Deceived Read online

  “This place looks so different…so incredible…a-fucking-mazing! I can’t believe it is the same house.” Madison strolled in my front door with a bag of gourmet goodies and bottles of wine, stopping to look around as she made her way to my kitchen that was not quite done yet, but functional. “You know this place could be labeled a historical monument to the glam past!” Her voice was decorated with excitement that matched her new look. “Definitely a must for your book.”

  “Not sure it’s good for my textbook idea, but I can imagine seeing it in an interior design magazine.” I stepped up to the counter where she set things and helped her remove yummy items that were perfect for a charcuterie plate—mixed green olives, deli meats, cheeses, dried fruit, and mini baguettes. “Love your new hair color.”

  “Balayage,” she announced as I handed her a platter before I opened the wine and filled two glasses. “You need before and after pictures of everything…I see it now…”

  “Bolly-what?” We were having a confusing conversation. Madison was stuck in interior design book mode and I was intrigued by her usual jet black waves highlighted with colors that reminded me of burgundy wine, caramel, dark chocolate…and milk chocolate. It was so pretty—it made my shiny blonde hair seem so dull.

  “Balayage…b-a-l-a-y-a-g-e.” She laughed, lifting up her hair with one hand and letting it fall. “You did take them?” I tilted my head, squinting my eyes at her. “Photos. Keep up!” Madison said, playfully snapping her fingers in my face.

  “I was admiring your hair…it looks great! And yes, I took photos in all rooms before I moved in, from all angles. They’re not professional but some of them came out pretty decent.”

  She was nodding her head as I spoke, sipping her wine, and I could only imagine where her thoughts were jetting off to—always plotting. “Good! Perfect for publicity…the big reveal…you need a list of resources…you have them, right?” I could see the wheels turning in her head…part of her hoped of being a literary PR agent by the time I got my book put together.

  “I do but—” It was my turn to visualize where I had put things…receipts.

  “—besides your hot man?” Of course Madison was thinking along different lines than me as she made a growling sound. I was thinking about products not Caldwell.

  “Hey! Get your own!” I exclaimed, laughing.

  “Don’t worry yourself. You know I would never go after your man—”

  “—he’s not really mine.” I wanted him to be, but we had not talked about the possibility of us or made any commitments to each other.

  “You’re in love with him.” I looked at her wondering how she knew that…was certain of that. “Don’t even try to deny it…and…I spotted a very cute one for myself on the subway.”

  Oh, a new subject! I sat up straighter, wanting to hear more.

  “I think he’s interested…in a stalker-ish way.”

  “That doesn’t sound good.”

  “Relax! I mean he keeps seeking me out. I think he’s close to asking me out.” I waited for her to continue but instead watched her stack a heavenly combination from the meat and cheese platter. Unfortunately, she disappointed me once she finished chewing and took a sip of wine since she launched back into my book. “Anyhoo, about this place…” Her hand free of wine waved around in the air. “It’s a goldmine for promoting you and your stylish textbook, slash coffee table book.”

  “That is why you will be an agent soon!” I knew she would succeed.

  “Soon enough…get this kitchen done…and I will be ready to launch you!” She lifted her glass up into the air in my direction and waited for me to click hers. Toasting and chatting was the way we spent the rest of the evening before she took a hired car home and I crashed alone in my bed.

  Talking with Madison had me so excited about my future—I could see one of my dreams becoming a reality. Photos and edited text combined was all there was to it, right? Of course, whether it would sell or not was to be seen, but I hoped to share that with Caldwell. My thoughts had been running to him with everything going on in my life. He was hard to get away from—not that I wanted to—since he had become a part of the house. First, working on it and then practically living in it. All of his clothes and personal belongings were the only things missing.

  How did I feel about him making my home his permanent residence? I knew that he was living with his brother temporarily. There was, certainly, plenty of room for him in the four bedroom, three bath house that was too big for me alone. Would he like to live with me? He had mentioned that my Streamline Moderne was his dream house…well, maybe not exactly mine, but I knew he loved the architectural style of it. We sounded like a couple of fanatics when we discussed the house and ones like it. It surely had to be a bonus to have that love in common…love.

