Chapter 8

“I don’t know what I’m doing Reno.” AJ’s shoulders slumped uncharacteristically as he cried over his Irish Brew.

“You are roommates with benefits. That’s what she wanted.” Reno slapped his wide hand on AJ’s back, making AJ cough.

“Would you take that offer from Lisette?”

“Hell no, I’m in—” Reno paused. AJ watched as his brother stared at him as if he’d grown a second head. “I don’t believe it. Adrian Jackson Ross Junior—you, my brother, are in love.”

“Don’t say that out loud.” AJ looked around, checking if someone in the little bar had heard what Reno had said. He didn’t need anyone to know, he wasn’t sure if he wanted to know himself. “I’m fond of her. It might be because I was her first. There is a whole lot of emotional baggage with that sort of responsibility.”

“For the girl. The guy only feels that sort of ‘responsibility’ and ‘emotional baggage’…” AJ sneered each time Reno used his fingers to draw quotes in the air. “…if he’s in—”

“Don’t say it, Reno Kanaloa Kent.” AJ brought his fist down on the table with a loud thud which made his drink fly off the table. “I don’t know what to do.”

“I could give you a clue.”

AJ turned toward the seductress. The rumor of a dress she wore barely covered her breast and stopped just under the curve of her ass. She was pretty enough, and her red hair was a plus. It wasn’t blonde like Katherine. AJ was done with blondes.

AJ immediately felt the charm coming on. So many years of being a Lothario had made this sort of response to the opposite sex automatic. AJ moved his legs from under the table and with a gentle tug, he settled the woman between his thighs.

“What clue is that?” The sexy, hypnotic drawl in his voice was back, no longer anything like the man whining a few seconds ago.

“Meet me in the ladies’ in ten seconds.” She blew him a kiss, walked away, and disappeared into the back.

AJ reached for his wallet. He needed protection, but he came up empty. He groaned and looked up at Reno for assistance. “I need this. I need to make Katherine as unimportant as every other woman I have slept with.”

“I don’t have any protection.”

“Reno, if you get my little sister pregnant—” he snarled his warning.

“Relax, she’s on birth control. Besides if she finds me with a box of condoms, she’ll think I’m cheating.” He scoffed. “Look at it this way AJ—it wasn’t meant to be. Now let’s get out of here before that horny harpy comes back.”

* * * *

Katherine decided to go back to her own bed when AJ hadn’t come back after an hour. She concluded he was probably with someone else. It infuriated her how he could go looking for another woman seconds after he had made love to her. She looked at the clock. It was three am, and she had to wake up in three hours. Katherine stared at the ceiling, tracing the tiny dots she saw there, counting the number of panels used to cover the ceiling.

She sat up with a start when she heard the front door open. Fear gripped her. What if someone had broken in, and AJ wasn’t there to keep her safe. Katherine stayed frozen on the bed as she listened to the heavy footstep coming toward her room. If the thief was heading her way, it meant he wasn’t interested in anything else in the apartment.

It was her thief, the one who had stolen her innocence, and robbed her of her heart and her love. She sank back into bed and thought about pretending to be asleep. The door opened and didn’t close for a few seconds. AJ was watching her, and even under the cover of her duvet, his gaze touched each and every part of her.

“I’m awake,” she confessed.

Katherine didn’t lift her head to watch what he was doing. Instead, she listened. She listened to his heavy breathing, to the sound of shoes being thrown off, to the sound of his jacket and T-shirt dropping to the floor, the slide of his zipper and the rustle of his jeans as they slid down his thick thighs.

Then she felt him. The bed dipped as he climbed and hovered over her. The intense passion flowed from his body and into hers.

Then she smelled him—he was drunk.

AJ lay on top of her on the covers. His hands sprawled at his sides, as his head rested on her chest. Katherine could feel his weight begin to crush her, but she didn’t dare move him.

“My Kat, my beautiful kitty kat,” he mumbled.

“Hush, it’s okay I’m here.”

“You can’t love me, can you?”

“What?” Katherine tapped him over and over again, trying to get him to repeat what he said. Trying to ascertain her ears weren’t lying to her and her mind and heart weren’t playing tricks on her. Finally, she found her upper body strength and pushed AJ off. Straddling him, she tried to wake him, but it was of no use.

Katherine lay on his chest and said, “I can love you. I do love you.”

* * * *

Standing at the kitchen counter, AJ swallowed the bile that was burning at the back of his throat and tried to ignore the pain in his temple. But his head pounded with a vengeance from the previous night’s excesses. He didn’t remember a large chunk of what he’d done last night. The last thing he recalled was the vixen who invited him for a quickie in the women’s bathroom. AJ had almost done it. He almost screwed a complete stranger a few hours after he had made love to Katherine, just to get her out of his system.

His hands began to tremble at the sound of Katherine’s door opening then clicking shut. A splash of hot coffee burnt his hand, and AJ thought it would be safer for his body, and his ego, if he put the mug down. He stared at the corner she was just about to come around, terrified. As he didn’t know what he’d done last night, he didn’t know what sort of mood he should expect from her.

