Unbreak Me (Second Chances #1) (10 page)

Melanie sat at her vanity and fussed with her hair. It wouldn’t do what she wanted it to do and she was getting more and more flustered. She yanked the brush again.
Up it is,
she thought. She had wanted to wear it down, but it was not cooperating. She twisted it at her nape and began pinning and pulling pieces into place. She was determined to get this French twist to look right, and painstakingly curled a few flyaway pieces that fell around her face.

Setting the brush down, she looked back at her reflection. Finally satisfied with what she saw, she stood to put on her gown. She slid on her stockings that felt like silk on her legs, and stepped into the dress. It was that beautiful hunter green shade that brought out her eyes, at least that’s what everyone always told her. It had a velvet bust with small stones that followed the halter top. The empire waist held the satin skirt so it hung loose and flowy. The gown looked rather simple in the front, but when you turned around, the back plunged low. It came to a deep V right at the hips, small strands of crystals swaged from one side of the V to the other creating a curtain effect. She glanced at her reflection,
just what I was going for
she thought. She sat on the edge of the bed and slid on her shoes, a pair of green stilettos that matched the dress. She grabbed her wrap and purse and made her way out to the living room.

“Wow mom, you look great,” Katie beamed.

“Thanks, I’ll have my cell with me tonight. If you need anything, and I mean
anything
, you call me, you hear?” Melanie looked over her shoulder at Katie.

“Yes mom, now have a good time,” Katie giggled.

Just then, there was a knock at the door. Melanie walked over to open it knowing it was Austin. He was right on time, as always. She opened the door and smiled at the sight before her. There was Austin, dressed to the nines in a three piece suit. He always looked nice when they went out, but she’d never seen him this dressed up.

He smiled and kissed her on the cheek, “You look beautiful.”

“Thank you,” she blushed.

“For you,” he handed her a bouquet of flowers.

“What’s with all the flowers? My office is covered in them today. You must have bought out the entire shop,” she giggled.

“A lady must be courted,” he mused. He winked at her and held out his hand, “Ready?”

“Let me put these in water, and then yes, I’ll be ready,” she smiled.

When Melanie turned around to walk into the kitchen, revealing her back, Austin swallowed the lump that formed in his throat. The view of her back, a soft peaches and cream, was about to do him in. He shifted on his feet and clasped his hands in front of him trying to cover the reaction she was causing. One of the many things he found so attractive about her was the fact that she had no idea how beautiful she really was. He saw the way men looked at her when they were out somewhere. She was totally oblivious to her effect on them.

Katie sat on the couch and stared at the interaction between her mom and Mr. Montgomery. She hoped that one day she’d find a man that treated her like that. It was like having a movie play out in real life right in front of your eyes.

When they stepped out the door, Melanie gasped and placed her hand over her mouth. A black limousine was idling in front of the steps. “Oh Austin, what is all this?”

“This,” he offered his arm, “Is how you treat a lady.”

The driver had stepped to the side, holding the door open for them. Austin moved to allow Melanie to enter first. Once she had slid in, he climbed in beside her.

“I wanted to be able to enjoy the night without worrying about the car. I can devote my entire attention to you this way.” He smiled a crooked smile at her as he reached over to clasp her hand in his. He ran his thumb slowly across the back of her hand as he shifted to face her more. “You deserve to be treated this way, cherished, adored… I intend to show you what being with me is really like. The
real
me, not the one you hear about.”

Melanie blushed and turned her face down, “You make feel special,” she mumbled.

“That’s because you
are
,” he answered with genuine affection.

The drive seemed quicker to the theater than the last date they went on. Maybe it was the fact that they were beginning to get more comfortable around one another. Whatever it was, it made the evening much more relaxed. When they got to the opera house, the limo pulled up to the curb and a valet helped them out. Melanie raised her brow, but smiled as he offered her his arm. When they entered the opera house, Austin led her up to a private box and opened the door.

