Change of Heart (The Flanagan Sisters, #2) (16 page)

Pushing him onto his back, she straddled him, feeling his hardness pushing against his underwear. She would get to that.

Like him, she began her slow journey down his neck, over his chest and to his crotch.

“Carly, you’re killing me,” he groaned.

She grinned, smug excitement flooding through her. She peeled off his underwear and took him in her mouth. His hips bucked. “Holy shit.”

A heady rush of power swept through her as she tasted him and his breath hissed out. “I’m not going last if you keep that up.” He passed her a condom, and after a moment’s awkwardness, she sheathed him. Her eyes on his, she slowly slid onto him. He moaned as he entered her. She took a moment to get used to him and then she began to slowly move. She kissed his chest as the sensations began to build again. She was in charge and he wanted her. The tension built and she embraced it, loving the way her body was responding to him. When they came together, she’d never felt so powerful.

***

C
arly’s breathing slowly returned to normal as she lay on top of Evan. Her whole body was pleasantly relaxed and she couldn’t stop smiling. This was what good sex was supposed to be like.

He nuzzled at her neck and she slid off him so he could clean up. Then he joined her under the covers and pulled her close.

“How are you feeling?”

“Amazing,” she said. “You?”

He grinned. “Pretty damned good.”

Her insides squeezed. She hadn’t been bad, which is what she feared. She closed her eyes. Her body was so heavy, so pleasantly sated and it was hard for her to concentrate. There was supposed to be small talk afterward, she was almost sure of it.

“Sweet dreams.” He kissed her head and the heaviness took her under.

***

T
he first thing Carly noticed when she woke the next day was that she wasn’t alone in her bed. She watched Evan sleep, his dark hair was mussed and his expression was as relaxed as she’d ever seen it. He was so different from any other man she’d met. He wasn’t the least bit interested in her money, or in awe of her success, he just wanted to spend time with her. It was such a lovely feeling.

They hadn’t talked about what they were going to do today, but he had all those paintings to do. Knowing he wasn’t a morning person, Carly quietly slipped out of bed and padded to the bathroom. She’d take a shower, and then head out to get some breakfast for them both.

The warm water was soothing on her skin and she stood under the spray, letting the water cascade down her. Her body felt satisfied. She grinned at the memory.

She was in a relationship.

The whole idea was so foreign to her. She wrapped her arms around herself. She’d almost given up on ever finding a guy who wanted to be with her.

After she’d dried herself and dressed, she debated straightening her hair. Peeking in at Evan, she saw he was still fast asleep and she didn’t want the noise of the hair dryer to wake him. Instead, she toweled it dry and put on a large floppy hat. She scribbled a note and left it on the bedside table in case he woke, grabbed her purse, and headed out.

When she returned half an hour later with muffins and bagels, he was still asleep. Should she wake him? It was already eight o’clock, but some people considered it early for a Saturday.

She didn’t want him oversleeping and being annoyed that he’d missed out on painting time, so she sat on the edge of the bed and said quietly, “Evan, breakfast is ready.”

There was no response.

Louder this time, she said, “Evan, it’s time to wake up.” She ran a hand down his arm.

“Don’t want to,” came the sleepy reply.

Carly grinned. He sounded like a petulant child. “I’ve got bagels and muffins.”

“Hmph.”

Carefully she leaned over and brushed a kiss across his cheek and then over his lips. “Are you sure you don’t want to wake up?”

His eyes flashed open as she sat back. He blinked a couple of times. “Carly?”

She nodded. “I’ve bought breakfast. I didn’t know how late you wanted to sleep.”

He examined her for a moment. “Your hair is different.”

Self-conscious, she placed a hand on the hat covering her curly hair. “I didn’t want to wake you drying it.”

He pushed himself up to a seated position. “It’s curly.”

“That’s what it tends to do when it gets wet.”

“Show me.”

Hesitating, she lifted the hat from her head. Evan motioned her closer.

She shuffled nearer to him and he ran his hand through her hair. “It’s gorgeous. Why do you always straighten it?”

