His Favorite Mistake (Baby Its Cold Out) (24 page)

I waited patiently for him to verify his facts, knowing exactly what he would say next.

“By a John and Melissa Taylor.”

I gave him a flick of my hand. “Your assistant has obviously been given some out-of-date information, I’m afraid. I’ve managed the store for almost six months now.”

He appeared even more puzzled. After a moment, the smile returned. “I’m sorry. It’s not that I doubt you. It’s just, well, you’ll forgive my saying, but you don’t look like you’re even out of high school yet. Are you sure you’re old enough to run a bookstore?”

In the past, my friends and family had all told how lucky I was to have one of those youthful faces. On my best days, I could pass for eighteen. Today, without a trace of makeup, I probably looked about twelve.

I had a sneaky feeling Grayson Stone’s comments were not meant as flattery. It was a deliberate attempt on his part to put me in my place. As much as I hated to admit it, it was working. I felt like the screw up my morning reminded me I was. “I’m sorry, was there something you actually needed, Mr. Stone? Or did you simply drop by to spread a little cheer. I actually have a very busy day ahead of me and as much as I might like to stand around chatting with you, I really don’t have the time.”

At this point, I was feeling pretty good about myself. That almost sounded confident. I turned to leave with what I hoped would be some amount of grace. Regrettably, I barely managed a single step before almost falling flat on my face.

So much for making a clean and dignified exit.

I let out a yelp loud enough to put any banshee to shame, before the object of my frustration came to my aid.

“Are you okay?” he asked when he reached my side, spotted my wrapped and swollen ankle, and knelt in front of me.

Oh geez, he was a little too close for comfort. “I’m fine.” I tried to put some distance between us but the pain in my ankle had now kicked up another notch. I resisted the urge to cry like a baby. Instead, I reached out to him for support. At that moment, the last thing I was thinking about was how ridiculous I must look like in his eyes.

“Here, let me help you,” he said as he picked me up. Grayson Stone carried me back through to the office where he put me gently down in my chair. His fingers went to work examining my injured ankle very thoroughly. His touch, however impersonal, had me squirming in my seat, reminding me that it had, after all, been more than six months since I’d been this close to a man. It reminded me of the vow I'd made to someone…oh yeah, God about save myself until marriage.

I imagined what it would feel like to have those expert fingers move up my body just a smidgen higher. My face turned bright red at the thought of it, and my body instantly flushed with excitement. I let go of a shuddering breath.

Grayson eyed my heated face, no doubt reading every single one of the reasons behind my uneasiness.

“What happened? Did you fall?”

“Huh?” I asked because I hadn’t really heard a thing he’d said. All of my focused attention was now on the movement of his most incredibly sexy lips. I imagined...well, the possibilities were limitless.

“Your ankle. Did you fall?” When all I could do was nod, Grayson smiled and tried reassuring me. “I don’t think it’s broken, but you do need to have it looked at by a doctor.”

“I’ll be fine. You can go now.” Those words came out rushed and at least one octave higher than my normal voice. I noisily cleared my throat. By this point, I would have said anything to get rid of him. His closeness was causing me a whole lot more discomfort than my stupid ankle.

“Not a chance. I’m taking you to the clinic.” He stood, glanced around the office until he spotted my purse and keys, then he scooped me up in his arms again before I could manage to dodge his well-defined and extremely muscular arms.

“Wait.” I attempted to get his attention as he headed out the front of the store and in the direction of one very expensive-looking Range Rover. “I can’t leave now. I have customers...I need to go to the bank.”

My somewhat arrogant knight-in-shining-armor ignored the thick falling snow and icy steps as easily as all the things I needed to do. Grayson carefully placed me in the passenger seat of the Rover and proceeded to turn his back on me and walk away. Back to the store, where he turned the little open sign around to read closed. Then he locked the door.

“Boy, it’s really coming down,” he said as he climbed behind the driver’s seat next to me.  

“What do you think you’re doing?”

He spared me a look before pulling out of our parking lot. “Taking you to a doctor, Miss...”

“Taylor. Lila Taylor. And I don’t need a doctor. I just need to stay off my ankle for a little while so...do you mind?” I arched a brow and pointed back toward the bookstore.

“No, not usually, Lila. I’m sorry, but you need to see a doctor about your ankle. So why don’t you just sit back and relax. Enjoy the ride, okay?”

At his slightly condescending tone, I decided the pain in my ankle was much more favorable than enduring Grayson’s company for a single minute longer. I reached for the door handle just as he put the Rover in reverse. Unfortunately, he anticipated my move.

“Uh-uh. I don’t think so.” He pried my hand away from the handle. “Come on, Lila, give me a break okay? Let me take you to the clinic just to make sure everything checks out. Just for my peace of mind.” When I couldn’t think of a valid reason to refuse, he added, “I’m going to do it anyway so you might as well relax, you know?”

It was at this stage in our strange conversation that I felt my first real twinge of fear. After all, what did I really know about him except his name? And that sounded about as phony as a three dollar bill. He could have made it up. He might be anybody, including the next serial killer in training.

“Look, I can drive myself to the clinic. I’m sure you must have better things to do with your day.” I smiled in what I hoped would come across as something close to reassuring. Unfortunately, I was in so much pain by this point, I probably looked as if I were smirking.

“Nothing that can’t wait. Relax, Lila. I’m not really a serial killer.”

That shut me up.

Once Grayson pulled into the last remaining parking spot outside the minor emergency center, he proceeded to hop out of the SUV and pick me up again before I realized that was his intention.

“Look, I can handle it from here, okay? Really. I’ll be fine. Thank you,” I added when the last part actually came out sounding like a growl. “Why don’t you go do whatever it is you were doing before...” I actually bite my tongue to keep from saying, before you decided to ruin my day. But then, my day was ruined long before he walked into my store.

