Recipe for Love (5 page)

His face twisted with disdain. “No, we were not her priority. Her third husband tried to force himself on Alyson when she was seventeen. She ran away to escape him. My mother took her husband’s side. I believe she wanted to wait out the time limit built into the prenuptial.”

With a gasp, Maddy covered her mouth and asked, “What did you do?”

Looking past her as he remembered, he said, “I nearly killed him when I found out. Then I followed Alyson. She’d come here, to Sablet, looking for our real father.”

“Did you find him?”

“No, but we found his old house. They say he died here, practically penniless after my mother left him. In a house that was mortgaged to the hilt. The locals say during their marriage he took out loans in an attempt to appease her, but it wasn’t enough. She needed more.”

“That’s so sad. And then you bought the house?”

“In the beginning, Alyson wanted to live here. Eventually, she made friends in town and moved out.”

“But you stayed.”

“Sablet was as good a place as any to open a restaurant.”

She put her hand on his clenched one. “I think it was more than that.”

He shrugged like he was dismissing her claim, but then he admitted, “I barely remember my father. I was five years old when we left. There is something here I haven’t been able to let go of.”

Family. The only one he’d ever known.
Maddy’s heart broke a bit for him. She didn’t know what to say, so she leaned across the divide and kissed him with an urgency that surprised both of them. She wanted to kiss away his pain, kiss away her doubts and whatever else stood between them.

He pulled her to him in a crushing embrace, pulling her shirt free of her slacks so his rough hands could slide beneath and span her small back. Between kisses he said, “I’ll never be a wealthy man.”

She pulled his shirt free and began to unbutton it. “I don’t care.”

He groaned and kissed her deeply, running a hand beneath her shirt to cup one of her breasts possessively. “I hope you mean that, because I’ve never wanted anyone as much as I want you. Once you’re mine, I may have to keep you.”

Feeling giddy with passion, Maddy jokingly warned, “Sample my cooking and there’s no more eating out.”

His chest rumbled with laughter even as he unclipped her bra with one hand and gave her bared nipple a light pinch with his other. It hardened beneath his touch, and heat spread through Maddy all the way to the tips of her curling toes. “I want more than a sample, Madison. I want it all. Tell me you want it, too.”

She breathed her answer against his lips: “I do.”

“Let’s go inside,” he growled and kissed her one last time before sprinting around the car to open her door. She’d barely had time to step out of the car before he swung her up in his arms.

After a briefly pausing to open the door, he sprinted down the hall and up the stairs to his bedroom. He slowed only to lay her across his bed. She was breathing as heavily as he was when their eyes met and held.

“Are you sure?” he asked, his eyes burning with need for her.

She swallowed hard and nodded.

He sat beside her on the bed. “Have you ever had an orgasm?”

She blushed and shook her head.

“Not even one you gave yourself?”

Her cheeks warmed more and she looked away.

He pulled her to her feet and undressed her slowly. When she was standing naked and exposed before him, he slid his hand down her stomach and cupped her sex. “You will come again and again until you are begging to feel me inside you. A woman’s first time is one she remembers her whole life. It should be one worth remembering,
non?
”

Oh, God, yes.
Maddy nodded and licked her lips.

“Turn around,” he ordered.

She did.

“Kneel on the bed.”

When she hesitated, he put his hand on her back and guided her forward to the edge of the bed, whispering hotly in her ear from behind: “Trust me.”

She crawled on the bed and waited, facing away from him, as excited as she was nervous. He applied pressure to her back again until she was bent before him on all fours. He whispered to her to lower herself down onto her elbows. She would have twisted herself like a pretzel had he asked in that seductive French accent. He sunk to his knees behind her. His hands came around the front of her thighs and spread them. Then he opened her lower lips. His tongue plunged inside her. She gasped and instinctively tried to pull away in surprise, but he held her in place. He stilled and she relaxed.

Gripping the sheets in front of her, she bit her lip when his tongue repeated its exploration. He lapped her exposed clit and blew on it, then drove his tongue inside her again. She shuddered and pushed back eagerly against his mouth.