“I was told it looks more professional. It’s so hard to manage when it’s curly, it goes its own way.”

“Whoever told you that was an idiot,” Evan said. “You look powerful, untamed, exotic.”

Her skin heated. “It was my stylist. She taught me how a business executive needs to dress.”

He shook his head. “She didn’t know what she was talking about. I love your hair like that. When I paint you, I want to paint that hair.”

Carly blinked. “You want to paint me?”

“Absolutely. I want to paint you in all sorts of ways.” He grinned. “And not in the slightly creepy way that sounded.”

She laughed. “We’ll see.” She wasn’t sure what she thought about him painting her. He saw too much. She didn’t want others to see her the way he saw her. It would make her too vulnerable. “Do you want breakfast now?”

“As long as it comes with coffee.”

“Of course.”

She left him to dress and went back to the kitchen to make the coffee. A few minutes later, he came out, wearing shorts and T-shirt.

“You know it’s only early, right?” he said as he took the coffee she handed him and kissed her.

“Eight o’clock is late for me.”

“It’s the weekend.”

“My body clock’s set for five no matter the day. I slept in today by comparison.”

Evan shook his head in disbelief. “Nine’s my usual wake up time.”

She didn’t know how he got anything done by waking up so late. “So what are you doing today?”

“I want to continue work on a couple of paintings for the exhibition. What about you?”

“I’ve got a few things I need to work on.”

He put down his bagel. “Working seven days a week isn’t good for you, Carly.”

She shrugged. “This is stuff I want to do.”

“Really? Like what?”

She hadn’t told anyone else about the app she was developing. It was her little secret. “I’m creating an app.”

“To do what?”

She hesitated. “Teach people English.”

“Wow. That sounds challenging. How’s it going?”

“Slowly. I don’t get much time to work on it.”

“I’m a big believer in making time for the things you love to do.”

She nodded. “It’s why I get up so early. I get to do an hour every day before work.”

He shook his head. “You’re amazing.”

She shrugged. She did what she had to do, that was all.

“Do you want to come to my place?” he said. “We could hang out today, each doing our own thing, and you could stay the night. Then we can go to your mom’s tomorrow for the party.”

The idea was appealing. She didn’t need more than her laptop to do her work. Plus the thought that Evan wanted to spend more time with her was thrilling.

“Sure.”

***

E
van wasn’t entirely certain why he’d invited Carly to join him at his house. Normally when he painted he preferred solitude. That way he could get caught up in the work. He didn’t have to stop at a given time, or worry about the other person feeling neglected. But the invite had slipped out, and he
did
want to spend more time with her.

They drove separately to his place so that Carly could drive home. When he arrived, McClane trotted out to greet him. Zita must have already dropped him off. He hurried inside to check the state of his house. He’d been in painting mode up until he left and it could be a complete pigsty, for all he remembered.

He shoved dishes into the dishwasher, quickly changed his bedsheets and tidied the living room. As he was checking what else needed to be done, Carly arrived.

McClane trotted to the front door to greet her, wagging his tail furiously, which was about as animated as he got these days.

“He’s definitely taken a shine to you,” Evan said.

Carly smiled. “I’ve never been very good around dogs.” She crouched down to rub McClane’s head. “But you’re just the sweetest thing, aren’t you?”

McClane panted happily in agreement, then licked her.

She got back to her feet. “Where are you going to work?”

“In the studio. I’m halfway through a couple of pieces.”

“A couple of pieces?”

“Yeah. I tend to have a few works going at once, depending on my mood.” He walked down the hallway and she followed him into his studio.. “You can pick your spot. There’s a table in here, or the kitchen, or outside if you want. If you prefer the sofa, you know where it is.”

She nodded and set up her laptop on the table.

After making sure Carly had everything she needed, Evan examined his painting. It was the place he used to hang out, drawing sketches for people to earn some money throughout high school. He could have painted it blindfolded.

Mixing the color he needed, he got to work.

***

E
van finished the painting and stepped back. It was good. It was just what he remembered. He’d even drawn himself in it, as a teenager, doing his sketches. He turned to say something to Carly, but she was gone. Concerned, he dumped his brushes in a cleaning solution and wandered through the house to find her.

