Love Charm for Carlotta (A Short Story in the Love Charm Series) (7 page)

Carlotta stared at the document wordlessly.

He slapped another sheaf of papers on top of the first.
"I accepted a job to run the youth hockey league here on the
Vineyard."

Her eyes widened. What was he doing?

"I bought The Blue Cupcake building in Vineyard Haven
and placed it in your name." Another stack of papers dropped on top of the
existing pile. "There's office space in there for me to use if we can
reach an agreement."

She finally found her voice.
"Agreement?"

"Please." Jace held up a hand. "Let me
finish. I saved the toughest one for last."

He swallowed and she watched his strong Adam's apple bounce.
His mouth flattened to a straight line.  "I know you think I came
back in your life because of some spell you cast."

She clenched her hands under the table. Why had she ever
mentioned the love charm?

"I don't believe in that mumbo-jumbo," Jace said.

Mumbo jumbo?
Where had she heard
that phrase recently? Her brain seemed to have shut down, except for the wild
thoughts skittering around like oil on a hot skillet. She couldn't grasp them,
and make a logical sequence out of them.

Nor could she breathe. Why had he shown her all that
paperwork indicating he was planning to move back to the Vineyard, if he didn't
want to be involved with her? How had she misunderstood so completely?

Finally, one thought coalesced in her head. "You're
talking about what I said, back at—the beach," she said, her voice
trembling.

He pulled a single thick sheet of paper from the folder.
"I didn't want to feel like either one of us had been trapped by a
spell." He handed her the page. "I found a cure for your love
charm."

Carlotta grasped the handmade, expensive sheet in nerveless
hands. She couldn't look at the words as her throat swelled with pain.
"You don't want it to work," she whispered.

"That's right." He tapped the bottom of the paper.
"That's my agreement right there to buy the antidote."

She froze as understanding washed over her. He was the one
who'd spoken to Ashley. He was the person who'd said he didn't want 'mumbo
jumbo' to interfere with his plans. He was not happy to be the one she'd caught
with her love charm.

She stared at the paper for a long moment, not seeing it,
but desperate for the time to compose herself.

"The antidote costs a million dollars," she said,
not looking at him. "There's no need—"

"It's a price I'm willing to pay," he said flatly.
"Now can we move on?"

"Move on?" She finally looked at him. His brow was
furrowed, his mouth still tense, and he didn't meet her gaze.

"I know you don't want me," he said. "I know
I may not be the best catch around. I know I hurt you in the past." He
paused and shoved his hands in his pockets. "Those are a lot of strikes
against me."

She suddenly remembered a vignette from their high school
days. Jace had run for senior class President. She'd been entering school late
after a doctor's appointment. The class bell had just run, and the hallways
were empty.
Except Jace was leaning against the doorway of
his English classroom, one shoulder against the jamb, his head bowed.

The principal, Mr. Murphy, was reading the election results
over the intercom.

And Carlotta knew, from the slump of
Jace's
shoulders, that he'd just heard the news that he'd lost the election.

She'd wanted to approach him, to throw her arms around his
strong back and shout that the other kids were idiots. But she knew when he
deliberately lifted his head, straightened his shoulders, and turned to enter
the classroom, that he didn't want an audience to his defeat. He was a
competitor, and he always played to win.

She'd remained silent.

And, sure enough, that afternoon, he'd been joking about his
loss, hamming it up with his friends, saying no one could bring themselves to
vote for his ugly mug. When Carlotta was fairly certain the reverse had been
true. Enough people had refused to vote for him because he already had so much.

He was easily the best-looking boy in school, captain of
three sports, and a star in the local hockey league. People had a certain
amount of envy.

"Jace," she said now, softly. "You'd be a
wonderful catch.
If you wanted to be caught."
Carlotta bit her lip. Oh, she had it bad. Even when he was ditching her, she
couldn't bear for him to be hurt.

He shrugged. "I'm doing my best to get caught." He
waved at the stack of paper on the table. "Does any of this mean anything
to you?"

