“Oh, you’d be surprised.”
Storm didn’t think so but decided to humor the old woman. “Okay, then surprise me. What do you have to work with? Tarot cards or a crystal ball?”
The older woman met his gaze and looked at him with a scrutiny that Storm found unnerving. Finally, she responded. “Neither. I’m a palm reader.”
Storm nodded. That figured. “Okay, how much to read my palm?”
“Twenty dollars.”
He sighed as he reached into his pocket and pulled a twenty-dollar bill while wondering why he was wasting his time. He glanced at his watch. He still had a good thirty minutes left before Jayla was ready and having his palm read was just as good as anything else to pass the time away.
He sat down next to the woman on the bench and stretched out his hand to her. “Okay, what does my palm say?”
He watched as the woman took his hand into her frail one and studied his palm. Moments later, when she lifted her gaze, the intensity in the depth of her dark eyes almost startled him. She smiled sympathetically. “I can see why you’re confused.”
He frowned. “Meaning what?”
“You are about to make unexpected changes in your life and although you yearn for peace, turbulence is in your future. Keep your sights high, be patient and let destiny take its course.”
Storm’s frown deepened. He had just gotten a promotion three months ago, so what changes was the woman talking about? He had thought about moving out of his present house and buying a larger one, but what problems could a decision like that bring on? There had to be more.
He lifted his brow. “Is that it?”
She stared at him and sighed deeply. “Trust me, son. That will be enough.”
He shook his head, a part of him found the entire thing outright amusing. “Ahh, can you be a little more specific?”
“No, I’ve told you everything you need to know.”
He slowly stood. He couldn’t wait until he and his brothers had their next card game so he could tell them about this experience. Knowing them, they would probably find the whole thing hilarious. “Well, it was nice getting my palm read,” he said, not knowing what else to say.
She shook her head slowly. “I wish you the best of luck.”
Storm looked at the woman. She’d said it like she had truly meant it. “Thanks,” he said before walking off, not sure just what he was thanking her for.
“Tell her you like the red one.”
He turned back around and lifted a brow. “Excuse me?”
The old woman smiled. “Tell her you like the red one the best.”
Storm frowned, not understanding what she meant. He decided it would be best not to ask, so he nodded, turned back around and kept walking. Moments later, when he returned to the dress shop, he saw Jayla standing at the checkout counter waiting for him. His face lit into a smile as he walked over to her. “Did you find anything?”
“Yes,” she answered excitedly. “I found two really nice outfits and they’re both beautiful. I want you to pick out the one you like the best.”
He watched as she turned and grabbed two dresses off the counter, one blue and the other red. Storm blinked twice and his throat suddenly went dry when he remembered what the old woman had said. Tell her you like the red one. He stared at the two outfits that Jayla was holding up in front of her.
“Well, which do you like the best, Storm?” she asked, looking from one dress to the other.
“The red one,” he replied promptly, feeling somewhat dazed, like he was a participant in The Twilight Zone.
Jayla didn’t notice his consternation as she handed the red dress to the smiling saleswoman behind the counter. A huge grin touched her lips. “I like the red one best, too.”
Later that night, Storm had to admit that he definitely liked the red dress, especially on Jayla. His tongue had nearly fallen out of his mouth the moment she had stepped off the elevator to meet him in the lobby.
Instantaneous. Immediate. A jolt of mind-wrenching desire had shot straight to his groin. There was nothing like an eye-catching, incredulously sexy, tight-fitting dress on a woman who definitely had sleek and delectable curves. Her silver accessories made her look sophisticated, elegant and hot, all at the same time. The dress was short, really short, but then she had legs that transformed the dress from provocative to mind-blowing. Her breasts sat high and looked full, lush and ready to tumble out of the low-cut neckline at any given moment.
“I had a lot of fun tonight, Storm, and I like your cousin Ian.”
He glanced at her. They were sitting in the back of a cab on their way back to the hotel. It was dark, but the moonlight, as well as the bright lights from the buildings they passed, provided sufficient light for them to see each other’s features clearly. But even if he hadn’t been able to see her, he would have definitely been able to smell her. The perfume she was wearing was a luscious, blatantly sensual scent and it was doing downright crazy things to his libido.
“Yeah, and I could tell he liked you,” he responded huskily. Almost a little too much, he thought. He smiled when he remembered the look on his cousin’s face the moment he and Jayla had walked into the party. Ian’s expression of appreciation was also shared by most of the other men present. His heart had swelled with pride that she was with him.
And he couldn’t forget how Ian had pulled Jayla to him and planted a kiss on her lips when they’d been leaving. He grinned, knowing Ian had intended to give him a dose of his own medicine. Ian had wanted to get a rise out of him, the same way he enjoyed getting a rise out of his brothers whenever he kissed their wives. Now he knew how it felt.
“I can’t wait to get to the hotel to get out of these shoes. They are killing my feet.”
Storm smiled and was glad that because of the darkness, Jayla couldn’t see the heated gleam in his eyes. He couldn’t wait to get her back to the hotel to get her out of something else. The sight of her in that dress had nearly driven him mad all night. He couldn’t wait to see just what she had or didn’t have underneath it.
“Lift your feet into my lap and I’ll be glad to give you some temporary relief,” he murmured, wanting to touch her any way he could. She didn’t waste time taking him up on his offer and she shifted her body to slide her legs across his lap. He knew there was no way she could not feel the hardness of his groin with her legs resting across his thighs.
He went about removing the silver stiletto heels and began massaging her feet. Her panty hose felt smooth and silky to his touch, and the thought that he’d never pampered another woman this way suddenly hit him. He tossed the thought from his mind as he continued to gently and methodically stroke her feet, thinking there was nothing like a great pair of legs and she had a pretty nice pair.
“Umm, I could get used to this. You have gifted hands, Storm.”
He smiled. “Anything to make you happy.” He thought about what he’d said and shook his head. He wondered what it would take to make a woman like her completely happy.
“We got back too soon,” Jayla said, and he glanced out of the cab’s window to see they had arrived back at the hotel. He strapped her shoes back on her feet and felt an immediate sense of loss when she pulled her legs out of his lap.
He glanced over at her, determined to remove that disappointment from her voice. He leaned over, pulled her against him and captured her lips. The taste of her was arousing…as if he needed to be aroused more than he already was. In minutes, he had her groaning and liked the sound of it.
“My room or yours?” he whispered softly against her lips.
She