Read Online Hidden Desires by Elle Kennedy - Free Book Online Page B
Authors: Elle Kennedy
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hung up the phone, feeling perplexed. She was desperate to know what Travis had found out today, but along with desperation came a tingle of apprehension.
Was this a date? No, it couldn’t be. It was a business meeting, that’s all. Besides, she didn’t date. She had no need for that awkward social ritual which revolved around only one thing—sex.
Rachel glanced down at the ratty sweatpants and baggy T-shirt she wore. She needed to change.
Not because it was a date, she thought quickly as she made a beeline for her bedroom. She didn’t want to look good for Travis. Nope. She just didn’t want to go out in public looking like a bag lady.
Ten minutes. Not nearly enough time to spruce herself up for this date.
It’s not a date!
She stood in front of her closet and examined the contents. After a moment, she grabbed a knee-length black skirt and an emerald-green sleeveless top. She dressed quickly, and then rushed over to her vanity table to brush her hair. She saw a tube of lipstick next to her hairbrush and eyed it warily. Did women wear lipstick to business meetings?
She fiddled the small tube between her fingers, just as the ring of the telephone echoed in her bedroom. The short rings indicated that someone was downstairs, wanting to be let up. Travis.
Before she could analyze her motives, she smeared red lipstick over her lips and reached for the phone.
“I’ll be right down,” she said into the receiver.
She hurried back to the living room and rifled around for her purse and keys. After she had everything, she took the elevator downstairs.
The second she saw Travis standing in the lobby, she regretted her efforts for beauty. He obviously didn’t see this as date, she noted, as she took in his appearance. He was dressed casually, in blue jeans, a plain white T-shirt, and a black leather jacket. She suddenly felt silly in her skirt. Suddenly wished she could wipe that lipstick off her mouth with the back of her hand.
“Hi,” Travis said as their eyes locked.
She swallowed. “Hi.”
“Ready to go?”
“Sure.”
She followed Travis to his car, which was parked in the no-parking zone in front of her building. She raised her eyebrows as he opened the passenger door for her.
“Do cops not need to obey the law?” she asked, pointing to the no-parking sign.
Travis shot her a delicious-looking grin. “Special privileges come with the job.” She settled in her seat as Travis walked around the side and got in the car. “Where are we going?” she asked as he pulled away from the building.
“The Owl Pub. Is that okay with you?”
A snake of sickness slithered up her body, crawling around her stomach before traveling north to form a ball of acid in her throat. The Owl Pub. Or Marty’s Diner, as she better remembered it. The diner had been the hangout for the popular kids in high school back in the day. It was the place kids went to after school, on the weekends, where guys took girls for milkshakes before they went to the movie theater nearby. It had been transformed into a pub about five years ago, but Rachel hadn’t ventured inside the place since the one humiliating time she’d been there. There were too many bad memories there.
Swallowing back the acid in her throat, she had the urge to tell Travis to go somewhere else, but she felt a little presumptuous doing do. “It’s fine,” she lied.
The pub was a ten-minute drive from her building, and when they neared the small establishment, her stomach churned. The bright neon sign read something different, but she could still remember the one and only time she’d been inside. With Scott Wade, a boy she’d had a crush on. She’d been so thrilled when Scott had asked her out, so impressed when he’d brought her to this cool place for their date. And so damn shattered when he’d tried to have sex with her in the alley behind that cool place.
What’s the matter, Foster? Think you’re too good for me? His harsh laughter still rang in her
Was this a date? No, it couldn’t be. It was a business meeting, that’s all. Besides, she didn’t date. She had no need for that awkward social ritual which revolved around only one thing—sex.
Rachel glanced down at the ratty sweatpants and baggy T-shirt she wore. She needed to change.
Not because it was a date, she thought quickly as she made a beeline for her bedroom. She didn’t want to look good for Travis. Nope. She just didn’t want to go out in public looking like a bag lady.
Ten minutes. Not nearly enough time to spruce herself up for this date.
It’s not a date!
She stood in front of her closet and examined the contents. After a moment, she grabbed a knee-length black skirt and an emerald-green sleeveless top. She dressed quickly, and then rushed over to her vanity table to brush her hair. She saw a tube of lipstick next to her hairbrush and eyed it warily. Did women wear lipstick to business meetings?
She fiddled the small tube between her fingers, just as the ring of the telephone echoed in her bedroom. The short rings indicated that someone was downstairs, wanting to be let up. Travis.
Before she could analyze her motives, she smeared red lipstick over her lips and reached for the phone.
“I’ll be right down,” she said into the receiver.
She hurried back to the living room and rifled around for her purse and keys. After she had everything, she took the elevator downstairs.
The second she saw Travis standing in the lobby, she regretted her efforts for beauty. He obviously didn’t see this as date, she noted, as she took in his appearance. He was dressed casually, in blue jeans, a plain white T-shirt, and a black leather jacket. She suddenly felt silly in her skirt. Suddenly wished she could wipe that lipstick off her mouth with the back of her hand.
“Hi,” Travis said as their eyes locked.
She swallowed. “Hi.”
“Ready to go?”
“Sure.”
She followed Travis to his car, which was parked in the no-parking zone in front of her building. She raised her eyebrows as he opened the passenger door for her.
“Do cops not need to obey the law?” she asked, pointing to the no-parking sign.
Travis shot her a delicious-looking grin. “Special privileges come with the job.” She settled in her seat as Travis walked around the side and got in the car. “Where are we going?” she asked as he pulled away from the building.
“The Owl Pub. Is that okay with you?”
A snake of sickness slithered up her body, crawling around her stomach before traveling north to form a ball of acid in her throat. The Owl Pub. Or Marty’s Diner, as she better remembered it. The diner had been the hangout for the popular kids in high school back in the day. It was the place kids went to after school, on the weekends, where guys took girls for milkshakes before they went to the movie theater nearby. It had been transformed into a pub about five years ago, but Rachel hadn’t ventured inside the place since the one humiliating time she’d been there. There were too many bad memories there.
Swallowing back the acid in her throat, she had the urge to tell Travis to go somewhere else, but she felt a little presumptuous doing do. “It’s fine,” she lied.
The pub was a ten-minute drive from her building, and when they neared the small establishment, her stomach churned. The bright neon sign read something different, but she could still remember the one and only time she’d been inside. With Scott Wade, a boy she’d had a crush on. She’d been so thrilled when Scott had asked her out, so impressed when he’d brought her to this cool place for their date. And so damn shattered when he’d tried to have sex with her in the alley behind that cool place.
What’s the matter, Foster? Think you’re too good for me? His harsh laughter still rang in her
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