Blueprint for Love (5 page)

Would he manhandle her?

Fuck her so hard she would be sore the next
morning?

The space between her legs exploded with a
thousand tiny tingles.

She mentally chastised herself. No, she
could not feel lust for this man. What could he offer her? He had
no job, no prospects, and he was a felon. Entertaining any ideas
that involved him was pure insanity.

Still, one night in his arms would cure all
the ills she had.

The scream of delight that pierced the air
pulled Ronnie from her lecherous thoughts.

“
There you are!” Her
cousin, Toye, rushed toward her.

Ronnie’s heart dropped when she noticed
bug-a-boo and potential stalker, Allen Boyd, was hot on Toye’s
heels. Allen called himself trying to pursue Ronnie, but the
feeling was definitely not mutual. It seemed that lately, he’d been
showing up at all the Three Sisters’ events and trying to worm his
way into Ronnie’s social circle.

“
Omigod!” Toye exclaimed.
“You brought a date! Who is this?” she asked, her grey eyes
flitting to Vic, who still stood holding Ronnie’s hand.

Toye was always overdramatizing everything.
Ronnie loved her cousin dearly, but the woman was the typical
Leo—loud, flashy, and always wanting to be the center of attention.
Even now, dressed in a gold gown with a thigh-high slit and
five-inch stilettos, she commanded attention from every set of
eyeballs. And right now, Toye’s eyeballs were fixated on Vic, her
lips parted in breathless anticipation.

Ronnie let go of Vic’s hand, immediately
feeling a void. She shook the feeling off, and she was about to
correct her cousin when she noted the scowl on Allen’s face.

“
This is your date?” Allen
questioned.

Aw, hell no! Who gave him permission to be
mad?

Vic spoke. “Uh, no. I’m not—”

“
He’s not staying,” Ronnie
finished Vic’s sentence. Her personal life was none of Allen’s
business. “Vic was sweet enough to drop me off, but he’s a busy
man.”

Allen thrust a manicured hand out to shake
Vic’s. “Allen Boyd,” he proclaimed with more pretentiousness than
someone introducing the Queen of England. On more than one
occasion, he’d bragged that he could trace his family’s roots back
to eighteenth-century Barbados. Ronnie really wasn’t interested in
his lineage or in him.

“
Pleased to meet you.” Vic
pumped his hand.

“
I’m Toye,” Her cousin
waved to him. “Ronnie’s cousin.”

Before Vic could reply, Allen bogarted his
way into the conversation again. “How did you meet Veronica?” Allen
inquired, using her full name. Nobody called her Veronica.

“
You don’t want to know
all those boring details,” Ronnie said, offering him a patronizing
smile. “And anyway, it’s late. I’ve got to get in there to
introduce Candace, and Vic has some important business to tend
to.”

Allen’s persistent frown was annoying. “But
I do want to know. How long have you two been dating?”

“
Listen, dude—” Vic
began.

Ronnie cut him off, once again. “We really
don’t have time for this,” she huffed and then nodded her head
towards Toye. “Let’s go.”

She slammed the car door. She did not want
to deal with Allen’s intrusive questions right now. Let him think
there was something going on between her and Vic. Maybe that might
make him slow his roll. Ronnie stepped away from Vic’s SUV. Her
legs moved, but the rest of her body did not. She realized, too
late, a portion of her beautiful beaded dress was caught in the car
door! As she pulled away, the expensive fabric ripped. The sounds
of scattering beads hitting the pavement in all directions echoed
in her ears like a sonic boom.

Vic sprang into action. Without hesitation,
he jumped behind Ronnie so no one could see her unmentionables
exposed as the breeze fluttered what was left of her dress. He
stood close to her rear end, blocking the view from any curious
onlookers—but not before he got a chance to look at her firm round
backside encased in a pair of lace black panties. The smooth globes
of her ass were for his eyes only. The woman had curves in all the
right places.

The muscle between his legs twitched.

Down, boy!

