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“Thank you. I’m taking it all to the top floor. The penthouse. You should be expecting me. I’m staying a few days to decorate an apartment for a client who is out of town. Lucas Blade.”
He was a crime writer with a dozen global bestsellers to his name.
Eva had never read a single one of them.
She hated crime, both real and fictional. She preferred to focus on the positive side of people and life. And she preferred to sleep at night.
The warmth of the apartment building wrapped itself around her as she stepped inside, comforting after the chill of the blizzard swirling on Fifth Avenue. Her cheeks stung and despite wearing gloves her fingertips were numb with cold. Even the wool hat she’d pulled over her ears had done nothing to keep out the savage bite of a New York winter.
“I’m going to need to see ID.” The doorman was brisk and businesslike. “We’ve had a spate of break-ins in this area. What’s the company name?”
“Urban Genie.” It was still new enough that saying it brought a rush of pride. It was her company. She’d set it up with her friends. She handed over her ID. “We’ve not been around long, but we’re taking New York by storm.” She shook snow off her gloves and smiled. “Well, it’s maybe more of a light wind than a storm, given what’s happening outside the window, but we’re hopeful for the future. I have Mr. Blade’s key.” She waved it as evidence and his gaze warmed as he looked first at it and then at the ID she’d handed him.
“You’re on my list. All I need is for you to sign in.”
“Could you do me a favor?” Eva signed with a flourish. “When Lucas Blade shows up, don’t tell him I was here. It’s supposed to be a surprise. He’s going to open his front door and find his apartment all ready for the holidays. It’ll be like walking in on a surprise birthday party.”
It occurred to her that not everyone liked surprise birthday parties, but who was she to argue with his family? His grandmother, who had been one of their first clients and was now a good friend, had given her a clear brief. Prepare the apartment and make it ready for Christmas. Apparently Lucas Blade was in Vermont, deep in a book and on a deadline; the world around him had ceased to exist. As well as decorating, her job was to cook and fill his freezer and she had the whole weekend to do it because he wasn’t due home until the following week.
“Sure, we can do that for you.” The doorman smiled.
“Thank you.” She peered at his name badge, and continued, “Albert. You saved my life. In some cultures that would mean you now own me. Fortunately for you, we’re in New York City. You’ll never know what a lucky escape you had.”
He laughed. “Mr. Blade’s grandmother called earlier and said she was sending over his Christmas present. I wasn’t expecting a woman.”
“I’m not the gift. Just my skills. Saying I’m his Christmas present makes it sound as if I should be standing here wrapped in silver paper and a big red bow.”
“So you’re going to be staying in the apartment for a couple of nights? Alone?”
“That’s right.” And there was nothing new in that. Apart from the occasional night Paige slept over in her apartment, she spent every night alone. She couldn’t remember the last time she’d been horizontal with a man, but she was determined that was going to change. Changing it was right at the top of her Christmas wish list. “Lucas isn’t back until next week, and with the weather this bad there’s no sense in traveling backward and forward.” She glanced at the snow falling thickly beyond the tinted glass. “I’m guessing no one is going to be traveling anywhere far tonight.”
“It’s a bad one. They’re saying snow accumulation could hit eighteen inches, with winds gusting fifty miles an hour. Time to stock up on food, check the batteries in the flashlight and get out those snow shovels.” Albert glanced at her bags, brimming with Christmas decorations. “Looks like you’re not going to be too worried about the weather. Plenty of Christmas cheer right there. I’m guessing you’re one of those people who loves the holidays.”
“I am.” Or she used to be. And she was determined to be that person again. Reminding herself of that, she tried to ignore the hollow ache in her chest. “How about you, Albert?”
“I’ll be working. Lost my wife of forty years two summers ago. Never had kids, so Christmas was always the two of us. And now it’s just me. Working here will be better for me than eating a frozen dinner for one on my own in my apartment. I like being around people.”
Eva felt a rush of empathy. She understood needing to be around people. She was the same. It wasn’t that she couldn’t be on her own. She could. But given the choice she would always rather be with other people.
