“For now?” Jesse teased, standing at the passenger side and lifting her to the seat. He pulled his phone out and tapped in one of the numbers he knew by heart. “Jaime…are you and Jenna at the resort?”
“Just got in. That campus is huge,” his son breathed, excitement in his voice.
“How about joining Charlotte and me for dinner? In the restaurant downstairs,” he paused and looked at the wide eyes and barely breathing woman. “The Italian one…Charlotte, breathe.”
“Sure…I’ll talk to Jenna and meet you outside,” Jaime said easily, raising a brow at his sister’s interest and grinning. “A few minutes?”
“Probably ten…maybe fifteen. See you in a bit,” he closed the phone and dropped it into his pocket. “Now…not so okay?”
“Did we not have a conversation about not bringing it up just yet?” Charlotte gaped at him, wide eyed.
“I’m pretty sure I was here and we agreed on dinner with them tonight,” Jesse decided to just close the door and stride around to the driver’s side, his head shaking. He played back the conversation of the last fifteen minutes and he was sure of the outcome.
“I’m not usually like this,” Charlotte said quietly, snapping the belt into place. “I’m really usually not.”
“If it helps, I’m pretty sure they already like you, Charlotte,” Jesse guided them onto the road, glancing at the silent woman now and then.
“I’m good,” she nodded. “I can do this.”
“Worse than meeting a guys’ parents?”
“Probably. Didn’t meet that many parents,” she said, taking a deep breath as they entered the huge parking area of the resort.
“Ever date a guy with a child?” Jesse hoped if he kept her talking she wouldn’t hyperventilate on him.
“I didn’t date much. I went from vo-tech school into the police academy and stayed with them for a little over six years before I started my shop,” Charlotte felt her stomach clench when she caught sight of the twins standing outside in the sun. “Oh, god…”
“Breathe…they’re kids and they game with you,” Jesse couldn’t stop the laughter, stepping onto the concrete and striding around to take her hand, leaning down and brushing her shoulder with his mouth. “It’s okay. I’m pretty sure I trained them not to bite.”
“Stop that!” She hissed at him. You’ve got an attractive, sexy guy nibbling on you and you’re supposed to remain non-sexual around his teenagers. Yeah, and how’s that working for you? She groaned and hoped it was internal.
Jesse laughed out loud when she shook her shoulder and straightened herself a little more on those sexy heels. He let her stride ahead of him, exhaling and enjoying the healthy twitch of her behind beneath the flowing fabric of her dress. He noticed a glimmer of the sun off her legs and realized she was wearing nylons. He thought those long extinct among modern women and decided he really liked the way they made those long, sexy legs look.
“Hey, Charlie,” Jamie grinned at her and looked at his father.
“Charlie!” Jenna hugged her and frowned at her father. “How’d you meet?”
“She’s the vocal nosy one,” Jesse confided with a sigh. “Let’s get some food.”
“No, seriously…” Jenna gripped her father’s free hand, throwing a teasing grin at her brother. “We were just gaming a little while ago.”
“I was waiting for him to pick me up,” Charlotte answered. “He came in at the end of the game.”
“You told us you had a date,” Jenna recalled. “You didn’t tell me it was with dad.”
“Personal life,” Jesse said with a shake of his head.
“I don’t usually talk about much but game stuff when we play,” Charlotte answered cautiously, finding having the twins in this role wasn’t quite the same.
“That’s true,” Jamie decided watching his dad with a female wasn’t new, but with this female, he seemed different. Very different. Maybe it was a guy thing that he noticed, he wasn’t sure. But he knew it was a good feeling seeing his father happy. “We never even knew you were single until we met up with Faith and Jenna started asking questions about your type.”
“You were quizzing Charlotte?” Jesse looked at his daughter and received the typical Jenna half shrug. He’d long learned it was the female equivalent of ‘nothing’ in answer to a question about what are you up to?
Charlotte knew her stomach had felt better. She also knew that having Jesse’s palm resting on her hip was part of the issue. Didn’t he realize he was staking a claim in front of his children? She worked to keep a smile on her face while they were seated and handed menus, absently listening to the specials.
“I could give you an answer to her thought processes on the whole thing, but it’ll mess up the night,” Jamie said with a little chuckle, dodging the palm his sister aimed at him.
“How did you meet?” Jenna asked again when the waitress had left them water and bread sticks. She lifted a buttery stick and bit down with a little frown. “You said you were going to a coffee shop,” she looked at her father and then at Charlotte.
“He stopped by…” Charlotte began with a casual shrug. “And invited me out for dinner.”
“She took me to a BBQ place,” Jesse continued smoothly. “It was good. We’ll have to go there one night.”