Right now was not the time to indulge his
nasty thoughts. Especially when so many people were around, and
there was no chance in hell the Ice Queen was going to let him
inside those panties during this lifetime.

Besides, he couldn’t afford to be thinking
of her and then have to go home and take matters into his own
hands. Or make a real booty call.

Ronnie’s cousin gasped. “Did you just rip
your dress?” she asked.

“
Yes,” Ronnie rasped,
obviously mortified.

Allen stepped forward. “Let me help you,
Veronica.”

“
No,” Vic interrupted,
taking charge of the situation. “I’ll take care of
Ronnie.”

He didn’t care for Allen’s proprietary tone.
Everything about him, from his pallbearer suit to his black and
white wingtips rubbed Vic the wrong way. The man was more uptight
than a PETA member at a barbeque. Vic stood behind Ronnie and kept
her backside positioned in front of his groin. He moved even
closer, tightening the gap between their bodies, so no one could
see those tempting black lace panties—or the pretty ass sitting
pertly inside. He was so close, the soft curls at the back of her
neck stirred slightly each time he let out a tortured breath.
Ronnie might act like a barracuda, but she was all-female.

Focusing on the task at hand, Vic shifted
slightly to open the rear car door. Then, in a move a Vegas
magician would be proud of, he switched places, steering her toward
the door opening, while he stood in front of her.

“
I’m going to help you get
back in,” he told her. “Follow my lead.”

The tension relaxed on her face as she
nodded. He lifted her up slightly so she could sit with her legs
dangling outside the door. A jolt of electricity ran through him
where his fingers touched the silky skin of her back. He fought the
urge to run his hands up and down her back. He wondered how it
would feel to slide his finger beneath the scalloped waistband of
the lacy panties.

He quickly let go, not trusting himself to
keep from acting out his fantasy. He expelled a deep breath. Damn!
The woman was so sexy when she was vulnerable. Ronnie balanced
precariously on the edge of the seat. But the important thing was
her backside was covered now. Vic picked up the remnants of the
torn dress that had slithered to the ground. He placed the material
in the seat next to her.

“
I’m sorry, he said. “This
really did look exquisite
on
you.”

She shot him a grateful smile. “Thank you,
Vic.”

The way she said his name touched something
deep inside him. It was a wistful, appreciative tone that appealed
to his protective side. Ronnie might be the last woman on earth who
needed a protector, but he felt responsible for her since it was
his car door that had done the damage. For a fleeting moment, her
smoky gaze seemed to convey something more. Yearning? Desire?

His fingertips still burned from touching
her warm, soft flesh.

No, I must have imagined it.

“
Swivel around and face
forward,” he directed. “Then, I’ll close the door and you can put
your pantsuit back on. Don’t worry. These windows are dark enough
that no one can see in.”

She nodded.

She turned forward and he simultaneously
closed the door, ensuring she would have privacy.

“
She just needs a minute,”
Vic told Toye.

Vic stuffed his hands into the deep pockets
of his dark jeans. He hoped he wouldn’t have to make too much small
talk. He wasn’t good at fielding questions from nosey folks.

His fears were justified when Ronnie’s
cousin spoke. “What do you do, Vic?”

Here we go. I damn sure can’t tell them I’m
fresh out of the joint.

“
A little of this and a
little of that,” he replied.

One of her dainty eyebrows shot up. “I
see.”

“
I don’t,” Allen scoffed.
“Exactly what is that supposed to mean?”

Once again, Vic bristled at Allen’s superior
tone. He didn’t like the way the man was looking at him. Vic
leisurely scanned Allen’s solid form. Allen was what Vic’s
grandmother used to call husky. The ill-fitting suit he wore didn’t
help. The jacket was so long, it reminded Vic of the zoot suits of
the forties. That look was definitely played.

Ronnie changed in record time. Minutes
later, she emerged from Vic’s Explorer wearing the pantsuit. It was
black, at least. Still appropriate for an after-five event.

“
Thank you, once again,”
she told him. “I owe you a debt of gratitude.”

