OPERATION: DATE ESCAPE (12 page)

“Now why would you think...?  Oh, hell.  Yes, I admit your mother suggested
I call to see how things are going with you when she called me five minutes ago.”

At least, her mother was bothering someone else beside her.  She’d already had to deal with her mother’s pre-date pep talk.  One she had come to know by heart. 
Show a lot of leg.  Wear something sexy that accentuates your figure.  And smile a lot.
  Her mother obviously had her confused with one of Hugh Hefner’s Playboy bunnies.  Something she was not.

“The date’s still on if that’s what you two are worried about.”

“Don’t be silly.  We’re not worried,” her friend replied, but she didn’t sound very confident.  “I mean what woman in her right mind would cancel a dinner date with a hottie like Cole Maxwell?”

Kelsie made her way around the bed. 
If she were in her right mind, she would.

“So are you
really going to do it?” Nanci asked.

“Do what?”
she asked as she stepped over to the dresser.  Knowing her friend, ‘do it’ could have a whole lot of connotations to it.  Phone perched between her cheek and shoulder, she began gathering up all her discarded purses.

“You know,” Nanci said.  “Wear that lace thong you bought at Victoria’s Secret.”

“If you’re referring to this thing I have hiked halfway up my butt crack, then yes, I’m wearing it.”

“Ooh, I didn’t think you’d do it.  The calendar stud is going to love it!”

She carried the armful of purses back into the walk-in closet and returned them to their storage box.  “Well, that would make one of us.” 

“Oh, come on.  They’re not that bad.  And guys love them.”

“Then let the men wear them.”

“Actually, there was this one guy I dated who was fascinated by my underwear.  Not the ones on me, but the ones in my drawer.  It seems he was into wearing women’s thongs.”

“Eeew,” Kelsie said with a shudder. 

“My thoughts exactly.  Needless to say, I dumped his ass.  I mean I don’t mind sharing my dessert with a guy.  Or even my deodorant.  But my panties are off limits.”

“I don’t think I have to worry about Cole wanting to wear my thong.”

“Just wanting to get into it?”

“He can want all he wants.  But he isn’t getting in or even getting a peek at my underwear.”  Of course, he might if she didn’t hurry up and decide on something to wear on their date.

“You never know,” Nanci argued with a giggle.  “Just wait until you’re all alone with Mr. Nice Ass in Tight Jeans and see if you’re not dying to have the guy peel all your clothes off.”

Kelsie frowned.  She was already dying to have him peel her clothes off.  And it was all Cole’s fault for looking at her the way he did.  For kissing her the way he had. 

Help! 

“I hate to cut you off,” she told her friend, “but I really need to finish getting ready.” 

“Okay.  Just promise me you aren’t going to wear that awful ‘nun’ blouse you bought last month.”  Nanci clicked her tongue.  “Can you say major fashion faux pa?”  

She was referring to the white silk blouse Kelsie had picked up from the clearance rack a few weeks before.  According to Nanci, it ranked right up there with a nun’s habit because it was virginal white and didn’t show off any cleavage.  As if she had that much to show.

“I’m not,”
she assured her.  Although it was lying in the pile of things she’d already tried on.  Red bra, white blouse, not a good combination. 

“Thank God.  Oh, and before I let you go, I was wondering if I could ask you for a favor.”

“Sure.”

“Do you think you and Cole could swing by the office and pick up
a bag I left on the counter by the phone when I went in last night to confirm patients for Monday?  I’d go myself, but John picked up my car this morning to work on the transmission and I’m without back up wheels.”

John was an auto-mechanic from Reynoldsburg Nanci used to date.  Kelsie glanced at the clock.  Cole was going to be there in twenty minutes.  She had to get a move on.

“Can’t you pick it up tonight when you and Joe go out?”

“I would, but we’re headed the other way.  And it’s not something I want to leave lying around for anyone to find.  But if it’s too much trouble...”
 

