Tell Me Something Good (17 page)

“Whoa, we’ll never get in.” Noel shook his
head at the line of people at the door. “I’ve got a better idea.
Who needs a crowd, anyway?”

“I do,” Lyrissa whispered. The last thing she
needed was more one-on-one time with him.

“I couldn’t hear you over the noise.” Noel
leaned his head down.

“Nothing, nothing at all.”

“There’s a smaller club just down the way.
The Court of Two Sisters.”

They went down one block and around a corner.
A black wrought-iron gate was set in a brick wall that dated back a
hundred years. The arched doorway led through a small garden that
opened up into a courtyard. Wrought- iron tables with lit candles
and chairs were arranged around a wide patio. Another door led
inside the nightclub. There were people sitting outside. A buxom
waitress came up to them.

“Good evenin’. Y’all wanna chair out here or
inside?” She gestured with her head to the door.

Noel looked at Lyrissa. “It’s up to you.”

“Inside,” she said promptly. She needed all
the cool air she could handle.

“This way.” The woman bounced ahead of
them.

She showed them to a table, took their order
for wine, and left. Lyrissa glanced around with sinking spirits.
The lighting was minimal from candles and the few lamps set flush
to the walls. The club was elegant in an understated way. The
atmosphere was intimate.

“You know, this is really a revival of the
old club. My parents used to come here in the seventies when they
were dating. It’s been closed for almost twenty years,” Noel said.
He propped one muscular arm along the back of her chair.

“Interesting,” Lyrissa replied, and tried to
match his casual pose. Of course he had the advantage of really
being calm. A storm of desire raged inside her.

“Are you feeling all right?” Noel’s dark
eyebrows came together in an expression of concern. “You look
tense. Am I doing something to make you uncomfortable?”

“You wish,” she blurted out.

“So I’m getting to you. I’m glad.” Noel’s
full lips parted in a sexy half-smile.

“I’m sure you are.” Lyrissa folded her arms
across her breasts.

Noel stopped smiling and looked serious. “But
not for the reason you think. I don’t know how to put it.”

“I have trouble believing you’re speechless.”
Lyrissa tried to be saucy, but it fell flat. The anticipation
thumping inside her entire body defeated the effort.

“Yeah,” Noel said, wonder in his voice as he
gazed at her. His handsome features seemed to reflect puzzlement.
“Saying I like you doesn’t go far enough. It... it feels
right.”

“What does?” Lyrissa lost the battle. She
breathed hard when his arm touched her shoulders.

“Everything. Sitting with you in my car,
walking beside you, holding hands, being here, and even arguing. It
all fits.” Noel traced a line along her ear lobe with a
fingertip.

“Really?” Lyrissa rasped. Don't lose it. He’s
pulling out the big guns! Her body, especially her heart, wasn’t
listening.

“You were right, in a way. I had you in my
sights,” Noel said quietly. He twirled a lock of her hair around
the same finger.

“That’s refreshingly honest.” She should be
outraged. Instead she wanted him to caress her face.

“I’ve met lots of women. But none of them are
like you.” “If you say so.” Lyrissa said nothing more while the
waitress set two glasses of Sauvignon Blanc on the table.

“I’ll bring the appetizers in a minute.
They’re free.” The woman grinned at them, and then took off.

“I really care about you, Lyrissa.” Noel
ignored the wine and continued to stare at her.

“Let’s not get intense. I find you
attractive, too.” Lyrissa flashed a sassy smile. “We can enjoy each
other. Nothing heavy.”

“That’s what you want, a casual affair?”

“We’re grown-ups. Have you been madly in love
with every lover you ever had?”

“No, but...” His voice trailed off as though
he were trying to find the words.

She jumped in while she still had the upper
hand. For once he was off-balance. “Let’s take it nice and easy.
Don’t pretend some mad passion. It’s not necessary with me.”
Lyrissa congratulated herself on the blinding inspiration. In one
fell swoop she could further her real agenda and satisfy this
craving for him. It was purely physical, she told herself. Those
stories of forever romance she’d inhaled as a teen had messed with
her head. All her shivering came from too many months of abstinence
after her last break-up. Scratch the itch and it would go away.

He cupped her face in one large hand. “What
if I want more?”

