dashed down the hall.
Xander gestured with a nod of his head, indicating
Nicole should let her dog be and follow him.
The sizable kitchen was impressive. A dark wooden
table and matching cabinets combined with several lush potted ferns gave a
woodsy feel to the spotless room. “Your kitchen is cleaner than mine.” She
gave a little chuckle, but made a mental note that if she ever decided to
invite him to her place, she needed to do some deep cleaning first.
“I have a lady who comes in once a week to tidy up.”
He slid her jacket from her shoulders and draped it across the back of a white
leather bar stool, leaving her very aware of exactly how tall he was, and
giving her another delicious whiff of his earthy cologne.
“A cleaning lady? Now, I’m really jealous.”
He gave her an indulgent smile as he removed his
overcoat and slung it across another bar stool. “Don’t be. It’s a tradeoff
for putting in too many hours at the office. As I was building my career, I
always worried about money. About the same point I started to have enough
money, time became the hot commodity.”
She watched with fascination as he shrugged out of
his suit coat and slipped the tie from around his neck.
His fingers deftly unbuttoned his cuffs as he
spoke. “Can I get you a glass of wine before I change out of these clothes?”
An appreciative sigh for the fine sight in front
of her was halfway out of her lungs before she changed it to an embarrassed
cough. “That would be nice.”
“Red or white?” An interested smile tilted his
lips.
She matched his expression. “White, please.”
There was a definite undercurrent passing between them that was impossible to
ignore. It was much too early to determine if it was anything other than a
spark, but the flash of energy she experienced was addicting.
Earlier, when he’d approached her at the coffee
shop, she’d been certain she couldn’t possibly be interested in someone while
her life raged out of control. Now, she wasn’t so sure.
He removed a bottle from the fridge and poured her
a glass of wine. After setting the bottle on the counter, he reached up and
undid the first button on his shirt. She was sure he hadn’t meant anything by
it, probably didn’t realize how removing his tie, undoing his buttons affected
her, but his casual moves sent her mind in motion. She tried to hold her gaze
to his face, but failed and couldn’t resist peeking at what he’d uncovered.
“If you’re okay for a few minutes, I’ll be right
back.”
She nodded, not exactly meeting his gaze as she
picked up her wine glass and sipped. As he headed out of the room, she eyed
him from head to toe. Nice. Very nice.
Wow. Life could sure throw some curve balls. One
minute she was being questioned by the police. Next she was sitting in Xander’s
house, and her legal issues were definitely not the first thing on her mind.
Perhaps she should have her head examined.
When he returned a few minutes later with Stormy
trotting after him, it was as though he’d morphed into a different person.
Gone was the button-down shirt and sexy tie. His professional clothes had been
replaced by jeans and a tight-fitting gray t-shirt that outlined his chest and
an oh-so-very-nice set of biceps. She probably stared longer than was
acceptable, but she was quite fine blaming her behavior on the wine she’d
consumed.
She’d downed the contents of her glass while she’d
been lost in thoughts of him and of the disaster hanging over her head. While
she didn’t use alcohol as a way to hide from life, she had to admit she was
feeling a whole lot better.
“Change of plans,” he said, refilling her wine
glass and filling his. He extended a hand toward her.
She took his offering and stood, feeling the
tiniest bit wobbly. “Oh?”
He guided her to a back door that led from the
kitchen to a shady garden patio outside. Stormy dashed between
Xander gestured with a nod of his head, indicating
Nicole should let her dog be and follow him.
The sizable kitchen was impressive. A dark wooden
table and matching cabinets combined with several lush potted ferns gave a
woodsy feel to the spotless room. “Your kitchen is cleaner than mine.” She
gave a little chuckle, but made a mental note that if she ever decided to
invite him to her place, she needed to do some deep cleaning first.
“I have a lady who comes in once a week to tidy up.”
He slid her jacket from her shoulders and draped it across the back of a white
leather bar stool, leaving her very aware of exactly how tall he was, and
giving her another delicious whiff of his earthy cologne.
“A cleaning lady? Now, I’m really jealous.”
He gave her an indulgent smile as he removed his
overcoat and slung it across another bar stool. “Don’t be. It’s a tradeoff
for putting in too many hours at the office. As I was building my career, I
always worried about money. About the same point I started to have enough
money, time became the hot commodity.”
She watched with fascination as he shrugged out of
his suit coat and slipped the tie from around his neck.
His fingers deftly unbuttoned his cuffs as he
spoke. “Can I get you a glass of wine before I change out of these clothes?”
An appreciative sigh for the fine sight in front
of her was halfway out of her lungs before she changed it to an embarrassed
cough. “That would be nice.”
“Red or white?” An interested smile tilted his
lips.
She matched his expression. “White, please.”
There was a definite undercurrent passing between them that was impossible to
ignore. It was much too early to determine if it was anything other than a
spark, but the flash of energy she experienced was addicting.
Earlier, when he’d approached her at the coffee
shop, she’d been certain she couldn’t possibly be interested in someone while
her life raged out of control. Now, she wasn’t so sure.
He removed a bottle from the fridge and poured her
a glass of wine. After setting the bottle on the counter, he reached up and
undid the first button on his shirt. She was sure he hadn’t meant anything by
it, probably didn’t realize how removing his tie, undoing his buttons affected
her, but his casual moves sent her mind in motion. She tried to hold her gaze
to his face, but failed and couldn’t resist peeking at what he’d uncovered.
“If you’re okay for a few minutes, I’ll be right
back.”
She nodded, not exactly meeting his gaze as she
picked up her wine glass and sipped. As he headed out of the room, she eyed
him from head to toe. Nice. Very nice.
Wow. Life could sure throw some curve balls. One
minute she was being questioned by the police. Next she was sitting in Xander’s
house, and her legal issues were definitely not the first thing on her mind.
Perhaps she should have her head examined.
When he returned a few minutes later with Stormy
trotting after him, it was as though he’d morphed into a different person.
Gone was the button-down shirt and sexy tie. His professional clothes had been
replaced by jeans and a tight-fitting gray t-shirt that outlined his chest and
an oh-so-very-nice set of biceps. She probably stared longer than was
acceptable, but she was quite fine blaming her behavior on the wine she’d
consumed.
She’d downed the contents of her glass while she’d
been lost in thoughts of him and of the disaster hanging over her head. While
she didn’t use alcohol as a way to hide from life, she had to admit she was
feeling a whole lot better.
“Change of plans,” he said, refilling her wine
glass and filling his. He extended a hand toward her.
She took his offering and stood, feeling the
tiniest bit wobbly. “Oh?”
He guided her to a back door that led from the
kitchen to a shady garden patio outside. Stormy dashed between
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