Lured In (Dark Paradise, #1) (6 page)

Carmen’s face turned into a grimace, and Matt placed his hands over hers to calm her down. Zach stared at the woman without saying a word.

Carmen whispered to Matt, “Who is that?”

“Old flame,” I heard him say.

“Looks like that flame is still very much alive. More like a fire to me,” I replied dishearteningly.

Zach turned back to look at me but didn’t say anything, and he walked away with Ms. or Mrs. Sexy, the beautiful blonde.

“What the fuck!” Carmen blurted out of her intoxicated mouth, looking in their direction. I looked to Matt to see if his eyes, face, or body language would give away what had just happened. All I got was Matt shrugging his shoulders and shaking his head, just as surprised as we were.

“Excuse me,” I said, getting up to go to the ladies’ room.

“Need me to come with you?” Carmen asked.

“No. You stay here and finish playing bedroom eyes with Matt,” I said with a forced smile.

“You sure, Abi?” She asked genuinely.

I nodded my head and headed to the ladies’ room to hide from the humiliation.

It was times like these that I wished I had a close relationship with my mother. She would know what to say. I called my mom, anyway, to check in on my daughter, and just to hear my mom’s voice. My stepdad answered the telephone.

“Abi!” he called out joyfully. “How are you doing, sweetie? Is everything OK?”

“Just fine. I was calling Mom to check in on Gabi, but I’m glad you answered. Do you know anything about why my position changed during the merger deal?”

“Because you deserve it, sweetie—that’s why. And how do you know about that? You had already left the meeting before your promotion was discussed.”

“It got back to me, Dad. You know I’m not qualified for that position.”

My mom picked up the other phone in the house and countered, “Oh, sweetie, you are so qualified for the position. Just look at what you did for Capitol Health when you started. Don’t get so down on yourself like this, Abi. I can hear it in your voice, you know.”

What you can hear is the sound of humiliation
, I wanted to cry out.

“We’ll discuss me not accepting the position over dinner Sunday night. How is Gabi, mother?”

“She’s sleeping, Abi. Sweetie, don’t give up on this position. OK?”

“Sunday, Mom. Got to go.”

I closed my eyes and took a deep breath.

“Holy Fuck!” I screamed out when I turned and found Zach standing there. “What the hell are you doing in here?” I continued in a not-so-friendly manner that made him throw up both his hands in front of his face. “You know what, don’t even answer that question. Just keep quiet and move out of my fucking way.” I was enraged and looked at him with my I-hate-the-fuck-out-of-you eyes. “I knew it. I fucking knew it. You are just another philanderer,” I said.

“Abi, can I explain?”

“Fuck you and your explanation. How dare you flirt and show interest in me when you have a woman? Now I’m standing here looking like a fucking homewrecker to onlookers. What kind of woman do you take me for?”

Not giving him the opportunity to defend himself, quite frankly because I didn’t want to hear what came from his mouth, I left him standing there and went back to the table to find Carmen and Matt lip-locked.

I sat down, grabbed two hundred-dollar bills from my wallet, and put them on the table.

“Later,” I said.

“Abi, wait, I’ll come with you,” Carmen said, looking apologetically at Matt.

“No, Carmen. Stay with Matt. You know I need to be by myself.”

Matt got up and gave me a hug. “We have to do this again. OK?”

“You know it,” I replied.

“I’ll call you first thing in the morning.” Carmen said.

“You mean late afternoon,” I said, smiling at her and Matt.

Zach came up behind me, asking again if he could explain.

“Let her be,” Carmen demanded.

I left Sens and hailed down a cab. I looked once more at Sens and saw Zach standing in the doorway before the cabbie pulled off.

I woke up around eleven the next morning. My mom had called to tell me that Gabe had picked Gabi up and would drop her back off on Sunday night.

“OK, Mom,” I said, lightly grunting at my body aches.

“What’s the matter, Abi? Is it something I can help you with?”

