Courting Gossip

by Kimberly Dean

  The panties stretched wide across her thighs where her skirt had ridden up. Brody’s gaze swung her way again, and Genieve nearly broke out in a sweat. Her pussy clenched, and she had to take a moment. To get him back, she lifted her hips. He let out a cough, and her lips curled. Finally.

  She drew the panties up the rest of the way. Everything was hidden under her dress, but she took some delight in making him squirm. She’d been left in an uncomfortable state for too long herself. When she’d told the detective that those reporters had come at precisely the wrong time, she hadn’t been joking.

  And it hadn’t been the senator who’d put her in that state.

  Brody pulled over to the curb and stopped. Her head snapped towards him, and her mouth dropped open in surprise. She’d been teasing him. She hadn’t thought he’d actually do anything…

  He turned in his seat and met her look. Her heart beat once…twice…

  He pointed over her shoulder. ‘This is your place, right?’

  Her head swivelled around. He’d driven directly to her rowhouse. ‘Stalker,’ she muttered.

  She didn’t know how he knew things, but he did.

  She sighed and faced him again. She shouldn’t antagonise him the way she did. He had ridden to her rescue. ‘Thank you for coming,’ she said quietly.

  ‘I’m glad you called me.’

  He knew her first inclination would have been to call Luxxor – and that would have been the worst move in the history of the planet. She’d nearly peed herself when Detective Morgan had walked in the room. If he’d caught Mr Henry or any of the other Luxxor security team there, the jig would have been up. She still wasn’t convinced her little deception had put him off the scent.

  Brody got out of the car and she waited for him to come around and get her door. His hand was warm and steady as he helped her to her feet.

  ‘You don’t need to walk me to my door,’ she said as he began to move along with her.

  He cast her a look and then shook his head. ‘You’re not staying here. We’re just here so you can pack a bag.’

  She stopped halfway up her front walk. ‘Where am I going?’

  ‘Anywhere but here.’ He glanced up and down her street and then took her elbow to keep her moving. ‘Let’s get inside.’

  Genieve walked more slowly, not convinced this was a good idea. OK, maybe staying here tonight wasn’t a good idea. She didn’t want to wake up to the press knocking on her door in the morning. But that wasn’t the problem.

  She didn’t mix her business with her personal life. This was her home.

  ‘Genieve,’ he said impatiently.

  When he saw the look on her face, his hold on her changed. His expression closed, and he dropped his hand. ‘Would you like me to wait in the car?’ he asked, his voice flat.

  ‘No.’ The answer was out before she thought about it. She shook her head briefly and moved past him to unlock the door. ‘Come in. Please.’

  He followed her inside and looked around when she hit the light. ‘This isn’t far from the hotel. Why didn’t you and Samuel just come here?’

  The look she gave him could have sliced diamonds. ‘I don’t bring clients here.’

  He frowned. ‘So Gunderson has never been here?’

  ‘Not inside.’ She tossed her purse onto a chair.

  He said nothing. He didn’t even blink. Yet somehow his shoulders relaxed. He looked around again with something close to curiosity. ‘Nice place.’

  ‘Thank you.’

  ‘Pack enough for a week.’

  ‘A week?’ she squawked.

  ‘You’re right. Make it two.’

  ‘And just where am I going?’

  He stared at her, but for once, he didn’t have a quick answer. Genieve tilted her head. In fact, it didn’t look like he had an answer at all. The guy always had a plan. He was always two steps ahead.

  But he didn’t know what to do about her. For some reason, she took pleasure in that.

  ‘I’m not sure,’ he finally admitted. He planted his hands on his hips, and his fingers tapped. ‘Someplace where you can lie low until this whole thing blows over.’

  She didn’t want to help him out of the corner – she really didn’t – but it was late, and he was right. She’d had enough of the press. ‘I have a place on Rehoboth Beach.’

  His chin dipped. ‘You have two homes?’

  ‘It’s a condo.’ She narrowed her eyes at him. The getaway in Delaware was popular for many who wanted to get away from the pressure and rush of DC. ‘I invest in real estate.’

