Intercepted (7 page)

“Fine. I
’
ve said my peace. I
’
m letting you be. But let yourself have a good
time. That hot guy out there is doing way more than is required for a
friend
and I think you deserve some of that. Let loose.”

“Dani, please just help me find something to wear and shut up.”

She chuckles as she stands up, then opens her closet and pulls out a
short black dress with long sleeves and a square neck. It is very sexy and the
material looks incredibly soft.

“
Here.
” She hands me the dress.
“I haven
’
t worn it yet, but it will look
good on you.”

I grin, because it
’
s perfect.
“Really?”

“Really.” She grins back.

Twenty minutes later, I am showered, wearing the black short dress and
pulling my black knee-high boots on. I slip into a red coat that goes down to
my knees and I am rushing to the door where my taxi is waiting. And I can
’
t remember the last time I was this excited.

Chapter 10:
Jake

I am getting dressed for this date wondering what the hell I
’
m really getting dressed for. This crazy
obsession over Natalia has now turned into a wild goose chase. I was expecting
that at some point during the last two days I would find in her what I have
been looking for from the start. Confirmation that she
’
s no different from all the other women I
’
ve ever met. I guess in my head, extending my
vacation by two days was not a big deal if in return I got her out of my mind
and regained full control of my thoughts.

Epic failure so far.

There hasn
’
t been one moment in the time
we
’
ve spent together when I didn
’
t want to crush her mouth into a kiss. It
’
s a fucking inconvenience because the whole time
my thoughts have been at war with my dick. Thank God for the pool in winter.

I pull a gray sweater over my head. Black jeans and boots will do. Then
grab my leather jacket as I walk out, raking a hand through my hair so it doesn
’
t look like I
’
m trying hard. I want tonight to be the same as
the last two days have been. At some point Natalia let down her guard and she
seems more relaxed around me. I like seeing her that way.

I get into a taxi at the front of the hotel thinking how ridiculous it is
that we are not sharing a ride, but as an employee, appearances matter to
Natalia. I wonder what her friends make of the time she
’
s been spending with me. I wonder if she
’
s told her fiancée she has a new swimming
instructor.
Yeah, one that does what you do for a living
. I shake my
head. I
’
ve never given a fuck about
appearances and I
’
m not about to start now.
Tonight I
’
m going to prove to myself she
’
s just like the others. I know I
’
m a prick for setting her up like this, but I
also know it is the only way I
’
ll find
peace of mind.

I enter the restaurant and scan the room. The hostess takes her time to
appraise me and stifles a smile while she locates my reservation.

“
Jake Harper?
” She looks up and
her eyes darken. I refrain from rolling mine and nod a response. She swings her
hips around her station, makes sure I get a good shot of her ass as she picks
up the menus, then glances once over her shoulder.

“Right this way, please.”

I follow her to the table I
’
ve
requested. It is by a floor to ceiling window overlooking the mountain. I
’
ve been here with Tamara before. I
’
m browsing over the wine list when Natalia
appears at my side. I stand and before I can say anything she tilts her face up
and greets me with a kiss on the cheek. I
’
m
momentarily stunned, enjoying the sudden contact with her chilled cheek. She
realizes she caught me off guard and a slight blush raises to her face.

“It
’
s an Argentinean thing,” she
explains. “The kissing on the cheek. I keep forgetting you guys don
’
t do that here. It
’
s weird to me to shake someone
’
s hand.” She smiles as I help her with her coat.

“
I don’
t mind.” I shrug and her
smile widens. She looks radiant. Those piercing green eyes are bright and her
hair is down in long, raven layers. I haven
’
t seen her hair down since the poker night and it
is definitely my new favorite.

“This place is incredible. Look at that view,” she says as I pull out her
chair, then gives me a thankful smile.

“Do you come into town much?” I say, drinking in her fresh expression. I
haven
’
t seen her this relaxed since… I have never seen her
this relaxed.

“Not usually,” she says. “Unless it
’
s
someone
’
s birthday and we can work out
the time off. Most nights I
’
m dead tired
after work. We just stay in and play poker.”

“Which is quite profitable in your case.” I smile and that slight blush
raises to her face again. I need to find more things to make her blush because
it
’
s sort of addicting. Her guard is down and she
looks beautiful. She shakes her head.

“Gotta do what you can.”

“
Indeed. I nod.
” My eyes are
locked on hers and she glances down at the menu, blushing again, and I can
’
t help the shit-eating grin on my face.

I order a bottle of wine and she lifts up the napkin on the bread basket
and picks up a bread roll. She breaks a piece and bites through it, making an
appreciative sound. I like that she is not hiding the fact that she
’
s hungry. I cannot remember the last time I saw a
woman grab a piece of plain white bread and put it in her mouth.

The waiter comes back with the wine and we order our meals. Once again I
’
m surprised when she orders the Fettuccine and Fungi
special and not a skimpy salad like Tamara would have.

We fall into easy conversation and she tells me about her life in Buenos
Aires. I
’
m fascinated and want to know
every detail. Life in South America sounds fun, careless and much less
regulated than here in every way. I make a mental note to add Buenos Aires to
my bucket list.

“
So Jake.
” She smiles. “I usually
don
’
t ask people this, but given the fact that we
just spent the last two days together and now you know more about my life and
aspirations than most people, I
’
m gonna
ask.” She sighs.

“What?”

“What do you do for a living?”

And there it is.