“No, just hung over. I think I enjoyed myself too much last night.”

“Well, I love to hear that you enjoyed yourself. I’ll see you tomorrow night for dinner.”

“Thanks, Mom.”

I hung up the phone and headed straight to the bathroom to take a bath. I started a hot bath. While I was in the bath, Carmen called to check in on me. I assured her that I was fine and would see her later.

After I got out of the bath, I decided to check the messages and calls I had ignored last night. A number that I didn’t recognize had called me more than fifteen times between late last night and early that day. I listened to the first message and was very surprised to hear Zach’s voice.
I’m going to kill Carmen for giving him my damn number!

Around 12:30 p.m. my doorbell rang. I put on my short robe to cover my skimpy lace garments and opened the door. It was Mr. Bill, the concierge. He had come up to hand deliver flowers to me.

“For you, Ms. Winterfield,” he said, smiling.

I looked at Mr. Bill with narrowed eyes before accepting the flowers. “Thank you, Mr. Bill.”

I closed the door, placed the enormous arrangement of the multicolored calla lilies on the floor by the front of the foyer door and read the handwritten note.

Abigail Marie Winterfield,

I’m so sorry about last night. Please, please allow me to explain and make it up to you.

Z. (Mr. Sexy)
P.S. Please turn me over.

On the back were Zach’s cell, home, and office phone numbers and his e-mail addresses.

How the hell does he know where I live? Carmen!

I dropped the note on the floor and went about my business.

Carmen called later and said she was in the lobby. I keyed in the security code in the phone so she could enter the elevator to come up. I let Carmen in and she immediately noticed the over-the-top flower arrangement.

“From who?” she asked, pointing to the flowers.

I rolled my eyes, shook my head, and took a deep breath. “Zach,” I said, twisting my lips and rolling my eyes again. “You know, the one you gave my number and address to last night.”

“I didn’t give Zach your number or address. What the hell are you talking about?”

“I checked my messages earlier, and Zach had left several messages. And then Mr. Bill delivered those flowers with that handwritten note from Zach.” I pointed out the note on the floor.

“I didn’t give it to him. And how are you, too, Ms. Cranky?”

I walked to the sofa and sat down, and Carmen bent down to pick up the note. She read the first couple of words and turned to me, smiling. She sat down on the sofa beside me and read it aloud.

“Wow! Damn, Abi. All the numbers and the e-mail addresses. I wonder if the philanderer does this to all of the women he upsets on the first date?”

“It wasn’t a date, Carmen. And he told you I called him that?”

“Yes, right after you left.”

“It’s the truth.”

“That girl doesn’t mean anything to him. As a matter of fact, Abi, last night was the first time he saw or heard from her in more than two years.”

“I don’t care about him or her, Carmen. Can we drop the subject, please?”

“Holy shit! He got to you, didn’t he?”

“
No
!” I said loudly. He had managed to penetrate the security I’d built around me.

“Yes, he did. Abi, those feelings yesterday are a bit deeper than him turning you on. He cracked the safe and stole your heart. Love at first sight?”

I looked at Carmen with my leave-it-the-fuck-alone eyes. Her gaze was steady as she looked back at me.

“OK, Abi. I’ll drop it, for now. But call him at one of the numbers. Hell, even e-mail him.”

We laughed, and I began to cheer up.

“So you and Matt seemed pretty intense last night.”

Carmen smiled and her face lit up. “Oh, Abi. I confess. I’m still in love with him.”

“And he is very much still in love with you.”

Carmen closed her eyes, took in a deep breath, and smiled. This was the Carmen I knew, always happy and smiling. When she and Matt had called it quits, she was devastated and entered a depressive funk. Even after she moved on and started dating other guys, she constantly compared them to Matt.

“I think you should tell Matt how you feel,” I suggested.

“I will. As soon as you tell Zach.”

“I don’t know Zach at all, and I have nothing to tell him. You know Matt very well, enough to share everything with him. Huge difference.”

