Authors: Roseanne Dowell
"I wish I knew. Knowing my boss,
I'll be there through the first at least." The waiter approached and took
our order. "How about you? How long are you staying?" Not that it
mattered. I didn't plan on seeing him in Florida.
In fact I didn't plan on seeing him at all.
"Hard taskmaster?" Bill paused
while we gave our orders to the waiter. "I'm not sure. I should finish up
in a few days. But clients are funny people, and it might take longer than I
expect." Bill pointed to the dance floor. "Do you dance?"
I loved to dance but didn't trust myself
in Bill's arms. The last place I wanted to be. Much too intimate. "I do,
but no thanks."
"So, tell me, Miss Seidel, what do
you do for fun?"
Taken aback by his question, my mouth fell
open. "I don't have a lot of time for fun. Right now my career comes
first."
"Surely, you can't spend every
waking hour working?"
"You have no idea what's involved in
planning a room, do you? It's more than just throwing fabrics and textures
together. Especially when you start from the ground up." I took a breath.
"So what is involved?"
I stared at him for a minute. Was he
kidding or did he really want to know? I'd met plenty of guys before who
pretended they were interested. They yawned halfway through. Something told me
Bill really wanted to know. I'm not sure what. Maybe it was the way he looked
directly at me.
"Well, for starters, on a house
that's been gutted, besides taking measurements and pictures, we have to pick
out floors, cabinets, appliances. The whole ball of wax. And we have to know
our client's taste. To top it all off, we have to make what they like work. We
have to kind of guide them. Know what I mean?"
"I think I do. Architects are pretty
much the same way. People think you can just tear out a wall and make the room
bigger. It doesn't work that way. And sometimes making a room bigger doesn't
work. I once had a client who wanted to knock out three walls. While doable,
the room would have been so big, it would have looked like a dance hall. Not
the kind of room the client pictured." Bill waited while the waiter served
our drinks.
"I convinced her to only knock out
one wall, and the room turned out exactly as she pictured it."
He understood. He actually understood my
work. What's more he was sincerely interested. I could have talked all night
about my work, but I wanted to know more about his. I'd only worked with an
architect once before, and I didn't have much contact with him. Nick dealt with
him for the most part. My job was to decorate the space he created. "So
tell me more. What kinds of buildings do you work on?"
"Historical buildings mostly. It's
amazing how many people are buying up old warehouses and turning them into
apartments."
"I love old buildings. Not that I
have a problem with the new modern ones, but something about the old ones...I
don't know, maybe it's the history. I find myself wondering about the people
who lived there. Sometimes I make up stories about them." Oops, now why
did I say that? I'd never told anyone that before.
Bill stared at me, a strange look on his
face. "I do the same thing."
"No way." Was he being serious
or mocking me. Something told me he meant it. Guess you couldn't judge a book
by its cover. I never in a million years would have guessed we had so much in
common. And he talked about stuff besides football.
After dinner and a few drinks, I looked
at my watch and stifled a yawn. I didn't want to go back to the room with him.
We'd had a great evening, and I learned things about him that surprised me.
Things like, he rescued a retired greyhound and planned on rescuing another. I
couldn't picture him with a greyhound. More of a Rottweiler type of guy.
He came from a big family. Family seemed
important to him. He loved woodworking, and he was remodeling an old
fixer-upper Victorian – my favorite type of house. Things I never would have
guessed. And surprisingly, he didn't like skiing or hiking.
And I revealed a lot of things about
myself that I never told anyone before. Partly because no one was ever interested.
Things like how I admired my Aunt Sophie who managed to have a career and still
raise a family. That one of my biggest goals was to start my own interior
design business. I even had the name picked out – Simple Elegance. I'd never
divulged that to anyone. Not to my sisters, not to my best friends. So what
made me tell him?
