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The Honeymoon That Wasn't
“I’m serious. Guys at my club spend hours there and they don’t look nearly as good as you.”
Tony scoffed at Dakota’s remark. “Too much sitting behind desks. All they need to do is get off their backsides and do some manual work once in a while.”
Although there was nothing wrong with her backside, he thought, so round and firm, and her breasts… He had to look away.
“You don’t use weights?” she asked, shifting on the hotel bed, cupping a hand over his biceps, almost reverently following the curve of the muscle.
His ego shot up a notch. “I have a couple of dumbbells at home, mostly to help me loosen up. That’s it.”
She smiled at him. “We’re supposed to order room service for dinner.”
“Hungry?”
She reached for him. “Not for anything on the menu.”
Dear Reader,
Some of you will recognize the heroine’s sister, Dallas, and her new husband, Eric, from A Glimpse of Fire.
In that book Tony San Angelo, our new hero, worked with Dallas. I enjoyed him so much that I knew he had to have his own book. Choosing a heroine for him was a no-brainer. Like they say, opposites attract. And Dakota sure is attracted to Tony. In fact, this steamy chemistry is infectious as they can’t keep their hands off each other.
I’ve always loved revisiting characters in my books.
Even secondary ones, who can be especially fun and outrageous. I hated parting with them all in The Honeymoon That Wasn’t, but hope you enjoy the read.
Warm wishes,
Debbi Rawlins
The Honeymoon that Wasn’t
Debbi Rawlins
MILLS & BOON
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Even after swearing she’d never move again, Debbi Rawlins recently relocated to central Utah with her husband, Karl, where she adopted Dugly, a half tabby−half Siamese cat, and a puppy named Maile. When she’s not writing she can be found feeding apples to the deer, who are too numerous to name. So she calls them all Piggy.
This is for Logan, the newest addition to our extended family. The cutest baby in the world.
Contents
Prologue
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Epilogue
Prologue
To: The Gang at Eve’s Apple
From: LegallyNuts@EvesApple.com
Subject: Insanity
I’m not sure why I’m writing to you guys. Besides the fact that it’s three in the morning and I can’t sleep. I know the reason for the insomnia, which doesn’t help one bit. Tomorrow night, no,
The problem is that I’ll see Tony again. A friend of my sister’s. He’s part of the wedding party. I met him only once, almost a year ago at the job site where they worked. He was wearing a tight white T-shirt and, my, oh, my, what a chest.
He’s tall, too, at least six feet, broad shoulders, dark wavy hair, chocolate-brown eyes and a kind of square jaw. You get the picture. The guy is hot.
So why am I dreading tonight like I would a trip to the dentist? But I’m also looking forward to it. Does that make sense? If so, explain it to me, would you?
Oh, by the way, I’m not new to the group but I’ve been lurking for a while. To be honest, I never thought I’d post anything. Too busy. And besides, it’s not my style. Or so I thought. This guy has my brain going in circles.
Frankly, if I were by myself and met him at a bar, it would be a no-brainer. I’m not into one-night stands though for him I’d make an exception. But that he knows my sister, and will be meeting my parents and brother tonight, complicates everything. I’m definitely not interested in anything long-term. Anyway, he’s not someone who’s in the game plan. No one is, really. I’ve been lucky. My career is taking off. A social life? What’s that?
I’m a lawyer and due in court in six hours. I’m so tired. I truly wish I could sleep. But that’s not going to happen. And now I’m rambling. Enough. If anyone is out there with some advice or even to confirm that I’m totally out of my mind, I’d appreciate it.
Thanks for reading this.
D
DAKOTA STARED at her laptop’s screen for a moment. She was tempted to erase the e-mail. Writing it had been therapeutic—she didn’t need to send it. Nor did she really need a reply. Nothing anyone could write would make her act on her impulse to spend a carte blanche night with Tony. She was too chicken to do anything like that. Not to mention that her family knew him. Or they would by tonight.