With the same talent with which he’d claimed her mouth earlier, he teased and pleasured her inside and out with his tongue until she was crying from the intensity of it. Only then did he thrust a finger into her soaked opening and pump while he suckled her clit.

Heat spread and exploded within her, and she cried out with the intensity of her first orgasm. She was still shaking from it when he withdrew his finger and ordered, “That’s only the beginning. Roll onto your back for me.”

She did and he pulled her forward until her feet were almost touching the floor beside his knees. His hands cupped her breasts, circling her, lightly pinching her nipples until they were both throbbing painfully and begging for the hot, wet attention of his mouth. He pushed her back, holding her in place with one firm hand on her stomach and blew on her dripping sex until she parted her legs wider and whimpered.

He nipped her quivering thigh. “You taste so damn good,” he growled and sank his tongue back into her, this time grazing a spot that sent her nearly into a convulsion of pleasure. His hands slid beneath her buttocks and raised her to give himself better access. Once again his tongue delved and lapped. His teeth teased her excited nub until she gripped his head and held him to her as she neared her second orgasm. He rolled her clit between his thumb and finger then started to rub it with a speed that had her throwing back her head and begging him not to stop.

Thankfully he didn’t, at least not until she came for the second time in her life.

As her breathing returned to normal, she asked shakily, “At which point do
you
get naked?” She peered up at him. He was still fully dressed between her bare legs.

His smile was the sexiest thing she’d ever seen. “When you tell me to.”

Two could play this game. She smiled impishly up at him. “And if I never do?”

“I find enough pleasure watching you come that I could from just touching you.” He stood, took both of her hands in his, and hauled her to her feet. Without saying a word, he put her hands behind her back and held them with one of his. The action arched her breasts, something he immediately took advantage of. He kissed one, then the other. His hot breath warmed her skin and sent shivers of pleasure through her. Then his teeth closed gently on one of her nipples and tugged softly. He said, “Some women can come just from this. Let’s see if you’re one of those women.” He suckled her, lapped her, sent her into a shuddering mess while his free hand claimed one of her buttocks possessively.

She writhed against his mouth and whimpered with need. The brush of his clothed legs against her bare legs reminded her he was in control. It was time to change that. Held immobile before him, she used what she had to excite him—her words. “I want you, Richard. Inside me. Please take me, Richard. Now.”

He didn’t need to be told twice.

He stepped back and shed his clothing. His hand shook a bit as he sheathed himself in a condom. Kissing wildly, they fell back on the bed together and he braced himself above her. Their eyes met and held as he positioned himself between her legs. “I’ll be gentle,” he promised.

She opened herself wider for him and gasped as his tip entered her.

“You’re so tight,” he groaned.

She wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him deeply. He slowly entered her with gentle thrusts, each time going a bit deeper. Twinges of discomfort were quickly replaced by the wonder of how good he felt inside her. He took his time, letting her adjust to his size. Then he began to move inside her with a rhythm as old as time. It was better, so much better than she’d ever imagined. He kissed her neck, whispering things in French to her that, although she couldn’t understand, sent her into a hot frenzy.

His hands were everywhere, exploring, and guiding hers. She felt a warmth spread through her stomach and began to sob from the pleasure. His pace increased until he was pounding into her and she was wildly crying out his name.

Spent, he collapsed onto her, bracing himself above her so his weight didn’t crush her. He buried his face in her neck, and she gloried in the feel of him still inside her and the loud beat of his heart. A beat that grew louder and louder until she realized that it wasn’t his heartbeat at all, but someone knocking on the downstairs main door. Banging, actually—angrily and with increasing force.

Richard raised his head as he, too, heard it. He rolled off her and swore in French. In all his naked glory he walked to the window and cursed again. “Does your cousin drive a limousine?”

Wrapping a sheet hastily around her, Maddy went to the window and stood beside him. She doubted anyone below could see them, but there was a chance. She gasped when she saw two couples outlined in the dim light of the driveway. “Oh, my God, Gino brought my parents. And Aunt Katrine and Uncle Vic, too.”

