Standing up to his full height, which had to be around six foot four, he placed his hands behind his back. Once again, his cheeks moved, and his damn lips pursed as he sucked on the candy. He then seemed to push it to the right side of his mouth.
Rachel felt like she was being seduced by a piece of candy and a set of smart-ass lips. She needed to escape—Oh, at least three minutes ago.
“It was an overtly sexual offer, designed to provide you with the answer to your question.”
Shutting her eyes, Rachel tried not to let his voice slide inside her. She tried not to let it tingle all over her body, and she tried not to let that stuffy, I-am-better-than-you attitude stroke her sensitive spots.
I am trying and failing epically.
Knowing she needed to somehow regain the upper hand, Rachel let her eyes roam over his far-too-attractive face to his black wool coat, which was tailored to perfection, and she felt her pulse jump.
Watching his sharp, serious chin tilt down, Rachel inspected the blond stubble shadowing it, and she had to stop herself from reaching out and scraping it lightly with her blue nails.
“Like I was saying before you rudely interrupted me, as romantic as that proposition is, when I want to suck on your tongue or anything else, I’ll ask. Until then, no need to offer. It’s just embarrassing when I turn you down.”
Feeling rather pleased with herself, she lifted her hand and patted the lapel of his coat. It wasn’t until she remembered who she was dealing with that she realized, Bad idea.
Quicker than she could blink, his large hand was on top of hers, circling her wrist before she could think twice about it. He tugged her forward gently, and Rachel had no choice but to go. Suddenly, she found herself close enough to him that her breasts were pressed firmly against the wool covering his chest.
To anyone passing by, they must have looked like two people—Oh hell, who am I kidding? With the tension sizzling and cracking around us, we must look like two lovers about to attack each other against the wall.
But the two involved knew it was a completely different story.
“I don’t remember inviting you to touch me,” Cole stated in a voice that invited no argument.
But like a fool, she argued. “Well, you actually invited me to suck your tongue. Or have you already forgotten?”
Holding her firmly against him, his hazel eyes heated at the reminder. “An invitation you refused as far as I am aware. So, until I reissue the invite, maybe you should keep your hands to yourself.”
Feeling her cheeks flush in the face of the admonishment, Rachel nodded because he was right.
“I’m sorry,” she apologized begrudgingly. “Now, can I have my arm back?”
I knew it, Cole thought as he released her wrist and took a step back. His instincts hadn’t let him down.
“Is this over? I was running late before, and now, I am running very late. So, if you are done with…whatever this is, I would like to be on my way,” she pointed out in a frustrated and pissy tone.
Stepping aside, Cole removed one hand from his pocket and gestured for her to be on her way. As she tried to move by him, he whispered in a soft and dark tone, “This is so far from over, Rachel. It’s barely even begun.”
Her spine stiffened, but other than that, she did not look at him, and she did not stop as she marched away.
Oh yes, Cole thought with a tight-lipped grin, my instincts were spot-on.
Finally chewing on the sweet treat, he swallowed the sugary remainder and ran a hand up through his hair. Somehow and someway, Rachel was going to be his. It was all just a matter of time.
Time and patience were two things he had an abundance of.
2
“I’m late, I’m late! I know!” Rachel pushed through the back door of Exquisite and attempted to swiftly run by her brother’s office.
Unfortunately for her, Mason was quicker, and as she reached his office door, he appeared. Leaning his shoulder against the jamb, he ran a hand through his thick black hair.
“You’re not only late; you’re very late,” he told her, making a show out of looking at his watch.
Tugging on the end of her coat, Rachel arched a brow. “Am I? So, what are you going to do? Dock my pay? Do you know how hard it is to get here on time every night?”
Letting his arm fall back down by his side, Mason pushed off the door. “Okay, cool your jets. What happened? You miss your train?”
If only, Rachel thought as her mind flashed an image of a tall, serious-looking suit who also happened to be one giant pain every time she had seen him.
“No, I missed a stop, and the cab ride was longer than I expected. Did I miss much?”
“Nope. Pretty slow tonight.” Mason turned on his heel and moved back into his unorganized office.
Usually, she’d follow him in and see how his day had been. Tonight though, all Rachel could think about was the unsettling run-in she’d had earlier, and she didn’t want Mason and his all-knowing ways to figure it out. So, instead of chatting with her brother, she called out, “See ya,” and made her way down the back aisles to the humming kitchen.
It might not be a busy night at Exquisite, but that didn’t mean there was no activity. Quite the contrary, the kitchen was buzzing. The soft thump of music was playing, and she could see Wendy standing at the pass talking to Ryan, the new head chef Mason had brought in around two months ago.
They had decided to hire him when Mason had told her he wanted to be behind the scenes and only run the restaurant from now on. He no longer wanted to work in the kitchen or on the floor in any capacity.
That’s exactly what I need to do—hire someone for the flower shop, Rachel decided as she headed to the small office she shared with Wendy. Dumping her things on her very organized desk, she wrote a note on her calendar as a reminder to place a want ad tomorrow.
She tied her hair back, pulled a black ball cap off the peg from the back of the door, and stuffed the low ponytail through the hole in the back of the cap. Removing her blue coat, she put on the bright purple chef’s jacket she’d talked Mason into getting her. After fastening the two rows of black buttons, she looked down at her outfit, and she had to grin.
She loved that Mason hadn’t been strict when it came to what she wore in the kitchen. She happened to think her black leather pants looked pretty kick-ass with the purple smock. Mason’s indulgence didn’t surprise her though. He was just like their father had been. They both had always encouraged her to be herself even when it wasn’t quite the norm.
“I told you, I don’t want to talk about it.”
Mason pushed his hands into his khaki shorts as he walked into her bedroom and took a seat on the bed beside her.
“Come on, Rach. What did Lisa say to you?”
“Nothing.” Rachel pouted, crossing her arms under her newest annoyance, her breasts.
“She must have said something. You didn’t talk to her the whole way home, and I noticed you managed to throw her several death stares,” he pointed out, tugging on her bright pink braid.
Lisa Jennings, blonde-bimbo extraordinaire, was Josh’s latest girlfriend. She was the one girl who represented everything Rachel wanted to be. For a while, Rachel had done anything she could to emulate her idol. But that had all changed today when she’d walked into the girls’ restroom and heard Lisa laughing about Mason’s stupid pink-haired sister.