Wicked Pleasures Read online

  So there she was, wearing her bikini top and belly-dancer bottoms, taking Will a couple of bagels smothered with cream cheese and smoked salmon despite how late she was running, when she saw his condo door open…

  And the resident come out.

  She couldn’t have been more shocked had someone scooped her up while sleeping and dumped her into an ice-cold pool.

  And if all that hadn’t been bad enough, the resident had looked straight at her, took in her mismatched, bizarre apparel, smiled and said good morning.

  Good morning.

  It was the worst morning in Renae’s life.

  She chanced a look over her shoulder at where Lucky’s brows appeared to be stuck in the middle of her forehead. “Oh?”

  Renae pushed her hair back from her face and looked down at the shop sweats she was wearing. “Yeah.”

  “Have you thought about telling Will how you feel?”

  After last night, she didn’t think it was necessary to say anything. “What? That I’m jealous?”

  Lucky smiled. “No. That you’re interested in pursuing something…more with him.”

  “After the resident stayed at his place last night?” Renae shook her head. “No.”

  “Why not?”

  “Why not?” Renae practically sputtered. “Because…because he slept with her, that’s why not.”

  “So?”

  Renae stared at Lucky as if half her marbles had just rolled out onto the floor.

  Lucky crossed her arms in challenge. “Ah, so it’s perfectly okay for him to sleep with you while seeing Janet, but he sleeps with Janet and it’s over.”

  Renae squelched the ridiculous urge she had to cry. Tears burned the backs of her eyelids and her face grew hot. “No, because last night…before the resident must have come over…”

  “You two had sex?”

  Renae nodded then shook her head. “But that’s not it. What happened between Will and I…”

  “What? What happened?”

  “I don’t know. It was just…different somehow. It wasn’t only about the sex. At least not to me.”

  She felt Lucky’s hand on her shoulder and experienced the most incredible desire to lean into her, take her up on the comfort she offered. But she couldn’t, simply because she knew she was the fool. That she’d not only allowed something really awful to happen, but she’d welcomed it with both arms wide open.

  Quite simply, she’d fallen in love with Will Sexton.

  WILL PACED THE FLOOR of his apartment, his mind on everything but the carpet he was currently wearing down.

  The last thing he’d expected when he’d opened the door at nine that morning wearing nothing but a towel after finishing a shower was Janet bringing a homemade breakfast in a wicker basket tied with little pink ribbons.

  But expected or not, there she had stood in the hall, smiling up at him like he hadn’t run flat-out in the other direction from her the night before.

  He’d had no choice but to let her in. After five months, certainly she deserved the courtesy of an explanation.

  Unfortunately having been caught off guard and standing there in nothing but a towel hadn’t exactly provided the right environment for such a conversation.

  As he’d watched her set his table, he’d been afraid she was going to try what she had the night before and come on to him. Thankfully when she’d moved away from the table, he’d seen it was set for one, and after sitting him down in the chair she’d given him a kiss on the top of the head and told him she had an appointment at the hospital and left.

  Of course, he’d eaten the breakfast.

  But he was still berating himself for not leveling with her while he’d had the chance.

  Which meant he’d have to see her once more.

  The thought made his stomach knot up all over again.

  “Look, Janet, I don’t love you,” he rehearsed, wincing at the sound of the words coming out of his mouth.

  Maybe the direct approach wasn’t the best one. Maybe he should say something about needing a time-out. Suggest that they see other people.

  But that wouldn’t work, either, if only because the excuse left the door open.

  And it didn’t help that it would be a lie.

  He stopped pacing and uttered an oath toward the ceiling. Well, he couldn’t bloody well tell her that the reason he couldn’t see her anymore was that he had banged his upstairs neighbor nonstop while she was away.

  An upstairs neighbor he’d watched walk out of the building right behind Janet.

  He recalled the expression on Renae’s face as she’d glanced up at his windows this morning. She’d look upset and angry and betrayed.

  And Janet had practically skipped all the way to the parking lot.

  Damn it all to hell, what was he supposed to do?

  His phone rang and he snatched it up.

  “You rang?” Colin asked.

  Will instantly relaxed. “Harry’s. Now.”

  “I’m with a patient.”

  “Well then just hand them an overdose and meet me at Harry’s.”

  Colin chuckled. “I’ll meet you after the session’s over in fifteen.”

  “Fine.”

  He only hoped his friend would be able to offer up some lifesaving advice. Because the way things were looking, he might end up being the one asking for an overdose if just to stop the incessant war waging in his mind.

  “WHAT IN THE HELL does it all mean?” Will asked Colin an hour, two cheeseburger platters and three draught beers later.

  Colin had remained quiet during most of Will’s speech, occasionally asking him to clarify which event had happened with what woman every now and again. Will had hoped that the mere act of pouring it all out to his friend would prove cathartic.

  Instead he felt worse than ever.

  “It means you need some serious therapy,” Colin said with a grin.

  Will gaped at him as if his friend was offering up a tiny bandage after a shark had attacked him. Which in essence he was. “Hell of a lot of help you are.”

