Every Beat of My Heart Page 14

  Behind her, the conversation suddenly halted. Wondering what had made everybody go silent, she swiveled in her seat to see.

  There, standing in the open doors of the room, was Rashad.

  He wore a royal blue suit, black shirt and royal blue tie. His locks were left free, the brown tips hanging around his shoulders. In his arms, he carried what had to be the biggest bouquet of roses, larkspur and lamb’s ears she’d ever seen.

  His eyes were fixed on her as he started to walk in her direction.

  She got to her feet, wanting to meet him halfway. She was so mesmerized by the sight of him, however, that she couldn’t get her feet moving.

  So she just stood there in silence, like everyone else in the room, and watched him walk. God, how she loved to watch him walk.

  When he reached her, he handed over the humongous bouquet. She set it on the chair she’d just vacated.

  Their eyes locked.

  The open palms of his big hands rose to gently grasp her bare forearms. His sexy, full lips parted. “Lina, I have a trust fund. I should have told you about it from the beginning, but I haven’t had positive experiences with women who knew about it in the past. I should have known you weren’t like them, and I should have been honest with you. I’m sorry, baby. Please forgive me.”

  She looked up at him, felt her body moving closer to his of its own accord. When she was chest to chest with him, she wrapped her arms around his neck. The words in her heart tumbled from her mouth on a breathless sigh. “I forgive you.”

  A smile spread across his handsome face. “That’s the best thing I’ve heard all day.”

  Cheers and applause erupted as he leaned down and touched his lips to hers. Everybody in the room was now privy to her personal business, but as her lips parted and his tongue darted inside her mouth, she didn’t care. His kiss sent shock waves of desire radiating through her whole body.

  When he finally broke the kiss, she wove her hands into the dark riches of his hair. “I’m glad you came here, Rashad.”

  His eyes smoldering with heat, he stroked a fingertip along her cheek. “I wouldn’t miss this for anything in the world.”

  A sigh escaped her, and as he dipped his head to kiss her again, she melted into his embrace.

  * * *

  Doing his best to keep his focus on the road and off his incredibly sexy passenger, Rashad drove his truck through the streets of downtown Charlotte. They’d tucked her flowers, along with her briefcase and blazer, into the back of the extended cab and hit the road only a few minutes ago. As he pulled up to a red light, he took the opportunity to let his eyes feast on the beauty of his queen.

  Lina wore a black pencil skirt and a sleeveless white button-down blouse. A string of pearls around her neck matched the small studs in her ears, and her hair was in its naturally curly state, held back from her face by a glittery white headband. A pair of black peep toe pumps capped her long legs. The outfit was simple and professional, but on her, drop-dead sexy.

  “So, you’re not going to tell me where we’re going?” She gazed out the window as she posed the question, as if she could use the passing scenery to discern their destination.

  He shook his head. “Nope. I told you, it’s a surprise.”

  “Come on, I’ve already been surprised once today. Besides, there’s nowhere I want to go right now other than your place. We’re due for some serious makeup sex, boo.”

  A tremble of desire ran through him, and his body responded to the sensual invitation in her voice. “Trust and believe, baby, I’m gonna give you what you’re asking for before the night is out. We just have to make a stop first.”

  She offered him a mock pout, which soon dissolved into a smile.

  He felt his own grin broaden in response. Yesterday he’d been worried he’d never be blessed with her smile again. Now he wanted to spend the rest of his life keeping that gorgeous smile on her face.

  Reaching the parking lot of the Afro-American Arts Museum, he pulled the truck into a space. He cut the engine and hopped out, tucked his keys into his pocket. After walking to the passenger side, he opened the door and helped her down.

  The question he sensed she would ask was out of her mouth before her foot left the running board. “What are we doing here?”

  Seeing her safely to the ground, he held fast to her soft-skinned hand. “You’ll see in a minute. Come on.”

  He hit the button on his keys to lock the truck while he led her through the glass doors and into the museum’s lobby. Inside, he nodded to the staff member posted behind the desk. After they exchanged a few words, Rashad led her down a corridor to the main exhibition hall.

  “I haven’t been here in a couple of years,” she commented. “My father used to volunteer here, though. He loved this place.”

  Once they were inside the large marble floored room, Lina looked around for a few minutes, taking in the artifacts displayed there. He knew when she finally saw it, because she gasped.

  “Oh my God.” She clasped a hand over her mouth.

  There, in the center of the room, sat Monk’s spectacular gilded piano, along with the matching bench. The museum staff had cordoned it off with a set of burgundy velvet ropes, and a sign with the words Please Do Not Touch rested atop the piano’s hood.

  She let go of his hand, walked closer to the piano. “It really is a work of art. It belongs here, doesn’t it?”

  Rashad nodded. “Yes. It was pretty selfish of me to want to keep it to myself. Now everyone can enjoy it, including your mother.”

  She rested her palm on one of the rope stands, shaking her head. “To think we spent all that time fussing about it, now neither of us has it.”

