Meet Your Mate (A Good Riders Romance Book 1) (21 page)

“Anna!” Carly rushed up from the
other direction. “
Ohmygosh
, I’m so sorry. Last time,
you were almost late. This time, it’s me. The traffic from school was terrible.
You look fabulous in that color. Are you ready? Was that Max going in the
opposite direction?”

Annabel laughed at the breathless
exuberance. “Relax, you have plenty of time.” She struck a model’s pose and
turned from side to side to show off her clingy new dress. “I’m glad you approve
of an outfit I picked out for myself for a change. Yes, I’m ready, and yes,
that was Max.”

Carly’s continued chatter settled
Annabel’s jitters better than a tranquilizer. The routine this time seemed
almost familiar as she waited to take her turn in front of the camera. She
marveled over how her life and feelings had altered in the two weeks since
their first on-air appearance.

She supposed due to Max’s celebrity
status and coming announcement, their “date review” was scheduled as the final
segment of the program. In the green room, she fidgeted through video reports
and live post-mortems on the other couples’ hits and misses. But almost before
Annabel knew it, she and Carly took the stage.

“So,” Tess began, grinning broadly.
“Tell us how things went with you and Max.”

Annabel wouldn’t admit she’d fallen
in love with someone who was leaving the city and didn’t love her back, but she
couldn’t pretend there’d been no attraction, either. She offered up a carefully
prepared neutral comment. “I’d say we hit it off pretty well.”

“Great! That means we’re ‘pretty’
good matchmakers, doesn’t it, Carly? Let us in on the details about the first
date, Annabel. Where did you and Max go? What did you do? And most importantly,
how did it end?”

“We had a wonderful dinner at
Ernesto’s. Afterward, we went to the symphony at Music Hall. We didn’t have
very much in common, but Max turned out to be a lot nicer than I expected.”

“Nicer?” Tess repeated on a laugh.
“You went out with Max Williams and thought he was
nice
?” She raised her
waxed eyebrow at the studio audience. “I know Max pretty well myself, and it
must have been a low blow to his ego if you thought he was just nice. Most
women think he’s great, sexy, exciting, gorgeous, or the most wonderful man
they’ve ever met.”

Annabel wanted to
thunk
the talk-show queen in the head with her imaginary
tiara. What did Tess hope to accomplish with this line of questioning? She
hadn’t grilled the other guests this way. “He’s some of those things.”

“And what about the end of the evening?
You didn’t tell us if you kissed.”

“We shared a friendly kiss.”
Annabel feared that Tess would probe past Annabel’s comfort zone if she didn’t
disclose at least that much.

“Let’s watch and see.” Tess pointed
to the monitor. “Here’s what Annabel and Max’s date looked like.”

It hurt Annabel to relive Max’s
arrival on her doorstep, to see how utterly endearing he looked over dinner and
how sweet he’d been about escorting her to Music Hall. Her cheeks burned when
the video got to their kiss! Their good-night kiss, the hot, carnal one she had
told Roger absolutely not to use, played out for all to see.

The audience loved it and so did
Tess. “You call that friendly?” she asked, and everyone laughed.

Annabel laughed along with them.
What else could she do? “Well, that’s friendlier than I remember it.”

“Let’s see how Max remembers it.
Come on out, Max.”

Annabel’s heart pounded as Max came
on stage as directed. She would carry this off with aplomb if it killed her.
She crossed her legs and adjusted the hem of her dress. She’d slept with him
the last time they’d met, sure, but no one else knew that. It wasn’t as if
she’d been assigned a scarlet letter.

Tess kissed him on the mouth, and
he pecked Carly’s cheek. Then, he kissed Annabel’s hand. The remote, formality
of the gesture left her cold, but the extra little squeeze he gave her fingers
sent heat waves zinging straight to her heart. The accompanying look he gave
her was hot enough to melt rock and bold enough to strip her naked.

