Body Chemistry (8 page)

S
he didn’t remember his name and she didn’t care anymore. Two days ago she had been certain she’d finally met Mr. Right, but now she knew she hadn’t. Brenda sat in Sam’s Coffee House staring at the man in front of her, trying not to fall asleep. She’d met him in a bookstore and he’d seemed interesting when he’d suggested they have coffee together. Unfortunately, the coffee wasn’t strong enough to keep her awake.

Over the last few days she’d learned a lot about herself. She didn’t like the bar scene, concerts were too long, cocktails too shallow and the Internet too impersonal. At least at a bookstore she’d meet someone intelligent—or so she thought.

What’s His Name was tall, clever, good looking in a clean cut sort of way, and about as exciting as dry wheat toast.

Brenda had hoped he would be a nice diversion. She’d figured coffee could lead to lunch, which could lead to dinner, which could eventually lead to breakfast. Now she wished she could just lead him to the door. Methods of escape filled her imagination. She glanced around, wondering if she could find a familiar face and pretend that she had to speak with them.

Her gaze fell on Franklin as he stood at the counter. She quickly glanced away with a tiny shiver. Anyone but him. However, after several minutes of desperately searching for an alternative, she knew she had no other choice and inwardly groaned, resigned. He’d have to be her rescuer. She watched him with his coffee and biscotti and saw him stuff his change into his jacket pocket. In a few seconds he would leave. This was her only chance.

Brenda jumped up. “I’m sorry,” she said to her companion. “There’s someone I have to speak to.” She pointed to Franklin. “It’s important. Great to see you again. Talk to you soon.” She rushed over to Franklin. “Oh there you are. I’ve been looking for you.”

Franklin looked at her, confused. “What?”

To her horror What’s His Name followed her and said, “Do you really have to leave so soon? I could wait.”

“No.” She slid her arm through Franklin’s, ignoring his startled look. “We have a big complicated project to discuss. I’m very sorry to leave you like this.”

He smiled with understanding. “I’ll see you around.”

Not if I’m hiding.
“Yes.”

She seized Franklin’s arm and dragged him toward the door. “Don’t ask questions,” she said in a low voice. “Just keep walking.” She raised her voice so the other man could hear. “Now what was it that we needed to discuss?”

Franklin went along and followed her outside, then said, “What was that all about?”

She released her grasp. “An error in judgment.”

“Have you thought about my question?”

“It’s still no.”

The man came out. “I forgot to ask you for your phone number.”

Brenda grabbed Franklin’s arm again and smiled. “Umm…I’m in the process of having it changed.”

He handed her his card. “Perhaps we could get together sometime.”

She glanced down at it, her mind searching for an excuse. At least she now remembered his name: Wallace.

“Well…”

“That’s not possible,” a cool, male voice cut in.

They spun around. Dominic stood facing them.

“Why not?” Wallace asked, affronted.

Dominic approached them. He looked casual, but Brenda saw the darkness in his eyes. Fury lurked behind his calm demeanor and he looked very much the avenging outlaw. “Because she’s with me.”

Wallace sent her an accusatory look. “You didn’t tell me you were seeing anyone.”

“Because I’m not,” she said shooting Dominic a fierce glare. He had no right to come and claim her like this.

Dominic hooked his fingers in the belt hooks of his jeans. “You are now.”

“This is none of your business, Ayers,” Franklin said, putting a possessive hand on Brenda’s. She resisted the urge to yank it away.

Dominic noticed the hands and his gaze darkened to onyx. “But it is.”

Brenda shook her head, alarmed and exasperated. Things could get ugly if she wasn’t careful. “Dominic, you can’t come here and think you can—”

He ignored her, his gaze fixed on Franklin. “Take your hand off her.”

Franklin stroked her hand. “She doesn’t seem to mind where it is.”

Dominic made a quick, dangerous move forward. Brenda stopped him with her free hand, he felt like solid rock. “This is ridiculous.” She pulled free from Franklin. “I’m going home.” She walked to her car.

The three men followed.

Wallace said, “You didn’t give me your number.”

Franklin said, “I still want you to think things over.”