  “I’ll get to see it as often as I like, since I’m going to be working here as a curator.”

  She turned toward him, her expression somewhat confused. “Really? Even with the trust fund, you still want to work?”

  He shrugged. “I worked at the courthouse all those years, why not? I know I’ll actually enjoy working here and, besides, work ethic is part of who I am.”

  She nodded, seemingly impressed. “Okay, then. Thanks for bringing me here to see it.”

  “No problem. Now, about that makeup sex...”

  She walked back over to him, raised up on her toes to kiss him on the cheek. “Let’s go.”

  They were back outside and in his truck within a couple of minutes.

  As he guided the truck out of the lot and into traffic, he knew it was time to tell her the full story. “My family’s furniture company is very successful, and if I wanted to, I could step into an executive position at any time. I moved here to Charlotte to start my own life, away from the family business.”

  She nodded, but asked, “Why? Why would you want to escape what could have been an easy life?”

  He sighed. “My grandfather, Solomon. He founded MacRae Incorporated back in the fifties. I remember him as a cruel, mean-spirited man who lorded his wealth and power over others, and I vowed never to be like him. To me, that meant leaving the family business behind.”

  She was quiet for a few moments, as if mulling over what he said. “Do you know what made him that way?”

  He nodded as he turned the wheel, directing the truck into his subdivision. “Yes. My parents told me about it. My grandfather married my grandmother after the company started to take off, and apparently he loved her fiercely. She didn’t share his feelings, though, having married him just for the lifestyle he could provide her. She carried on affairs through their entire marriage, and when he finally confronted her, she demanded a divorce.”

  “Wow.”

  “Wow is right. After my grandmother walked out of his life, he became embittered, taking out his pain on everyone else. He never remarried, and never recovered from her betrayal.”

  She wh
istled. “Now I see why you didn’t tell me about your finances. It must have been hard growing up with someone like that in your life.”

  He had to agree with her assessment. “I guess that plays into why I didn’t want you to know about my trust fund. I wanted to be sure you loved me for who I was, not for what I could give you.”

  She reached out, laying her hand on his thigh. The heat of her touch seemed to singe his skin through the fabric of his slacks. “I do love you, Rashad. I honestly, truly do.”

  He squeezed her hand as he pulled into his driveway. “I know you do, baby. And I love you.” He hit the button on the remote attached to his headliner, opening the garage door.

  Once the truck was parked and the door lowered, he went around to her side. Opening the door he scooped her out, draping her body over his shoulder.

  “Rashad!” His name escaped her lips on a squeal of delight.

  With one hand firmly planted on her ass, he fished his keys from the pocket of his slacks, unlocked the side door and carried her into the house. She giggled all the way to his bedroom, where he gently lay her body across his king-size bed.

  He wanted more than anything to kiss her, to let his tongue and his hands become thoroughly reacquainted with the tastes and feel of her. He held his raging desire in check in favor of taking his time. Because tonight, it wasn’t just about makeup sex. No, this was a celebration of their love and new commitment to each other, and he planned to give it to her until she sang his name. He never wanted her to forget this night.

  So while she lay sprawled across his bed, watching him, he finished the preparations he’d begun earlier in the day in hopes she’d forgive him. He got the long-nosed candle lighter from his nightstand drawer and moved around the room lighting the candles he’d already put in place. Then he grabbed the remote to his stereo system and pressed Play. The playlist he’d queued up earlier began to play, starting with Raheem Devaughn’s recent album.

  As the thumping beat of the second track began, she sat up in bed. “So it’s like that?”

  Shrugging out of his sport coat, he held her gaze. “Oh, yeah, baby. It’s like that.”

  Chapter 17

  With appreciative eyes, Lina watched Rashad strip away his clothes, one item at a time. First his sport coat hit the floor, then his tie. His big hands unfastened the buttons running down the front of his shirt, and his eyes met hers as he tossed the shirt and the tank beneath it away.

  Lina sucked in a breath through clenched teeth as she was met with the sight of the rippling muscles of his upper body. His hands went to the front of his slacks, and he unbuttoned them, letting them slide down his powerful thighs.

  At this point she realized she’d slid to the edge of the bed. She started undoing the buttons of her blouse, only to have him gesture for her to stop.

  “No, baby. I’ll handle that.”

  Obediently she dropped her hands to her sides.

  Wearing nothing but his blue silk boxers, he strode over to the bed. Weaving his hands into her hair, he leaned down to kiss her lips. Then his magical mouth moved to her neck, his tongue darting out of his mouth to graze over the sensitive skin. His hands undid her buttons and slipped the blouse down her arms and off her body. He backed off a bit, smiling at the sight of her black lace bra.

  Her head fell back as he planted a kiss above the tiny bow centering the cups of the bra, and reached around her to undo the clasp. Several heated moments passed as he undressed her, pausing to kiss and caress each area of flesh he unveiled. Her body obeyed his every unspoken command. Though she was barely aware of it as her hips rose from the bed so he could do away with her skirt and panties.

  He stood before her as if admiring her nudity. “You’re so, so beautiful.”

