Baby V (Chianti Kisses #1) (5 page)

His lips leave behind a trace of moisture that now grows cold as i
t’
s exposed to the passing air. I slowly snap back to reality, feeling the void on my neck where his lips have been barely a moment before. I want those lips back. I want that feeling back. What
was
that feeling?

Dom turns to look at Todd as we can both feel him staring at out performance.

“
Oh... hey man. Sorry. Is my girl monopolizing the bar
?
”

He switches directions and grabs the attention of the female bartender about five feet away with a quick nod. She stares at him longingly. So that was what would get her attention! A hot guy. That answers why
I’
ve been trying to flag her down for five minutes without so much as eye contact in return. Bitch.
What?!
Where did that come from?
I’
ve been passed over by a bartender before. I never took it personally.

The redhead behind the bar comes over to Dom and throws her bar cloth over her shoulder while resting her arms out to support herself against the shiny wood.

“
What can I get for you, darli
n’?
”

I notice she presses her shoulders together as she leans into her arms, so that her boobs smush together a little, almost doubling in size.
Double bitch!
Dom keeps me pressed into him with his right hand as he reaches into his pocket with his left and withdraws two crisp hundred dollar bills. He places the money on the bar top and slides it toward the bitch as she licks her lips staring at the smooth, obviously wealthy, attractive guy standing in front of her.

“I’
ll take three Heinekens, bottles... not draft, and two margaritas delivered to that table over there in the corner. Oh, and a beer for my friend here
,
”
 
he nods toward Todd.
 “
Keep the rest for yourself
.
”

Dom does
n’
t wait for a response from the girl, but releases my hip and takes my hand instead, as he leads back toward our table. Halfway there and out of earshot from Todd, he turns to me, inching closer to my ear. For a second, I think h
e’
ll kiss my neck again, giving me those wonderfully intense feelings once more.

But, instead, he whispers,
 “
Well... you sure showed us, now did
n’
t you
?
”

Ugh. He lifts back his head and smirks at me while giving my hand a squeeze as we finish our way to the rest of our group. When we reach our seats, he pulls out my chair before taking his own. Theresa looks relieved and nods to Dom. Tony and Mike just stare at me. I swallow my pride and give them simple instruction.

“
Not one word. Ever
.
”

The rest of the night is a blur. There are drinks. Lots of drinks and dancing. Theresa and I hit the dance floor hard. I remember catching up with a bunch of fellow grads, hugging our goodby
e’
s while toasting our futures. We all promise to
 “
reall
y
” stay in touch, and I hope we can.
I’
m crushed to learn from Conrad that Steph had already come and gone, heading back to her hotel early because of a headache. Knowing her, it was more likely an alcohol-induced headache, even if her brother tries to make it sound more respectable.

Conrad and I make small talk for a while, but nothing remarkable. We agree to try and meet up for lunch in the city when he gets back from their family vacation to Tahiti. I do
n’
t get to talk to him long before Dom comes out to the dance floor for a couple of songs. The Heinekens must have begun to kick in for him to hit a dance floor.  H
e’
s a really good dancer, but usually prefers to sit on the sidelines and keep Tony company. Tony would
n’
t be caught dead dancing in public. It would probably mess up his hair.

The night starts to rush around me as the cocktails take their full effect, before I finally give in and ask to be taken home. Although we must have taken the SUV back to hotel, I have no concept of it. The last thing
I’
m aware of is spilling out over my bed and commanding the room to stop spinning.

CHAPTER FIVE

Telephone ringing abruptly wakes me the next morning as I try my hardest to take stock of my surroundings.
I’
m fully dressed lying on one side of the bed in my hotel room, with Theresa out cold on the other side, closest to the ringing phone. The mere thought of moving to answer the call is enough to make me queazy. The best I would be able to muster will be to roll over and look at it as I moan in agony.

My throat is as dry as a desert and I seriously doubt I have the ability to speak due to my swollen tongue. Theresa looks to be on par with my own condition, but is somehow able to blindly reach for the table, searching for the phone with her fingertips. She brings the handle to her ear without lifting her head from the pillow.

“
Uh... hel-hello? Umm hmm... OK. Please tell him we need half an hour. No. No food. Please... just coffee, orange juice, Alka Seltzer and Advil. Thank you
.
”

The phone does
n’
t make it back to the charging dock, it simply falls to the floor. I surprise myself by actually being able to speak, however coarse my voice sounds.
“
Half an hour for what? And why do we need Alka Seltzer?
,
”
 I’
m perplexed.

