Chapter 13
The dark romantic lighting in Onyx did not hide the glistening of Angel’s hair and Monty could not take his eyes off her. With an uncharacteristic evening free for both of them, he finally managed to take her to dinner. Choosing one of his favorite restaurants, he had smiled as the host seated them at a corner table, next to a large window offering a view of a nearby park. Several of the trees lining the park’s walking path twinkled with Christmas lights filling their branches. Monty knew the lights were there all year, having taken a few dates on a walk after dinner in the park.
Funny, but I haven’t thought of another woman since meeting Angel. Seeing her sitting at one of his favorite restaurants as his date filled him with pride. Wearing a pastel pink dress, the square-neck modest but showing the tops of her bounteous breasts, tapered to a narrow waist before hugging her incredible ass. Silver hoops adorned her ears, and a necklace with a single charm nestled at the top of her cleavage. I wonder who gave that to her? The strange emotion of possessiveness slid through him causing him to lean back in his chair, battling irritation.
Glancing down to where his attention had been, she lifted the charm and smiled. “It’s beautiful isn’t it? My brother gave it to me when I opened ACH. He was deployed and unable to be there for the grand opening, so he sent this instead.”
Seeing the fondness in her expression for the necklace and the man who gave it to her had him smiling in return. “Sounds like a great guy.”
“He is. Best brother a girl could hope for.”
“Do you get to see him much?”
A shadow crossed her face as she dropped the necklace between her fingers and shook her head sadly. “No. I knew when he went Special Forces he wouldn’t be able to come home often, but the last two years have been difficult. I know he’s happy and would want me to be as well.”
“And are you happy?” he asked. Interested in everything she had to say, he sat entranced as her cotton candy lips sipped the wine. The candle in the middle of their table caught the sparkle in her eyes as she ran her tongue over her lips, making sure to catch every drop of the exquisite vintage.
“I am absolutely happy,” she enthused, watching him watching her lips. Unable to hold back a giggle, she added, “You look like a man who would like to kiss me right now.”
Sitting at a right angle to her for a purpose, he grinned as he leaned over doing exactly what she knew he wanted to do. Never a man for public displays of affection, he eagerly moved his lips over hers, the familiar taste of her sweet lips with a hint of the wine was a heady combination. Forcing himself to move away tested his willpower…along with gaining control over his swelling erection.
Their gazes latched on to each other, eager smiles indicating they knew what would be coming when the dinner was over.
The waiter brought their meals, both ordering a combination of perfectly seared steak and succulent seafood. Digging in with relish, Angel moaned as the first shrimp passed her lips. Monty groaned inwardly forcing his eyes to stay on his plate, as the idea of her lips around his cock and her moans filling the air, made breathing difficult.
“Tell me about your move?” he asked.
Her eyes lit with enthusiasm and she swallowed her bite eagerly. “I need a larger kitchen. There have been a few catering jobs that I’ve had to either turn down or had to spend all night baking because I didn’t have enough ovens to produce a large enough quantity at one time. I found an empty former restaurant about four blocks from where I’m now located. I’m closing the one as I open the other. So ACH will just be moving locations, not opening another store. I’ve let the building owner know so he’s going to rent out my old bakery to someone else, but I’m staying in the apartment.”
“You love what you do, don’t you?” he asked, his eyes riveted to her bright smile.
“Who wouldn’t love to be surrounded by cupcakes all day?” she laughed. “And as long as the permits go as planned, I can move in a month.” She sobered for a moment before adding, “It was Marcia who helped me with the finances to get the loan on the new location. I owe it all to her and now I can’t share the success with her anymore.”
He reached for her hand, giving it a gentle squeeze. “I’m sorry, babe. But I firmly believe that she’s still with you in spirit and knows what you’re doing.”
Her smile replaced, the two continued eating the delicious meal. Several minutes later, he watched her delight in each bite, making him appreciate the experience so much more. Seeing the tiniest dab of sauce on the corner of her lip had him moving in for another kiss.
“Montgomery?”
Turning sharply, he looked up to see his parents standing to the side of their table…with Claire. Fuck! Of all the people I don’t want to see right now, these would be the top three!
Breeding took precedence over telling his parents to move on, so he quickly stood kissing his mother’s cool cheek, noticing her eyes riveted to Angel’s hair. Shaking his father’s hand next, he nodded his head to Claire but made no movement to embrace her. Turning back, he held out his hand to Angel and introduced her.
“Mom, dad, may I present my date, Angel Cartwright. Angel, these are my parents, Russell and Lois Lytton. And this is a family friend, Claire.”
Smiling at everyone, Angel shook hands but noticed Lois’ appraising look and Claire’s unmistakable glare. She glanced to Monty, immediately picking up on his mood—unhappy. Because of them…or me? “It’s so nice to meet you,” she said, meeting and holding their gazes.
“Angel Cartwright?” Lois murmured before her eyes suddenly brightened in recognition. “You own Angel’s Cupcake Heaven?”
“Yes, ma’am,” Angel replied. “Have you had a chance to visit my bakery?”
“Oh, no. I don’t go to the downtown area where your little shop is, but I have had your cupcakes before. I believe you catered the desserts at the Women’s Legal Society last October. It was held at the Charlestown Country Club.” Turning to Claire, she said, “You remember, my dear?”
“Yes,” Claire replied, her smile on Lois but her eyes still hardened on Angel.
“I believe your cupcakes were the center of our granddaughter’s party last month,” Russell added. “They were delicious and Monty, here, had pink, purple, and blue all over his mouth.”
“It’s teal, Russell,” Lois said. “Not blue, but teal.”
“Well, whatever it was, it was wonderful and looked just like your hair.”
