The Accidental Encore Page 14

  “Oh. That’s progress. I haven’t contemplated a second date in longer than I can remember.”

  “Why is that, Allie? What’s wrong with all these men you go out with?”

  “Nothing. Or, nothing specific. Jared, my Monday date, he seemed a little too unfocused about his career. He has a degree in finance, but didn’t want to be a banker or a stock broker, so he worked in a pawn shop before starting his own nursery.”

  “Plants or kids?”

  The sound of her laugh had him stifling the urge to roll the windows down and press on the gas pedal for the sheer pleasure of doing something wicked.

  “Plants. I think he’s using that finance degree to try and keep himself out of bankruptcy. I know this sounds petty, but I don’t want to date a guy who’s floundering in his career.”

  “Makes you wonder if he’d get bored with women the way he does with his job.”

  She grazed his leg with her hand and had him gritting his teeth. “Exactly.”

  He could have mentioned he felt the same about the women he dated, but didn’t want to encourage her after the way her eyes lit up after his last statement. “You said you had three dates.”

  “Ah, yes. Bradley was a chiropractor, so his job wasn’t the problem.”

  “Chiropractors are quacks,” Craig said.

  “Ummm, I used to think so, but I saw one after I hurt my back running and he really helped.”

  “It was all in your head.”

  “You’ve obviously never been to a chiropractor.”

  “So what was Bradley’s problem, other than his occupation and pretentious name?”

  “He kept staring at my chest, and before you say anything, I covered my girls up, thank you very much.”

  He lifted a brow at her. “Your girls?”

  “I’m just trying to speak your language.”

  “Do you ever call these guys out when you catch them staring at your rack?”

  “What? No. Good grief, what in the world would I say? Please stop staring at my chest? My eyes are up here?” She gave a self-conscious chuckle. “I just take off major points.”

  “Oh, you keep a tally?”

  “Well…” She swiveled in the seat to face him. The shifting of positions brought her perfume fluttering to his side of the car. “Don’t you?”

  He considered her question. “I guess, yeah. I suppose I do.”

  “So what was it about this woman you went out with that makes you maybe want to go out again?”

  Nothing, if he were honest. Nothing but the fact that she didn’t mind him using her for sex and attempting to purge his mind of Allie. “I’d say because she was nice and didn’t seem to have too many character flaws.”

  “Such as?”

  “Such as whining about her job or former boyfriend or life in general.”

  “So what did you talk about?”

  “Her job. She’s a caterer. Our backgrounds.” He shrugged. They hadn’t covered much ground before she’d placed her hand over his on the table and suggested they skip dessert and go to her place. Who was he to refuse and why had he felt guilty the moment it was over? “The usual. What about the third date?”

  “Carlton.”

  “I’m sorry for calling Bradley pretentious, but go on.”

  “He’s a doctor—doing his fellowship, actually. Good looking, obviously smart.”

  “So what was his problem?”

  “He kept getting beeped during dinner. I’m not sure we discussed more than our names and occupations.”

  “That does sound petty, Allie. He is a doctor.”

  “Exactly. So if I’m bothered by it now, do you think it’ll get better or worse in the future? Besides, there were no tingles or bolts of electricity.”

  Craig pulled into the parking area for the address she’d given him. “This is it?” he asked as the valet came around to his window. The twinkling lights around the arbored entrance only added to the not-very-wedding-like feel of the location.

  Allie ducked her head and leaned closer to his shoulder. He could feel her breath on his cheek as she said, “Apparently so. Ready?”

  He worried about the tingle she brought to every orifice of his body and wondered how long he could resist the giant bolt of electricity that would strike at a moment's notice. “Ready or not.”

  Chapter 21

  Mark brought the pizza in from the kitchen and set it on the coffee table next to the plates and napkins Leah had placed beside the salad Carolyn had made. Both of his women sat on the couch with a space in the middle reserved just for him.

  “So what movie did you ladies decide on?” he asked.