She
wasn’t even going to ask.  Knowing Nanci, it was probably sexually oriented pictures of her and one of her many boyfriends.  Maybe even a home video.

“I’ll do it,” she replied as she grabbed up a pair of indigo blue bootleg jeans from the bed.

“Thanks.  Have fun tonight and call me tomorrow.  I want all the juicy details.”

“Bye, Nanci.” 
She hung up and returned the phone to its cradle.  Nanci was going to be sorely disappointed because there wasn’t going to be anything juicy to tell about her date with Cole.  Not if she could help it.

              Cole finished the last of the coffee he’d been drinking and then carried the emptied cup over to the sink.  It was his third cup within an hour.  He figured he was going to need all the caffeine he could get to keep up with Kelsie.  Especially, if she decided to run during their date.

             
He made his way out to the living room to turn off the television.  Then he checked his watch again.  Just a little bit longer...

             
His cell phone rang and Cole debated answering it.  Odds were pretty high that it was Kelsie calling to cancel their date.  One she hadn’t wanted to go out on to begin with.     

Relief swept through him when he saw Joe’s number on the screen.  He hit
Talk
and brought the phone to his ear.  “Hello?”

“Hey, buddy.
  You still at home?”

“Getting ready to leave.”

“What time’s your big date with Kelsie?”

Cole smiled into the phone.  “Six.”

“As in ten minutes ago?” his friend exclaimed.  “What the hell are you still doing home?”

“Talking to you.”

“You know what I mean.  Why aren’t you with Kelsie?  Oh, man.  She backed out of your date.  Didn’t she?  Nanci was afraid she’d do that.”

“She didn’t back out of anything,” Cole said in her defense.  At least, not yet
she hadn’t.

“I don’t understand
,” his friend said. 

“I’m trying to prove to
her that I’m not as perfect as she thinks I am.  And being on time for our date would have been the ‘perfect’ thing for me to do.  Therefore, I’m going to be late.”

Joe’s laughter r
umbled out of the receiver.  “Good point, my man.  I can’t say that I would have ever have thought of doing that, but it makes sense.”

“You wouldn’t have to
had to think of doing something like this.  Nanci
wants
to go out with you.”

“I suppose you have a point.”

“So where did you two decide to go for your date?”

“We’re going to hit Charlie’s for drinks and appetizers.
”

“Good luck tonight.”

“Thanks.  I have a feeling I’m going to need it.”

“Just keep her away from second story windows and you’ll be fine.”

“You’re a real comedian, Joe.”

“Sorry.  Couldn’t resist.”

“Catch you later.”

“Not if things go the way I hope
they will tonight.  This man’s going to be busy getting lucky with one sexy female.  You’re on your own.” 

Cole snapped his phone shut with a grin.  If Kelsie managed to slip away from their date as she was known to do, he would be on his own.  Literally. 

*              *              *

Kelsie glanced at her watch for about the hundredth time since she’d started getting ready for her date with Cole.  Only this time she wasn’t counting down the minutes until he arrived.  She was counting down the minutes he was late. 

To think that she’d been racing around her apartment like a madwoman, determined to be ready when he arrived.  Now here he was twenty-five minutes late.  Maybe it wasn’t her backing out of the date that her mother and Nanci should have been worried about.  It was Cole doing so.

Despite all her protests and conflicting emotions when it came to going out with him, now that she’d been stood up Kelsie couldn’t suppress her disappointment. 

She plopped down onto the edge of the overstuffed sofa with a sigh.  Why had Cole gone through all the trouble of blackmailing her to go out with him if he had no real intention of taking her out?  Maybe he’d finally realized they weren’t compatible.  Whatever the reason, she was off the hook.  It was what she’d wanted, wasn’t it?

No matter how hard she tried to convince herself that Cole’s blowing her off was for the best,
she couldn’t ignore the deep disappointment she felt because of it.  She bent to remove her shoes just as the doorbell rang.