  Love for Caldwell? It was definitely a possibility. One that I hoped was felt mutually. Was he feeling the same way—uncertain if what we were experiencing was love or lust?

  Chapter Nine

  Caldwell

  Being in Europe, all I could think about was getting home to Daphne. In the past I had always planned extended trips to neighboring countries. On that trip, I was focused on taking care of business in a timely fashion and the needs of my once-in-a-lifetime client. My desires were not to be part of the proceedings since what I wanted was thousands of miles and an ocean away. It was pure torture to be achieving a dream without being able to talk about it to Daphne.

  That made me realize that I needed to clear things up with Daphne as soon as I could, but the first time I saw her was not going to be that moment. Talking to her on the phone while being away had been painful—I ached for her next to me…or under me—and I was done with words in favor of action. “Be ready” were my last words before I said goodbye to her as we were about to takeoff and I had to switch my cell to airplane mode.

  When the wheels of the jet touched down at LAX, I wanted the pilot to get us to the terminal quicker to let us deplane immediately. Going through customs, I had to stay calm as I silently begged them to process me quicker. Getting on a shuttle bus to my father’s truck parked in an extended-stay lot and driving to Los Feliz, I wanted to shout at people to drive quicker.

  When I finally parked in Daphne’s driveway, I grabbed my bag and rushed up to the front door as if my life depended on it. The fact that I didn’t have to use my key because the most spectacular sight ever threw the door open wide and jumped right into my arms was fucking fantastic. My bag hit the floor and I managed to get the door closed before our mouths hungered for each other frantically. Then, all at once, my fantasy was becoming a reality thanks to her lack of panties and my quick zipper and condom action. Up against the closed door, I entered her welcoming wetness swift and hard.

  “Don’t stop!” she moaned, tightening her grip on me.

  “Don’t worry. I’ve been craving you for days. Not stopping until I fill you up,” I grunted, pumping in and out of her tight warmth, loving every sensation that electrified my body. “Not going to last.”

  She was moaning and panting, “Right there…yes…almost there…oh God.”

  “Now! Now!” I commanded, hoping that it worked as I was about to lose my shit and my strength. With her nails digging into my back and her pulsating walls pulling me in deeper and tightening around me, I was sure that we had achieved our ultimate goal. “Oh fuck, yeah!” It wasn’t nearly enough, I needed far more of her and planned to ply her with far more attention in a more comfortable spot for as long…and as many times as I could muster.

  “I missed you,” she whispered breathlessly as I walked us through the house to her bed. I echoed her words back to her.

  The thought of remaining entangled in the sheets for hours…days…weeks was overly appealing but food and obligations stepped in. Not to mention, I needed to finish her house quicker than I wanted to thanks to my meeting in London. Luckily, Harrison had located some curved cabinetry reminiscent of the Streamline Moderne period. When we got to the store,
we found that there were only upper cupboards, but I was sure Ashton could make lower cabinets to match. Sure enough, he had some on-hand. My suggestion was a winner.

  “These are exactly what my kitchen needs.” Daphne was like a kid in a candy shop and the cabinets weren’t the only things that captured her attention. “Oh, Caldwell! I want this.” She pointed to a large porthole window that opened.

  I had to admit it was perfect for the house, but where?

  She had an answer. “Can we swap out the window over the sink for this? It will echo the built-in circular clock above in the cabinetry.”

  “That’s a great idea. I’ll have Ash… I’ll get Leonard to come over. He’s great with windows and doors…really just about anything.” Anyone but my brother needed to help. I could just hear him spilling the beans like he often did when we were kids. He was the last person you wanted to tell a secret to—I hadn’t even told him my latest news. I wasn’t saying much about Daphne to him either as I wanted her all to myself. It was bad enough that every man looked at her like she was the ultimate dinner.