“In here, my lady,” he gestured with his arm at the seats.

She walked in and took a seat.
This must have cost him a fortune
she thought.
A limo... box seats
...
what’s next?
Austin took the seat beside her. He glanced over as he was making himself comfortable and thought
god she’s beautiful. How am I going to top this date? I’ll be doing favors for Colin for a year to make up for these tickets.
He was silently chuckling to himself when Melanie noticed the quick rise and fall of his shoulders.

“What’s so funny?” she asked.

“Oh nothing,” he replied. “A friend of mine has season tickets to the opera, so I bought these off him. I figure I owe him now. I’m not looking forward to what he’ll ask me for when he comes to collect is all.”

Colin had a habit of getting Austin into some sticky situations, but they’d been friends for as long as Austin could remember.

“Which opera is this that we’re seeing tonight?” she grabbed a program from Austin and removed her opera glasses from her clutch bag.

“Carmen. Ever heard of it?” Austin shrugged.

“Bizet’s Carmen?” she turned to face him with a look of excitement gracing her face.

“That’s the one,” Austin chuckled.

“Yes, I’ve seen it before. Oh, this is a very romantic story,” she sighed.

Austin listened as she described the plot of the opera with such excitement in her voice.

“Sound like she’s bad news if you ask me,” he laughed.

Just then the lights dimmed and the curtains rose.

Austin leaned over toward Melanie, “Do you understand French?”

“Yes, I took French in school,” she smiled at him. Then she leaned even closer and began telling him what was going on.

Austin nodded along as she continued to whisper in his ear. Chill bumps appeared on his neck from the caress of her warm breath. The more she spoke in hushed whispers, the more he wished they were alone somewhere. His body was so keyed up at the moment, he wasn’t sure he’d make it through the night. He couldn’t remember the last time a woman had had this much of an effect on him. The way she leaned toward him, her perfect body draped in that soft silky dress, he silently wondered what it would feel like to run his hands over her. That first kiss they’d shared in the park seemed like so long ago. He’d been fantasizing for days what it would be like to be with her...to feel her pressed against him, panting and begging him to take her.

In desperation, Austin shook his head to rid the thoughts he was having. He needed to calm down before things got out of hand. The opera would be over soon, and he’d have to get up and walk. He was not feeling at all honorable at the moment, and he did not want to make a fool of himself in front of her.

When Melanie looked over at him, she could see he was completely mesmerized, but she had no idea the battle that was currently waging in him. His brain was fighting for control over his body and it was a struggle he wasn’t used to. Just then the final act began to play out.

The curtains closed and the audience rose to their feet offering a thunderous applause. Austin picked up Melanie’s wrap and placed it on her shoulders.

“That was beautiful, thank you,” she smiled softly at him.

He guided her out of the box and around to the front of the theater. They only had to wait a moment before the limo was brought around and once they climbed in, it pulled away and drove back to Melanie’s.

When they pulled up to the curb at the front of her brownstone, she glanced to the side at him. “Would you like to come in? I could make some coffee...”

“Sure, that sounds nice,” he looked longingly at her. He knew exactly what he wished would happen for the rest of the evening. When he helped her stand, he pulled her against him and placed a kiss to her lips. When he wrapped his arm around her waist and felt his palm brush against her bare back, it was almost his undoing. He felt her lean into him and release sigh. He ran his tongue along the seam of her lips begging for entrance. When she parted them without hesitation, he plunged in. She rose up on her tiptoes and wrapped her arms around his neck, grasping at the soft hair at his nape. Just as he was beginning to deepen the kiss further, she shivered. It was getting cold out and even though he didn’t want to stop, he knew they needed to move this indoors. He broke the kiss and looked down at her stunned expression, “It’s getting cold out, why don’t we move this inside?”

