The Bachelor and the Beauty Queen (14 page)

“Why? Are you interested in buying it?” For a few days last week, Stephen's driver had taken them around town to scout homes. Keenan took the long way around each time. Lexi assumed because it gave them more opportunity to make out in the backseat. Stephen gave her every experience she'd missed out on while away at an all-girls boarding school, including making out on the couch, worrying every time they heard the kids coming down the steps.

“Scouting.” Stephen faced her. “I still have to make a living and I'm not sure I made enough friends today who want to entrust me to sell their homes. I got a text from one of the station producers while you were at the waterslides.”

“It's a Sunday, Stephen.”

“I'm sorry, but I had to take it. Doesn't the home remind you of Tara?”

“I know the house very well.” Lexi cocked her head to the side and studied the manicured lawn from the distance. Typically her viewpoint came from the docks by the forty-foot yacht. A couple of yards away from the docks, the trees parted to offer a peek at the back of the plantation home. “My parents live there, so whatever plans you're thinking for them, forget it.”

Water lapped against the docks, emphasizing the silence between them. Stephen came from a huge family, whether he wanted to be a part of it or not. His mother still wanted to see him. Hell, his mother wanted to meet her. What would Mrs. Reyes think of Lexi and her past?

“I'm sorry if I snapped.” Lexi rubbed her shoulder against his. “I told you we're not close.”

“Do you want to be?”

She half shrugged. “I did. I've tried, but I've brought so much embarrassment. It's too late.”

“It's never too late, Lexi.” Stephen wrapped his arm around her shoulders, absorbing the pain. She tried not to cry.

“I did try. My folks don't even bother returning my cards. At least then I knew they got them. My mother's handwriting would be delicately written on the front,
Return to Sender
. I have no family.”

“Don't worry, you've got me.”

* * *

Lexi walked on cloud nine for the next few months. She literally had an energy in her step, one she never realized she was missing until now. Her calf muscles absorbed the weight of her stride and the red shoulder bag dangling from her arm bounced against her hip. Her red-and-white polka-dot mules skipped her past the Foxx's café. This morning, Chantal had faxed over blueprints for an idea she had to build the store deeper instead of wider. She suggested Lexi build upward. The upstairs apartment would be turned into a private area for bridal consultations, and the expansion downstairs could hold pageant dresses and other formal gowns. They also went to a nearby hardware store and put in an offer in case Mr. Wheeler wanted to retire early.

As summer rolled on, her schedule remained busier than ever. Toddlers and teens flocked to her workshops every Saturday afternoon, and private sessions with Philly progressed so well, she had Philly help with the girls her age on Saturdays. The nights Lexi did not work with Philly, Stephen would pick her up for their dates after work—movies at the park, market days in the downtown square. The days Philly came to the shop, Stephen busied himself with some secretive project next door. Some days, their weekend excursions included the children.

Stephen let Keenan go as a driver and bought himself a family-friendly white sports utility vehicle. He still drove the long way around town, mysteriously avoiding shortcuts, but Lexi enjoyed the extra time they spent together.

They fell into a comfortable routine and Lexi loved every minute of it. For the Fourth of July, Stephen gathered everyone up and brought them to Villa San Juan to his family's hotel, Torres Towers. Everyone sat on the beach facing the Gulf and watched the fireworks.

Occasionally Stephen took solo trips to help with the process of transferring his office in Atlanta. Those nights, he and Lexi talked on the phone till all hours, talking through their binge marathons of old Cary Grant movies on Netflix.

Life with Stephen was perfect. Too perfect. Somewhere across the street, she heard a bird call out so loudly she stopped in her tracks to look around. Lexi shielded her eyes with her hand from the sunny, cloudless sky. Set in a permanent state of happiness, she continued on toward the store. After eating out every night, the walk wouldn't kill her. Hiking her purse back on her shoulder, she tore her gaze from the clouds and her eyes fell across the street. Kimber's familiar pink-and-lavender backpack slung across her shoulders caught her eye. Suspicion rose in Lexi's veins. Why did a kid need her backpack in the summertime? Kimber stood in front of a boy—not Marvin. Lexi's eyes narrowed. This summer, she'd gotten to be friends with Marvin since he picked Kimber up to take her to a lot of the town's social events for the teenagers of Southwood. This boy was a foot taller than Marvin and had a good fifty pounds on him. Nearby at a picnic table, Lexi spied the real Marvin seated in front of a pile of books.

