Betrayal of the Dove

Chapter Two



Valencia had warned him about Alyssa’s independent streak, “Irish temper,” she had said. She had told him about Thomas McGregor. He was a former Marine, severely injured in action and had fought his way back and was a stronger man because of it. He could hear the admiration in Valencia’s voice. Then she had told him about his sister’s problem. She needed a security guard and she didn’t have a lot of money. He hadn’t been looking for a job working security for a store. He had a couple offers from companies that paid more, and wanted him as a security consultant. The consultant positions were more his speed because it’s what he had been contemplating opening his own business in before he put in his papers. There were a lot of options in a position like that, meaning he could choose the jobs he took and he could set his own hours. Even if he had chosen one of the other companies that had offered him a full-time position, he had still been in talks with them to be a freelance consultant; meaning they would pay him an exorbitant amount while he still worked as his own man. He liked that idea a lot.

He also had his ranch that he was finally going to turn into a working ranch with horses. He had never been able to do that before because he was always away on missions or prepping for one. He hadn’t that long ago retired from the military. He had stayed in past his twenty years plus one day, but eventually he turned in his papers. He wasn’t sure exactly what he was going to do. He had a lot of ideas from security consultant to full-time rancher. He had an idea that turning his Cave Creek ranch into a little slice of heaven wasn’t such a bad idea. He had kicked around the idea of working as a security consultant part time while ranching, but he wasn’t sure if it was plausible. If he started his own business as a consultant, advising companies on the best way to improve their safety and security, that would take a lot of time, research on the company, its structure, its enemies—inside and outside the company, and he wasn’t sure that could really be done part-time while still ranching. Although if it could he had rationalized that he could be making money while building his ranch to whatever his ranch could be built into. Right now it was just a big ranch style house and a lot of property that he hadn’t fully put to use. His mother would have called it a waste since he hadn’t used much of the land after he purchased the place ten years ago. His father would call his entire life a disappointment. He never wanted him to join the military. He was a staunch pastor who had strict rules and beliefs on what his son should and should not do. He definitely didn’t think he should go into the military. The government was evil, war was evil and God was going to cure it all. That may have been the case, but while they waited for God to cure the ills of the world they still had to protect themselves. He joined up so he could protect this country, maybe he even joined up to get away from his family, but whatever his reason, his father was never more disappointed of him than he had been the day he told him he was going into the Navy.

Why he decided to take this job, providing security for a store in an upscale Scottsdale area, wasn’t something he fully understood. He didn’t have to do the job. When Valencia called she had asked if he knew somebody who was good and who could provide the best security at a not so expensive price. He could have called on a number of friends, called in favors and been done with it, but listening to Valencia talk made him think maybe, just maybe, he should take the case himself. It wasn’t the information on Thomas McGregor that moved him. It was the little details she had given him about Alyssa McGregor. Irish temper, Italian passion for pasta and the strong determination of a black woman. He was intrigued with just those few words, but what got him the most was what Valencia hadn’t said. The words she had left out made him want to know more. He wanted to know why this woman had moved so far away from her family, a family that by all accounts, seemed tight knit. He wanted to know why she had opened a store on the Row if she couldn’t afford security. The shop owners in that district of town had money. They either came from it or they built it through investments. There weren’t any poor owners on the Row and he knew that. He wanted to know what made this woman think she could break the class barrier and build a successful business there. Valencia had told him some things about Alyssa’s character, her family, her business, but she hadn’t told him how gorgeous Alyssa was. The woman was a goddess.

When he walked into the store he hadn’t expected what he saw. He could have done some research on her, maybe even found pictures, before he walked into her store, but he hadn’t. His first order of business had been to do a little more research on what had been going on that made her want security there. He figured he could do the rest of the research later—and he still would, just so he could see how secure she was with her identity on-line. He wanted to know just how much information was out there about her because it would help him do his job better.

