Naughty Temptations

Chapter One

Chapter One

“Ma’am? I’ve lost Violetta. I think she flew into your yard. Have you seen her?”

Lauren set down her book and turned toward the gate into her back patio. The little girl standing outside it, peering through the wrought iron scrolls, was maybe ten or eleven. Lauren had seen her a couple of doors down on occasion but had never talked to either her or the father. There didn’t seem to be a mother present. She went to unhook the latch and let the child into the tiny yard behind her apartment. “Is Violetta your doll?”

“No, she’s a pixie.”

“Oh. I don’t think I’ve seen her, but maybe you should describe her.”

“She’s about this tall.” The girl held her hands about six inches apart. “She has purple hair and greenish blue wings. Dad brought her here to keep me company, but then school started again and Violetta got mad ’cause I wasn’t around as much. She started hiding from me.” The girl wandered to the far end of the terrace where Lauren had planted a series of pots with colorful foliage and flowering plants. “I don’t see her back here.”

Lauren recalled what a grand thing a child’s imagination could be and refused to discourage her. “Maybe she just wanted some quiet time alone, so she’s hiding and she’ll come back later.”

“Maybe. She usually does after a while.”

The forlorn wistfulness of the child’s tone tugged at Lauren’s heart strings. “What’s your name?”

“I’m Cindy. Daddy and I are in the apartment on the other side of that one.”

“I know. I’ve seen you come and go occasionally.”

“I stay with my daddy now. He’s really a pretty good dad, I think, but sometimes I get bored. Especially on the weekends when I’m home.” She stared at the glass of lemonade on the patio table.

Lauren decided to take the hint. “Do you think your dad would mind if you had a glass of lemonade with me? And maybe a cookie?”

“Nah, I’m sure he wouldn’t. He tells me not to take stuff from strangers, but you’re a neighbor, not a stranger, right?”

“Well, I am still a stranger to you. But you know where I live. Have a seat and I’ll be right back.” Lauren brought out another glass of lemonade and a tray of cookies.

“This is kind of like having a tea party, isn’t it?” Cindy asked.

“It is a bit. Do you go to school around here?”

Cindy named a local school, said that she was in fourth grade there, and talked about her teacher, her favorite subjects, her friends, and the boy she had a crush on. She was in the middle of relating the virtues of Jimmy Scott when another voice drew their attention back to the gate.

“Cindy, what are you doing here?”

The deep, rough-edged tone sent a little shiver down Lauren’s spine. The owner matched the voice: tall, dark, and not quite handsome, but sexy as hell.

“We’re just having a talk, Daddy. Violetta came this way and I was chasing her, but she disappeared again. So Miss Lauren and I had some lemonade and talked.”

The man came through the gate, closing it behind him and approached the table. “That was nice of Miss Lauren to treat you. But it’s time to come home.”

Up close she could see that his eyes were light, a very pale blue, striking against his olive skin and dark hair. His reserved expression bordered on harsh. The power and masculinity he exuded sent shivers down her spine.

“Can I come back and talk to Miss Lauren again?”

“As long as she doesn’t mind.”

“Generally I don’t mind. I’ll tell you if it’s not a good time.”

“Thanks!”

Her father turned back as they were leaving and gave her a level stare. “Don’t hesitate to let me know if she becomes a problem.”

“I won’t.” The words came out a bit thin. He almost left her gasping.

As she picked up her book to head back inside, a flash of purple glowed above one of the potted plants at the far corner. Lauren blinked at it, but the glimmer had already disappeared.

*****

Far from being a problem, Cindy became a welcome visitor. Lauren hadn’t realized how much she’d isolated herself from life and how lonely she’d become after the disaster with Dan. She enjoyed talking with the girl, despite the occasional odd things that came up in conversation. Violetta the pixie apparently disappeared occasionally then would return without explanation. Cindy visited her mother every other weekend, but it sounded like she didn’t actually have too much time with the woman. According to Cindy she was too busy being queen. Lauren never got a clear idea of who or where she ruled in that position.

More dangerously, the moments of interaction with Cindy’s father affected her more than they should, and she began to look forward to those brief encounters when he came to take Cindy home or asked if she would watch the child for an hour or so while he ran an errand. In the course of those she learned that Ryan Davidson was an attorney specializing in commercial real estate issues. He was also dangerously attractive, in a rather forbidding way, exuding a powerful masculine s*x appeal. The shadows of reserve and even sadness in the depths of his eyes made him even more intriguing.

But he was pleasant enough if distant each time they met. Until the time when he showed up to ask if she could watch Cindy later and found her failing spectacularly in an effort to hang a picture in the living room. Without asking he came over and looked over the hardware and tools she had, then said, “Hold on. Let me go get my drill.” He left and returned in a few minutes with a set of tools and some special bolts. With his help they had the picture hung in just a few minutes.

A week or so after that he helped her fix a problem with the dishwasher. In the process they talked about how they’d both grown up in houses without machines to handle clean-up after meals so they’d been used to washing things by hand. At that point she felt they’d become a bit more than acquaintances if not quite friends. She couldn’t honestly say she was entirely comfortable with him, however. That dangerous s*x appeal combined with the harsh reserve kept her a bit on edge around him.

Three weeks after their first meeting, Cindy asked Lauren, “Could you help me with my costume for the Halloween party at school? I want to dress like a real fairy princess. My dad’s busy with a building project right now and he doesn’t know how to do costumes anyway.”

“I suppose we could. I’ll ask your dad about taking you shopping this weekend.”

He had no objections when she asked him about it later. “I’m afraid I’m not much use at that kind of thing. I’m very grateful to you for helping Cindy out.”