On impulse, she dug her hand into her pocket and gave him a card. “Take this—”
“Romano’s Sicilian Restaurant, Brooklyn?”
“Best pizza anywhere in New York City. It’s owned by my friend’s mother and on Christmas Day Maria cooks for everyone who shows up. I help her in the kitchen. I’m a cook, although most of the time now we’re running big events and I’m outsourcing to external companies and vendors.” Too much information, she thought, and gestured toward the card. “If you’re free on Christmas Day, you should join us, Albert.”
He stared at the card in his hand. “You just met me five minutes ago. Why would you invite me?”
“Because you saved me from landing on my butt, and because it’s Christmas. No one should be alone at Christmas.” Alone. There it was again. That word. It seemed to creep in everywhere. “I’m not going to hole myself away totally either. As soon as the snow eases enough for me to see my hand in front of my face, I’m going to pop across to Central Park and build a snowman the size of the Empire State Building. The Empire State Snowman. And speaking of giant structures, I have a tree being delivered later. Hopefully it will arrive before the blizzard stops everything. You’re going to think I stole the one from outside Rockefeller Center, but I assure you I didn’t.”
“It’s big?”
“The guy lives in the penthouse. The penthouse needs a big tree. I just hope we’ll be able to get it up there.”
“Leave it to me.” He frowned. “You’re sure you shouldn’t be getting home to your family while you can?”
His words poked at the bruise she’d been trying to ignore.
“I’ll be fine right here, safe and warm. Thanks, Albert. You’re my hero.”
She walked toward the elevator, trying not to think about everyone in New York going home to their families. Home to warmth, laughter, conversation, hugs…
Everyone except her.
She had no one.
Not a single living relative. She had friends, of course, great friends, but for some reason that didn’t ease the ache.
Alone.
Why was the feeling always magnified at Christmas?
The elevator rose through the building in smooth silence and the doors slid open.
Lucas Blade’s apartment was straight ahead and she let herself in, thanked the two men who’d delivered all her bags and packages and carefully locked the door behind her.
She turned, and was instantly mesmerized by the spectacular view visible through the floor-to-ceiling glass that made up one entire wall of the apartment.
She didn’t bother putting on lights. Instead, she toed off her boots to avoid trailing snow through the apartment and walked in her socks to the window.
Whatever else he had, Lucas Blade had taste and style.
He also had underfloor heating, and she felt the luxurious warmth steal through the thick wool of her socks and slowly thaw her numbed feet.
She stared at the soaring skyline, letting the cold and the last of the snowflakes melt away.
Far beneath her she could see the trail of lights on Fifth Avenue as a few bold cabs made what was probably their final journey through Manhattan. Soon the roads would be closed. Travel would be impossible, or at least unwise. New York, the city that never slept, would finally be forced to take a rest.
The snow fell past the window, big fat flakes that drifted and swirled, before settling lazily on the already deep layer that blanketed the city.
Eva hugged herself, staring out across the silvery-white expanse of Central Park.
It was New York at its dreamy, wintry best. Why Lucas Blade felt the need to go on retreat to write, she had no idea. If she owned this place she’d never leave it.
But maybe he needed to leave it.
He was grieving, wasn’t he? He’d lost his beloved wife three years ago at Christmas. His grandmother had told her how much it had changed him. And why wouldn’t it? He’d lost the love of his life. His soul mate.
Eva leaned her head against the glass. Her chest ached for him.
Her friends told her she was too sensitive, but she’d come to accept that it was just the way she was. Other people watched the news and managed to stay detached. Eva felt everything deeply, and she felt Lucas’s pain even though she’d never even met him.
How cruel was it to meet the love of your life and then lose her?
How did you pick up the pieces and move on?
She had no idea how long she stood there or when, exactly, she sensed she wasn’t alone. It started with a faint warning prickle at the back of her neck, which rapidly turned to the cold chill of fear when she heard a nearby clunk.
She was imagining things, surely? Of course she was alone. This apartment block had some of the best security in the city and she’d been careful to lock the door behind her.
