I watch him merge into the hub of Harlow’s Scrumptious Haven with my heart in my throat. He’s not carrying a weapon, and in more ways than one, that’s a godsend. Now I’ve just got to pray he doesn’t prove how his body is the most powerful weapon in his arsenal.
Isaac is illuminated by an artificial yellow light when he opens the massive steel door of Harlow’s walk-in fridge.
“She hides the cakes at the very back.”
When he steps deeper into the fridge, I gather Callie’s hand in mine before soundlessly slipping into the bakery. Roger shadows us but conducts his stalker watch in silence.
I feel Callie’s heart racing through our conjoined hands when Isaac says, “I can’t see any cakes, Isabelle. Are you sure she keeps them in here?”
Even though he can’t see me, I nod. “They’re behind the eggs.”
While Isaac searches for a cake I know he won’t find, I wave my arm in the air, encouraging the bodies I feel around me to move in closer. The night is extremely muggy, but it grows tenfold when I’m circled by those nearest and dearest to Isaac.
“There are no cakes in here, Isabelle. All I can see is butter, eggs, and… is that lube?”
My neck snaps to Harlow so fast, I almost give myself whiplash. “What?” She swivels on the spot, attempting to act innocent. It’s a hard look for her to pull off. “Costco had a sale, and it didn’t fit in the fridge in my apartment. I didn’t want it to go to waste.”
Her words are barely whispers, but Cormack has no trouble hearing the undertone in her reply. He cozies up to her back, his smug grin bright enough to illuminate the kitchen without the bulb Harlow had him remove earlier today.
Happy everyone is in place, I exhale a deep breath to clear the nerves from my stomach before saying, “Harlow must have sold out of cakes today.” If the detective gig doesn’t work out, I should consider a move to Hollywood. The disappointment in my tone is so authentic, Callie’s lower lip drops into a pout. She loves cake almost as much as she does her stuffed bunny—and perhaps Isaac.
“I’m sure if Callie asks nicely, Catherine will bake her a rainbow cake tomorrow.”
Just as Isaac pivots around to exit the walk-in fridge, Hugo flicks on the lights in the main section of the bakery, scaring the living daylights out of both Isaac and me. He’s stunned by the combined ‘happy birthday’ shouts of his family and friends. I’m petrified about him discovering I lied to him twice in one day.
My whole I-organized-Scout-to take-us-home-tomorrow ruse was my way of seeing if anyone had let slip the event I commenced organizing last month. Isaac is a very personal man, so I couldn’t host his surprise birthday party at our home. Cormack suggested one of Isaac’s restaurants or nightclubs, but Isaac keeps very tight reins on his business dealings, meaning it would have made it virtually impossible to keep his party a surprise.
Although Harlow’s bakery is compact, it soon proved to be the ideal location. It’s smack bang in the middle of town, and I wasn’t required to wrangle a birthday cake across town while worrying about smudging the icing.
While greeting those privileged to be a part of his inner circle, Isaac keeps his eyes locked on me. His glare is so pulse-quickening, it has my knees knocking together. I hope his guests aren’t party animals because there’s no way I can maintain this level of excitement for hours. Just the way Isaac is looking at me has me heating up everywhere. His eyes are painfully enigmatic yet beautifully exposed.
It takes almost forty minutes for Isaac to break away from the people unaware the shock on his face is about to jump onto theirs. As he stalks across the room, past Hugo, Hunter, Regan, and their respective partners, his dad and brother, Jenni and Jasper, and a handful of faces I’m not familiar with, my panties moisten.
Even with shock still evident on his face, his commanding stature hasn’t faltered. He governs his empire with a sharp astuteness many hope to emulate but will never come close to achieving. Isaac is too perfect to be replicated.
Dizziness clusters in my head when he bands his arm around my waist so he can tug me into his fit and enticing body. I sway like a leaf in a hot summer’s breeze just from the sheer closeness of his handsome face. “You lied to me—”
“For a good reason.”
Isaac continues speaking as if I never spoke. “More than once.” My breathing stills when he brings his mouth close enough to mine, we share the same breath. “You’ve been a bad girl, Isabelle, leaving me no choice but to punish you.”
“Please.”
His smirk—my god.“As tempting as your offer is, your punishment is only suitable for behind closed doors.”
Goosebumps follow the track his finger makes when he glides it down my back. I’ve showered and changed since our rendezvous in the jet, meaning the ruched-tulle fanning out from my waist bunches around his finger when his thumb comes to a stop at the peekaboo hole showcasing the two dimples in my lower back. The zap his meekest touch sends to my pussy would have you thinking he’s stroking my clit. That’s how electrifying it is.
“Are you bare?”
“No.” I stray my eyes over the congregation of people filling nearly every inch of Harlow’s bakery. Isaac is so loved, even key members of Ravenshoe PD are amongst the rowdy party guests—including Ryan. He’s talking to a man with recently clipped hair and a full sleeve of tattoos. If I recall correctly, his name is Brax. He’s Ryan’s best friend. “Would you like me to be?”
I need to get my head checked. We’ve been at each other day and night the past four days, yet I still can’t get enough. Is that normal? Surely, needing someone this much can’t be healthy.
“Love is an obsession, Isabelle, but if it’s done right, it’s the healthiest obsession anyone can have.”
I swoon like crazy, loving that he can read me so easily. “So you’re not mad?”
Isaac’s thumb tracks the cupid bow in my top lip as he murmurs. “Today revealed I still have a lot to learn about you, Mrs. Holt, but I’m not mad. By bringing those closest to us into the one space, you freed up hours I can spend with you… beneath the sheets.”
