“Let’s see.” He sat on the bed and pulled her onto his lap. “Jay and Annie are coming here first for drinks. Then we have reservations at seven-thirty at Dante’s, and after that, it’s up to you. There is a party going on that one of my teammates is throwing at his house, or we could come back here and ring in the New Year on our own. I have champagne in the fridge.”
“Your friend’s having a party? Do you want to go?”
“If you want to go.”
He had to learn this relationship was a two-way street. “David, that’s not what I asked you. Do you want to go?”
He hesitated and then answered. “Yes. For two reasons.”
“Listening.” Kate loved how he tried to make everything about her, but that had to stop or he’d start resenting her.
“First, I want you to meet my friends. I want to show you off.” She couldn’t help the smile that pulled across her face. “And the other reason has to do with the rookie who’s my roommate.”
“Jack Nelson, right?”
“Yeah. He’s gotten involved with some girl. She’s a student at Penn, but she lives with her parents and it’s not a good situation. Nothing sounds right.”
“You want to check her out, make sure she’s treating him okay?” Kate rested her head on his shoulder.
“I guess.” David thought for a minute and realized he sounded like an old woman and ran a hand over his face. “He’s so naïve. He jumped right to the NHL after his third year at University of North Dakota. He’s just twenty-one, and grew up on a farm in a small town with a population of like two hundred.”
“So says the boy from the middle of nowhere.” Kate felt she had the right to tease. Most of her life, the furthest she’d ever lived from a city was about forty miles.
“Maybe so, but I left the ‘middle of nowhere’ and went to school in Boston. Grand Forks, North Dakota, isn’t exactly a big city.”
“I get your point.” Lacing her fingers with his, Kate drew his hands to her lips. “Then we’ll go. For both reasons.”
“You don’t mind?”
“No. It matters to you, so it matters to me. And honestly, now you have me curious.”
“He is totally in love with this girl, Kate. He said she’s the most amazing person he’s ever met.”
“And that worries you because?”
“He came from a town of two hundred. His experience with people is fairly limited.”
Each day she learned something else about David. Today was that his instincts to protect people ran deep. He obviously saw Jack as a younger brother, and felt a responsibility to him as the team captain and as a friend. Kate wasn’t going to let her own nerves about meeting his friends keep him from helping Jack.
She figured Jay and Annie were going to the party as well. Which would be good, so at least she would have someone to talk to, but if not, she’d manage. Kate really liked Annie. She was a no-nonsense person without an ounce of pretense in her body.
Married to a millionaire, Annie kept her job as a nurse. Kate remembered her from the night she miscarried. Annie was on duty in the ER and was the first one to Kate’s side. She never said anything about knowing who she was or about her situation; she was a cool professional with a very gentle touch.
Her husband, well, the worst Kate could say about Jay was that he was rough around the edges. He cursed, he cracked inappropriate jokes, but the man was totally and completely in love with his wife. That fact allowed Kate to forgive any of his other transgressions. It would be an interesting evening.
David left her to take a shower and Kate started to get ready herself. She took her makeup into the outer part of the bathroom and set it on the counter. This room was just like the rest of the house: strong, masculine, and totally beautiful. Caramel-colored marble topped heavy wood cabinetry. Door knobs and drawer pulls, all antiqued brass. It was a room, a house actually, that was done in complex layers. Like David, a person would look at this house and see something beautiful. But also like him, a person had to look at the details—what was hidden beneath the outer finish to see something, or someone, truly exceptional.
Her whole life, Kate had tended to see what was on the surface, passing judgment or making decisions based on her first impression. She was impulsive, she knew that, and it was the thing that got her into the most trouble. It was the trait that put her in a bad marriage and what almost kept her from David. He wasn’t a stereotype and he wasn’t a cliché. And it had taken her a long time to figure that out.
Kate’s eye was drawn to the corner of the countertop. In a small crystal glass was a pink toothbrush, and around the neck of the toothbrush was a small, satin bow. She picked it up and saw a note in the glass. All it said was, ‘This stays here.’ She smiled.
It was symbolic—the first step to junking up his bathroom. The water stopped running in the shower and soon after he was standing behind her. A handsome, muscular, wet, nearly-naked man was watching her put on her makeup.
Damn. Life was good.
“There’s an empty drawer on your right if you want to put that away,” he said.
Kate smiled and met his eyes in the mirror. He rubbed a towel over his face to remove the remaining shaving cream and a grin tugged at his mouth.
“I saw the toothbrush. Thank you.”
He kissed the top of her head. Using another towel to dry his hair, David tossed it in a basket in the corner when he was done. “Just so you know, no one has left so much as a lipstick in this house.”
Sliding the wand back into her mascara, Kate placed it on the counter and turned to face him. She rested her hands on his chest and looked into his strong face. It was a beautiful face. One that belied the job he did or the persona he assumed.
For months they’d danced around what they wanted from each other. But it all came down to the fact they needed each other to be whole. The years between them didn’t matter, their pasts didn’t matter—all that mattered was on that day in California, the fates intervened, the stars aligned, and the split soul had found its other half.
His hand grazed over her back, just above the waistband of her yoga pants. He nudged up the cami she wore, gave her body a good once over in the mirror and eventually his eyes settled on her little tattoo. “I saw that the night you were here. Or at least I thought I did.”
“Like it?” She bit her lip and loved that whenever he touched her, she wanted him. Pure and simple.
His fingers brushed the small pink flower with the lightest touch. “It’s beautiful. When did you get it? You didn’t have it in California.”
“Remember when I chaperoned that trip to your game?”
“When I made a fool out of myself trying to get you to go out with me again? Yeah.”
“Right before that.”
“What made you get a tattoo?”
His hands were still caressing her skin and making her more than a little crazy. The little grin on his face told her he knew what he was doing to her, and she couldn’t do anything about it, she couldn’t have him, not for another week.
Grasping his hand so she didn’t lose her mind, Kate answered, even though he was laughing. “I was pissed at Laura and Richard. Pissed at you.”
“So you ran off to a tattoo parlor?” he said over a laugh.
“I do crazy things when I get upset or stressed.”
“God, you’re going to be so much fun.” Still damp from his shower, David pulled on a pair of boxer briefs. Then he took hold of her and started backing her into the bedroom, nipping at her neck as he did.
“David, please, you know we can’t.”
“I know. I just want to make out.”
Giggles escaped. “Really?”
“C’mon Katie,” he teased. “Make out with me.”
His arms locked around her waist and his breath caressed her skin. Lowering her to the bed, his kisses were sweet and gentle. Kate lost her mind every time his lips touched hers.
She wondered if David set out to drive her crazy. His lips brushed over hers and finally settled into a soft rhythm, gently nipping and tugging. His tongue tasted her, plunging into her mouth while his body covered hers. She could feel his arousal, and each time she did, the thought that this man wanted her, was a true miracle. Her hands couldn’t resist touching him. His muscles were taut, his skin smooth, and his hair, which was still damp, tickled her, making her her breath catch. When he drew a sharp breath, as her hand trailed over his hip, Kate knew he’d reached his threshold and the choice was to stop or finish.