Cortez’s cousin was a true woman’s libber — he could easily see her doing something as outlandish as that. When he’d asked how Kendall had felt being used that way, Quinece had admitted that her husband had been furious and hadn’t wanted to see her again. However, during their separation, Kendall had reached a very important conclusion. He figured there had to be a reason Quinece had chosen him and not anyone else, even if she hadn’t figured it out yet. She’d obviously seen something good and worthwhile in him, something she hadn’t seen in other men that had made her want him to be the first, the one. Of course, things had ended well between Quinece and Kendall since they’d been happily married for years and had three beautiful kids.
That had got him to wondering if like Quinece, Victoria had subconsciously chosen him for a reason. He began looking at the situation in a whole new light. But if he was going to find any answers, he had to make sure their paths crossed more often.
Cortez began attending more Bennett family functions, and quickly discovered something he’d overlooked before…he and Victoria were still fiercely attracted to each other. Whenever he saw her, he wanted her. And she seemed to be just as attracted to him.
He could recognize her guarded expressions, stolen looks, and pulse-racing desire. It all added up to sexual chemistry that couldn’t be misinterpreted. For him, it was more powerful than anything he’d ever encountered. But he could tell she was having trouble dealing with it. In fact, she’d begun avoiding family activities all together, on the off-chance she might run into him, he figured.
That’s when he’d decided to do something about it. He made the decision to take their mutual attraction to the next level and had come up with a plan to make it happen. He accepted that he’d fallen in love with her four years ago, and his feelings for her hadn’t changed. And now, he’d come to town to convince her to give them a chance.
But how?
After taking a sip of his drink, he drew in a deep breath. He didn’t have to be a rocket scientist to know she wouldn’t like what he was about to suggest, but he saw it as the only viable solution.
He was about to go into the bedroom when his phone rang. The ring tone told him it was none other than triplet number two, his brother Cobra. “Yes, Cobra?”
“Is she going to do it?”
His brothers were the only ones who knew about his reasons for being in St. Paul. “I haven’t asked her yet, but she’s agreed to have dinner this evening.”
“That’s a good sign, right?”
Cortez chuckled. “You’re the womanizer in the family, what do you think? Maybe you should be telling me what to expect.”
“Victoria’s not that hard to read.”
He somewhat envied his two brothers for their close relationship with Victoria over the past two years. Although she’d avoided him, she’d befriended them. “She’s not?”
“No. Bottom line is that she doesn’t like you because she thinks you don’t like her. There’s miscommunication all around. It’s time for the two of you to clear things up.”
Cortez totally agreed, but he wondered why Victoria would assume he didn’t like her. He’d been all into her when they’d met in Paris. He still couldn’t get their time together out of his mind.
He’d discovered from his brothers that she didn’t have a steady boyfriend, and she hadn’t for years — four years, to be exact — claiming she was too busy building up her company. And he had to hand it to her, she’d done an outstanding job getting Bennett Nursery and Landscaping on the national stage.
He talked to Cobra a few more minutes, then hung up. Within minutes, as he’d expected, Colton called. And being the inquisitive one, Colton had a lot more questions. “What if she doesn’t go along with your plan?”
Cortez rubbed his hand down his face, refusing to think about that possibility. He wished his plan was simple, but it wasn’t. At dinner, he intended to invite Victoria to return to Paris with him, to give him the weekend she’d promised him. But this time, he wanted a different ending. He didn’t want to wake up the next morning to find her gone, vanished into thin air, leaving him wondering if she’d been real or just a figment of his imagination.
He intended to do whatever it took to recapture the magic of that night between them, to stir the desire, that sensual connection he could still feel whenever he was around her. He’d tried fighting it, but he’d finally realized it was a losing battle. A part of him believed she was fighting it, as well. “Let’s hope she goes along with it.”
“I hope so, for your sake.”
After ending the call with his brother, he took a moment to absorb his brother’s words.
He doubted Colton knew just how much Cortez needed this plan to work. The moment he’d met Victoria, he knew there had been something special about her. She stirred something in him, and it wasn’t just about sex. But back then, he hadn’t been ready to accept what it meant. He’d been young, had just finished law school, had passed the bar and was in Paris to have a good time. He hadn’t expected to meet the woman who would change everything for him — Victoria, or Adele as she’d called herself at the time. But he had met her, and his life hadn’t been the same since.
“I’m going out to dinner with Cortez.”
As expected, Victoria’s announcement got her cousins’ attention. For the longest time, it seemed Sebrina, Kennedy and Monica just stared at her. It was one of those rare evenings when all four of them were home together, sipping wine and enjoying each other’s company. Haddison Wolf, Kennedy’s fiancé, was out of town, so she had decided to sleep in her own bed tonight, something she rarely did these days since Kennedy preferred spending her nights with Haddison at his place. Last month Haddison had slid a gorgeous rock on Kennedy’s hand, and they were now planning a June wedding.
“Did you know he was coming to town?” Kennedy finally asked. She could understand her cousin’s surprise. They all knew about her history with Cortez. They were the only people she’d told.
“Not before yesterday. I admit, I got a little flustered when Charlotte informed me that he would be arriving today to review the contracts for Lampshade.” Charlotte was her administrative assistant.
“Which he didn’t have to do, because they’d have copies at the firm in Los Angeles,” Monica added. “That can only mean one thing…he has ulterior motives for coming here.”
“Did he give you any hints of what he’s thinking?” Sebrina asked.
She nodded. “He thinks it’s time for us to resolve the issues between us, and figures dinner would be a good start.”
“It would be good for both of you to move past this,” Kennedy said.
Victoria nodded. “The animosity between us has lasted long enough. It’s been two years since Cortez and I discovered our true identities.”
She recalled the moment she’d glanced around the crowded room at Alexia’s birthday party and seen him. She’d been shocked speechless and had been desperate to escape. She was still embarrassed when she thought about the way she’d left that morning while he’d slept. And then, when Alexia had insisted that they meet, she decided not to let her cousin know they already knew each other. Lucky for her, Cortez had played along when he’d realized that she wanted to keep their prior meeting a secret. At first, the only person who’d known about the guy she’d met in Paris was Sebrina. But she hadn’t told Sebrina that the guy was Cortez Masters.