No Ordinary Romance (8 page)

“Really. What’s that? I’ve seen the women
you’ve dallied within the past, and I’m not up to their standards
at all. They look as if they come straight off the runway.”

“You have courage, and you’re extremely
loyal, something I value far more than beauty and style. You’re the
kind of woman I should have married in the first place. Instead I
married a popular, beautiful woman with a powerful family, and she
screwed me over royally.”

“I understand that Thomas. I’ve never had a
relationship with a man that didn’t have strings.”

“No strings Constantina. I just like being
with you. There’s something about you that appeals to me. I can’t
describe it even if I did I would sound like a fool.”

Oh yeah, it was time to steer this
conversation back to a cooler topic. Thomas was hypnotizing her
with his velvet voice and piercing gaze. She looked down at his
plate seeing that he’d only finished half his meal. “You really
weren’t hungry at all."

Thomas traced a finger across her knuckles.
“I’ve got a hunger Constantina, I’m hungry for you. When you get
tired of running from me, I’ll be there waiting.”

“I'm not running from you Thomas. I like sex
just like any other woman and I choose my partners on my terms. If
I had sex with you that's all it will be, and I'll walk away when
it's over. If you’re done I’ll go pay for the meal.”

Did she truly believe that just wanted a
quick conquest? “You can run all you want Constantina, but there’s
no hiding place.”

***

Connie was working on a new client's file
when a flower delivery arrived. Beth brought the flowers back and
sat them on her desk looking at her with anticipation "What?"

"Well aren't you going to uncover them and
read the card." Sometimes Beth just didn't understand Connie. If
someone had sent her flowers, she would have been over the
moon.

The floral arrangement was
heavy and larger than her torso. She ripped off the tissue paper.
The beautiful arrangement of p
ale pink
roses and Stargazer Lilies astounded her. No one had ever sent her
flowers before. She searched for the card, the message read ‘You
can’t run from fate!’ it was simply signed TG, for Thomas
Galvin.

"Who are they from?"

"Oh there just a thank you from a
friend?"

"Right! That arrangement must have costs
hundreds of dollars. He must be some kind of friend." Beth chuckled
all the way back to her desk.

The fragrance of the flowers permeated the
room, she had to get rid of them before Jenna and Samantha showed
up. They were taking her to lunch today and will be here any
minute. Connie picked up the arrangement and sat them on the break
room table. She picked up the tissue paper, threw it in the trash,
and palmed the card before she stuck it in her desk. Before she
could sit down Samantha and Jenna walked in her office.

“Hey girl, you ready for lunch? I sure hope
so; we have to get this pregnant woman some food, and fast before
she goes into premature labor.”

“Connie what’s wrong?”

“Uh, nothing. Let me grab my purse, and we
can leave.”

“We’re not leaving until I go to the
restroom.” Jenna took off her coat and waddled to the back
room.

If Jenna went to the back room, she would see
the flowers and Connie would never hear the end of their razzing.
“Jenna you don’t want to go back there my restroom’s not very
clean, why don’t you use the one at the restaurant.”

Jenna pushed Connie to the side, “Never mess
with a pregnant woman on a mission.”

Samantha perched herself on Connie’s desk
with a look of total disbelief on her face. “What’s going on?”

“Why would you think something’s going
on?”

“Connie we’re your friends, you just tried to
encourage Jenna to use a disgusting public restroom when you know
you scrub yours every day. So what’s in the back room that you
don’t want us to see?”

Connie tried to behave normally; she sat down
and started drumming her fingers on her desk. “You know me “I
always get agitated during tax season.”

Samantha shook her head, giving Connie a
knowing look. “Connie you’re the most level head person I know. You
can multitask better than anyone, but you’re no good at lying.”

Jenna came back into the
office area pulled her wallet out of her purse and handed Samantha
a twenty-dollar bill. “She hid them in the back room.” She turned
to face Connie with a look of disappointment. “Connie I can’t
believe that you would have me pee on myself than have Samantha
and
I find out someone sent you
flowers.”

“Don’t look so surprised we saw the delivery
man pull off. We walked in the front door as Beth carried the
flowers back to your office. I bet Jenna twenty dollars that you
would try to hide them from us.”