Grayson simply smiled and gave me a look as if to say, you must be out of your mind, before shouldering open the clinic door. He headed for the clerk at the front counter with me still in his arms.

“Put me down.” I squeaked over my pain. He did as I asked and dropped me into one of the empty chairs of the waiting room and then went back to the front counter to talk to the girl. I hoped no one I knew was there to witness my humiliation.

My covert gaze went back to the counter in time to see my rescuer pointing in my direction. He said something to the young brunette clerk, which I couldn’t quite make out. Whatever it was it obviously got the hoped for reaction because she smiled at him. What was he doing anyway? Picking up a date for tonight?

As they continued to flirt with each other, I decided I’d seen enough. I picked up a magazine from the table near me and began flipping through its pages. I hoped he’d read my annoyance as easily as he’d managed to gauge most of my other emotions.

I ignored Grayson completely when he sat next to me, while praying he’d finally get enough of the silent treatment and simply leave.

“I wasn’t trying to pick her up...” Grayson whispered so softly that I almost didn’t catch the words at first. But when they registered, I dropped my magazine into my lap and stared back at him.

“I mean, what do I need with her when I have such a sweet, accommodating woman sitting right here next to me?” I watched the smile—the one I’m almost certain I would come to hate, spread across his face. It didn’t quite kill the seriousness in those gray eyes. I forced my gaze back to the magazine I wasn’t actually reading.

“You know, it would be a lot more convincing if you actually held the magazine right side up.” Grayson took it from my unresisting hand and turned it to the proper angle.

I counted to ten—twice, before losing the battle with my anger.

In the past, my mother had warned me at least a thousand times if I didn’t take control of my temper, it would end up costing me dearly someday. Unfortunately, this was just one of many lessons she’d tried to get me to understand and failed.

“Who are you anyway?” I asked, barely managing to keep the words between the two of us. “Why won’t you just leave?”

I stopped my little tirade when he had the nerve to laugh. Gees, it sounded just as good as his voice. The man was one living breathing real life fantasy.

At that point, I decided while he might not be willing to leave, I wasn’t obligated to sit next to him any longer.

I tried to stand, hoping to hobble over to the far end of the waiting room. The pain in my ankle decided not to go along with my little plan.

“Sit down, Lila.” Grayson’s long fingers circled my wrist and forced me back into my seat. “Don’t be childish—you’re obviously in pain. You shouldn’t be standing on that ankle any more than necessary. So just sit down and relax, will you? I promise I don’t bite. At least not too hard and certainly never in public.”

The first reminder of the terrible day I’d experienced so far blindsided me as tears stung my eyes. I couldn’t look at Grayson. I didn’t want him to see how vulnerable I felt. Instead, I concentrated on my now right-side-up magazine.

The normal waiting time for the minor emergency center, even on a good day, was literally hours.

I tried concentrating on the boring article I was pretending to read, something about a movie star, while deliberately ignoring the man to my left, who seemed to be busy working on his little electronic gizmo-thingy again. Gees, I missed my Blackberry. And my life in
New York.

After my curiosity finally got the better of me, I snuck a quick glance at what he was doing, trying to be as discreet as possible. Grayson was sending out emails like they were going out of style.

Brother, some people certainly have a high opinion of themselves if they can’t stay away from their technical lifeline even for a couple of hours.

“Do you want to see how it works?” he asked without looking at me but clearly spotting my interest.

“No thanks.” I rolled my eyes and continued with my boring article, which was now accompanied by the sound of his laughter.

Three long hours later and still waiting, my anxiety continued to escalate as I pictured poor Mr. Edward’s panic. Once I imagined our few remaining customers’ reaction to seeing the closed sign on the door, I freaked.

I was getting ready to hobble on my one good foot out of the clinic when a door opened and the nurse called Grayson’s name. He stood. I stood. Then I winced in pain, and stifled a tiny scream. My knight-in-shining armor’s arms went around me once more in what was quickly becoming a little too familiar for comfort. Definitely too disturbing, if my body’s reaction was any indication.

“No,” I managed before the very effort of being picked up knocked the breath out of me, and sent the dozen or more bored and impatient patrons waiting for their turn, sniggering at our little show.

Oh for crying out loud... I hoped I’d only just thought these things to myself instead of saying them aloud.

“I can manage to make it to the exam room by myself,” I told Grayson but he apparently wasn’t listening to me. He said something to the nurse, who smiled sympathetically.

“Right this way, Mr. Stone.” The nurse opened the door to one of the exam rooms then added, “It will only be a few more minutes if you would like to get undressed, Miss...” She consulted her little chart before adding, “Miss Taylor.”

It was on the tip of my tongue to ask her why I needed to be undressed to have my ankle examined, but then I caught a glimpse of Grayson’s maddening grin and kept my mouth shut.

I waited until the nurse left us alone before deciding I’d endured more than enough of his company for one day.

“Can you put me down now, please?” I told him rather ungraciously. Surprisingly, he did as I asked for once. Not entirely gentle I might add. Apparently, he’d had enough of me as well.

“Look, I really do appreciate all you’ve done for me today, but there’s no need for you to stick around. I can take it from here.”

“You’re embarrassed by the nurse’s get undressed remark aren’t you? I don’t think she meant anything by it, Lila. I’m sure she probably thought we were together...or something.”

He left the last part to my imagination, which by this point and after being entirely too close to this gorgeous male by my side, had kicked into overdrive. The or something held so many delicious possibilities to my saving-myself-for-marriage deprived body. To cover my confusion, I remembered I was angry with him.

Grayson Stone looked me in the eye, saw the coming storm, and chose to leave me alone at last.