Prepared to shout across the street at Kimber, Lexi raised her hands to cup her mouth to yell. Stephen was going to have a fit when he learned Kimber had broken his trust. Lexi still kept the secret about the dress because she thought Kimber had truly learned her lesson. But to Lexi now everything became clear as day.

She'd been using poor Marvin as a decoy while she secretly dated this man-child. Judging from the way the boy grabbed at Kimber's behind and slobbered all over her face, the two were well acquainted with each other. What was she thinking, kissing this boy across the street from her shop? What if Stephen had been in town?

Lexi was so focused on the couple across the street and trying to reach for the cell phone inside her purse she didn't hear the door to the bakery behind her open. A cold hand snaked around her mouth, preventing her from screaming, and dragged her inside. Panic struck every nerve in her body. Nothing bad ever happened in Southwood, so of course the first broad-daylight kidnapping would happen to her. Regrets flogged her mind. She wished she'd worked things out with her parents. She wished she had the chance to say goodbye to the Reyeses. She wished she'd shown Stephen how she really felt. If only she had the chance.

Chapter 12

W
ildly, her eyes looked left and right, hoping, praying someone had witnessed this abduction. Jammed against this man's frame, she walked awkwardly backward into the bakery, where Lexi imagined being chopped into tiny pieces. Why did Stephen believe the myth of never having to lock doors in a small town?

Fear took over again once the doors to the bakery closed, trapping her inside... Her dark eyes glanced at the vaulted ceilings. On the occasions Lexi had indulged in the desserts at the bakery, she'd never studied the shop closely, but she realized things had changed. The lowered ceiling had been removed to reveal golden paint. The rafters were polished and sparkling. Thick plastic covered the marble flooring. She wondered if her dead body would be wrapped up in the plastic. The smell of fresh French bread returned, though, as well as the sweet and spicy scent of Stephen's cologne. Quickly she jerked away and spun around.

“You scared the hell out of me!”

Stephen stood in the center of the room in a pair of black chinos, a white oxford shirt and black shoes, scratching the back of his head. “I thought you saw me through the window.”

“You're supposed to be in Atlanta! I was—” Though she was still reeling from her initial fright and anger, she remembered Kimber. Now was not the time to tell him. She planned to talk with Kimber first and encourage her to come clean with her uncles. They trusted her. “What are you doing here?” She waved her arms around the new office area. The walls were covered with framed photographs of Stephen handing over the keys of dream homes to several families. Photographs above the secretary's desk were shots of classic homes from famous movies alongside families standing in front of their own versions. Her heels clicked on the hardwood floors as Stephen led her to the back office space.

“When did all this happen? This work takes months!”

Before opening his office door, Stephen gave her a sneaky smile. Her stomach did a flip. “This is the power of Hollywood,
querida
.” Stephen snapped his fingers and the lights flickered, a white screen lowered against the walls darkening. The ceiling turned the room into an orangey-yellow foggy haze. “While you've been busy with Philly, I've been doing some work on my own.”

A familiar tune she currently could not put her finger on poured from the surround-sound speakers. “But what is all this?”

“I wanted to take you someplace you've never been before, and since you're so worldly and insisted on forcing me to watch all those movies with you, I came up with my own idea.” Stephen extended his hand for her to take. “You don't like to dance, but here's something,” He swept her into his arms. A panorama screen of the dance scene put them in the center of
An American in Paris
. She gasped when Stephen mirrored Gene Kelly swinging Leslie Caron into his arms. Lexi clung to Stephen's broad shoulders. Her hair floated through the air. Before she got dizzy, the walls flickered, changing from black to blue. They were surrounded by a body of water. Cool air whipped across her face from a perfectly placed and timed vent. Stephen stood behind her and held her arms out to either side like Jack and Rose in
Titanic
. His lips nibbled her neck. A chill of desire ran down her spine.

“I thought about all the locations I want to kiss you,” he said against her earlobe.

“Oh, Stephen, I think this is so sweet and all, but I can't, I've got to go to...”

“Work?” His coy dimpled smile returned. “You mean the thing you have to do next door?” He led her around in a bit of a circle. The room changed and they stood on a bridge, cars flying before them; he'd recreated the scene between Kate Hudson and Matthew McConaughey in
How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days
, leaning her against a bar as the actors did against a yellow cab. He cupped her face and his tongue traced the shape of her mouth. Lexi's knees buckled.