When he started researching the robberies he had to play catch-up. He knew about the first robbery, but then he had gone out of town for the family visit from hell before the second and third robbery took place and he hadn’t paid much attention to local news when he returned home. Visiting his father had a way of sucking the life out of him piece by piece and when he came home he just didn’t feel the need for more depressing news. That last robbery had escalated into something more and he knew that the guy would probably continue to escalate. The high he got from each time would make him need to do it again and each time he would find that he needed to escalate his attack in order to feel that euphoria again.

The moment he walked into Snowflakes in the Desert and saw her standing behind the counter, her long brown hair with strategically placed blond highlights and a hint of a full body loosely set spiral curls he felt an instant physical attraction. Then she looked at him with those striking blue eyes contrasting against her smooth brown skin and the attraction spread from his northern head to the southern one. And when she smiled and said, “I’ll be right with you, sir,” in that silky sultry voice he imagined that voice calling out his name while he was locked deep inside that hot little body of hers. He nearly came on the spot. He had to resist the attraction because he was there on a mission and he couldn’t get distracted—but he already had. Mission or not, he wanted this woman and he was going to be sure to make his move. He was highly trained, and very efficient. He could do his job and provide security for her store while he pursued something more than a working relationship with her. He could, and he would, do it.

His first priority was upgrading her security. At first, he couldn’t believe that a woman who had brothers that were deep in the military and government sector would have such archaic equipment, but then he thought about what Valencia had told him about Alyssa’s stubborn and independent streak. He had started to wonder if her brothers had even stepped foot inside her store and home. She probably made sure all of her family visits required her to travel to them instead of the other way around. She seemed like the type who valued her privacy. She liked to keep things separate; he could tell that from all the privacy divider screens in her flat. Most people would have just left it open, yet she had closed off each section the best she could, separating each part from the other until she was satisfied with the end result. Everything looked nice, mostly neat except for the hurricane that had gone through her bathroom leaving her underwear behind. But even that had been organized. The few pieces that weren’t on hangers, but were tossed over the shower curtain rod had been neatly placed too. She had pieces hanging on hangers with clothespins keeping the panties and bras anchored in place while they dried. He had to resist the laugh that threatened to erupt from within him the moment she started jerking down her underwear. She was drawing his attention to it more than the items just hanging there.

If she thought he hadn’t noticed the moment he stepped into the bathroom she was mistaken. He would have to be blind not to notice. He was just sensible enough to know he shouldn’t mention it. He realized from her frantic response to him going into her bathroom that she was embarrassed by his seeing her underwear. He didn’t feel a need to mention it. That is he didn’t mention it until he realized she was going to go back to the store with her panties in her hand, and then he felt obligated to say something. It was one thing for him to get a glimpse at what she wore under her clothes, but a completely different thing for anybody passing by to see.

She was a private, independent person. He couldn’t find fault in either trait. He was the same way. His reasons for buying property in Arizona and building his home there instead of going back to New Mexico where his family was had a lot to do with his need to get away, to be his own man and live his life without having his father control his every action. Alyssa’s brothers weren’t anything like his father, he was sure of that, but he still could understand wanting to find her own way. What he couldn’t understand was why she had gone for aesthetic improvements first over security improvements. She had clearly painted, decorated, and put a new floor in the store. He had seen her upstairs too and he could tell she had put in some work up there, not just with paint, but with new appliances as well. Maybe the appliances had been a necessity. She had bought the store and then made her home above it; maybe the previous owner hadn’t used the upstairs as a living quarter. Judging from the small bathroom he was nearly sure of that. It had probably just been for storage, and maybe a break room area. There was an employee bathroom in the hall leading to the stairs for the upstairs flat, so he was sure whoever previously had possession of the store probably would have employees use that one during store hours. It wasn’t a bad setup from a business standpoint, but it was horrible from a security standpoint.

“Maybe she needed the kitchen equipment,” he shook his head as he gathered some of his supplies. “But she didn’t have to paint.” He thought security came first, and it should have. She didn’t have to put in a new tile floor when she opened her shop. She should have updated her camera, her locks, all of it, before she tried to make the place look pretty. Had he known her place was in the Dark Ages he would have loaded his truck before he left this morning.

