Revving Up the Holidays Read Online Free PDF Page A

at her as
if she had the plague and kept her at arm’s length.
    “Okay,” she said.
    She took a jacket from the closet. Isaac helped her into it
and then opened the front door for her to exit. She locked up and followed him
to his black sports car.
    “Nice car,” she said. He opened the door for her and she
slid into the low seat.
    “Thanks.” He closed her door, rounded the car and got in. “I
hardly ever get to drive it.”
    “Why is that?”
    He turned the key and began the drive into downtown Atlanta.
“I live in New Jersey and I take the ferry or train into the city every day. I
work a lot and the car just sits in my garage most of the time.”
    “What about on the weekend?”
    He never took his eyes off the traffic, but she saw his
frown. “Like I said, I work a lot.”
    “All work and no play…”
    “I know, I know, but I’m busy. It was nice making the drive
down here. I really had the chance to see what this baby can do.”
    She cringed. “Please don’t show me. I’m sure she’s very
fast, but I’d like to get to the restaurant in one piece.”
    “Does that mean you won’t be getting on the back of my
Harley when I get it running?”
    Giada’s body actually tingled at the idea of sitting behind
Isaac on that bike, her thighs pressed tight to his and her breasts pressed
against his back. It was a fantasy she’d relived a thousand times as a
teenager. Her pussy throbbed at the notion. “I would ride with you.”
    It came out as a whisper and she was thankful that it was
dark and he was driving or he would have noticed her blush.
    He didn’t say anything as they stopped at a red light. He
turned toward her, but she looked straight ahead. If she turned, she was sure
he would see how badly she wanted to have her legs wrapped around him either on
that bike or just about anywhere else.
    His fingers touching her cheek forced her to turn toward
him. His eyes bore into her with an intensity that almost made her turn away.
“I would like that more than you can possibly know.”
    Her breath caught. The light turned green and the car behind
them honked, breaking the spell.
    Isaac smiled and returned his attention to the traffic.
    * * * * *
    Bacchanalia was perfect. The food, the atmosphere,
everything was meant to impress. They were halfway through the entrée when he
asked, “Why aren’t you married?”
    Her stomach clutched. “I was. I got divorced three years
ago.”
    “He must be crazy.”
    The way he said the words, almost to himself, made her
smile.
    She shrugged. “Thanks. What about you? Sadie tells me that
you never married.”
    Something dark crossed his eyes. The change was so complete
she wanted to retract her words immediately. He poked at his steak for a
moment. When he looked up, the sorrow in his eyes nearly made her cry. She
stuffed the emotion and waited for him to speak.
    “A few years ago I proposed to a wonderful woman. We had big
plans for the future. A week after that, she was killed in a car accident.”
    Her chest tightened and she felt her eyes moisten. Through a
nearly closed throat, she said, “My God, Isaac. I’m so sorry. Sadie never said
anything about it.”
    He didn’t respond for a long time. He kept his eyes downcast
and carefully placed his fork on his plate before he looked up. “Sadie doesn’t
know. I hadn’t told my family about Leslie. I was planning a big surprise for
Thanksgiving. Then she died and I just never told them anything. I made an
excuse not to come home that holiday.”
    She reached across the table and rested her hand over his.
“I’m so sorry.” She didn’t know what else to say to comfort him. She wished
they could go back to the moment before she’d opened her big mouth and asked
the awkward question, but there was no going back.
    His hand turned over and he took hers, caressing the palm
with his thumb. “Can we talk about something else?”
    She took a deep breath. “Anything.”
    His smile did wicked things to her heart.