The second her face appeared and their eyes locked, it all halted. The moment froze, time stopped—and the only thing with life was his heart as it thunderously beat as if it were going to burst out of his chest.

“Morning,” Katherine mumbled, a crimson blush filled her cheeks as she looked away.

AJ didn’t expect her to blush. Her smile gave him enough courage to pick his coffee back up. “Morning, how did you sleep?”

AJ knew how she slept. He woke up with her tiny body on top of his. He wasn’t sure whether he had put her there, or she had crawled there on her own. But in the few seconds before his previous night’s activities came back to haunt him, AJ wrapped his arms around her, taking in her morning scent, and how her barely-there weight brought comfort to his heart.

“Great.” Katherine gazed at him, and AJ could tell she was studying him. Probably waiting for him to remember or bring up what might have happened before they slept. “Did you have a good time last night, when you went out?”

“It was cool. I like spending time with Reno.”

“Reno?”

“My little sister’s boyfriend.” AJ thought it was time to change the topic before she asked about anything else. “We should probably get going.”

“I wanted to speak to you about Lyle—”

“Kitty!” The look of surprise on Katherine’s face made AJ regret calling her that aloud. Something must have happened the previous night that had to do with that pet name. He tried his best to push aside the emotions stirring inside him, as her ivory skin burned pink. He wanted to reach out and stroke her flushed cheeks, press a kiss at the base of her neck and gather her in his arms. But he used the kitchen island between them as an obstacle he wasn’t meant to cross. Katherine had made it clear—the bedroom was the only place their relationship was meant to thrive.

“About Lyle—”

“We already talked about that. You are to stay away from him.” AJ stared down at his now cold coffee and dumped it in the sink.

“We didn’t talk about it. You ordered me to stay away.”

AJ walked around her. He wasn’t going to compromise on this.

“AJ, listen to me, please!”

“What!” He turned around and bumped into her. His arms shot out and caught her just as she lost her balance. The storm brewing in her eyes, turning her calm baby blues to lightning silver tickled his groin. How he wished he could have this fire, anger, or frustration in bed with him. That would be a lovemaking for the books.

“I came to live here to escape my father’s authoritarian rule. I will not trade one dictatorship for another.” Her tone was low but filled with earnestness.

“Fine, just don’t be alone with him. He’s not a good guy.”

“What about you?”

AJ’s palms began to heat up as they rubbed up and down Katherine’s arms. Bravely and lustfully moving up her back, AJ dug his fingers into the thickness of her hair. He enjoyed the silken dance between his fingers as he combed through it. AJ had the urge to twirl her locks around his wrist, pull her head back and devour her throat. But the buzzing in his pants, caused by his phone, cut into his fantasy.

Katherine took a step back, making AJ release her from his hold. Her eyes seemed glazed, her breathing short and quick. “I’ll just wait for you in the car.”

AJ looked down at his phone and frowned. “It’s Lisette.”

“Of course, it is.” He didn’t miss the steel in her tone. AJ watched as she grabbed her things in fury and banged the door on her way out.

“What did I say?”

* * * *

“It’s Lisette!” Katherine mimicked. “He says her name as if she’s the best thing since…since…oh what the hell!”

“Katherine.”

Katherine turned at the sound of her name being called. And as if the fates had it in for her, she came face to face with AJ’s red-head Rose. “Dr. Henry, please.”

“Forgive me, oh high and mighty one.” Rose mocked. “I heard you forced your way into AJ’s home. Don’t you have any respect?”

“I should be asking you that.” Katherine stared her down, anger sizzling beneath her skin. She had no doubt the evidence of her rage smoked out of her ears like an enraged bull. “I didn’t go sniffing around him. He came to me. He asked me to be with him.” That wasn’t entirely true but there was no reason for her to know that. “He wants me, and yet you still press your hundred-dollar silicon disasters against him. He is never going to want you, not when he has me.”

“We’ll see about that.”

“If I find you near him, I will cut you from nose to navel.” Katherine used her ball point pen to illustrate. She had the pleasure of seeing Rose’s eyes go wide and her lower lip tremble as if she was going to cry. She felt a pinch of guilt that was quickly forgotten when she spotted Lisette come through the hospital doors.

Katherine was on a roll, and she wasn’t about to let the steam setting her momentum die out. With her trusty ballpoint pen she barreled toward Lisette, trying not to count how many different ways the brunette bombshell was better than her. Somehow, she would have to put a cap on her insecurities.

“What are you doing here?”

“Huh! You really are a doctor! Who would have thought?” Lisette smirked.

“Well yes, and this is a hospital, and unless you work here or are sick, you should leave.”

“I came to see AJ.”

“I don’t think you will be able to. He doesn’t have time for the likes of you.” Katherine looked Lisette over and for the first time noticed what she was wearing.