  “Leonard the handyman?”

  Shit! Did she know him too? There could be another handyman with that same name but something told me that we were talking about the same one.

  “Don’t look at me like that!” I wasn’t sure what my expression was. “My sister Aubree works for a woman that has a guy named Leonard that helps her with things. In fact, we need to go to her house and pick up some old rusted mesh patio furniture.”

  I loved her enthusiasm about the house and how she insisted on keeping it as close to the original look as possible. The outdoor set was another thing she was so excited about and I couldn’t say no to anything she wanted. The trip out to Sierra Madre to a woman named Hadley’s house proved to be a good thing. The furniture was a fucking mess—but with a wire brush and a fresh coat of spray paint it would fit in perfectly. So I packed it all into the back of the old truck and Daphne stuffed cushions and pillows for the mesh love seat and two chairs into the cab of the truck.

  “I hear you’re trying to steal Leonard from me?” Hadley inquired with her hands on her hips and a smirk on her face that made me feel uncomfortable. I nearly fell over when she added Ashton’s name. “Temporarily is fine, but leave Ashton alone. I need my house finished.”

  “I…it’s only a window…I promise…just Leonard.” I had never felt so unintelligent in my life, stumbling for words.

  Daphne laughed and moved to my side, wrapping her arms around me. “She’s just busting your balls. Aubree already mentioned the window to Hadley and asked her if I could use him.”

  I relaxed a bit, but I didn’t like that she didn’t let me talk to Leonard. I wanted to be in charge of things. I wanted to be the one taking care of everything for her. Not wanting to make a big deal about it, I just wanted to get the hell out of there before there was any more mention of my brother. Nor did I want Hadley to question me about the work I was doing for Daphne or my last name.

  “We better get going before we get stuck in a major traffic jam.” Always an easy excuse in LA where people geared their schedules—if they could—around commuting that involved starting and quitting times. It was good that Daphne didn’t bring up the fact that we were traveling the opposite of rush hour until we were on our own.

  “Why did you want me alone?” Her voice was sexy and playful as she fiddled with her seatbelt. “Are you in need of some action?” Her hands were on my crotch, unhooking my pants and taking my throbbing erection out.

  “Oh fuck!” I moaned as she stroked up and down my hard as a rock length.

  “If you think you could drive with me on your lap, I’m willing to give it a try or you could just focus on driving with my lips wrapped around your…” She didn’t finish her sentence but, instead, dipped her head and licked up the side of me. “Yum,” I heard a few times as she teased me sucking, licking and nibbling me until I placed my hand gently on her head. I didn’t want to hurt her, but she needed to stop causing me such pain and agony. She did not disappoint… just the opposite, she gave me the best fucking blow job. I admit that I was not a pro at receiving pleasure while driving as I nearly swerved into a car in the next lane before pulling off the freeway for the grand finale.

  Though the ride was more than enjoyable, I was happy to be back home…to Daphne’s place where it was my turn to happily return the favor. Being with her had me thinking about never leaving, but how did I make that happen? Going to bed with her, waking with her, smelling her on me when we were apart…it sounded perfect.

  When I heard Daphne on the phone a few days after we finally got her kitchen put back together using that same word “perfect” it didn’t sound quite as good, though I loved her words.

  “I have the perfect life…the perfect man…the perfect house…the perfect job…the perfect…everything is right in my world.”

  I had no idea who she was talking to, but, suddenly, I felt like shit realizing that she did not have the perfect man. I was a no good rat of a guy because I wasn’t ready to give up the bliss we were living in by telling her how I had deceived her from the moment she opened her front door to me.

  Chapter Ten

  Daphne

  I was living in a fantasy world since Caldwell had returned from his trip. He had a few clothes and toiletries in my house that didn’t come and go—I even found some of his dirty clothes in my laundry pile. Surprisingly, I loved washing his garments with mine, it made things seem like more. He never argued with me when I said “stay” and he never questioned if I wanted him home at night. I mentioned or texted what I was craving for dinner and he often came through the door with food or I let him know that I had things ready to eat.

