That First Kiss (17 page)

             
Piper’s brows pinched together as his words sunk in. She watched as Tom transferred the batter into tiny square molds and slid them into the oven. “So you thought that because I hired you, you would be treated…less?” she surmised.

             
Tom sighed, folding his arms across his chest as he turned to face her. “Honestly? Yes.”

             
“Why,” she breathed, feeling like she had done something wrong even though, logically, she knew she hadn’t. She dropped her spoon back into the bowl, her appetite gone.

             
“Because people don’t usually treat the help like guests,” he said stiffly. Stepping over to the refrigerator, Tom yanked out several cartons of strawberries and tossed them on the counter. Piper watched, dumbfounded, as he began chopping them up. His movements were sharp, forceful, heightening Piper’s discomfort.

             
“But you
are
guests,” she implored. “I asked you to come here.”

             
“You
hired
me to come here. Big difference.”

             
“Okay, I hired you to come here. But I don’t see why that should make any difference.” Maybe she was being stupid, but she just didn’t get what the big deal was.

             
Tom placed the knife down and looked at her. “It makes a difference because…
shit
. Just never mind. Forget I said anything, alright?” The smile he turned on her was soft and pleading.

             
“Okay,” Piper relented, feeling awkward. She wanted to understand what had just happened here, to know what was bothering him, but it was obvious that Tom didn’t want to talk about it. She decided to let it go. She was much more comfortable with the guy who smiled and teased anyway.

             
Piper kept him company while Tom set to work making trays of chocolate covered strawberries. All around them, the kitchen was alive with activity. Tom had brought at least a dozen team members with him and she could tell they were hard workers by the way they flitted around the room, working feverishly to get things ready for the following day. Today they had the kitchen to themselves, but soon they would be sharing the space with the hotel’s kitchen staff, so they had to make good use of the space while they could.

Piper wished that she could have secured
exclusive access to the kitchen for Tom, but the hotel didn’t normally allow outside workers to set up there. After a lot of pleading and name dropping, Lynn had managed to get them to agree on splitting the work stations for that one evening and a few hours at the beginning and end of the day, but just barely. The woman really was a life saver.

             
Piper had no idea when she first visited Tom at his place of business that he had so many employees. She had only met a couple of them, but she assumed that he had to be a fairly successful businessman to have been able to bring so many on the trip and still keep things operating smoothly back in Chicago.

             
The kid who had served them when she met with Tom for lunch appeared. “Hey, Tom,” he greeted shyly. “Could you give me a hand real quick? I’m having trouble getting the meringue to firm up.”

             
Tom wiped his hands on a towel. “Sure thing.” To her he said, “I’ll be right back.”

             
As if noticing her presence for the first time, the boy tipped his head in a quick hello. Piper wiggled her fingers in acknowledgement.

             
She sat alone for several minutes, swinging her legs and looking around the kitchen to pass the time, before Tom finally returned. “Sorry about that.”

             
“Not a problem,” she said, waving away his apology. “Did you fix your meringue problem?”

             
“Indeed I did. Meringue can be tricky for the newbies. Jack is my apprentice,” he explained. “I’m trying to show him the ropes, hone his skills and all that. He’ll make a good chef one day.”

             
“Oh.” Piper nodded, feigning interest. To be honest, she was still a little bothered by his earlier mood. She knew she was dwelling on it and told herself for the hundredth time to let it go, but that was easier said than done. She never liked knowing someone was upset with her, but she found the idea of Tom being upset with her even more troubling. “So, how long have you known you wanted to be a chef?” she asked, hoping to dispel some of the tension and get her thoughts moving in a different direction.

             
Tom snorted, seemingly amused by her question. “Since I could walk upright or so my mother would have you think.”

             
“So you’ve always known?” For some reason, his answer surprised her. She hadn’t known what she wanted to be until she was nineteen, and even still she questioned it. Although at the ripe age of twenty-nine, she hardly expected to become an archeologist at this point. Somewhere along the way, she had settled into a groove of dead-end jobs and bad credit, preventing her from seeing past the next day let alone years down the line. And that was fine. It seemed that she had managed to find a job that at least paid decent wages, even if she had to live with working for a member of the Hitler regime. Hopefully, it would stick. She really didn’t have a desire to start all over again.

             
“Yes, I’ve always known,” Tom said, calling back her attention. “Once my mom and grandmother found out what I wanted to do, they taught me how to cook. By twelve you couldn’t keep me out of the kitchen. I experimented with all kind of foods, and I may have poisoned my dad once, but I discovered some pretty great recipes along the way.”