Theres
a’
s head is still buried into her pillow as she sheds some light on our sudden time frame.
“
We have to be ready to leave in a half hour. W
e’
ve already slept in way later than we planned to. And the Alka Seltzer and OJ will be the only thing that will keep you from throwing up today. Trust me.
I’
ll go back to my room and shower. Meet me there when yo
u’
re done
.
”

OK. So, we have a plan. But neither of us moves. Five or so minutes passes before the knocking at the door gets us up and out of bed. The room service cart is wheeled in and left in place by a pretty twenty-something waitress. I take a ten dollar bill out of my wallet to tip her, but she politely refuses, explaining that it has already been taken care of.

As the door closes behind her, I can hear the tell-tale
 “
plop, plo
p
” and fizzing as Theresa drops the Alka Seltzer tabs straight into her glass of Orange Juice. She hands me an identical glass with the magic concoction before toasting her juice up with a half-hearted,
 “
Botto
m’
s up
.
”

I shower and dress quickly while throwing my suitcase together, careful not to leave anything behind. After blow drying my hair I decide to cover my head with a cabby hat, and top the disguise off with my largest pair of aviator sunglasses. I wo
n’
t be able to fully hide my hangover, but at least I will protect my eyes from the mind-dulling daylight.

Pulling up the arm extension to my roll-along suitcase, I trail it behind me, grab my purse, and head to Theres
a’
s room. Sh
e’
s almost ready, just putting the finishing touches to her pony tail. She has
n’
t had time to dry her hair, but covers it up with a baseball cap. Eyeing my sunglasses, she looks like sh
e’
s had a small epiphany.

“
Good idea!
,
”
 
she exclaims as she searches for her designer shades.

We roll out of her room and I follow her lead down the corridor. It hurts my head to think, so I will just trust her judgement on navigation. We stop in front of the door to Do
m’
s hotel room before Theresa takes a big gulp of air and rasps her knuckles against the deep wood. The door opens and we disappear into it, knocking our suitcase slightly as we turn in.

I can feel the warm steam as I walk past the open bathroom door to my left. Theresa collapses dramatically onto the king-sized bed, no longer blocking my full view of the room.
Oh my God. Kill me now.

Dom is holding his cell up to his ear with one hand as he towel dries his hair with the other. He must have very recently stepped out of that steamy shower, because his bare chest and shoulders still glisten with small beads of water, looking pink as if exposed to too warm of a temperature. His muscles flex and show defined shapes as he moves the towel around, sopping up the drops effortlessly.

His jeans are sitting low enough on his hips to expose the waistband of his underwear, and the clearly visible letters
 “
Arman
i
”
 
stitched into the elastic. The lower muscles of his back twitch slightly as he moves to throw the dampened towel down after it has served its purpose. He finally speaks into the phone, causing me to blink and stir from my trance.

“
They just got here. W
e’
ll leave shortly and
I’
ll call you from the road. Relax... I told you, I will
.
”

He pulls the phone away, pressing a corner button and then tossing it onto a nearby chair. He takes in the sorry sight of his sister and me while I silently thank an un-named historical figure for inventing sunglasses.

“
Well, if it is
n’
t Frick and Frack.
I’
m so grateful that you young-ins were able to show me how i
t’
s done last night. I mean really, I just ca
n’
t keep up
,
” he boasts to us as I sway slightly with a short wave of hung-over vertigo.

Theresa is minorly passed out, half-hanging off the bed and does
n’
t seem to have the energy to banter with her older brother, so she simply sighs loudly trying to appeal to his nurturing side.

“
Dom, stop. I do
n’
t feel good, so you ca
n’
t be a jackass to me right now
.
”

Dom laughs and walks directly up to me while touching my elbow, gently guiding me so that he can pass by. I feel as if he can see right through my dark glasses and read into my hidden eyes. Eyes that are still processing the skin and manicured chest hair directly in front of them. He licks his upper lip briefly before biting it just hard enough for it to blanch.

“
And how do you feel? Cute hat...
,
” he smirks and walks passed me, not waiting for an answer to his rhetorical question.

I
t’
s painfully obvious how I feel. Hungover. And he better not rub it in.

