Out of Nowhere Read online

  “Damn right I am. Now, you. Me. Dinner. Tonight.”

  Shaking my head, I reply, “Sorry, can’t. I have a hot date tonight.”

  His head snaps toward me, his face turning red with rage. “Come again?” he snarls.

  “I didn’t stutter. I said, I have a date tonight.”

  He glares at me before snapping, “Over my dead body you do.”

  “That can be arranged,” I say, loving the feeling I’m getting while teasing him at the moment.

  “With who?”

  “Charlie and Ma,” I say, waiting for it to click.

  “Right, you two are taking her for the night because Tasha has that thing to attend. For a minute there, I thought you meant a real date.”

  “It is a real date, a girls only date.”

  “No, that’s a girls’ night. There’s a difference between that and a date.”

  “Well, I haven’t been on a date in a while, so I wouldn’t know.”

  “Well, I better change that.” He walks over to me, squats down, picks up my hand, and looks right at me. “Emerson James, will you go on a date with me on Friday night?”

  “I’d love to go on a date with you, Chase Archibald,” I reply with a smile.

  He leans forward and presses his lips against mine. After a quick kiss, he pulls back, resting his forehead against mine. “If we start this again, I won’t be held accountable for my actions. Plus, Ma raised me to be a gentleman, and I have an epic date to plan.”

  He stands up and puts his hand out for me to take. He tugs me up and wraps me in his arms. Resting my head on his chest, I wrap my arms around him and sigh. “I like hugging you,” I whisper.

  He kisses my hair and whispers back, “I like having you in my arms.”

  We continue to hug until his desk phone rings. Chase pulls away and answers. “Archibald,” he says arrogantly, but I wouldn’t expect him to answer the phone any other way. He looks at me and winks. His winks, which once pissed me off, now have the opposite effect. I savor and love them.

  I whisper and point to the door, “I’m going to go.” Bending down I pick up my bag when I hear him say, “Give me a sec.” He covers the mouthpiece and says, “I’ll text you date details.”

  I nod. “It’s a date.”

  “You bet it is.” And again he winks at me.

  With a smile on my face, I exit his office and walk toward reception. I can’t believe I have a date…with Chase Archibald. My happiness is short-lived when Sandy sneers, “He’ll tire of you, just like he always does.”

  Spinning around to face her, I say, “And?” She’s shocked at my reply and stares blankly back at me. “Who Chase sees is none of your business, and who I see certainly isn’t any of yours.”

  “He’s a manwhore, you know?”

  “We all have a past, Sandy.” She sits there open-mouthed. “Have a great afternoon,” I say, and with a wave I exit Chase’s office.

  Slipping my sunglasses on, I walk down the street, but Sandy’s words about Chase play over and over in my head. I begin to wonder if I may have bitten off more than I can chew when it comes to Chase and my heart.

  CHAPTER THIRTEEN

  Chase

  EMERSON AND I MET FOR coffee this morning, but she was a little off when she arrived. She was quieter than usual and acting strange; she was pulling away from me. I thought things would be different after her visit yesterday, but I guess I was wrong. That just means I need to make this date something to remember. I can’t take the awkwardness anymore so I just come out and ask, “Is everything okay, Ems?”

  She looks panicked, but quickly replaces it with a smile that doesn’t reach her eyes. “I’m fine.”

  Immediately alarm bells ring. No woman is fine when they say fine—they are generally anything but. “You’d tell me if something was wrong, right?” I sound like a total needy girl right now, but I’m shit scared that I’m losing her, and she has just started opening up to me.

  She looks over at me and smiles. This time it’s an Emerson smile that makes her eyes pop and everything around her seem that much brighter. “I am happy, Chase, don’t worry about me. I’m just dealing with some stuff back in New York.”

  “Can I help?”

  That unease pops back into her eyes, but she shakes her head. “Nope, all good. Now, do I get any hints about this date you are planning?” Just like that, happy Ems is back.

  Shaking my head, I reply, “Nope, not one single clue.”

  “Well, how will I know what to wear?”

  “Jeans and boots, top I will leave up to you. But for me, please wear your hair down.”

  Her cheeks darken, I’m not sure if it’s from arousal, embarrassment, or both, but either way, I love seeing her like this. “I think I can manage that.” She glances at the clock behind me. “Shit, is that the time? I have to run, Chase. I’ll see you tomorrow for our date.”