             
“I bet you were popular with all the girls,” Piper teased. She could just imagine Tom carrying a tray of brownies, or his delicious little strawberries, into class and how many girls would have flocked to get a taste of what he was offering. She was jealous just thinking about it.

             
“Um, no.” Tom laughed to himself. “I ate as much as I cooked, so saying I was a bit of a porker back then would be an understatement. I think it’s safe to say that no girls were looking at me.”

             
“You’re kidding!” Piper gave him a once over. “But look at you. You’re gorgeous! No girl in their right mind would pass you over.”

             
Tom smiled, pleased with her overzealous assessment. “Are you saying you’re not in your right mind?”

             
Piper’s eyes rolled to the ceiling. “If you’re only just coming to that realization, then clearly you aren’t either.”

             
Tom stood there, shaking his head as he dipped and drizzled the strawberries with different colors of chocolate until they looked like something that should be on the cover of a magazine. “I like you, Piper,” he confessed. “I have fun when I’m with you.”

             
Piper beamed. “I’m glad.”

             
“Strawberry?” Tom presented the plump fruit, not really giving her a choice in the matter. Not that she would have turned him down.

             
“Please, but if I get fat, I’m blaming you.”

Tom winked at her. “Even fat, I bet you’d still be a knockout.”

Piper’s belly fluttered. She leaned in, holding his gaze as she sunk her teeth in. Tom’s eyes glazed over. Piper chewed slowly, her blood rushing in her ears as Tom drew closer. She swallowed when he placed the berry down on the counter. Time seemed to stand still as he lifted his hand to tuck a strand of hair that had escaped her ponytail behind her ear.

             
“Good?” he asked, letting his fingers slide down her cheek and cup her jaw.

             
Piper nodded, unable to speak with him so close, the heat of his skin seeping into her. Her body trembled in anticipation as he brought his face closer to hers, giving her time to pull away, to stop him. At that moment, that was the last thing she wanted to do.

             
“I swear, this place is like a maze,” Tate’s voice boomed, coming out of nowhere and reverberating off the expanse of stainless steel appliances.

             
Piper jerked back, her head swiveling around to locate him. Her heart raced double time and an inexplicable sense of guilt washed over her at the thought that he might have seen her in such a compromising position. It would not look good for her to be fraternizing with the help she told herself, ignoring the little voice inside that told her she was wasn’t being completely truthful. That she just didn’t want Tate to see her with anyone else.

Tom’s steady gaze lingered on her a moment longer. Piper cleared her throat and fumbled with her hands. Seeing
her discomfort as Tate approached, Tom backed off, returning to finish the strawberries. She hated the crestfallen look that crossed his face, but it couldn’t be helped. She vowed to make it up to him later.

“There you are,” Tate said as he came to
stand by her side. “Mr. Revano,” he said curtly, barely sparing a glance at Tom, who grudgingly nodded in his general direction. The tension between the two was so thick; it could be cut with a knife. “How’s the food coming along?”

“It’s coming along great,” Tom
returned, the politeness in his voice belying the hard look in his eyes. “Everything should be ready to go for tomorrow.”

“Good to hear. Piper,” Tate said
shortly, turning his attention back on her. “If you’re done here, there’s work that needs to be done.”

“Right. Okay.” Tate offered her his hand as she slid her feet to the floor. “See you tomorrow, Tom?” she asked.

“Sure, tomorrow,” he muttered, not even bothering to look at her. Piper frowned, unwilling to admit that her feelings were kind of hurt. Placing his hand on the small of her back, Tate guided her out of the kitchen.

“Wow,
what an asshole,” Tate commented a little too loudly just before they pushed through the doors. Piper had no doubt that Tom had heard him. “It’s a good thing you aren’t interested in him for more than his culinary skills.”

21

“What was that about?” Piper
hissed as she followed Tate down the long and winding hallways leading toward the elevators. “And where are we going? I thought we had ‘work’ to do.” She glanced behind them to the room reserved for tomorrow’s conference. The doors stood wide open and she could hear the sounds of people moving around inside. Honestly, what was he up to?

             
Tate jammed the button and the elevator doors slid open almost immediately. “That’s what I said.” She stepped inside the car, completely suspicious of his motives now that she was alone with him. It hadn’t escaped her notice that he kept conveniently showing up whenever she was with Tom. He was up to something, but what?

             
“So…” Piper dragged the word out, waiting for him to explain himself further.

             
“What?”

             
“What do you mean what?” Piper asked, growing frustrated. “You told me we had work to do, but it’s pretty obvious that there is something else going on here. So, what’s on your mind? And don’t say work, because it’s obvious that is not what you dragged me away for.”

