Blindfold: The Complete Series Box Set (35 page)

My heart tripped inside my chest. I could practically feel the stuttering beats before it slowed to a complete and total halt for a period of maybe three counts. “Ah, dinner?”

“Yes. You were kind enough to feed me last night. I wanted to repay the favor.”

“It was just tofu and curry.” Keeping my voice light, I tried to shrug off my desire to say yes. To anything. To everything. “It’s not like I wasn’t eating anyway.”

“It was more than tofu and curry, Toni.” His voice was short. “But if you don’t want to eat dinner with me, I understand.”

If I didn't
want
to.

Yeah, right.

But I shouldn’t. There was no question about that. But that didn’t keep me from answering the way I wanted to.

“Yeah, Ash. I think I can do dinner.” I hesitated only a second before I added, “I can’t stay late, though. I’m falling behind on stuff and I can’t do that.”

“Understood.”

***

I finished everything I’d planned to get done for the day by two so I jotted down the hours. I’d been tracking my time on a pad of paper since I wasn’t sure what to do with my hours since Isadora had been kidnapped.

I hadn’t been paid at all since I’d started working and I wasn’t sure how to address that. It felt odd talking to Ash about it, but I couldn’t go much longer without a check. The Winter Corporation had placed me with Isadora, but she was my employer, not them. And she wasn’t here.

Brooding as I counted up the hours, I tried to figure out the best way to approach things, but I hadn’t found a resolution by the time the door opened in the foyer. I heard Doug’s low, polite voice, and knew that Ash was home.

I kept my attention focused on the pages and notes neatly arranged in front of me, even when his footsteps stopped in the doorway. I didn’t look up right away. Mentally, I counted to ten, then fifteen, before I glanced up, keeping it casual, then blinking in surprised when I saw him. “Oh. Hey.”

Ash stepped inside the room. “Hey.”

I offered him a faint smile before looking back down at the desk.

There was nothing here that I could even pretend was important. Not for long anyway. But I had to pretend like I hadn't been thinking about seeing him all day.

After a few more seconds of faked activity, I made a show of shuffling papers and then smiled up at him. “I’m pretty much done.”

“Good.” He tapped his briefcase against his thigh and came deeper into the room. “You know, it’s...nice having you be here...for Isadora.”

“I...” Pursing my lips, I tried to figure out the right way to respond. “I’m just doing my job.”

“Your job isn’t taking care of my sister, or trying to. Part of why you’re here is because you’re worried about her. You don’t have to be here. You don’t even have to keep working for her. But you’re doing it.” His green eyes were intense. “You don’t have to care or try to help. But you’re doing it. Thank you.”

The sincerity of the words knocked me off balance. I didn’t know how to handle Ash when he wasn’t being a jerk or trying to get into my pants. So I shrugged it off. “I’m just doing what anybody would do.”

“You’re wrong.” He smiled at me, his gaze staring straight through me. Then he skimmed the surface of the desk with his fingertips. “You said you were wrapping up. You’re done, then?”

“Yes.”

He held out a hand.

Uncertain, I stared.

“Aren’t you hungry? Doug said you didn’t eat lunch.”

As if on cue, my belly rumbled. “I forgot,” I answered honestly.

“Good thing I made sure we'll have plenty to eat then.” He smiled at me but didn't retract his hand.

After a moment, I accepted it. I tried to ignore the hot pricks of electricity that ran along my nerves as I followed him out of the living room and down the hallway.

Off the back of the house, there was a small, intimate terrace. Grapevines and other flowering plants climbed up the trellis. There was a sweet perfume in the air, something sweet and intoxicating. I hadn't been out here before, but I was officially making it my favorite place now.

The small table was intimate, set for just two, and Ash sipped his wine as Doug gestured for a man clad in a white shirt and apron to come forward. The scent of the food made my stomach stopped growling, taking it up a notch. It started yowling.

After we’d been served, we were left alone and I busied myself with trying every dish that was offered. Part of it was because I was hungrier than I'd realized, but I couldn't deny that eating was easier than facing being alone with Ash.

I didn’t stop until my belly was ready to pop and when I finally looked up, Ash was still watching me over the rim of his glass. He’d eaten some of his food, but not a lot.

“You don’t seem very hungry.” I smiled as I reached for my napkin and dabbed at my mouth. I wasn't embarrassed by how much I'd eaten, but I did hope I didn't have anything on my face.

“I ate lunch.” He crooked a smile at me. “You didn’t.”

“Yeah, well. I’ve always had a healthy appetite. Me and skipping meals, we don’t go together well.” I reached for my water and took a sip, sighing as my belly, now beyond full, gurgled a little in protest. I leaned back in my seat. “My parents always joked that they'd thought they'd lucked out when I was born because they had their hands full trying to feed four boys, but I'd always managed to hold my own with the best of them.”

“You’re close to your family.” There was something sad in his voice.

“Yeah. They’re amazing.”

“You’re lucky.” Focused on the glass he held, Ash spoke in a distant sort of voice. “You never know the kind of things you have, and how much you take them for granted, until you just don’t have them anymore.”

“I know I’m lucky.” I hesitated only a few seconds before I asked, “What happened to them?” When he glanced at me, I clarified. “Your parents, I mean. Isadora said it was a car accident when she was seven, but...”

“Yeah, I was nineteen.” He tossed back the rest of his wine like it was a two-dollar shot. “It was a country highway, up-state New York. No other cars, no one to say what really happened. The theory is that my dad lost control of the car. Maybe fell asleep.” His mouth twisted in a snarl, but I knew he wasn't angry at me. “The officers who investigated it had a theory that they’d been arguing and he was distracted. It’s shit. My parents hardly ever argued and he never would have gotten into an argument with her in the car. He was...”

