Home Is Where the Heart Is (5 page)

“
So, I guess I am off to a
pretty good start, huh?” he teased. She felt herself blush as
she shrugged. After putting the bag on the table next to the door,
she glanced up at him. “Your chariot awaits, milady,” he
said jokingly as he gave her a small bow. She smiled as she walked to
the door. They were about to get into the car when Julie saw her best
friend’s cream white Prius pulling up.

“
Oh holy shit,”
she
thought when she saw her getting out of the car.
“Just
what I need,”
she rolled her eyes before speaking. “Meg, hi”

“
Julie, heading out?” Meg
asked smiling.

“
Yeah, kind of. This is Steven
Davenport, a client. Steven this is my best friend Meg Tyler,”
she explained as she tried to ignore the fact that her cheeks were
getting red, almost crimson. She knew that at that moment, Meg had
already gotten enough ammunition to use against her.

“
Client,” Meg spoke with
amusement in her voice.

“
Yes, dad. Client,” she
spoke through gritted teeth and stared daggers at her best friend.

“
Nice to meet you, Davenport?
Is it?” Meg asked shaking Steven’s hand.

“
Steven is just fine. I find
Davenport to be a bit too official,” Steven said. “I was
about to take your friend for dinner. Would you like to join us?”

“
Oh no, I just came for my
spare key. The garbage disposal at my mum’s house seemed to
have loved mine a little more than I hoped it would,” Meg told
Steven. Julie smiled at her.

“
Just a minute,” she told
them as she walked back into the house. Meg looked at Steven and
smiled at him.

“
So you are Steven, huh?”
she asked.

“
Judging by your tone I would
guess that you already know a few things about me,” he laughed.

“
Well, I am the best friend. I
know what color underwear she had on this morning,” Meg joked.
A smile played on Steven’s lips.

“
Is there any chance that I
might get to know what color underwear she has on right now?”
he asked mischievously. Meg laughed at him and shook her head.

“
You are a cheeky fellow,
aren’t you?” she jested just as Julie walked out. “Thanks
sweetie,” Meg said as she took the key from Julie.

“
Don’t mention it,”
Julie replied.

“
Well, you kids have fun,”
Meg said as she gave Julie a little wink before heading to her car.

“
Your friend is nice,”
Steven said as they walked towards the black town car.

“
Yeah, she is something,”
Julie chuckled. She looked at Steven as he opened the rear left door
for her.
“Of
course you have a chauffeur. I would have expected nothing less,”
she thought as she
got in. “Hi,” whispered Julie when she saw the driver in
the dark suit.

“
Evening,” the man said
in greeting just as Steven got in.

“
Hope you like Italian,”
he said as the car pulled out. Julie just smiled. It was all she
could do without breaking into nervous feats. She could not help but
notice just how rich the atmosphere was. There was something
different about this car compared to all the other cars she had ever
been in. The rich brown leather, felt so good and soft under her
small palm. She even found herself wondering what the leather would
feel like against her own naked skin at some point. “You live
pretty damn far from your work place,” Steven stated.

“
Yeah, it is a long commute but
I don’t really mind,” she explained.

“
So, you have never considered
moving somewhere closer to the office?” he asked. She took a
long deep breath and smiled.

“
Oh I have. But the property
rates in that side of the city are a bit rich for my taste,”
she told him. “And I know what you are thinking. ‘But
you’re a realtor’,” she added with a giggle.

“
You read my mind,” he
said laughing.

“
Well, I have found some
affordable apartments, but the neighborhood is not somewhere I’d
be comfortable in. And my dad would most definitely not let me move
there,” she admitted. Steven looked at her and raised an
eyebrow.

“
Your dad? What has he got to
do with anything?” he asked.

“
I live with my dad. It’s
just the two of us…which reminds me. I have to text him so he
doesn’t worry.”

She took her phone out of her purse. She sent a quick
text and then put it back in her purse.

“
I bet he is really proud of
you,” Steven said. Julie looked at him and smiled.

“
I guess,” she said.

“
What about your mom?” he
asked. She shrugged and then sighed. “I’m sorry, is that
a bad topic?” He suddenly feeling guilty about prying.

“
No, it’s okay. She and
my dad divorced when I was twelve and she remarried when I was
eighteen. We talk, and sometimes meet for the occasional lunch, but
I’m more of a daddy’s girl,” she explained. “I
kind of always have been even when she was still around,” she
added.

“
Your father would be proud to
know that he raised a good woman,” he told her honestly. She
looked at him and smiled.

“
You don’t even know me.
How can you be so sure?” she asked. Steven smiled and shrugged.

“
I have a knack for good people
and I have a gut feeling that you are a good woman. Plus, I always
trust my gut. It’s never let me down before,” he told
her. Julie didn’t know why, but for some reason, she felt safe
with him. She had always trusted her gut too, and like him, it had
never let her down before, but she didn’t understand why she
felt so comfortable around him. She didn’t even move her hand
when he put his hand on hers. She leaned against the headrest and
looked out into the well-lit street as a smile played on her lips.
She had a feeling she was going to enjoy this dinner date.

1. Chapter
   4
   

Julie could not get over how perfect the restaurant was.
When they got to Antonio’s, she was a bit taken aback. She had
heard of the restaurant, but she had never had the chance to dine
there, especially when she heard that they had a three hundred dollar
plate on the menu. When they walked in, the host showed them to a
private table away from prying eyes and Julie had to admit, she loved
it.