  In the silence, she could have heard a pin drop. She saw the gears turning in his head. Was he reevaluating her or just mapping out another course of action? ‘Where in Rehoboth Beach?’

  Had she not spoken clearly? ‘On. The. Beach.’

  ‘No.’

  ‘Why not?’ It was early spring. It would be a nice time to be there. She could open up the house, air it out and relax before all the tourists started to arrive.

  ‘And risk the media getting pictures of you in a bikini? Make that “Hell, no.”’ He looked at the watch on his wrist. ‘We need to get moving. Once the press gets wind of this, they’ll be knocking on your door.’

  ‘They’ll knock this time?’

  He gestured to the stairs. ‘Pack. Quickly. What can I do to help?’

  Oh, no. She’d let him inside, but he wasn’t getting free rein of her house. He especially wasn’t going to come up to her bedroom and help her pack.

  Then again, she’d love to see his reaction when she directed him to her lingerie drawer.

  She pressed her tongue against the back of her lips. Something inside her just made her want to pester this man.

  ‘You stay down here.’ She turned and started up the stairs. ‘And don’t touch anything.’

  Genieve listened for movement downstairs as she pulled her suitcase out from under her bed. She’d been running on stress and adrenalin for too long, and she could feel her systems crashing, one right after another. It was getting difficult to think straight, and it felt strange to have Brody Haynes here, in her house. The most time she’d spent around him in the past was brief, fifteen-minute chunks. She’d thought the prickly sensation that ran along her skin whenever they were around one another was due to how abrasive he was. Now, she wasn’t so sure. He wasn’t that brusque.

  She packed quickly, throwing things into the suitcase. She didn’t know where she was going, and she didn’t know what she’d be doing. Knowing that Brody would be there for part of it, though, prompted her to pick her best lingerie and some casual clothes that showed a little skin.

  That cold exterior of his just tempted her to rock his calm.

  When she came back down the staircase, she saw that he’d wandered. He was looking at the picture of her and Salvatore that she kept on the shelf in her living room. ‘You’re touching,’ she warned him.

  He put the photograph back, but continued to stare at it. ‘I thought you said you liked to keep your business and personal lives separate.’

  ‘Salvatore is my friend. We get along great.’

  ‘He was also one of your clients.’

  Her breath caught. ‘You don’t know that.’

  Nina was super-stealthy. Genieve didn’t even know who some of the other Luxxor escorts had as exclusive clients.

  He turned and simply lifted an eyebrow.

  Damn it. ‘How do you know that?’ she demanded.

  His expression turned even more dour. ‘You just told me.’

  He started up the stairs to help her when he saw the bag.

  Genieve hated it, but her feelings were hurt. ‘So you’re saying I couldn’t get a man like Salvatore if I wasn’t an escort?’

  ‘You could get any man you want.’

  Their fingers brushed as he took the suitcase from her, and she felt a spark that made electricity dance along her skin.

  ‘Why not him?’ she asked breathlessly.

  Standing on the step below
her, he was right at eye level with her.

  ‘You don’t fit,’ he said.

  ‘We fit great.’

  His eyes flared, and Genieve felt colour explode in her face. She hadn’t meant sexually. She couldn’t hold his look. Apparently, she’d saved an entire year’s worth of embarrassment for just one night.

  ‘For short term, maybe,’ he said quietly, ‘but he’s a jock. I’ve heard him interviewed. Eventually, he’d bore you.’

  It was true. She and the tennis player had fun together, but Salvatore was a playboy. He didn’t get half of her jokes, and he wasn’t long-term material.

  Not that she’d ever thought about that.

  ‘Who would I fit with?’ As soon as the words were out, Genieve wanted them back. She and Salvatore got along famously, but she’d never let him into her personal world. Yet here was Brody Haynes, spin doctor to the politicians. They had no history, they didn’t get along, and he was in her home, her private turf, in the middle of the night.

