Chapter Twelve

Jordan

I’d just turned down the heat on the skillet when the doorbell rang. Her timing was impeccable. I inhaled deeply, relishing the delightful aromas that filled the kitchen – garlic, balsamic vinegar, and best of all, steak. I wiped my hands on a kitchen towel and rushed to the front door, opening it with a smile.

Chastity stood on the other side, looking as perfect as always in a black pencil skirt and a flowing, lacy light blue top that nearly matched the color of her eyes. Her alabaster skin was smooth and flawless. She looked almost photoshopped, as if she didn’t have a single pore on her face. I liked the fact that she was a woman who didn’t wear a lot of makeup – just the slightest hint of blush on her high cheekbones. Her eyes were made up with long, thick lashes that made her already large eyes look even wider than normal, giving her a perpetual doe-eyed look. It added to her girl-next-door allure.

“Wow,” I said, scratching my head. “You look amazing.”

“Thank you,” she said.

Her gaze met mine and she smiled, her lips a luscious and juicy red.

“Come in,” I said, stepping aside.

Chastity stepped inside, looking all around, taking in my apartment. I could tell that she was expecting something a little more grand and elegant, given what I did for a living.

“Yeah, it’s a bit small,” I said. “But, it’s home.”

“It’s nice,” she said, sounding almost surprised.

My apartment was a small studio. Nothing fancy. Unlike most studios in New York City, however, my bedroom was set aside, giving me a little living and dining area. Of course, my dining area was usually reserved for my workout equipment – which I’d pushed to the side to make room for my small table and two chairs. One wall was lined with old, wooden bookshelves, which was where Chastity was drawn to first.

She ran a finger down the bindings, reading the titles in her head. Then she turned toward me with an amused and curious look on her face.

“Dante’s Inferno? I never pegged you for a classic literature sort of guy,” she said.

“Let me guess, you had me pegged as a Sports Illustrated kind of guy.”

She shrugged. “More like a Muscle and Fitness kind of guy,” she said. “And maybe a Guns and Ammo kind of guy too.”

I laughed and shook my head at her. The woman had a sharp wit and an ever sharper tongue. As far as I was concerned, those were a couple of her best qualities. As sexy as that tight little body of hers was, the mind that went with it was just as sexy. If not a little sexier.

“Truthfully, I haven’t read it in years,” I said. “But I remember enjoying it back in high school, so I kept it around.”

“High school?” she asked, cocking an eyebrow. “You read Dante in high school?”

I shrugged, a smile pulling at my lips. “What? Surprised I’m more than just a hot hunk of man meat?” I asked. “Shocked that beneath the body of this absolute bedroom stallion is a man of intelligence and taste?”

I teased, turning back toward our dinner. I flipped the steaks over, and drizzled more of the sauce on top of them. We had two fine pieces of New York Strip steak with a sweet balsamic and cherry tomato glaze, with a bleu cheese and bacon salad and twice baked potatoes. As I looked from her to what I was cooking, I belatedly hoped she liked meat.

“No, I just – well, I don’t know many people who read Dante for fun,” she said. “It’s not exactly light bedtime reading.”

I glanced over my shoulder at her, and she ran a hand through her white-blonde hair nervously. As if she was afraid she’d hurt my feelings.

“Honestly, I didn’t read it for fun back then,” I said, plating the steaks. “It was assigned in AP English. I just happened to enjoy it and decided to buy a copy for my bookshelf.”

I waited for her to be surprised at me being in advanced placement classes, but if she was, she kept that to herself. Most people discounted my intelligence. Some didn’t think I had any at all, if I was being honest. So I couldn’t blame her. She wasn’t the first to underestimate me and I doubted she’d be the last. I had a feeling that Chastity understood, as people were underestimating her too. It was something we had in common.

One of only a few things.

“That looks delicious,” she said, as I placed the plates on the table.

She took a seat and I poured her a glass of red wine. My hand briefly touched her arm, and neither of us pulled away, a feeling like an electrical current passing between us.

“I was hoping you weren’t vegetarian,” I laughed, pouring myself a glass of wine as I took a seat across from her.

“Nah,” she said. “I love animals, sure, but I love the taste of them even more.”

“My kinda girl,” I said and tipped her a wink.