“You went to a coffee shop,” Jenna repeated thoughtfully, her head shaking slightly. “You’ve never go to coffee shops. You always said they were money pits.”
Charlotte felt her eyes widen, her glare turned on Jesse. “Money pits?”
Jamie sat back and decided to just watch.
Jesse sighed. “I may have said something along those lines…”
“My business is not a money pit,” Charlotte interrupted firmly.
“He says it was more sense to make his own coffee at home,” Jenna declared with a wave of her hand. “So why did you go to a coffee shop?” She straightened in her chair, dark lashes wide. “Did you go hunting for her? Because of the game?” Her eyes flew from one to the other and saw the answer on both their faces. “Oh my god! You did!”
Jamie straightened a little and winced at his sister’s tone, but he saw the answer on both the faces of the adults.
“As your temporary legal advisor, I’d recommend you change the subject,” Jamie leaned close to his father and spoke in a low voice.
“You didn’t trust our judgment,” Jenna accused, her voice lowered when eyes looked in their direction. “You went hunting for Charlie because we met her online instead of in a class room or on campus.”
Charlotte stared into her water glass, not sure what to say.
“He did come into the shop, Jenna, but he wasn’t on a witch hunt.”
“Then why isn’t he answering?”
“Because my legal counsel advised I fall back on the genetics excuse,” Jesse said with a crooked grin at his daughter and a wink at the muffled giggle from Charlotte.
“I think we’re ready to order,” Charlotte said when the waitress cautiously approached the table, her smile soft and easing the tension a little.
Jenna leaned back in her seat and glared at her father as orders were placed, slender arms crossed over her chest.
“So…have you got dad interested in joining the game?” Jamie grinned at his father and shook his head. “She’s going to sulk and be angry for a while. Just ignore her.”
“We haven’t talked about the game much,” Charlotte admitted. “We’re just getting to know one another, I think.”
“I invited her to dinner and some dancing,” Jesse said, recognizing the stubborn glare from his daughter and almost laughing. “And she didn’t want you to be surprised if she was in the suite in the morning.”
Jamie looked from the hastily coughing Charlotte to his father.
“She sleeping on the sofa?” Jamie jumped visibly, reaching for his shin and glaring at his sister. “Ow! What the hell was that for?” He demanded, his face clearing suddenly and then turning a little red. “Oh…OH.”
“Oh,” Jenna closed her eyes and shook her head. “You are so thick sometimes. Where do you think he was last night?”
“Oh, god,” Charlotte spoke the words and held up one finger when Jesse opened his mouth to speak. “What part of ease them into things were you not grasping?”
“Charlotte…” Jesse reached for her palm.
“Excuse me, please,” she was up and crossing the restaurant before anyone could speak.
“Not exactly your smoothest move,” Jamie said with a sigh. “You wouldn’t bring her to the suite if it wasn’t serious.”
“She’s terrified of coming between me and you two,” Jesse looked from one to the other, laughing at the puzzled expressions on both their faces.
“She doesn’t know that side of us, but I suppose I can see why.” Jenna said softly. Step-mothers don’t have a good reputation, but she decided to keep that comment to herself for the moment. She looked from one to the other. “We truly didn’t talk about our personal lives or…or how we felt about things. You didn’t raise us to be dumb, dad.”
“I have never thought you were dumb. You have sweet, generous hearts, both of you. I worry. I guess I’ll always worry. It’s difficult to realize you’re not my little kids anymore,” Jesse admitted with a deep breath, his gaze sweeping toward Charlotte’s exit. “Should I…”
“Maybe you’re not so thick after all,” Jenna teased, leaning up and reaching for bread and her salad. “You hunted her down,” she repeated in disbelief.
“Can you forget that part?” Jesse demanded with a low growl. “I don’t get this social gaming and media thing, alright. I admit it and I was wrong.”
“Progress,” Jenna laughed.
“We blame male genetics,” Jamie tossed back.
“I’m going to make sure Charlie’s okay,” Jenna dropped her napkin to the table and went in search of the restroom, the door easing open cautiously. The smile tilting her lips was natural as she watched the mother and small girl finish washing up their hands before she spoke to the woman leaning heavily against the sink. “He didn’t mean to embarrass you.”
“I know that,” Charlotte exhaled slowly. “I know that.”
“Did you know who he was when you went out to dinner with him?” Jenna plopped into the cushioned chair in the large powder room, jean covered legs stretched out before her.