He decided to change into something he could work in before heading back. A pair of dark blue jeans and a fitted white t-shirt that stretched across his body like a glove. He changed his dress shoes for his work boots and then did one last check to make sure he had everything he needed for today. This wasn’t a task he was going to accomplish in one day only. Updating her security was going to take some time, but at least he would be able to get a few things done today. The locks were priority, then the security camera after hours if she would be okay with that, if not he was going to have to do it during store hours and he didn’t like that idea at all. It was too open and too many people would be able to tell what the security updates would be. He really needed to do it after hours. After he got that situated he would work on getting those windows secure. She really needed something with a thicker pane and sturdy locks.

He had a lot of work to do if he wanted to get those locks changed before the close of business today. He could work on the cameras tomorrow if he had to, but he wouldn’t sleep well tonight if he left knowing she had the world’s most pick-able locks.

He punched in Valencia’s number as he climbed into his truck. When she answered he had three words for her. “It’s a go.” He was in and he wanted Valencia to know that so she could report back to whomever she was doing this for.

“So she hired your guy?”

“She hired me,” he said.

“I see,” she said evenly. He hoped he hadn’t made a mistake here. Had she really wanted him to get somebody else on this after all? “I trust you can handle her.”

“You mean her security?”

“That too,” she said. “Thomas has already warned me that she’s a spitfire when it comes to her independence. And from the woman I met at his wedding I’d say that was an understatement. Good luck.”

“Thanks,” he said. “I think.” He shook his head. “I’m updating her security today, and I’ll check in with you to let you know the progress as I go.”

“No need,” she said. “I trust you. If there’s a problem, call me. If I have a problem or need information I’ll call you. I’ll just let her brother know she’s in good hands and if anything comes up I’ll be in touch with you. You don’t need to give me a weekly progress report.”

“Good thing,” he said because he really didn’t want to have to give weekly status reports. If things changed and something happened that he needed to report then he would let her know; otherwise, he’d save his dime on the call. He disconnected the call before starting the engine on his truck, cranking up the air condition and heading back to Scottsdale.

As he drove down the back roads, avoiding some of the Interstate congestion he couldn’t help but think of Alyssa. She had blushed when she entered the bathroom and she had quickly set about trying to take her hanging panties and bras down. He tried, boy did he try, but he couldn’t resist taking a sneak peak at some of the pieces still hanging. She hadn’t seen him, which was good because she probably would have been red as a tomato if she knew he was enjoying the view. Mostly he was thinking about her curves filling out those feminine undergarments. He wondered if she had on lace or cotton now. He had imagined her in something blue, a deep blue to offset her blue eyes, and lace, definitely lace. Of course, those thoughts led to thoughts of stripping whatever she was wearing off of her and exploring the body that had set his libido into overdrive with just one look. She was five feet and petite and he liked what he saw. He liked the images that flittered through his head, the ones that involved kissing those perfectly voluptuous lips of hers, holding on to that finely toned waist and getting inside of her. “Damn,” he mumbled. It had been a long time since he had that type of instant carnal attraction to a woman. He hadn’t gone without, but hell, in the past few years he hadn’t wanted any woman as much as he wanted her.

At first he thought the attraction was just some sexual need to conquer her body, but then he found himself offering products and services for practically free. He wouldn’t have done that for any other client. He would have sent them a bill, but for her he found himself giving her the best of his equipment for free. He wanted her safe. And the moment he realized he was going above and beyond what the job required, he realized his attraction wasn’t just about sex. There was something about her; something instant; something that sucked him in like an endless black hole. The gravity, the magnetic pull of Alyssa McGregor had him sucked in and he didn’t want to escape. Instead, he wanted to get closer, go deeper. She was a friggin’ goddess and she didn’t even know it. Maybe that’s what drew him in even more. She was beautiful, but she didn’t wield it like a sword. It was as if she didn’t even realize just how hot she was.