Her fingers hovered over the keyboard. What did she have to lose? If she were to get a response, at least it would be something to do since she couldn’t sleep anyway. Besides, what would it hurt to get some feedback? She pressed the send button before she could change her mind again.
After setting the laptop on her nightstand, she got rid of one of the pillows she’d stacked behind her back and plumped the remaining one before sliding down, cradling her head in it and staring at the shadowy ceiling.
How totally bizarre was it to e-mail a bunch of women she didn’t know—well, in a way she knew them. After hours and hours of reading their uncensored, heartfelt outpourings, she knew them, all right. Maybe even better than their friends and family.
Sheer genius had inspired the concept for the Eve’s Apple Web site. Membership was simple. If there’s a guy you’re hot after you qualify. Not the right guy, in fact, more likely the one you absolutely wouldn’t take home to Daddy. But he’s also the guy you can’t stop thinking about. You know you have to have him just so that life can get back on track. So that you could eventually settle down with Mr. Right and not have to wonder. Posting was like going to a twelve-step meeting. Anonymous so you could really vent, and everyone there really got it. They shared experiences, and gave advice when asked. Kind of like free therapy.
Odd how she could put it all out there for these strangers, but not talk to Dallas about Tony. Not that her sister would disapprove. On the contrary, she’d likely urge Dakota to go for it. But that was the difference between them. Dallas did whatever she wanted. Family expectations meant little to her. Not Dakota. Always the good girl, she’d even followed in her father’s and brother’s footsteps.
But it wasn’t a sacrifice. She loved the law. In fact, she adored everything about her job. Dakota Shea for the defense, Your Honor—was her favorite expression. She wouldn’t change any of it. Her social life, on the other hand, was a joke. If she could even call having a drink once every other week at the local lawyers’ hangout a social life. Oh, and dinner at her parents’ Tarrytown house one Saturday a month.
She closed her eyes, praying for sleep. When it wouldn’t come, she tried thinking about work, mentally preparing herself for her court appearance in a few hours. But the distraction only lasted a few minutes before her thoughts drifted back to tonight. Back to Tony.
Groaning, she rolled over onto her side and grabbed the pillow she’d discarded. Comfortably sitting up again, she placed her laptop in front of her. She turned it on and saw she had a new e-mail. Good God, someone from Eve’s Apple had already replied.
To: LegallyNuts@EvesApple.com
From: BabyBlu@EvesApple.com
Subject: Losing it
Hey, D, just read your post. Yeah, I’m an insomniac, too. And we share another similar problem. A guy. Go figure. While it’s not too late for you though, I’ve already blown my chance.
You see, I was once exactly where you are. Worried about my career, worried about what my parents thought (I’m Jewish, he isn’t), worried about having all the right accoutrements to my upwardly mobile life.
Dakota stopped reading. Similar problem? Where had this woman—Dakota glanced down at the name—Carson, gotten all this crap? Rather large assumption. Dakota hadn’t mentioned anything of this nature. None of it applied. Not really. Okay, so maybe her parents were an issue, to the extent that they’d had a vision for her early on, encouraging her to study law and now strongly hoped that she’d eventually become a judge. Just a minor issue. It wasn’t as if she allowed them to govern her life. Sure, she relished their approval but what child didn’t?
As far as her career went, well, she was sufficiently secure. No worries there. Not that she wanted to test the waters… But that didn’t mean she was anything like Carson.
Her gaze was drawn back to the e-mail. She couldn’t help herself and resumed reading.
And to my parents’ delight, I became wildly successful. Mainly thanks to the real estate boom, doncha know? Yep, I’m a realtor, commercial sales mostly—high end. And that’s how I met Larry. He was a finish carpenter working on one of the buildings I was showing to a client.
Dakota abruptly stopped reading. A carpenter? That was creepy. Tony wasn’t a carpenter but a construction worker. Close enough. Professional woman meets blue-collar guy. Sounded like one of those awful talk shows on television with everyone screaming at each other.