  Genieve closed her mouth tight, but he remained where he was, watching her. He made her uncomfortable when he did that. It was like he was trying to read the thoughts that always seemed to be running through her head. She pushed her hair over her shoulder, but slowed when he followed the movement.

  Awareness suddenly sparked in the air.

  He was close. So close.

  ‘You need someone who challenges you, someone who makes you use that smart mouth for more than just kissing.’

  Their breaths seemed to sync, and his eyelids got heavy. It made her realise how long his eyelashes were. Right there on the staircase, Genieve’s body melted. The unanswered ache in her core returned. She lifted her hand to catch the railing when she felt herself leaning towards him. All she wanted to do was curl up against that hard body and let him make her forget about everything that had happened tonight.

  And about all the reasons why he didn’t like her.

  The pang in her chest was sharp. ‘So where are you taking me?’ she asked quietly.

  His gaze drifted up from her mouth to her eyes. There was flintiness in it, but something brighter in the depths. ‘For tonight, at least, you’re coming home with me.’

  Chapter Three

  ‘What do you mean, Nina and Morgan have a thing?’ Brody demanded as he followed Genieve into his house. ‘You didn’t think that was important for me to know?’

  Genieve rolled her eyes. She was curious to see where he lived, but apparently they had to have this discussion first. She took off her shoes and let them dangle from her fingers. ‘It’s not a thing yet. It’s still…brewing. And of course it’s important. That’s why I’m telling you now.’

  His gaze dropped to her bare feet as he bumped the garage door closed, and she curled her toes into the woven rug. She wasn’t trying to get personal. She was tired. All she wanted to do was clean up and find some place to lie down and rest.

  ‘Damn,’ he muttered. ‘I thought you had at least closed down that line of inquiry with the police.’

  ‘Morgan? No way. You haven’t had to deal with him. He saw that business card, and he’s not going to forget it.’

  She’d finally found time during the drive over to call Nina and warn her. Her boss needed to know what had happened and, worse yet, who had been assigned the case. The detective would be knocking on Luxxor’s door soon. It had been bad enough when he’d recognised her, but then the senator had dropped the company’s business card. Morgan didn’t have to be a genius to connect the dots.

  Goosebumps rose on Genieve’s skin. She didn’t want to be around when those two titans went at it. The detective would be grilling Nina even harder now, and Nina would be standing up to him in her four-inch heels. Even when getting bad news in the middle of the night, her boss had been sharp and efficient as she’d calculated Luxxor’s response. Once or twice, though, Genieve could have sworn she’d heard a tremble in Nina’s voice. It made her feel guilty, even though she didn’t know what she could have done to prevent what had happened.

  ‘Well, Luxxor’s problem is Nina’s to address,’ Brody said.

  He locked the door and moved by her. When he turned on the light, she saw a kitchen with a centre island, warm wood tones and an expanse of windows facing the darkness outside.

  Yet her concentration was fully on him. She folded her arms over her chest and leaned against the doorframe. ‘I’m Luxxor.’

  ‘You’re not Luxxor, you’re…a hot potato.’

  A potato? Really? That was the best analogy he could come up with? She lifted an eyebrow. ‘So why did you volunteer to hold me?’

  The expansive space of the kitchen shrank as he stared at her, and Genieve could hear the clicking of a clock on the wall. He and Nina had argued on the phone about who would take care of her, and that had put a kink in her nose. She was a grown adult. She could fare for herself just fine. Her thoughts hadn’t mattered, though, because both Nina and Brody were in containment mode. And they had a point…She did her best work under covers; she wasn’t used to being in the spotlight. When they’d left the decision up to her, she’d been caught in the middle. But she’d chosen Brody. The decision hadn’t been difficult. She trusted Nina more, but her boss had enough to deal with right now with Morgan hot on their trail. Besides, Genieve was curious. He’d brought her here, to his home.

  ‘I have bigger oven mitts,’ he said, not cracking a smile. He hefted the suitcase up to carry it instead of letting it roll. ‘The guest bedroom is this way.’