“You’re in trouble now,” he told himself. She had initially looked at him as if she was ready to flirt, but then he handed her the CV and her reaction changed. She would be opposed to dating an employee, but he wanted her in his life, in his bed—he wanted her. “You’re going to have to work for her,” he told himself. He was going to have to pull out all the charm and finesse that made him Shane Maxwell, because this beautiful vixen was not going to come willingly into his lair.

Alyssa saw Shane’s truck ease past her store and then make a quick left into the drive that led to the back of her lot. She shook her head. “Sexy man is back,” she smiled. It ought to be illegal for a man to look that good. Forget the looks; the sound of his voice was going to be her undoing. He had that bedroom voice that made her want to close up shop and take him upstairs. “Not going to happen, McGregor,” she told herself. Who cares if he walked with confidence, was sexy as the day is long and drove a big truck. She laughed at her last thought. The size of his truck was not an indicator of the size of his…no, she couldn’t think of that right now. “It’s been too long,” she mumbled. “You really have to start dating again.” She saw him round the corner just as a group of women walked past her store. Until they saw him come inside she was sure they were going to keep on going, but they did a one eighty and came right back.

She shook her head at their high pitched voices. She couldn’t understand why women thought getting loud would equal getting laid. Blond, brunette, red head, and probably not all natural, she thought. “May I help you ladies?” She decided to ask because if they weren’t in there to shop for jewelry she didn’t want them in their shopping for a man—especially not this man.

“We’re just looking,” the red head said as she looked at Shane’s behind.

Alyssa rolled her eyes. She, too, was impressed with the man in front of her. He had changed clothes and while she thought he looked good in a suit she was doubly impressed with the fitted jeans and the body showcasing t-shirt.

“I’m going to get started in the back,” he said before taking his leave. She felt herself watching him as he walked through the door leading to the hall and the backdoor.

The moment he was out of sight the three women who had invaded her store decided to leave—without buying anything on top of that. She wanted to close up shop and go watch him work, but she wouldn’t. Nothing good could come of lusting after a man she couldn’t have because she had just hired him and she was now his boss. There would be no dating employees—none at all, she told herself.

She kept herself busy by organizing some of the jewelry in the case so that she could make room for a few new pieces that she had upstairs. She had a couple customers come in and make purchases. This was actually one of her slower days of the week, Tuesdays; she hated Tuesdays because they seemed to drag on forever. Monday’s were busy, Friday’s were really busy, and Saturdays were off the charts busy. Wednesdays and Thursdays were normal paced, but Tuesdays were like sitting in a cemetery watching the dead—Tuesdays were just plain boring…well, maybe not this Tuesday because this Tuesday had brought Shane Maxwell to her store and that, whether she would be dating the man or not, was definitely a plus in this Tuesday’s favor.

She wasn’t expecting Craig to find his way back in her store today, so when the door swung open and he walked in she was shocked. “Twice in one day,” she said, surprise registering in her tone.

“I brought you coffee,” he said as he sat a twelve ounce cup of coffee on her counter. She hated coffee. She hated the smell of it too, but since he had been so nice she decided she would just accept the gift. She could either pass it on to Shane or dump it in the sink upstairs.

“Thank you,” she forced a smile. He was trying to be nice and helpful, but the smell of that coffee was really starting to make her ill. Jeeze, what did he put in that cup? She didn’t think she had ever smelled coffee that wreaked that badly.

“Would you like to have dinner with me tonight?”

Oh no. This was not what she wanted to have happen. She had been avoiding this conversation since she met him. “Craig…”

“I’m a good guy,” he pointed to his badge. She smiled. She still didn’t want to date him.

“It’s just that I’m coming out of a bad relationship.”

“So maybe now’s the time to enter into a good one.”

“I don’t want to,” she admitted and she wasn’t lying there—not completely anyway. A part of her had thought about having a relationship, but in all honesty, she hadn’t thought about doing it until Shane walked into her store. “It’s just not the right time for me.” The words, “but we can still be friends,” were on the tip of her tongue, but she refrained from actually uttering them. They weren’t friends now. They had a passing acquaintance, one that he seemed to be trying to make into something more regular.