The sky around them reddened, a field surrounded them, and they were in
Gone with the Wind
, another movie they'd watched together on the couch of his brother's home. Lost in remembering the evening, she hadn't noticed the temperature drop or the next change of scenery, but he recreated the last kiss scene in
Love Jones
.

“Work has been taken care of,” he whispered, “I am going to take care of you this afternoon. Want to tell me what made you so jumpy?”

Lexi stared at the hairs of his beard on his square chin. “I haven't been completely honest with you, Stephen.”

“Sounds like we need to sit down.” He led her toward a long black velvet chaise longue against the wall where the French doors of the kitchen separated the counter space. She braced her back against the arm and he sat beside her, pulling her legs into his lap. “You were shaking like a leaf.”

“I don't want to ruin this moment.” She bit her lip.

Stephen tugged at her ankle. “Talk. We've got all night.”

“You scared me to death when you grabbed me.”

“Is there something else going on with you?”

How did she begin to explain what she witnessed across the street? Kimber's blatant audacity to flaunt her lie in front of the shop was a slap in the face. Lexi had vouched for her with the dress, had taken the heat from Stephen's anger. And now here she was lying again.

“Oh.” Lexi bit her bottom lip. “My mind is preoccupied with my sister and her family.” In all honesty, Lexi's concern for her sister had been on her mind. While they weren't the closest, Lisbeth often dropped an email or a text to her every couple of weeks. Lexi hadn't heard from her or her niece in a while now.

In concern, Stephen cupped her face. “Anything I can help with? You can talk to me about anything.”

Lexi smiled and pushed her sister and Kimber out of her mind. “I know.”

“I have a cousin who works with the US Marshals. One phone call and we can locate your sister.”

“You don't have to bring your family into this,” Lexi said quietly. “If I don't hear from her by the end of the summer, maybe I'll take you up on your offer.” She hated lying to Stephen. He'd shown her he wasn't the terrible monster she'd met first. But Lexi struggled with her place in this family matter. She'd already kept the secret about the dress. The last time she got involved in a family matter was with Ernest and look where that got her, a scandal to everyone in the pageantry world who knew about his nondivorce. Making her feel worse, his kind offer to help and ploy to get her to open up to him continued.

“You need to learn to trust me, not keep things from me. Okay?”

“Okay.” She blinked.

“Are you hungry?”

“For food?” she asked wantonly.

Stephen straightened her upright again. “I've got dinner planned for us upstairs.”

“I've got to get to work.”

“Work is taken care of.” He smiled and winked. “Andrew insisted on making me aware how he could handle the shop
and
work with Philly.”

Slowly she shook her head, fighting with the angel and devil on her shoulders. She had work to do. Her services were needed next door, but her body wanted service in here. “I promise to take full responsibility if anything goes wrong.”

“What did you have planned in here?”

Stephen cleared his throat and snapped his finger. Suddenly they were on a Greek balcony staring down at a village. He reached to the side of the sofa for a dish of Brie and red grapes, and fed her one piece of fruit. She nibbled on the tip of his finger.

“Are we alone?” she asked.

To answer her, he set the plate on the floor beside them and reached for her hips, yanking her down on her back. His hand slid under the hem of her skirt and up her thigh. “Something you wanted to do with me alone?”

Lexi bit the corner of her lip and batted her long lashes. “Well, I had one particular revelation when fighting for my life after being snatched off the street.” She tried to hide her giggle when Stephen rolled his eyes at her dramatic antics. “Never mind.”

Though she had no intention to leave, nor did she want him to let her go, she still had to pretend to make the effort to get away. Stephen caressed the curve of her waist, the pad of his thumb circling the buds beneath her bra. With kids at his home, they never got the chance to be alone. Their late-night movies were often marred with someone waking up and needing water. And they both just respected not having sex in the house. They made out a lot on the couch. Stephen would always get frisky, but they always broke apart like teenagers caught by their parents. It seemed too adolescent, but now faced with going the distance, Lexi shuddered. He was too fine to try and continue resisting.

“I'm sorry—go ahead and tell me what your last thoughts were before you nearly died.”

A cord of desire pulled at her center the minute his mouth covered her neck. She opened her mouth to speak but she could only moan. Her only way to respond was to slip her hands under his shirt again and stroke his rock-hard abs. Her thumbs dipped down to the waistband of his slacks.