"Wait." She shook her head to try to clear it.
"Let's go back to the beginning. You're the one who called Ashley to get
the antidote.
Right?"

He nodded. "Guilty."

"Why did she think you were some Army buddy of her
husband's?"

He shrugged. "I don't know who she thought I was, but I
didn't tell her my name. I didn't want her blabbing to you before I got
everything done."

Carlotta stared. "And why did you need to reverse the
love spell?"

He frowned. "I just told you. I don't believe in magic,
but I thought you might. I want this to be—real. You know, not magic."

"What should be real, Jace?" she asked very
softly.

He stepped closer and placed his hands on her shoulders.
"You and me, Carlotta."

"What does that mean, Jace?" A thread of joy was
beginning to wind through her, but she couldn't grasp it yet.

His gaze roved over her face. "I did everything I could
think of," he said slowly, "to show my love for you."

Love?
Did he say love? Her heart
began to pound. But the words that came out of her mouth had to be said.
"You think I wanted material things?"

"No, of course not.
I know
you, Carlotta. I thought what you wanted was a show of commitment." He
waved at the table. "That's what I tried to do."

"Jace, I'm still confused." What did he mean by
commitment?

"Honey."
He brushed a
hand over her hair. "Twelve years ago, I broke the trust you had in me. It
took me a long time to figure that out." His hand drifted down to massage
the back of her neck. "And when I finally did, I knew I was the only one
who could fix the problem."

She shivered. His strong hand felt so good on her. But she
couldn't let it distract her.

"But giving me things—" She lifted a hand, and let
it fall. "That's not what I wanted."

He wrapped his arms around her and pulled her closer.
"What do you want, Carlotta?"

She gathered up all her courage.
"Your
heart, Jace."
She tilted back her head and looked in his eyes.
"I wanted your heart."

There. She'd said it. He might jump on his bike and roar
away again, but at least she'd know she'd done her best.

"My heart?" he whispered. "You don't know you
already have my heart?"

"Jace."
She pressed
against him, as his arms tightened around her. "Are you sure?"

He laughed. "I've got a couple million bucks on the
line. Am I sure?"

"You don't need to spend all that money," she
whispered. "You know I could never reciprocate."

"I don't expect you to reciprocate." He caressed
her butt, while smiling down at her. "But if you wanted to—? Remember that
fantasy I mentioned?"

"You mean the apron?" She giggled. The bubbles of
joy couldn't be contained.

"Exactly."
He squeezed
her butt, and then dropped his arms. "If you want to indulge me, start
with the jeans."

Carlotta backed up, her gaze caught on his. Could she do
this? Did she dare? It was the look in his eyes, hot, and excited, that decided
her. She could never buy him a building, but maybe she could please him in
other ways.

She slid her hands under the apron and unbuttoned her jeans.
Jace sucked in a breath. She pushed the jeans down and stepped out of them.

"The panties."
His voice
was hoarse.

Carlotta caught his excitement. She wanted to increase it.
The look in his eyes made her feel sexy and powerful.

She reached under the apron again. Slowly, watching him all
the while, she pulled down her white nylon bikini panties.
Jace's
face darkened and his jaw clenched.

Carlotta's nipples buzzed. She knew Jace couldn't see her
reaction, because the apron covered her. And her shirt was a problem. The apron
looped around her neck and tied at the back. There was no way to take off her
yellow polo shirt without taking off the apron.

Jace took a step closer. "I think you need help with
your shirt."

"If you take off the apron," she said, "I
can't do your apron fantasy."

He was close enough to touch her now. "Oh, I think I
can modify the fantasy if necessary."

He leaned down and kissed the side of her neck. She felt his
lips, and then his teeth. Carlotta shuddered and leaned toward him. Jace snuck
his hand under the hem of her shirt, and roved up. He muttered a mild curse
when he reached her bra.
"Terrible invention."

