How could Erica possibly refuse? But she had
to ask, “You sure it won’t interfere with your visit to your
family?”
“No, not at all. With Gianni’s return, I
don’t feel comfortable staying at his place, and though I love them
dearly, I can take only so much of my parents. So, what do you say?
A little clapboard Victorian with big, fluffy beds, sand, surf,
piña coladas on the wraparound porch and, of course, those gorgeous
sunsets await.”
“Stop!” Erica giggled. “It sounds too good to
be true, but yes, yes! I’m all yours!”
“You better believe it!” Nico rolled her into
his arms and then placed her on top of his long, marvelous
body.
Again, his kiss brought a new surge of
excitement. Yet when Erica started an assault down his neck, he
stretched beneath her and splayed his limbs in surrender.
“Woof! Despite the fact I want you, and want
you so much it makes my heart ache, I’ve about had it. I don’t
think I can move again, at least not until morning.”
Glancing up, she read the bedside clock. Two
o’clock! Time and space had flitted by as they enjoyed each other
not only with such free-spun delight but with a grand passion she
hadn’t felt in a long, long time. Slowly, Erica eased off and
settled along his side. She knew they both had to sleep, but she
found it hard to close her eyes without thinking of the man beside
her and the anticipation of another round of brilliant, early
morning lovemaking.
When she finally awoke, Erica found her bed
bereft of her wondrous lover. Rising quickly, she called his name,
but Tepe was the only one to answer her summons. Of course, his cat
yips spoke of his hunger, and so she padded to the kitchen to open
a can of kitty yum-yums. With that done, Erica went back to the
bedroom and rolled into bed. She spotted the note on her
nightstand. With shaky fingers, she opened it and read Nico’s words
he’d written with a pencil from her desk.
Sorry, darling, but I promised my dad an early
breakfast and then I have an appointment. I absolutely hated to
move away from your warm, inviting body, but filial duty calls.
We’re still on for this weekend, right? I’ll call you as soon as I
can. Love, NS
“Yes, oh yes!” she screamed and rolled to hug
the side of the bed that still held his warm impression.
She adored the sizzle of Miami—the heat, the
smells of cooking spices, the mangroves, the cypress and the
palmettos, and the citrus trees dripping with fruit, the kitschy
plastic flamingos and the real things, the jazz and the Latin beat,
white skies and blue beaches, shell fish and big fish, as well as
the pink, aqua and neon of life.
Indeed, the world around her took on a new,
sharper image as Erica waltzed through the doors of Prestige by
Design. When Tai looked up from her desk and spotted her, she
produced a perceptive smile.
“Oh, oh, someone is in a good mood. Wait! Let
me guess! You’re glowing, Rica, which can only mean that you
actually did it. You got laid last night!”
Erica laughed and pranced on her heels like a
silly schoolgirl. She couldn’t help herself. Nico Sloan had to take
sole responsibility for her happy, off-the-wall behavior. She
withdrew a long-stemmed, yellow flower from the rainbow gladioli
bouquet she had just bought from a street vendor and placed it on
Tai’s desk.
“Here, you are. Compliments of a woman who
has finally discovered what all the fuss is about!”
“Amen to that!” Tai agreed.
“Why don’t you order us all coffees? My
treat.”
“Well, well.” The assistant sat back and
crossed her arms. “If this keeps up, you’re going to spoil us, but
I’m not complaining. Let’s hope lover boy does you every night and
makes your heart sing.”
“More than sing,” Erica added before she
started back to the workroom. “He makes it want to burst forth with
a rousing symphony of stereophonic proportions.”
“Oohwee!”
By now, Sacha had made his way to the lobby,
his gossip radar on full alert. “What? What? What’s going on?” The
minute he spied Erica he broke out in the same knowing smile as Tai
had. “Oh, oh! Someone had a good time last night, and I do mean a
good time!”
Taking her arm, he practically dragged Erica
back down the hall. “Spill it, girlfriend! I want details, honey,
all the horny details! First, who’s the hunk? Do we know him?”
She tried to ground her sandals in the carpet
to slow him down. “Whoa! Hold on there, lover boy! Let me at least
get settled in. I’m not saying anything until I’ve had my first cup
of coffee.”