She was sitting on the outdoor couch, her laptop on her lap, and McClane lying at her feet. She looked perfectly at home, as if she belonged. He blocked the yearning from his heart before it could take hold and checked the time. It was midafternoon and he hadn’t even offered her lunch.

“Are you hungry?”

She didn’t respond, her fingers flying over the keyboard.

He grinned, not so worried now that he hadn’t noticed her leave the studio. She was as involved in her work as he had been with his.

“Carolina,” he said, mimicking the way her mother said her name.

Carly jolted and looked up. “Sorry, did you say something?”

“I was wondering whether you’re hungry. We missed lunch.”

“Did we?” She checked the time on her laptop. “So we did. I’m a little hungry now you mention it.”

“I’ll see what I can find.”

He put together a couple of sandwiches, grabbed his sketchbook and headed back outside. “Here you go,” he said, putting the sandwich on the table next to Carly.

“Thanks,” she murmured, her eyes never leaving the screen.

Evan chuckled. He was sure he was like that when he was painting. Eating his sandwich, he watched her. Her focus was absolute and the tap on the keyboard was almost constant. Whatever she was doing, she was fully involved. He loved the concentration on her face and the way she absentmindedly brushed her curls away when they blocked her view.

He picked up his sketchbook and began to draw.

***

E
van’s stomach was grumbling when he finished. He grabbed his half-eaten sandwich and took a bite. Carly was still totally absorbed. He debated disturbing her again, but he hated to be interrupted while he was painting. She’d get hungry soon enough and stop.  Finishing his sandwich, he went back inside to start his next painting.

The blank canvas mocked him as he tried to decide what to paint next. What he really wanted to do was paint a series of images of Carly. It would take some time to convince her to let him use the images in an exhibition, but that wasn’t the main purpose of painting her.

He shook his head. No, right now he needed to concentrate on the present exhibition, the urban landscape.

Closing his eyes, visions of Carly filled his mind. The urban stuff would have to wait. The pull to paint her was too strong.

E
van looked up at the movement in the doorway. He must have been attuned to Carly to notice her walk in.

“Thanks for the sandwich,” she said.

He checked the time. It was close to dinner. “Did you just surface?”

She nodded. “Sorry. I must have completed blanked out.”

“Don’t sweat it. Happens to me all the time. Was it productive?”

“Yeah. I’ve finished the first stage.” She wandered over to him. “How about you?”

He gestured to the painting drying on one easel. “I’ve finished one and started on another.”

“Can I have a look?”

“Sure.” The nerves twitched in his stomach.

Carly walked over to the easel. He held his breath. She was silent for a long moment, scrutinizing the painting.

“Is that you?” she asked, pointing to the teenager drawing.

“Yeah.” He was surprised she could tell.

“It’s so detailed. You’ve captured the whole ambiance of the square; the hustle and bustle and the community of it. It feels like everyone there is friendly and knows one another.”

The nerves settled. “Thanks. It was a fun place to hang out.”

“What are you working on there?” she asked.

He hesitated. How was she going to react?

“Take a look,” he invited. He’d finished painting Carly, but had yet to add the background.

She gasped. “That’s me.”

He nodded, waiting.

She squinted at it. “I look powerful, in charge.” She paused. “Untouchable.”

Evan wrapped an arm around her waist and pulled her close to him. “Carolina is a formidable person.”

She shook her head. “If I met that person, she’d scare the hell out of me.”

He frowned. “Carly, you
are
that person. At least when you’re doing business.”

“I never realized.” She seemed a little sad. “I’ve been pretending I know what I’m doing for so long.”

“I’m pretty sure you’ve got that down pat.” He kissed her forehead. “Why do you hide behind that face?”

She squeezed her eyes shut. “When I first started making money, I had all these people giving me advice. They told me I had to look professional, show no fear, be assertive. I hired a stylist to show me how to present myself, and had a mentor to tell me how to deal with requests. It was a big learning curve and I had to work on it constantly. I guess it became who I am.”