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"Wow! They are so pretty!" Laura exclaimed and did her best to ignore the tug at her heart. She’d seen the movieSevenand knew that envy wasn’t just a sin; it was one of the deadly ones. But she just couldn’t help what she felt. She wanted to have what the woman standing in front of her had so badly. A husband, kids, and family. "What can I get for you two?"
"We would love two brownies to go."
Laura made small talk with the woman as she rang her up and as she watched the mother-daughter duo walk out of the shop. From the time she could remember, she’d pictured herself as a mom. Watching all three of her sisters and all twelve of her cousins get married and have babies had taken a toll on her. As happy as she was for them, and as much as she practiced gratitude for all the blessings she did have in her life, she couldn’t help but be disheartened and discouraged that she wasn’t at that stage in her life.
Her phone rang, and Laura was glad for the interruption to her pity party.
"Hey Ma—"
"Don’t forget to wear lipstick." Her mom cut her off before Laura could even get out her greeting.
"What?" She had no clue what her mom was talking about.
"For yourdate. Don’t forget to wear lipstick."
Oh shit. How had she forgotten her mom’s call last night? She was supposed to be at Lanterns in twenty minutes. All day, she’d felt like she was a step behind thanks to a sheet-twisting, restless night. The lack of sleep she’d gotten thanks to a certain retired Navy SEAL's heroics in saving her from a broken tailbone and Sofie from a night stuck in the tree might have something to do with her scattered brain.
"Mija, did you forget that you are going—"
"What? No," Laura instinctively lied. Her mom told him that she’d meet him there at six-fifteen, and it was five minutes to six, so she didn’t have time to change. Thankfully, she kept an in-case-of-emergency bag in the back that had a cute shirt and heels in it on the off chance the man of her dreams waltzed through the door and asked her out. "I was just closing up, and I’m meeting him for a drink."
"Good. Good. Call me when you get home, and don’t forget to wear lipstick."
"Yes, Mama. I will."
Evalina Lopez believed that lipstick was the answer to all of life’s woes and uncertainties. Lipstick was a cure-all and a must-have. If Laura or one of her sisters were under the weather, their mom would tell them to put on some lipstick, and they’d feel better. If they were nervous about something, she would insist they put on some lipstick, and they could conquer the world. If they liked a boy, her advice was the same: put on some lipstick, and he would be theirs.
Laura hung up the phone and checked out her reflection in the pond mirror that sat in the middle of the mural painted on her brick wall.
She hadn’t had the energy to blow dry her hair after her shower this morning, so she’d pulled it up in a ponytail. It wouldn’t have been her first choice of hairstyle to make her first impression, but she had limited options, so this was what she was working with.
Her makeup was light. She’d slapped on a tinted sunscreen, a few coats of mascara, and some cherry-red lip balm. Although she’d promised her mother lipstick, balm was going to have to do since that was all she had on her. She dipped her fingertip into the circular tin and spread it on her lower lip before rubbing the top one against it.
Once the clock hit six, she locked the front door, went to the back, and grabbed her sleeveless red mock turtleneck with a keyhole back. It was form-fitting but still classy, and it didn’t seem like she was trying too hard. Her feet slid into her black strappy heels, which served to accentuate her bestasset. Which was her ass, in case that wasn’t clear.
After a quick once-over on the reflective surface of the refrigerated display, Laura grabbed her purse and headed out. She locked the door and mentally tallied up her time for the evening.
Lanterns was about a ten-minute walk; she’d get there, meet her date, order a drink, and nurse it for half an hour. Order another one, rinse, repeat, and be out of there by seven fifteen and home in time to wash and deep condition her hair.
As she made the walk, her mind was preoccupied with Knox. On Friday, she hadn’t even known he existed, and now on Monday, he was all she could think about.
She knew that nothing could, or more accurately,should,happen between them, but that didn’t stop her mind from imagining all the things thatwouldhappen if they were together. They had chemistry; there was no doubt about that. She knew that for sure now.
Even though he hadn’t been as flirtatious as he had at the wedding, watching him almost come up to the door the night before had proven that he felt the attraction, too. Which was nice for Laura’s ego but did nothing to change the fact that all it could ever be was a flirtation, which was going to be difficult if she kept running into him.
Yesterday, she’d had two unexpected encounters with him, and both had proven her willpower wasn’t quite up to par for the task of resisting him. So, from here on out, she was going to be prepared to see him anywhere. She would practice having her guard up; being ready for a run-in would hopefully lessen the impact of her attraction to him because it wouldn’t take her by surprise.
Yep, that was her plan.
A sense of renewed purpose filled her as she rounded the corner and walked straight into a wall. A tall, sexy wall of muscle. Large, warm hands cupped her elbows as her hands flattened on a chiseled chest. Her body knew who she’d run into before her brain did. Tingles spread through her like honey in hot tea as her eyes lifted and locked with Knox Savage.
So much for her plan.
He grinned, revealing a deep dimple in his left cheek.
Her first thought was that she wanted to lick chocolate out of it, which was strange for a couple of reasons. One was that she wasn’t a big chocolate eater. Two, she’d never introduced food play into her sex life.
"Sorry," she apologized as she stepped back.
