Her heart pounding in earnest now, she reached for the other box and tore away the wrapping. Inside, another note was attached to the tissue paper covering some soft material. This one read, “For you to wear in our bed. I’ll want you no matter what, Meg.”
When she pulled out the two white cotton items, she nearly choked. Joe had sent her the most unattractive, plain undergarments she’d ever seen. The cotton underwear was huge and hideous, looking more suitable for a grandmother—or Mrs. Mahoney. And the bulky bra, complete with five rows of hooks, had probably been in style in the fifties.
A bubble of laughter burst from her lips as she dropped the box to the floor. She had to lean against the wall and bend over to chuckle in pure delight.
He understands. Had he sent her red silk, or that blue teddy, she would have tossed them in the trash. But Joe knew her well enough to figure out exactly how to make her understand his feelings. His gifts proved it.
Still grinning, she suddenly noticed someone standing a few feet away. She slowly lifted her gaze and saw Joe. His tender expression reinforced everything she already knew. “Thank you,” she whispered with a smile. “I think.”
“I know your neighbor—Mrs. Mahoney?—kept the flowers and the candy, so you didn’t get to read those notes,” he said quickly, as if afraid she wouldn’t listen. “The first one said ‘I’m sorry for being a letch who ogled you at Sheer Delights.’ The second said ‘I’m more sorry for not being honest from the start.”’
The third set of notes was just as important, but she didn’t tell him that. “You went to a lot of trouble. What if I hadn’t opened these, either?”
“I would have kept right on going until Mrs. Mahoney had a stack of notes and gifts piled up in her apartment.”
Curious, she asked, “What would have come next?”
“Handcuffs.”
Her jaw dropped.
“Plus a complete description of the plan my cop brother and I came up with to get even with Georgie the Goat.”
Flowers, chocolate, clothing and revenge? What a man. “It involves handcuffs?”
“And a real goat,” he said with an evil chuckle. “I’ll tell you all about it if you’ll let me.”
She tapped her index finger on her cheek. “Do I get to keep the cuffs afterward?”
He nodded again, a twinkle in his brown eyes. “You can keep anything you want, Meg.”
Lifting her chin in challenge, she said, “And you really don’t mind me wearing that dress?”
His eyes darkened with appreciation as he looked at her. “I’d love to see you wearing that dress. Anytime, anywhere.”
She raised a skeptical brow.
“I’m not a caveman, honey—I promise.” He touched her shoulder, gently tracing a path along her collarbone with the tip of his finger. “But I knew I was walking a tightrope until I told you everything. I didn’t want any other man to sweep you away before I had a chance to prove how I felt about you.”
She closed her eyes and took a deep breath, focusing on the way his light touch infused her with energy and warmth.
“I believe you,” she admitted softly.
“Thank you.” He lowered his head and pressed a gentle kiss to her lips, not taking any more than she offered.
When he let her go, she gestured toward the undies. “I still can’t quite picture you shopping for these.”
He winced. “I think the salesclerk thought I was a cross-dresser. Or a gigolo shopping for my elderly sugar mama.” He took her hand and earnestly said, “Wear whatever you want, but please don’t ever make me shop for anything like that again.”
She giggled. “Deal.”
Leaning close, he tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, touching her so tenderly she sighed. “I needed to make you understand, Meg. I wanted the woman I saw. I fell in love with the woman I got to know.”
She leaned closer, until their bodies were a whisper apart. Looking into his eyes, she murmured, “That’s the second time you’ve mentioned the L-word.”
“I do love you, Meg.”
She absorbed the moment, letting the words soak into her brain, making a memory of it to last forever.
“I know it’s too soon,” he continued, “but I also know I’m going to love you just as much in fifty years as I do today.”
“It’s funny, but I have no problem believing you,” she replied, knowing he saw the emotion in her eyes. “Because I feel the same way, Joe. I started to fall the minute you stepped into the computer kiosk at The Red Doors.” Sliding her hands up to his neck, she curled her fingers into his hair. “And I know I’m going to love you forever, too.”