“We can have something special with no
strings.” She let her tone and expression say take it or leave
it.

“I think—” He stopped when a band came out
and started to play.

Lyrissa leaned forward with a superior smile.
It was good to be the boss. “Ye-es.”

“We should dance,” Noel said.

Noel ran his fingers down her arm, and then
pulled her to her feet. He worked fast. Lyrissa found herself
wrapped in his arms swaying to the beat before she could speak. Her
mouth worked as words tried to come out. She realized the “No!” was
only inside her head. Her inner Amazonian guard had failed once
again. Here she was exposed, or rather, enclosed. Still, the other
part of her, that wimpy romantic, thought, what a luscious
captivity. His arms cradled her as they moved. The music teased the
dancers with sensuous notes from an alto sax, soft and sweet.
Lyrissa stiffened when he pulled her closer.

“Relax, just an easy thing. Isn’t that what
you said?” Noel whispered in her ear.

Lyrissa refused to look up into his eyes.
“Yes,” she tossed back.

“Good,” he answered, a smile implied in his
voice.

The sneaky, low-down dog! She would beat him
at this game if it killed her. Then he really hit below the belt.
Noel pressed his body against hers. She could feel herself getting
wet. Her breasts ached to be free so he could touch them with his
fingertips.

“You’re good,” Noel said in a voice like
melted butter, all warm and rich.

“What?” Lyrissa closed her eyes.

“A good dancer.”

“Oh, um-hum,” she mumbled back.

“Let’s discuss this casual affair. How should
we begin?” He used one strong forefinger under her chin to lift her
face to his.

Flecks of burnished gold in his eyes
mesmerized her. “Th-this is a good start. You know, dating,”
Lyrissa stammered out at last.

“The second act. What about the finale?”

Lyrissa tried for humor to fend him off. “And
what happened to act one?”

“We met and you learned not to hate me on
sight.”

“I wasn’t orchestrating a play!” she
protested. His moves fascinated her, and not the ones on the dance
floor, either.

He went on with a soft smile. “Act three, you
agreed to our first date.”

“This isn’t supposed to be a date. And by the
way, we really need to talk about the collection.” Lyrissa added
the last statement in desperation. A pitiful attempt—but all she
had at the moment.

Noel was merciless in his offensive. His
smile never wavered. “The last act, Lyrissa. There’s always a
climactic ending.”

Lyrissa could not afford to look into his
eyes again. Her Amazon had fled to the hills and left her exposed.
“Go play with one of your debutantes.”

“You put up a good fight, but I’m not the
enemy, Lyrissa.”

“Your family will—”

“Just have to get over it,” he finished,
before she could. Guilt seized her. Maybe she was a gullible idiot,
but his voice rang with real tenderness for her. “You don’t know
what you’re doing.”

“I think you’ve written the ending to our
little play,” Lyrissa said softly. Her heart told her it would be a
tragedy.

“You’re wrong, and I’m going to prove it...
if you’ll let me.”

Noel lifted her head again and kissed her.
His tongue swept across her lips, then parted them. Lyrissa opened
herself to him and clutched his forearms with both hands. He
groaned deep in his throat at her acceptance. Her last feeble
vestige of cynicism went up in smoke. She forgot about secret
legacies and family retribution. She was a woman who’d found the
one man whose soul matched hers.

The music stopped and her head cleared. She
pulled back from the cliff she was about to jump off. “No music,
time to sit down.” Lyrissa walked away on butter soft legs.

“You’re a tough one, lady,” Noel said with
good humor.

Not very, she thought to herself. She fell
onto the chair at their table and fanned her face with a cocktail
napkin. The waitress walked over.

“Y’all ready to order?” She smiled at
Lyrissa.

“Bring me a tall glass of very cold anything
and a glass of ice,” Lyrissa said as she dabbed at her throat.

“Iced tea?” the young woman asked. She
scribbled the order when Lyrissa nodded. “And food?”

Noel wore an amused expression. “Give us a
few more minutes to decide.” He glanced at Lyrissa. “You okay?”

“I’m just fine, thank you,” Lyrissa clipped.
“Why shouldn’t I be?”

“You look upset.”

“Me? No way.” Lyrissa stared at the damp
napkin she was waving and put it down. She picked up the menu.