Misunderstanding the distress in her voice, Richard pulled her into his arms and said, “I won’t let them hurt you.”

Looking from Richard back to her family and then back to Richard, Maddy groaned nervously. “It’s not me I’m worried about.”

Maddy scrambled into her clothing. Richard rushed to dress, not because he was intimidated by whoever was testing the strength of his front door, but because he didn’t want Maddy to face them alone. They flew down the stairs side by side.

In the main hall of his house, Madison stopped and looked up at him with a concern he wished he had time to kiss away. She took him by the hand and said, “It’s probably better if I go out there alone.”

He wasn’t used to anyone worrying about him. He kissed her lightly on the lips. “I can take care of myself.”

Her eyes rounded with real worry. “My father can be—intimidating.”

He didn’t like the way that sounded. “Are you afraid of him?”

She shook her head adamantly. “No. Of course not. But if he thinks he needs to protect me, he won’t be kind to you. He has old-world views on family. This could get ugly.”

Tucking a loose curl behind Madison’s ear, Richard assured her, “It’ll be fine.”

Drawing in a fortifying breath, Madison nodded and opened the door.

Gino practically fell forward into the hall. Ranting in Italian, he swung her up into a bone-crushing hug. When he put her down, he chastised her as one would a child. “You stole ten years off my life, Maddy, when you did not call me. Never do that again.”

It was not the exchange Richard had expected to see. His surprise increased when Madison’s response to his angry tone was to wrap her arms around the giant’s waist and hug him back. “I’m so sorry, Gino. It was a spontaneous decision and one that I now wish I had handled differently.”

Real love shone in the older man’s eyes as he smoothed her hair. “You’re safe. That’s what matters. But next time you have a crazy idea, let me in on it. I’d rather face your father’s wrath than worry that you’ve been taken.”

“Is he angry with me?” Madison asked.

“Livid,” Gino answered. Nodding at Richard, he continued, “He should stay inside.”

Madison looked over her shoulder at Richard, wordlessly offering him the option one last time. Richard stepped forward and offered his hand to Gino in greeting. “Richard D’Argenson. I am looking forward to meeting Madison’s parents.”

Gino looked back and forth between them, then shook Richard’s hand. “You’re one brave bastard.”

“Not really, but I would never send her out there alone.”

Releasing Richard’s hand, Gino nodded in approval. “That might save you.” He turned and led the way out onto the steps.

A short, brown-haired woman came rushing forward and tearfully threw her arms around Madison. She searched the younger woman’s face and said, “I was so worried. When we received your text and Gino admitted he didn’t know where you were, I imagined all sorts of scenarios.”

“Mom, I told you I was okay.”

“Anyone could have sent that message to stall us from coming to find you. I’ve never been so scared in my life.”

And I’ve never been so sorry.
Tears began to run down Maddy’s cheeks. “I didn’t consider how awful it would be for you. I needed time away from everyone to think.” Her mother kept hugging her, tighter and tighter, until Maddy said, “Mom, are you okay?”

With a prolonged, pained laugh, her mother released her. “I want to kill you, but I love you so I can’t. I’m hugging you, but I’d like to strangle you a little. I mean that in the most loving, you’d-better-never-do-anything-like-this-again way.” Then she started crying.

A tall, expensively dressed Italian man in his early sixties stepped toward the emotional pair. His voice boomed. “Thinking is all you’d better have been doing here.” His disgust for Richard rang clear in his tone.

Madison stepped away from her mother and moved to stand next to Richard. She took his hand in hers and faced her father defiantly. “You told me to grow up, Dad, and that’s what I did.”

With a snarl, her father reached for Richard. “I’ll kill him.”

Another man, about his age and stature, stepped forward and said, “I haven’t punched anyone in thirty years, but I have your back if you need me, Alessandro.”