Laughing, Angel smiled at Monty’s father and said, “Thank you. I hope you’ll come by the shop sometime.”
“I’ve often said that you should expand your business. You could franchise and move into much more lucrative locations,” Lois added, ignoring the pointed glares from her son.
“Thank you, but right now the one shop is all that I can handle,” Angel replied, trying not to bristle.
“My dear, as a baker you can’t expect to understand all of the intricacies of the business world. You should seek the advice of a financial planner and a lawyer. Claire, here, is an excellent lawyer.”
“Mom,” he growled. “It might interest you to know Angel has a marketing and business degree.” He felt the sweat dripping down his back as he waited for the exchange to turn difficult. Hoping to deflect it before anything unpleasant was said, he added, “Well, if you don’t mind, we really need to return to our dinner before it gets cold.”
“Of course, of course,” his father agreed, nodding once more to Angel. “Nice to meet you, Ms. Cartwright.”
“Yes, you must return to your meal. It looks very…hearty…and like most of it was eaten already,” Lois added, shaking her head. “I, myself, could never eat that much at one time without gaining weight. But you carry it well, Ms. Cartwright.” Taking Angel’s hand and shaking it once more, Lois smiled as she said goodbye.
Watching them walk over to another table, Monty sat heavily down in his seat peering at Angel’s perplexed expression.
“Cupcake, I’m sorry—”
“I can’t figure out if I was insulted or complimented,” she said, looking over, grinning at Monty.
Sighing morosely, he reached over to cover her slim fingers with his much larger hand. “Probably both,” he answered. “Mom means well, I swear, but she is the most blunt and often socially awkward person I’ve ever met. She teaches at the law school and serves on numerous committees but, honest to God, she can be abrasive.”
“And your dad? I thought you said he was so disappointed when you went into law enforcement but he seemed rather…easy going.”
“Dad has definitely mellowed with age. I think it finally got through his mind that his children were never going to be what he desired. Felicity was not going to be a college professor—she loves teaching elementary kids too much. And me? I’ll never be a lawyer or judge. And dad seems to have made some peace with that.”
“And Claire?” She watched carefully as Monty actually squirmed in his seat. “Hmm,” she said, tapping her fingers on his hand. “That reaction would seem to imply that she was a former…?”
Blushing, Monty hated that the evening that started with such promise was now ending in disaster. He had not been out with Claire since that evening when he first saw Angel and yet he felt as though he had been caught cheating. How the hell do the other guys do it? Banging whomever they want and then ending up seeing those women back at the bar when they’re with someone else?
Meeting Angel’s gaze, he was caught off guard by the mirth in her eyes. Cocking his head to the side, he looked at her in question.
Giggling as she squeezed his hand, she said, “Monty, honey, it’s fine! I actually recognize her as the woman you were with the night we first saw each other. She’s beautiful…in a model sort of way. I used to be jealous of women who were able to maintain that look, but I know now, my curves are what you like. I know we’ll run into your old girlfriends. I promise you I won’t fly into a jealous rage.”
“Then you’ll do better than me if we run into an old boyfriend of yours,” he retorted.
Throwing her head back, she laughed the deep, throaty laugh Monty heard that night they were both remembering. Fuckin’ beautiful.
“So…how many old boyfriends am I going to have to be jealous of?” he wondered out loud.
“Not many, I promise. Let’s see,” she said, holding up her fingers, ticking them off. “There was the high school boyfriend—”
“High school quarterback, I suppose?”
“Nope. President of the math club,” she smiled. “Then there were a couple of short term guys in college, but nothing serious.” Her brow knitted as she seemed lost in thought for a moment. “Between a double major and the sorority activities, there was little time left over for dating someone when I could tell early on it wasn’t going anywhere.”
He watched her carefully as her smile landed back on him, their fingers still locked together. Nodding, he said, “Seems we have a lot in common. I have dated women, usually the type that I thought suited me…and suited what my parents would have wanted. But I was never really interested in anyone until you. Ever.”
She leaned forward, her lips a whisper away from his. “And you’re interested in me, Mr. Lytton?”
He watched as her gaze dropped to his lips before his eyes landed on hers. Moving a hint closer, he replied, “Very interested, Cupcake.”
“You want to show me how interested?” her sultry voice slid over his lips.
“Oh yeah,” he breathed her in as he closed the minute distance between them. Moving his lips over hers, once more tasting the wine. “I think this was where we were before we were so rudely interrupted,” he murmured against her lips.
A slight moan was her only answer before they separated, both smiling once more. The waiter appeared at their elbows and asked if they wanted to see the dessert tray.
Monty cocked his eyebrow in question at Angel, but she slowly shook her head. “I know where you can get the best cupcakes in town,” she replied, winking.
Not taking his eyes off her, he called out to the waiter, “We’ll take our check now, please.”
Laughing, Angel excused herself to the ladies’ room. Once inside, she quickly took care of business, but before she could exit the stall, she heard her name mentioned by Lois and Claire at the sinks.
“I haven’t been out with Monty in over a month,” Claire said. “I assumed he would call, but he must have moved on.”
“I’m sure he’s just entertaining Ms. Cartwright,” Lois declared. “She’s not my son’s type at all. She’s way too…well, curvy, if you know what I mean.”
Unable to stop the grin, Angel stepped out of the stall and walked over to the sink next to the women. Washing her hands as they stood, eyes wide open, she adjusted the bodice of her dress before turning to them. “I’m sorry to eavesdrop, ladies. But the truth is I’m just his type.” With a nod, she bid them a good evening and sailed out of the door.
Walking over, she allowed Monty to assist her into her coat and slid her arm through his. Giving him a little shoulder bump, she said, “Take me home, babe. It’s dessert time!”