She blushed a deep shade of crimson and began to dig her keys out of her clutch. After unlocking the front door, Melanie slowly entered and turned on a few lights. She pointed to the hallway, “I’ll just be a minute.”

She quickly scurried into her room and removed her shoes and wrap, tossing them on the bed. She glanced in the mirror and took a deep breath to calm herself. When she came back out into the kitchen, Austin had removed his coat and vest, and was standing in the kitchen looking around. Before she made her presence known, she stood a few moments just admiring the view. Austin was ruggedly handsome. He had the body of a man who worked in manual labor, but the style and class of an executive. His arms and shoulders strained against his shirt and his slacks hung loosely on his hips. He had rolled up his sleeves exposing his forearms, one of which was adorned with a gold Cartier watch.

When she shifted on her bare feet, the floor squeaked giving her away. She glanced away embarrassed when he looked over his shoulder and noticed that she was staring. As she ducked her head, she made her way into the kitchen to join him.

“Thought I’d get started, but I don’t know my way around your kitchen yet,” he shrugged.

She caught the “yet” in his comment and understood that he was implying that he’d like to know his way around her place better. He removed his tie and unbuttoned the first couple of buttons on his shirt as she began to open cabinets and place items in the counter.

“Here,” she opened a cabinet and pulled out two mugs. She set them on the counter and just then noticed how close he was to her.

“I know you can’t be comfortable in that,” he slowly trailed his finger over her shoulder making her shiver. “Why don’t you change into something else? I don’t mind. I mean this is,
wow
, but I know how I feel right now. And right now I would kill for a pair of sweats and a t-shirt,” he smiled at her.

“Ok, I’ll be right back,” she blushed.

She scurried back to her room for a second time and flung open the closet. She hung the dress back on a hanger making a mental note to never get rid of it after the night that she’d just had. She then grabbed a pair of flannel pants along with a cotton tank top. As she stood looking at herself in the mirror, she grabbed a sweatshirt and pulled it on at breakneck speed. She rushed down the hall stopping at the door to the family room to calm herself before she returned to the kitchen.

“You’re right, I do feel better,” she laughed.

“You,” he handed her a mug of steaming coffee, “can make anything look good.”

She blushed and took the mug from him. They moved into the family room and took a seat on the couch. Austin pulled her right up next to him and wrapped his arm around her shoulder. “I had a great time tonight.”

“Me too,” she snuggled in closer.

“I’m really enjoying spending time with you. I’d like for this to continue,” he turned to gaze into her emerald eyes. “Melanie, I think I’m falling in love with you.”

His eyes were soft and pleading for understanding. She only hesitated a moment before returning the gesture.

“Me too Austin, but I’m afraid,” she looked at her lap.

“Afraid of what? Me?” he gestured with his hands pointing at his chest.

“No, of feeling something for a man again and then losing him. I couldn’t handle going through that pain again,” she looked away breaking the contact between them.

“You won’t,” he sighed. “Trust me?” He took her mug from her and placed it along with his own on the coffee table in front of them.

Leaning in, he brushed his lips over hers, waiting for permission to deepen the kiss. She relaxed into him, giving into the sensations coursing through her body and parted her lips allowing him entrance. He slowly began caressing her tongue with his own and pulled her into his lap. One hand wrapped around her back while the other slid up to her nape. She sighed and deepened the kiss more as her hands slid up his chest and neck, capturing his face. She leaned forward farther, pressing her breasts into his chest, and felt a rumbling groan bubble up his throat. Austin slid his hand further down and cupped her bottom. Melanie could feel her body reacting to him. Her nipples were hardening, her center was throbbing, and her breath was coming out in pants. She could feel Austin’s erection making its presence known as it pulsed against her. Their bodies were calling out to one another. He slowly released her neck and slid his hand to the bottom of her sweatshirt. As soon as his fingers began to brush against her bare back, she tensed and began to pull away. Both turned their heads to regain their equilibrium before taking a chance at meeting each other’s eyes.