“When he asked me out…no,” Charlotte admitted. Meeting the younger woman’s eyes through the mirror. “Then he told me his name and it took a few…a little conversation…before I realized the names were the same. He said he was feeling old and that,” she sighed. “He was new to the area and didn’t want to dine alone and he asked me to have dinner with him. He’d come into the shop looking for someone but he couldn’t recall the name right off,” she sighed and turned, leaning against the counter and meeting the younger woman’s eyes. “So I offered him coffee and we just began talking.”
“You didn’t want to come over.”
“I don’t know, Jenna. We share the game. I didn’t…I don’t know,” she shoved her hands against the counter and paced, heels clicking on the tiles. “I don’t want either relationship messed up. I like gaming. I like the team we’ve put together and I won’t mess that up,” she said firmly. “But I like your father, too. We talk. We laugh.”
“Why do you think it would? Dad doesn’t play the game but he’s watched me and Jamie play for over a year now,” she shrugged. “He doesn’t care if we game. You like him a little…”
“We’ve had some nice talks,” Charlotte said quietly, sighing. “And we need to go have dinner. I’m starving.”
“He’s never brought anyone home before,” Jenna said softly. “We’ve met women he’s dated at company picnics and stuff, but he never brought anyone home for the night. He always came home at night. Sometimes he asked when we withdrew. He’d ask why. And we were honest.” Her lips pursed, head tilted a little to the side. “They weren’t right for him. You could see it in their eyes…and in his.”
“What do you see in his eyes tonight?” Charlotte wasn’t sure she was ready for the answer but had to ask.
“He’s happy. He’s relaxed and he hasn’t been that relaxed for a long time. I think a lot of tension came because of us going off to college,” Jenna smiled at her. “And yes, I was asking about your type because I wondered…you’re two nice people.” She shrugged when Charlotte gaped at her. “I thought you’d make a good fit together.”
“Should I ask how I stack up with the others he’s dated?” She asked, her head next to Jenna’s as they walked across the restaurant, arms linked together.
“Way above his other choices,” Jenna assured her with a chuckle. “Way above.”
“It’s because I game, isn’t it?” Charlotte said with a laugh.
But Jenna only laughed and took her seat, deciding she was not only happy but hungry.
“It’s more because you’re real.” She looked around with a crooked frown, trying to find examples.
“Real what?” Jesse looked from one to the other, relieved Charlotte didn’t run. He’d seen that possibility in her eyes. Not that he thought she was weak, but he knew she wouldn’t stay if his children didn’t accept her. It was then he realized just how grown-up his children had become.
“I was telling her that compared to your other dates, she’s real.”
“My other…” Jesse choked on a forkful of salad, a low chuckle from his son making him frown. He hadn’t brought a woman around them in a few years. He’d been too busy creating his business to do more than the functionary dates over business details. It surprised him they recalled any of them because he was having a damned hard time after spending time with Charlotte.
“Aw, c'mon, dad, I saw this one coming in the parking lot. They’re girls. They talk about everything,” Jamie assured him, grinning at his sister. “How many’d you come up with?”
Jenna considered this. “Five. Starting when we were eleven, I think.”
“Five?” Jamie’s puzzled face remained when his sister leaned over and began whispering. “Right…Tina…got it, Marlene…oh, yeah, Gerry…and we were nine, I remember now.”
The twins looked up to see their father glaring at them and Charlotte trying hard not the laugh.
“Did you have a favorite?” Jamie asked casually.
“If by favorite you mean…oh my god, I thought my father had better taste than this…” Jenna laughed brightly, her head shaking. “There was the hair tossing Mindy,” she recalled, dramatically tossing her head to the side, dark lashes fluttering and eyes rolling.
Charlotte laughed, seriously having to work to chew and swallow without choking herself.
“I remember Carol. She thought nine year olds liked having their cheeks pinched,” Jamie recalled with a shudder.
Charlotte cleared her throat. “I think he gets the picture.”
“I think I stopped grounding them too soon,” Jesse returned, glancing grimly from one to the other. “So we’re back to private life.”
“Oh, but once you introduce them to a date, that takes it out of the realm of private,” Charlotte told him, ignoring the laughs from the twins and the open glare from Jesse. “Hey, that’s just the way it is. Once you invite people into your private life, it doesn’t exist anymore.”
“You’re not helping.”
“So…” Charlotte took a drink of the wine he’d bought for them. “I don’t pinch cheeks and I’m not a hair tosser.”
“You kick ass in the game and speak to us like we’re people,” Jamie commended with a nod of approval.
“And you don’t look at my dad like he’s a walking piggy bank,” Jenna said, quickly reaching over and pounding her father on the back.
Charlotte poured more ice water for him, genuinely concerned. “You okay?”
“A piggy bank?” Jesse croaked out, raised brows and wide eyes scanning the twins.