I hold her gaze for a moment, pondering. But it
’
s too soon and I am enjoying having her here,
unaffected and unguarded. I
’
m not ready to
give that up, yet.

“
Well?
” She raises her eyebrows.

“I have plans to open a surf shop. If everything goes well, we will open
by mid March.”

Her face lights up. “Really? Where?”

I tilt my head and she blushes. Why does she blush when I tilt my head?
“San Diego.”

“You
’
re kidding.” Her eyes widen and
she
’
s watching me as if she
’
s waiting for me to tell her it
’
s a joke.

“Nope. Cardiff, actually. I have friends there that I visit every summer.
I
’
ve been toying with the idea of having my own
shop for a while and I
’
ve always
been kind of obsessed with surfboards. So it
’
s finally happening.”

“That
’
s… great. I mean…” She shakes
her head.

“What? What did you think I was going to say?”

She looks up and suddenly seems embarrassed. “
I don’
t know. I figured you were one of those guys that
play golf and live a work-free life. I don
’
t know what pro athletes do when they retire.”

I laugh. “My career was not as long as I wished, and water polo athletes
are not like football players.”

“Why did you stop playing?”

“Shoulder injury,” I mutter. “I pushed it too hard during the Olympics. I
was young and thought my body could take anything. That was my last trip.”

Her eyebrows shoot up. “You played in the
Olympics
?”

I nod. “
Gold medal.
”

“No way.”

I shrug in response. She looks at me for a long moment with a puzzled
look of admiration. It
’
s better than
being pinned as some has-been living on the products of his glory days.

Our dinner comes and I am relieved with the change of subject. I smile
when she tells me she
’
s starving,
and appraises the food on her plate. She grins as she takes a bite and the way
her mouth wraps around her fork sends an instant shot to my groin. It makes me
shift on my seat. I smile again because I love that she loves food.

“So what do you do now?” she says, reaching for her glass. “I mean, how
do you make a living if you are… retired?”

Ah.

“That
’
s a lot of questions.” I smile,
because I am still not ready to answer that. Not until I find out what I want
to know about her. “I
’
m kind of
shy.” I tilt my head and she stops chewing, then reaches for her wine again.
Yes.
I need to tilt my head more.

She takes a sip and smiles. “You are
not
shy, Jake.”

“Okay.” I shrug. “You
’
re right.
Maybe shy is not the right word. I
’
m a very
private person, though.”

She pouts and I have to look away. “
Well,
” she says. “You know a lot more about me. I feel
at a disadvantage. So you have to tell me.”

I laugh. “Very persistent. But seriously, enough about me.”

She shakes her head and I am safe for the moment. We ease into safer
territory as she tells me about working at the lodge. It sounds like a fun deal
and she says she makes a lot in tips. I have no doubt. After watching her play
poker, I am sure she does very well for herself.

When we are done with our meal I order a lemon mousse to share. She
smiles. I don
’
t really want dessert, but
watching her lips wrap around the spoon as she eats has become my new favorite
show. Out of the corner of my eye I see a small dance floor by a wall of
windows and inspiration hits me. The window is now a black screen peppered with
the glinting lights of the surrounding homes. In a corner next to the dance
floor, a guy sitting on a barstool strums the chords of an acoustic guitar as
he hums a slow melody.

“Want to dance?” I say, appraising her reaction. She looks up and her
eyes widen. She
’
s conflicted.

“Um, I
’
m not a great dancer.”

Good save.
I smile. “
Doesn
’
t matter. I am. I
’
ll guide you. Besides, this is a very slow song.”

She looks down at her hands before meeting my eyes again. “
Jake, I don’
t know if that
’
s a good idea. I mean, I
’
m with… someone. I don
’
t think he
’
d like
it if he knew I was slow dancing with another guy.” I
’
m stunned by her loyalty. It
’
s like she just swung a right hook to my jaw. Now
I really want to know.

“I promise I won
’
t push the
boundaries. I just want to dance with you, Natalia.”

She closes her eyes for a moment, and I think I
’
ve won.

“Okay. Just one song.”

I smile and take her hand as I stand, leading her to the dance floor. I
know I am being a prick. This girl is off the market. My rules about women that
are unavailable are also clear: Keep Out. But I have to convince myself Natalia
is no different than the other women I
’
ve met,
and if she is tempted far enough, she will cave. Women can
’
t help lying. They all do it. It
’
s in their DNA. In the end, loyalty means nothing
to them.

My arms wrap around her waist while she hesitantly circles hers around my
neck. The immediate sensation that fires through me leaves me winded. The scent
of jasmine invades me. I close my eyes and squeeze her a little tighter so I
can bury my nose in her hair. She stills and lets out a small gasp.
God
.
She
’
s fucking Heaven. Her body fits perfectly in my
arms and her warmth feels so incredibly good it
’
s almost unbearable. I have to end this soon.
Just
get through with it and walk away, Jake
. My lips brush her neck slightly,
almost without touching her. Her skin is soft and I imagine kissing every inch
of it, the way I
’
ve been imagining her in my bed
since we first met. I brush her hair over her other shoulder so I can have full
access to her neck. I graze her skin with my lips again and a shiver runs
through her, leaving goose bumps on her neck. My other hand presses against the
small of her back, bringing her closer. The fabric of her dress is soft and I imagine
sliding it over her head, slowly peeling it off to reveal the rest of her
perfect skin. I squeeze my arms around her and I
’
m already hard.