A Wicked Song - Lisa Renee Jones Page 0,72
names. Could Gio want me away from you for fear I’m after the formula? Yes. If he came home and found us together, I could see that. Did he push us together? Doubtful.”
Eventually, the conversation moves to other topics, and we eat Rice Krispies while laughing about our childhoods. We end on the topic of the holidays. “Mine were on the road,” he says, “usually performing.”
“That’s horrible.”
“It was my life and I enjoyed the audiences. Plus, I didn’t know anything different. I want to now.”
“And yet you’re performing in Paris this year?”
“Not on the actual holiday and if you go with me, we can make it special. I can show you Paris.”
“I want to. You know I want to.”
“But?” he prods.
“But we’ll see. I need more time to find Gio.”
“Staying here won’t make him materialize. It will torture you.”
“I know. And I keep feeling like he’s not coming back. Perhaps that’s one of the reasons I know that text wasn’t from him. I’d feel him if he were alive. I know I would.”
“That could be nothing but fear. Let’s get back on topic. Tell me about your holidays.”
“Mine were always traditional until my mother died. Church on Christmas Eve. Gifts on Christmas morning. Since she left us, not so much. Gio spent the last two Christmases in bed with a different woman each year.”
“And you did what?”
“Went to the movies by myself. I haven’t put up a tree in years.”
“I’ve never put up a tree. I’m never home to do it, but this year is different. Starting with Halloween.”
His phone buzzes and he glances down at a message. “We have a delivery on the way up.”
“We?”
“That’s what Steven said.”
“His wife was baking for us. I’m going to need another workout.”
He stands and leans in close, his lips close to mine. “I’ll step up and offer myself up as your next workout.” The security buzzer goes off. “More on your workout soon.” He kisses me and heads to the door.
Smiling, I stand up and load our bowls and cups into the dishwasher, remarkably comfortable in Kace’s home. I believe that’s because I’m remarkably comfortable with him. Kace returns with a bag in hand that reads Jerry and Jenny’s Cookies. “Please tell me they didn’t send us cookies to eat before the cookies this afternoon.”
We convene at the island and he pulls out what appears to be shirts, one pink and one blue. “I do believe we have a uniform for tonight,” he says, holding his up to his chest, for me to read. “Cookies, ghosts, and goblins, oh my!” And there are ghosts and goblins eating cookies.
“That’s cute.” I laugh. “It might not fit your tattooed, leather, and biker boots image, though.”
“But you do, baby, and that’s all that matters.”
“I’m the opposite of leather and tattoos.”
He sets the shirt down and steps into me, his hand branding my hip. “And yet here you are with me. Care to rethink that?”
I offer him a defiant tilt of my chin. “Not at all. If the leather and tattoos are on you, I’m a leather and tattoo girl all the way.”
His eyes light with mischief. “Is that right?”
“Yes. It is.”
“Show me,” he dares.
I’ve never been bold sexually. Or at least, I’ve never explored myself sexually, but then there is Kace, and now I’m a different me. I step back from him and pull my T-shirt over my head, tossing it away. I immediately reach for my leggings. Kace steps into me, his hands sliding under the cotton to cup my backside. “I like how you show me.”
The next thing I know, I’m on top of the island and he’s inside me.
By the time we’re in the shower together, I’ve decided Halloween is my favorite holiday ever.
***
Kace and I spend the afternoon in my new office. He settles in a cozy chair by the bookshelves to write music, while I claim the desk to get some work done. It’s a unique experience for me to share every moment with Kace, but I like it. I like it probably too much. If we fizzle out, I will hurt. I hurt just thinking about it, which is why I remind myself to live in the moment.
I focus on my work. I pay Nancy and the bills, and while I survived this month, that six thousand I have coming from Riptide will be welcomed. I also text and email with a couple of customers about a few Riptide items. It’s later afternoon, and close to the time