All through dinner, Julie had totally forgotten that she
had met Steven only a week earlier. Before dessert, the two were
talking like old friends. It was almost as if she had known him all
of her life. During dinner, Julie felt the need to ask him the age
old question why her. And if she made a fool of herself, she could
just blame it on the alcohol. She looked at him and smiled.

“
I have to ask, why me?”
she said to Steven.

“
What do you mean?” he
asked confused.

“
Well, I know a man of your
stature meets a lot of women, maybe even supermodels at some point.
So why me? What is so different about me?” she wondered as she
looked into his eyes. Steven laughed and shook his head.

“
I don’t know. There is
something about you, something I just can’t get over,” he
explained.

“
What is this something
exactly?” Julie asked.

“
Well, like I said, I find you
intriguing. And even the hottest model couldn’t compare to
you.”

Julie felt her cheeks flush.

“
Are you trying to get in my
good books or something?” she teased. Steven smiled and
shrugged.

“
Well, is it working?” he
asked jokingly and laughed .

“
Kind of. But maybe it’s
just because you’re British,” she said smiling.
“Seriously though. No girlfriend? Wife?” she asked. He
smiled and shook his head.

“
Well I was engaged at some
point but it never materialized,” he explained. She shrugged
and raised an eyebrow.

“
Never materialized?” she
asked surprised.

“
Well, I proposed to her, she
said yes and she turned out to be a bit shady,” he replied.

“
How shady?” Julie asked
more interested than ever. It was like having a front row seat to a
soap opera.

“
Three weeks to the wedding, a
distant cousin was in town and I caught them pants down. Literally.”

“
Ouch,” she winced as she
took a sip of her wine.

“
Well, it was kind of a relief
really. After that I sought out to just have fun before I really
settle down,” he said.

“
You are preaching to the
choir, mister,” she chuckled.

“
I never really understood the
concept of that saying,” Steven looked confused. Julie noticed
his confused look and shook her head.

“
What, preaching to the choir?”
she asked.

“
Yeah, is that like an American
thing?” he replied. She took a deep breath as she tried to get
the right words to describe the saying.

“
Well, you see, to sing in a
choir you need to be a believer. So, when a preacher is out to as
they say win souls, he wouldn’t need to do it with a choir
because they are already…you get it?” she questioned
hoping that she had made her point. He smiled and nodded.

“
I think so.” .

“
Oh, thank God because I wasn’t
sure there was any other way I could explain it,” she said as
she looked at her watch. “Oh crap, it’s late and it’s
a working day tomorrow.” She looked up before continuing. “I
really hate to break this up. I am having a really good time with
you.”

“
I am loving spending time with
you too,” he said as he flashed her a smile. “Come on,
I’ll take you home.”

After the waitress brought his card back Julie got up
from the table. She had only had one glass of wine, but felt like she
had downed more than just a glass. But then again, that was what
happened when you had thirty year old wine. When they got to the car,
he opened the door for her like the perfect gentleman he was before
he walked round the car to get in on his side. As they rode in the
car, she didn’t realize when they moved closer to each other.
She leaned against his shoulder and he draped an arm around her. When
they got back to her place, she saw her dad’s car was already
parked in the driveway. “I would have asked to come and meet
your dad, but I’m guessing that he is probably asleep by now,”
he said. She looked at him and smiled.

“
Maybe next time,” she
said thinking about how her father had always been protective of her,
being his only child. But there was no reason why she would have to
worry about that now. She looked at him and shrugged.

“
We have an appointment
tomorrow afternoon. So, tomorrow?” he reasoned. She smiled and
nodded.

“
Tomorrow,” she agreed.
As she looked at him, she could feel his gaze almost melting her. She
sat rooted to the spot as the two looked intensely at each other.

Give us a moment Terrence,” he said still looking
at her.

“
Who?” Julie asked,
confused.

“
The driver,” he
whispered as he leaned forward and kissed her passionately. She
moaned softly as she closed her eyes and kissed him back. She knew
that this was bound to happen. After their first kiss, all she could
do was think about him, his lips on hers and his hands on her back
caressing her and drawing her even closer. She pulled back and looked
at him.

“
Steven…I’m…I’m….”
she started saying stuttering nervously.

“
Scared?” he said. She
nodded and closed her eyes in an attempt to hide the fact that she
was blushing. “Nothing is going to happen here, unless you want
it to,” he promised. She opened her eyes and looked into his
own piercing brown eyes. She didn’t know why, but she could see
honesty in them. He leaned forward and then stopped before she leaned
in and kissed him. She felt a shiver go through her spine as he ran
his hand down her back. He brought his other hand up and held the
back of her neck as he kissed her deeper and harder, his mouth
seeking hers as their lips mashed together. When he pulled away, he
looked at her and smiled.

“
What?” she asked in a
whisper.

“
Nothing. Nothing at all,”
he promised before he kissed her again. She brought one hand up and
held his bicep as she kissed him softly. She felt him slowly pulling
down the zipper on her dress. She would have pushed him off if he was
any other man, but this time round, all she wanted to do was let him
have his way with her. Another chill went through her spine when she
felt him slipping the dress down her shoulders. When he pulled away,
she was flushed and breathing hard. She looked at him as he slowly
ran his hands up and down her bare arms. It was a simple gesture
really, but the way she felt sitting there with his hands on her made
her so damn hot. She could feel the moistness in her panties as he
leaned forward to kiss her neck. She moaned softly when she felt him
run his tongue down her neck and onto her shoulder where he planted a
soft kiss. “God, you’re beautiful,” he whispered.
Julie opened her eyes and saw the driver leaning against the car.