She straightened with a gasp and then
shot to her feet, her heart thumping wildly against the new red satin push-up bra.  He’d come. 

The doorbell sounded again.

“Coming,” she called out, trying to sound as if his being late hadn’t bothered her one bit.  She hopped on one foot as she made her way to the door, tugging her tennis shoe back on as she went. 

It no longer mattered that
Cole was late for their date, just that he hadn’t stood her up like she’d thought he had.  Knowing that he was waiting for her on the other side of that door made her knees weak.

When she reached the door, she paused to take a deep, calming breath in an attempt to compose herself.  She
refused to appear as desperate as she really was for the sight of him. 

She reached out and
unlocked the door and swung it open to greet him.  A startled squeak left her mouth at the sight of him.  That incredibly sexy grin she’d waited all week to see again had been replaced by what could only be described as Bugs Bunny teeth with a bad case of periodontal disease.  

Without waiting for an invite, Cole stepped past her into the apartment entryway.  “Sorry I’m late,
doll.  I would have called to let you know I was running behind, but only guys who are perfect do that kind of thing.”

Guys who are perfect?  It took a moment for his words to penetrate her stunned mind.  Then, she caught on.  Cole’s arriving late.  The ugly teeth.  His barging into her apartment the way he had. 

She crossed her arms and smiled up at him.  “Nice try.”

He looked at her, his expression one of boyish innocence.  “What?”

“You could’ve shown up with your head shaved and your face painted green and still be classified under ‘too perfect’ in my book.” 
Literally.
  There was a chapter in Operation: Date Escape entitled - Beware of Perfect Men.

With a chuckle, Cole popped the fake ‘hillbilly’ teeth out of his mouth.  “Can’t blame a guy for trying.”  He circled her with an appraising glance.  “You look great.”

“Thanks.”  His compliment brought warmth to her cheeks.  “So do you.”  They had both dressed casual.  Her in her newly purchased jeans and comfy, off-the-shoulder style light blue gauzy top.

Cole had chosen to wear jeans, too, along with a navy blue, button-down, short sleeve shirt worn open at the neck.  A single gold chain rested against his tan skin, just above the sprinkling of dark curls that peeked out from the vee of his open shirt.  She could tell he had shaved, but a hint of dark stubble was already returning to that firm jaw.  And he smelled great, too.  Kind of a musk and citrus mix.  The man just flat out oozed sexiness and not in the overkill way her last date, Jack the Strip Club Stud, had.    

“Planning on doing some running?” he asked with a grin as his gaze settled on her feet.

She
looked down at the white leather tennis shoes she had chosen to wear for their date instead of heels, her usual footwear of choice. 

“The message you left on my answering machine said to dress casual.  These are casual.”

“I wasn’t complaining.  In fact,” he said, his grin widening, “I find them kind of sexy on you.”

Sexy wasn’t the look she had been going for when she’d slipped them on.  Anything but that.  Cole’s unexpected reply had her struggling for a response.  “I...you...”  If someone could just uncurl her tongue for a moment she might be able to get something out. 

“Just what I thought,” he said.  “You were trying to play it safe by wearing those, weren’t you?”

Ooh, he was good.  Too good.  She had to remember that. 
She looked up at him with a smile.  “A girl never knows when she might have to make a run for it.”

“That eager to get to my bed, huh?”

Her pulse skittered wildly at the thought.  “Only in your dreams, Fire Boy.”

He made her apartment seem incredibly small as he towered over her, that firm jaw beckoning her fingers to explore it.  She
fought the urge to lean into him and inhale his scent even deeper into her lungs.

“Okay” he said with a grin, “so if they’re not for racing to my bed, you must be preparing for one of your great date escapes?”

He was so onto her.  “Maybe.  Besides, these tie on.  And they’re tied tight.  No chance of you getting them off me to hold hostage for a second date.”

He gave a husky chuckle.  “Is that a challenge?”