  Leah crossed her arms over her chest and Carolyn took a deep breath he now recognized as a calming mechanism when dealing with her stepdaughter.

  “I suggested we watch The Lorax,” Carolyn said.

  “That's a baby movie, Dad. I want to see One for the Money.”

  “I've never heard of either one,” Mark admitted. “What's the money one rated?”

  “It's PG-13,” Leah said. She leaned forward, jutting her head around him to look at Carolyn. “I've seen lots of PG-13 movies.”

  “I looked it up online, Mark.” Carolyn put her hand on his leg and gave him a glare with her eyes that said he'd be a fool to let his innocent daughter watch the film. “It's got violence, sexual references, drugs, and partial nudity. I don't think that's appropriate for a twelve-year old.”

  Be careful, he told himself. Carolyn's by-the-book parenting style was the cause of much of the tension in the house. “Well, why don't we watch the trailer, and then we'll see?”

  Leah pressed the preview button on the remote and Katherine Heigl's face appeared on the screen. He wouldn't mind spending the evening with Katherine Heigl. Carolyn pressed her elbow into his side as a grandma said bastard, squeezed his leg when an older man covered his privates with a newspaper, and threw her hands in the air when the clip ended on a couple of hookers.

  “Hookers?” she said. “Need I say more?”

  “I know what a hooker is, Carolyn,” Leah spouted. “I'm not five.”

  “I know you're not five, but twelve-year olds don't need to watch a movie with guns, hookers, and naked, old men.”

  “How about The Vow?” Mark offered. He'd heard both of them, on separate occasions, express an interest in seeing the chick flick. He could stomach a sappy love story if it meant keeping the peace.

  Leah tried not to act excited, but raised her chin in the air. “That would be okay.”

  “Well, at least they're married,” Carolyn said. “I guess that would be fine, but you don't want to watch The Vow, do you, Mark?”

  “I do now.” He leaned over and kissed his wife's cheek. “Leah, order her up while I dish us up this homemade, special order pizza.”

  An hour and a half later, with a full belly and both of his girls crying, Mark flicked off the television. “Well, that was predictable.”

  “It was awesome, Dad. How could you not like it?”

  “I just said it was predictable, not that I didn't like it.” Although he hadn't, but he knew better than to fight her on the merits of a chick flick.

  “You slept through half of it.” Carolyn gathered their plates and shuffled into the kitchen with Mark on her heels with the salad bowl.

  She put the left over pizza in a storage bag while he covered the salad and hoped to get another day out of the lettuce. He placed both containers in the refrigerator before backing his wife against the counter out of view of the den.

  “How about I cash in on all that romance? After my power nap, I'm feeling recharged.”

  She snaked her hands up the back of his shirt as the corners of her lips lifted into a smile. He loved the way her dark eyes grew even darker at his touch. He nipped at her lip and had just angled his head and taken their playful kisses deeper when Leah walked into the kitchen and slammed her glass on the counter.

  “Gross.”

  Mark straightened as Carolyn shov
ed at his chest.

  “What's so gross, Leah?” he asked. “We are married.”

  “You're also my dad.”

  “You don't think it's normal for husbands and wives to kiss?” he asked. “Didn't we just watch an entire movie where that's pretty much all they did?”

  “That was a movie. I'll bet they wouldn't be all over each other if they had a kid in the house.”

  “Honey,” Mark said and grasped her arm as she tried to sprint out of kitchen after sending a withering stare in Carolyn's direction. “I love Carolyn. People in love kiss and hug and touch. I know you're not used to seeing me kiss a woman, but you need to get used to it and know that it's normal.”

  “Whatever, Dad. I'm going to bed.” She stormed out of the room, up the stairs, and slammed her door.

  “That went well,” Carolyn said. “I just can't win with her, Mark.”

  “We can't win. I have a feeling we aren't the only parents dealing with hormonal angst at her age.”