No one could have followed her in so there couldn’t be anyone else in there, unless—
She swallowed as a different explanation occurred to her.
—unless someone had already been in the apartment.
She turned her head slowly, wishing now that she’d taken the time to find the lights and switch them on. The storm had darkened the sky and the apartment was full of cavernous shadows and mysterious corners. Her imagination burst to life and she tried to reason with herself. The sound could have been anything. Maybe it had come from outside the building.
She held her breath, and then heard another noise, this one definitely inside the apartment. It sounded like a footstep. A stealthy footstep, as if the owner didn’t want to reveal himself.
She glanced up and saw something move in the shadows up above her.
Fear was sharp and paralyzing.
She’d interrupted a break-in. The hows and whys didn’t matter. All that mattered was getting out of here.
The door seemed a long way in the distance.
Could she make it?
Her heart was racing and her palms turned sweaty.
She wished now that she hadn’t removed her shoes.
She made for the door and at the same time grabbed her phone from her pocket. Her hand was shaking so much she almost dropped it.
She hit the emergency button, heard a woman say “911 Emergency—” and tried to whisper into the phone.
“Help. There’s someone in the apartment.”
“You’ll have to speak up, ma’am.”
The door was there. Right there.
“There’s someone in the apartment.” She needed to get downstairs to Albert. He’d—
A hand clamped over her mouth and before Eva could utter a squeak she’d landed on her back on the floor, crushed by the hard weight of a powerful male body.
The man pinned her. One of his hands was across her mouth and the other gripped her wrists with brutal strength.
Holy crap.
If she could have screamed, she would have, but she couldn’t open her mouth.
She couldn’t move. She couldn’t breathe, although bizarrely her senses were still sufficiently alert for her to realize her attacker smelled really good.
It was an irony that finally, after almost two years of dreaming and hoping, she was finally horizontal with a man. It was a shame he was trying to kill her.
A shame and a tragic waste.
Here lies Eva, whose Christmas wish was to find herself up close and personal with a man, but didn’t specify the circumstances.
Was that really going to be her last thought? Clearly the mind was capable of strange thoughts in the last moment before it was robbed of oxygen. And having written her eulogy, she was going to die, right here in the dark in this empty apartment mere weeks before Christmas, flattened by this gloriously smelling hunk of solid muscle. If Lucas Blade decided to postpone his return, her body might not be found for weeks. They were in the middle of a snowstorm, or a “winter weather emergency” as it was officially called.
The thought rallied her.
No! She didn’t want to die without saying goodbye to her friends. She’d found Paige and Frankie perfect Christmas gifts and she hadn’t told anyone where they were hidden. And her apartment was a total mess. She’d been meaning to tidy up for ages, but hadn’t quite found the time. What if the police wanted to look through her things for clues? Most of her possessions were strewed across the floor. It would be horribly embarrassing. But most of all she didn’t want to miss enjoying New York City at Christmas, and she didn’t want to die without having amazing, mind-blowing sex at least once in her life.
She didn’t want this to be her last experience of having a man on top of her.
She wanted to live.
With a huge effort she tried to head-butt him, but he took evasive action. She heard the rasp of his breath, caught a glimpse of jet-black hair and fierce, smoldering eyes, and then there was a hammering on the door, and shouts from the police.
Relief weakened her limbs.
They must have traced the call.
She sent silent thanks and heard her attacker curse softly moments before the police burst into the apartment, followed by Albert.
There were no words for how much Eva loved Albert at that moment.
“NYPD, freeze!”
The apartment was flooded with lights and the man crushing her finally relieved her of his weight.
Sucking air into her starving lungs, Eva screwed up her eyes against the lights and felt the man wrench the hat off her head. Her hair, released from the confines of wool and warmth, unraveled itself and tumbled over her shoulders.
For a brief moment her gaze collided with his and she saw shock and disbelief.
“You’re a woman.”
He had a deep, sexy voice. Sexy voice, sexy body— shame about his criminal lifestyle.
