Some Like It Hot (20 page)

Sydney’s eyes widened. “Why?” she asked on a breathless sigh.

Again he decided to tell her the truth. “Because I’d made up in my mind that you were the woman I wanted.”

Sydney shook her head. “If it’s true that there was more than the obvious attraction between us, why didn’t you say anything to let me know you were interested?”

He met her gaze. “Because I’d overheard Linc mention to Ayanna that the reason you showed up in D.C. unexpectedly that weekend was because of an argument you’d had with your boyfriend. For all I knew, once you returned to Memphis, the two of you worked things out and got back together.”

“We didn’t,” she said quickly.

He continued holding her gaze. “Yes, I know. I asked Linc about you a few months later, and although I tried asking in the way of small talk, I think he picked up on the fact that I may have been interested in you.” He smiled wryly. “So, I believe out of pity, every time he’d come into Leo’s he would tell me some tidbit or two about you and how you were doing.”

Sydney nodded, meeting his warm gaze. “Why didn’t you make an attempt to talk to me six months later, at the rehearsal dinner?”

“Because I still wasn’t sure if you and that guy would get back together,” he said quietly. “According to Linc, the two of you had dated for over a year, and that’s a lot of history.”

And a lot of selfishness on Rafe’s part, she thought. She had finally seen just how inconsiderate he’d been to her. “There’s no way Rafe and I can get back together,” she said firmly.

Tyrone’s deep voice filled her senses. “Although I pity the guy, I’m glad he’s out of the picture.”

Sydney was stunned by the seriousness in his voice and marveled at the thought that he felt that way. But a part of her needed to know the reason. Her throat tightened with emotion when she asked, “Why?”

He took her hand and folded it gently into his. “Because nothing has changed. I still want you.”

“Oh.” She was speechless. She and Tyrone barely knew each other and they definitely weren’t in love. Yet from the first, something monumental and totally unexpected had taken place between them. Seemingly they had been drawn together by something irresistible that went beyond common sense…at least her own.

“I really don’t know what to say, Tyrone,” she said softly. Even now she couldn’t take her eyes away from his.

He reached up and skimmed his thumb against the softness of her cheek. “You don’t have to say anything. Just consider it a ‘tell me where you’re coming from’ night. And because I want you as much as I do, I won’t take advantage of the situation. We’ve waited over a year to finally put these desires out there on the table, and I think that we’d be doing each other a disservice if we rushed into anything because of overloaded hormones.”

He smiled warmly. “You never seemed to be the kind of woman who did anything without first thinking it through.”

Sydney nodded. Her family had often accused her of analyzing things to death. Yet when it came to Tyrone Hardcastle, she felt wildly impulsive.

“If we ever decide to take things further, I want to know without any doubt that you understand what the relationship will be and also what it won’t be.”

She raised a confused brow. “Which is?”

His hold on her hand tightened. “What it will be is sharing mindless passion by two people who are irresistibly attracted to each other. And what it won’t be is a prelude to love or to a commitment. I’m not interested in either.”

Sydney understood what he was saying. She couldn’t remember how many men she had walked away from who’d offered her the same thing. It wasn’t in her makeup to accept so little out of a relationship, but Tyrone was making her rethink that position. Even now, she felt her resistance to his offer melt away.

She was too confused to give him an answer about anything tonight. “You’re right. I need time to think about all of this, Tyrone.”

He smiled into her eyes. “Take all the time you need, and if you feel you can’t handle the type of relationship I’m offering, then I understand.”

She nodded. His tone was sincere, and she knew he meant what he said. Whatever they shared would be physical and not emotional. The big question of the hour was whether she could handle that sort of relationship with him. It seemed so detached. But then, she’d been in what she’d considered an
attached
relationship with Rafe, and look where it had gotten her.

“Can I leave you with something else to think about, Sydney?”

Tyrone’s deep, sexy voice pulled her back in and she gazed into his eyes. Her heart began pounding furiously when she saw the deep desire in his gaze. “Yes,” she said softly, and wondered why in heaven’s name she was playing with fire.

He smiled and leaned down closer to her, and her mind suddenly cleared of everything except him. She opened her mouth under his, and again he took the time to kiss her. The intensity of his desire for her was still evident in the way he was kissing her, and she couldn’t do anything but return the passion that seemed to be uniquely his.