  “This isn't hormonal angst. This is 'I hate my stepmom' angst.” She rubbed her temples with her fingers and leaned back against the counter.

  Not only had Leah upset his wife, but she'd pretty much ruined the mood he was hoping to segue into the bedroom. “She doesn't hate you, sweetheart. She's just adjusting. We've been pretty careful to shield her from the physical side of our relationship. Maybe it's time we started acting like the newlyweds we are.”

  “You want to have sex on the counter?”

  “I'd suggest the table first. The height seems like it would work better.”

  She slapped him on the chest. “Nice to know you've given this some thought.”

  “Sweetheart, there isn't a surface in this house that I haven't imagined making love to you on, but that's not what I mean. If I want to give you more than a friendly peck on the lips before I go to work in the morning—which most days I do—I think I should.”

  “Don't you think that'll be a little too in-your-face for Leah?”

  “No. I think it would be normal activity that she needs to see and get used to. We don't need to smother the physical part of being in love. She doesn't know what normal looks like. Becca died when Leah was four. She doesn't remember much about her mother, and I'm certain memories of us touching and kissing aren't what she remembers.”

  Carolyn sighed. “She's just going to hate me more if you attack me before going to work.”

  “No, she'll learn how husbands and wives treat each other when they're madly in love.”

  “I don't think I'll be able to relax and let you attack me.”

  He glided over to stand in front of her and put his hands on her shoulders. “Then maybe we should practice.” He felt her muscles tense and then relax against him as he nibbled along her neck and gave her jaw a friendly bite. He swallowed her moan as she melted against him and ran her fingers through his hair in the way that never ceased to excite him.

  “Maybe next weekend we can get Craig to watch her and try out the table.”

  “Just the table?” he asked.

  “For starters.”

  ***

  “Is that a bathtub?” Craig asked as they approached the entrance. “And what is that metal thing? A bug? A warrior?”

  Allie rolled her eyes and wrapped her hand around Craig’s arm. She wouldn’t let herself worry if she invaded his space. He’d agreed to be her date and that required a certain amount of touching. “It’s different and fun. I’ve never been here before, have you?”

  “No,” he said with a scowl. “Why would I have been?”

  “Oh!” she said as they entered the space. The thrum of jazz greeted their entrance along with the subtle scent of gardenia. There were tea candles on every shelf and ledge in the enormous space. “It’s an antique mart.”

  “We’re supposed to buy something?”

  “No.” She slapped him playfully on the arm. “But look at all this great stuff.”

  Craig lifted the tail to a fox stole wrapped around the neck of a dressmaker's dummy. “What the hell is this?”

  “It’s a stole.” When he looked at her as if she’d spoken Russian, she said, “A wrap.”

  “People pay money to wrap a dead animal around their neck?”

  “It’s vintage. I remember my grandmother used to have one. I’d play with it like a pet before she’d shoo me away.” She plucked a glass of champagne from a bow tie wearing server and looked down at the cement floor with a red painted trail. “I think we should follow the path.”

  They wound their way around the store, through booths featuring retro light fixtures, scrap metal art, and hundreds of other unique items. “Look at this,” she said when she spotted a denim colored glass bud vase. “It’s so pretty.”

  “It’s tiny. What would you do with it?” He looked at the price tag and lifted his brows.

  “Put a small spray of wildflowers in it or a single stem.”

  “Seems kinda silly to me.”

  “Says the man with an empty home.”

  She held it up to the light and, on impulse, brought it next to his cheek. “I’m too big to fit inside.”

  “It’s the color of your eyes.” She set it down when he looked like she’d kneed him in the balls. “Why don’t we find the bar and get you a drink?”

  “Sounds like a plan.”

  They wandered along the path, but could have found the bar by simply following the buzz of people. She spotted Melissa and Ben nestled against a red velvet chaise with a life-sized mannequin peering over their shoulder. “I see some friends.” She had to raise her voice in the thick crowd.