Connie tried to act insulted, but Jenna and
Samantha’s good-natured ribbing wouldn’t allow her any peace. “I’m
glad you guys had a good time at my expense.”

Jenna sat down in a chair facing Connie’s
desk and began rubbing her belly. “Cut to the chase did that sexy
councilman send you the flowers?” Before Connie could respond, a
delivery guy from Jimmy John’s walked in.

“I have a delivery for Samantha Archer.”

Samantha paid the delivery guy, “you can keep
the change. Thank you!” She shut Connie’s door, handing Jenna and
Connie their sandwiches and drinks before pulling another chair up
to next Connie’s desk. “I placed the order earlier, we figured you
would be more likely to spill your guts about Mr. Sexy in your
office.”

“Thomas and I are working on a business deal,
and he sent me the flowers as a thank you. You know that I would
never get involved with a self absorbed jerk like him.”

“Ooh give us the dirt! You can’t fool us
because we know that you genuinely like him.”

“Connie what’s holding you back? You like him
and he obviously wants to jump your bones.”

“If I were single I would jump Thomas in a
heartbeat. He reminds me of the guy who played Wind in His Hair in
the movie Dances with Wolves.”

“Rodney Grant!” Jenna chimed in between bites
of her sandwich.

“Yes that’s his name. Rodney Grant was hot in
that movie. His body was built in all the right places. Thomas
Galvin has that same intensity in his gaze, except he has those
wicked green eyes. He’s so…”

“Dangerous!” Connie didn’t mean to yell, but
Jenna and Samantha were getting carried away. “You’re right
Samantha he’s sexy, intense, an alpha male to the nth degree. So,
what does he want with me? You’ve seen the tricks he squires around
town. I’m not like those women; I’m a small time business woman who
spends a lot of time working with non-profit organizations.”

“Why wouldn’t a man like Thomas Galvin want
you? You’re classier than any of the women I’ve seen him with.”
Samantha finished her sandwich and sipped on her drink giving
Connie an evil glare.

“Exactly my point! What is his obsession with
me?” Connie stood up and started pacing around. “Thomas is
dangerous to my equilibrium; he makes me yearn for his touch. No
man has ever had that much power over me, and I don’t like it.”

Jenna pondered Connie’s question of few
minutes before responding. “Have you ever thought that he might be
ready for a serious relationship?” Jenna held up her hands before
Connie could respond negatively. “Just think about the men in our
lives. Mike was a free living bachelor nailing anything in his path
until we met. Allen wasn’t too discriminating with the women he
dated until he met Sam.”

Samantha got up and hugged Connie, “Sweetie I
know you’re scared about getting serious. Jenna and I h had
problems with our relationships, but we had to on love. What if
Thomas is your chance at happiness?”

“Sam I’m not good at intimate relationships,
I’ve never had an orgasm during sex. How do I tell a man like
Thomas about my intimacy issues? I own an adult sex store for
goodness sake! He’s going to expect me to be a marvel in the
bedroom.”

Jenna got out of her chair, waddled over to
Connie, and gave her a hug. “Forget about trying to be something
you’re not and just be you. All we’re saying is, give Thomas a
chance, maybe he’s the man that will develop your sexual
repertoire. One more thing, I sure hope you’re on birth control.
Thomas looks like a virile man. If you walk into a bedroom with him
without protection, you will be pregnant by the time you come
out.”

Connie started laughing so hard she began to
hiccup. “Lord, what would I do without my friends?”

“Let the church say amen! You’re still going
to the Valentine Day’s dance at Carruther’s this year. Right?”

“Of course I’m going. The foundation is
sponsoring the dance.”

Samantha picked up her trash and threw it
away. “I picked out a dress and shoes. I’ll drop them off at your
house later this week.”

“I just hope this time my breasts are fully
covered.”

“I promise you that you’ll love this dress.
Trust me. Would I lie to you?”

Connie didn’t like the expression on
Samantha’s face. “Sam, omission is the same as a lie.” Samantha
didn’t respond, she and Jenna left in a fit of giggles after waving
good bye. Connie shut her door and went back to work.