             
Tate rounded on her, crowding her against the back wall where he towered over her. “One, I didn’t drag you anywhere. You came willingly. Two, I wasn’t lying when I said there’s work to do.” He took a step back, his rolling his shoulders back as he worked to compose himself. “Look, you were right. I did have another reason for dragging you away.”

             
“Aha!” Piper jumped on her heels, pointing a triumphant finger at him. “So you admit that you dragged me.”

             
Tate smirked. “Honestly, you make me sound like some sort of caveman. Had that been the case, you would be unconscious and completely at my mercy right now. And trust me,” he said, his voice growing husky as the words fell off his tongue and he stepped forward, closing the distance between them. “I can think of so many things to do to you, and you wouldn’t be complaining about any of them.”

             
As close as he was now, Piper had to tilt her head back to meet his eyes. The fire she found in them made her body tingle, and she swallowed thickly, wanting to step into his arms and lose herself in his sensual promise. “I doubt that,” she murmured, not wanting him to know how much his words were affecting her. The nearness of their bodies crackled with energy and Piper couldn’t stop from calling up the mental pictures of Tate driving into her from behind. When he talked to her like that, when he looked at her as if he could devour her, she was powerless to resist him. She hated the effect he had on her, but she loved it too.

             
Tate’s eyes dilated and she felt a jolt of electricity pass between them when he reached out to grasp her hips. He pulled her up against him, forcing her hands up to his chest to brace her as she crashed into him. “You doubt me?”

             
Already beginning to lose herself in his ocean blue eyes, Piper managed a weak response. “Can’t doubt what I already know.”

             
The fierce look of possessiveness Tate unleashed on her made Piper’s knees tremble. Desire consumed her and before she knew what he was doing, before she could even consider stopping him, Tate’s mouth crashed down on hers.

             
Threading his fingers through her hair, Tate grabbed fistfuls of it in both hands as he plundered her mouth, robbing her of all breath as he licked at her lips and sucked on her tongue. Piper moaned loudly, the breath rushing out of her as he slammed her back against the wall, pressing his hard lines into her soft curves as he groped every last inch of her body.

             
Pushing his knee between hers, Tate forced his way closer, completely obliterating her personal space. Still gripping her hair in one hand, he released the other to let it wander lower. Skimming down her neck, he followed the path of his fingertips with his lips, stopping to nip and suckle her pulse point until she was gasping for air. When his hand came to rest over her right breast, he lifted his head to look into her eyes.

             
“You’re so hot, baby,” he whispered, massaging the turgid peak. Piper whimpered, her hands clenching the material of his shirt and pulling him closer. She couldn’t seem to get close enough. “So damn sexy.” He pinched her nipple through the soft cotton and Piper sucked in a gulp of air, desperate for more of his touch. “Tell me you want me,” he commanded, dipping his head again to run his tongue along her collarbone.

             
Despite her compromised state of mind, Piper knew that she couldn’t give in. She couldn’t tell him what he wanted, because that would give him far more power over her than he already had. And he did have power over her; she would be the last to deny that. Every time he looked at her, she melted. Every time he touched her, she exploded. Tate might have total command over her body, but she would never let him command her heart.

             
“Piper,” Tate murmured against her skin as he travelled lower. His mouth left a wet trail as he closed in on her breasts. His hand slipped further down her body, finding the hem of her shirt and lifting it to slip underneath.

She knew she should stop him now. Some part of her reminded her that this was neither the time nor the place, but another part of her, one she wasn’t too familiar with but was suddenly eager to get better acquainted, wanted this. It fed on the excitement that came with
the danger of getting caught. She just couldn’t help herself.

             
Allowing Tate to touch and taste freely made Piper’s head spin. She was dizzy from arousal and already so close to the edge that it was unreal.

             
Tate’s fingers teased the top of her pants, his knuckles gliding back and forth, the rough skin gently abrading her stomach. Her muscles clenched and Piper bit back another moan as she anticipated having his fingers touching her where she needed them most. But he held back, refusing to satisfy her craving for more.

             
“I hate these fucking pants,” he growled, toying with the button closure. “Why won’t you wear skirts anymore?”

             
“Because you want me to,” Piper returned breathlessly. In her foggy, sex addled mind, Piper knew that was because she liked to challenge Tate. She would never just give into him, even though that was exactly what she wanted to do.

             
“Tease,” he accused dipping down lower and biting one hardened nipple through the cotton covering it. Piper gasped, the sudden sting of pain only serving to heighten her pleasure. “You don’t like making things easy, do you?”

