Her Alpha Male Read online

  Shaking his head, Royce knew he was in trouble, big trouble. He unzipped his case and used the bath to freshen up. After splashing cold water on his face, he thought to shave and realized the implications it could bring. When he managed to get his mind and hormones in control, he found her in the kitchen. She’d ditched the suede vest and now wore a full apron to protect her white shirt. Of course, the fact it was tied around her narrow waist only accentuated her hourglass form. She busied herself with taking out a large oval plate from the refrigerator and pulled back the cloth to reveal thin slices of prosciutto ham wrapped around long spears of asparagus and several kinds of melon.

  Instantly, his mouth watered, and he accepted the glass of wine she offered. Small green and white checked cloth napkins were waiting beside a stack of plates. Pulling out one of the bar stools tucked under it, he used the food to move his mind away from Angela.

  For the next few hours, they managed to get along as they always had, just two friends who hadn’t seen each other in a long time. They talked about the family and her brother George’s new baby girl. Apparently, he’d been released from his accounting job, and he and his wife, Gloria, had moved back to Brooklyn to the family home, and Vito. They joked about three generations again living together and while she didn’t say anything negative aloud, he knew what he was thinking, better them than her.

  She was loading the dishwasher, her prized possession she told him, and he found himself back at the bar talking as she cleared the mess for their supper of chicken cacciatore.

  “I can’t remember when I enjoyed a meal this much, thank you for cooking for me Angela.”

  “You’re welcome. I still like to cook although I’ve had to learn portioning. That was another reason to get Prima,” she joked.

  “Prima, where did that name come from?” He glanced to the large bulk of sleeping dog guarding the doorway.

  “She was first born of the litter, and she was my first dog. It just seemed to fit. And I didn’t want to end up calling her Spike or Rover.” She laughed easily as she wiped the counter. “Coffee and dessert now, or would you rather relax a while?”

  “Coffee maybe, but dessert, definitely later. I’m stuffed.”

  She hesitated only to take one last look around the space before setting up the peculator, moving easily to the cabinet, and taking out two packages of coffee, offering him a choice. He opted for the regular coffee as opposed to the strong Italian coffee usually served at the end of meals in Brooklyn.

  Chapter Two

  Settled before the fire, she’d dropped into the club chair allowing him to choose between the sofas. They managed to get through the evening, through a rich version of her famous cassata cake, and were now snacking on Jordan almonds.

  He talked easily about retiring from the Air Force but was hesitant about what he’d do with his future. Angela discussed the research she did for grant applications with little enthusiasm, although apparently it paid enough to afford her this home.

  “What are your plans for tomorrow?” she asked, and he automatically told her about a meeting set for eleven. Royce knew he’d take a second look at the old place just to get him away from here. He was supposed to stay two nights with her, and he wondered if he should just up and leave after breakfast. It might be the only way to stay sane. Changing the subject, he asked what he wanted to know.

  “How in the world did you get Vito to let you move out, let alone move up here to the mountains?” Reclining on the soft furniture, he pushed back into the cushions, and watched her watch him for a long time before she let a smile tilt her lips and answered.

  “Between us?” she smiled at his slight nod. “Well, it was a fait accompli,” she said before letting her story unfold. “I gathered everyone at Sunday supper, and when the time was right, I dropped my bomb. Papa had invited Chad to supper, again, and I almost chickened out. But he looked so miserable I decided to let us both off the hook. So after everyone was served, I proposed a toast.”

  “To your newfound independence,” Royce interjected, wondering just how much independence she’d really gotten and in what directions.

  “Well, it started out that way, but Papa jumped the gun and assumed I was announcing Chad and I were engaged.” She laughed. “Poor Chad, he was so startled. It took a while, but I settled everyone down and told them Papa was wrong. As you can image, that didn’t go over too well on its own. Papa’s never wrong, sometimes misinformed, but never wrong! Anyway, I told them Chad and I had decided we weren’t right for each other and that I was moving out of Brooklyn.”

  “Did the ceiling fall from his yelling?”

  “Almost. I managed to get across I’d gotten a prime job doing grant research and felt the time was right to be independent.”

  “Vito didn’t agree?”

  “No. I never expected him to. He assumed I’d marry Chad because he picked him for me and I was getting kind of long in the tooth, remember, twenty-six and not married.” She smiled again. “Anyway, I’d already bought the house here, had it set up and ready to move the last of my clothes into. Vito decided I’d gone crazy, and he’d get his lawyer to get me out of the whole mess. Let’s just say he was very angry when he realized I’d owned the place for several months without telling anyone.”

  “Why?”

  “Why didn’t I tell them or why wait?”

  “Both. I was with Tony when the calls and letters started. They pretty much thought you’d gone around the bend.”

  “That’s why. I wanted to be able to come home here and have it intact. I didn’t want them to see the amount of work I’d had done if they followed me up that night. So I’d hired a local contractor to put in a second bath upstairs and to do some general fixing up.

  “When I left the supper table that night, I left the family home for good. I got in my car and drove here, home, to my home. And while it may not be what Vito or the boys would choose for me or themselves, it’s what I wanted, where I wanted it!” After a pause, she added, “My getting a driver’s license, and buying a car only added icing to the cake.”