He pressed a lacy bouquet of violets
into her hands, and winked a silent message that gave her more hope than she’d
had all week. “Why didn’t you call me, damn you?” she wanted to shout, but
pressed her lips together instead. They’d have time to talk privately later.
She’d make sure of it.

Tess patted the chair farthest away
from Annabel’s for Max to sit in. “Now, tell Tess all about it, Max,” she began
as if the two of them were sharing private confidences over a drink. “What did
you think of your first date with Annabel?”

“It was boring as hell.” He
directed his mega-watt smile straight at the camera. “I hate quiet dinners, I’d
never been to the symphony, and letting a guy follow me around on a date with a
camera practically guaranteed nothing steamier than hand-holding.”

Of all the nerve! The old Annabel
would have shrunk from the unfavorable review, but even with her heart nearly
breaking, the new Annabel prepared words of retaliation.

“That’s pretty harsh,” Tess
interjected, sliding Annabel a sly look. “Was the date a complete bust from
your perspective?”

“It sounds like it, doesn’t it?”

“Yes, but we saw the footage. There
were enough sparks flying between the two of you to light up the sky over the
river on Labor Day weekend.”

“There sure were,” Max drawled.
“And that’s when I realized, if we were generating that much heat on what had
to be the world’s worst date, what would happen if Annabel let her hair down?”

“Did you find out?”

“See for yourself.”

The monitor revealed another
montage of shots. Annabel and Max clinking champagne glasses. Annabel and Max
on the Harley. Max flying out of the swing and into Max’s arms. Annabel and Max
kissing in the field behind the Blue Moon. Annabel and Max entering the award
ceremony arm in arm. Annabel and Max tackling their assailant on Saturday night.

She couldn’t believe how good she
looked, how alive, how perfectly suited to Max. Whatever happened next, she had
to get a copy of this video. She’d never again let herself or anyone else
dismiss her as lackluster and boring!

Next came a shot of Max alone,
dressed in jeans and a denim shirt, relaxing in a chair behind a desk in a
cluttered office.

“Until two weeks ago, this,” the
digitally-recorded Max said, pausing to gesture around the room at the awards
and photographs, “represented the most important part in my life. I wanted
recognition for my work, the respect and the admiration of my peers, and the
financial reward I thought I deserved.” The camera followed as he moved to
stand in front of his desk. “For the past few years, Annabel Morgan was nothing
more than an annoying blip on my peripheral radar. I’d known her for years. I’m
willing to acknowledge she both intrigued and irritated me, mostly because she
found me so completely resistible. When fate and her stepdaughter threw her in
my lap, I almost threw her right back.”

Annabel’s fingernails cut into her
palms as he continued, terrified about what his words might or might not mean.

“Like most guys, I’m dumb as a
stump when it comes to women, so it took me a little while to figure it out. By
the end of our arranged date, I no longer had a choice. I couldn’t live without
her now if my life depended on it. And I think it does.” He smiled then, and
through the camera’s lens, he looked directly at her, love shining in his eyes.
“Annabel, I’ve never said this to anyone who wasn’t already related to me, but
I love you. I want to spend the rest of my life with you, showing you the
endless ways in which we’re exactly right for one another. What do you say to
that, sweetheart? Want to take a ride on the wild side with me?”

The studio audience
oohed
and
aahed
. Somewhere in the
background, Carly squealed with delight. “Yes!” she crowed, pumping her fist.
“Way to go, Max! Go for it, Anna!”

Tears stung Annabel’s eyes. Her
heart pumped hard enough to burst through her ribs. Too stunned to make much
sense of Max’s declaration, she lifted her hand to her lips, afraid she’d
misinterpreted the whole thing and would blurt out a string of nonsense.

Max
loved
her? Since when?
While the audience and Max waited in hushed silence, her mind twisted the words
inside and out looking for hidden meanings.

“Stay tuned,” Tess broke in as
Annabel continued to sit in stunned silence. “We’ll find out what Annabel
thinks after this commercial break.”

