Sugar Pie by Victoria Pinder

30

I’m on a secret project that is taking me away from home, but I promise I’ll reveal what I discovered soon, and my next blog should be full of the juiciest secrets ever.

Gossip and burn the rich.

Yours truly,

Regina, your gossip goddess you can’t escape from.

Warren

The sun shone on my face from the plastic vinyl shades that had been bent in the corners. With Kerry in my arms, the day felt perfect. I held her as we lay on the floor.

The laptop was in the corner of the room, and the sunshine bleeding on it from broken shades meant I was late for work.

I had the world I wanted. Since starting my adventure, I’d spent the days working with my hands and my nights with the sweetest woman I’d ever know. It was time to tell her who I was, though.

I held her tightly, but she snored, so I picked her up.

She deserved the bed. And soon, she would have sixteen-hundred-thread-count cotton sheets and everything she ever desired.

She didn’t stop me, and I deposited her on the bed.

She sighed, and when her eyes batted open, I grew hard again. “Kerry, you’re awake.”

She kissed my cheek. “You’re a sweetheart, Warren.”

Part of me wanted to stay and have her again. I needed to show her how much I loved her.

If I told the truth immediately, we would have the time to forget the world. My skin burned. “I have a job to get to.”

She sighed, let me go, and stretched as she stood. “I remember. I make your schedule. I’ll scan for any last-minute stuff to add, so keep your phone on.”

We headed to the kitchen and made new toast for her. I took the dry bread for myself. “Tonight, we’ll go out to eat,” I said.

“I’ll cook something here.” She grabbed my arm and held up her hand. “I packed your lunch.”

I finished my toast and poured us both coffees. I made an exception just to taste her coffee, as it was what she loved most—I wanted it on my lips when I was away. “You spoil me.”

She laughed and filled a plastic bento box she’d picked up somewhere. “I’m just happy you eat what I prepare and don’t think everything a chef does is superior to home cooking.”

She trusted me. I hugged her waist. “Well, a night out with you would be fun too.”

She put the box on the counter and curled into my arms one more time. Then she said, “True, but we’re on a mission.”

She didn’t know my true mission. She only knew some of it, and making her mine took priority. I let her go and said, “I wanted to talk to you this morning.”

Her phone dinged, so she went to the bedroom.

My heart pounded. It was time to tell her I was a Norouzi, the heir to trillions.

She came out and wiggled her phone. “Oh, this job would fit perfectly in your schedule for today. Let me write this email.” She typed on her phone.

Proving I could make a business work to show myself worthy of my father’s trust was still a goal. “Okay, but when I get home, we’ll turn off our phones and just have the two of us.”

She glanced up, done with her message, and nodded. “Sounds wonderful.”

I headed to the door, but she hooked my arm and tugged me back. A moment later, she kissed me, and my hair stood on end as my muscles tensed.

If I hadn’t had to work, I never would have left her bed. As the kiss ended, I still tasted her on my mouth.

I headed out the door with the expectation that when I got home, we would make love again.

My first job was the biggest, and the kitchen cabinets went in well. In two more weeks, I’d have earned my twenty-five thousand and have the down payment to close on my own land-development project.

The thought of Kerry and our bed drove me to work faster, and I finished the installation with sweat and two hours to spare.

I jumped into my truck and headed to my two small jobs. The first listed any time as an option, so I quickly called the easier job and got permission to show up early.

On the drive there, my phone rang. For a second, I thought the client was calling me back, but then I saw the number and answered. “Dad, you still have your mind-reading abilities? I was just thinking of you.”

“Good. Your mother isn’t the only one who worries about you.”

I rocked in my seat. “I’m doing well. There’s nothing to worry about.”

“Your mother reads the internet, and we still haven’t figured out who’s writing these things about us.”

“That’s never mattered to us, and idle gossip isn’t worth worrying about.” I rubbed the back of my head, unsure what to say. “And I’m fine. My business is growing.”

“Your brother informed me that one of his staff revealed your location to a blogger. I made our fortunes on following my instincts and believing in myself when no one else did. My gut is rarely wrong, and you being away from your resources doesn’t sit right with me.”