  She leans down, kisses my cheek, and skips out of Tiff’s. Tiff walks over and says, “Someone is in love.”

  “I’m not in love,” I snap back.

  “Early stages of love, you are, my boy.”

  “Am not,” I say, but I’m pretty sure she’s right. I’m head over heels in lust with Emerson James, and I cannot wait to get to know her better.

  * * **

  It’s finally date night, I’m in my car driving to pick up Emerson and I’m nervous as all hell. My stomach is in knots. My hands are sweaty. I feel like a kid on prom night who’s going to lose his V card. Well, if things go how I hope they will, that’s exactly how this date will end. But even if it doesn’t end that way, I’m excited to spend an evening with Emerson. Man, I sound like a girl, I think to myself. Never have I been enthralled with a woman like I am with Emerson. There is something about her that pulls me in, and for the first time ever, I’m happy to go on a date.

  Pulling up in front of her cottage, I take a deep breath and mumble to myself, “Man up, Archibald.” Leaning over, I grab the bouquet of tulips that I picked up for Emerson and climb out of my truck. Opening the gate, I walk up the path and repeat to myself, “Step and breathe. Step and breathe.” I’ve just reached the top step and the front door opens. Emerson is standing there and she looks absolutely beautiful. She’s wearing jeans that look like they are painted on—they make her legs look super long. On her feet is a shiny new pair of chocolate brown boots, and on top she’s wearing a shimmery, golden brown, off-the-shoulder thingy that makes her green eyes sparkle and her shoulder look sexy. “Wow, Emerson, you looking amazing,” I say, taking the last few steps so I’m now standing in front of her.

  She blushes as I say this and pushes a strand of hair behind her ear. “Thanks. Are they for me?” she asks, nodding toward the tulips.

  “Yeah, they are. I hope you like them, the colors caught my eye, and I thought they’d look great on your coffee table.”

  “They are beautiful, thank you, Chase. I’ll just pop these in some water. Do you want to come in?”

  “I’ll just wait here, if I come inside we won’t make it to our destination.”

  Again, her cheeks darken. She licks her bottom lip as she takes the flowers from me, our fingers graze ever so slightly, and my fingers tingle when the contact breaks. She turns and heads inside, and I stifle a groan because her ass in those jeans—wow—I’ve never seen such a smokin’ hot ass.

  She comes back a few minutes later and locks the door behind her. She links her arm through mine and we head toward my car. “So, Mr. Archibald, where are we off to tonight?”

  “You will just have to wait and see.” We get to the car and I open the door for her. “Milady,” I say.

  “Why, thank you, sir,” she says, kissing me on the cheek before she climbs in.

  Quickly I make my way around the front and climb into the driver’s seat. I start the car and “Wanted” by Hunter Hayes comes on the radio. I begin singing the words, like I do when I’m driving. Glancing over to Emerson, I can’t help but smile. With the fire red sky of the sunset
and her auburn hair, she looks like an angel and I notice her head bopping in time to the music. Before I know it, we’ve pulled up, and I watch Emerson as she takes in the fair in front of us, her head snaps toward me. “How did I not know there was a county fair on at the moment?”

  Shrugging my shoulders, I say, “Come on, let’s go.”

  She excitedly jumps out of the car and meets up with me, and we start walking toward the fair. Emerson links her fingers with mine and I find myself grinning. This feels perfect. I like having Emerson close to me. I gently tug her to me and let go of her hand so I can put my arm around her shoulders. She wraps her arm around my waist and together we walk into the fair. I’m deliriously happy, I don’t think I have ever felt like this before. Once inside the fairgrounds, we head toward the Ferris wheel. We climb into the gondola and snuggle close to one another. Before long, we are at the top and the view is stunning, and I’m not talking about the landscape. “Emerson, you are perfect in every possible way. I really want to kiss you right now.”

  She looks over at me and coyly says, “Well, what are you waiting for?”

  That’s all the invitation I need. I grip her cheeks and before she has time to register, I press my lips against hers and close my eyes. My tongue seeks access to her mouth and she opens, welcoming it in. She gently sucks it before nibbling on my lip. The gondola begins to move, but we stay lip-locked. As we near the ground, I hear someone shout, “Get a room, Archibald.”