Her smile faded, and she stared down at her plate. Her silverware was still on the table and she looked up at me for a moment before lowering her gaze again, an inscrutable expression on her face. I had a feeling she was about to say something I wasn’t going to like.

“You know, Jordan,” she said, speaking slowly and carefully, and still not meeting my gaze, “we probably should stop kidding ourselves. We come from two totally different worlds.”

I didn’t say anything for a long time. I just leaned back in my seat, remained silent, and eventually forced her to look up at me. She turned those baby blues up and finally, I had her attention. I shot her a cocky grin as I drank from my wine glass.

“All I wanted to do was cook you a nice dinner,” I said. “I’m not asking you to marry me. And I’m not pretending that we’re from the same world. Although, I will say that I think we may have a lot more in common than you might think.”

She blushed and lowered her eyes to the table once more.

“I’m sorry, it’s just – we keep hooking up, and now dinner,” she said. “I’m not stupid, Jordan. I know how guys like you think –”

“Guys like me?” I asked, raising an eyebrow. “Oh, do go on. Tell me what I’m thinking right now, Chastity.”

Truthfully, I was probably thinking exactly what she thought I was. Which was how fucking amazing it would be to skip dinner and go straight to dessert. My cock was already growing hard thinking about being inside of her, feeling her tight little body riding me hard as I tasted her mouth. But, that’s exactly what she expected of me.

I reached out and stroked her arm from across the table. It was nothing more than a gentle touch, as I stared deep into her eyes. I waited for her to speak.

“I’m sorry,” she said at last. “I didn’t mean to imply –”

“Exactly, you really don’t know anything about me,” I said, cutting her off.

I took her hand and put her fork in it. She stared down at her hand and the fork like she wasn’t sure what to do with it. As if it were some strange, alien object. Slowly, she looked up at me again and I gave her a cocky, lopsided grin.

“Now eat,” I said. “I didn’t slave over a hot stove so you could eat a cold steak.”

She gave me a sheepish smile, then picked up her knife with the other hand. I watched as she cut into the steak, taking just a small bite onto her fork, and raised it to her lips. The way she parted her lips and the sight of that perfect pink tongue – and knowing what she could do with it – made my body ache. Or at least, it made my cock ache. It took literally, everything I had to not push the table out of the way and take her right there on the floor. But instead, I watched as she took the steak into her mouth and chewed. A strange look crossed her face and a moment later, she raised her eyebrows and nodded, making a surprised, yet approving sound.

“Wow, that’s really good,” she said.

“Really fucking good, you mean?”

“Sure,” she said, giggling like a schoolgirl. “That’s one fucking good steak.”

Hearing her say such naughty words did little to quench my desire. She was such a good girl – clean, respectable and high-class – that hearing her sound like she wasn’t, was a huge fucking turn on.

Chastity was right when she’d said we came from two different worlds. Still, I couldn’t deny the fact that when we were together, we seemed to have a damn good time – whether it was fucking or just sharing a meal. It didn’t really matter. She always seemed to smile more when she was with me, and hell, she did something to me I couldn’t explain. Made me feel things that were confusing – and yet, somehow felt good. Felt right.

So personally, I saw her “from different worlds” comment as a challenge. Maybe she didn’t think we could really have anything more than just a get together and fuck kind of arrangement, but something in me was suddenly determined to fight like hell to make her mine.

“Okay, since you’ve learned something new about me, your turn to share, Chastity,” I said, taking a big bite of my steak.

Medium rare, more on the rare side, with red juices seeping out of every bite. Cooked to perfection. After swallowing my bite of steak, I took a drink of the red wine I’d paired with the meal. I was more of a beer guy, but I made certain exceptions on special occasions. And I thought trying to impress Chastity was a pretty damn good occasion. I was actually pretty impressed with myself that I’d picked out a damn good wine for this dinner as far as I was concerned.

“Well, what do you want to know?” she asked, cocking her head to the side as she took another bite.

“I dunno, whatever you feel comfortable sharing,” I said with a shrug. “Maybe why you went into fashion in the first place. Or maybe, you can tell me a little bit about your family.”

“Uhh, well, I went into fashion because I’ve always loved it. I was raised in it, I guess you could say,” she said and laughed. “Growing up, my family always went to galas and balls. New York Fashion Week was as big as Christmas in my house.”

“Your parents were also designers?” I asked.