She shuddered. Fatigue was really doing a number on her imagination. She left the rest of the e-mail unread and then skimmed a couple more that had popped up, both encouraging her to go for it. Then she signed off. She needed sleep. Not just for her court appearance, but to get through this evening. Without making an ass out of herself.
1
“SHE’S GOING TO BE LATE.”
Tony San Angelo looked at his friend Dallas. “Who?”
She smiled and sipped her martini. “Dakota’s always late on Friday nights. Too much happening at the office.”
“Hey, you’re getting married. It’s a big thing. She can’t make it to her only sister’s rehearsal dinner on time?”
“As long as she’s not late to the church tomorrow, I don’t care.” She elbowed him. “Relax. She’ll be here.”
“Like I care.”
“Uh-huh.” Dallas took another sip, trying to hide her smile.
“Nice place,” he said, pretending interest in the private dining room of the swank Manhattan restaurant. Hadn’t Dallas already told him he had zero chance with her sister? Not that he believed that. “I hope you and Eric didn’t have to spring for this little soiree.”
“Eric insisted on it because my parents are paying for the wedding. My father did try to argue because Eric’s parents are gone. Yada, yada. You know how all that male posturing goes.”
“What are you looking at me like that for?”
She grinned.
“Hey, I’m wounded.”
“Kidding,” she quipped. “You’re the least macho guy I know.”
“Ah, man. Now I’m irreparably wounded.”
“Okay, I’ll try this again. You’re macho without the macho mind-set. Better?”
“Hey, hey, break it up. People are talking.” Eric joined them and clapped Tony on the arm. “Good to see you.”
“I wouldn’t miss this. Our little Dallas getting married. Hope you plan on keeping her barefoot and pregnant.”
She socked him in the arm.
Eric chuckled. “Now, now, children.”
Tony liked him. Great guy for Dallas, even if he was a suit who worked off Madison Avenue.
A waiter came in, and said something to Dallas’s father. He nodded and then called for everyone’s attention, giving them a two-minute warning before dinner would be served.
The rest of the bridal party was already there, nibbling on shrimp and imported cheeses, and guzzling drinks, all the really premium stuff. Even Dallas’s snobby brother had made it on time, and he was one of the head honchos at the law firm where Dakota worked.
Tony drained his beer, the trusty domestic kind, and sat at the far end of the long, elegantly set table. The seat gave him an excellent view of the door, not that he was that anxious to see Dakota again. Okay, maybe he was. The woman was totally beautiful. Light brown hair, gray-blue eyes, incredible legs. But his strategy had more to do with keeping his distance from the senior Sheas.
Dallas’s parents had been cordial enough, but that didn’t mean he’d like to make small talk with them. They were different, too serious in his opinion; both scholars, he a judge, she a professor. Tony was strictly blue-collar. A college dropout. No regrets. He liked his no-headache job, liked living life on his own terms, not getting calls in the middle of the night like his pop did.
Nancy sat next to him. She was the only other person here he knew besides Dallas because they’d all worked on the same construction crew at one time.
At first he thought Nancy had bumped his knee by mistake when she scooted her chair closer to the table, but then she did it again. He looked over at her.
“Why do we have so many forks?” she murmured, her lips barely moving.
“Beats me. But I know you’re supposed to work from the outside in.”
“Okay.” She dubiously glanced around at everyone else and, mimicking them, placed her white linen napkin on her lap.
“The hell with it, I’m eating with my fingers.”
Her stricken gaze flew to him.
“That was a joke.”
She gave him a reproachful look, and then smiled at the white-gloved waiter as he set her Caesar salad in front of her.
Tony sighed. That was the trouble with these high-class places. You couldn’t relax. Have fun. Of course he’d keep his opinion to himself. He’d never hurt Dallas. This wasn’t just her wedding—these were her people.
His attention strayed to the door. Still no Dakota. No one seemed concerned. Not even Mr. and Mrs. Shea. In fact, from what Dallas had told him, they probably approved that she put work ahead of everything else.