  Reluctantly, I break our kiss and look around, standing in line are Rooney and Natalia. I flip him the bird as we come to a stop at the bottom. I help Emerson out, and once again I lace our fingers together before I walk us over to the last two people I expected to see here tonight.

  Dropping Emerson’s hand, I envelope Rooney in a man hug. “Dude, what are you doing here?” Turning to Natalia, I hug and kiss her before standing back next to Emerson, protectively tucking her under my arm.

  “You know if you answered your phone once in a while, you’d know I was coming back this weekend. It’s Mom’s fiftieth birthday and Pops wanted me here to celebrate with her.” He looks at Emerson. “Excuse this douche’s manners, I’m Rooney. And this lovely lady here,” he flicks his thumb toward Natalia, “is my fiancée, Talia.”

  “Dude, did you say fiancée?” I say in shock.

  He nods his head at me and I have never seen him look so happy. “Mmmhmp, I asked her and she said yes.”

  “I’m so happy for you guys.” I hug them both again before realizing that I still hadn’t introduced Emerson. “This here is Emerson James.”

  “It’s nice to meet you both,” she shyly says. “Congratulations on your engagement,” she says, with a hint of sadness.

  She looks up at me and sadly smiles, I know that this must be hard for her. My heart breaks for her because not three minutes ago, we were happily kissing on the Ferris wheel. “Guys, this is Ems and my first date. You think we can meet up at The Tav tomorrow for a catch up?”

  Rooney, the bastard, wiggles his eyebrows at me, earning him a smack in the ribs from Talia. “Sounds like a plan, dude, we were heading out anyway. It was nice to meet you, Emerson. I hope you can join us tomorrow.”

  “I’d like that,” she says. “It was nice meeting you both. I look forward to getting some dirt on this one.” She thrusts her thumb at me and winks.

  “I like this one, keep her around, Chase,” Talia says with a laugh. “Come on fiancé, take me home.”

  “Your wish is my command fiancée,” Rooney says before picking Talia up, throwing her over his shoulder, and slapping her on the ass. She squeals, and with a nod he walks away.

  Turning my attention back to Emerson, who is staring at her boots, I reach over and lift her chin up so she is looking at me. “You okay, Ems?”

  She sadly nods at me and smiles. “I will be. So, where to next?”

  This is one of the things I like most about Emerson; nothing gets her down. “Well, we have the Tilt-A-Whirl? Or the bumper cars? Or we can head to the food area and eat. It’s up to you.”

  “Food sounds good, I’m starving.”

  “Food it is then, let’s go.” I link my arm through hers and we make our way over to the food area. We have a nutritious dinner of hotdogs, kettle-fried chips, chocolate milkshakes, and after dinner, cotton candy. Once we’ve eaten, we ride the bumper cars, the swings, and finally the Tilt-A-Whirl, where I almost throw up—probably should have done that one before we ate. Emerson teased me about that, and I have a feeling that she will tell Rooney tomorrow and I will never live it down. “I guess you will tell Rooney about this tomorrow?”

  She looks over at me, thinks about it, and whispers, “Nah, your secret is safe with me, BUT only if you win me a stuffed animal.” She grabs my hand and leads us to the shooting game. I thank the heavens because I’m a pretty good shot, and I know that I have this one in the bag. I don’t need the five shots because I have all the targets down in three. “Oh, Chase, you’re my hero,” she says, batting her eyelashes toward me, and we both burst out laughing.

  “Well, little lady,” the carny interrupts us. “The store is your choice.” Emerson can pick any toy that she wants, and she surprises me and picks a small brown bear with a gold bow.

  “This one, please,” she says, all excited. She takes the teddy from the man and smiles at me, her smile shoots directly to my heart and I grin back at her. “Thank you, Chase, this has been the best first date ever.” She wraps her arms around my waist and kisses me. My arms envelope her, and I pull her into me, deepening our kiss. Everything around us fades away, and I vaguely hear Keith Urban singing about kissing a girl in the background; the moment could not be more perfect.