Max rushed over and dropped to his knees
beside her, his face creased into lines of concern. “Annabel? Honey? You all
right? Get her some water or something,” he said to a shadow off-stage. He
brushed her cheek with his fingertips. “I didn’t mean to put you on the spot. I
just wanted to surprise you. Annabel? Say something,
darlin
’.
I’m about to have a heart attack here.”

“But—But—What about your job?” she
managed to say. “I thought you were moving to New York.”

“If it comes to a choice, I’d
rather have you than the job. I’ll stay here or I’ll move to New York or LA or
I’ll commute if I have to. We can live anywhere that works for you.” He dug
around in his pocket and pulled out a blue velvet jeweler’s box. “I’ve even got
a ring.”

She stared from the ring box to him
and back again. “You’re saying you want to get married?”

“Whatever it takes, Anna-honey.
Whatever you want.”

Finally, finally, she dared to
believe. She thought about the proposal for about five seconds and made her
decision. “Spell it out, Max.  I want to hear you say it.”

“I love you.” He swallowed hard,
his Adam’s apple bobbing. “I want to get married.” He held onto her hands like
he was an astronaut floating in space and she was his lifeline to the mother
ship. “Will you marry me?”

She could have left him dangling,
but he looked so anxious, so serious, and so un-Max like, she didn’t have the
heart. “Yes.”

He let out a whoop before the word
was out of her mouth. He jumped up and pulled her into his arms, then he swung
her around in an embrace that left them both breathless as the audience
cheered. With the cameras rolling again, Carly and Tess joined them in a
ferocious hug that included laughter and tears and rounds of “I told you so.”

“I love you,” Max said in her ear.
“But I haven’t heard those words from you yet.”

She smiled, putting all her
feelings into the look before she spoke the words. “I love you, too.”

“Then hang on with everything
you’ve got, honey. We’re in for a wild ride.”

With that promise, he pulled her
into a scorching kiss that became the finale of
Let’s Talk
’s promotional
loop for the next decade.

Four
years later…

Two o’clock in the
afternoon, and all Annabel wanted was a nap. But, no. Shifting in the sleek
ergonomic marvel Max had insisted on buying for her, she tried to focus on
Derek, her laid-back assistant. He sprawled, stretched out, full-length on her
office sofa.

“I’ll work up the changes we’ve
talked about.” Derek’s multiple piercings, tattoos, and striped blue and black
faux-hawk might lead the uninformed to doubt the talent and dedication he
applied to their work, but Annabel knew better. “I have some ideas about
punching up that first section with
DeSean
in the
music studio. And that scene at the end, when the sunrise is coming through the
windows? Backlighting
DeSean
? The shading should be
more golden. I want the sound mixer to play with the music there some more,
too.”

“Right, we have the sound fading
away, but let’s see if there’s more impact with it coming up instead, kind of
bold and hopeful.” The documentary on the independent music scene they’d been
working on for the past year had all the earmarks of success. But the element
Annabel liked most about the project was that it had been inspired by, and
prominently featured,
DeSean
Daniels, one of her boys
from
Challenging Destiny
. Absently, she typed in a couple more notes and
saved them to their edit folder. “Can you have the changes completed by
Monday?”

He nodded. “No problem, boss. I’m
knocking off early today to get to out to
Riverbend
,
but I’ll make up the hours tomorrow or Sunday.”

With an edgy style like a long
music video with documentary content interspersed,
Making New Music
was
the first film she’d produced solely for
LuckyLady
,
the production company she’d started after leaving her apprenticeship with
Lance Foreman. She felt a lot of pressure to get it right, not all of it
self-imposed. Expectations ran high in film circles due to the Independent
Filmmakers award hanging on her wall for
Rolling Thunder
, the
documentary she’d made on motorcycle clubs while working under Lance’s
supervision. He’d taught her a lot, but she didn’t want the film community
thinking she couldn’t produce the same kind of quality product on her own.

“I’m taking off for now, too.” Too
tired to do anything more for the day, Annabel started shutting down her
computer and straightening things on her desk. “Enjoy the concert tonight.”