“
No problem.”

With the view she’d given him of her shapely
backside, he considered them even.

He thought that was the end of it, but
Ronnie took him by surprise when she perched on her tiptoes and
pecked him on the cheek.

His mouth dropped in shock. He hadn’t
expected to melt any of the Ice Queen’s defenses. As he watched her
walk off, he was certain he’d never see her again. She was now
preoccupied with her event. And he had somewhere to be.

# # #

An hour later, Vic stared into the face of a
woman he hadn’t seen in five years. Time had not been kind to her.
His eyes roamed her features.

Leathery skin.

Dark brown, piercing eyes.

A petite woman with a powerful presence.

No one would guess she’d emigrated from
Guatemala at the age of six with her family of eight. Crow’s feet
framed her eyes and laugh lines bracketed her mouth. She was still
a chain smoker, despite the fact that she’d been diagnosed with
lung cancer six months ago. His mother, Maria Velasquez Romano
lived life precariously. Always had, especially when she’d
committed such a heinous act it made Vic’s father divorce her while
she still carried a baby in her belly.

“
Mom,” he acknowledged.
“Good to see you again.”

“
Vic,” she
replied.

No ‘Hello, son.’ No hug. No ‘How was
prison?’ He’d expected nothing less from her. She’d always been
stingy with her affection.

She stood at the door to the modest home
she’d lived in for the past ten years. “You get a job yet?” she
asked.

He bristled. Straight to the point. “As a
matter of fact, I had an interview earlier this week.”

“
And?”

“
They said they’d let me
know.”

“
So, that was it? Just one
interview?”

What the hell did she want from him? And why
was she blocking the door? She could at least let him in. Since he
was a full foot taller than her, it was easy to look over her
shoulder into the tiny living room.

“
Is Andrea ready?” he
asked.

“
If you don’t get a job,
you ain’t gonna be able to take care of her, y’know.”

“
I’m doing my
best.”

“
Best ain’t good
enough.”

“
Maybe not for you. A
judge might see it different.”

She smirked. “Don’t even bring the law into
this. Andrea wants to go to college. I’m gonna need some money for
that.”

Vic let out a deep breath. Maria was always
jumping from subject to subject. It was jarring. Even though they
hadn’t spoken during his entire time in prison, she still had the
same habit. He wanted to ask why she never called or visited, but
he knew the answer. Maria didn’t give a damn about anyone but
herself. And the way she was polluting her body with tobacco, it
was obvious she didn’t care about herself too much either.

“
College?” Vic asked. “I
thought she had a scholarship.”

“
That school is too far
away. Andrea needs to be close to us, you know that. She has to be
able to attend a university here where we can keep an eye on
her.”

Yeah, that was the one thing he and his
mother agreed on. Vic knew how important that was. It was too easy
for someone to take advantage of Andrea.

“
What about child support?
Aren’t you still getting it each month?” he asked.

She crossed her boney arms over her chest.
“Her father petitioned the court to stop payment. She’s nineteen
years old, for God’s sake.”

“
But they can’t do that.
What about her disability?”

“
You know that man doesn’t
give a shit about anyone but himself.”

Ain’t that the pot calling the kettle
black?

He had two lousy parents. What were the
odds?

At that moment, a blur in the background
caught Vic’s eye.

His heart raced as a breath of fresh air
dressed in skinny jeans, an oversized top, and high-heeled sandals
rushed toward him, flashing a dazzling smile.

Andrea had grown up while he was locked up.
When had she started dressing so provocatively? He fought the wave
of protectiveness surging through him. He had to cool it. That’s
what had gotten him in trouble the last time.

She used sign language to
greet him.
Well, look what the wind
dragged in.

Her slender fingers moved in elaborate but
familiar motions. She’d been deaf since birth, but that never
stopped them from communicating. He’d learned sign language
fluently.

Vic crushed her in his
arms and then held her at arm’s length. Then, he signed his
reply.
Hello, sis. I’ve missed
you.