Moments later, he slowly lifted his head to end their kiss and stared down at her. A frown knotted his forehead, and for a minute she wondered if he were as confused about what was taking place between them as she was.

He took a step back and got his coat off the chair that he’d thrown it across earlier. “What are you doing tomorrow?” he asked, in deep thought about something.

She shrugged, trying to regain the senses that his kiss had knocked right out of her. “I hadn’t planned on doing anything special. Why?”

“Tomorrow is one of my free days, and I thought the two of us could spend some time together, starting with lunch. And if you’re free tomorrow night, we could go to dinner, then attend a play afterward.”

She didn’t say anything for a while. It had been a long time since she’d allowed a man to monopolize her time. She also made a quick decision about lunch and dinner. “And I’d enjoy spending time with you tomorrow.”

He smiled. “Good. I’ll be by to pick you up at noon.”

She nodded. “All right.”

He then took a step toward her, leaned down, and placed another kiss on her lips, taking his tongue and tracing the sweet seam of her mouth, reveling in her taste as if he needed the memory until he saw her again. “I’d better go while I still have the good mind to do so,” he said huskily, finally pulling away.

He turned to leave. Before reaching the door, he turned around again, and after taking a long, hard look at her, he opened it and walked out.

“The food here is wonderful, Tyrone. Thanks for bringing me,” Sydney said after taking the last sip of her iced tea. He had picked her up exactly at noon and had taken her to a restaurant near Times Square. She couldn’t help but admire how he had braved the New York traffic to reach their destination.

“I’m glad you liked it. The Monetts have owned this restaurant for years. This place was a favorite of mine when I was a student at Juilliard.”

Sydney nodded. Over lunch he told her about the years he had lived in New York while attending college, and the many friends he’d made. He also told her about his older brother Noah, his twin Tyrell, and his female cousin Ayanna. He described enthusiastically their decision a few years back to open a supper club in D.C. and name it after his father, Leo, a man the four of them admired and deeply respected, who had encouraged them to fulfill their dreams from the time they were still in diapers.

Tyrone checked his watch and said, “Do you need to return to your place and check on Denzel?”

Sydney smiled and shook her head. “No, he’ll be fine until we go back and change for dinner.” At first she’d been surprised when Tyrone had arrived with a garment bag, then realized it made perfect sense for him to use one of Donna’s guest bedrooms to change for dinner instead of driving all the way back to his hotel.

“Do you want to walk off lunch?”

Tyrone’s question interrupted her thoughts. “Sure, why not?”

Upon leaving the restaurant, he took her hand and desire flooded her insides. She was completely astonished that she could feel the heat of him through the leather gloves she wore, and from the way he was looking at her, she knew he was astonished, too. Instead of releasing her hand, he tightened his hold.

Then he smiled down at her and that gesture sent even more heat shooting through her body. Together they started walking, quickly merging with the pedestrian traffic at a pace a lot more hurried than their own.

The first place they decided to go was to Macy’s, where Tyrone wanted to purchase another dress shirt. She sat on a sofa in a men’s designer clothes department and watched the salesman help Tyrone with his selection, thinking of how easily she got aroused just from looking at him.

She let out a frustrating sigh. This arousal thing was completely new to her. Rafe could turn her on, true enough, but only when that was his intent. With Tyrone, he was able to get her hot and bothered without even trying.

Sydney sucked in a quick breath as she watched Tyrone remove his pullover sweater so the salesman could take measurements of his chest. Her hands suddenly began itching. She wanted to walk over to him, touch his muscular shoulders, and bury her face in his chest to inhale his scent.

He pulled his sweater back over his head and then, as if sensing her gaze on him, he glanced over in her direction, then stopped what he was doing. Evidently he read something in her eyes, because he stood there staring at her as if glued to the spot.

Sydney’s heart began racing. Tyrone was the only man who’d ever looked at her like she was something he just had to have. That thought was so delicious, she felt her erect nipples straining against her blouse. The tips were so sensitive it was as if she wasn’t even wearing a bra. And then there was the monumental heat settling between her legs.