We’d never taken cues from gossip. Maybe old age was getting to him. I shrugged and drove onto the side street where my next job was. “Doesn’t matter. It’s a gossip site.”

“Listen, I want you to consider forgetting the plan and just coming home.”

I turned off the engine. I wouldn’t go anywhere without Kerry. I stayed still and said, “I’m not giving up now. For the first time in my life, I’m happy, and it has nothing to do with sitting at a desk, making money.”

“I’ll be sending security for you and your new girlfriend.”

I made a mental note to check the nonsense website once I finished work. “Let me figure out my end first. Everything is fine here.”

“Your last name is a blessing and a curse. I won’t let you be without a guard.”

He believed he was right. I stepped out of the truck and said, “I have to go, but here, everyone thinks I’m Warren Tate. No one knows I’m a Norouzi. And I have loose ends to figure out before I come home.”

We said our goodbyes, and once I made it to the door, I knocked then got to work.

I worked and thought about how having Kerry at home when I got there was giving me energy to power through the day.

I finished the ceiling fans and then went to a 3D-wall-panel installation for a realtor who wanted it done before closing.

I lined up the work and finished my day early enough for the sun to still be up when I headed home.

My lips tingled and were ready for her kiss as I headed up the stairs. I went up two steps at a time and hummed until I unlocked the door.

I walked in and smelled the lemon cake she must have just finished cooking, which sat on the counter next to homemade soup.

I closed the door.

Her lips were thin, and her face was white. Something had happened. I went to kiss her. “Kerry…” She was my everything. I loved her. The moment our lips met, the world disappeared entirely.

As it ended, she hugged me and said, “I’m happy you’re back ahead of schedule, but did something happen to one of the jobs?”

The last thing she needed to do was worry. I squeezed her hand as she pulled away. “No. I worked fast to get back to you.”

She cupped my face but then stepped back and rocked back and forth. “That’s sweet. So my mother spoke to my ex today…”

I ran my hand down her back. “Why?”

She nodded and met my gaze. “It seems my mother wanted to know if the medications I was on would make me delusional. And apparently, he apologized to her that it came to me jumping out of the car to make my point.”

As long as she wasn’t afraid or worried about anything, it was okay. I smiled and stepped back. “That’s good.”

She raised her chin high. “He offered to send me my prescriptions, but I said no. I don’t know why he had a few of his doctor friends on the line, but it felt like a setup. Since I left, I’ve been fine, and that’s what I said.”

She was confident and capable. I winked. “You are more than fine. You’re smart, which is why I made you my partner.”

She curled her arms around her waist. “You think?”

I massaged her shoulders, and she let her hands fall to her sides. “Why wouldn’t you be? You know yourself the best, so what do you believe?”

She sucked on her lower lip then met my gaze. For a second, she didn’t say anything, but then she curled her lips higher into a smile. “That I am rational, sane, and capable of running our business is exactly what I needed to hear.”

Perfect. At least I’d not stressed her by mentioning how she had my heart whenever she wanted it. I let her go and grabbed the bowls, kissing her cheek on my way to the counter. “Good, and you know we’re exclusive, so no one else is invited into our beds or lives.”

“Okay. I don’t want to share you.” Her eyes had a gleam in them that made me excited and tense. “And soon, we’ll be rich.”

Right. My mind snapped. I’d not read the blog or told Kerry who I was. I let her go. “Yes. Do you believe in gossip?”

She massaged the back of her head. “I don’t care what people think or say about me.”

Whatever was on the page didn’t matter to us, then. I curled my arms around her and said, “Me too. I just want you.”

Then we kissed, and fire burned in my veins.

She followed me to the bedroom. “I thought for sure we’d eat tonight.”

Goose bumps appeared on my arms, and my heart pounded in my chest, but I didn’t dare touch her yet. “Are you hungry?”

She slipped off her shirt. “Only for you.”

“We’ll eat later,” I said, following her lead.

I needed her more than anything else. She was all that mattered to me, and as she ignited my lips with desire, I realized something more powerful drove me. I truly loved her.