“Maybe you just really need to get back on the horse, so to speak.”

The man just couldn’t seem to take a hint. Okay, so maybe she should be more direct. “Craig. I’m not—”

“You have a minute…Oh, sorry I didn’t realize you were busy,” Shane said in a tone that told her he wasn’t happy about their current visitor—or more like, her current visitor. She got the feeling earlier that Shane didn’t like Craig, and right now she was sensing the feeling was mutual.

Petrof had come in earlier, right before Shane left to pick up the supplies he needed. Shane had given him a visual appraisal, but he didn’t stay inside the store long enough to be privy to the entire conversation. Petrof had told her, and a slowly passing Shane Maxwell, that he was “just dropping off some bagels.”Shane just nodded and kept on going through the door. “Craig told me you’re updating your security and deciding to have protection. I think I need to do the same myself. What company did you use? They don’t have very friendly employees,” he had said as Shane closed the door to the hallway behind him.

“A friend’s,” she had said with a smile on her face before changing the focus of the conversation. She wasn’t thrilled that Craig had gone off telling everybody of her new security. It wasn’t that she didn’t want people to know she had somebody there; it was just that she didn’t need Craig going to all the shops and spreading her business. It wasn’t any of their business who she hired, or his for that matter. Yet he had told their local bistro owner prompting an information quest visit under the guise of a fellow Row business owner bringing bagels. Petrof was in her store, with his spiked blond hair and his deep-set onyx eyes shining bright that morning, and never once did Shane give the impression that he felt the need to stay in the store throughout the entire conversation. Petrof was a lady’s man, as in all the ladies flocked to him, but not necessarily vice versa. Shane didn’t seem half as worried about that man as he did Craig. She wondered if Shane was a little jealous over the attention Craig showed her. While Petrof was gorgeous and nice, he wasn’t flirty. There were a few rumors as to why Petrof did not get too friendly with the ladies. Rumors did not equate to truth but she didn’t feel a need to ask for verification to determine the validity, or lack thereof, of the rumors. It wasn’t any of her business really. Besides, she rather liked that he didn’t flirt with her because she never wanted him too. Craig, however, was definitely flirting—throwing on the charm so thick that it was starting to scare her.

“Yes, I have a minute.” She directed her attention back to Shane and tried to keep her mind off his possible reasons for interrupting them. Maybe she was a little grateful because she really did want Craig to move on already—not just move on out of her store, but move on as in find another woman to like. There were plenty of beautiful women walking up and down the Row nearly every day. Why couldn’t he pick one of them to fawn over? “Just let me lock up. I need to take lunch anyway.” She walked Craig to the door before locking up and flipping her window sign to closed.

“That man likes you,” Shane said in a tone that was laced with something she couldn’t quite place.

“Yeah, he just asked me out,” she mumbled as she picked up the coffee. “He brought me this too. Do you want it?”

“Giving away a gift?”

“I hate coffee,” she said. “He would have come out better bringing me a banana nut muffin. Do you want it?” She held it out toward him.

“I’ll pass,” he mumbled.

“Guess I’ll dump it upstairs,” she sighed. “It really stinks,” she wrinkled her nose.

“Yeah, I can smell it over here and it smells like there’s something more than coffee in there.”

She shrugged. “Maybe it’s one of those exotic flavor things. He did get this from Heaven in a Cup down the street. That coffee shop has the weirdest combinations of drinks, but they do have really good muffins.” She smiled coyly. “I love my sweet treats in case you haven’t noticed.”

He laughed. “Nothing wrong with that.”

“So what did you want to show me?”

“Your new lock.”

“Already?”

“It’s just the back door, and it doesn’t take that long to fix it up. I’ll work on the upstairs while you eat lunch and then I’ll go to work with fixing up the security room. If you don’t mind, I can work after hours on the camera system.”

