Matched For Love(50)

“Oh. Right.” He stabbed three more asparagus spears to finish them off so he wouldn’t have to look at them anymore. “That is if Annie even shows up. I haven’t heard one way or the other.”

“We’ll play Tuesday by ear. So after we watch a movie, can I see your comic memorabilia room?”

She was changing the subject. Why was he talking about Annie with Lori anyway? It was just that he felt like he could talk to her about anything. “Yes. And I have a piece that I think you’ll especially enjoy.”

“Can’t wait. What movie did you have in mind for us?” Lori smiled, and the tension he’d just caused seemed to evaporate.

“I doubt you’re an X-Men fan, so it’ll be ladies’ choice.”

“I think Wolverine is pretty damn hot.” Lori shrugged. “I could watch him without his shirt on all night long.”

“Then forget it. We’ll watch a romantic comedy.” He didn’t want her ogling anyone but him. Was that jealousy? He’d never been jealous before.

“That’d be great too.” Lori smiled as she finished off her steak.

After a few more minutes of enjoying their food in comfortable silence, a thought occurred to him. “Did you just trick me into watching a romantic comedy?”

“Yes.” Lori stood and took her empty plate to the sink. “That you figured it out is progress. But I actually do like a good X-Men movie from time to time, so I’ll be happy with whatever we watch.”

Man, she really was the perfect woman.

“Leave the dishes. I haven’t told you this, but I have a housekeeper during the week. She’ll get them in the morning.”

“Seriously?” Lori spun around. “That would be my dream. To never scrub a dish or a toilet again as long as I live. What other great surprises does this place come with?”

He stood and slid his arms around her waist. “There are indoor and outdoor pools and hot tubs that I’d hoped to show you a bit later, a ten-seat movie theater, a bar complete with a dance floor, not that I dance, a sauna off the gym, and my favorite place in the house, the video game room. I have an original Pac-Man machine.”

“Pac-Man?” She laid a quick kiss on his lips. “I used to love that game. I bet living here is like living in Disneyland.”

“That was the idea.” It wasn’t nearly as fun to have all those great things without someone who appreciated them, though. “Let’s go pick something out to watch.”

He took her hand and led her to the theater. When they passed by his comic book room, he punched in the code to unlock the door. “Since we’re here. Have a quick look.”

“You keep whatever’s in there locked up?” she asked.

“Yeah. Mostly because Asher loves this room but rarely has clean hands. Some of this is pretty valuable.” He hit the main switch, and the whole room lit up. Everything had lighting to show it off at its best. Even the glass cases were esthetically lit where the most prized of his comic books lived.

Lori’s eyes went wide. “I’ve never seen anything like this.” She slowly walked around the room, studying all the pieces. When she got to the Wonder Woman section that took up a larger amount of space because he’d always thought she was the sexiest superhero there was, Lori stopped and crossed her arms. “Uh-huh. Just as I suspected.” Then she spotted the replica of the Wonder Woman plane, and her hands shot out to pick it up.

But then Lori stopped herself and asked, “May I touch this? My hands are clean. I swear.”

“Of course you can.” He moved behind her and lifted the glass plane, complete with a Wonder Woman action figure inside, and handed it to her. “You remind me of her. Sexy, strong, and good to the core.”

After she studied the plane for a moment, she gently put it back. Then she snuggled her curvy body against his as she wrapped her arms around his neck. “And I think you’re even better to look at than Wolverine without his shirt. Sexier, smarter, and lots nicer than any of the X-Men.”

He’d wanted to tell her he was falling in love with her, but he’d just sent an e-mail to Annie last Sunday night asking if she’d reconsider marrying him along with all the other absolute requirements for him to fund her dig. That was before he’d slept with Lori and realized how much more he wanted from her than just her friendship. If only he knew for sure that Lori felt as strongly for him as he did for her…

But then what?

He had no idea what the hell he was going to do when Annie got back. That is if she ever came back.



Lori laughed at the romantic comedy playing on the twelve-foot-tall screen. She was snuggled up against Deek’s side on the leather reclining seats and enjoying the movie immensely. His theater was awesome, with a top-notch sound system, a tiered floor, so every seat in the place was a good one, and he even had a stocked bar so they could drink wine while they watched. She’d sort of lost count of how many glasses she’d had, but the warm and fuzzy buzz she had was a pleasant one.