  Colin sat back and thought for a moment then said, “You didn’t honestly think I was going to fix this for you with a snap of my fingers, did you?”

  “Why not? You’re the bleeding psychologist, remember? The one who nearly fainted—no, wait a minute, you did faint—at the sight of blood at med school and decided matters of the head were more your style?”

  “You’re never going to let me live that down, are you?”

  “Not so long as you keep giving me asinine answers like the one you just gave me, I’m not.”

  His friend sighed. “Look, Will, I told you straight up that I didn’t want anything to do with what you were about to involve yourself in. Do you recall that?”

  Will muttered under his breath.

  “Did you ever think to ask me why?”

  He squinted at his friend. “I think you should stop counseling others because their illnesses are beginning to affect you.”

  Colin chuckled. “Seriously, did you ever wonder why I didn’t—don’t—want to get involved?”

  “No, I honestly can’t say as I did.”

  “Think about it. What advice did you offer up when Lucky first came into my life?”

  Will grimaced. What did all this have to do with the price of tea in China? “I suggested it might not be in your best interest to get involved with her.”

  “And in doing so you gave me the worst advice I’d ever received in my life.”

  Will sagged against the leather booth. “So you’re getting revenge by not giving me any advice now.”

  Colin chuckled. “No, Will. I’m doing you the greatest favor of all by letting you figure this one out on your own.”

  16

  RENAE’S NERVES were stretched to the breaking point. There was only so much one woman could take before she careened over the edge, wasn’t there? Forget that she still hadn’t found a replacement for Lucky, which meant she was working double-duty at Women Only. Her
lunch appointment with Ginger was the following day and she was so nervous her stomach refused any food she’d tried to feed it since yesterday.

  Then there was Will…

  Three days since the ice-cream encounter on the counter. Two days since she’d seen the resident coming out of his condo. One day since she’d resolved to put him out of her mind altogether, although chasing him out of her heart was a little more difficult. More times than she cared to count, she’d found herself absently rubbing at the ache that resided in her chest.

  Talk to him.

  That was Lucky’s advice.

  Since he’d made no effort to talk to her, she didn’t think there was anything left to talk about.

  As the sun made its final journey toward the western horizon, smearing the sky with vivid purples and oranges, she parked her convertible in the complex lot and shut off the motor, which in turn switched off the radio that had been playing an old Fleetwood Mac tune. The silence pressed in around her much like the humid air, reminding her that summer was still here. She’d somehow forgotten about that. Summer. While she’d spent most of June and July hanging out at the complex pool, she hadn’t even thought of swimming for almost two weeks. Her mind had been occupied with other matters that had launched her into a semitimeless state. While she was acutely aware of every second that ticked by, the passing moments seemed to hold no connection at all to the actual passage of time. So she was surprised to discover that August was quickly racing toward September and that soon autumn would be on its way.

  She pushed her sunglasses back on her head, picked up the repaired belly-dancer costume and a small bag of necessities she’d bought from the drugstore then climbed out of the car. She glanced at the sky to check for rain, saw no sign, and decided to leave the top down. She didn’t have to worry about anyone stealing anything. The radio was the original push-button that had come standard when the car was initially manufactured. The only items in the glove compartment were the old manuals that came with the car.

  She turned toward the apartment building, her heart giving an immediate squeeze as she looked up at Will’s closed vertical blinds. As soon as she got this conversation with Ginger out of the way, she should really think about moving out, getting a place of her own. While Tabitha might still need her to make the mortgage payment, she personally no longer needed the hassle that went along with the arrangement. Especially when it came to Nina.

  Of course, if Will had anything to do with her need to move, she wasn’t going to acknowledge it. She had enough reasons without him being a consideration.

  She opened the outer building door and climbed the steps, not even pausing outside Will’s door as she usually did on her way to the third floor. She shook her keys out, found her house one, then slipped it into the lock. Only it refused to turn.

  She grimaced and tried again, with the same results.

  That’s funny….

  She took the key out, checked to make sure it was the right one, then reinserted it. Nothing.

  What was going on?

  She switched the drugstore bag from her left hand to her right then knocked on the hard metal. It was nearly 9:00 p.m., which pretty much meant someone should be home.

  Nothing.

  Renae leaned her forehead against the cool metal and closed her eyes. This wasn’t, couldn’t, be happening.

  The door across the hall opened. “A locksmith was over early this morning to change the lock.”

  Renae turned to take in the elderly woman who had lived in the condo across from theirs since the places had been built. While they’d traded good-mornings and holiday greetings, it wasn’t often their paths crossed, and Renae was slightly surprised she was talking to her now.

  “I told her the community committee would need a copy of the key for safety reasons, but she closed the door in my face.”

  It would probably have been a good idea if the roommates had also been provided with a copy, you know, in case they should want access to their own home.

  Renae tried to make sense out of what was happening. Why would Tabitha change the locks? Hope alit in her chest. Had she finally asked Nina to move out?