  We leave the fair and I drive back to Emerson’s place. Turning off the engine, we both get out and quietly walk up the path to her front door. We reach the porch and stand there awkwardly, staring at one another. Deciding to just go for it, I wrap my arms around her waist and kiss her. This kiss is full of passion. It’s raw. It’s carnal. It’s smokin’ hot. Emerson pulls me closer and jumps up, wrapping her legs around me. Leaning against her front door, we kiss like teenagers on prom night. She breaks our kiss and hesitantly whispers, “Chase, I…” I don’t give her a chance to finish because I plant my lips against hers once again, for another searing kiss. I don’t want this moment to end, but I know from that hesitation that she isn’t ready. Breaking our kiss, I lower her down to her feet and stare deeply into her eyes. Quietly I whisper, “Good night, Emerson.” With a heavy heart, I turn and walk down the path. I climb in my car and drive home.

  When I get inside, I strip off and take an ice-cold shower before falling into bed. I lie there and stare at the ceiling, berating myself for leaving Emerson. My last thought before I drift off to sleep is that I hope Emerson will still talk to me tomorrow.

  CHAPTER FOURTEEN

  Emerson

  WHAT THE HELL? ONE MINUTE I’m kissing Chase, about to ask him to come inside, and the next I’m standing on my front porch, alone. I’m left standing by myself, as I watch Chase drive away. Shaking my head, I turn around, unlock my front door, and go inside. Heading into the kitchen, I pour myself a big glass of wine and head back into the living room. Plonking down on the couch, I sip my wine and replay everything from tonight. I thought it was a great first date, and I was ready to take the next step when we got back to here, but then Chase froze and took off. Jumping up, I yell to the room, “Screw that!” Grabbing my car keys off the kitchen counter, I head outside, climb into my Mustang, and drive over to Chase’s place.

  Pulling up, I race up his front stairs and bang on his door. “Chase Archibald—you open this door—right this minute.” I’m met with silence so I bang again. A light inside flicks on and Chase opens the door, wearing only a pair of navy boxer briefs. My eyes roam quickly over his body and I moan at the sight before me. Holy shit, his body is a masterpiece. Ripple after ripple form the best eight, yes, eight-pack that I have ever seen. My eyes eventually land on his
, but he’s confused to see me. He opens his mouth to say something, but I raise my hand to silence him and jump in first. “What the hell, Archibald? You kiss me like my life depends on it, and then you leave me high and dry.” He’s staring at me open-mouthed and stunned. “I wanted nothing more than for you to take me inside and ravage me, instead you left me standing on my porch alone, all hot and bothered.” I place emphasis on the word alone.

  “Ems…”

  “Don’t Ems, me. What the hell?”

  “I’m sorry. I froze. When you said my name, I thought you were having second thoughts. I know it’s your first time since Brian and I didn’t want to make it difficult for you. So, I left, I’m sorry,”

  “Chase, I’m a big girl. I can make my own decisions.”

  “I know, I’m sorry.”

  I step toward him and rest my palms on his chest, his heart is racing a million miles a minute, much like mine. “Chase, please,” I say before lifting up onto my tippy-toes to kiss him. He reaches forward and lifts me up. Instinctively, I wrap my legs around his waist and my arms around his neck. He walks us inside and kicks the door closed. He takes us to his bedroom where we explore each other’s bodies. He worships my body from head to toe, several times, and just as the sun is coming up, we blissfully fall asleep in each other’s arms.

  * * *

  Lazily, I open my eyes. It takes me a few moments to get my bearings, and I realize that I’m in Chase’s bed. I’m currently tucked comfortably into his side. It’s perfect and I don’t think I’ve slept this well in a very long time. My bladder lets me know that I need to get up. Reluctantly, I untangle myself and I climb out of bed and make my way into the en suite. After emptying my bladder, I run my fingers through my hair and walk back into the room. Chase is sound asleep, the sheet covering his lower half, and I smile when I think about all the things we did last night.

  Reaching down, I grab his shirt on the end of the bed and slip it on. Buttoning the shirt, I exit his room and walk down the hall into his kitchen. I stop mid-step when I see Judy and Jonathan in his kitchen. Jonathan is sitting at the table reading the morning paper and Judy is, by the smell of things, cooking pancakes. Jonathan sees me first and says, “Morning, Emerson.” Before he goes back to reading his paper, as if seeing me here is normal for a Sunday morning.