Dominic cut in front of her. “I want to talk to you.”

She halted and glared up at him. Four weeks of waiting to hear from him made her tone extra vitriolic. “I don’t want to talk to you.” She then turned to Franklin. “And I’ve told you my answer is no.” She finally looked at Wallace. “Thank you for the coffee, but I’ve decided to stop seeing men for a while.”

Brenda then got in her car and drove off. It took her only a couple miles to realize she was being followed. In the dim light she couldn’t see the driver, but she knew it was Dominic. He was trying to intimidate her, but she wouldn’t let him. The best way to handle him was to ignore him.

She pulled into her driveway and parked, then walked inside her house. She changed into something comfortable, ate some leftovers, then looked through the window to check her driveway. His car still sat there like a large, dark presence. She wrote some bills, watched a sitcom and then checked outside again. The car hadn’t moved. Fueled by anger, and knowing that he would stubbornly sit in the cold all night until she let him in, Brenda grabbed her jacket, marched up to the car and pounded on the window. It slowly rolled down.

“Get in the house,” she ordered, then spun away.

She could hear the grin in his voice when he said, “Thought you’d never ask.”

Once inside Dominic casually removed his coat, then sat in the living room. “Nice place.”

Brenda didn’t care for compliments. “What are you doing here?”

“I wanted to make sure you made it home safely.”

“You wanted to make sure I made it home alone.”

He nodded. “That too.”

She sat across from him and crossed her legs. She watched his gaze dip to her legs and she inwardly grinned.
Go ahead and look at what you’ll never get
. She had forgotten that she was wearing the sensual lounge wear Marci had selected.

“You don’t need to wait to have a man to wear these,” Marci had said. “Whenever you’re stressed, or just want to enjoy and acknowledge your womanhood, wear it.” She was glad she had, although she hadn’t expected company, and didn’t mind him seeing it. She didn’t try to cover up how the front dipped low showing her cleavage or how it fell away from her thigh.

But his gaze didn’t waver and soon became as intimate as a caress. Brenda decided to cover her thigh and fold her arms over her chest. “What do you want?”

His smoldering gaze left her body and met her eyes. “So this is the greeting I get on my return? Your hand on Franklin’s arm while flirting with another man?”

“My activities are none of your business.”

“You know it’s my business because you know my intentions.”

“Your intentions mean nothing to me.”

“You don’t believe a man can change?”

“A man can try, but whether he is successful or not will take time to figure out.”

“So you see no hope for me?” he said in disbelief.

“What’s changed? You’re just like before.”

“I said I’d get back to you.”

“Four weeks later?” Her voice cracked. “You always kept me waiting. You always gave all your attention to other people and I got what was left over. I want a man who will give me all of his attention.”

“You’d grow bored with a man who fawned all over you.”

“I’d have fun finding out.”

“Then divorce him when he’s not up to standard.”

“We divorced each other. You did it with your travel and long nights. I did it with papers. I made it official so our marriage wasn’t a complete mockery.”

“Our marriage was real,” he shouted. “You just didn’t think it was perfect enough. It didn’t fit your systematic analysis so it was a project you decided to abandon.”

“Abandon? Half the time you didn’t even know I was there.”

“I’ve admitted I wasn’t always there for you, but I’ve told you I’ve changed.”

“How have you changed? A promise of seduction and then four weeks of nothing. Suddenly you show up again and expect me to be there for you.”

“I didn’t realize you hated me this much,” he said with pain.

“I don’t hate you,” she said, surprised he used such a harsh word.

“Then what about the postcards? Didn’t they mean anything to you?”

“What postcards?”

“The ones I sent you every week. I also e-mailed the manuscript for the book so we could discuss which illustrations would work when I returned.”

She sat back bewildered. “I don’t know what you’re talking about. I didn’t receive anything.”

“But I—” He shook his head with frustration. “I don’t understand.”

Brenda felt her anger die as she realized the magnitude of his words. “You sent me something every week?”

“Yes.”

“What did you say?”

He shrugged and looked a little embarrassed. “They were just a few lines. Nothing interesting.”

