Seducing the Wolf (52 page)

After lunch, everyone hit the dance floor for the Cha Cha Slide.

Manning and Taylor grinned at each other as they moved through the steps, rhythmically shuffling from side to side. She’d almost forgotten what a good dancer he was, how confident and smooth.

“What you know about the Cha Cha Slide, Miss Paris?” he teased her.

“Am I doing it right?”

“Yeah.”

“Then I know plenty,” she sassed, making him laugh.

To their right, Quentin and Lexi playfully showed off their moves while Marcus and Samara worked it out in the row in front of them.

When the Gap Band’s “Outstanding” began playing, a chorus of approval swept over the dance floor. As the other dancers eagerly partnered up for the timeless slow jam, Manning pulled Taylor close. She slipped her arms around his neck as they began swaying together, smiling into each other’s eyes.

“Having fun?” he murmured.

“I am,” she replied. “No wonder your family’s cookouts are so popular. They’re a blast, and there’s something here for everyone.”

“Pretty much.”

“What’s the stage for?” she asked curiously.

He smiled. “We always provide a little entertainment before the fireworks show.”

“Oooh. I can’t wait.” She grinned. “Will you be performing?”

“Maybe.” His eyes glinted. “Speaking of performances, I haven’t forgotten that little stunt you pulled over lunch. You know you were wrong for that, right?”

Taylor blinked innocently. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

He laughed and leaned his forehead against hers, staring into her eyes. “
God
, I’m crazy about you.”

She melted all over. “Good thing I’m crazy about you too.”

His hands tightened around her waist, subtly drawing her closer. As their hips glided together, his heavy shaft brushed against her, sending a shiver of arousal through her.

“Careful,” she warned. “Children are watching.”

“Damn.” He nibbled her lower lip and murmured, “Later.”

Her pulse quickened. Never had one word held such illicit promise. “Later can’t come soon enough,” she purred.

When the song ended, he told her, “I need to go check on something. Will you be okay on your own for a few minutes?”

She grinned. “I think I can manage.”

He winked at her before sauntering off. As Quentin and Marcus followed him, Lexi and Samara walked over to Taylor.

“Whew,” Samara said, fanning her flushed face. “I need some water.”

“Me too,” Taylor and Lexi agreed.

As they set off for the cooler, Taylor smiled at Lexi. “So when’s the big day?”

Lexi gave her a blank look. “What?”

Taylor pointed to the lovely diamond solitaire on her finger.

“Oh.” Lexi laughed self-consciously, glancing down at her hand as if she’d forgotten she was wearing a ring. “The wedding isn’t until next April. We both wanted a long engagement.”

Taylor nodded. “Well, congratulations.”

“Thanks.” There was something wistful about Lexi’s smile as she absently twisted the platinum band around her finger.

“Where
is
Adam?” Samara asked curiously. “I thought he’d be here.”

“Oh, he had to work. He’s a sales executive,” Lexi explained to Taylor. “So he’s always on the go, holiday or not.”

Taylor nodded as they reached the cooler and helped themselves to cold bottles of water.

Lexi smiled at Taylor. “So you knew Quentin when he was younger, huh?”

“Yup. Met him when he was sixteen. He and his mom came to Colorado to spend Thanksgiving with the Wolf Pack.” Taylor smiled reminiscently. “The day before Thanksgiving, Manning had asked me to go out with him, so I was on cloud nine. I had to catch a flight to Washington, D.C. that evening, but I was so damn giddy I could have floated there myself.”

Lexi and Samara laughed warmly.

“Manning wanted to escort me home,” Taylor continued, “so he recruited Michael to drive since he had his license. Quentin came along for the ride. On the way to my house, he and Michael sang ‘Puppy Love’ to me and Manning.”

“
Awww
,” Lexi and Samara cooed.

Taylor grinned. “It was sweet, even though they were totally making fun of us. But I always enjoyed it when Quentin, Michael and Marcus came for visits during the summer and for spring break. We always had a blast.”

Lexi grinned knowingly. “I bet Quentin was a hound dog even at sixteen.”

Taylor laughed. “Oh, he was definitely a big flirt. So was Michael. The only reason Manning behaved was because he was taken. But we couldn’t go anywhere without girls falling all over them. Montana, Marcus and Magnum were younger, but even
they
got plenty of attention.”

