Pleasuring Anne (6 page)

* * * *

Two and a half hours later, they arrived at Anne’s house. “You do realize it took every ounce of self-control I have not to start eating that pie in the car,” she stated, shrugging out of her coat and hanging it in the closet by the front door. She took the box from him and set it on the coffee table. “Let’s eat out here. I’ll get plates and napkins, and how about you see if you can find anything decent to watch on TV. What would you like to drink?”

“Water’s good.”

Anne headed into the kitchen. Her thoughts were a jumbled mess, and she needed to take a minute to regroup. During the ride home, they hadn’t lacked for things to talk about, but Garth hadn’t said a word about when or even if they would see each other again.

The last two days had been the most intense, incredible, amazing ones she’d ever spent in the company of a gentleman. He was a wonderful, considerate, inventive lover and an all around interesting guy. They’d done a hell of a lot of laughing but also had some pretty deep conversations regarding feelings and emotions, something she sure as shit wasn’t used to having with a man!

A tiny niggle of doubt crept into her thoughts. Had she turned their time together into more than it really was?

Don’t over think things…trust your reactions.
Ellen’s advice played loudly in her head.

“Thanks, hon,” Anne said quietly before heading back into the living room.

She set down the plates and bottles of water. “Decided against the TV?” Anne asked, sitting next to Garth on the couch.

He placed two slices of pizza on each of their plates. “We can watch it later, if you want,” he said before taking a bite.

The comment confused her a bit. It was almost eight, and he had a forty-five minute drive home, but she let it go. He could stay as long as his sexy self wanted to. She ate her first piece of pizza in record time. “Okay, I think I’m going to live.”

Garth chuckled. “If you were in such dire straits, you definitely should have eaten in the car.”

“And display a lack of ladylike behavior? I’m attempting to keep my bad habits under wraps. Don’t want to scare you off or anything.”

Damn, why did I say that?
She nervously removed and ate pepperonis off of her second slice. When she tried to pick up her bottle of water, it slipped through her fingers and plunked back down on the coffee table. Garth righted it.

“After everything that’s happened between us, do you really think that could happen?” He stared into her eyes. “Talk to me, sweetheart. What’s going on in that pretty little head of yours?”

“The truth?”

“Always,” he replied emphatically.

“How come the subject of us seeing each other again hasn’t come up yet?”

No guts, no glory,
she told herself as she willed her stomach to settle down. The pizza was suddenly sitting heavy.

“Since I didn’t think you had any doubts about it happening, I saw no urgency in discussing it on the ride over, but obviously, I fucked up.” He rested his hand on her thigh. “Anne, will you join me for dinner and a movie on Tuesday?”

“I’d love to,” she replied softly.

“May I show up here ultra early and make love with you until we’re forced to leave in a rush in order to keep our reservations?”

“I’ll be disappointed if you don’t.” Anne laid her hand on top of his.

“May I then stay and make love with you again after our date?” Merriment twinkled in his eyes.

“Oh, yes, please! I’m already completely bummed out that I have to sleep alone tonight.”

Her mouth dropped open when Garth stood and walked to the front door. “Where are you going?” she asked nervously.

He walked out, leaving the door open, without answering her. When he returned, he carried a duffle bag. He set it down in the entryway and casually strolled back to his place on the couch.

“I took the liberty of packing a few necessities while you were blow drying your hair earlier.” He took a long sip of his water then selected another piece of pizza. “Good to know we continue to be on the same page, sweetheart.”

Anne grinned from ear to ear as her heart fluttered wildly. “Drop the pie, Detective Slaiter.” She stood. “We’ve been clothed and vertical for way too long.”

“I love the way you think, Ms. Karmer.”

Epilogue

One Year Later…

Anne ran up to Garth who was on his knees, rummaging through a box of metal thingy-ma-bobbies. “I think I’ve found the perfect piece for the dining room, but you have to come
now
. There are three other people eyeing it!” She tugged on the back of his shirt.

He stood up, and Anne practically pulled him through the throng of people at the massive, outdoor flea market.

“Now, you know better than to walk away from something you really want. Why didn’t you wheel and deal first then come get me afterwards?”

“Because it’s a bit different than what we discussed, the price is too high and if you like it, this negotiation is going to have to be conducted by you.”

“Sweetheart, I’ve been in awe all afternoon watching you barter vendors into utter submission.”

“Yeah, but this seller is a grumpy old woman who I saw treat female customers in a most unwelcoming manner.”

“So just what are you expecting me to do?” he asked with a grin.

