“No problem,” he said, sitting up on the couch. “I only stayed to make sure you were okay.”
Her eyes briefly left his to stare at his lips. What has gotten into me? She was usually a lot better at getting a handle on her attraction to Jaleen. Maybe it was being with him all alone in her suite that had her feeling bold? Or maybe it was the fact that she’d had a long couple of months and giving in to temptation sounded like a good stress reliever.
“Did I ask you to kiss me last night?” she asked.
His eyes darkened. “I’ll be right back,” he said as he made his way to the bathroom.
She blinked her eyes in confusion at the sudden movement. Unsure of what to do with herself until he returned, she sat on the couch and tried not to breathe in his masculine scent that still lingered in the room.
When he returned, he looked a lot more put together than she felt. “So did I ask you to kiss me last night?” she repeated.
“Maybe a few times.” He sat next to her on the couch. “But I knew you were tipsy.”
She was almost afraid to ask, but had to. “Why didn’t you kiss me?”
His lips curled to the side in a smile. “Trust me, I wanted to. But under the circumstances, it didn’t feel right.”
“Because I was too tipsy.”
“Something like that,” he said with a laugh. “The first time we kiss, I want you to be completely alert about what’s going on.”
Her cheeks grew warm and her heartbeat quickened. She was sure she’d regret what she was about to say next. “What about now?” Her voice got slightly lower. “I’m completely alert now.”
Jaleen gave her a look of confusion as he studied her eyes. She knew why he was confused. Up until now she’d done everything she could to try to deny their obvious chemistry. But this was a new year and she was a new Danni. This year, she planned to face her fears unlike she had before. Even so, the longer they sat there staring at one another, the more she regretted her decision to say something in the first place.
“You know what? Never mind. I’m not sure what’s gotten into me...” Her voice trailed off as Jaleen’s face got closer to hers.
“There’s no chance I’m ignoring what you said.” Jaleen’s hand lightly grazed her cheek. “I’ve waited too long to see how soft your lips are.”
She held her breath as his lips inched closer to hers. The somersaults in her stomach only increased when she felt his breath mingle with hers.
“Now would be the time to stop me,” Jaleen said as a warning. Danni didn’t have any intention to stop Jaleen but unfortunately the loud knock on the door did.
“Danni, are you in there? We have to meet the ladies for breakfast.”
Jaleen dropped his hand and Danni sighed at the sound of her friend’s voice. Hearing Nicole was like a jolt to her senses.
“Maybe you should go,” she said, standing from the couch.
A hint of disappointment flashed across his face before he stood, as well. “I guess you’re right.”
They made their way to the door. “Do you want me to stay here until you leave with Nicole?”
“That would be great,” she said with a nod. “I’d really appreciate it.” She grabbed her clutch and quickly exited her hotel room before she dwelled on what had almost happened between her and Jaleen.
It wasn’t that she thought kissing him would be a bad thing. Her fear was that kissing Jaleen would be the best thing she’d experienced in a long time.
“Sorry I’m late,” Danni said as she rushed into Bare Sophistication Boutique and Studio minutes before close. “I ran into some traffic on my drive from Tampa to Miami.”
“No worries. How is your mom?” Summer asked as she finished ringing up the last customer.
“She’s doing well! She’s looking forward to the day when she’ll have all three of her children in the same place at the same time.”
“Does that mean your brothers haven’t visited in a while?”
“They’ve visited, but I’ve told you stories about how random their visits are. Dominic is still overseas, but we’re hoping he’ll get a leave soon. And Aaron is off chasing whatever his next adventure is. I swear, between the two of them, I can barely keep track of their schedules.”
“I can’t wait to meet your mom,” Summer said as she locked the front door of the shop and flipped over the open sign. “She seems like the type of mom I always wanted to have.”
Danni didn’t miss the sadness in her voice. It was no secret that Summer’s mom, Sonia Dupree, was as far from a motherly figure as you could get. Danni could still recall the horrible stories she’d heard from Summer and her older sisters, Winter and Autumn, about their mother.
Sometimes, Danni still worried that Sonia Dupree had affected her daughters in irreversible ways. However, all three Dupree sisters were married to wonderful men. Winter was married to Taheim Reed. Autumn was married to Taheim’s brother, Ajay Reed. And Summer and Aiden had been doing wonderfully ever since they tied the knot. All three couples were proving that true love existed and could happen when you least expected it.
“She’s looking forward to meeting you, too,” Danni said. “I told her I’d bring you down for a mini vacation one day.”
“Speaking of vacations, have you talked to Jaleen lately?”
“Um, no. Why do you ask?”
Summer straightened a few lingerie pieces on the rack. “No reason. Just wondering if you finally returned his calls.”
Ever since they’d almost kissed in the hotel room before Summer and Aiden’s wedding, Danni had been making a conscious effort to avoid Jaleen at any mutual parties they attended. Avoiding him had been easy since he lived in Chicago and she now lived in Miami. However, for the past four months Jaleen had been handling some work in Europe for his family’s real-estate business overseas and, for some reason, he’d been hell-bent on emailing, texting or calling her any chance he got.
At first she’d enjoyed communicating with Jaleen since they had, indeed, been friends for years. Yet the closer it got for him to return to the States, the less she returned his calls, texts or emails. He probably assumed that he’d done something wrong, when, in actuality, she was the person pushing him away. She had a good reason, but she doubted he would understand. Honestly, she doubted any of her friends would understand.
“Okay, I’m all set,” Summer said as she turned off the lights. “Are you ready to head to dinner?”
Danni froze. “You mean we’re still on for dinner?”
“Of course we are! Tonight we’re celebrating the fact that you are almost done with your master’s in fashion merchandising. Going back to school and working full-time is a huge deal. Especially since our Bare Sophistication store in Miami has only been open a little over a year. So we definitely have to celebrate. Nicole, Aaliyah and Aiden should already be at the restaurant.”
At least she didn’t mention what I thought she would.
In two months she’d be finished with her degree, which meant she would have to officially accept the partnership Summer and her sisters had offered her during the grand opening of the Miami store.
When they’d initially asked her to be a partner of the Bare Sophistication chain, Danni had been overcome with emotion considering the Dupree sisters had always dreamed of being in business together and Danni had just joined the team as store manager