“No, not exactly,” she said. “My mom was a model when she was young. And of course, she became a socialite as she got older. My dad was a producer-slash-investor. Until he retired, anyway.”

“Your mom also retired?” I asked.

“No, umm, she died,” she said, her voice softening, thick with emotion. “She passed a few years back. Cancer.”

“Fuck, I’m so sorry,” I said, suddenly feeling like a total jackass. “My mom died of cancer too. Last year, actually. So, I understand where you’re coming from.”

She looked up and our gazes locked, a current of understanding and shared pain passing between us as we shared a moment. Neither one of us smiled or said a word, but there was so much emotion in that one look that I felt the pang of hurt in my heart for my loss all over again.

“I’m sorry to hear that,” Chastity said.

She stiffened up in her seat, back completely straight and her voice coming out more stilted. That guarded look in her eyes was back and it felt as if she were protecting herself from something.

“Your turn,” she said.

“My turn? I just told you something about me,” I said.

“That doesn’t count,” she said.

“Of course it does,” I replied. “So, spill.”

“Fine,” she feigned an exasperated sigh. “How about something a little less sad?”

“I think that’s a good idea.”

“Hmmmm... well, I’m an only child,” she said. “Do you have any siblings?”

Her question hit me in the gut. This time, it was my turn to look away and fight back the wave of emotions welling up within me. I stared down at my plate, taking in a deep breath and letting it out slowly again before looking up.

“I have – had – an older brother. Nate,” I said. “He was killed in a car accident a few years back.”

“Oh God,” Chastity said.

She reached out and stroked my hand, taking it into hers. Apparently, no topic was safe from sadness in our lives.

“I’m so sorry, Jordan,” she said, her voice gentle. “I shouldn’t have asked.”

“It’s okay,” I said, giving her a half smile. “You didn’t know. Besides, if you really want to get to know me, it would have come out sooner or later.”

“I just wish it hadn’t been the sooner part of that equation.”

“Not your fault,” I said, clearing my throat and sitting u a little straighter. “And if I’m being perfectly transparent, my life went to hell shortly after Nate died.”

“What do you mean?” she asked.

Her hand was so soft against mine, and as she stroked my knuckles with her thumb, it actually calmed me down. It gave me something to focus on other than the pain roiling inside of me.

“After he died, I started getting into trouble. Spent some time in juvenile hall, ruined my otherwise perfect academic record and any chance of going to a good school,” I said. “So, with that chance gone, I just kept fighting, punching anything that got in my way. I took on all comers. Won some, lost some, took a pretty good beating other times.”

“It’s how you processed your grief,” she said, interlacing her fingers with mine.

“I suppose,” I said, looking up at her face.

Her icy blue eyes were staring right through me, like I was made of glass. It was like she could see down deep into my soul. I felt like she could simply reach in and pluck out all of my deepest, darkest, and most closely held secrets. The things I never wanted anybody to know. Ever. I adjusted in my seat, cleared my throat and quickly changed the subject, growing uncomfortable beneath her scrutiny.

“Are you happy, Chastity?” I asked, going off on a different topic altogether. “That you get to live your dream, I mean?”

She was silent for far too long for me to think she was actually happy. The silence endured, only strengthening that belief. It was odd for someone who only moments before admitted they were obsessed with fashion from an early age. I would have assumed she would have been ecstatic about it. When she opened her mouth to speak, no sound came out.

“I’m taking that as a no,” I stated, pulling my hand back to eat. “And why is that?”

“I guess you could say yes and no, actually. Owning your own business is hard. A lot harder than I ever imagined it was going to be,” she said. “There’s so much pressure, so many people demanding things of you all the freaking time. Sometimes I just want to sit in my office and design, not handle the day-to-day responsibilities that pile up on me. All that other stuff takes time away from doing what I really love to do.”

“Which is designing?”

“Exactly,” she sighed, shaking her head. “So now, I’ve hired designers in order to focus on running a business, and I don’t even get to do that anymore. Doesn’t seem right, does it? To have to delegate away the only thing that really made me happy or gave me a sense of satisfaction?”

“Why do you do it then?” I asked her. “If you’re not happy, why do you do it? Why not let somebody else run the day to day, and focus on the thing you love.”

She sat back in her chair and stared at me like I had suggested she give all her money away to live on the streets. Or maybe, more like I’d suddenly grown a second head.

“I can’t do that,” she said.

“Why not?”