“Wow,” she shook her head. “You’re quick, and dedicated. I’m glad I hired you,” she smiled at him. “You can stay as late as you need tonight, just be careful when you’re leaving.” She saw the look on his face, the one that told her he couldn’t believe she was trying to protect him, but she was. All of the robberies had happened at night, after the shops had closed and if he stayed late then there was a possibility that he could be putting himself in danger out there. “Let’s go look at that lock so I can dump this out.”

Shane hadn’t exactly gone for style with the lock, but functionality was a ten plus, not that the look was unstylish it just wasn’t exactly a soft and subtle addition to her space. She had a salad and a turkey sandwich for lunch and fixed him the same meal. He hadn’t eaten, and she was sure he hadn’t grabbed a bite to eat while he was at home because he arrived back at the store too quickly for that—unless he had practically inhaled his food, which she had doubted.

His first order of business was changing her upstairs front door lock before eating. She watched him work. He was so focused on his task that she wondered if he even noticed he had an audience. She was impressed at his skill, although with him being a security expert maybe she really shouldn’t have been so in awe of the work he was doing. What also impressed her was the nice set of muscles that were hidden underneath his shirt. From the tight biceps that she could see she imagined the rest of him was just as tight and even with the white cotton t-shirt covering his chest and back she could still make out a silhouette of the muscles beneath. He was solid, and if there was any un-solidified fat on the man’s body, it couldn’t have been too much.

She could tell he liked to take care of his body. She liked that because she liked to take care of hers too. She loved going for her nature hikes up Camel Back Mountain. She liked getting into Tempe to the rock gym and climbing—it was the beginner wall, but she could still climb. She had a slight fear of heights…maybe slight was an understatement because she was extremely afraid of them. She was also extremely stubborn and she refused to let fear stop her, so she bought a few day passes at first and rented the shoes and equipment in order to face her fears. Her first few times she hadn’t gotten very far off the ground. Mitchell O’Grady had covertly helped talk her down when she froze mid-wall. She just couldn’t move and that pissed her off because it was such a silly fear to let control her. She could hike up to the top of a mountain, but she couldn’t climb up the beginner wall at a rock gym. Of course when she managed to reach the top of the mountain she never went close enough to the edge to get scared. She made sure she stayed far back, where it was safe. She could have quit going to the gym and been satisfied with just the hiking, but she wanted to get over her fear, to conquer it instead of letting it conquer her, so she bought her own shoes, her own harness, chalk and ropes and she went back. She bought a year long pass so she wouldn’t have any excuse not to go. She was still on the beginner wall, but at least she was closer to the top before panic set in so she felt as if she was making progress there.

In addition to hiking and climbing she did Pilates every morning and Yoga every night. Maybe everything on her body wasn’t perfectly solid like she wanted it to be, there was still a little flab around her abs—at least she considered it flab, but even without the rock solid swimsuit model abs, she would still say her body looked pretty darn good. She was in shape, and she liked her men that way too. She didn’t like them too tall, mostly because she was so short and having her brothers tower over her all her life made her go for guys who were a little shorter than a lot of women typically went for—not that Shane was short in her book. He was five-nine and fine…very fine.

She tried to force her eyes to look elsewhere after he finished the lock and joined her. If he did notice her watching him then she at least had an excuse because while he was working with the lock she could just say she was focused on what he was doing, which wouldn’t be a lie really because for about thirty seconds she really was focused on what he was doing. The rest of the time she was completely focused on the man. While he was eating lunch she didn’t have any excuse for watching him, but she had glanced at him once or twice—or more. The way he took a bite out of his sandwich, possessing it completely as his, made her think about what else the man could do with a mouth like that. Those lips looked soft and inviting, and expertly skilled. She would bet he was a good kisser. She was getting turned on just from watching the man eat. And when a slither of sandwich spread attached itself to his lips, and he stuck his tongue out and licked it off, she thought she might melt right there on the spot. Oh, what she wouldn’t give to be that sandwich right now. He could hold her in those strong, masculine hands and eat her all night long if he wanted to.

