Page 45 of Brant
"Was she from Ireland too?"
"She was born here but had ties to Ireland. It was while on a visit there that she met my dad and things happened almost immediately." He smiled slightly. "She had just started out in her career as an actress or so she told me. Young and starry-eyed, she caught my father's eyes, and he proposed to her after less than a week."
"Love at first sight," she murmured dreamily.
"Something like that." He sent her a quick glance, his body tightening in awareness. She looked seductive and desirable. It was funny that she could be so beautiful without a stitch of makeup on. The women he was used to would never dream of being in the company of anyone, much less a male, without first putting on war paint. But his wife didn't even have so much as a drop of lipstick on and was the most beautiful woman he had ever seen. No wonder he was losing his head and heart over her.
"Why antiques?" he asked abruptly, trying to bring some pragmatism to the atmosphere. He was going to make love to her soon. When they finished eating, he would wait a little bit before he spread the blankets and made slow and thorough love to her in front of the fire. It was going to last well into the night and the next morning. He was craving her.
"What?" Turning her head swiftly around, she stared at him, puzzled.
"Antiques. Your store. Why did you go there?"
"Oh." Blinking her eyes at the rapid change of topic, she tried to adjust. One minute they were talking about his family and the next he was swiftly introducing another subject. The man was a complete mystery.
"I adore old things. When I was little, my dad and I used to go on road trips, and we would stop at these quaint little antique stores. I fell in love with the past, because that's what it really is. A blast from the past. I would stand for hours admiring the craftsmanship and visualize men or women sitting on a bench and making magic with love. Each piece different and part of a very vivid imagination." She shook her head with a laugh. "When I went to college, I had the idea of studying literature because I love to read, but then I switched to art history and visual culture."
"Double degrees. I'm impressed."
She slid him a glance, her tapered brows lifting. "You naturally assumed that since I was running a store, I hadn't been to college."
"No," he corrected her. "I knew you were smart and that was a genuine compliment. No need to be so defensive."
She sighed and smiled at him, her dimples surfacing. "I'm sorry. Most people assume that since I'm running a store, then it simply means that I'm a black woman who had not made the cut or gone to college."
"I'm not most people and I'm not one of them who's stupid enough to think that going to college is the only way someone can achieve. I know a few people who never got a higher learning and are doing pretty well for themselves."
She assimilated this in silence, realizing that she really did not know this man she was married to and was now in love with. "I was thinking of including a vintage clothing section," she ventured, not really surprised she was telling him this.
"When?"
A smile touched her lips at his question. There was no doubt, no questions asked, just an acceptance.
"As soon as the worst of the winter is over. I have someone who makes them and she's very good."
He nodded and took another sip of his wine. They had eaten all of the stew and several slices of the delicious bread, including the salad.
"Good for you."
Curling her feet under her, she turned to face him. "What about those vintage cars you are thinking about?"
"Not just thinking." He relaxed back on the cushions under his head. "I actually started the process. That was what my meeting in Europe was all about. My dad started the process a long time ago and was not able to carry it out. The men he was dealing with did not want to do business with a woman." He slanted her a smile. "I know this grieves your women's lib heart, but some men have not come over to the twenty-first century and probably never will."
"More's the pity and their loss," she muttered darkly.
"Precisely," he concurred with a grin. "They could not see beyond my mother being an exceptionally beautiful woman and a former actress. When I officially stepped into the role of CEO..."
"Wait!" She held up a hand and sat up abruptly. "It's official? You didn't say."
"I thought I did," he replied smoothly, earning him a glare.
"You know you didn't. This should be champagne, although this wine is totally magnificent. But this should be bubbly."
"I believe we had bubbly last night, leading up to..." He gestured towards her body. "You know."
"Making magic?" She arched a brow at him, her dimples winking.
"Yes. That."