I sat back and studied him. I liked the
way his wavy black hair curled into a widow's peak on his forehead. And I liked
the dimple in his chin. This wasn't good. I wasn't supposed to like a man this
much. I even liked the way he touched my hand across the table while we talked.
It did things to my insides. Things I'd never experienced before. Wouldn't
allow myself to experience. And the way his gray eyes looked into mine. Like he
really was interested in what I was saying and not just placating me. Nope,
this wasn't good. Not good at all.
"You're tired. I think we should
call it a night. Hopefully, the airport will be up and running in the
morning."
I stood up and followed Bill out of the
restaurant. At the doorway, he turned and took my hand. Something inside me
quivered from his touch. I didn't like this. Didn't like it one little bit.
Yet, I liked it way too much.
Chapter Five
"Let's get one thing clear right
now." I stepped into the elevator and pulled my hand away. It was time to
put a stop to this before it got out of hand.
Bill lifted an eyebrow and looked at me.
"Okay, what's that?"
Something about his voice sounded
teasing, almost bantering. He thought this was a big joke. Probably thought
because he wined and dined me, he could get me into bed. "When we get to
the room, you go in the bathroom and wait while I get undressed and into
bed."
The smirk on his face annoyed me.
"You don't think I'm going to sleep in my clothes, do you?" No way
was I going back to the airport in wrinkled clothes. He could if he wanted. In
fact I hoped he would. The thought of him lying in the next bed without clothes
didn't sit well with me.
"Actually, I hadn't given it any
thought. No, I guess you wouldn't want to sleep in your clothes. Nor would I.
So how do you propose I get undressed and in bed?"
His grin sent shivers up my spine. Darn
him, anyway. Like I wanted to watch him undress. "I'll turn off the light
when I get into bed. You don't have a problem undressing in the dark do you?
And I promise I won't look." Like heck I wouldn't, but at least I wouldn't
be tempted to touch. At least, I didn't think I would. Darn it, no one ever
made me feel this way before.
"Nope, not at all."
His bantering tone continued as did the
silly grin. Did he think I was joking? Well, he had another thought coming. The
elevator doors opened, and I stepped off ahead of him and went straight to our
room. I inserted the card in the slot and pushed the door open. Inside, I
waited for him to go to the bathroom. He stood there, looking at me.
I picked up my bag, walked to the far end
of the room and pulled the bed covers down. "I really am tired, so if you
don't mind." I motioned toward the bathroom and heard his soft chuckle as
he turned and left.
He poked his head out. "I thought
that was my bed."
"Well, you thought wrong." I
waved him away and turned my back to him. I had forgotten he'd claimed this bed
when we first came in. Too bad. He'd have to make do. What was I going to do if
he made a pass at me?
I shuddered at the thought. Problem was
half of me wanted him to. After checking to make sure he was in the bathroom, I
took off my blouse, folded it and put it on the chair. Next came my skirt. When
I was down to my bra and panties, I crawled into bed and pulled the covers up
to my chin, reached up and flipped off the light. "Okay, you can come out
now."
A thought about morning suddenly hit me.
No wonder he laughed at me. How was I going to get out of bed without him
seeing me or me seeing him in the daylight? Stupid, I hadn't thought about it
until now. Guess I'd cross that bridge when I came to it. What else could I do?
Right now I was tired and needed sleep.
A sound from across the room caused me to
open my eyes. Even in the dark, I could see Bill's muscular physique. He
unbuttoned his shirt, removed it and folded it, then laid it on the chair near
his bed. I watched mesmerized as he unbuckled his belt, unzipped his pants and
slid them off. God, he had gorgeous legs. He seemed to take his time folding
his pants, making sure the creases were just right. He laid them neatly across
the back of the chair, then turned, pulled the covers down and sat on the edge
of the bed.
A hot searing flame started deep in my
stomach as he fluffed the pillow. I swore I could see the muscles ripple in his
back as he sat there, before he pulled his legs up and got under the covers. I
let out a soft groan and wondered what it would feel like to have that sexy,
masculine body next to mine. Good Lord, what was the matter with me? I closed
my eyes and willed myself to sleep.