  Bedtime, we slipped between the sheets and cuddled. Sometimes we had sex and other times we just talked. I maybe talked too much since I had really made headway with photos and words for my book. I loved Caldwell’s input and his knowledge of the architecture I was compiling—he had even suggested a few houses for me to research.

  “You know Harrison owns a lot of houses and has access to even more. He could get you in to photograph some amazing homes—all styles.”

  “You’re right. He has already helped me. When you were gone he took me to a few in Pasadena. I swear that area could fill an entire book.”

  “Going behind my back with another man?”

  I laughed, although I wasn’t sure if it really bothered him. “Are you jealous?”

  “You’re mine…” his words mumbled against my skin as his lips journeyed around making me dizzy with lustful thoughts.

  I wasn’t sure of every word, but I liked that he wanted to claim me. “I like the sound of that.”

  “I like everything about you, Daphne.” His voice was totally sexy and I had never pictured conversing in between so many kisses and caresses. I thought he would segue into quietness, but no he continued to ask me questions and expected my answers. I was amazed that I could think, let alone speak. I wanted to tell him to shut up and yet he had me rethinking my book. Maybe I needed more than one as I already had a huge volume for the Los Angeles area alone. He was so encouraging—even with his little bout of jealousy—and it made me love…yes, love him all the more.

  I was thankful that I was able to keep from blurting out that last part. Then again, he finally gave up on conversing and captured my mouth as he slid inside me. “Finally” my brain shouted as I gave into every wave of excitement that shot through my entire body. I never wanted to leave our Streamline Moderne love nest. I just wanted us to be wrapped up in each other’s arms—that was all I needed.

  Unfortunately, work and obligations seemed to draw us out of our own little world and out into the real one. Deadlines were looming for me. I had articles to write and that included attending some events and trips to art hot spots.

  “Aubree called me and she wants me to go out tomorrow night.” That wasn’t completely true. She had texted me to say I was boring and that we needed a girls’
night out. I didn’t know how he would feel about me going out on the town. I didn’t think I would like him in a club or a bar with his guy friends. So, my solution to Aubree wanting some girl time was to take her along to a gallery opening. I hoped that it was a good one that would satisfy her “going out” request.

  Caldwell didn’t even question my announcement and it made me question us or if there was even an us. “That’s perfect I have a special event to go to.”

  Hmmm. I didn’t like the thought of him out at some hoopla without me. He is too incredibly handsome to be attending any events minus me on his arm. I could picture the female vultures swooping down to dig their claws into his salty, yummy, fragrant flesh.

  Of course, I couldn’t say anything or inquire as to what he was up to since I was the one that said I had plans and didn’t give details. I did like that he asked what time I would be home and if I wanted him to come over later that night. I was giddy knowing that at the end of the night I would be paid a visit…that Caldwell would be coming home to me. Climbing in bed with me where he belonged.

  “Oh my God!” Aubree practically screamed as we walked into a gallery in the heart of the art gallery district of downtown. “I’m so glad you picked the evening’s fun time—even if you are essentially working.” My sister loved to tag along with me on occasion and, luckily, this one was to her liking. Madison was supposed to come along, too, but she had some covert thing to do that night. “This place looks amazing!” Aubree did a little dance move as I gazed around taking in the whole space that had obviously been transformed.

  So true, I had to agree with her. It was, certainly, a million times better than the last gallery in its place. The decor before was too out of place…too elegant for the art district. It was too sleek with gray to black painted walls, velvet benches and lots of gold everywhere—track lighting, crystal chandeliers, shiny golden door handles, and even fancy gold fixtures in the bathroom. Gaudy and pretentious. The new look was fresh and clean with stark white walls. I loved the old exposed brick wall that must’ve been plastered over with drywall and dark paint. “Wow!” I said, looking up at a funky galvanized piping system which provided the track lighting for the artwork. Playful and fun!