“Right, you have fun in Columbus
this weekend.” Derek stood up from his couch-slouch and headed out of her
office. “And tell Max thanks again for the concert tickets.”

Still sitting at her desk, trying
to summon the energy to move, she heard footsteps stop outside her door. She
looked up, expecting Derek to have returned with one final thought. But the
body filling her doorway with his trademark swagger and broad shoulders
belonged to her handsome husband.

“Hey, pretty lady, want to go for a
ride?” For the past twenty-four hours, he’d been traveling home from a grueling
two-week detail in Afghanistan. He had to be bone weary, but right now he was
looking at her like he was a starving man, she was a steak dinner, and he was
ready to eat her up.

“You’re home!” Even after three
years of marriage, she couldn’t help throwing herself at him the moment he walked
through the door. So far, he’d always been happy to catch her. This afternoon
was no exception. “I was afraid you’d be late.”

“Told you I’d be here on time.” He
wrapped his arms around her and pulled her close, ducking his head to kiss her
hello. “God, you feel good.”

The fact that their two careers had
them splitting their time between Cincinnati and New York, and Max was
frequently away on assignment, meant they weren’t always in the same place at
the same time. Whenever possible, they traveled together. Sometimes she
free-lanced for his team, sometimes he free-lanced for hers.

After she had completed her
internship with Lance Foreman, she and Max had gotten married at a small
ceremony at The Conservatory, with just family and close friends. Annabel had
sold the house she and Carly had lived in, buying a three-story warehouse near
downtown with Max.

They’d renovated the entire first
floor into an office, studio and editing rooms for
LuckyLady
Productions. Their living quarters took up the second floor, making it easy for
her to work whenever she needed to.

A darling efficiency apartment made
up the third floor for Carly. Her hectic college schedule didn’t allow her much
time to visit, but when she did, she knew she always had a place to call home.

So far, the arrangement had worked
out well, but Annabel could see more changes in their future. They’d have to
find a way to add a nursery to the second level sometime soon, and maybe, look
for a bigger apartment in New York

“But sometimes you run late.” Gripping
his shoulders, she jumped up and wrapped her legs around his waist.

“Not when I can help it.” He linked
his arms around her hips to hold her in place and kiss her again. Longer this
time. With more tongue. “And not when we’ve got something this important to
attend. It’s not every day Carly graduates from OU at the top of her class.”

“Pre-med, no less. She’s one smart
girl.” She kissed him back and pointed up the stairs. “To the bedroom.”

“Good idea.” He smiled, turning to
let her kill the lights on the studio level. “That’s where I was headed.”

“Because my suitcase is there?”

“Because I haven’t seen you for ten
days, and I want you so much even my eyeballs hurt.” He nuzzled her neck, and
she melted a little. “We don’t have to leave this minute, do we?”

She laid her head on his shoulder
and reveled in the pleasure of having him carry her up the stairs. “We do if we
want to get there in time for the reception and dinner with Carly and her
friends.”

“Are you sure you aren’t too tired
to drive to Columbus tonight?”

“You’ll be driving.” She stifled a
yawn. “I’ll be sleeping most of the way.”

He grazed his fingertips across her
tummy. “Wouldn’t you and the Peanut rather go to Columbus in the morning?”

She sniffed. “The Peanut and I
don’t want to get up that early.”

By now, he’d reached the landing to
their upstairs residence. Before opening the door, he nibbled his favorite spot
in the crook of her neck, sending little goose bumps spiraling. “How have you
been feeling?”

“Super, most of the time. Morning
sickness only strikes occasionally, when it’s least convenient for me.” She
pulled back to look at him. “Don’t let the word morning fool you into thinking
it can’t occur any time. I’m hoping it won’t hit during Carly’s graduation
ceremony tomorrow.”

Just then, Carly’s ringtone,
“Matchmaker, Matchmaker,” erupted from the phone in Max’s back pocket.
“Speaking of our graduate, can you reach around and get that?”