***

Later that evening Connie was watching a show
about a serial killer when her phone rang. She wondered who could
be calling her at this time of night. "Hello."

"Did you like the flowers?"

Connie pushed the stop button on the remote
and curled her feet under her secretly glad Thomas called. "The
flowers were beautiful. I just don't understand your motivation for
sending them."

Thomas
fell
back on the bed in his hotel room and loosened his
tie. "Well I would have brought them to you in person, but I'll be
out of town for two weeks."

Connie was disappointed, two weeks without
Thomas popping up unexpectedly. "Wow that's a long time to be away
on business."

Thomas grinned; he could hear the
disappointment in her voice. Good. This was a part of his plan to
make her realize that she wanted him in her life. "Believe me
Constantina I'm working hard so I can get home and resume my
courting campaign."

Connie could not contain her laughter. "You
just don't give up do you? I thought I told you on Saturday not to
waste your time."

"I'm going to call your bluff. If you can
make love with me and walk away I dare you to try."

"I believe I said, if we had sex, that's all
it will be. What makes you so remarkable?"

"Constantina, when I'm with a woman I give
her my full attention. I'm not satisfied unless my lover is
satisfied too. You need a man like me in your life. Take me on for
size and I'll show you what you've been missing."

Connie's imagination was rearing its ugly
head. She could hear Thomas whispering the words of seduction in
her ear as he stroked every inch of her body. Then she remembered
why that wasn't a good idea and came to her senses. "Better men
than you have tried and failed."

Thomas laughed; he didn't expect Constantina
to go down without a fight. Which was good for him, he liked a
challenge. "Yeah I got a secret weapon that the other men in your
life don't have."

"Really! What do you have that I can't get
from any other man in Omaha?"

"I have the upper hand because you want me.
There's no way you could kiss another man the way you kissed me on
last Saturday. If I had been a little quicker, I would have taken
you in the back seat of my SUV. I'll bide my time because I believe
our first time together will be exceptional. When we make love, I
want to feel your hot little body responding to me in a bed. I'm
going to touch every inch of your body, and you'll scream my name
for more."

Connie began fanning herself. "You must feed
that ego of yours several pounds of meat a day."

"I'm a meat eater as you'll find out. Good
night Constantina. Dream about me because I'm sure as hell going to
dream of you."

Before Connie could respond, Thomas had
already hung up. She was in big trouble. Thomas wasn't going to go
away. Too bad, she couldn't just let him catch her. Connie couldn't
imagine explaining her intimacy issues to any man, especially a
sensual man like Thomas.

***

Connie was amazed by all the foot traffic in
her office today. Those who expected a nominal amount on their
income tax returns filed as soon as possible. Those who owed waited
until the last possible moment. She left her office later than
usual accommodating a couple who arrived at her door ten minutes to
five. At least they had all their paperwork; she was able to fill
out and file their return today.

Now here she was running
late with less than an hour to make it on time to the foundation's
Valentine's Day dance. To her
disappointment,
Thomas was still out of town. His two week business trip ended
up being closer to a month. She spoke with him often enough, but
she missed him; she would give a lot to be his valentine. She took
a quick shower and washed her hair. Her dress and matching lingerie
set were already draped across the bed.

Connie hopped out of the shower put a little
hair mousse on her hair and blow-dried her hair, while brushing it
back into style. One thing about a great haircut, it always falls
back into place. She slathered Carol's Daughter's body butter all
over, from her neck down to her toes.

The dress Sam picked out for her was a
strapless tiered dress the color of champagne with a matching
shawl. She even included a lacy cream colored bra and thong set
with a pair of silk thighhighs. Candy red Whistle Pump shoes
completed her attire.

She quickly donned her bra, thong, and silk
thighhighs before rushing back into the bathroom to complete her
makeup. She applied bronze and copper eye shadow to make her blues
eyes pop, with a touch of eyeliner in the corner to achieve the
smoky look. A little dab of mascara and a swab of strawberry gloss
for her lips. She finished off her grand appearance with her
momma's ruby and diamond earrings and a gold cocktail ring.