“Because it’s my business,” she said. “It’s everything I’ve worked for. Do you intend to just stop doing construction when it’s no longer fun anymore?”

“I’d like to,” I said. “Personally, I’d much rather be doing something else.”

“Like what?”

I hesitated. I’d only told my father about my dreams and the thing I really wanted to do. And he’d shit all over them. Chastity was a lot like him though. She’d worked hard to make a name for herself and wasn’t about to walk away, even though she wasn’t happy. Would she understand?

I decided since we were getting to know each other – and if I wanted to continue progressing in my relationship with her, or whatever the hell it was – I needed to be transparent. Honest and forthcoming. Really, why the hell not?

“I’m more into technology,” I said.

“Like computers and cell phones?”

“Yeah, kind of,” I said, and then hesitated a moment before deciding to elaborate. “Well, not really. More like robotics.”

She chuckled and raised an eyebrow, “Robots? Like, the thing that vacuums my floor? Or maybe, killer robots from outer space?”

“I guess a Roomba falls under the blanket of robotics,” I laughed. “But I’m more interested in robotic systems that perform jobs too dangerous for humans. Mostly in space and underwater exploration.”

Chastity’s eyes widened and her jaw nearly dropped on the table as she looked at me. Clearly, she’d underestimated me. She stared at me for a long time and when she spoke, her voice was an awed whisper.

“Impressive,” was all she said.

“And not at all what you pegged me for, huh?” I teased. “Like me reading Dante?”

“Not in the slightest,” she said. “Wow.”

It was rare that I had the opportunity to blow someone away. Most women never took the time to get to know me or the things that really made me tick. And those who did weren’t the type who understood the hard work and brainpower such a career would take. Or maybe they did and just didn’t care.

Chastity was different. She was someone who worked hard and had built up her own empire with her own two hands. Just like me, she was more than a pretty face. A pretty face that people often took far too lightly.

She smiled and looked up at me, “This is probably a stupid question, but –” she stopped and I saw her cheeks flare with color. “No never mind.”

“No, go ahead,” I laughed. “There’s no such thing as a stupid question.”

“Well, I have to go to this stupid gala – this big, formal affair with cocktail gowns and black ties. The price I have to pay for being in the industry,” she said and rolled her eyes. “Anyway, I really don’t want to go alone. Do you think – I mean – would you be interested in going with me?”

“A black tie event?” I asked, a knot forming in my throat. “Me?”

“Yeah, I told you it was stupid,” she said, shaking her head. “Never mind. I’ll find someone else –”

No way in hell I was going to let her take someone else. No way.

“I’ll go,” I said. “Count me in.”

“Really?” she asked, giving me a wide-eyed sheepish look. “Because if it’s too much trouble, or –”

“Not at all,” I said.

It occurred to me belatedly that I had no idea what to wear to such an event, but I didn’t think it could be too hard. One way or another, I’d figure it out.

“Give me a date and time,” I said. “And I’ll be there. Black tie and all.”

“Thank you,” she said, taking my hand in hers and giving it a squeeze.

I had no idea what I’d just gotten myself into, but I had the chance to see her again and spend some real time together. How could I say no to that? Even if it meant dressing up and spending time with some snooty ass people who really were from an entirely different galaxy, there was no way in hell I was going to decline the invitation. After all, she’d be there. And I wasn’t about to let some other guy be there beside her.

Even though I wanted to conclude dinner by taking her to bed and having my way with her again, I stood up and started to clear the dishes. When she started to get to her feet, I laid a gentle hand on her shoulder and gave her a small smile.

“I got this,” I said. “You just sit your pretty little ass down and relax. I’m the cook and the wait staff here tonight.”

She looked up at me and smiled warmly, the flush returning to her cheeks. Fuck, she was sexy. My cock was stiff and begging for release, but I denied myself. Even though, I wanted nothing more than to stand her up, bend her over the table, push that skirt up, and yank those panties down, I held myself back.

Instead, I took the dishes into the kitchen and dropped them off in the sink. After that, I brought out the last course of our meal. Dessert. I set down on the table in front of her the homemade chocolate mousse I prepared. She looked up at me with wide eyes and an absolutely delighted look on her face.

“You’re kidding me,” she said. “You actually made this?”

“Told you I’m always full of surprises,” I said, dipping my spoon into the rich, chocolate dessert.