  “I’ve never liked that Nina. She’s rude and obnoxious and there’s something about her I don’t trust.”

  Renae’s thoughts exactly.

  “That’s why I thought it was odd that she was having the locks changed.”

  Renae’s heart stopped. “Nina had the locks changed?”

  “Yes, missy, she did. And I feel obligated to inform you that I’ve already reported the incident to the community committee.”

  Renae allowed her parcels to drop to the floor where she parked herself soon after. She wondered to whom she should report that she’d been locked out of her own house.

  THIS WAS IT. The moment of truth.

  Well, it would be, anyway, if Will could just capture Janet’s attention for more than two blinks.

  He shifted in the chair at the swanky Italian restaurant on the outskirts of Toledo near Sylvania and considered the woman across from him who had the menu held up in front of her face and was ordering what could possibly be everything on it. Will tugged on his tie. Not because he couldn’t afford what would undoubtedly be an expensive meal, but because he’d been hoping they wouldn’t be there long enough for Janet to eat it.

  “And would you like to order dessert now?” the overly polite waiter asked.

  Will briefly closed his eyes, sending up a prayer that she wouldn’t.

  She handed him her menu. “I’ll wait and see then.”

  Thank God for small favors.

  Finally he had her attention.

  And he no longer wanted it.

  “This was a nice surprise,” she said with a soft smile. “I was beginning to think you were avoiding me.”

  Will nearly choked. “Avoiding you? Why ever would I want to avoid you?” He cringed. The truth, man, give her the truth. You have been avoiding her.

  “I had lunch with Daddy today,” Janet said, sipping at what would have been an excellent Chianti if only Will had been able to get anything down his throat.

  “Oh?” Will experienced the overwhelming desire to smack his forehead against the table. Because right there, laid out in front of him, had been exactly the reason why he hadn’t done what he was planning to do until now.

  He squinted at the pretty brunette across from him. Could it be that Janet was subconsciously aware that her father and his position as head of staff at the hospital were the key to her personal future?

  No. His own situation must be making him a little cynical.

  As well as making him feel guilty as hell.

  “Actually, Janet, regarding the avoidance thing. I think you have a good handle on the situation—” he began.

  Two servers placed their salads on the table at the exact same time. Will jumped, not having seen them approach.

  Janet made a ceremony out of placing her napkin in her lap. “It sounds as if what you have to say is serious,” she said with a smile. “Why don’t we wait until a little later? Enjoy the meal first? I’m starving.”

  And he was going to die if he didn’t get the words out right now.

  Instead he nodded, stared at the various greens on his plate that looked like weeds and reached for his wineglass. He stopped short of chugging the entire contents, thinking it not a good idea to be blotto when he had this conversation with Janet.

  And he was going to have this conversation.

  Simply, he could not continue the way he was, wanting one woman while officially attached to another. Especially when the one he was officially attached to seemed to have had a change of heart and was now offering her body up along with her heart.

  The waiter topped off his wineglass and Will watched as finally their appetizers were brought, then the entrees. Somehow he managed to smile and nod at Janet’s comments on the cuisine and at the tidbits she shared about her day, although how he managed was beyond him.

  Maybe
he should have taken her to someplace not quite as well known for its food. Like a burger joint. If anything, at least he wouldn’t have had to wait through three courses before finally being given the go ahead.

  Their plates were collected and Janet folded her hands on top of the table, her smile indicating she was ready. “Shall I order dessert now or wait?”

  Will sat up straighter, the thought of sitting watching her eat another course excruciatingly torturous. “No, no. I think you should wait until I’ve said what I came here to say.”

  Color suffused her cheeks and her eyes seemed to dance in the flickering candlelight.

  Will squinted at her again. He was getting the feeling she didn’t have a clue what was on his mind.

  But then again, how could she? She’d gone off to California expecting—reasonably, he added—to come back to a loyal and loving…boyfriend. He winced at the use of the word, but that’s what he amounted to, wasn’t it? He really never rated as her lover.

  At any rate, Janet had no reason to believe he’d been anything but the dutiful boyfriend waiting impatiently for her return.

  Instead he was impatiently waiting to end things.

  “Look, Janet, what I’m trying to say is…”

  He drifted off. There really was no other way to say this than to just come out and say it. But damn if he could get the words out.

  “Will, I think I know what you want to say,” Janet said softly.

  “You do?” he stared at her hopefully.

  But before he could gauge the possibility of what he wanted to say being anywhere close to what she thought he wanted to say, she was saying it.

  “You want to marry me.”

  Will nearly fell off his chair he was so shocked by her words.

  She thought he wanted to propose?

  He frantically looked around the place. Most of the diners were young couples, not unlike him and Janet. The atmosphere was quiet and romantic, the tables softly lit, wine bottles chilling in silver ice buckets. Exactly the type of place a man would come to propose marriage.

  Will had chosen it because it was the restaurant most central to both their condos.

  “You’ve been so adorably nervous that I couldn’t bear watching you stumble over your words one more minute,” she said.