Lauren enjoyed taking the girl shopping for costumes. She’d never done anything like it before but found a surprising joy in rummaging through racks of clothing and accessories to put together the costume. Cindy had pretty definite ideas about what a fairy princess should look like, making it a bit of a challenge to find the pieces they needed.

Even more than the challenge of costuming Cindy, Lauren reveled in the interactions with the girl’s father. Despite the reserve, he had a confident, almost commanding presence that still intimidated her at times. It blended with that hint of regret in a powerful way. But watching his daughter wrap him around her finger, Lauren recognized that the hard reserve didn’t extend to the one person he really cared about.

He tried to temper it with her, as well, and mostly succeeded. But that air of command and authority actually increased his appeal to her. Something about her interested him as well. The way he looked at her occasionally and sought out contact told her he wasn’t indifferent, yet he held back from open interest.

He insisted on progress reports on their costume search, even when there was very little to tell. Cindy regaled him with stories of the shops they’d been to and why so many options were simply unacceptable. He smiled indulgently as she went on. On the second of those evenings, Ryan met her gaze over the child’s head. Amusement lit his light eyes with a charming glow, but as he stared at her and she back, something darker and headier churned through the laughter. Awareness and heat passed between them, birthing a deeper and dangerous connection.

Eventually they broke off the mutual stare and he frowned. Neither said anything about what passed between them, but Lauren’s voice wavered as she said goodbye later and headed back to her own condo. She tried to convince herself she’d imagined what she’d seen in his eyes. A man like that wouldn’t be interested in someone like herself that way. She didn’t dare even hope for it.

But on the evening of the third report, their eyes met again and the heat was there, behind that smoldering look, though he said nothing about it. He offered her coffee and kept them both talking much longer than on the previous visit. It got late enough that he shooed Cindy off to get ready for bed as she said goodbye.

He laid a hand on her as she went to leave. Shivers raced up and down her arm and then down her spine as the heat of his touch penetrated the thin sleeve of her blouse. A catch of his breath suggested he felt it, too. But he only said, “I really do thank you for all you’re doing for her. I didn’t realize it would be this complicated to find her a costume.”

Lauren’s voice wasn’t quite steady as she answered. “She has definite ideas about what she wants.”

“She’s like her mother that way.” He didn’t mean it as a compliment. Lauren’s curiosity about Cindy’s mother was piqued, but she didn’t have the nerve to ask about her. He shook his head and offered a smile that showed some effort. “She’s fortunate to have someone like you take an interest in her. I wish I could—”

She waited but he didn’t finish the sentence. Instead he just nodded and told her goodnight.

For Lauren, it was a good night in one way. She had some seriously erotic dreams starring Ryan Davidson. She fantasized him in the role of an ancient warlord with her as a captured slave. He ordered her to do the most delicious things for him and then he returned the favor, but not before a bit of erotic punishment to remind her who was in command. Were those dreams based on something she sensed about him? She hoped so.

After a few more shopping trips, Lauren and Cindy did eventually round up a green satin dress, darker green tights, a jeweled blue sash, matching jeweled tiara and necklace, and a billowing tulle scarf of green with glittering silver threads woven through it. And of course Cindy had to model it for her father that evening. His eyes widened when his daughter waltzed into the room, twirling the skirts of the dress and setting the jewels twinkling.

“Don’t I look like a real fairy princess, Daddy?” she asked. “Wouldn’t Mommy say so?”

He didn’t answer for a moment, his face frozen in surprise, possibly even shock. Cindy’s expression fell. “It looks okay, doesn’t it, Daddy?”

He conquered whatever emotion had held him and managed a grin. After a few minutes he got himself under control and was able to give her a genuine smile. “It’s wonderful. It’s just that you looked so grown up there for a minute, and I’m just not ready for that. But Mommy would definitely agree that you look like a fairy princess.” His voice sounded a bit odd, though. Thinner than normal, lacking some of its usual resonance.

The words were good enough for Cindy. The child resumed her twirling and preening.

Ryan smiled but the tension was still there. Perhaps the way Cindy looked or moved in the costume reminded him of her mother in ways he’d rather not think about. If so, he pushed it aside as he said, “You need to thank Miss Lauren for helping you find this. She put a lot of work into it.”

Cindy nodded and offered a very pretty and effusive thanks. Then she added, “You’re coming to the party with us, aren’t you?” She looked at Ryan, who nodded.

“I’d be happy to if I don’t have anything else scheduled.”

They checked the date and Lauren looked at the schedule on her phone, which didn’t show any conflict.

Later, after Cindy had given her a goodnight hug and kiss and Ryan had chased her upstairs to get ready for bed, he turned to Lauren and said, “I owe you a lot for all the trouble you’ve gone to for my daughter. Can I take you out to dinner to say thank you? Cindy will be spending this coming weekend with her mother, so I’ll be free Saturday night.”

Lauren took a moment to recover from her surprise. “I’d like that. I’m free on Saturday, too.” In fact, she hadn’t dated at all for a long time and had almost no social life. She’d spent far too long licking her wounds after Dan.

When Ryan put a finger under her chin and pressed his mouth over hers, it shocked her even more. Very pleasantly shocked her. The kiss was brief and rather chaste, but still a buzzy, tingling heat spread through her in response. She wanted to grab him and draw him back for more. Only the realization that Cindy would be back down for goodnight kisses at any moment stopped her. The look of yearning on his face when he stepped back was the best surprise of all, though it remained there for only an instant before he pulled down the metaphorical shutters over his expression. She wanted to ask a few questions, but didn’t quite have the nerve.

Better to quit while she was ahead for now. They would have the weekend.