“One cup coming up!”
“Hold on. Tai should be back any minute with
the good stuff.”
“Then let’s confab while we wait.”
With a resigned sigh, Erica allowed her friend to
escort her to their work area. As they walked down the hall, she
flashed a quick hello to Craig and Victor in their respective
office nooks. Both men were on the phone, but returned the
wave.
“By the way, you look fabulous,” Sacha
commented as he finally let her go.
Erica made it to her desk and quickly
arranged her flowers in a vase. “Thanks.”
She looked fabulous and felt terrific and
knew that great sex did it to her every time. Because of her new,
cloud-sailing mood, she wore a sleeveless strawberry dress and her
black, slip-on sandals with the pink and black polka-dotted bows.
The round, plastic jet beads of her necklace added a retro nuance,
and Erica felt designer perfect and
tres chic
. Her skin
glowed, her senses peaked, her head swam, and her pelvis vibrated
every time she thought of Nico Sloan.
As Tai brought in the cardboard tray with
their lattes, she shifted her gaze from her co-workers to the front
office. “There’s a man here to see you, Rica” she announced. “The
same one from yesterday.” Her gaze bore into the designer with
fervent anticipation. “So, tell me, is he the one?”
Erica felt her heart skip several beats, and
then rev up and away. Had Nico managed to take a break and come by
just to see her?
“Thanks,” she acknowledged and headed for the
lobby with both Sacha and Tai right behind her. She tried not to
burst into the front office, but Erica couldn’t help her
exclamation of happiness.
“Nico! I—”
She stopped short. The man standing in front
of her resembled Nico Sloan in looks and build, but the fuller hair
with the side part and the darker clothing told her in otherwise.
This had to be Gianni, the less likable twin.
“Oh, hello there.”
“I know you weren’t expecting me,” Gianni
began as he stepped closer, “but I just wanted to stop by and find
out if you decided to take me on as a client. I assume my brother,
Nico, spoke to you yesterday.”
“Yes, yes, he did.”
“And?” Seating himself on the edge of Tai’s
desk, Gianni raised his brows in expectation.
“Well,” Erica sputtered as she searched for
something to say. Great! She did fine last night with her physical
repertoire, but when it came time for verbal sparring, she came up
short. Of course, Gianni’s surprise visit caught her off guard. She
drew up the nearest canvas and tubular chair and sat down. “You
see, I haven’t had time to give your project much thought. I barely
saw your apartment last night.”
“Oh, no problem. I just got into town, and I thought
I’d stop by. Your firm here is on my way from the airport. In
fact,” he chuckled lightly, “I haven’t even seen Maritza yet.”
As he spoke, Erica allowed her gaze to take
in his black form-fitting jeans, the gray lizard-skin boots, and a
navy blue sports jacket over a striped oxford shirt.
“So,” he continued, “can you spare a few
minutes?”
When Erica’s gaze flitted to the hall, she
caught Sacha and Tai darting back into the shadows. She quickly
returned her attention to her potential client. “Would you like to
come back to my office?”
“I was thinking more along the lines of a
cafe table and a cup of cappuccino.” Gianni brokered a wide smile
along with the invitation. “Of course, I do have an ulterior
motive. I’d like to talk to you...
alone
.”
“Oh, well, if it’s about any ruffled
feelings, believe me, there’s no ill will on my part. I thought
about your offer, and I’ve decided to take on the job. Your place
offers several design possibilities.”
“Great!” Gianni rose. “But the coffee offer
still stands.”
How could she possibly refuse? The other
Sloan brother seemed to put Erica in an awkward position. She could
hardly decline and explain why. Of course, she could say she had a
previous appointment, but that excuse sounded as flimsy as it had
on Sunday.
“All right,” she finally agreed. “I’ll just
get my purse.”
For the second day in a row, Erica would have
to forgo her takeout latte for a fresh-brewed encounter with an
attractive man. Of course, this one didn’t thrill her in the same
way his twin brother had, and would continue to do so as long as
Nico wanted to be with her.