The waitress came back with three glasses on
a tray. Noel ordered a carafe of white wine along with their food.
By the time the waitress had left, Lyrissa had recovered somewhat.
Lyrissa avoided Noel’s attempts to draw her out again. Instead, she
steered the conversation back to his family’s art collection. After
three tries to change the subject, he gave in.

“Basically my idea is to select certain art
objects and use them as a corporate asset,” he said.

“You’ll sell the precious St. Denis heritage
to the highest bidder. So much for sentimental value.” Lyrissa
sipped from her glass.

“We’ll choose very carefully if, and that’s a
big if, we sell anything. Mostly I’ll use it to boost the company’s
value on paper. That’s where you come in.”

“Yeah,” Lyrissa said.

“You don’t think we appreciate what we’ve
got, dc you?” Noel said.

“Maybe it all came too easily,” Lyrissa
replied. “I mean to your family.”

Noel wore a thoughtful expression. “You’re
right, in a way. I try not to take what we have for granted. But 1
didn’t choose my family any more than Tony Tate chose to be born in
the projects.”

Lyrissa studied his handsome face. “I guess
you’re right.”

“With my schedule, I can’t volunteer as much
as he does, but I do what I can.”

“I know how much you contribute to charities.
You’re all over the society pages.” Lyrissa smiled.

“So you despise me for being one of those
check writing philanthropists.” Noel smiled back at her.

“No indeed. Those checks come in handy” she
quipped.

Noel laughed. “Refreshingly honest.”

Their food came and they talked for another
hour over dinner. Lyrissa tried hard to remember she was on a
mission. Still she found herself lost in the pleasure of being with
an intelligent, sexy man. Noel could be playful in a charming
boy-child way. He was quite different from the driven CEO who ran
Trem6 Corporation.

“Now, where do we go?” Noel wore an eager
expression. “Go?” she repeated, dazed. “Home?”

“Tipitina’s. The Alvin Batiste Trio is
playing there.” Lyrissa shook her head. “School night. I have an
early meeting with my dissertation advisor.”

“Next time?” Noel gazed at her steadily.

She didn’t trust herself to answer. Lyrissa
looked at her wristwatch. “Wow, look at the time. It’s later than I
thought. I really have to go.”

“Sure.”

Noel paid for dinner and they left. They were
quiet during the drive to her house. Once they arrived, Noel parked
in the driveway and turned to her. Lyrissa swallowed hard and
looked back at him. Fatal error. His mouth curved lusciously into a
smile. She wanted to run her tongue over his candy-coated lips.
Noel reached for her, and Lyrissa found herself sliding right into
his arms. He kissed her tenderly, a slow, searching exploration
that seemed to ask if there could be more. They both sighed when it
ended.

“Good night, Lyrissa,” his baritone voice
rumbled. “Good night.” She rested her forehead against his. “I have
to go in.”

“It’s not really all that late,” he
whispered.

Lyrissa trembled at the implication, or
rather invitation. She wanted to give in. Her body tingled with the
desire to hold him, kiss him, and make love to him. But she still
had a measure of control despite his assault on her senses. With
one last self-indulgent sniff of his sweet musky scent, she sat
back.

Noel walked her to the front door. Lyrissa
stopped him from kissing her again. She wasn’t sure she’d be able
to leave him if he did. He left, but Lyrissa knew she’d hear his
voice for the rest of the night.

“Yes indeed, it’s time to shake it out of
that bed!” the male voice said with exuberance.

“Oh, Lord!”

Lyrissa slapped her hand around on the
nightstand trying to find the snooze button. The disc jockey
rattled »n, oblivious to the pain he inflicted. A stack of
magazines flew to the floor before she finally hit the elusive
target. Then she opened her eyes slowly. Sunlight cast a thin line
into the mauve carpet beneath her window. Lyrissa got up and opened
the blinds. She took a deep breath. Now that she was up, it was a
glorious morning. A bird trilled a lovely song from the oak tree
branch nearby. When footsteps approached, Lyrissa hopped back into
bed and pretended to be sound sleep.

“Morning,” Mama Grace said from the bedroom
door.

“Mornin’.” She shrank deeper under the floral
sheet.

“I’m not surprised you’re having trouble
getting up. You came in very late.”