  He liked the glint in her eye, the small independence meaning so much, the pride she felt. “I think you made a wise decision. I wondered if you’d ever get out of that house.”

  “So did I. Nonnie inspired me.”

  Angela averted her eyes from him and made a process of getting them fresh cups of coffee. Along with it came a cheese assortment with grapes and apples. He was stuffed but managed to pull off a few of the tart green

  grapes from their vine. By the time she was seated, her eyes were clear again, whatever memory long gone.

  Royce used the time to remember Nonnie’s funeral. He and Tony had been stationed in different parts of the world when she died, but he had managed to make it back for the service and the wake. Back at the house in her long black dress and boxy black sweater with her hair tightly pulled back into a bun, he’d watched from the outside how Vito treated her. Angela was obviously upset about losing the grandmother who’d raised her after her mother passed. Hearing Vito boast that now his Angela would take over the kitchen made Royce angry. Besides, what else did she have to do with her life since she was apparently unmarriageable.

  He’d been hanging back in the doorway to the kitchen, and she’d been clearing debris from the dining room table when the statement was made. Royce had watched her freeze for several seconds before she managed to continue her task and made a quick exit to the kitchen. There were several aunts, cousins, and friends in the space, and he knew they’d take care of the mess. He’d moved behind her as she started to put yet another round of dishes in the sink had taken her by the hand, and guided her out into the small yard, away from the crowd.

  She had managed to make it outside and down the driveway before leaning on the side of the house and losing control. Royce remembered pulling her against him and holding her while she cried. He knew tears were for Nonnie and for the future Vito projected. Royce had held her for a long time, while he tugge
d the pins from her hair and pulled it loose around her shoulders. He’d tried to soothe her but ultimately just held her. When Angela managed to get control of her emotions, she ventured a look at him, her eyes still glassy.

  “God, Royce, I’ll die if that’s what my life turns into.”

  “Angela, you’re a grown woman, decide what you want to do.” He’d gotten a laugh over that knowing her father felt he owned her until handing her to a man of his choice in marriage.

  “If only it were that simple,” she whispered and, obviously embarrassed by her emotional outburst, retreated inside.

  Royce followed but didn’t find her among the dwindling crowd. Instinctively, he’d gone up to the third floor and found her in her room staring out the window to the postage-stamp-size backyard.

  “Angela.”

  She’d turned, and not for the first time, he had been struck by how beautiful she truly was. With her hair down and the bulky sweater gone, she was lovely. Why did none of her family see how beautiful she truly was?

  “Royce, I’ll be all right. I’ve just got a headache, thanks for caring,” she’d said and turned her back on him. Instinct had him crossing the room and pulling her to him a second time. He’d decided this was to comfort her but knew deep inside he did it for himself, his own need to feel her against him one more time. “Angela.”

  “I’m all right,” she murmured against his chest. “Just all these silly emotions.”

  “Not silly, you loved Nonnie. You’re allowed to mourn her.”

  She’d finally let go and cried openly, while holding her against the body-racking sobs. He felt her pain in too many directions and knew he couldn’t change any of it. Composed finally, she’d leaned against him for a long time. Royce had slipped an arm under her legs and moved her to the twin bed across the room.

  Still a child’s room, he realized. She was a grown woman, and she was still surviving in a room that was determined to keep her from aging. He’d gently laid her on the bed and sat beside her smoothing back the brunette waves from her face. He’d stayed with her until she drifted to sleep, having pulling a knitted blanket from the back of a chair to cover her with. He’d moved the chair closer to the bed and sat heavily as he watched her sleep, studied her and couldn’t for the life of him understand how this family, that had welcomed him with open arms, couldn’t see the woman she’d turned into.

  He’d whispered, “I love you, angel,” and had been stunned when she had echoed his words. He’d always called her angel affectionately, only he was wise enough to use it only when they were alone. He always got a smile out of her, and usually she blushed, averting her eyes from his. She was young by years, he knew, but mature in her soul, with Nonnie’s wisdom embedded in her.

  ———

  Standing behind the sofa watching him, Angela wondered what he was thinking. She kept reminding herself that he had a whole other life in the Air Force she knew nothing about, which probably included women or a woman, and she didn’t want to think about him touching someone else the way he’d touched her so long ago. When he shook himself back to the present, he automatically reached hand to her. She’d leaned over him from behind and encircled him for just a moment.

  “Where were your thoughts just now?”

  “Back in Brooklyn,” he told her without hesitation.

  She pulled herself away and moved across the room. Stirring the embers and settling on a few large logs kept her occupied for a bit and gave her time to bite back the question she wanted to ask. Which time, she’d of inquired, but was afraid he’d be honest and tell her. She glanced at the clock on the mantle and saw it was nearing midnight.

  “I’m going to take Prima for a last walk,” she said, quickly moving across the space and grabbing a jacket as she left him alone in the warm room. With the outside lights on, the perspective of the room changed, and she wondered if he felt like he was ensconced in the treetops, safe and away from the rest of the world and their interfering wants the way she did in the space.