“Some things never change,” Samara drawled wryly.

The three women laughed.

“You mentioned D.C.,” Samara reminded Taylor. “Is that where you’re from?”

“Pretty much,” Taylor said, sipping her water. “I was born in Virginia, but my family moved back and forth between D.C. and Virginia when I was growing up. So, yeah, the DMV is home to me.”

Samara beamed. “Me too.”

“Really?” Taylor stared at her, eyes narrowed speculatively. “You know, I’ve been trying to figure out why you look so familiar. Would you happen to be related to the fashion designer Asha Dubois?”

Samara smiled. “She’s my mother.”

“
Are you serious?
”

“Yup.”

“No wonder!” Taylor exclaimed in delight. “You look
just
like her.”

“I know.” Samara sighed. “Alas, ’tis my cross to bear.”

Lexi guffawed. “Girl, hush. Your mother is gorgeous. I’d
kill
to look like that woman.”

“I know, right?” Taylor laughed. “Asha Dubois’s face is plastered everywhere in Paris. On billboards, the sides of buses and buildings, inside train stations. She gets more love there than most
current
supermodels.”

“I can imagine,” Lexi said. “I’ve been dying to visit her boutique on the Champs-Élysées. Have you been there?”

“I have. Every time my mother comes for a visit, that’s one of the first places I take her shopping. And I’m proud to say I’ve performed in several gowns designed by House of Dubois.”

“They’re gorgeous, aren’t they?” Lexi raved.

Taylor kissed her fingertips. “
Magnifique
.”

Samara chuckled, shaking her head at them. “You two are such fangirls.”

They laughed.

“Taylor!”

She turned around, her face lighting up at the sight of Manning’s twin cousins striding quickly toward her. “Maya! Zora!”

They reached her, squealing with excitement as they took turns hugging and kissing her. “It’s so good to see you!” they exclaimed. “You look fabulous!”

Taylor beamed. “So do you.
Both
of you.”

Maya and Zora Kirkland were slender and curvy with dark mocha complexions and dimpled chins that they’d inherited from their aunt Prissy. While they were physically identical, they were as aesthetically different as night and day. Maya wore a simple white sundress with cute flats while Zora wore a retro print romper with platform heels. Maya sported a sleek bob and neutral makeup while Zora rocked funky afro puffs with bronze eye shadow and bright red lipstick.

After greeting Samara and Lexi with hugs, Maya grinned at Taylor. “I know Manny has been in seventh heaven since you came back.”

Zora laughed. “I know, right? I’m gonna tease him so good when I see him.” She turned to extend her hand to the tall heartthrob who sauntered over. “Sorry, honey. Didn’t mean to leave you behind. We got excited when we saw Taylor.”

“So I see.” He chuckled, kissing her temple.

She smiled. “Taylor, I’d like you to meet my boyfriend Zachary. Baby, this is Taylor—the one we’ve been telling you about.”

“Hello, Taylor,” Zachary said, warmly clasping her hand. “It’s a pleasure to meet you.”

Taylor smiled. “The pleasure’s mine.”

With his intense blue eyes, reddish-brown hair and chiseled good looks, Zachary bore a striking resemblance to the actor Michael Fassbender.
Wowsa.

He smiled charmingly at Taylor. “So you’re the famous violinist. I’d love to hear your music.”

“Well, if you’re free on July fifteenth, I’ll be performing with the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra. All proceeds from the concert will go toward autism research.”

Zachary’s eyes twinkled. “Good music. Good cause. I’m sold.” He smiled down at Zora. “We don’t have any plans that day, do we?”

“Nope. I’ve already circled the date. Aunt Prissy says the whole family’s gonna be there.”

Taylor smiled gratefully. “I appreciate that.”

“Girl, you know we love you.” Zora kissed her cheek and winked.

“I wonder what’s going on over there?” Maya speculated.

Everyone followed her gaze across the yard to where a large crowd had gathered around the dance floor.

Lexi chuckled dryly. “Looks like the fellas are having one of their face-offs. You know how competitive they get when they’re around one another and the testosterone starts working overtime.”

“Oooh.” Zora grinned. “Let’s go check it out.”

“Hmm,” Zachary murmured philosophically. “Am I secure enough in my manhood to stand by while you and other women gleefully revel in the blatant display of black masculinity known as stepping?”