  “So are you...” The words slipped from her lips as her hand trailed up his hard thigh. She found the slit in the front of his boxers, and eased her hand inside.

  “Lina.” He breathily husked out her name as she freed his hardness from between the open halves of the fabric.

  She said nothing, leaning forward to capture him in her mouth.

  His hands first landed on her shoulders, then moved up when he threaded his fingers through her hair. She could feel the subtle movement of his hips as she loved him the same way he’d loved her, attentively and with ardor. To increase his pleasure, she hummed along with the familiar track playing in the background, while he was still in her mouth.

  “Ah.” He groaned, drew her away.

  Looking up at him, she winked.

  “Woman, you are wicked.”

  She offered him a bedroom-eyed smile. “Only for you.”

  With a growl, he leaned down to kiss her again. As the kiss deepened, they moved in tandem toward the center of the mattress. Fluidly, she moved so that he was on his back, and before he could take over again, she straddled him.

  He reached beneath the pillow, extracting a condom, and handed it to her.

  “You must have been pretty sure I’d forgive you.”

  He gave her bottom a firm smack. “What can I say, I’m an optimistic man.”

  Shaking her head, she unwrapped the condom. They maneuvered a bit so he could remove his boxers, and she covered his hardness. She tossed the pack away, then centered her body over his.

  His open palms caressing her hips, she lowered herself onto him. Both of them sighed as their bodies joined, and she could feel the hot liquid desire he’d built in her enveloping him. Once she’d taken him in as deeply as she could, she shuddered and, lifting her hips, she began to ride.

  She watched his face, and saw his eyes roll up into his head as she fell into a rhythm that matched the slow, sexy beat of the music. His big hands palmed her ass, and she could hear his low growl mixing with the sounds of her own moans. He filled her so well, touching places inside her that set her very soul aflame. Before she knew it, she could feel the opening notes of orgasm building within.

  He grasped her hips firmly, halting her motion. “I’m taking over, baby.”

  She could do nothing more than grab his shoulders and hold on as his hips began to piston upward, driving his hardness in and out of her body. She felt the blissful friction increasing in tandem with his powerful upward thrusts as he drove her closer and closer to madness. She moaned, sighed and finally cried out as the building pleasure reached its peak. She flung her head back and sang his name on the wings of ecstasy and, soon after, heard him roar as he found his own release.

  She came back to herself then, moving around until she lay flat on top of him, her head resting against his chest. The cadence of his beating heart was just as rapid as her own. He draped his strong arms around her, and she relished the feel of being held by the man she loved.

  She gave his sweat-dampened chest an affectionate stroke. “Are you awake?”

  His husky reply filled the silence. “Yeah.”

  “I know I told you I forgive you, and I do.”

  He kissed the top of her head. “Thank you for forgiving me, baby.”

  Tucking one arm beneath him, she cuddled closer to the warm lines of his hard body. “I’m just glad you finally opened up to me. That was all I ever really wanted, to know you fully.” She had to admit she was curious about the details of his trust fund, but she didn’t ask. When he felt comfortable enough, she was sure he’d tell her.

  “From now on, there will be no more secrets between us. I promise.”

  She could feel the smile lifting the corners of her mouth, because deep down, she trusted him to keep his word. “There is something else that I need to say, and it’s important.”

  He tensed a bit beneath her. “What is it?”

  She sighed. “I love you, Rashad. And you may as well know, since there’s no way I can deny it now.”

  He shifted, used his hand to cup her chin. T
ilting her face up, he gazed into her eyes. “I love you, Lina.”

  She touched her lips to his, and as the kiss deepened she realized that she’d never felt safer or more at peace than she did lying in his arms.

  * * *

  Balancing an aluminum pan filled with grilled meat, Rashad maneuvered around the gaggle of folks standing on the patio and set the pan down on the table. The Emerald Isle beach house, owned by Darius and Eve, was crawling with people who’d come together for a nontraditional baby shower of sorts for the couple. Eve, now in her second trimester, had insisted on having a cookout and inviting all their good friends, instead of the traditional female-only affair.

  The house was located on a wide band of private beach, accessed by a flight of stairs descending from the glazed oak patio. Down there, a volleyball net had been anchored in the white sand, and several people were participating in a match. Opened beach umbrellas dotted the landscape, and beyond the strip of sand lay the endless, rippling blue-gray waters of the Atlantic.

  As Rashad moved back to his post by the grill, he elbowed Darius, who was busy brushing sauce onto several racks of baby back ribs. “Dude, I thought I was an invited guest here. Why do you have me working the grill with you?”

  Darius grinned. “C’mon, Rashad. You’re no guest. You’re family.”

  “And that means putting me to work?”

  “Damn skippy.” Darius gave him a playful punch in the shoulder.

  He rolled his eyes. It had been a good hour or more since he’d seen Lina, and he was starting to get antsy. Generally he didn’t mind helping out with something like this, but he knew he’d enjoy the task all the more if he had his sweetheart nearby.