Man, he didn’t understand these people. His parents would’ve given him or any of his three siblings a lecture right then and there. In front of everyone. The deal had always been, if the kids were willing to screw up in public, then they got reprimanded likewise. Even though none of them were kids anymore.
While being on time for a party in the San Angelo family was never a problem. When his older sister had gotten married the party had started two days before the wedding and didn’t end until three the morning after the reception.
The salad plates were cleared and the rack of lamb was just being served when Dakota showed up. Still dressed in her navy-blue power suit, she had her hair pulled back in an awful, matronly style. Nancy and the other bridesmaid were all gussied up, Dallas more causally elegant in a simple cream-colored silk dress.
Dakota looked directly at him, and he smiled. Her gaze fluttered away and his smile broadened.
“I’ve never had lamb before,” Nancy whispered. “Have you?”
“Yeah.” He briefly glanced over to see her skeptically staring at her plate, and then his attention went right back to Dakota.
She took the vacant seat Dallas had saved next to her, and damned if Dakota didn’t slide him another look.
“Tony?”
“What?”
Nancy made a face. “Are you listening to me?”
“What did you say?”
“I want to know what this green stuff is. It looks like jelly.”
“It is. Mint jelly. It goes with the lamb.”
“Right.” Nancy snorted. “Come on. If you don’t know just—what are you looking at?” Until Nancy followed his gaze, he hadn’t realized he’d been staring. “Oh, Dakota’s here.” She waved excitedly, and Dakota waved back.
Only at Nancy. Not at him. Good sign.
He smiled, thinking about the first day they’d met. The only day they’d met. She’d appeared at the job site to see Dallas. It was love at first sight for him. Okay, more like lust. Dallas had noticed his interest. Told him to forget it. But the eye contact he’d made with Dakota told him otherwise. If it had lasted one second less, it would have been a different story. And when she got to the end of the block and turned around, he knew.
“How do you know her?” he asked Nancy.
“Well, duh. She’s the one who helped us with all our legal stuff to scare Capshaw into taking our harassment complaints seriously. For free, too.”
Tony’s gaze returned to Dakota. A woman full of surprises. He thought she’d be too busy to help a group of women fight discrimination against the state’s second largest construction company.
“You haven’t met her.” Nancy leaned closer, eyeballing him with far too much interest. “Have you?”
“Why?”
“Have you?” She darted a look at Dakota, probably wondering why she hadn’t acknowledged Tony. Nancy seemed to arrive at her own conclusion, judging by the smirk on her face as she settled back in her chair. “She shot you down.”
“What?”
“There’s actually a woman in this city who isn’t gaga over you.”
“Get out.” He grabbed his beer and took a deep pull.
“Tell me you don’t know that all the women at work are in heat over you.”
“Yeah, right. Especially Jan.”
Nancy rolled her eyes. “I meant the straight ones. So what happened?”
“I met her once for about forty seconds.”
“You must be slipping.” She grinned. “It usually takes only ten for women to start getting stupid over you.”
“That how long it took you?”
Her grin disappeared and her cheeks got pink. He knew that would shut her up. What he didn’t know was that he’d been the subject of gossip.,
Shit.
Hadn’t he been the only guy on the work crew who’d been willing to speak up on the women’s behalf? Although most of the other guys were guilty of the harassment management chose to ignore. Still, he could’ve kept his mouth shut. But he hadn’t. And now he wasn’t working for Capshaw Construction anymore.
Fine by him. Being discussed by a bunch of chatty women wasn’t.
Through the rest of dinner, he and Nancy didn’t speak much.
She was busy choosing forks and eating, and he was busy trying not to stare at Dakota. The woman really needed to smile more. She looked too damn serious. The way she wore her hair pulled back didn’t help.
All of a sudden, her gaze swept toward him, meeting his eyes dead-on. She locked into him for one long hypnotic moment, and then blinked and looked away.