Anne boldly looked him up and down. “How would you feel about unzipping your jacket and popping open the top buttons of your shirt?”

Garth laughed uproariously.

“Aw come on, take one for the team.” She quickened her pace. “It’s a three-shelf corner curio cabinet that will mount on the wall, and I’m thinking the oriental urn we found last month will look spectacular sitting beneath it filled with bamboo and eucalyptus stems.” They arrived at their destination. “See? Isn’t it lovely?”

Anne was relieved no one was currently paying attention to her cabinet anymore. Garth gave it a close inspection while using his tape measure.

“If you ever decide to make a career change, I think you should go into interior design. You’re right, this is perfect.” He gave her a quick kiss. “And grossly overpriced,” he whispered in her ear. “Stand back and watch me work.”

Garth turned to the old woman walking toward them and flashed his killer smile. “Good afternoon, ma’am. Unseasonably cold weather for this time of year, don’t you think?”

In less than thirty minutes, they were heading home with their purchase secured in the trunk of his car.

“Got her down fifty percent without having to compromise my moral principles; pretty impressive, huh?”

“The way the old bat was ogling you, I bet she would have gone even lower if you’d followed my advice. Hell, if you’d flexed something, we might have gotten it for free.”

“You do realize that pimping is a crime, right?”

“Thank God, you’re retired and can’t arrest me.”

“But I
can
paddle your bottom for your scandalous behavior.”

“Looking forward to it,” she said with a chuckle, resting her hand on his thigh and giving a little squeeze.

Anne’s cell phone jingled, signaling a text message. She dug it out of her purse. “Ellen says Jim doesn’t have to work on Saturday so they’ll be over around three. Do we want them to bring anything?”

“If she happens to have a batch of her seven layer dip laying around…oh, and let Jim know that the heat is up and running in the shed.”

She did as he asked and received a quick response. “Ell says she’ll make the dip if you and her hubby promise to not spend excessive hours out in the man cave.”

“No problem. You know I hate being away from you for any length of time.” He took his attention off the road long enough to gaze briefly into her eyes.

Her tummy did a little somersault. She loved Garth with all of her heart and not a day went by where he didn’t make it crystal clear he felt exactly the same way.

Despite the intensity of their instant connection, developing a solid relationship had been of utmost importance to them both. She’d officially moved in with him only three weeks ago.

A bright streak of lightning flashed across the sky. It was pouring down rain when they parked in the driveway, and they made a mad dash into the house.

“It may not have been the smartest decision for us to pile so much of my stuff in the garage instead of renting a storage unit. It’s going to be a giant pain in the ass if we aren’t able to put our cars in there when the snow starts to fly.”

“We’ll have everything situated long before then.” He took her jacket and hung it next to his on the hooks by the front door. “How about you pour us a glass of wine while I get a fire started?”

“Let me pop the lasagna in the oven, first. It needs at least an hour to heat up.” Anne headed into the kitchen.

“Put it on low. I’m in the mood for some quality pre-dinner cuddle time,” Garth called out.

“What about the Caesar salad we discussed earlier? It’s not going to make itself, you know,” she joked.

“Totally your choice, sweetheart; assemble produce or join me on the couch.”

She was back in the living room, snuggled up against Garth’s side, before the logs in the fireplace were fully aflame. They sat in comfortable silence, sipping wine, sharing tender kisses and light caresses.

“I love you,” he whispered, gently massaging the back of her neck.

“I love you, too.” She rested her cheek against his shoulder.

“Tomorrow’s weather forecast isn’t sounding promising for our anniversary outing,” Garth commented, shifting slightly on the couch. “We may have to skip the putt-putt rematch and go straight to revisiting the kinky sex parts of our first date.”

Anne crawled up on his lap. “And why exactly do we have to wait until tomorrow?”

The following morning, Garth and Anne greatly enjoyed slightly overcooked lasagna for breakfast.

About the Author

Tessie Bradford is a wife, mother, and grandmother who works full-time outside the home, and tries very hard to keep her hours of drudgery inside the home to the barest minimum. When she’s not creating steamy stories for the characters living in her head, she may be reading a book, yelling at the TV during a football game, comforting a scared animal from the local shelter, or dancing in the aisles at a heavy metal concert!

Tessie loves to talk to her readers and can be found at
www.tessiebradford.com
and
www.sevensexyscribes.blogspot.com
.

Also Available from
Resplendence Publishing

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**Publisher's Note** This is an extensively revised and expanded version of a short story featured in the 2008 Resplendence Publishing anthology, Carnal Reunions.

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