  Genieve followed him, but stopped in her tracks when he flipped on a light that showed a vaulted living room with a two-way fireplace and a spiral staircase to a loft. The place wasn’t what she’d expected: stainless steel, glass and hard edges. Oh, it was sharp, but it was also inviting and…homey.

  ‘Politicians must be getting into a lot of trouble these days,’ she mused. Then again, when weren’t they?

  He looked around impassively. Or was that defensively?

  ‘I like it, Brody,’ she said softly. She had to start figuring out how to read him. She could judge most people with a glance, but he was so closed and contained.

  ‘Thanks.’ He frowned as if he was trying to read her and having just as little luck.

  ‘It’s beautiful,’ she said.

  Too beautiful, in fact.

  She wandered over to look at a blown glass vase filled with iridescent balls. Pretty, useless baubles? The décor didn’t exactly scream Brody Haynes. She bit her lip. She wasn’t quite sure what would, but it wasn’t this. Warning signs went off in her tired head. ‘Do you have a girlfriend?’

  That stopped him in his tracks. He paused at the mouth of the hallway and turned back towards her. ‘What? No. Not…not right now.’

  She ran her finger along the lip of the vase. ‘Your house was decorated with a feminine touch.’

  He rolled a shoulder. ‘I hired a female designer.’

  Genieve cocked her head. ‘And you slept with her.’

  That got a reaction out of him. His eyebrows jumped and his gaze sharpened. ‘How would you know that?’

  She walked towards him, copying the walk she’d picked up from Nina – one foot directly in front of the other. It was a catlike prowl, and Genieve was suddenly on the hunt. So he did have a sex drive. He wasn’t human skin over a robotic core, although for some reason he wanted her to think he was.

  ‘You just told me,’ she said, her lips curling up in a slow smile.

  He looked around his home again, this time with more attention. ‘It was a short-time thing.’

  ‘But she decorated with thoughts of living here.’

  The look he gave her was one of surprise, but he shook it off. ‘Guest bedroom,’ he repeated.

  Interesting. Genieve followed him with that same predatory walk, but the carpet was like clouds underneath her feet. She wasn’t a predator at heart. She was more of a kitten.

  She glanced into darkened rooms as they passed. ‘Were you here when I called?’

&nbs
p; They were in McLean, Virginia. It was right across the Potomac from DC and one of the higher-end real-estate markets in the region. The drive in the middle of the night hadn’t been bad, but commuting in the daytime would be a bear. Although she could see him blending in with commuters on the Metro. He’d pick up all kinds of information as he sat on the trains, quietly watching and analysing the other riders.

  ‘I was at my office.’

  ‘Burning the candle at both ends? You know what they say about all work and no play.’ She put her purse on the dresser beside the door. The guest bedroom was lovely, no doubt due to the dumped decorator. She didn’t like it so much any more. The place needed more colour, more flair.

  ‘I stay there sometimes during the week. Trouble always seems to pop up during the overnight hours.’

  And she counted as trouble. Some of Genieve’s pleasure faded.

  ‘You sleep at your office?’

  ‘It has a sofa and a shower. That’s all I need.’ He put her suitcase on a chair on the far side of the room. ‘Will this do?’

  She’d woken him tonight from an uncomfortable sleep on an office sofa. For some reason, that didn’t sit well with her. ‘It’s fine. Thank you.’

  His hands settled on his hips. ‘The bathroom is across the hallway, and you saw the kitchen. Use whatever you need. We’ll figure out tomorrow what we’re going to do from here on in.’

  Tomorrow. She’d been trying not to think about that. ‘What if that tape got out, Brody?’

  She’d been locked in the bathroom; she didn’t know what had happened with those reporters and their damned camera. Could video be uploaded directly to the internet from those things?

  With only a bedlamp on, Brody’s cheekbones seemed to sharpen in the shadows. ‘I’ll be working that angle tonight. Hopefully, you and Samuel kept them busy enough that they didn’t have time to send it out.’