Year of Living Blonde (Sweet Life in Seattle, Book 1) (33 page)

Natalie wishes she hadn’t answered her phone. If she’d ignored it though, Peter would just keep calling. In truth, she’s been walking around in a girlish daze since the weekend. It’s probably a mistake, and she’d never admit it, but she’s been thinking about Anthony non-stop.
I need to pull it together and stop acting like a naive schoolgirl. This is only supposed to be a casual thing.

But he took care of me on that Ferris wheel.

In more ways than one.
Her pulse races every time she remembers how the two of them were all over each other.

It was a far cry from the way Peter treated her when she’d panicked at Disneyland. His solution was to get angry and tell her she was ruining their vacation. And when that didn’t work, he acted helpless. Peter didn’t know what to do when she was scared, because he was used to her being the one who took care of him.

But maybe I want someone to take care of me for a change.

“Chloe told me he’s some kind of professor at the university,” Peter continues.

“Look, I’m busy. I’m in the middle of about a dozen different things right now.” She taps her piping bag impatiently against the table where she needs to finish the rosettes on a Sacher Torte.

“And I understand he managed to remove that ugly axe out of our front door.”

Natalie bristles. “It’s
my
house now, so it’s
my
front door.”

“There’s no reason to be so antagonistic. I keep hoping we can be civil, friendly even—at least for Chloe’s sake.”

Natalie grits her teeth, but there isn’t a lot she can say to that. He’s right.

“I understand he’s an older gentleman,” Peter continues. “And that he used some kind of chemical to pull it out.”

Older gentleman?

Natalie wonders where Peter got the impression that Anthony was older, but then remembers Chloe’s reaction to the photo Lindsay showed her of Anthony with Excalibur. Lindsay had been saying how a cute guy pulled the axe out, but when Chloe saw the photo, she wrinkled her nose and said, “He’s not cute, he’s old.” Which made Lindsay and Natalie both laugh.

Natalie decides not to correct Peter’s impression of Anthony as a senior citizen.
Who cares what he thinks?

“I know we’ve had our differences,” Peter continues, “and that this whole thing hasn’t been easy, but let’s try to bury the axe.” He laughs. “You know what I mean.”

Natalie sighs. It’s hard for her to let go of such a deep betrayal, but it’s probably time for her to try and move past it. Their marriage wasn’t perfect, and it’s occurred to her lately that maybe their problems weren’t necessarily all Peter’s fault.

That professor of hers showed up late that afternoon for his espresso breve, his cookie, and to pull her into the bakery’s back office and kiss her senseless.

“I can’t stop thinking about you.” Anthony buries his face in her neck. “God, you always smell like vanilla and butter. It’s sexy as hell.”

Natalie’s breath catches. “Wow, you really do have a sweet tooth.”

“What can I say? I know what turns me on.”

His mouth is on hers again and Natalie draws him close, dizzy with desire. She feels like a teenager experiencing her first crush.

But then she remembers where they are. “I should get back out there. I still have a few cakes to finish.” He has her up against the door and she hopes they aren’t being too noisy. Luckily, it’s late enough in the day that almost everybody’s gone home.

“What’s the rush? Stay back here and play grab-ass with me some more.”

“Grab-ass?” She laughs. “That’s so romantic. Gosh, you’re like Romeo under the balcony.”

“It’s terrible,” Anthony admits. “I’m usually smoother than this.”

“So how come I’m not getting the smooth lines?”

“I don’t know.” He rakes a hand through his hair. “You make me nervous.”

“That’s the second time you’ve said that. But why would I make you nervous?”

He doesn’t reply right away. “You just do, Miss Natalie.”

Natalie considers him. He’s about a thousand degrees out of her league. If anyone should be nervous, it’s her. And he does make her nervous, nervous and excited. Everything feels brighter when she’s around Anthony. Like after a whole life of sitting in a dark room, someone finally turned the lights on.

“It must be my skill at baking exceptional desserts. I mean, let’s face it, I’m basically your dream woman.”

A wicked gleam enters his eye. “You might have something there. We both know I’m a slave to your ‘cookies.’” His eyes flicker down her body and Natalie blushes as the memory of the Ferris wheel comes back.

He seems to be thinking the same thing, because he asks her how she’s been since that Ferris wheel ride.

“I’m fine. That whole panic thing really only happens at amusement parks.”

“I hope you don’t think I took . . . advantage of the situation.”

Natalie is stunned. “Are you kidding? Anthony, you saved me. I was so scared,” she shakes her head at the memory, “but you took care of me. You knew just what to do. And as far as the part where we played grab-ass,” she smiles, “that was hot.”

“Yeah?”

She nods.

“I thought it was hot, too.” He catches her hand in his. “I wouldn’t mind doing it again sometime.”

They study each other and Natalie knows she’s supposed to be keeping it mellow, isn’t supposed to be letting her emotions get involved. But it’s not easy. She’s not sure if she knows how to do that. It’s not like she’s falling in love with Anthony, though he’s hard to resist.

I’ll bet women fall in love with him all the time.

But I won’t be one of them.

“Anywhere but on a Ferris wheel,” he says with a grin.

Knock! Knock!

Natalie jumps away from the door as she realizes there’s someone on the other side.

Anthony reaches down for the handle and opens it. “Hi, Blair,” he says.

Natalie peeks over Anthony’s arm at her friend, co-owner, and fellow baker.

Blair’s hazel eyes go from Natalie to Anthony and back to Natalie again. She raises an eyebrow. “What are you two doing in here?”

