Yours to Savor (6 page)

Chapter Three

The kid’s got spunk
, Brandon thought as he strode out the office. Man, and those dirty blonde roots drove him absolutely fucking insane. But they weren’t the only reason he was interested in Sandra.

From the moment he spotted Sandra standing at the coffee shop counter that morning, he had a feeling he’d seen her somewhere before. Something tickled the back of his mind, but it was too faint for him to reach out and reel in.

He was determined to find out what it was.

Brandon always got what he wanted.
Always
. That type of assurance wasn’t arrogance; it was simply how he’d planned his life. And the last thirteen years had gone completely according to plan.

He was thirty-three, single, and living large off money made from the celebrity drug and party scene he’d helped shape over the last thirteen years. He knew well the coarse underbelly of the beast. After all, he supplied the lifeline that kept it running. It was how he’d made his fortune.

Girls like Sandra weren’t his usual type. He preferred looser women—the ones who came with no strings attached. Girls who danced in nightclubs in ways that left little to the imagination; girls who drew every eye but wouldn’t so much as glance at most men.

Brandon, however, was unlike most men. He’d learned to appreciate the best. He knew exactly what he wanted. He went for the women other men couldn’t have: the trophies, the tens.

And got them.

But he made sure to keep them around for only one night.

Brandon knew his power over women well. Good Italian genetics, he figured, mixed with an upbringing in the States, gave him the base. His height didn’t hurt, and the confidence he projected was something he’d built up purposefully over his latter teen years. A smattering of wit and self-deprecating humor also helped. Coupled with his influence and money, he was unstoppable.

He frequently found himself the object of desire of highflying beauties. At the start—before he knew any better—he had allowed those types of women to drag him deep into their intrigues. Once, it almost killed him. Another time, it nearly bankrupted his business.

Since then, Brandon had learned better than to strive for longevity in his relationships. Instead, he’d focused on affairs with little meaning and an easy out. And yes, even though sometimes he got suckered into a just-sex relationship for a few weeks, he could not afford anything longer than that. If he got too involved with anyone, it would create a grievous weakness that his rivals would gladly exploit. Although Brandon was more sophisticated than some petty dealer on the street, his line of work—dealing exclusively with rich clientele—was not without its dangers.

But things were changing. His life was changing. He was close to stepping away from the business he’d created and into a life of greater stability… a life on the right side of the law.

His line of work had left little room for home and hearth. Brandon had come from a large family, and had neglected them for thirteen years out of necessity. Rebuilding ties with them was one of his major goals for the future. He deeply regretted disappearing from their lives, but it was something he’d had no choice in. It was either
that, or to put them all at great risk. And he’d never dared risk his brothers and sisters—he cared about them too much.

But the minute this chapter of his life was over, he’d return to theirs. The business he’d built had granted him a fortune: affluence, power, a huge network of connections. But he already had enough money to retire on. There was only one more task to do, born out of a sense of obligation to his business partner. Then he could say goodbye to everything on the wrong side of the law.

That was one of the reasons Sandra caught his eye. Lately, the one-night stands that had sustained him for so long were becoming hackneyed. Maybe it was a matter of his growing up and desiring deeper meaning in his relationships. Maybe he understood it was time for him to set down roots. All the women who’d flocked to him presented little challenge, so they could not hope to hold his interest for long.

Sandra, on the other hand, seemed different. She had bite—and a backbone. He liked how she’d bantered with him, liked how she didn’t back down at his caustic remarks. He knew his brand of light-hearted arrogance could make him appear pompous at times—especially to those unused to his humor—but Sandra took to it well. He had fun with his cockiness, too.
The key is never to take yourself too seriously.

Of course, Sandra’s beauty was a given. Brandon did not waste time with anything less. But he
hated
the way she dressed. Yes, he’d only seen her in her work clothes, but even work clothes could be made to look flattering. There was no reason for her to stick to drab colors or for tops two sizes too big.

Sandra had to be self-aware enough to know she was beautiful. So then, why did she deprive herself by wearing such horrible clothes? Was it an issue of money? Of confidence? Did she purposefully want to deflect male attention? Why? What secrets would make her want to hide herself?

Brandon didn’t know the answer yet, but he trusted his intuition… and his intuition told him that Sandra had secrets. She didn’t play up the fact that she was beautiful. She hardly wore any makeup, and didn’t try to emphasize any of her feminine features. In fact, Brandon suspected her clothes hid her body from all but the most perceptive of eyes—all but his eyes.