Carlotta giggled and then moaned when his long fingers
feathered over her breast. He moved around to her back and unsnapped her bra
with one hand. For a moment, she froze. He'd done that many times before.

But he was now free to touch her naked breast, and he was
taking advantage of the opportunity. His rough fingers caressed her until her
back arched, and she forgot all about those other women.

"Jace," she murmured. Then she forgot what she
intended to say when his fingertips reached her nipples.

"What is it, cupcake? You want me to get rid of this
shirt?"

"Uh…" She couldn't breathe.

He lifted the shirt over her breasts, but the apron string
held the fabric bunched beneath her neck. The bra was getting tangled in
everything as well. Carlotta suddenly sucked in a breath, and laughed.
"Are you trying a bondage thing here?"

Jace pressed his face to her neck. She could feel his lips
curve in a smile. "I'd be more than happy." He lifted his head for a
moment. "In fact, now that you mention it—"

He eyed her shirt for a moment, then pulled it down, thrust
his hand inside the neck opening, and tore it halfway down the front of the
shirt.

"Jace!
What in the
world?"

He grinned. "It was your idea." He yanked the
shirt down her back, catching her arms and trapping them in the shirt. The
front of the polo stretched around her breasts, and she was effectively
trapped. One twist of his hands, and the top of the apron fell around her
waist.

"Just one more thing," Jace murmured. He gently
pulled each breast out of the shirt, so she was fully exposed. "Now that's
a nice view," he said. He bent his head, and sucked one nipple into his
warm mouth.

Carlotta moaned. She was helpless before him, unable to
touch him, or think of anything except the delicious pleasure swarming her. He
switched his mouth to the other side, and used his hands to fondle her free
nipple. Her legs buckled. "Jace," she warned. "I'm going to
fall."

He looked up. His cheeks were flushed and his eyes bright.
"Where's your bedroom?"

"Same one."

He swept her into his arms, and carried her to her old
childhood room. Since he continued to kiss and caress her nipples and any other
part of her he could reach, she had no ability to think about what was
happening.

He laid her on the bed and she wriggled, trying to move her
arms. "Let me free, Jace," she begged.

"Oh, no, I'm about to enjoy my fantasy."

He lifted the bottom part of the apron. "God,
Carlotta." She saw him swallow, and clench his hands. She could also see
the erection straining his jeans.

"Get undressed, Jace.
Let me
see you."

"In a minute."
He pushed
her legs apart, and climbed on the bed.

Carlotta moaned.

"You know this is my favorite thing to do," Jace
murmured. "You remember."

He bent his head, and began to lick her. He used his broad
shoulders to keep her legs spread. She couldn't move her upper body due to the
constricting shirt, and now her lower half was equally immobilized. Her
helplessness should have horrified her, but this was Jace. She knew him. She
knew he wouldn't stop until she climaxed.

And so, although her body bowed with tension, the innermost
part of her relaxed into the pleasure. He was as generous in his loving as in
all else.

When she finally climaxed, and he moved up on her body, she
captured his gaze. "More, Jace," she said, a smile on her lips. He
always loved to hear her say those words.

With another tear of the shirt, he released her arms, and
she wrapped them around him. His mouth opened over hers and they kissed as he
finally entered her.

A long time later, Jace leaned up on one elbow and looked
down at her. He dropped one hand down to fondle her breast. "Now," he
said, "about that apron fantasy."

She giggled. "I think we did that up pretty well."

"I enjoyed every minute of what we did." He
tweaked a nipple. "But that wasn't my fantasy."

"It wasn't?" Her breath hitched.

"Oh, no.
My fantasy involves a
spin down to the beach on my bike."

Her eyes widened.
"Now?"

He gave her a slow smile.
"With you
wearing nothing but the apron."

###

Excerpt from Love Charm for Brenna
:
"You're safe now." Joe wrapped his arms around Brenna again, and she
sank into the comfort. Why had she ever walked away from him to chase that cold
doctor?

She snuggled closer, breathing in his sexy scent once more.