Lisette was in a power suit, the kind you only find in powerful boardrooms. If she didn’t know any better, if she wasn’t sure Harry Henry had an exclusive tailor, she would have sworn Lisette’s trouser suit were sewn by the same hands. Her hair was held back, her makeup minimal—but that didn’t take away from her beauty. She had practical but no doubt a pair of Prada shoes on. She looked like a lawyer, a respectable one in fact.

“What are ‘the likes of’ me?” Lisette asked with a mocking grin.

“Uh-mmm?”

“Don’t back down now. I think AJ needs a girl who’s such a spitfire. It will definitely keep the flies away from the honey.” Katherine was taken aback by the brusqueness in her voice, especially when Lisette stared down Rose.

What the hell was going on exactly?

“I practically have to use a broom to sweep all the trash out, when he’s done with them.” Lisette spoke loudly and Katherine realized it was for Rose’s benefit. She watched as the burned nurse shuffled away in anger. Well, she had to thank Lisette for chasing—what did she call them? ‘flies’—Rose away. But she needed to get Lisette away too. By the time she was ready to trust AJ completely, she didn’t need the fly buzzing around her honey.

“I think you should leave AJ alone as well. We are together and your endowed breasts—are those real? —nice ass and very sweet lips, are not going to take him away from me.” Katherine frowned; those were three more things that Lisette had that she didn’t.

“Does my brother know you are marking your territory?”

“Your brother?”

“Yes, I know, he’s black and I’m Latina. There was a mix up of orders in our mother’s womb,” she teased. “He is my stepbrother.”

Katherine felt utterly stupid. She wanted the ground to open up and swallow her whole. To make matters worse, AJ was walking toward them, a strange smile on his face. Katherine took a step back, ready to make a pivot turn and run to hide her shame. But Lisette caught her arm before she could move. She struggled to set herself free. You’d think a girl who grew up wrestling three brothers would be stronger than this. But Lisette seemed to have the strength of a thousand bulls.

“Hey, big brother!” Lisette chirped.

“Hi.” Katherine managed to mumble out. She was seriously pissed. Why hadn’t AJ told her Lisette was his sister? But now it dawned on her, like a ton of bricks crashing into her. AJ was “the” Adrian Ross Junior. How could she forget one of the most powerful families New York? Adrian Ross Senior was mostly seen with Dennis Kent, the man who married into the Italian financial giant family with the Hawaiian son. There was also something in the papers about a missing daughter.

“Adrian Jackson Ross of Ross and Kent Associates. And Lisette Marie Ross, of Ross and Kent Financials.”

“I’m not that Adrian Ross,” AJ said with a grin. “My father is the lawyer, I’m the doctor.”

“And you are Katherine Henry. Oh, my God!” Lisette broke out in a fit of giggles. “Your father is our main competitor. And your brother—dear God if I didn’t have Reno I’d be barking-up that tree.”

“Lisette!” AJ’s silencing tone was back.

“I’m just saying.” Lisette stuck out her stubborn jaw and immediately Katherine knew this was what AJ was talking about when they met at the hospital.

Randomly, Katherine pressed her finger against the throbbing vein in Lisette’s jaw that was still stuck out defiantly. “Ha! You were right, AJ.”

“Right about what?” Lisette asked confused.

“Lisette, you do exactly the same thing. Except Katherine has those lightning blue-gray eyes—that just drive me crazy.” Katherine blushed as AJ’s desire laden tone wrapped around her in an erotic hug.

“Keep it in your pants. And don’t drool, Katherine, he’s just a man, I assure you.” Lisette mocked. “Before you arrived your girlfriend was hitting on me.”

“What?”

“She asked me if my boobs are real. I promise you they are, and if you don’t believe me ask Reno. You should come for Saturday lunch and meet him. I’ll tell Mama to set an extra plate setting. You’ll have fun and our parents will be happy to know AJ has finally settled down.”

“But—” Katherine and AJ cut in at the same time.

“Don’t worry; you don’t have to bring anything. Mama, Catalella and I will have everything ready for you. By the way Kat, if you ever need some back up with those flies, I got you.”

“Why are you here, Lisette?” AJ cut in.

“Birth control, I’m out.”

“No! Not hearing anything!” Katherine chuckled as AJ covered his ears with his hands, a troubled look on his face. He was definitely a big brother.

“I’m going. I’ll see you this weekend, Katherine.” Lisette grabbed her into a vise-like hug leaving Katherine gasping for breath. “Bye.”

“Bye.”

Katherine watched as Lisette sauntered away. She stopped and tossed over her shoulder. “Peeing on him will be better. That’s what dogs do.”

“What!” AJ exclaimed.

Katherine felt the heat rise in her cheeks. She shrugged her shoulders feigning ignorance. Right then Lisette growled at Rose just before she disappeared round the corner. “She’s something.”

“She is everything to me,” AJ said with softness that Katherine had never heard before. “About the lunch—”

“I don’t have to come if you don’t want me too.” She rushed to say it.

“I want you to, but only if you want to come.”

“I want to.”

“Great.”

“Great.” They stood in an awkward silence for a while before Katherine ran away.