A young bell hop arrives just as Theres
a’
s magic hangover juice begins to react in my system, as I suddenly start to feel exponentially better. Hopefully she will find the same relief soon. Dom pulls a navy blue designer t-shirt on as he walks back out into the main room of his suite and collects his belongings before taking the time to assess his sister, still sprawled out like a hobo.

“
Are you going to make it through a four hour car ride? I tried to let you girls sleep it off as long as I could
,
”
 
he shakes his head.
 “
Everyone else left over two hours ago
.
”

His eyes widen from some relevant thought.

“
Yo
u’
re not going to puke in my car, are you
?
”

Theresa gives an unconvincing
 “
No...
I’
ll be fine
,
” to her brother and slowly gets up to head out the door. I shrug my shoulders at him and help my friend steady herself on her feet as we take baby steps out into the hallway.

I can feel Dom rolling his eyes in defeat, while conceding,
 “
What am I gonna do with you two...?
,
” as he catches up to us and holds the door.

We split up when we reach the main foyer, with Dom heading toward the reception desk as I stay with Theresa near the overstuffed arm chairs so she can rest. I think i
t’
s best not to try and make small talk with her at this point... she probably does
n’
t feel much like conversation right now. Dom places a folded paper into his pocket and replaces his black Amex card into his wallet as he returns to us.

“
Alright, kids. Le
t’
s bounce
.
”

Our bags have already been loaded into the back of Do
m’
s black Range Rover, and Theresa calls dibs on the backseat so that she can lie down and sleep. Dom hands the valet what I can only assume is a pretty decent tip, judging from the young ma
n’
s expression as he closes both Theres
a’
s door and then mine.

Once settled in the drive
r’
s seat, he chooses Theres
a’
s address in Manhattan from the GPS menu and takes a pair of sunglasses from the glove box. Sliding them on, he looks at me with a stupid look on his face.
“
Le
t’
s roll
.
”

I laugh at his teenaged sense of humor. We keep quiet trying not to wake Theresa and I close my eyes, resting them, feeling the warm sunlight hitting my skin through the panoramic sunroof.

~*~

I quickly catch my head from dropping as my eyes fly open in shock. Placing my hands on the seat at either side of myself, I use them as leverage to squirm up from my slouched position. I had fallen asleep, but for how long? I feel really good and rejuvenated, but warm, as I struggle clumsily to take off my St. Bar
t’
s pullover.

“
Hey, sleepy-head... I was wondering when you were going to wake up and keep me company
.
”

I can hear him through the cotton covering my ears as I pull the broken-in sweatshirt over my head. Theresa is still asleep in the back seat, so I place my finger over my lips as I tell Dom to
 “
Shhh..
.
”

“
She sleeps like a log. Always has. Nothing short of a bullhorn can wake her up now
,
” Dom watches me throw my shirt to the side and instinctively reaches for the temperature controls
.
“
Are you warm? You were starting to sweat while you were sleeping
.
” He turns the AC up a little
,
“
Better
?
”

“
You were watching me sleep, huh?
,
” I chide back at him, adding a little
 “
tsk, ts
k
” for emphasis.
 “
You should be watching the road, not me
.
”

His eyes light up, recognizing the little game I am instigating. His lips crook and I know he will play along.
“
How could I not look? You were calling my name
.
”

“
B.S.! I did not!
,
”
 
I cry, and then look over to make sure my outburst does
n’
t wake our sleeping beauty in the back. Just to be safe, I lower my volume.
“
I did not
.
”

I was
n’
t exactly confident in my statement. I
was
daydreaming of Do
m’
s shirtless body shortly before nodding off. The warm sunlight was making me fantasize about lying on a beach, drifting off on the sand... and then it was only natural to think of Dom in a bathing suit on that same beach, and then....

“
No, you did
n’
t. But you know you wanted to
,
” he winks at me through his tinted glasses.
 “
We should cross over the GW in about forty-five minutes. W
e’
ll drop Theresa off at her apartment first, and then head home. Your mom had your things sent over a few weeks ago, and set up a room for you. It looks nice. The last we heard from the contractors, you guys will be with us for at least three months. Maybe four
.
”

When Momma told me she was thinking of renovating the house, I never thought sh
e’
d actually go through with it. Sh
e’
s spent years decorating to make the house just as she wanted it. Now, they are practically tearing the whole thing down and building up from scratch.