Page 59 of A Perfect Pairing
Natasha picked up her phone again to call Antonio. Her heart pounded as she waited for him to answer. She was disappointed when it went to voicemail, but did she really expect him to pick up after she’d basically shut him out? “Hey, Tonio. Give me a call when you get a chance. I… I’m sorry, and I want to explain.” She disconnected, leaned back, and closed her eyes. She had to make this right.I cannot lose him again.
Monday morning, Antonio was up at six and out running thirty minutes later. He’d tossed and turned all night with thoughts of his ex and Natasha. He still couldn’t believe Lori had flown here thinking that he would simply fall into her arms as if nothing had happened. But his biggest concern lay with Tasha. He had no idea what was going through her mind. Did she honestly believe he’d walk away from her to reunite with Lori? She knew him better than that, or at least he thought she did.
He sprinted up the hill, his running shoes hitting the trail in a steady rhythm, his mind bombarded with scenarios ofwhat if. It had been why he’d let her call go to voicemail. The day had been emotionally draining enough, and he couldn’t take it if she was calling to end their relationship. But they had to talk soon because being in limbo wasn’t his style.
Antonio reversed his course and completed the three-mile run. When he got home, he spent another forty-five minutes lifting weights. Afterward, he showered, made a smoothie, picked up his cell, and headed out.
When Antonio arrived at the office half an hour later, he didn’t see Leah at her desk and figured he’d finally made it there first. They had an ongoing friendly battle. No matter how early he came in, she was always there and greeted him with a smile.
He heard voices in the back and started in that direction. His steps slowed when he saw Leah talking to Natasha in his office.
“Ha! I bet you thought you beat me today, huh?” Leah teased. “Morning, boss. See you later, Natasha.” She made a hasty exit.
“Hi,” Natasha said.
“Hey. What are you doing here?” He resisted the urge to cross the space, haul her into his arms, and kiss her until she couldn’t think of anything but him… and them. But her pensive expression kept him rooted to the spot.
“We need to talk, and I wanted to catch you before you left for a job site.” Natasha ran her hands up and down her sides and bit her lip. A sure sign she was nervous.
He reached back and closed the door. “Have a seat.” She perched on the edge of the chair, and he braced a hip on the desk. For a long moment she didn’t say anything, and his heart rate ramped up. Had he set himself up for another heartbreak? “Tasha?”
“I’m sorry. I should’ve talked to you yesterday. It’s just her showing up out of the blue, looking as if she’d just stepped off the cover of a fashion magazine, and wanting you back even though she saw me at the table made me feel some kind of way.”
Obviously the argument had been louder than he’d thought. “What she said doesn’t matter. She and I are done.”
“I know that, but all I saw was a déjà vu of high school and college.”
Antonio’s brows knitted in confusion. “I don’t understand.”
“I heard so many times that I would never be able to keep a star player like you that I started to believe it. Then I saw the game on TV… and the girl answered your phone that night.” She released a deep sigh. “I thought they’d been right.”
He sat in the chair next to her. “Baby, you never told me that. Why?”
Natasha shrugged. “I didn’t think I needed to because while we were together, you never glanced at another girl. I wasn’t worried until you left. Then yesterday, seeing Lori with her expensive clothes and jewelry and hearing her call me the hometown girl just took me back to that place. I felt insulted, humiliated, and self-conscious,” she added softly, her voice cracking.
“Baby, you should have told me what you were feeling. We’re friends first, and we promised to talk about everything.” She averted her eyes, and he gently turned her face toward his. “Listen to me. You are intelligent, beautiful inside and outside, talented, and one of the sweetest women I have ever met. Her words don’t matter.Shedoesn’t matter. You are the only one who matters to me.” Antonio had no plans to let Lori come between him and Natasha.
“I guess I was the one acting like a butthead this time,” Natasha said, swiping at her tears.
He smiled. “Maybe, but I understand. Not sure I would’ve handled it any better if the shoe was on the other foot.” The pressure in his chest eased. “I don’t want to lose you, Tasha.”
She caressed his face and placed a lingering kiss on his lips. “I don’t want to lose you, either, Tonio.”
There was something about the way she said the name—a mixture of sensuality and sweetness—that fired his blood. It wouldn’t take much for him to lose control. After kissing her again, he said, “You need to take your beautiful self to your office before you get us in trouble. You know what it does to me when you call me that.”
Natasha boldly ran her hand over the solid ridge of his erection. “Yeah, I do.”
Antonio stilled her hand. “I’m going to have to ban you from my office if you keep this up.” She laughed, and it sounded like music to his ears. “How about I treat you to dinner at Ms. Ida’s tonight?”
She rubbed her hands together and wiggled her eyebrows. “I’m down with that.”
He stood and pulled her to her feet. “What time are you off today?”
“I should be done around five thirty if my meeting doesn’t run over. I’ll text you if I’ll be later.”
Antonio nodded. “I’ll come to your office and pick you up.”
Natasha rolled her eyes. “You have to pass the restaurant to get to my office. I can just meet you there.”
