The Santinis: Leonardo, Book 1 (6 page)

“That theory?” she asked.

“I think you can agree there’s some sparks there.”

She nodded. “Yeah. But…”

“Listen, we’ll take it slow. No rushing it.”

She sighed. “Okay. I’ll be busy with Jack all weekend. There’s something going on with him.”

“No worries. I understand brothers.”

“I bet you do,” she said with a smile. Then, she leaned over, cupping his jaw and gave him a kiss. It was sweet, and definitely not as erotic as the one they had just shared but it pulled at him the same way.
 

“I don’t have all night,” Jack bellowed outside.

He laughed. “Lord help any daughters your brother has.”

She smiled. “Thank you for dinner.”

Then she opened the door and stepped out of the truck. She walked up to her brother who was saying something to her and pointing to the truck. She reached up and smacked him in the back of the head again. Then started walking to her apartment. He watched until she opened the door and waved.
 

He drove to his own parking space, his mood definitely lighter than it had been in a good long while. There was something about her, something that made him think it was more than mere attraction. She was skittish for some reason and mainly because he was military. He would have to be careful about scaring her. He needed a plan.

And, if there was one thing Santinis knew it was how to make a plan. The woman wouldn’t know what hit her.

Chapter Five

Maryanne walked down the hall, her mood getting worse by the moment. She thought coming to work would help, take her mind off things, but nothing seem to be helping. Of course, Jack’s news had been bad—worse than she was expecting. She still wasn’t ready to accept it. He had stayed for two weeks, leaving late the night before. And he had waited until the last minute to tell her. Well, okay, not the last minute, but pretty damn close.
 

Inwardly, she sighed. It had taken all her control not to cry.
 
The Johnson boys didn’t like any crying. Truth was, they fell apart when she started weeping. She had used it against them for years because she could get just anything she wanted. Now, though, it would not work. A job’s a job and the dedication her brothers had to theirs was admirable. Or so people told her. At the moment, she thought it just sucked.

So, she had driven from the San Antonio Airport, barely holding it together until she closed her front door. She had ignored Leo’s messages because she didn’t want to embarrass herself.
 
In her experience, men, especially ones who had just met her, didn’t want to deal with a blubbering mess.
 

As if conjured out of her thoughts, she saw Leo walking down the hallway. She couldn’t fight the little sigh that slipped from her lips. There was nothing like seeing a military man, dressed in his uniform, striding down the hall like he owned the place. Just seeing him made her heart do a little tap dance. The familiar rush of excitement rushed through her, brushing over her nerve endings. She shivered in reaction.

It had been a long two weeks. While they hadn’t made it into bed, the heavy petting had left her frustrated. Of course, she hadn’t had a choice with Jack around.

“Hey, Johnson. Your brother keep you busy last night?”

His tone told her he was joking but she couldn’t really summon a smile for him. “No, he had a late flight.”

“Gee, sorry to see him go.”

That did make her laugh. Jack had made sure he had either accompanied them or was waiting outside when they got home. Her brother definitely knew how to cock block a fellow serviceman.

“How about lunch?” he asked.

She glanced at the overhead clock. “I have less than thirty minutes to my next appointment.”

“That’s okay. I brought some with me.”

She looked down at his hands then back up at him. “Yeah? Is it imaginary, Santini?”

He chuckled. “Naw. I have it in the lounge.”

Maryanne blinked. “You’re not supposed to be in there.” In fact, it was considered impossible to get the charge nurse to agree.

“I talked to Nurse Samantha and she let me in.”

She just bet she did. Samantha ran the floor like a four star general but she had a notorious weak spot for young men in the military. She had two herself serving and with Leo’s charm, there was a good chance that Samantha would let him throw a party in the lounge if he wanted.

When they stepped into the lounge, she spied the table covered with the red and white checked cloth. She stopped, but he grabbed her hand and tugged her toward the table. Heat filled her face at the knowing looks her coworkers were tossing in her direction.

He let go of her hand when they reached the table. She really didn’t know what to say.
 

“Leo.”

“Maryanne, sit down. I ran out to Rudy’s to get you some brisket.”

She hesitated and looked up at him. “That’s a long way.”

He shrugged as he pointed to the seat and waited for her to sit. She did, but not before she saw the little smile curve his lips. He leaned over placing his hand on the back of the chair. When he spoke, she felt his breath against her ear. “You said you liked it, and so I thought I would get it for you.”

Then he gave her a quick kiss on the cheek. The Styrofoam containers were sitting there as neat as could be, and there was even a little bud vase in the middle of the table.

“I...”

He laughed as he sat down. “And the quick ride out there was worth it if it left you speechless.”

She didn’t know how to respond. She’d never really had anyone try to romance her before…and that is what it felt like. They were involved but...they hadn’t been to bed and it was nothing serious. Not really.

“You look stunned. It’s just lunch, love.”

She shook her head and leaned over to keep her coworkers from hearing. “Guys just never do this kind of stuff for me.”

He offered her a crooked smile that did funny things to her insides and chucked her on the chin. “Then you’ve been dating the wrong kind of guys.”

She leaned back and even as emotions she didn’t want to feel tried to force their way out, she smiled. “Thank you.”

“You’re welcome. I just thought you needed it. You seemed...upset Saturday and I wanted to do something for you.”

