Her sister made a playful face. "You know what they say about all work and no play…"
"Yeah, too much play makes the bills pile up and bankruptcy loom like a dark cloud." For good measure, Kayla jabbed her sister in the side where she was ticklish.
"Okay, okay," Jillian relented around breathless laughter. "Just try to keep an open mind while you're working. One of us has to find our Prince Charming and live happily ever after."
They spent the next hour boxing up the rest of the cakes and other desserts, then transferred them into the shop's van that Kayla used for deliveries. Just as Kayla came back into the kitchen after loading up the last of the order, she caught her sister eyeing a plastic container of candies with too much interest.
"Hey, what are these over here?" Jillian asked, slanting Kayla a curious glance.
"They're a new candy I just created." She wiped down the stainless-steel countertops, all the while watching Jillian to make sure she kept her hands to herself. "I'm calling them Heavenly Kisses."
An amused grin tipped the corner of Jillian's mouth. "I love the name. Very sensual. What's in them?"
"Espresso butter cream and caramel covered in white chocolate." And a secret ingredient that claimed to stimulate lust in the person who consumed it.
"Oh, yum." Enthusiasm deepened Jillian's voice, and before Kayla could stop her, she opened the plastic lid, picked up one of the smooth, creamy-looking candies, and inhaled its scent. "It smells wonderful. I bet it tastes just as good." She opened her mouth to take a bite.
Kayla sucked in a quick breath and released it on a long "noooo!" At the same moment, she lunged toward her sister, nearly tackling her in her haste to get the candy out of her hand. Thankfully, she managed to extricate the chocolate from her fingers before Jillian could eat it.
Jillian jumped back in startled surprise and frowned at her. "Geez, Kayla, you're acting like that candy is poisoned or something."
Definitely or something. Kayla put the candy back into the container and snapped the lid on tight. "Do you have to put everything into your mouth?" she asked, unable to tamp her exasperation over her sister's habit of grazing while she was at the bakery. In this case, she would have gotten more than she bargained for.
"Hey, I'm very selective about what goes into this mouth of mine." Jillian's tone was defensive, but the amusement glimmering in her eyes contradicted her indignation.
Kayla ducked her head sheepishly. Undoubtedly her reaction was out of character and extreme, but she'd just saved Jillian's libido from being whipped into a frenzy of need. And she wasn't prepared to let anyone in on her secret just yet-not until she had a chance to test the candies more thoroughly.
She faced her sister again, and summoned an excuse for her odd behavior. "I'm sorry, Jilly. I didn't mean to get so upset. It's just that I'm not ready for anyone to taste these just yet."
Jillian's lip puffed out in a feigned pout that only enhanced how beautiful she was. "And here I thought I was your official taste tester."
Kayla put the candies in her tote bag to take home, so no one else would try to eat them without her knowledge. "I promise you'll get a chance to sample them, just as soon as I'm satisfied with the recipe."
"Oh, all right." Seemingly satisfied with that compromise, Jillian wrapped Kayla in a warm, affectionate hug. The significance of the embrace made Kayla smile. As kids they'd made an agreement that any fight or argument followed by a hug meant all was forgiven. As adults, the wordless pact was still as meaningful as ever.
"Good luck tonight." Jillian grabbed her designer purse and slung it over her shoulder. "Call me later to let me know how things go, okay?"
"I will."
Kayla watched Jillian sashay from the kitchen, and could only shake her head when her sister snatched a Chantilly cream puff from a cooling rack on her way out the back exit.
Jack Tremaine was seduced by her smile. As sweet and addictive as the desserts she was serving, the teasing curve to her sensual mouth lured his attention back to her time and again. Her laughter had the same effect, a husky, playful sound that instigated a spark of desire low in his belly.
The instantaneous response was unlike anything he'd experienced in a very long time, and he was undeniably intrigued by this woman's ability to affect him with nothing more than an impish grin, lilting laughter, and sparkling green eyes. Years of being on the receiving end of so many women's scheming smiles and sly designs of becoming Mrs. Jack Tremaine had obviously jaded him. She was like a breath of fresh spring air.
He took a drink of his cold beer to douse the heat spreading through his veins. He heard the business-related dialogue going on around him but was far more interested in watching the lovely lady interact with the guests than in participating in the conversation. Wearing a uniform of black skirt and white blouse, she moved with natural grace as she served the guests standing in line at the linen-draped dessert table. He assumed she was a waitress employed by the banquet facility hosting the San Diego Chamber of Commerce's Annual Dinner. Despite the plain outfit, there was no denying that she had the kind of sexy, voluptuous body a man could lose himself in for hours, days, years. Her breasts were full and soft-looking, definitely more than a generous handful, and her curvaceous hips and long legs were designed to cradle a man in between.
There was nothing dainty, delicate, or overtly sophisticated about her, and that, along with her complete lack of pretense, drew him too.
She glanced up after serving a man a slice of some kind of cheesecake she'd just topped with caramel sauce and whipped cream, and their gazes met and held. She appeared startled to find him staring at her, and the amiable smile on her lips wavered. She even cast a quick, surreptitious look around to make sure that she was the one who'd captured his attention. Then she tipped her head and gave him an uncertain smile.
Before he could continue the silent, flirtatious exchange between them, another guest demanded her attention and the moment was gone. He waited for the line at the table to dissipate, and once she was alone, he excused himself from the group of businessmen and their significant others and headed over to sample a few of the desserts she was offering. Busy replenishing trays from the portable refrigerator against the wall behind her, she didn't see him approach, giving him the opportunity to appraise her up close. His gaze slid down her backside as she bent low, and he couldn't help but admire the gentle flare of her lush hips, and the way her black skirt tightened very nicely over her shapely bottom, prompting all sorts of sinful, erotic fantasies.
His groin stirred, and he shook himself, hard. Good Lord, he felt like a horny teenager. He'd always preferred real full-bodied figures-and ones that were one-hundred-percent natural. They turned him on much more than the too-thin and artificially enhanced women he'd dated. Their looks were as fake as their interest in him as anything more than a wealthy meal ticket-like his date who'd disappeared to "powder her nose". He'd regretted bringing Gretta even before he'd laid eyes on this woman, and now his feelings were magnified.
For the last few years he'd devoted ninety-nine percent of his attention to making a success of his fine dining restaurant, Tremaine's Downtown, and he'd dedicated one percent to dating. As a result, he'd deliberately gone out with women who wouldn't pose a threat to his time, and who wouldn't affect him emotionally.
But now that his business was financially stable enough for him to open a second restaurant, he was becoming increasingly aware of how much was lacking in his personal life. He realized maybe he was ready to settle down in a committed relationship. He glanced at the woman in front of him and smiled to himself. Obviously he had a whole lot of lost time to make up for.