“Marlene,” Jamie said with a glance of agreement from his sister.
“Sometimes men are a little on the naïve side,” Charlotte said, sinking back to her seat and working on her pasta. “I live simple and enjoy it. I think I’ve been saving forever for my shop and six years ago, made it happen. I love going on buying trips and seminars about new techniques and blends.”
“Yeah but you hardly ever drink the stuff,” Jenna said with a laugh.
“Not true,” Jamie cast a sideways glance in her direction. “Faith spilled. Charlie likes the cold, frosty drinks.”
“That blonde traitor,” Charlotte mumbled, playing along and finding it not difficult at all to get them on other topics. “A girl’s weaknesses should not be exploited.”
“She says you had to sell coffee to afford the Frappuccino’s,” Jenna grinned around a taste of her vegetables.
“Since I know we share that, I won’t comment,” Charlotte laughed.
“It’s quite a change from police to coffee shop,” Jesse relaxed, watching them all talk about everything over the past hour had been fun. He had kids who could fit into any social situation and it only just dawned on him that those skills were because of him.
“Not really,” Charlotte leaned back, aware of his palm along the back of her seat. The plates were being cleared away and she held the half empty glass of water between her fingers. “It was what I needed for a time after culinary training. I had school to pay back and wanted something where I could help…maybe. Most of the people I met there had an idea we could make things better. Even if it’s just one little thing at a time,” she shrugged and took a long drink. “I saved up enough to start the shop and take a few courses in blending and spices. Specialty courses.”
“I met some kids at campus that get coffee there just to try and figure out the spices you use,” Jenna told her. “And they live on coffee. Lots of kids in high school did, too, though.”
“The decaf is just as yummy, or so I’m told,” Charlotte assured her. “Teas are just as much fun to blend and we have a lot of people buying the blends and making it at home. Designing the bags was almost as much fun as making the tea or coffee.”
“We’re going to the arcade,” Jamie announced, tossing his napkin down and standing up. “Don’t keep him out too late. He has a curfew,” he teased and waited for his sister to join him.
“Get out of here,” Jesse laughed, his head shaking as the pair of them strolled close together, heads bent and chattering away as they’d been doing since he first saw them fifteen years ago. “Those two are something else.”
“You managed to survive,” Charlotte teased, twirling the wine glass by its stem. “I was a little concerned there when they started telling me about your past dates.”
“Don’t go there,” he advised, attempting for stern and falling short. He had his wallet out, dropping cash on the check and standing up, offering his palm. “Some dancing, Ms. Bell?”
“Did you ever dance in your bedroom?” Charlotte took his palm and stood very close, her mouth on his softly. She felt his reaction and chuckled. “Hmm…maybe a few spins around the dance floor would cool things down.”
“I don’t see things cooling down in the middle of January,” he growled low against her ear, guiding her from the restaurant. He didn’t understand the magic in the laughter that bubbled from her, her palm sliding down to wrap around his hand.
“That’s an interesting statement,” Charlotte wanted him close. She wanted him. And he returned the desire with a hunger that matched hers. When she reached for him in the night, he woke slowly to her caress, the fire between them alive and hot.
“Interesting or frightening?” Jesse led her through the wide, open and glittering entry way to the massive resort and casino, quiet music reaching them as they moved along the corridor to the lounge.
“I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t a little unnerved, Jesse,” Charlotte gestured to a corner table empty and clean but he led her to the dance floor. Her head tipped slightly, her smile soft as his hands positioned themselves and guided her to the slow song.
Three songs later, she was laughing and lost to the feelings he brought to life between them. He’d swung her to the light reggae song, dipped her over his arm and spun her tightly clenched to his body.
“I think I need a drink,” Jessie laughed with her, leading her to an empty chair and sinking down at her side, his lips brushing her shoulder. “I was afraid I’d forgotten all that stuff.”
“Where did you learn to dance?”
“Dance theater in college,” he confessed, his head shaking. “Between my folks and the child care centers at the college, I was pretty lucky that way. You are a very good partner, easy to lead on the floor.”
“You seemed to know what you were doing and I was along for the ride,” she leaned back into his chest. “I love dancing, though. One of those secret things you keep to yourself. I was planning to take lessons someday. One of those things on a list to do.”
“I can keep secrets and volunteer as an instructor,” he assured her, lifting her palm and carrying her fingers to his lips. “I haven’t felt this good, this young…in years, Charlotte.”
“I know,” the words shook a little, her eyes closed as the warmth spread through her. How do you not be afraid, she asked herself.
“Will you stay with me tonight? We can do whatever you want tomorrow.”