“Would you rather let it go to
voicemail and call her back when we get on the road?”

“She’s texted me twice already,
worried I’d get stuck in New York due to all the storms on the coast. We should
let her know I’m here.”

As always, Annabel was touched at
how sweet he was about Carly’s place in their lives. Annabel knew it was partly
because he genuinely liked her stepdaughter, but he’d admitted more than once
that the girl would always have a special place in his heart for getting the
two of them together.

Smiling, she pulled the phone from
his pocket, slid her finger across the screen and punched an icon. “Hey, Carly.
I answered Max’s phone. You’re on speaker, so you’ve got us both.”

“Great! Max made it home all
right?”

“Right on time,” Annabel told her.
“We’re packing up and getting ready to leave in a few minutes.”

He wasn’t even breathing hard by
the time he shouldered his way into their bedroom. It was bright and sunny and
the bed looked soft and inviting. He laid her down amid a stack of pillows in
the center of the billowy duvet. Keeping his gaze firmly fixed on Annabel, he
pulled his t-shirt over his head, revealing the sculpted expanse that still
managed to take her breath away. “I know we’ve got the big bash Anna’s throwing
you tomorrow, but what’s the schedule for tonight, kiddo?”

“Schmoozing over cocktails with the
faculty at six. Dinner at seven.”

Max stretched out next to Annabel
on the bed, lifted her shirttail, and rubbed his palm over her mostly
non-existent baby bump. “Is cocktail hour mandatory?”

“No, but you should allow extra
time for traffic. There are so many visitors in town for commencement weekend,
it’s a zoo here.”

“I can manage the traffic, but I’m
a little concerned about Annabel.”

“Concerned? Why? What’s the
matter?”

“I’m fine,” Annabel interjected,
punching Max’s arm for worrying Carly.

Max’s voice rode right over her.
“She looks tired. I don’t think she got enough rest while I was gone.”

“My guess is she worked non-stop
all week to get her editing finished before you got home and had to drive here
for the weekend.”

“She probably did!” Max nibbled on
Annabel’s ear.

“I did not!” Just to pay him back
for distracting her, she tweaked his nipple. He liked it, so she tweaked the
other one.

“Anna, it’s vitally important for
you to get plenty of rest during your first trimester.” Carly didn’t start
medical school until the fall, but anyone listening to her would think she was
already a trained professional. “Didn’t you read the pregnancy materials I sent
you?”

She bit her lip as Max unbuttoned
her shirt and admired the new fullness of her breasts. He traced the soft flesh
above her bra with his tongue. “Yes, Dr. Bossy, I did read them.”

“She should rest now, Max, before
you hit the road.”

Max looked up at Annabel and
winked. “You really think so?”

“I do,” Carly confirmed. “I’ll see
you tonight whenever you get here.”

“We’ll be there in plenty of time
for dinner,” he assured her. “But we might miss the cocktail hour.”

“That’s all right,” Carly said.
“Annabel needs her rest more than she needs to stand around drinking tonic
water with a bunch of stuffed shirts.”

Kissing his way down Annabel’s stomach
he paused to say, “Thanks for understanding. We’ll see you later, kiddo.”

“Love you, guys. Bye!

“Love you, too, sweetie.” Annabel
disconnected the call and tossed the phone toward the bedside table. “That was
bad. You shouldn’t have done that.”

“Bought us some time, though,
didn’t it?” He unzipped her jeans and slipped his hand inside her panties,
finding her wet and ready for him. “You heard what Carly said. You have to
rest.”

She returned the favor, unzipping
him and cupping his hard heat. “Somehow, I don’t find this a bit restful.”

“You will,” he predicted, tossing
her jeans aside. “You’ll be longing for a nap after I’ve loved every inch of
you.”

“Will you stay with me while I
rest?” she asked, thinking he needed sleep more than she did.

“You can count on it.” He settled
between her thighs, kissing her long and hard. “Always.”