He could already imagine her in rich, designer silks tailored to reveal her curves, hugging her delicious figure. He could see her in something that would take advantage of her stunning face, her beautiful hair, her delicate bone structure. If Brandon had his way, Sandra would bring that image to life soon.

There was something else about Sandra. She seemed somehow overly-qualified for her job as a receptionist. Perhaps it was the way she spoke; maybe it was the way she carried herself. Yet something about his first impression of her told him she had a keen intellect. Of course, Brandon knew that first impressions could be misleading. However, he did not think he was mistaken here. He had a feeling Sandra possessed…
depth
.

It was just a feeling, nothing more. But Brandon had learned to trust his intuition. It had served him well many times over the years. Sandra had to be shielding herself on purpose—from what and why, he did not know, but it was obvious a woman like that would not abandon her appearance without reason. And despite the indifferent air of formality she’d tried to assume with him in the clinic, he’d noticed the flash of excitement in her eyes when she realized it was he who had interrupted her morning.

So there it was. Some level of Brandon’s consciousness told him Sandra would be unlike any other girl he’d ever known. He knew he should not get too excited about her yet, especially after two cursory interactions… but he couldn’t keep his mind from wanting to build her up.
That’s why I went to three different clinics to find her this morning
, he thought, chuckling.

It didn’t take much coaxing for the amiable barista at the coffee shop to gush out everything she knew about Sandra—after she understood Brandon’s interest in her friend. Of course, she wouldn’t give him
explicit
directions to Sandra’s clinic. Lucky for him, he was in a small town.

Afterwards, it had just been a matter of swallowing his pride enough to pretend the burn was bad enough to see a doctor. It had obviously been a pretense, but it was a good enough excuse to walk into Sandra’s clinic unannounced. It made their second encounter seem like happenstance in her mind—and not like something Brandon had planned beforehand. He didn’t want to appear too off-putting by showing too much interest too quickly.

But he’d gotten his date with her, just as he wanted. He was pleased with how things had turned out. He’d have time alone with Sandra soon to discover if she really did have the depth he suspected in her.

A woman to care for can be a boon unrivalled
. Brandon knew that when he returned to his family, he wanted a woman like that by his side. He had no illusions Sandra would be the one—things rarely worked out so smoothly in real life—but she could help him learn the ropes of a proper courtship.

That’s why tonight, he planned on making their first date unlike any she’d ever been on.

Smiling to himself, Brandon took the keys to his Ferrari from one pocket and unlocked the door.

Chapter Four

A taxi? Really?

Sandra stared at the beat-up white cab that was pulling up in front of
Cassie’s Blend
. She had texted Brandon and told him to meet her there, after she missed his call, with the expectation that he would pick her up. When he texted,
Come outside now
, she assumed he was waiting for her.

In his place, she found a rusty, old taxi with a cracked windshield and dented rear bumper. When she tried to open the back door, the handle
stuck
, and wouldn’t budge until the driver turned around to bang on the door with his fist.

So much for my knight in shining armor
, Sandra thought bitterly as she shifted her purse between her legs and pulled on the seatbelt. The driver took off as soon as he heard the click, without sparing her a single word.

“Excuse me,” Sandra asked, “where are we going?”

The cabbie muttered something Sandra didn’t catch.

“I’m sorry, what?”

“I said,
you will see!
” he exclaimed, catching Sandra by surprise.

Jesus, what crawled in his cereal this morning?
Sandra wondered.

Obviously the driver was in no mood for small talk, so Sandra sat in the back quietly, peering out the window. When the car veered away from Ocean Shores’ main streets and started winding through unfamiliar back roads, Sandra felt some discomfort building inside. She had to admit, what she was doing was risky. Brandon was a stranger. She didn’t know the first thing about him.
Even this cab doesn’t feel particularly safe
, she thought
.

She debated asking the driver to turn around and taking her home—but thought better of it. She’d already agreed to see Brandon. And, despite her apprehension, she was curious about what he’d planned.

Eventually, the cab pulled to a stop in an unfamiliar part of Ocean Shores. They were at the end of a long, upward-sloping street, lined with tall evergreens. There had been some houses near the bottom, but they had petered out as the car climbed up. As far as she could see, there was nothing here but trees and forest. Why had Brandon brought her here?