She never would have believed the thought of having her tennis shoes removed by someone else could be so arousing, but Cole made her wish he was slipping them off her feet right then and there.

“Considering it?” he teased.  “Because I’ll be the first to admit I like a challenge.”

So did she, which meant she knew better than to issue a challenge she wasn’t prepared to see through.  Kelsie forced all thoughts of him removing her clothes from her mind and shook her head.  “No.  Just stating a fact.”

“Okay, just making sure.”  He turned, looking around the apartment appraisingly.  “Nice.”

Nanci was right.  The man filled his jeans well.  The dark blue denim hugged his long legs and muscular thighs, and did things to his butt that made her want to reach out and see if it felt as hard as it looked.

“It sure is,” she muttered, wondering if he’d mind if she copped just one quick little feel.  Cole’s husky chuckle as he turned had Kelsie’s eyes snapping up to meet his.  Oh, damn, he
’d caught her checking out his butt.  “I...I mean it’s just right for me.”

“My butt or your apartment?” he teased with that melt-a-girl-into-a-puddle lone dimpled grin of his.

That would teach her for not being more discreet with her ogling.  “Both,” she admitted, countering his grin with one of her own.  “But your butt is off limits.”

“Says who?” he challenged, taking a step closer to where she stood looking up at him.  Tiny lines formed at the outer corners of his dark eyes as his grin widened.

Ooh, volcanic activity in her lower region.  Maybe she’d allow him one little peek at her thong... 

“Forget about it,” she muttered with a frown, immediately reeling that last thought back in.  She was not about to give in to her primal urges.  

“Excuse me?”

She
slipped around his lean frame.  “I said I just need to grab my purse from the kitchen and then we can go.” 
Before I drag you down the hall and into my bed.

*
              *              *

Thank God women carried purses.  If Kelsie hadn’t stepped away to get hers when she did, Cole wasn’t sure where things would have ended up.  And the last thing he wanted to do with
her was move too fast.  She was already skittish when it came to relationships.  Even more so about dating him. 

Holding back wasn’t easy around
her.  She was just so damn sexy.  And she wasn’t even trying to be, unlike the women he’d dated before.  The women Joe admitted after-the-fact he thought were shallow and boring. 

Remember, Maxwell, you’re trying to convince her just how imperfect you are.

Problem was, he’d lost focus on his plan the second Kelsie had opened the door to greet him with that sexy little smile of hers and those big beautiful green eyes.  Boy, had he lost focus.

The phone rang once and then stopped.  Kelsie must have picked it up in the kitchen. 
He leaned against the doorframe and ran a hand over the fake hillbilly teeth in his jean pocket with a smile.  She was on to him, which meant their date wasn’t going to be nearly as easy to screw up as he’d hoped it would be.  But something told him it was going to be well worth the effort.

A minute later,
she stepped from the kitchen, purse in hand.  “Sorry.  Phone call.”

“Should I be jealous?” he teased as they made their way outside.  But the thought of another man calling Kelsie didn’t sit well with him
.  Not at all.

“Not unless you’re jealous of
a nosey older woman with incredibly bad timing.”

“Your mother?” he asked as they stopped next to his truck.

She laughed.  “How did you know?”

“Lucky guess.”

She slung her purse over her shoulder and tipped her head to look up at him.  “Do you think we could just videotape our date so I won’t have to answer a million questions afterwards?  My mother can just watch the video.”

Grinning,
he reached past her to open the passenger door.  “Are you sure you’re not using your mother as an excuse?”

“An excuse for what?”

“To have a video to remember me by since you’re so certain we won’t be going out again.”

Her beautiful green eyes studied him for a long moment before
she said, “I hope you realize that our not going out again is nothing against you.  You seem to be a really nice guy.”

Maybe so, but not tonight.  Tonight, he was a bad boy waiting to happen.  Pushing aside the urge to help her up into the cab
of his truck, he stepped away.