She took a deep breath and continued to hold his gaze as the vibration of heated desire flowed across the room and enveloped them. Only when the salesman reclaimed his attention did Tyrone break the connection. Sydney took another deep breath, trying to regain control.

Moments later Tyrone appeared before her with a Macy’s bag in his hand. They stood, not saying anything, since there was really nothing to be said, as they waited for an elevator. The doors opened and they stepped inside. They were alone. The moment the door closed, without wasting any time, Tyrone reached out for her. She went willingly into his arms, needing the feel and the taste of him.

His mouth met hers, mating his tongue with her own, feeding her desire, then reached beneath her coat and touched her backside, pulling her closer to him.

They were interrupted by an electronic peep, reminding them to press a button for their floor, which they ignored. “I couldn’t wait,” he whispered against her lips.

“And I didn’t want you to wait,” she responded honestly. She dropped her head to his chest to inhale his scent.

When the elevator began descending, she lifted her head and met his gaze, a question in her eyes she couldn’t bring herself to ask. From the way he was looking at her, she could tell he knew what that question was.

He tightened his hold around her waist and they stepped back when the elevator stopped to let others on. As soon as they reached the main floor and stepped out of the car he pulled her close to him. Her mouth went suddenly dry, scorched by the look in his eyes. He reached out and touched her cheek, caressing it lightly, and chills of pleasure coursed throughout her body.

“The answer is yes, and if you want what I believe you’re asking for, then come with me, Sydney,” he said in the sexiest voice she’d ever heard. “Come with me to my hotel room.”

Tyrone pulled his card key from his coat pocket as they entered the lobby of the Hyatt Regency Hotel, knowing that once he stepped inside his room with Sydney, things for him wouldn’t be the same. He had a strong feeling that she was the type of woman who would leave a mark on him, and that was dangerous. No woman had ever branded him, but he knew without a doubt that Sydney would. Even knowing that, he still wanted to make love to her so much it was almost painful. He glanced down at her, wondering if they were still of the same mind. She hadn’t said much after they’d left Macy’s, or while they had walked holding hands to his car.

She hadn’t said anything on the drive over, either. Neither of them had. He’d been too afraid that if he had spoken, whatever spell they were caught up in would shatter and she would change her mind. He didn’t know how he could handle it if she did. But still, he wanted to be fair to her. Only last night he’d told her he was willing to take things slow, that he didn’t want her to feel rushed. When they reached the elevator to his room, he stopped and turned to her.

“Are you sure about this, Sydney?” he asked softly. “If you prefer, we can go someplace else, take in a movie or something.”

She met his gaze, squelching the urge to tell him that the only thing she wanted to take in was him, that she had a passionate need to feel him inside of her, that she wanted to reach the highest peak of sexual fulfillment with him. While in New York she wanted to forget that she was the type of woman who needed love and commitment from a relationship. The only thing she wanted—what she felt she had to have—was to make love with Tyrone Hardcastle.

Deep down she wasn’t surprised. The attraction between them had always been too potent for things to end otherwise. It would be their secret, and no matter what, she would always have her memories of the intimacy they would share.

“Yes, I’m sure,” she finally answered.

He nodded with relief upon hearing her response and punched the elevator button. This time they were not alone, and in a way they were glad. The need to keep their hands off each other only added to their excitement.

When the elevator came to a stop on the twelfth floor, he again held her eyes to make sure she hadn’t changed her mind. To show him that she hadn’t, she quickly stepped out of the elevator. They walked in silence, holding hands, down the carpeted hall toward his room. Words weren’t needed. They both knew what they wanted and what they intended to get there.

When they reached his room at the very end of the hall, he leaned his shoulder against the door and took in all of her. Before him stood the most beautiful woman he had ever seen, clutching his Macy’s bag in front of her like it was the only defense she had against this irresistible attraction they had for each other.

He cleared his throat and asked gently. “Are you okay?”

She quickly nodded. “Yes, but I think I’ll be a lot better once I’m with you inside this room.”

She watched him take a deep breath as his eyes darkened. Without hesitating any longer, he inserted the card key into its slot, turned the knob, and opened the door, then stepped aside for her to enter. She did so, knowing from this moment on her life was about to change.