It was scary how much he could figure out about her. She hadn’t told anyone about Jack’s assignment but Leo knew something was bothering her. They had spoken for five minutes on the phone. Her brothers had known her from the day she was born and still couldn’t figure that out.
 

“Jack’s being deployed.”
 

He nodded and dished out the food. “Ah. So not nursing a broken heart.”

She shook her head. “No.”

He glanced at her, his gaze scanning over her. She could see his mind working behind that sexy face of his. “It’s his duty, Maryanne.”

He didn’t try to placate her. He just said the unvarnished truth, which for her was always better to deal with.
 

“He volunteered. Again. They all do.” She shook her head “They piss me off.”

Leo laughed. “But you love them.”

“Yeah.”

“Where’s he going?”

She shrugged. “I don’t know. He couldn’t say.”

Which made it worse. Sure, she obsessed whenever she knew where they were, watching every news program and she was insane enough to have a Google alert for whatever country they were in. But…it was better for her that way.

“Hey,” he said, his voice lowering and filled with so much concern she felt tears burn the back of her eyes. She looked up at him. “Don’t be sad. I bet he’ll be back before you know and he’ll happily be interrupting my pursuit.”

She laughed and sniffed. Then, she leaned in and gave him a kiss on the cheek. “You’re sweet.”

His cheeks turned ruddy and she smiled. The fact that he was blushing because of her gratitude was kind of cute. And sexy. Why did she find it so appealing that the big Army medic blushed? She was in deep after two weeks if that was getting to her.
 

“So, no brothers around, yeah?”

She sighed. “I hope not. It would be just like Jack to call them. It would be easy for them to pop in since everyone is CONUS right now.
 
But at the moment, no.”

“Good. How about pizza in tonight?”

She smiled. “Trying to fatten me up, Santini?”

He grinned back at her. She felt something clogged her throat. “I have a feeling if I don’t feed you, you’ll waste away to nothing. So, how about it? I’ll bring the pizza.”

“No anchovies this time. I can’t believe you and Jack did that to me.”

“That wasn’t my fault. He told me you loved them.”

“What woman in her right mind would like anchovies on a pizza?”

He shook his head. “Are you trying to avoid the question?”

A little, but she wouldn’t admit it out loud. Having him in her house without her brother playing guardian would be dangerous. Like fall into bed, lose her mind kind of dangerous.

And she really wanted to be dangerous with Leo.
 

“Just pizza?”

He nodded.

“Yeah. I like that idea, and I’ll provide the beer.”

Then she dug into her food, feeling better by the moment.

*
 
*
 
*
 
*

“Do not expect anything tonight, Santini,” Leo murmured as he made his way to Maryanne’s apartment.
 

It was hard to convince his body to pay attention though. Leo wanted more than a little kiss good night. The cold showers he was taking every day were getting irritating.
 
He hadn’t been this frustrated since high school. He found more ways of making out with Maryanne than he ever did during his teenage years and Leo knew he was almost at the end of his rope.
 

Still, he knew not to push. Granted, Jack had been the main reason they hadn’t gotten any further, but something was telling him to go slow. A huge part of him, the one that wasn’t listening to his hormones, wanted to take his time. It should scare him, but as his father always said, once a Santini found something he wanted, there was nothing that would stand in his way. The only thing that did, or one of the biggest things, was her experience with men.
 

She was wary. That was understandable if she had never had a man try to romance her. What kind of idiots had she been dating? Leo had picked up on it the last couple of weeks. The fact that men apparently didn’t hold the door open for her, listen to her talk…just pay attention to her had been evident from her reactions. Of course, those other men didn’t matter. None of it did because he was in for the long haul.

He stopped in front of her door and just stared at the knocker. What the hell was he thinking?
In for the long haul.
Like forever? He had only known the woman for two weeks. People didn’t fall in love in two weeks with someone they barely knew.

Dammit. He was almost all the way in love with the woman.
 

Santini, what the hell are you thinking?
 

She’s a pain in the ass, prickly as a porcupine and so damned defensive. Just the look on her face today when he brought her lunch…he sighed. He knew she didn’t like showing her vulnerability to him, to anyone. But she had for him. That little bit had awakened a need to do things like that more often. And forever.

Before he could work through the feelings, the door whooshed open. She was still in her scrubs. They were blue today, almost the same shade as her eyes.
 

“Gonna stand out there trying to open the door with your mind, Santini?”

“Uh, no.” Oh, that will win her over.

She gave him a saucy smile. “Is that pizza for me or are you just happy to see me?”
 

The words didn’t register. He was in love with her. Leo loved just about everything about her, from the sprinkle of freckles that danced over the bridge of her nose to that smart mouth of hers. Damn.
 
He was pretty sure that she would be pissed when she found out.
 

Her brows furrowed. “Santini? Are you okay?”

He shook himself, trying to push all those thoughts aside, but his voice was still a little rough when he answered. “Yeah.”
 

“Okay, come on in.”

She stepped back and allowed him to pass. After she shut the door behind him she leaned back against it. He turned to face her.
 

“Are you hungry?” he asked.
 

Her eyes widened. He didn’t blame her for being surprised. Arousal was thrumming through his blood and he heard it in his voice. Leo just couldn’t help it. His fingers itched to touch. His mouth wanted to taste.
 
Every bit of his body needed her in a way that should scare the hell out of him.

“Maryanne?” he asked. He would take a step back if she asked. It might kill him, but he would do it.