  “Why don’t you go say hi and I’ll bring you a drink?” he said. “Wine?”

  “Perfect.” She watched him make a beeline to the bar and threaded her way toward Melissa.

  Her friend squealed and hopped up to give Allie a hug. “Isn’t this place fabulous?” Melissa asked. She looked stunning in her chiffon shift dress.

  “It’s an unusual setting for a wedding and a whole lot of fun—pretty much the last thing I expected from Sharon.”

  “So where is he?” Melissa asked, her eyes darting around the room.

  “At the bar getting us a drink.”

  Melissa craned her neck. “Which one? There are so many people here.”

  “He’s up by the front. Gray suit, blue tie.” Allie’s stomach fluttered with nerves at the prospect of Craig meeting Melissa and Ben. She wondered if he’d feel ambushed.

  “Very nice,” Melissa purred. “I knew you were lying when you said he wasn’t that attractive.”

  Allie tried to look indifferent. “Every guy looks good in a suit. Even you, Ben,” she said when he stood up after tucking the phone in his pocket.

  “Hey, Al,” he said. “Looking good.”

  “Thanks. You too.”

  Ben looked at his wife. “Your mom said Henry’s asleep and she’s got the Law & Order marathon to keep her company. I think we’re good to go.”

  They clinked their glasses as Craig arrived and handed Allie her wine. “Just in time for the toast,” he said.

  “Melissa and Ben Carter,” Allie began the introductions. “Meet Craig Archer.”

  Ben and Craig exchanged handshakes while he and Melissa nodded in greeting. “Melissa was my college roommate.”

  “Vandy?” Craig asked.

  Melissa grinned and nodded, shooting a smug look at Allie.

  “They look pretty good this year for basketball,” Craig said.

  “It’s usually our only shot at the bigs,” Melissa said. “Ben went to Duke, so Vandy gets second billing in our house.”

  Craig and Ben began the male ritual of discovering their professions while Melissa and Allie peered around the room. “Where’s the wedding going to be held?” Allie asked.

  “From what I gather, behind that door is a stage set up for the wedding.”

  “A stage? Is this for real or a theater production?”

  “You know her fiancé is in the music business,”
Melissa said.

  “I thought he worked for a TV station.”

  “Maybe that’s it. I can’t remember.” She squeezed Allie’s arm when the door to the main room opened and the guests began descending the ramp. “The show is about to start.”

  Allie and Craig filed into the room where four-top tables draped in black linens and topped with red votive candles surrounded a red carpet leading to the stage. They snagged a table in the middle and looked around as guests took seats at tables and lined up against the back wall bar.

  “This keeps getting weirder and weirder,” Craig whispered into her ear. She could feel his arm braced against the back of her chair.

  “I’m not sure what to expect. This isn’t exactly Sharon’s style.” Or at least not that Allie knew.

  When the groom and his attendants began lining up on stage and a song Allie recognized began playing over the speakers, she shot her brows up and smirked at Melissa.

  “Is this “Here, There and Everywhere” by the Beatles?” Melissa asked with an astonished look on her face.

  “I do believe you’re right.” Allie stifled a giggle. Despite the unusual song, when the bridesmaids started down the aisle wearing knee length dresses right out of the 1950s, Allie felt her pulse quicken. “I don’t recall Sharon being cool enough to pull this off.” But when her long time acquaintance stepped onto the red carpet wearing a form fitting mermaid dress and a vintage hat with birdcage veil, Allie gasped.

  “I’d say she’s pulling this off,” Melissa whispered. “She looks beautiful.”

  Allie tore her eyes from Sharon to stare at the groom. From half way across the room, Allie could see the sheen of tears in his eyes and the adoring look on his ruddy face. Allie didn’t envy Sharon her groom, but would have cut off her left hand for a man to look at her with that much love in his eyes. She sniffled as her throat closed.

  Craig leaned in again, his breath tickling her neck. “Tell me you’re not crying.”

  “I can’t help it. They look so happy.”