  Hesitating to end the night, she bustled around the kitchen for a few minutes. When nothing left to be done, she finally asked if anything else she could get him for the night.

  He’d thanked her for her hospitality and moved down the hallway. She took a quick shower and, stretching out in her bed, listened as he moved about below her. She wondered what, if anything, he slept in, and the idea made her groan as several different scenarios played in her mind. All of them ultimately had her naked under him with him deeply embedded inside her.

  Chapter Three

  Royce lay in her guest room stretched naked under the comforter, with his hands propped behind his head. He could visualize her as if she stood before him now. The christening of Vito’s first grandchild was a huge deal in the family. He and Tony both had managed to get home for the occasion. The same general chaos that always went with the household and so many people was comfortable. She’d made a huge breakfast for her father, three brothers, sister-in-law, and him. Watching from her seat as Angela took control of the meal, he’d seen that Nonnie was aging. He’d known she wouldn’t be with them much longer and wondered what Angela would do when she finally passed. He never saw Angela stop to eat, only sip from her ever-present coffee cup.

  When everyone was served, she’d excused herself to get ready. It still astonished him to this day that every one of the men left the table and walked away, leaving her all the clean up when she returned. The bathrooms on the first and second floors were occupied, so he slipped up to the converted attic that had been her sanctuary. It held Angela’s bedroom and a bathroom. Nonnie had moved downstairs to a converted den when age prevented her from using the stairs. Her old room across the hall from Angela’s was now empty, he’d slept there last night, so close to Angela yet so far away. He hadn’t expected to sleep with her so close yet he’d drifted off easily, soundly for a long uninterrupted span.

  Royce wasn’t used to sleeping that heavily, yet her fragrance filled the whole third level, as if welcoming him. The first time he had smelled the spicy perfume was on her birthday, and he’d wondered if that was what had pushed him over the line and had him dragging her into the pantry. It was the same the day of the christening, her perfume was like a call slipping from the steamy bathroom and inviting him in.

  He’d grabbed his shaving kit and heard the radio going even before he approached the closed door. Closing his eyes, Royce remembered the turmoil he’d felt as he pushed open the door in hope of a glimpse of the woman he’d seen maturing over the years.

  She didn’t scream or try to cover herself. Instead, standing before the sink, a brush in one hand, she simply watched him for long seconds. He’d stopped breathing at the sight of her. Angela’s hair, swinging past her waist, was longer than he’d ever imagined. She stood tall and slim in a lacy pink bra and matching panties. A slip of the same material was folded on the sink top. He remembered licking his lips automatically as he saw how firm and high her breasts were, fighting to overflow the lace confinement.

  For some reason he’d always pictured her in stodgy white undergarments with no feminine style. This reminded him of his tour in France where women understood undergarments were as important as their outer dress. Her belly was flat, and her hips slightly wider. Angela had amazing legs, long and toned, made for wrapping around a man’s waist as she accepted him into her body.

  She’d studied him and he always wondered if her open appraisal was a dare or invitation. His erection appeared with the first glimpse of her and pulsed with each breath he took. Turning and putting the brush aside, Angela finally broke the stand-off. She’d picked up the slip, let it fall open under her touch, and, with the silk swaying before her, slowly walked toward him in the doorway. She never said a word. Instead, she stopped several inches from his bare chest. He could feel the heat from her body. His hand automatically came up to her cheek, and he ran a finger along her fine bone structure.

  “Damn it, Angela, you’re beautiful.”

 
; “And that surprises you, Royce?”

  Her words had been a definite advance and he pulled a breath as her fingers lifted toward him. She draped the slip around his neck and let both hands run along his shoulders and down his stomach, meeting just above the waistband of his pants. Knowing that he was erect, she didn’t acknowledge his hardness, rather she let her fingers dance over his skin several more times, while her eyes never left his. Her soft hands skimmed over his belly and traced the line of curling hairs that disappeared below his pants.

  “You’re not so bad yourself, Royce.” A blusterous spurt of voices bellowed from below them, and she dropped her hands. “Bathroom’s all yours,” she managed to whisper as she slowly moved past him.

  He’d stood stunned as she’d pulled the slip from his neck, the material drifting over his back, leaving a chill through his body that ended in his cock. He’d wanted to catch her off guard, to see for himself what she hid away so effectively. Now that he knew, it was worse.

  The rest of the day, she’d been quiet, keeping herself busy and taking care of family and guests, and it bothered him to hear her brothers George and Raymond tease her that one day she might have a child of her own. He’d been proud of her when her automatic response was that she still had Vito and Ray to take care of, they were children enough for now.

  “Maybe when you both finally grow up.” She defused the situation with a laugh as she exited the room.

  Tony had been listening to the exchange, and shook his head. He hadn’t said a word to defend her or to discourage his younger brothers. Royce had been an only child, wanted and loved by his military father and his mother who traveled to every corner of the globe with them. He’d never lived in a home like this and had known the attraction of it was the stability. He’d had an amazing childhood, had lived in foreign countries and several areas of the states. But he’d only known rented housed and huts, never a solid brick home waiting for his return.