Excitement thrummed through him. The awareness in her gray-blue eyes was like a vice around his neck, restricting air, making it hard to breathe. To say nothing of the effect she was having on him south of the border. The woman definitely had him by the balls. What did she intend to do with them?…was the question.
“DID MOTHER TALK to you about the photographer?” Dakota foolishly asked her sister, in a vain effort to keep her mind and eyes off Tony.
“No.” Dallas frowned, immediately setting down her wineglass. “What about him?”
“Oh, nothing. I mean she wants to make sure the wedding party knows they don’t have to stop at his studio before the reception.”
“Right,” Dallas said slowly, her frown deepening. “I knew that.”
“Good. Just checking.” Dakota gave her a weak smile and then finished off the rest of her chardonnay.
The corners of Dallas’s mouth twitched and she glanced toward the far corner of the table. At Tony.
Damn.
Dakota clenched her teeth. Was she really that absurdly obvious? Probably. Her sister knew her better than anyone. Which also meant Dallas should understand that Tony was unquestionably the wrong kind of guy for her.
The thought struck like a bolt of lightning, coming from some dark void and stunning her. Shaming her. She glanced around worried that someone could read her ugly thoughts.
Her parents were chatting with Eric’s friend Tom and his wife Serena, both of whom were in the wedding party. Nancy, a woman who’d worked with Dallas, and Dallas’s roommate, Wendy, both sat on the other side of Eric.
And then there was Tony. Looking directly at her, his dark eyes sparkling in the mellow glow of the crystal chandelier. His lips curved slightly, and then he winked.
She lowered her gaze, removed the white linen napkin from her lap and brought it to her lips. Even though she’d yet to take a bite of her entree. The others were already being served dessert and coffee, and she could have easily skipped eating altogether except she didn’t want to upset her mother.
Sighing, she picked up her fork and knife. At least while she ate she could politely ignore Tony. Dallas and Eric were tête-à-tête and Cody had vacated the seat to Dakota’s left five minutes ago to make a phone call. Not that she had much to say to him. Being with her brother at the office for twelve hours a day was quite enough.
She slid a glance toward Tony. The chair next to Nancy was empty. Dakota jumped at the hand on her shoulder and swung her gaze around.
Tony grinned, his teeth brilliantly white against his tanned face. “Dakota, right? Dallas’s sister?”
“Yes, we’ve met once before, haven’t we?”
The corners of his mouth quirked up slightly and he gestured to Cody’s vacant chair. “You mind?”
“Suit yourself.” She cringed at the defensive lilt to her voice.
He didn’t seem to notice, just lowered himself into the chair, mindless of the way his thigh brushed hers. How when he angled toward her, his knee touched her knee. When he stretched his arm along the back of her chair and leaned close, her heart nearly exploded through her chest.
“I have a question.”
“Yes?” She inched back to look at him without coming nose to nose. Bad enough his warm sweet breath managed to caress her chin. God, he had such thick dark lashes. So not fair. And his smile as he got closer…
“It’s kind of personal.”
She swallowed. What could he possibly—
“Ah, Tony.” Dallas leaned over. “Glad you decided to slum it.”
“Right.” They exchanged the look of longtime friends.
“You remember Dakota,” Dallas said, the impish gleam in her eyes all too familiar.
“Yeah, we were just getting reacquainted until you butted in.”
Dallas laughed. “So charming, isn’t he?” She glanced briefly at Dakota and then turned a more serious expression toward Tony. “I need to talk to you before you disappear tonight.”
“Disappear?” He grinned at Dakota. “My motor is just getting revved.”
She tried to keep a straight face. Tried not to look around to see if anyone heard. Especially not her mother. She picked the napkin off her lap again and pushed back her chair. “Excuse me, please. I have to make a phone call.”
“Something I said?” Tony asked, his amused dark eyes watching her rise, lingering briefly on her breasts. Not long enough to be rude, but long enough to make her feel as if she were twelve again, awkward, nervous and wanting to suddenly disappear rather than face her parents’ reaction, her mother’s accusing eyes because Dakota had put herself on display.