Once outside, she donned her sunglasses and
allowed Gianni to escort her to a nearby Jaguar convertible, the
color of glossy cobalt. He had the top down, and when Erica slid
into the passenger seat, she savored the feel of the warm, burnt
umber leather against her bare arms.
“This is quite a car,” she commented as he
jumped in beside her and replaced his own wrap-around dark
glasses.
“I like her,” he returned and started the
engine, then roared away from the curb.
Erica hung on the edge of the seat as Gianni
slipped from gear to gear and increased their speed until the
engine thrummed over sixty. Though once they headed into traffic,
he slowed them down to a mere forty. Sitting back, she tried to
relax and offer some semblance of small talk. Little had Erica ever
dreamed she would be riding in a sleek sports car with her somewhat
repulsive playboy neighbor—and this after having spent a night of
glorious lovemaking with his twin brother!
“She’s my one luxury,” Gianni continued with
an expansive smile. Erica assumed he meant the car since women were
definitely not a luxury item in his book. “She provides all I need
to feel so open and free, like the king of the highway.”
Of course, you could add king of the
bedroom, too
, Erica snickered to herself. “Sort of like a
motorcycle,” she offered instead, “but much safer.”
“Exactly, but it’s not quite the same. This
machine is classic sophistication. In a jag, you can wear a tuxedo
or scuffed leather and chains.”
“Yes, I suppose so, but I rather doubt you
wear leather and chains when you go for a drive in this
machine.”
Gianni turned to give her a somewhat
provocative glance. Though Erica couldn’t see them behind the
glasses, she remained positive his eyes baited her with a
mischievous glint. “Let’s just say, I save the chains and the tight
black leather for a different kind of ride, usually after
midnight.”
Trying not to grimace, she whipped her head
in the opposite direction. A strained silence ensued as the city of
Miami flew by with its palm trees and glitz.
“Just how far is the place you had in mind?”
she asked at last, suddenly aware of the many miles they had
spanned between here and the safety of her office.
“Oh, not too much farther along.” He gave her
another sideways glance. “By the way, I haven’t told you yet, but
you look very lovely today.”
“Well, thank you.” A compliment coming from
him sounded as hollow as his sincerity, and Erica would just as
soon enjoy the appreciative words and touches of his sibling.
“Nico told me you took him to a jazz club
last night. He enjoyed himself.”
Feeling her stomach tighten, she hoped the
brothers were not chummy enough to discuss their love lives. “Oh,
so you’ve spoken to Nico since your arrival back in town.”
“Yes, he called me on my cell phone. He told
me you seemed very interested in my apartment renovation. So, what
do you think of ol’ Adriano? He doesn’t get out much, and I know he
certainly appreciated your hospitality.”
What Nico lacked in dating experience, his
twin certainly took up with a vengeance. “I found your brother
quite charming, and so...different.”
“From me, you mean?”
“Well, yes.”
“The only similarity we seem to share is that
we started from the same egg. Not all twins are tight as in best
friends, you know, or clairvoyant. Nico’s preferences and ways of
thinking are far beyond my interests.”
You can say that again!
“He has a definite talent and his art
reflects his creativity. I’m hoping to use his paintings as focal
points in your apartment.”
“Oh, certainly. I think I used to envy Nico’s
talent. Yet as we grew older, I came to accept my own assets, quite
different from any of his.”
Another round of you can say that again!
Gianni donned a clever smile. “Did he tell
you at one point he thought about going into the priesthood?”
That revelation jolted Erica for a moment.
Although, when she thought about it, she found Nico’s idealism and
devotion quite refreshing, if not noble. “No, he didn’t say, but
then an evening together doesn’t guarantee you’ll form a total
picture of a person’s true nature.”
“Exactly. So, what about you, Erica Rael?
What deep, dark secrets do you possess?”
“Nothing sinister,” she answered quickly.
He brokered another sly glance from behind the
shades. “Oh, come now! You must have had some secret hopes and
desires at one time, you know, what little girls like to dream
about.”
Certainly not about a guy like you,
buster!
“If you mean did I long to be an exotic dancer, sorry
to disappoint you.”
He chuckled in appreciation. “Let me put it
to you another way. Did you ever toy with the idea of a little
S&M?”