LITMIR.BIZ

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      She shook her head, making the sleek auburn waves dance over her shoulders. “I hope not. But really, I’ve only had trouble early in the day. By midafternoon I’m starving. I’m anxious to try the duck. It is so hard to find well-prepared duck. What about you?”

      “I’m thinking the cobia. Or the lamb.”

      “Ooh...” Amelia’s dark brown eyes lit up with excitement. “Get the lamb and let me try some. You can try my duck, too, if you want.”

      “Sounds good,” he said with a smile. Very few things got Amelia as excited as food. The old saying about the way to a man’s heart being through his stomach was just as true with her. Whenever they were together, he went out of his way to find someplace they could eat that would be new and exciting for her.

      She was a fashionista at heart, but her first love was cooking. He hadn’t been at all surprised to see her go into a culinary program. She had been bringing him food all through high school, using him as a guinea pig when she wanted to try out a new recipe. It was almost always good. And beautiful to look at. Rarely was food both, and that was where her talent really came into play.

      Tonight was where his talents came into play. He was a successful jeweler because he knew exactly what the client was looking for, even if they weren’t entirely sure. He had the ideal night planned for Amelia. After two hours of talking and dining, including a decadent chocolate soufflé to share, they strolled through the trendy downtown area known as the Gulch. They wandered together, hand in hand, looking in shop windows and listening to the live music streaming out of some of the bars. The conversation flowed easily, the way it always had with them, not stifled by the fact that this was a real date.

      By the time they returned to her apartment, Tyler was confident they’d had a successful date. Amelia was smiling and laughing, relaxed for the first time since he’d arrived in Nashville. It was a good night. But it could be better.

      He walked her to her door, hesitating as she unlocked it. He wanted to go in pretty badly, but he wouldn’t. Thirty days didn’t seem like long, but it was long enough not to rush.

      “Dinner was great,” she said as she turned back to face him. “I had a nice time.”

      “Me, too.” Moving closer, Tyler rested his hand on her waist.

      Amelia didn’t pull away or stiffen at his touch. Instead she looked up at him with a soft, inviting smile. He accepted the invitation, leaning down to cup her face in his hands and capture her coral-painted lips with his own.

      She melted into him, pressing her ample curves against the hard wall of his chest. As his tongue glided across her lips, she opened her mouth to him. Her own silky tongue met his, a soft moan muffled in the back of her throat.

      The sound conjured memories of their wedding night. His body instantly stiffened, his palms tingling to touch her. He moved his hands back to her waist, letting them roam over the stretched fabric that clung to her every curve. Tyler boldly cupped the swell of her rear and pressed her hips against the hard ridge of his desire.

      The growl deep in his throat made Amelia chuckle softly against his lips and pull away. Her hand caught his, moving it back to her waist. Her eyes were closed, her breath fast and shallow. He understood. That was enough for tonight. He withdrew his hand, placing one last soft goodbye kiss on her lips.

      “I want to take you somewhere in the morning.”

      “I suppose you aren’t going to tell me where.”

      He smiled wide. “What’s the fun in that?”

      She sighed and shook her head. Although she acted exasperated by him, he could see the glint of excitement in her eyes. When that was there—the way it had been on that sidewalk in Las Vegas—he knew he had her intrigued. That was key to getting her to go along with whatever harebrained idea he’d come up with.

      “I’ll pick you up at nine.”

       Five

      “So seriously, where are we going?”

      Tyler shook his head. “Ames, I haven’t told you the past three times you’ve asked. What makes you think I’m suddenly going to change my mind?”

      She sighed and crossed her arms over her chest. “I’m your wife. It’s now my job to nag at you until I wear you down and you do what I want.”

      He chuckled and slowed the SUV to turn off the main commercial thoroughfare and into a large, sprawling subdivision. “I thought we were trying to date. You’re not supposed to pull those tricks out of the bag until later.”

      “Tricks?” she replied in mock outrage. “What about those tricks you pulled on me last night? Those flowers, that restaurant...”

      “That kiss,” he added.

      Amelia didn’t reply to that. Instead she turned and looked out her window to watch the houses they rolled past. She wouldn’t give him the satisfaction of knowing he’d made an excellent impression on their first official date. She’d had a better time with him than she had on half the dates she’d been on in the past year. Perhaps the fates knew better than she did. Or maybe they were just having fun messing with her head.

      The houses they passed were large. On meticulously groomed lots. And not far from work. That was when everything clicked into place. They were going to look at a house. But here? Despite her attempts to dissuade him, he’d apparently sought out a place in Belle Meade. They were obviously not on the same page when it came to the real estate market.

      Finally, Tyler turned into a driveway that was barricaded by a large iron gate. He punched in a code and the gate opened, revealing the incredible estate hidden beyond it. They drove down a narrow lane lined with trees and hedges, then circled around a courtyard fountain, stopping in front of the double-doored entrance of stacked stone stairs.

      Thoughts of denial swirled in her mind as she looked up at the house. Correction—mansion. This was no three-bedroom starter home. To buy it would cost several million dollars, easily. The rent was probably high enough to give her heart palpitations. Was this what he’d envisioned when he’d talked about a home where they could raise a family together? She couldn’t even fathom it.

      “Tyler...” she said in a warning tone as she looked out the window.

      “Just wait until you see the inside,” he said, holding his hands up defensively. “It’s amazing.”

      She bet it was. The Biltmore House was nice, too, but she wasn’t moving in there anytime soon, either. “Did you already rent this place? Without asking me? That’s really not the best way to start out. A woman likes to have a say in where she lives.”

      “Of course I know that. I did not rent it yet, but I was confident enough that the real estate agent gave me the key to bring you here today. When we’re done, I’ll either return the key or sign the lease.”

      Amelia didn’t wait for his assistance to get out of the car. She opened the door and stepped onto the cobblestone driveway. The cream-and-gray-mottled brick of the mansion’s facade seemed to sprawl on forever, broken up by large arched windows and tall square ivory columns. The house was beautiful, but ridiculously large for a family of two and a half.

      “Whose house is this? And why on earth would they rent it out to strangers?”

      “Apparently some musician had the place built, then ended up going on a world tour and never moved in. The real estate agent seemed pretty confident that if we liked the place, the owner would entertain an offer.”

      She sighed and shook her head. It was a rock star’s house. She’d never fathomed she’d step across the threshold, much less ever live in the home of a rock star. “Let’s go inside and see it before you sign your life away, hmm?”

      Tyler offered his hand to help her up the stairs,

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