* * *
Bill sensed Wendy watching him as he got
into bed. He wanted to look at her but didn't trust himself. He could hardly
keep his hands off her in the elevator. If he looked at her now, he'd lose it
completely. Nope, better to look the other way.
He could hardly wait until morning to see
what she suggested about getting out of bed. He'd much rather be there in bed
next to her. He wanted to touch her ever since he first laid eyes on her. Never
had a woman affected him this way. Hell, maybe he'd been too long without a
woman. It'd been what almost two years since he had a serious relationship.
Still, he'd seen beautiful women, and none did things to his insides the way
Wendy did. He had enjoyed dinner and listening to her talk about her job. Had
she been teasing him when she said she loved old homes? No, she couldn't
possibly know how he felt about the old houses he worked on. He'd never met
anyone like her before.
Wendy Seidel, why did that name sound
familiar? He'd heard it someplace, but where. He turned over, punched the
pillow and closed his eyes. He'd think of it eventually. She was an interior
designer, maybe he'd read it in a magazine or something.
Chapter Six
I woke before the clock went off, opened
my eyes and looked at the green digital numbers on the clock. Almost seven
o'clock already. Sunlight streamed through the edges of the drapes. Hopefully,
it had quit snowing and we'd be able to get out of here today. I'd better get
up if I wanted to catch a flight out. I turned and looked at Bill. Still sawing
logs. Good. Okay, now, how to get out of bed? I pulled the sheet loose from the
foot of the bed and wrapped it around me. There, that ought to do it.
I swung my legs over the side of the bed,
stood up and adjusted the sheet so I could walk. On the way to the bathroom, I
grabbed my clothes and stopped at the foot of Bill's bed. I nudged it gently.
Guess it was only fair to wake him up too. Besides, he could dress while I was
in the bathroom. "Hey, sleepy head, you might want to get up."
He raised his head and looked at me.
"What time is it anyway?"
"Almost seven. You can dress while
I'm in the bathroom." I hurried into the bathroom and closed the door before
he exposed anymore of that gorgeous body. Thank God, we'd thought to buy
toothbrushes and toothpaste last night.
* * *
Bill swung his legs over the side of the
bed and slid out. Figured she'd think of something to get out of bed. Smart
woman. He chuckled. She looked damn sexy with that sheet wrapped around her.
Too bad he hadn't been awake to watch her. Knowing her, he probably wouldn't
have seen even an inch of skin. He pulled on his pants and left his shirt until
after he brushed his teeth. If she didn't like it, too bad. Something told him
she wouldn't mind. He wasn't sure why. She really hadn't sent him any signals.
At least, none that he noticed. Sure, he sensed her watching him last night, or
was that just wishful thinking?
When he took her hand it trembled
slightly. Was that because she liked his touch or was she afraid of him?
Repulsed by him? He had no way of knowing. Yet, they had an interesting
conversation at dinner. They had confided in each other. He'd told her things
he'd never told another woman. She admitted she'd never told anyone about her
dream to own her own business. He turned on the TV to the weather channel and
sat down on the bed to wait.
The bathroom door opened, bringing his
thoughts back to the present. She looked as sexy in her clothes as she had in
that sheet. Well, not quite, but damn, she looked good.
"Okay, I'm ready." She tossed
the sheet on the bed. "I'd like a cup of coffee before we go. I think the
first flight to Florida
is around nine a.m."
When she turned to face him, she caught
her breath and let out a little gasp. Obviously, his naked chest startled her.
More than likely she expected him to have all his clothes on. She stared at him
for a minute and a smile played about her lips. What he'd give to feel those lips
on his. Already heat flared deep in his stomach. She turned away quickly,
grabbed her watch off the nightstand and busied herself with it.