             
“Not when it comes to you.” Piper’s head rolled back and forth, her need growing almost unbearable as he manipulated her body, coaxing forth an almost overwhelming response that she wasn’t aware she was capable of. Standing there in the middle of a moving elevator, one that was probably equipped with cameras, Piper was a knot of frenetic energy, dangerously close to combustion. “Tate,” she mewed, clasping the back of his head to draw his retreating mouth back to her breast, her mouth. She didn’t care which; she just wanted it on her.

             
“Piper,” Tate said slyly, his eyes sparkling with deviltry. He dipped his hand between her legs and massaged her clit through the thick jean material. Piper quivered, just as she always did when he touched her. He was playing with her now, driving her to tell him what he wanted to hear, and it was working. “Say it, baby. Say it and I’ll give you what you want. What we both want. I’ll fuck you up against this wall where everyone can see,” he growled, reminding her of the precarious situation they were in.  

             
She wanted to say yes. She
needed
to say yes, but just as she opened her mouth to speak, the elevator began to slow its assent. Popping her eyes open, Piper glanced over Tate’s shoulder to the lighted panel. They were two floors away from their destination but the elevator was definitely stopping. Realization dawned. Someone was about to board the elevator.

             
“Tate,” Piper squeaked, panic grabbing her. She pushed against his chest, getting nowhere. Tate surrounded her, refusing to back off. Piper’s heart crashed in her ears as the elevator came to a smooth stop.

Jerking her head to the side, Tate allowed her to brush his hands away, but remained inappropriately and uncomfortably close as he braced himself against the wall, his powerful arms hemming her in. Short of kneeing him in the sack, there was nothing she could do now. Time had run out.

              Smoothing her hair and righting her clothing as best she could, Piper forced herself to look calm, though her insides were performing a full on gymnastics routine.

             
The doors slid open and in stepped a middle-aged couple. The woman had long, flowing black hair reaching down to the middle of her back and rich, deep-set green eyes. The man who entered behind her was tall with salt and pepper hair and a matching mustache. Quickly sizing up the situation, they smiled softly, a hint of knowing humor crossing their expressive faces. Piper smiled back sheepishly and dropped her eyes to Tate’s chest, wishing that he would just back the hell off already. Instead, he remained a solid wall of masculinity shielding her from prying eyes.

             
For a moment, Piper was grateful that she had him to block the couple’s view of her. She could tell they had their suspicions about what they had interrupted, but as she let her gaze fall to the pronounced bulge in his pants, she knew that if Tate stepped back to give them a full on view, any doubt they might have would be instantly washed away.

Embarrassed at the situation, Piper glared up at Tate. How did he do this to her? How did he always manage to turn her mind into mush?

              His answering smirk only served to pique her anger. Letting her mean streak take over, Piper pinched him in the side, causing Tate to jump slightly. The couple behind him glanced back curiously.

             
Not one to let things go, Tate’s eyes narrowed, letting her know that he was up to something. Before she could figure out what that was and defend against it, Tate jabbed her in the side, hitting her where she was most ticklish.

             
Piper leaped sideways, her back crashing into the wall with a heavy thud. She was grinning, her silent laughter screaming in her ears.
Game on
.  

             
Her arm shot out, her fingers digging in under his arm. Tate squirmed, trying to disengage, but she followed his every move until he grabbed her hand in his fist and forced it back to her side, holding it firmly in place.

His eyes were dancing with laughter, and when he lunged at her, burying his face in her neck, she was completely unprepared. His assault consisted of teeth and t
ongue, setting off her ticklishness like nothing else. Piper exploded into a fit of giggles, crushing her head against the side of his as she tried to still his assault. They were so absorbed in their playing, they didn’t even notice when the elevator slowed to a standstill.

             
Someone cleared their throat. “Excuse me,” the man said. “Is this your stop?”

             
Tate pulled away to address him. His face was red from exertion and his eyes looked slightly glazed as he made a quick assessment and found them to indeed be on their floor. “Yes it is,” he responded. “Thank you.” Grabbing ahold of Piper’s hand, he tugged her along behind him.

             
“Have a good evening,” the woman told her as she stepped off onto their floor.

             
Piper blushed furiously seeing the amusement shining in the woman’s eyes. “Um, thanks. You too.”

             
“Which one is yours?” Tate questioned, hauling her down the long corridor.

             
“Third door on the left.” Piper had to jog to keep up with him. When they reached her room, she dug her key card from her back pocket and Tate promptly snatched it from her fingers.

             
The moment Tate slid the key card and the green light appeared, he swung open the door and shoved her inside, kicking it closed behind them. Piper backed up as he advanced on her, driving her deeper into the room.