Whoa! She shook the thoughts from her head—or at least she tried to. Thank God he was going to be in that little ten by ten room all day and not out in her store because she wasn’t sure she could survive having to see him all day without pouncing on him. The man wasn’t even interested in her on that level. She was sure he wasn’t. She probably wasn’t his type either. He probably went for blonds, or bigger breasts, or taller, definitely taller. She wasn’t his type and she was sure of that, but that didn’t stop her from fantasizing about the man.

“You know, I’m going to head back down to the store and reopen. Just stick the dishes in the sink when you’re finished and I’ll wash them when I come up tonight.” She had already washed hers, but she couldn’t stick around up there and watch him eat just so she could wash his dishes when he finished. If she stayed she was likely to find herself inviting him over to her bed—and she just met the man!

“Are you in the habit of leaving strangers in your place alone?”

“No,” she said. “You would be the first,” she didn’t leave people upstairs alone at all. In fact, she really didn’t invite anybody up there either. Her ex, he had been the only one and at the time he wasn’t her ex, he was her current and they were having far too much fun in the bed for her to even think about leaving him alone. Her ex was pure stupidity on her part. Or at least she blamed herself. She should have known he was too perfect to be perfect. But she had never suspected that he was married. They were talking marriage themselves. She hadn’t told Eve that part of it when she ended up crying to her baby sister over the heartbreak. She had told her she was in love, but she hadn’t talked about the fact that she and the jerk-ex had been seriously talking marriage. He would hold her at night, telling her how he would find the perfect store in Salt Lake, buy it and set it up so she could run the store there. He would tell her that he knew it would be hard to leave, but once they got married he didn’t want her to be in Arizona while he was in Utah, and he couldn’t leave Salt Lake because his business wasn’t something he could permanently relocate away from. And the most pathetic part of it all, he had even set a date. “December of next year,” he had said. “We should be married by then, have a Salt Lake winter wedding with your family and my family, maybe on the side of a mountain…” He had planned it in his head, but he hadn’t exactly asked her in the exact words most people usually did, to marry him. But there she was, happy and excited and wanting this marriage. She was waiting to spring the news on her family until it was official, the ring was on her finger, the hall was booked and he had actually come out and asked, not just told her they were getting married the following year. Then she found out he was already married. That had been the crushing blow to her desire to have romantic relationships.

She had closed her shop for the Fourth of July weekend. That was a fool move because summers were busy and holidays were even busier, but she wanted to see him. She wanted to be with him for the fireworks. So she closed up shop, packed a bag, booked a room and figured she would surprise him in Salt Lake. Yeah, there was a surprise all right—only she was the one being surprised when she was two steps into his office while his wife was kissing him goodbye at the reception desk.

At first, she thought Berry was just cheating on her with some tall, leggy, completely gorgeous raven haired goddess, but then she saw the ring on her finger, and the look in the receptionist’s eyes as if she knew exactly what was going on, and Alyssa knew he wasn’t cheating on her, he was cheating on his wife with her. The look on his face had been one of surprise as well, but also silent pleading that she would keep her mouth shut. She couldn’t think, couldn’t breathe because not only were all of the plans and dreams they had made falling apart in front of her eyes, but she was that woman, the one she never wanted to be. She was the other woman, the one who slept with somebody else’s husband—and she didn’t even know it.

“She’s a client,” he had told his wife. “I forgot I had an appointment. This shouldn’t take too long I’ll still be home on time for dinner,” he had smiled at his wife so innocently, and sweetly. And Alyssa, instead of just saying, “hey, that’s not what you said while you’ve been in and out of my bed for the past year,” she played along. Her heart was breaking; her world was falling apart and she didn’t feel the need to rip somebody else’s apart with hers. Or more like she still couldn’t speak.

His wife left, the receptionist stayed where she was, as if getting ready for the show of a lifetime. Maybe he had done this before. Maybe he had done it with her. Or maybe, Alyssa had thought, maybe she was the only one in the dark—she and the wife that is.

