Chapter 20

Twenty

TOM

I brushedmy knuckles softly over Sara’s cheek. “Hey, sleepyhead, open your eyes. You’re gonna miss the best part.”

“Huh?” she mumbled, rousing from her drowsy state, seemingly annoyed at being awakened. She sat up, her eyes still at half-mast. “Miss what?”

“The most beautiful sunset you’ve ever seen. Come on. You said you wanted to sink your toes in the sand while sipping wine and watching the sunset.”

“Do I need to get dressed?”

“I mean, I don’t mind you in those tiny shorts, but you might get cold near the water.”

Clumsily, she dragged herself out of bed and pulled out a pair of sweat pants from her luggage. Tugging them on, she fell back onto the bed, body slamming down on the mattress—face first.

I stifled a laugh.

Christ. She was so fucking adorable.

“Let’s go, get up.” I took her by the arms and helped her up, hauling her over my shoulder and carrying her down the two flights of stairs to my ground floor. Once there, I placed her back down on her feet. She was still pouty, but at least she could stand. She hadn’t bothered to fix her hair, but I didn’t say anything because the woman had the sexy messy bun thing down to a science.

I handed her one of my oversized hooded sweatshirts. “You may need this.” She took it, her face still scrunched in a grimace as she slid it on. Seemed sleep deprivation turned her into a bit of a grouch, which I found endearing because she was the cutest grouch I’d ever seen. Grabbing a bottle of champagne, two flutes, and hooking two beach chairs under my arms, I gestured for her to join me. “Let’s go, grumpy pants. I don’t want you to miss this.”

Still in half a daze, she grunted behind me as she skipped out onto the sand through the French doors.

“We only have a few more minutes before the sun sets,” I hollered over my shouldered as I settled us near the water’s edge, close enough for the waves to splash at our feet.

A brisk breeze brushed against our skin and the powdery grains felt cool under our toes. Sara’s body was swallowed up in my sweatshirt which fit her more like a dress. She pulled the hood over her head as she plopped down on one of the beach chairs.

I popped the cork to our champagne bottle and poured us each a glass while we sat in silence waiting for the quiet spectacle. The ping of our flutes coming together signaled the beginning of a memorable evening.

After a few sips of champagne, Sara came back to life like a butterfly emerging from a cocoon. “There’s the girl I know…” I said as she offered me one of her heart-melting smiles.

“I’m sorry. Didn’t mean to be such a downer. I was just exhausted from the flight.”

“No worries. Everyone’s entitled to be a little grouchy sometimes. What matters is that you’re here with me now about to enjoy one of the most beautiful sunsets you’ll ever see.”

Thankfully, the California sun didn’t disappoint. The hot fiery sphere looked immense as it fell beneath the horizon, leaving a trail of burnt yellows, purples, and reds that sailed over a sea of blue sky. Sara sat speechless as her eyes lingered on the departing sun and the endless beauty left at its wake.

After a few silent moments, she said, “Thanks for forcing me to get up. I’ve never seen a sunset like this.”

“I’m happy you had a chance to see it,” I said with a toothy smile. Sara lowered the hood from her head and the wind swirled strands of her hair loose, the soft fading rays giving her skin a rosy glow. She smiled back, and my heart clenched.

God, this girl had no clue what she was doing to me. These feelings that had begun to brew, they were the dangerous type. I’d been here before. I’d fallen hard for a woman once and the heartache cracked my foundation. I wasn’t sure I wanted to go through that again and a part of me wanted to bolt, to hide from what I was feeling. But another part kept me here, glued to my seat, my gaze swimming in hers, unable to fight the pull because being near her felt too goddamn good.

Leaning closer, I tipped her chin up and kissed her soft lips, gently and unrushed. I wanted to savor this moment, to make it last forever. Her fingers buried themselves in my hair and a sweet moan escaped through a shallow breath. Fuck. I wanted this to be an innocent kiss, but hearing that moan stirred the beast inside of me, awakening my dark thoughts.

I swept the inside of her mouth with my tongue and stroked in fluid motion, imagining all the different places on her body I wanted to explore with my lips. It had only been a week since I’d had sex with her, but it felt like a lifetime. My blood raged with need and I couldn’t wait to get her naked and in my bed.

The cold water hit our feet and the chilly wind cooled my skin, calming the beast a little. “I think,” I said hoarsely, “we should head inside and get ready for the party.”

The disappointment that flashed in her eyes made me realize she’d likely been thinking the same thing—we were going to spontaneously combust soon if we didn’t address the searing sexual energy threatening to scorch us from the inside out.

Unfortunately, I’d promised Jake I’d be at his party, and I was more than certain that once I got Sara down to her birthday suit, there was no way we were going to leave my room tonight.

* * *

I chose to dress in the downstairs guest room and gave Sara the privacy and comfort of getting dressed and dolled up in my master. I’d told Tiffany to spare no expense and had her purchase several designer gowns for Sara. I had no idea which one she was going to choose, but it didn’t really matter. She’d look spectacular in anything she put on that gorgeous body of hers.

Pacing down by the staircase, I anxiously waited for her to come down so I could give her my other surprise. I sure hoped she wouldn’t think I’d gone a bit over the top—though I probably had—but for some reason, I wanted to shower her with all of the gifts. If it made her smile, I wanted to give it to her. I didn’t care what it was. If she wanted to own a million kittens, I’d have a truckload of them delivered to her apartment by Monday.

I sounded crazy. But that’s what she’d done to me.

When the door to my bedroom finally opened, I adjusted the cufflinks on my tux and stared up, waiting to see her. You could have probably picked my jaw off the ground the moment she came into view. The woman looked like a movie star. She’d opted for a floor length, white, form-fitting silk dress with a plunging neckline. Silver stiletto heels and a matching clutch finished off the outfit. The gown accentuated her body like it was made for her. She’d styled her gleaming dark hair into loose curls that made her look like a 1940’s Hollywood starlet.

She descended the staircase, and I couldn’t keep my gaze off the way the fabric hugged every female groove of her body. “Baby…you look…wow. I can’t even speak.”

She winked at me. “You look wow yourself.”

After a brief moment of simply staring at each other, I finally mustered the courage to hand her the small square box I’d been holding. “Here, I bought you these to wear for tonight.”

Her eyes widened, skin flushing as she took the box from me with caution. “Tom…you’ve already given me this gown, which by the way, your assistant forgot to remove the tag. I saw how much this cost and it’s like more than I make a month…so—”

I placed a finger over her red lips. “Baby, open the box.”

Nodding, she finally uncoiled the ribbon and opened the black, velvety container. “Christ,” she said, putting a hand to her heart. “They are gorgeous. I mean, these can’t be real?”

“You think I’d give you fake diamond earrings?”

She shot her gaze up to meet mine. “Tom, these are easily more than a carat each. I can’t possibly accept them.”

Shaken, she tried to hand the box back to me, but I closed my palm around hers. “Sara, all I want is to see you smile. So, if you don’t want them, that’s fine, but I hope you’ll accept them. I wanted you to feel as beautiful as you look.”

With a trembling smile, she took the earrings from the box and put them on, looking at herself in the foyer mirror. “They are gorgeous.”

I snaked my arms around her waist and looked into her eyes through the mirror. “You’re gorgeous. And tonight, everyone is gonna think I’m the luckiest motherfucker on the face of the planet.”

“I feel like Cinderella on my way to the ball.”

“Are you saying I’m your Fairy Godmother?”

She spun around in my arms, her brown eyes twinkling. With a gentle kiss on my lips she said, “No baby. You’re the fucking prince.”