Zora gave him a slow, deliberate once-over and licked her red lips. “Believe me,” she purred, “you and your manhood have
nothing
to worry about.”

Zachary laughed, grabbing her around the waist and nuzzling the side of her neck as they set off together.

Watching them, Taylor leaned close to Maya and whispered, “He is
hot
.”

“I know.” Maya sighed. “If only he had a twin.”

Taylor laughed.

The group made their way across the yard, following Zora as she brazenly cut a path through the rowdy crowd to reach the front. Sure enough, the Omegas and Kappas were squaring off in some sort of a showdown. The Que Dogs now had the floor, and were making the most of it with a chest-thumping, boot-stomping, high-hopping dance routine set to the hard, driving beats of “Made You Look” by Nas.

Taylor was riveted to the spot as she watched Manning, Michael, Quentin, Magnum, Shokare, Gabriel and Khalil execute the stylized routine with a level of athleticism and swagger that drew roars of approval from the crowd. Not one of them had lost a step since their days of stomping the yard at Morehouse. And the sight of their flexing biceps and grinding hips had the female spectators screaming, catcalling and fanning themselves as they recorded every heart-palpitating move on their cell phones.

“Whew, chile, look at da bruhs,” panted one woman standing behind Taylor. “
Love, love, love
da bruhs. Um-mmm-umph!”

“Girl, you ain’t lying,” another onlooker gushed. “I’m over here imagining myself as the filling in a triple-layer chocolate cake with Manning, Quentin and Michael. Spread me three ways and lick me down!”

This set off shrieks of lascivious laughter from several others.

“For real though. Any one of these fine ass brothas can get it. You know what I always say. Once you have a Que, nothing else will do!”

As the women whooped and slapped hands in laughing agreement, Taylor and Lexi could only grin wryly at each other.

By the end of the high-octane performance, it was abundantly clear which frat had won the showdown. As the crowd erupted with thunderous applause and cheers, the victorious Que Dogs celebrated with guttural chants and barks. Everyone hooted with laughter when Manning’s mother sashayed forward and began mopping the fellas’ brows with a crimson-and-cream scarf, drawing a chorus of calls from her fellow sorors in the crowd.

Taylor watched as a surge of people rushed the dance floor to congratulate the winners and playfully console the losers. Manning, Michael, Quentin and Magnum were swarmed by fawning groupies who shamelessly jostled one another to get close to them. Taylor’s eyes narrowed when a voluptuous honey-toned beauty in a short denim skirt boldly began flirting with Manning. The way she pressed herself against him suggested an intimacy that made Taylor wonder if they’d ever hooked up before. When the woman flipped back her long hair and latched onto Manning’s arm, hot jealousy streaked through Taylor’s veins.

Okay. So maybe she wasn’t as secure as she wanted to believe.

“We have
got
to do a better job of vetting our guest list for these cookouts,” Zora pronounced with a snort of disgust.

Maya, Samara and Lexi laughed.

Taylor was too annoyed to even crack a smile.

As she watched, Manning detached himself from the floozy and shouldered his way through the crowd. Her pulse drummed as he sauntered right up to her and possessively slanted his mouth over hers. She didn’t want to melt, but she couldn’t help it.

Looping her arms around his neck, she kissed him back as the others whistled encouragingly before moving off to give them privacy.

As they slowly pulled apart, Manning smiled down at Taylor. “Hi.”

“Hi, yourself.” She fought not to smile. “Why didn’t you tell me you were stepping this afternoon? I almost missed it.”

“It wasn’t planned, believe it or not,” he drawled. “The pretty boys were talking trash. Once they threw down the gauntlet, it was on.”

Taylor arched a brow. “And you guys just happened to have that amazing step routine ready to go?”

“Of course. Omegas are always prepared to set it
owt
.” At Taylor’s skeptical look, he relented with a chuckle. “Okay. You got me. We put that little number together last year for a Greek charity event that got canceled due to a hurricane.”

“So you guys were just waiting for the perfect opportunity to break it out.” Taylor chuckled. “Well, congratulations. What do you get for winning?”

Manning grinned. “Bragging rights.”

“Is that all?
Pfft
.”

He laughed, tilting up her face so he could graze her jawline.

A shiver worked through her body. She smiled, her lids at half mast as she looked over his shoulder. “Your girlfriend is glaring at us. The hussy in the miniskirt.”