“You’re married?” She had finally found her voice.

“Let’s do this in my office,” he had tried to take her arm in his hand and she had quickly stepped out of reach.

“Don’t see how we can have a December wedding when you’re already married, Berry.”

He didn’t even try to smooth things over. He didn’t tell her he was leaving his wife. He didn't tell her they were having problems, nothing; not one single excuse for his actions. They were happy, and he loved her, and he wanted them both. And now that she knew about his wife, maybe she would understand why he wouldn’t be able to marry her. Oh, but they could still have fun whenever he was in town. She loved him, and he, he had used her, betrayed her, hurt her. She was just some exotic quest for him. And for her he was quickly becoming a major part of her world. She was going to close up a shop she sunk her life savings in and move to Salt Lake and start over just for him, and their wedding that she now knew wasn’t ever going to happen. She had been so blind, and so stupid, and for a long time she had blamed herself for that. When in reality she hadn’t done anything wrong, except maybe trust. She had trusted him when he said she was the only one. She had trusted him when he said he loved her. She had trusted him; and that was her mistake and she would own it. She had owned it and that’s why she was still single. Men had asked her out, some of them were right up her alley when it came to type, but when she looked at them the only thing she could think is that maybe they were married. Or maybe they had a girlfriend somewhere in the country and she was just going to be their side conquest.

Maybe what hurt her most wasn’t just that Berry had lied to her, but that he had been her first. He was the first man she had given herself to because she really did love him and she had always told herself that her first time was going to be with the man she loved. She had been stupid on all counts and she swore she would never let it happen again. She would never trust so completely that she allowed her heart to ever be crushed again.

She realized she was still standing there in the kitchen when Shane’s voice interrupted the self loathing thoughts racing through her mind.

“Yeah, I’m sorry. I did answer your question didn’t I?”

“Yeah, but you’re still standing here,” he took the sponge and washed his own dishes off before setting them in the drying rack. She realized now just how long she had been standing there lost in thought.

“Right,” she nodded. “I guess we can both go back down together.” He didn’t push her for details on what had her transfixed where she stood, and she was thankful for that because she didn’t want to talk about it.

“Not yet,” he said. “Here are your keys. They work, but why don’t you go try it out on the door.”

She did, and they did and now that she had stronger, more secure locks, they both needed to get back downstairs because she needed to open her store. She usually only took a thirty minute lunch break and today it had been over an hour.

“Time to open shop,” she smiled as she walked over to the store front door, unlocked it and flipped the sign to open.

“I should change that lock too,” he ran his finger over the locking component.

“Some other time,” she smiled. “Right now you need to get your area setup to suit your needs. Please feel free to move things around however you want to in there, and if you need anything please let me know. I’ll run to the office store once I close today and I’ll get you a new chair.”

“You don’t have to do that.”

“You saw the chair in there right?” It was an old wooden chair that looked like it should be at the edge of a country kitchen table. There was no way that would be comfortable all day. “You know, you should come with me so we can make sure the chair is comfortable for your body.”

“Cool,” he said. “A chair shopping date.”

“Date…oh, uh…” The door swung open.

“Customer,” he tilted his head toward the door, took a long look at the young woman who had entered as if sizing up her threat level before dismissing himself and going into the security room. Why had the word “date” unnerved her? He was joking, just teasing with her and there was nothing romantically implied in his tone or his words yet the word had reminded her of what she actually did want with the man—a date. Oh yes, she was in trouble, because in just a few hours of knowing the man she had already wanted to toss her dating hiatus to the wayside and take the man out for dinner already. Thomas may not have picked this man himself, but why couldn’t he ask whoever he had asked to help out, to find somebody old with fifty grandkids; somebody less threatening to a woman’s single status?

Yes, she was in trouble and she knew it. Because if she wanted that man, desired him, this much after just a few hours she couldn’t imagine what a few days, weeks or even months might do to her desire levels. “Through the roof,” she mumbled before going to help her customer. Her desire levels were going to go through the roof for a man she couldn’t even have.