Richard assessed the two older men. In their prime they might have been deadly, but age had softened them a bit. As long as the fight didn’t include the bodyguard, he was pretty confident he’d win. Still, this was Madison’s family. Diffusing the situation would be better for all involved. “I don’t blame you for wanting to hit me, sir. If the situation were reversed, I might want to do the same thing, but . . .”

“But nothing,” Alessandro roared. “How dare you take advantage of my daughter and then have the nerve to think I’d do anything but ruin you?”

Richard’s temper began to rise along with his accuser’s. “I am only being civil for Madison’s sake. On any other occasion I would have already thrown your elderly ass off my property.”

Alessandro growled something in Italian and stepped toward him.

Richard growled back in French, dropped Madison’s hand, and met him halfway.

Victor interjected, “As long as he doesn’t run, I’m in.” When Alessandro paused to look at his brother, Victor shrugged. “I’m only ten months out of my knee replacement surgery. They said no running.”

Madison stepped between Richard and her father and put a hand on both their chests. Her cheeks were red with anger. “If you touch Richard, Dad, I will never forgive you.” To Richard’s surprise, she then turned her displeasure toward him. “And you, watch your temper. He’s in his sixties, for God’s sake. A fight could give him a heart attack.”

The remaining visitor, a tall blonde woman who had been quiet up to that point, started clapping. “You tell ’em, Maddy.” When her husband frowned at her, the woman Madison had referred to as Aunt Katrine smiled sweetly at him. “I’m not saying I condone how she ran off, but look what she ran to.” She winked at Richard. “I wouldn’t let you mess up that face, either. Let the poor girl enjoy her first boyfriend.”

Madison’s mother laid a hand on her husband’s arm and addressed Richard. “Instead of continuing this brawl in your driveway, why don’t you invite us inside . . .” She paused when she came to what she didn’t yet know.

After releasing a long breath, Richard supplied his name. “Richard D’Argenson.” Then he added, “You are all more than welcome to come inside. It’s a cold night.”

No one moved at first. Richard sensed if he softened his stance now Madison’s father would never respect him, and for some reason that was becoming important to him.

“Thank you, Richard. I’m Elise, and the man who is glaring at you is my husband, Alessandro.” She waved a hand at the other older Italian man. “This is Alessandro’s brother, Victor, and his wife, Katrine. I believe you met our cousin, Gino.”

In a somewhat absurdly polite exchange, considering the situation, Richard nodded to each and said, “It’s a pleasure to meet you. Please, come inside for coffee.”

“There is no way in hell I’m going to pretend—” Alessandro started, until his wife whispered something in his ear. Then, although he didn’t look happy about it, he resumed in a civil tone, even if it sounded a bit forced: “By all means, let’s have coffee then.”

Madison’s worried eyes searched Richard’s. She mouthed a silent, “I’m sorry.”

He took her hand and raised it to his lips, even though the action gained him an audible hiss from her protective father. He pulled her close to him and, murmuring softly so no one else could hear, said, “I like them already.”

***

Once inside, Elise and Katrine flanked Richard. Under the guise of wanting to help him make coffee, they pried him away from Maddy and swept him into the kitchen with them.

Alone with her father and uncle, Maddy crossed her arms over her chest and prepared for a lecture. Her father closed the distance and, despite her rigid pose, pulled her into his arms. “I haven’t slept since you disappeared. Why would you put us through this?”

Even as she fought back tears, she kept her arms folded between them. “I didn’t mean to worry any of you.” He held her back from him, and she found she was unable to lie to his face. “Okay, I did mean to. I was angry with you, and I wanted you to see how much what you’d told me hurt me.”

She looked across at her uncle. “You, too, Uncle Vic. How could you lie to Stephan? How could you not tell him the truth now?”

Her uncle addressed her father: “I can’t believe you told her.”

Alessandro looked down into his daughter’s eyes and said, “She asked me, and I’ve never lied to her.”

Maddy shook her head angrily and pulled away. “I used to believe that was true, but I’m not sure anymore.”

Her uncle defended his brother. “Alessandro never agreed with my decision, but he stands by my right to raise my children the way I think is correct.”

