Rival's Desire

“Love, I don’t think you could take what I get off on,” Caesar softly assured her, the erotic curve of his mouth twitching in amusement.

Viv shook her head and gave Caesar a sour look. “You really are an arrogant jackass.”

Caesar brought his face close to hers. “I’m getting tired of the name callin’, Plum.”

Completely oblivious to the steely edge in Caesar’s deep, rough voice, Viv took a step closer. “And you mean to do something about it, do you?”

When the elevator doors opened, Vivian was thrown across one of Caesar’s powerful shoulders. Her heart pounded wildly as she beat his wide back with her fists.

“Caesar, dammit, wait! My glasses!”

He ignored her, holding her legs snug against chest. He carried her out of the elevator to the polished oak door at the end of the long corridor. He whistled a little tune, unmindful of Viv’s loud voice and her pounding upon his back. He stepped inside the gorgeous, warmly furnished condo and pushed the door shut with his shoulder. He went directly to the bathroom and deposited Vivian on the toilet.

“Get dressed,” he ordered, his stern expression brooking no argument.

The steamy, invigorating shower soothed the tension in Vivian’s shoulders. The powerful spray of water hitting her body felt so wonderful, she dreaded getting out.

“Oh, no,” she groaned when she shut the water off. She realized her bag had not been brought in and Caesar hadn’t been thoughtful enough to provide her with a fresh towel.

Her search through the closet provided no extra towels. “Dammit,” she sighed, propping her hands on her hips and debating on whether or not to risk prancing naked outside the bathroom. “I don’t have a choice.” She pulled the door open and peeked out into the hall. “Caesar?” she called, hoping he wasn’t upstairs. There was no answer, so she sprinted out the door and found a huge bedroom.

She spotted her leather bag on the white oak dresser. “Thank you,” she whispered. She retrieved a thick, dark blue towel and dried her face. Setting the towel on the dresser, Viv bowed her head and took several, refreshing deep breaths. When she opened her eyes and looked into the mirror, she found Caesar leaning against the doorjamb. Unmindful of her nudity, she turned to face him. “What are you doing here?”

Caesar pulled his sensual light stare away from the silky dark curls shielding Viv’s womanhood. “I live here,” he reminded her as he slowly stepped into the room.

Viv gasped, realizing her body was completely bared to his searing gaze. “I mean, what are you doing in here?” She pulled the dark towel in front of her.

“I came to get something.” He crossed his arms over his chest as he watched her. “Besides, I thought I left you in the bathroom.”

“You did, but you brought my bag in here.”

Caesar closed his eyes as realization dawned. “Yeah, that’s right.”

Viv propped her hand on her hip and gave him a strange look. She had no idea the towel only covered the front of her body, leaving the rest in plain view through the mirror. When Caesar just stood there staring, she frowned.

“Are you gonna leave now?” she asked.

“I hadn’t planned on it.”

“Caesar, what are you doing?”

“You know, I wish you’d stop asking me that,” he said, pushing his hands into the pockets of his trousers.

Viv’s lashes fluttered as she shook her head. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

“You know damned well what’s going on here.”

“Well, would you clue me in anyway?”

Caesar leaned back against the wall. “Come on, Plum. All that arguing with me, getting all up in my face, pushing all that chest against me? You’ve been coming on to me all day.”

Viv’s mouth fell open. She was so exasperated it took a full minute before she could speak. “I don’t believe you just said that.”

A wolfish grin spread across Caesar’s face. “Truth hurts, huh, Plum?”

“No-o-o, lies hurt!”

“I’ve been around enough women to know the difference between one who’s not interested and one who’s flirting with me.”

“I’m sure you have, but you’re wasting your time with me!”

Caesar leaned his head back against the wall and smiled. “I’ll take my chances for a body like that.” His eyes trained on the mirror.

Vivian’s lovely, dark gaze narrowed and she glanced behind her. “Dammit!” she gasped, whipping the towel around her body. “I really hate you, Caesar Morrison.”

He feigned surprise. “What?”

“You could’ve told me.”

Caesar pulled one hand from his pocket and pressed it against his chest. “And deprive myself?”

“Of course not, Caesar.” Losing her zeal for fighting, she dropped to the side of the bed. “Oh, how can they make us work together? We can’t even be in the same room for two minutes without arguing.”

Caesar’s features softened at the tiny, lost tone in Viv’s words. He walked over and took a seat next to her on the bed. Turning to face her, he brought his hand to her face and cupped her chin in his palm. “Hey,” he said, waiting for her eyes to meet his. “The grannies must see potential in us or they wouldn’t be asking us to do this.”

“It just won’t work.”

“Shh…” Caesar whispered, leaning closer. His lips brushed the baby-soft hair near her temple.

Vivian closed her eyes and leaned into the pressure of his mouth against her skin. The sweet gesture felt so right, an insistent tingle emerged in the most intimate area of her body. “Caesar…” she whispered, a twinge of unease in her voice.

He trailed his lips down the side of her face, then stood. “Hurry up and get dressed,” he ordered, forcing himself to be firm. “I’ll be back in fifteen minutes,” he called over his shoulder as he walked out of the bedroom.

Caesar looked for the key to his grandmother’s front door while Viv stood next to him. As he pushed the thin key into the lock, his striking champagne stare slid to Viv’s beautiful face. For a while, their eyes held. Vivian was the first to look away. The door opened and Caesar escorted Viv inside with one hand pressed against the middle of her back.

“Are you okay?” Caesar asked, staring directly into her eyes. Concern was clear on his handsome face.

“Yeah, I’m fine,” Viv assured him, though her voice was barely above a whisper.

“Caesar? Vivian? Are you two out there?”

“Yeah!” they called in unison, following the sound of their grandmothers’s voices.

“Oh, the two of you came together!” Francine cried as she and Carlotta rushed across the foyer to hug their grandchildren.

When the two women pulled away from Caesar and Viv, they couldn’t help but notice how subdued the two seemed. Caesar was unusually quiet and Viv seemed a bit unsettled.

Carlotta slipped her arm around Viv’s waist as they all headed to the living room. “Baby, you look so lovely tonight.” She took in the ankle-length peach dress with spaghetti straps and empire waist.