“You sound like you didn’t expect us to end up here.” She wiggled closer to him, giving him a sultry glance through her lashes that matched the flirtatious tone in her voice. “I thought you always got what you wanted.”
“I think this was the first time I was worried about it,” he teased back.
He ran his finger along her jaw, his confidence faltering by the time he reached her chin. A strange pressure filled his chest as he looked into those deep green eyes. He could fall in love with Lia right now if he wasn’t careful, and mixing business with pleasure could be dangerous. Very dangerous.
She bit her bottom lip as though she could see the turmoil raging inside him. It was a delicate game they were playing, one that involved both their heads and their hearts, and they’d just placed all their chips on the table.
The ring of a cell phone shattered the silence. Lia jumped back, pulling the covers up over her shoulders. Adam closed his eyes, praying it wasn’t what he thought it was.
The familiar chords of “Bad to the Bone” rocked through his bedroom once again, and Adam cursed under his breath. That was Frank’s ringtone, and Frank only called for one reason.
“Sorry, but I have to take this.” He slipped his jeans on and waited until he was in the living room before fishing his cell out of his pocket and answering, “This had better be important, Frank.”
“Would I bother you if it wasn’t?” his younger brother asked. “I’m in a bit of a bind, and I sure could use your help.”
Adam sank down on the couch and pressed his palm against his temple. What had started out as a dream evening was quickly turning into a nightmare. “What did you do this time?”
The sixth of the seven Kelly boys, Frank was the only one who’d inherited their grandmother’s red hair and Irish temper to match. Of course, that also meant he could turn on the Irish charm when he wanted, like now. “I was just at a club, minding my own business, when these two guys came up to me and started giving me a hard time for flirting with one of the girls.”
Adam groaned. He’d heard this story more times than he cared to count. “And let me guess—one thing led to another, right?”
“Hey, they started it.” A defensive growl rose into Frank’s voice. He’d made a career of funneling his rage into tearing through offensive lines and throwing quarterbacks to the turf, but unfortunately, Frank had the nasty habit of carrying his aggression off the field.
“How much damage did you cause this time?”
His brother paused. “Um, it’s a little more complicated this time.”
Shit! “What happened?”
Another pause. This couldn’t be good. “I need you to bail me out.”
Adam leapt to his feet with another four-letter word. “Why are you in jail?”
“They’re trying to book me for assault, but it was all self-defense.”
He paced the length of the room, mentally calculating how much Frank would cost him this time. Bail, an attorney, damages. His brother would probably need some serious PR work to clean up his image, too, if this had already leaked to the press. “You need to think before you throw a punch, Frank, or no team will want to have you on their roster.”
“Bullshit, Adam. I made the Pro Bowl as a rookie. Besides, you’re going to get me out of this mess, right? So nothing to worry about.”
Adam curled his hand up into a fist. What he wouldn’t give to be able to reach through the phone and shake some sense into his brother. “Do you have the name of any bail bondsmen in Atlanta?”
“I figured you could find one for me.” Frank’s voice lowered to a whisper. “And please hurry. I don’t like the way some of these guys are looking at me, if you know what I mean.”
“I have half a mind to let you stay there until after your hearing.”
“Oh, come on, Adam. You wouldn’t let your little brother get sexually violated by these perverts, would you?”
“I don’t know—would it keep you out of trouble in the future?”
“I’m telling you, I’m innocent. Swear to God.”
Innocent was never a word he’d associate with Frank.
The bedroom door creaked, stopping him from giving his brother the tongue lashing he deserved. Lia appeared in the doorway, fully dressed.
“I’ll take care of you in a bit,” he said, never taking his eyes off her. How much had she overheard?
“Why? Don’t tell me you have a hot chick over or anything like that. I know you, Mr. Too Busy to Bang Something with Tits.”
He wanted to tell Frank to shut the fuck up, but Lia’s presence made him watch his tongue. “I’ll talk to you later,” he said, fighting to keep him voice calm, and ended the call.
He threw his phone on the couch and went to her. “Sorry about that, Lia. I—”
She shushed him by covering his mouth with her fingers. “No need to apologize. I understand.”
He lowered her hand, keeping it wrapped in his own. “Do you?”
“Yes.”
“This is not the way I wanted the night to end.”
She gave him a wistful smile. “Me, neither, but it sounds like your brother needs you, and I need to get some rest before going back to the restaurant tomorrow.”
He made a mental reminder to make sure Amadeus Schlittler saw every possible property tomorrow before showing him Lia’s space. “Do you need a ride?”
She shook her head. “I’ll be fine.” She crossed the room and picked up his phone, pressing it in his hands. “Take care of your brother, and don’t worry about me.”
He caught her as she tried to turn around and pulled her into his arms. He only meant to give her a simple kiss goodbye, but he quickly found himself wanting to take her right back to bed.
Lia pushed on his chest, ending the kiss at last. She backed away from him with a playful smile that let him know she’d gladly continue some other time. When the door closed behind her, a chill crept under his skin that rattled his core. She was gone, and he was already missing her.
He glanced down at his phone, cursing his brother for ruining what could possibly have been the best night in his life. But as he started looking up phone numbers on the internet, he also realized it was probably a good thing Lia had left when she did. He was getting too emotionally involved in this deal, and until he figured out what he was going to do with Schlittler, he needed to keep his head on straight and his heart locked away.
Chapter Eight
Lia twirled as she entered the kitchen at La Arietta. Everything was going to be all right. Amadeus Schlittler would open his restaurant someplace else, and then she and Adam could look forward to many more nights in each other’s arms once all this was done. It was the best of both worlds.
“Somebody’s in a good mood this morning, I see,” Julie said with a wink. “I take it you had fun last night?”
“Fun, my cute little tight ass,” Dax said from behind her, pushing her toward the office and closing the door behind Julie when she followed them. “She’s practically glowing, which means only one thing—the girl got laid.”
“Dax!” Her cheeks flamed, and she looked longingly at the door that was blocked by her maître d’ and sous chef.
“Oh, come on. Don’t deny it.” He wagged his eyebrows. “And don’t leave out any juicy details, either.”
“Okay, that’s going a bit too far.” Julie shoved Dax back but didn’t move toward the door. “But things did go well, right?”
They weren’t going to let her go until she spilled her guts like a teenager at a slumber party. “Fine. Yes, I had a good time with Adam, but that’s all you’re going to get from me.”
Dax exchanged glances with Julie. “Oh, yeah, she went all the way. Pay up, girlfriend.”