Maddy snorted. “Stephan wasn’t a child. He was my age.”

“And he’s successful now because he left his foolish California lifestyle behind him. I know you think he loved Nicole, but he was trying to get with her like she was some common tramp . . .” Victor’s tirade tapered off as if he remembered why they were in Richard’s house. “I’m not judging whatever happened here.”

Angry for both herself and her cousin, Maddy said, “Yes, I slept with Richard, but that doesn’t make me anything but a normal woman in her twenties, and I’m not going to apologize for that. This is not the old world. I love you, Uncle Vic, but your values are not mine. And they weren’t Stephan’s. I don’t want to be there the day he finds out what you’ve done. So, if you’re feeling self-righteous, take a closer look at yourself. I’m not ashamed of my decisions, but I am of yours.”

An angry red spread across her uncle’s face. “Alessandro, you’re going to let your daughter talk to me that way?”

Maddy’s father rubbed his hands over his face roughly, then said, “Maddy has a right to voice her opinion.”

Victor turned angrily on his brother. “Do you agree with her?”

With a pained shrug, Alessandro said, “I don’t know. I’ve never lied to Maddy, and”—his face tightened a bit and a muscle in his jaw twitched—“even when she knows I don’t want to hear it, she has never lied to me. I may not like the truth, but I would rather know it.”

“I did what I thought was right.”

Alessandro went over to his brother and put a hand of support on his shoulder. “I know you did. And I’ve done a lot of thinking over the last few days. If Maddy needs to tell Stephan the truth, then that’s what she has to do. No matter what the consequences are. She must also do what she thinks is right.”

Watching her uncle shrink a bit before her father brought new tears to Maddy’s eyes. Victor said, “I hope to God we don’t lose him over this.”

Maddy reached out and took her uncle’s hand in hers. “I don’t want to cause trouble, Uncle Vic. I don’t want to hurt anyone. If you promise me you’ll tell him, I’ll honor your secret.”

Her uncle’s eyes misted over and he nodded. “You’re a good girl, Maddy.”

Her eyebrows shot up in challenge. “Even if I’m a tramp?”

He blushed at her jab.

Alessandro interjected, “About that. You’re not staying here.”

“Dad, I’m old enough to know what I’m doing.”

“Apparently not, or you wouldn’t have run away in the first place.”

Ouch.

“And you’re lucky your mother was here or your boyfriend wouldn’t be looking so pretty. He was smart to hide in the kitchen with the women.”

“He’s not hiding. He spends his life in a kitchen. He’s a chef.”

“A chef?” both men asked in unison in similar tones of disdain.

Putting her hands on her hips, Maddy said in a huff, “It’s a perfectly respectable profession, and I won’t have you looking down on him.”

As if she weren’t in the room anymore, her uncle said, “You should tell her
to
stay here. She’s always been a bit contrary.”

“Oh, she’s coming home with us,” her father said.

Shaking her head, Maddy said, “Where’s Mom? I can’t talk to you about this.”

***

Richard was showing Elise and Katrine how to make a traditional holiday dessert when he stopped and smiled. They were both paying close attention and shared not only his passion for good food but also a keen appreciation for the process.

After he had briefly described his restaurant to them, Elise had said something that had touched his heart. “My grandmother always said that the reason a family recipe is impossible for others to duplicate is because the most important ingredient is love. You can’t go wrong if that’s where you start.”

He’d nodded in agreement but didn’t admit the truth: He didn’t have a family recipe. Not one. He’d created his own dishes, and that had always been enough until now. His father’s house had once given him a sense of family, but after meeting Madison’s family, it would never again feel like more than a cold stone structure.

This was family. They yelled. They worried. They protected each other. Maddy might have had a reason to leave them, but there was no doubt they loved her.

As I could.

The realization shook him. He’d heard couples say they knew from the moment they met that they were meant to be together. He’d always scoffed at the idea, until Madison. He had tried to push her away, tried to fight the attraction, but in the end he admitted to himself that the more time he spent with her, the less he wanted to imagine his life without her.