He answered with a slow kiss that overflowed with gentle passion. He held her close, as if afraid she might disappear. She tightened her arms around his neck as their kiss deepened, assuring him she wasn’t going anywhere.
“I want you again,” she whispered against his mouth as they exchanged kiss after kiss. She needed him to take her on the same wild roller-coaster ride of pleasure he’d shown her the night before. She slid her hands down, beneath his jacket, to stroke his strong body and feel his heat.
“The door, open the door,” he muttered as he kissed her neck then her throat.
Feeling his desperation and excitement, she reached blindly for the knob, needing to get him into her apartment—and into her body—before she went out of her mind.
“Can’t you two take that inside?”
Meg winced as Mrs. Mahoney’s voice intruded. Joe groaned and dropped his head in frustration. Keeping his arms around her waist, he looked over his shoulder at the woman. “We’re going.”
“Good. Now I can call your mother!”
Meg just sighed.
“And thank you for your help,” Joe added with a chuckle.
“You’re welcome,” the woman said. Then her sharp gaze shifted downward to the open boxes on the floor. “For me, too?”
Eyeing the bra and underwear, Meg nodded mindlessly. She edged closer to the door, still frantic to make love with Joe. “Definitely for you,” she said. “Happy Valentine’s Day.”
When the woman bent over, snatched the spandex dress out of the box, then disappeared back into her apartment, Meg couldn’t even murmur a protest.
Because Joe finally got the door open.
EPILOGUE
March 15, 2003
JAMIE COULDN’T DECIDE which to focus on, last month’s profits displayed on her computer screen, the diamond winking on her left hand or the full-page, going-out-of-business-sale ad for The Gift Program. The diamond won out, although those big, fat numbers had tremendous appeal and she loved knowing that The Red Doors had beaten their copycat competition into a bloody pulp. February had been a dyn**ite month all the way around.
“C’mon, Jamie.” Faith poked her head around the divider that separated their office cubicles. “It’s time for the big powwow.”
Jamie shut down her computer and rolled back her chair. “You still have no idea what this is all about?”
“No, and I can’t believe Dev didn’t tell you, either.”
“He didn’t.” Jamie stood and grabbed her purse.
“Not even a hint last night?”
Jamie had trouble sifting through all the wonderful lovemaking they’d shared to search for possible hints. “I don’t think so. When he called the office this morning, I got the impression it was something that had just come up, but he said we needed to talk about it in person.”
Faith walked beside her down the hall toward the mezzanine. “And whatever it is, he thinks Carter should be in on the discussion. I can’t imagine what this could be.”
“A hot stock tip he thinks we should take advantage of when the market opens Monday morning? If he gets us all together, he’d only have to go through it once.”
“That’s as good a guess as anything, I suppose. But I have to say he’s being overly dramatic. Why not just tell us that’s what he wants to talk about, instead of all this mystery?”
“I haven’t a clue, Faith. He’s your brother.”
“And he’s your fiancé. I thought you told each other everything.”
“Well, we do.” Jamie remembered the disguises she and Dev had hidden behind in the beginning of their relationship. “Eventually.” As she and Faith headed for the red-carpeted stairway leading down to The Red Bean, they had to maneuver past several groups of shoppers, and the only holiday on the horizon was St. Patrick’s Day. “Totally off the subject—but don’t you love how busy we are?”
“Absolutely. It’s as if Chicago has fallen in love with The Red Doors. I hate to say it, but the publicity surrounding the robbery probably helped.”
Jamie gave her a playful nudge. “Didn’t hurt yours and Carter’s cause any, either.”
Faith smiled as they descended the stairs. “No, it sure didn’t.”
“Say, there are a couple of hotties sitting at a table in the far corner. Think we should try to pick them up?”
“I’m game if you are.”
“Let’s go for it. I’ll take the guy in the Armani. You can have the one in the jeans and leather jacket.”