“Tell me anyway.”

“Okay.” He stared at the ground. “Um…one said ‘This place has more rain than Seattle, hope you’re keeping dry.’” He rubbed the back of his neck and glanced at her, unsure.

“Go on,” she urged.

“Another said how boring my meeting was and how much I looked forward to working with you. The last one said ‘Coming home.’” He shook his head. “I mean ‘Coming back soon. Looking forward to talking to you.’”

“I’m sorry I didn’t receive them,” Brenda said softly. She remembered that he used to do that at the beginning of their marriage, although they were rarely apart back then. Whenever he traveled he sent a postcard, but as the years passed they stopped coming, and he was away most of the time.

“And nobody called you?” Dominic asked, still amazed.

She shook her head.

“It doesn’t make sense. It’s not like Thomas not to follow instructions. Did you get the water heater installed?”

“Yes, thank you.”

“It must have been a misunderstanding. I specifically told him that I wanted you to know where I was and what I was up to.”

She smiled. “That was nice of you.”

“I wasn’t trying to be nice.” He sat beside her. “I told you things will be different this time.” Dominic pulled her to him and kissed her. His kiss reminded her of powdered sugar. She’d had some on her lips the first time they’d kissed and he’d used it as an excuse, he didn’t need one after that. She welcomed his kiss as the desert sands welcome a breeze. His lips reminded her of warm Hawaiian beaches where they’d celebrated their honeymoon, late night showers, early morning quickies and tangled sheets.

There was something both safe and familiar yet dangerous and strange about him. He’d once been her husband but three years had made them strangers.

She pushed him away, his kiss burning her lips and her heart beating like thunder. She stood. “No, we can’t do this again.”

He stood too. “Do what again? Feel? You know enough about science to know that certain elements are drawn to each other because they have to be together.”

“We are not single-cell organisms. We are rational human beings given the privilege of choice and I won’t do this again.” She turned away.

He came up behind her and whispered, “Why resist what your body tells you is right?” His voice was warm against her neck, making her skin prickle with pleasure. “You know that no other man makes you feel this way.”

She faced him determined to resist what her body told her was right. “You possessed me once, but you will not do so again.”

“You’re already mine.” He playfully tapped her nose. “Try not to think about me tonight.”

She brushed his finger away. “I’ll think of you as a warning never to trust my heart again.”

He lowered his gaze. “I may have broken your heart.” He lifted his gaze. “But you’re the one who ripped it out and crushed it with your sense of right and wrong and unyielding judgment. I’m going to give you back your heart and make you whole again.”

“Why don’t you just give me yours?”

His gaze clung to hers. “Because I’d never trust you with it.”

“No, you never did.”

His face eased into an indulgent smile. “You can’t hurt me, Brenda, and you won’t get rid of me this time.”

“I know. I didn’t ask for your money without knowing you’d be a technicality.”

His smile became devious. “It’s not wise to make me angry when I haven’t given you any money yet.”

“Then go ahead. Don’t give it to me, it will only confirm the ruthless side of your nature I know exists. Do I need your money? Yes. Does that make me vulnerable? Yes. Will I allow you to use that vulnerability to control and humiliate me? No.”

He stared at her amazed. “You think I want to humiliate you?”

“You’ve never forgiven me for divorcing you. Your pride took a direct hit. I know you’re trying to punish me for that.”

He lowered his voice in pity. “How sad. I thought your new look meant something but you haven’t changed at all. You’re still fighting battles that don’t need to be fought. Have you ever thought, just for once, that I didn’t want a divorce because marriage meant something to me? And that I’m here now because I want you back.”

“I won’t come back.”

“Then we’ll go forward. This is our second chance and I’m going to seize it and one day when you open your eyes you will too.” He grabbed his jacket and headed for the door. “I’ll have the money deposited into your account and I will send you the manuscript and talk to you later.”

“Next month perhaps?”

He pulled her to him and smothered her mouth with a kiss that left her breathless. When he drew away his voice shook from a barely controlled emotion she couldn’t understand. “Remember that and don’t let me see your hand on Franklin’s arm again.” He slammed the door.