Stephen pulled back. “Hey now, I didn't set up this date for that.” He took her fingers and brought them to his mouth.

“Stephen, what my near-death experience taught me is I don't want to waste another second we have together, starting now.”

* * *

He'd be lying if he said every inch of his body didn't ache to make love to her, but he wanted to respect her wishes and go slow. Lying on the couch making out with her left him in need of several cold showers. So if she continued to kiss him, lying so close, he worried he would not be able to stop.

“Don't tease me, woman,” he growled playfully as she nibbled on his bottom lip.

Whatever he wanted to say got lost in his throat when she maneuvered out from under him, only to stand before him. A quick yank and the polka-dot strapless dress fell to the ground in a pool of red. She stood before him, a goddess of golden honey covered in a pair of tiny red lace panties and a red strapless bra. Hands on her hips, she tilted her head slightly up toward him for a kiss. Her blond hair spilled on one side of her shoulder, covering her left breast. Stephen stood to fit his body against hers. His hands stroked the curve of her waist; his fingers itched to pull off the material. Their mouths met and kissed deeply—passionately. Never before had he gotten lost in a kiss. As crazy as it seemed, he'd been content not making love. He did not need it—he wanted it, but kissing and a bit of touching here and there made him content, or so he thought.

“Do I look like I am teasing?”

A nerve in the back of his jaw twitched.
“¡Dios mío!”
His erection stiffened and strained against his pants.

Lexi's wide eyes blinked innocently as she stepped forward, pushing him onto the couch while she straddled his legs. Her breasts, so delectable, pushed against his face. Stephen kissed the valley between them and she ground her lower half against him. Her long lashes fanned against her cheeks each time. “Is something wrong?”

Innocent, his ass
. This woman made seduction a profession. She had played the sweet Southern girl act for a while and he'd fallen for it. Grinning devilishly, Stephen shook his head. He was done with playing the good boy if she was finished playing the good girl.

“Not at all,” he breathed.

“Why are you leaving me the only one undressed, then?”

Her fingertips unbuttoned his shirt. Stephen helped, trying to control his eagerness. With her still in his lap, he lifted his hips, slid his pants down his legs and kicking out of his pants, stripped down to his black boxers. Lexi reached for his waistband. “Let me.”

Lexi slipped off his legs and cradled her body between his thighs. Her warm breath against his belly button made him aware he'd been shivering with nervousness. Stephen slouched into the cushions of the couch. A pink tongue darted out of her mouth, tracing the area between the fabric of his briefs and his skin. Her fingers moved to his hips and slowly peeled down the material, freeing his throbbing cock. Lexi took her thumb and rolled the precum and spread it around and down the shaft. Maneuvering to her knees, she braced her hands on his thighs and slid her red lips over him, taking him deeply to the back of her throat. Stephen reached for the cushions, trying to maintain his cool, but as she bobbed her head up and down, suctioning each time her mouth closed around the tip, he couldn't take it. His hands sank into her hair, guiding her to his oblivion. When he thought he might burst, Stephen jackknifed upward and swooped Lexi into his arms and laid her down on the couch. He needed her. Now.

Stephen hovered over her body. She slid her bra off and he kissed her on the collarbone. When Lexi pressed her hands against his bare chest, her breasts jutted forward in offering. He obliged, making love to one nipple at a time until her legs fell to the side. Stephen sent another trail of kisses down her smooth belly. The thin fabric of her panties didn't hide the moisture she'd exuded from their touching. He was ready to stroke her but not yet. His mouth craved another kiss. Providing one, Lexi's soft hands milked him softly and firmly. Stephen pulled his hips out of her way, returning to his trail of kisses. His thumbs parted the center of her legs and he blew a hot kiss through the red fabric of her panties. Lexi whimpered.

His tongue slipped the fabric to the side and stroked the length of the runway strip of hair. Liquid heat gushed onto his tongue as he went deeper into her slick folds. Above him, Lexi's breath went ragged. Stephen kissed, lipped and devoured her while her hips wiggled beneath him. He used his hands to raise her butt so he could feast on her.

“Stephen!” She cried out his name. Stephen pulled himself to his arms and balanced himself to hover over her. He made love to one nipple with his mouth, pulled back and made love to the other. He sat back a moment to look at his work. The twin peaks stood at full attention. Lexi's body squirmed beneath his. She gyrated her hips against his strained erection.