what was that all about?  But she’d have to tackle him on that another day. 
Right now Max’s face was giving nothing away.

“Grab
a seat and tell the ladies all about your lovely life in London.”  Max jerked
his head toward the empty La-Z-Boy.  “They already know all there is to know
about me and Duke.”

A
deliberate attempt to change the subject.  Silken turned and gave Max a look of
suspicion but he totally ignored her, keeping his eyes trained on his brother. 
She knew he could feel her eyes on him but he wasn’t taking the bait.  Okay, no
problem.  He could duck out now but he couldn’t avoid her forever.  She would
tackle him on this soon enough.

Silken
soon forgot about Max and his questions because Reed ended up being the most
entertaining of all the brothers.  When he told them about his work in Europe,
the clothing lines he’d launched, his work with runway models from all over the
world, and his recent launch of a jewelry line, his eyes sparkled with such
life that there could be no doubt that he thoroughly enjoyed what he was doing.

“So
you’ll do a similar launch here in the United States?” Suave asked, looking
intrigued.

“Of
course.”  Reed leaned back in the chair, looking satisfied that he had an
interested audience.  “Whatever I do in Europe, I duplicate in New York, Miami
and Las Vegas.  I have staff here on the ground to execute all my plans.”

“But
you wouldn’t move back to the States,” Silken asked, “to live here and grow
your business?”

Reed
faltered, seeming taking aback by her question, and his eyes shifted to Duke
and then to Max. 

That
was when Silken realized that she’d touched on a sensitive subject.  Darn!  She
was so gifted at putting her foot in it.

“Well,
no,” he said and for a second he looked away.  “I’m happy in London.  I
wouldn’t want to be anywhere else.”  Then he gave Max a pointed look. 
Obviously, the answer was not meant for Silken alone.

“Well,
I’m starving,” Duke said, stretching then rising to his feet.  “You’re just
going to have us in here all evening, blabbing?"  He frowned at Max. 
“Where’s the chow?”

The
serious look on Max’s face cleared and he laughed.  “Hold your horses.  Don’t
they feed you where you come from?  You have a cook at your house, right?”

“Yeah,”
he said, rubbing his belly, “but that was hours ago.  Now lead me to the food
before I start chomping on the furniture.”

They
all laughed and followed Max into the dining room where the huge table had been
laid out with a spread fit for royalty.  There were so many kinds of food there
that Silken didn’t know how they could possibly get through all that.  She
looked across at Suave but her sister’s attention was fully occupied as she
thanked Duke and slid onto the chair he’d pulled out for her.  

The
rest of the evening was just as relaxed as it had started, with them enjoying
the meal that Max’s private chef had prepared.  To Silken’s surprise, it was
Suave who seemed to have enjoyed the evening most.  Under the light banter and
teasing of the men her usually polite reserve disappeared and soon she was
giving as good as she got, ribbing them for their gluttony – they’d made short
work of the feast the chef had prepared - and laughing at their jokes, even the
slightly risqué ones.

When
the grandfather clock in the hallway chimed nine, Suave lifted her face and on
it was a look of regret.  “Goodness, is it that late already?”  She looked over
at her host sitting at the head of the table and then at the other men.  “I’m
sorry, but it’s my bedtime.  I have to go now.”

“Oh,
so soon?”  Duke gave her a mock pout.

“Yeah,
it’s not like it’s midnight.”  Reed’s look was one of disbelief.

“Sorry,
guys.  I need my eight hours or I’m no use to myself.”  She looked over at
Silken.  “I’ll go on ahead of you, okay?”

“Sure,
sis,” Silken said with a shrug.  It was usually like this.  Suave was the
early-to-bed, early-to-rise person while she was the night owl.  "I’ll
catch up with you later.”

The
men, all three of them, got up and walked Suave to the door while Silken stayed
at the table, surveying the damage wrought on the previously food-filled
table.  Max certainly knew what he was doing when he had his chef prepare all
this food.  There was hardly anything left.  Where the heck had the men put all
that?

When
they returned to the dining room, Silken got another surprise.

“I
guess I’d better follow Suave’s example,” Duke said, “and make it an early
night.  Good night, Silken.”

She
frowned.  “You’re leaving?”

He
nodded.  “I’m afraid so.  It was nice meeting you.”  He stuck out his hand to
her for a goodbye shake.

Then
Reed came over and put out his hand, too.  “It was a pleasure meeting you,
Silken.  Both of you.”

She
frowned again and she did not take his hand.  “You’re leaving, too?”

“Yeah,”
he said with a shrug, “I’m going to hook up with an old school buddy who lives
in Palo Alto.  We’ll probably hang out a couple of hours then I’ll head back.”

“Well,
okay,” she said, slightly confused, wondering if she’d done something to make
both Duke and Reed go running.  Her mind did a two-second rewind of the evening
but she couldn’t think of anything...well, except for that blunder with Reed
and London, but they’d forgotten all about that.  Or maybe they hadn’t…

She
walked to the door with Duke and Reed where they each gave her a hug.  “It was
really good meeting you,” Reed said, “and I’m not just saying that.”

“I
second that.”  Duke grinned at her.

Silken
felt herself glow with pleasure at their words.  They really were nice.  She
hoped one day she’d get the chance to meet them again.