“Like you?” I propped my elbow on my chin as I studied him, intrigued by this side of him. “If he was anything like you and Isadora is anything like your mom, then he would've been too protective of her to...” I stopped suddenly, realizing how it sounded.

Ash’s lips twisted sardonically. “Let me guess. You think he would have coddled my mom, the way I coddle my sister.” With a shrug, he said, “You’d be right. Dad doted on Mom and on Iz. He was the head of the household, the man. Responsible for taking care of everybody, for running the family business and making sure none of us wanted for anything. And I was being groomed to be the same way. Mom, Isadora...they were there to be loved, protected.”

My heart twisted at his words, at the wistful tone. “Were they happy?”

“Yeah.” Staring into his now-empty wineglass, he nodded. “They were so happy, it was almost embarrassing. Your mom ever kiss you in front of your friends? Or did your friends ever see your parents kissing? It was such a regular thing with my folks that my friends didn't even notice. Then it was just...gone. And it was me, this stupid nineteen year-old kid trying to figure out how to be a dad to a heart-broken little girl.”

Tears burned my eyelids. “You don’t have any other family, do you?”

“Not really. Some very distant relatives that we don't really see. They were going to take Iz so I could stay away at school, but I wouldn't let them.”

His voice hitched at the end and I knew he was struggling to keep his emotions in check.

Unable to take sitting anymore, I got up and went around the table. He’d already pushed back, and it made it easy to kneel down next to him. Almost too easy to slide my hands up and grip his hips as I leaned in to press a kiss to his jawline.

“I’m sorry,” I whispered against his skin. His dark stubble was rough against my lips and a thrill went through me before I could stop it.

His hand came up to cup the side of my head for a moment, and then he dropped his hand. He turned his face away. “I appreciate that, Toni.”

And then he stood and walked away without even a glance in my direction. I closed my eyes.

Fuck.

What had I done?

Chapter 4

Ash

I needed a drink.

As I stood at the bar service and poured some scotch, I tried to block out the sound of cloth brushing against cloth as she came into the house. She was walking closer and my skin buzzed in reaction. My cock pulsed with need. I could still feel her kiss on my cheek.

I had to get out of here. Away from her.

“Toni, you should probably go,” I said, turning to face her.

She stopped barely a foot away and her eyes met mine. She lifted her chin. “Why?”

“You don’t want to know, and you don’t need to know.” I narrowed my eyes as she took a step toward me. I pressed my hands flat on the bar and tried to pretend that they weren't shaking.

“What’s wrong? I thought we were going to try this friendship thing?” There was a bit of a challenge mixed in with the sympathy in her voice.

“Friendship.” I could have bit the word in two. I backed up and she took another step toward me, not even flinching at my tone.

“You need to go.”

Her eyes narrowed and I could tell she wasn't backing down.

“I will,” she said. “When you tell me why.”

Fuck it.

I grabbed her arms and pulled her against me, nearly up onto her toes. “Because of this.”

Her mouth was partly open, a shocked gasp escaping her as I fisted my hand in her hair. Before I could come to my senses, I slanted my lips over hers and plunged my tongue into her mouth. She tasted like sex and heat and hunger. The kiss was rough and desperate, a fire burning through me.

Finally, I caught ahold of myself and I tore my mouth from hers. My fingers tightened around her arms for a moment and I closed my eyes, fighting for air and control.

I opened my eyes and found her staring up at me. The words ripped out of me. “That’s why. You don’t need to be around me right now. I need something, and you aren’t going to want to be the one to give it to me. I don’t think you can give it to me.”

“Is that right?”

I might as well have thrown down a gauntlet in front of her. Challenge glinted on her face and she lifted her chin, eyes glowing.

“You don’t think I
can
? Just what is it that you want, Ash?”

“Toni.” There was a clear warning in her name.

“Ash.” She mocked the rough growl of my voice and the husky sound went straight through me. “Come on, tell me.”

Instead of telling her, I caught her wrists and yanked them against my chest. Her eyes widened in surprise, then fluttered closed when I shoved my thigh between her legs. “You’re pushing too far, Toni. Just go. Leave.”

I leaned down and I bit her lower lip, harder than I should have.

Then I let her go.

Well, that had been the dumbest thing I could've done.

Turning away, I grabbed the scotch I’d poured and tossed it back. As I lowered the glass, something soft hit me in the back of the head.

I caught sight of something blue and wispy over my shoulder before it slid to the ground. I knew what it was. It smelled of her, but even if it hadn’t I would have known. The slinky, close-fitting blue blouse that Toni had worn tonight. It had made her eyes glow.

I turned around, my heart pounding. She stood there, wearing a dark blue lace bra that cupped her lovely breasts to perfection. I could see the darker shadow of her nipples through her bra. They were hard, visible through the fabric, begging for my attention. Closing my hand into a fist, I told myself I wasn’t going to give in.

I wanted more than she would want to give.

I wanted more than she
should
give.

And I couldn't give her what she deserved in return.

“You think I can’t handle you?” She put her hands on her hips.

I sighed. “Actually, that’s the problem. You can. But we’ve already been down that road, Toni. It doesn't end well.”

“I know.” She slid her hand down the slope of one breast, the smile on her mouth taking on a feline, feminine slant that was so mysterious and so damn hot, I felt my cock swell even more. I wanted her more than I wanted my next breath.

But what I wanted, what I needed...I couldn't ask it of her. I wouldn't.

“You aren’t going to scare me off.”

Her gaze slid down along my body and all the muscles in me tightened in response.

She smirked. “Although if we do this and you act like a dick in the morning, I just might cut yours off.”

Instead of making me wince, the blunt delivery made me want her even more.