“I am. Or at least, I was. Right now I’m not sure I’m alive.” Eva lay there, stunned, gingerly testing the various parts of her body to check they were still attached. The man sprang to his feet in a lithe, fluid movement and she saw the expression on the police officer’s face change.
“Lucas?” There was shock on his face. “We had no idea you were here. We had a call from an unknown female, reporting an intruder.”
Lucas? Her attacker was Lucas Blade? He wasn’t a criminal, he was the owner of the apartment!
She took her first good look at him and realized that he did look familiar. She’d seen his face on book covers. And it was a memorable face. She studied the slash of his cheekbones and the bold sweep of his nose. His hair and his eyes were dark. He looked as good as he smelled, and as for his body—she didn’t need to study the width of his shoulders or the power of those muscles to know how strong he was. She’d been pinned to the ground under the solid weight of him, so she already knew all there was to know about that. Remembering triggered a fluttery feeling in her tummy.
What was wrong with her?
This man had half killed her and she was having sexy thoughts.
Which was yet more evidence that she’d gone far too long without sex. She was definitely going to fix that this Christmas.
In the meantime, she dragged her gaze away from the magnetic pull of his and tried to be practical.
What was he doing in the apartment? He wasn’t supposed to be home.
“She’s the intruder.” Lucas’s expression was grim and Eva realized that everyone was glaring at her. Everyone except Albert, who looked as confused as she felt.
“I’m not an intruder. I was told the apartment was empty.” The injustice of it stung. “You’re not supposed to be here.”
“And how would you know that? You research which apartments are empty at Christmas?” He might be sexy, but he didn’t give away smiles lightly.
Eva wondered how she’d suddenly turned into the bad guy. “Of course not. I was asked to do this.”
“You had an accomplice?”
“If I was an intruder, would I have dialed 911?”
“Why not? Once you realized there was someone home, it would have been the perfect way of appearing innocent.”
“I am innocent.” Eva looked at him in disbelief. “Your mind is a strange, twisted thing.” She glanced at the police officer for support, but found none.
“On your feet.” The officer’s tone was cold and brusque and Eva eased her bruised, crushed body into a sitting position.
“That’s easier said than done. I have at least four hundred broken bones.”
Lucas reached down and hauled her upright. “The human body does not have four hundred bones.”
“It does when most of them have snapped in half.” His strength shouldn’t have surprised her given that he’d already crushed her to the ground under his body. “Why is everyone glaring at me? Instead of interrogating me about breaking and entering, they should be arresting you for assault. What are you doing here, anyway? You’re supposed to be in Vermont, not skulking here.”
“I own the apartment. A person can’t ‘skulk’ in their own apartment.” His brows came together in a fierce frown. “How did you know I was supposed to be in Vermont?”
“Your grandmother told me.” Eva tested her ankle gingerly. “And you were definitely skulking. Creeping around in the dark.”
“You were the one creeping around in the dark.”
“I was admiring the snow. I’m a romantic. As far as I know, that isn’t a crime.”
“We’ll be the judge of that.” The officer stepped forward. “We’ll take her down to the precinct, Lucas.”
“Wait—” Lucas barely moved his hand but it was enough to stop the man in his tracks. “Did you say my grandmother told you I was in Vermont?”
“That’s right, Mr. Blade,” Albert intervened. “This is Eva, and she’s here at the request of your grandmother. I verified it myself. None of us knew you were in residence.” There was a faint hint of reproach in his voice. Lucas ignored it.
“You know my grandmother?” he asked Eva.
“I do. She employed me.”
“To do what, exactly?” His eyes darkened. It was like looking at a threatening sky before a very, very bad storm.
His grandmother had told her many things about her grandson Lucas. She’d mentioned that he was an expert skier, that he had once spent a year living in a cabin in the Arctic, that he was fluent in French, Italian and Russian, was skilled in at least four different forms of martial arts and that he never showed anyone his books until they were finished.
She’d failed to mention that he could be intimidating.
“She employed me to prepare your apartment for Christmas.”
“And?”
“And what? That’s it. What other reason could there have been?” She saw the sardonic gleam in his eyes. “Are you suggesting I broke in here so that I could meet you?”