“You’re right, Abi. But still, if Zach makes you smile, grin, blush, or whatever he did last night, then he’s worth reaching out to. Don’t you think?”

She handed me Zach’s note and said, “It’s time for you to be happy. Call him, Abi.”

I shook my phone at her, and she looked at me like I was crazy.

“His number,” I said, reminding her of how many goddamn times he had called me since the prior night.

“Oh, yeah! So all you have to do is add it to your list of contacts, and add the rest of the numbers and e-mails as well.”

“I don’t think so,” I said. I was about to delete his number from my phone when Carmen snatched the phone from me, jumped off the sofa with the note, and ran to the front door to buy her time to store his info in my phone. When she opened the door to run out into the hall, my heart stopped.

Holy fuck. He’s here. How? Why?

Zach stood at my door, looking mighty fine with a plain white T-shirt, khaki cargo shorts, and black flip-flops. His arms were nice and sculpted—not too much, not too little, but just right. If I weren’t so damn upset, and didn’t know for sure if the girl from the night before was his past or present, I would have been tempted to lay a slow, passionate, juicy kiss on him. But instead I went charging for him.

“What are you doing here? How do you even know where I live? And how did you get my number?”

Carmen was just as surprised as I was. But that didn’t stop her from smiling like some prayer of hers had been answered.

“Don’t leave the man in the hall, Abi. Invite him in.” Carmen pushed me out of the way and motioned for Zach to come in. He entered and greeted her.

“Nice to see you again, Carmen. How’s Matt?”

“Matt’s fine. And I am very happy to see you again. Aren’t we, Abi?”

“Speak for yourself,” I said. To Zach, I said, “You didn’t answer my questions.”

Before I could get another word out, Carmen put her hands over my mouth, looked at me, and said, “Happiness. Remember?”

She handed me back my cell phone and grabbed her handbag to leave.

“Carmen, where are you going?” I asked.

“I’m going to Matt’s to hold up my end of our agreement,” she replied, motioning her left index finger back and forward between the two of us, referring to the conversation we had had just a while ago.

“You made a pact, not me,” I told her.

Zach looked at her and said, “Carmen, you don’t have to leave. I didn’t mean to intrude.” He looked at me and continued, “I just wanted to come and give something to Abigail. But I guess I will have to wait another time to taste your lips.”

“What did you just say?” I asked, surprised.

He looked extremely passionate when he began to lick his lips. I opened my mouth in awe and heat, mainly heat, and he put his finger over my lips.

“Next time. Whenever you’re ready to talk.”

“You two need to talk now,” Carmen said. “Oh, and Zach, the flowers, the handwritten note; I approve. Just keep her happy.”

Zach smiled and nodded his head, and Carmen kissed my cheeks and turned to the door to leave.

“Call me, Carmen. Love you.”

“Love you, too. Be happy.”

Carmen turned to Zach, tilted her head sideways, pointed her left index finger at him, and said, “I trust I can totally leave you here with her and she will be safe?”

Zach looked at me. “Abigail will be fine. If at any time she asks me to leave, I will, without hesitation.”

“You got that, Abi? Now talk to the man you say makes your body tingle, and sing, and heat up, and melt, and purr, and—”

“Carmen!” I yelled out loudly.

“What? I’m just trying to help break the ice and give both of you something to talk about. It’s not like it’s a lie. Is it, Abi? Bye. Be happy.”

Carmen turned quickly on her heels and was gone.

As soon as I turned to face Zach after locking my door, he kissed me. He put both his hands upon my face, and we devoured each other’s tongues, slowly, passionately, and unhurried. It was just as I had imagined before I charged at him. I pushed him away, and he put his hands around my waist. He pushed me back to the door with his body, put his forehead and nose against mine, and sighed deeply.

“Abigail Marie Winterfield, what the hell are you doing to me?”

“Me? What about you? What are you doing to me?”