“Nothing!” Natalie says.

Blair smiles. “Well, I hope that’s not true.”

Natalie can hear Anthony chuckling.

The door opens wider as Anthony reaches over for his satchel sitting on the office chair.

“I should get going,” he says. “I have a meeting in a short while and I know you guys are closing up soon.” He turns to Natalie. “I wanted to let you know that if I’m still invited, I’ll be at your house for dinner on Friday.”

“Really? That’s great. Are you bringing Serena?”

He shakes his head. “No, it turns out I won’t be picking her up until Saturday.”

“Oh, okay. Well, I’m glad you can make it.”

He nods. “What kind of dish should I bring?”

She explains how it’s a vegetarian potluck, so he can bring any dish as long as there’s no meat.

His eyebrows raise. “Are you a vegetarian?”

“Chloe’s the vegetarian in the house, but I don’t eat much meat either.”

“Serena’s a vegetarian, too.” He smiles and rolls his eyes a little. “It’s a recent thing.” Anthony throws the strap of his satchel over his head and positions it across his body. He’s wearing his motorcycle jacket and looks mouthwateringly hot. Natalie can barely believe she was playing grab-ass with him only a few minutes ago. “I’ll see you guys later.” And then he does something that completely stuns her.

He dips his head and kisses her on the mouth. “
Ciao,
Miss Natalie,” he says softly.

When he’s gone, Blair turns to her. “Tell me everything! And remember there’s no detail too small!”

“I don’t know where to start. We went to that star party and sort of connected.”

“I can see that. Have you slept with him?”

“No, of course not! We’ve only gone out a couple of times.”

“You mean no, not
yet.
”

Natalie sighs. “I don’t know what I mean. This is all so new for me. Do you know how long it’s been since I dated someone? I was married fourteen years. I’m trying to have fun, though.”

Blair nods with approval. “Good, you deserve it. Seriously. And I hope you have
lots
of fun with Anthony.”

Natalie shakes her head and laughs.

Blair gets a crafty expression. “I’ll bet he gives us that space now for sure. Has he said anything about it?”

“No, come to think of it, he hasn’t even mentioned it.” Natalie frowns. “I’m sure he’s still collecting data. He really is a serious geek. You should have seen him at that star party when he was totally in his element.”

“He’s a hot geek though. At least tell me this much—is he a good kisser?”

Natalie grins. “Yes, he is.”

“I knew it—ha! Who’s Serena, anyway? I take it she’s not his girlfriend?”

“His daughter.”

Blair’s eyes grow wide. “Really? I wouldn’t have pictured him as a dad.”

“I was surprised, too. He sounds like a good father though.” Natalie grabs her apron off the chair where Anthony put it when he untied it from her. “And now what’s happening with you and Graham? Are you still bringing him on Friday?”

“He’s coming, but we seem to be headed for the friend zone.”

“I’m surprised. I thought you liked him.”

“I do.” Blair picks up some baking trays and takes them over to the sink. She stacks everything in a neat pile for their dishwasher. “Road set up a Facebook page.”

“Oh?”

Leaning against the counter, Blair wipes her hands on her apron. “Tori told me about it.”

Tori is Blair’s sister-in-law and best friend. She’s also a web designer who created and maintains La Dolce Vita’s website. Natalie spoke to her recently about making some changes to their site.

“I know I shouldn’t have done it. I mean, I don’t care what Road does anymore, but I looked at it.” Blair shakes her head. “I wish I hadn’t.”

“Is it bad?”

Blair nods. “He was in India for a while and then Budapest. He’s living quite an adventurous life.”

Without me. That’s what Blair leaves unsaid.

Natalie puts her arm around Blair’s shoulders and squeezes it. “Forget him. You’re too good for him”

Blair smiles. “I know. After all these years, it was a shock to see even a photograph.”

“That makes sense.” Natalie tries to imagine what it would be like if Peter had run out on her four years ago and she hadn’t heard from him since.

“Anyway, forget all that.” Blair pushes away from the counter. “You’re right—to heck with Road. I’m not going to think about him anymore. Maybe I’ll finally file for divorce.”

Anthony pulls out his phone and tries to call Graham again. His voicemail says he’s in Bellingham, but why isn’t he returning any of his calls?

“I think this is the fifteenth message I’ve left for you. I’m starting to feel like a chick—call me.”

He checks his own voicemail. There’s one from his assistant, Maya, about his SWIFT proposal, another one from the
Seattle Times
asking to speak to him about the Smyth Medal, though he doesn’t understand why they keep calling. It’s not like he’s won the damn thing. It’s just a nomination, and there are four other people nominated in the same category. The last one is from his father.

“Anthony, I consulted my schedule and it appears I have an opening the weekend of the Smyth Science Awards Banquet. Your mother and I will both be attending. My secretary will be calling you to get the pertinent details.”

And that’s it. No hello or goodbye. No ‘how are you?’ Just his commanding baritone telling him how it’s going to be. Why he should expect anything different from his father, he doesn’t know.

Anthony shoves his phone back into his jacket.

I’m surprised he’s bothering to come at all. Of course, he does have an opening in his schedule.

Passing a flower store, Anthony slows down, and then after a moment’s deliberation, decides to go inside. He wanders around the shop examining the flower bouquets, wondering if he should send one to Natalie. Is it too much too soon? He’s not sure. And the not knowing is what’s making him uneasy. He’s not used to courting women or being the instigator in relationships. Women have always come to him.

“Can I help you?” A pretty brunette salesgirl comes over.