“It wouldn’t be the first time.”
“Women do that?” Outrage mingled with fascination. Even she couldn’t imagine ever going to those lengths to find a man. “How exactly does that work? Once they get inside they leap on you and pin you down?”
“You tell me.” He folded his arms and looked at her expectantly. “What plan did you cook up with my grandmother?”
She laughed and then realized he wasn’t joking.
“I’m good in the kitchen, but even I’ve never managed to ‘cook up’ a romance. I wonder what the recipe would be? One cup of hope mixed with a pinch of delusion?” She tilted her head to one side. “Not that I’m not one of those women who thinks a guy has to make the first move or anything, but I’ve never gone as far as breaking into a man’s apartment to get their attention. Do I look desperate, Mr. Blade?” In fact she was pretty desperate, but he had no way of knowing that unless he searched her purse and found her single lonely condom. She had hoped to give it a spectacular end to its so far uneventful life, but that was looking increasingly unlikely.
“Desperate wears many faces.”
“If I were to break into a man’s apartment with the intention of seducing him, do you really think I’d do it while wearing snow boots and a chunky sweater? I’m starting to understand why you need such a large apartment even though there’s only one of you. Your ego must take up a lot of space and need its own bathroom, but I forgive you for your arrogance because you’re rich and good-looking so you’re probably telling the truth about your past experience. However, the flaw in your reasoning is that you were supposed to be in Vermont.”
His gaze held hers. “I’m not in Vermont.”
“I know that now. I have bruises to prove it.”
The police officer didn’t smile. “Do you believe that story, Lucas?”
“Unfortunately, yes. It sounds exactly the sort of thing my grandmother would arrange.” He swore softly, his fluency earning him a look of respect from the hardened New York cop.
“How do you want us to handle this?”
“I don’t. I’m grateful for your speedy response, but I’ll take it from here. And if you could forget you ever saw me here, I’d be grateful for that, too.” He spoke with the quiet authority of someone who was rarely questioned and Eva watched in fascination as they all melted away.
All except Albert, who stood as solid as a tree trunk in the doorway.
Lucas looked at him expectantly. “Thank you for your concern, but I’ve got this.”
“My concern is for Miss Eva.” Albert stood his ground and looked at Eva. “Perhaps you’d better come with me.”
She was touched. “I’ll be fine, Albert, but thank you. I may be a little vertically challenged, but I’m deadly when I’m cornered. You don’t need to worry about me.”
“If you change your mind, I’m on until midnight.” He glared at Lucas, his expression suggesting that he’d be keeping an eye on the situation. “I’ll check in with you before I leave.”
“You’re really kind.”
The door to the apartment closed.
“You’re deadly when you’re cornered?” His dark drawl held a hint of humor. “Forgive me if I find that hard to believe.”
“Don’t underestimate me, Mr. Blade. When I attack, you won’t see it coming. One minute you’ll be minding your own business, the next you’ll be on your back, helpless.”
“Like I was a few moments ago?”
She ignored his sarcasm. “That was different. I wasn’t expecting anyone to be here. I wasn’t ready. Next time I’ll be ready.”
“Next time?”
“Next time you leap on me and try to imprint me into your floor. It was like the Hollywood Walk of Fame only you were using my whole body, not just my hand. Your floor probably looks like a crime scene with the outline of my body right there.”
Lucas studied her for a moment. “You seem to have a close relationship with the doorman of my building. Have you known him long?”
“About ten minutes.”
“Ten minutes and the guy is willing to defend you to the death? Do you have that effect on all men?”
“Never the right men. Never the young, hot, eligible ones.” She changed the subject. “Why did the police not make an arrest?”
“According to you, you weren’t committing a crime.”
“I was talking about you. They should have cautioned you. You flattened me and scared the life out of me.” She remembered the way his body had felt against hers. She could still feel the hard pressure of his thigh, the warmth of his breath on her cheek and the heaviness.
Her gaze met his. The way he was looking at her made her think he was remembering that moment, too.