Mike couldn’t help but give her the same smile. “Sweetheart, you couldn’t be a bad influence on anybody. You’re too good. Too sweet.” His hands came back and cupped her breasts. “Too everything.”
For the second time in twenty-four hours, he was done talking and set out to prove his words.
* * *
It was after dark when Taylor found herself alone in the kitchen. She had fallen asleep after she and Mike had made love and when she woke up alone, she assumed he’d had to get back to work.
Unsure of what to do with herself, she wandered around and tried to figure out what to make them for dinner. It felt weird to be planning on cooking a meal in someone else’s house, and the more she opened cabinets, the guiltier she felt.
What had she done? She had promised herself she wouldn’t sleep with Mike in Wade’s house! She had planned on asking him to take her to his place, or a hotel, or…anywhere! But in her haze when they had returned, it had only taken one heated look from Mike to make her forget herself. To forget everything.
Her appetite was gone. What she did was completely wrong. It was unethical and Taylor knew she had to do something to make it right. While there was no way to undo what they’d done, she couldn’t allow it to happen again. She wasn’t sure if Mike would agree with her reasoning or if he’d be angry with her, but for the most part Taylor was a very honorable person. There was no way she was going to jeopardize her interview with Wade—or her job—over sex.
No matter how good it was.
Slamming a cabinet door closed, Taylor placed her hands on the granite countertop and bowed her head. She didn’t want to end things with Mike, not now, possibly not ever—but while she was on this assignment, she had to get back into professional mode. It was imperative she not do anything else that would make her look untrustworthy to the man she was here to interview.
And that meant no more wild monkey sex with his assistant.
Again, no matter how good it was.
That’s the way Mike found her, head bowed and bracing herself against the counter. He wondered what had her looking so tense. Tiptoeing up behind her, he carefully wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her in close before kissing her gently on the neck. She nearly jumped three feet to get out of his grasp. “Taylor? What’s the matter?”
She blushed and couldn’t quite meet his eyes. “I didn’t hear you come in.”
“I got that,” he said with a slight laugh, knowing immediately that something was wrong. “What’s going on? Are you okay?”
Taylor walked around the center island to put some distance between them. How was she supposed to explain to him what was going through her mind? Unable to help herself, she looked at him. Her heart ached at the concerned expression on his face. Her shoulders sagged with defeat. “I can’t do this.”
Mike took a step forward, but stopped when Taylor took a step back. “Do what?”
She gestured between the two of them. “This. Us. Not here. Not in this house. I’m here on a job, Mike, and I can’t believe what I’ve done.” Tears welled in her eyes and her voice shook as she spoke, but Taylor did her best to keep herself together. “I came here to do an interview. I was supposed to talk with you, spend time with you”—she swallowed hard—“not sleep with you.”
Panic grabbed Mike by the throat. “Taylor, I know you didn’t come here for that,” he said, trying to reassure her. “I’m not going to lie to you. When I…recommended you…for this job,” he began carefully, “I had hoped there would still be something there between us, that I hadn’t imagined it all those years ago. But I don’t think what’s happened between us has anything to do with your job.”
“But it does!” she cried. “Don’t you see? Jonathan Wade took your advice and chose me for this interview. I’m supposed to be getting ready to talk to him! And instead, I’m…I’m sleeping with the hired help!”
As soon as the words were out, she regretted them. Again. She remembered saying them not so long ago and one look at Mike showed that it enraged him as much now as it did then. Unfortunately, she couldn’t take it back. He had to understand how dire the situation was.
“He could have given this assignment to any veteran reporter. God knows there are dozens of them who would have gladly taken him up on his offer and done a hell of a lot better with it than I’ll probably do—”
“Taylor…”
She shook her head. “What if he had come home early?” Hysteria was slowly starting to set in as that thought came out of nowhere. “What if he had found me in bed with—”
This time he succeeded in cutting her off. “With his farmhand?” he said sarcastically.
“That was not what I was going to say, dammit! Don’t put words in my mouth.” Taylor began to pace the kitchen. “It doesn’t look very professional of me to be sleeping with someone in this man’s house while he’s away. To the average person, they’d take one look at this situation and think I’m sleeping with you to get more information on your boss!”
“Are you?” he asked with a deadly calm he didn’t feel.
Taylor looked as if he’d slapped her. “Is that what you think?” she whispered. “Do you honestly think that’s the kind of person I am?”
“To tell you the truth, Taylor, I’m beginning to think I don’t know the first thing about the kind of person you are. I still can’t believe we’re having this conversation!”
Taking a deep breath, Taylor mentally counted to ten before responding. “I take my job very seriously, Mike. I have to. There is a lot of competition out there and it’s hard enough to make a living at it, let alone make a name for myself. I would prefer not to have my name be followed by ‘You know, the reporter who got caught in bed with Wade’s assistant and blew the interview.’ I’ve worked too hard for this. I have to be professional. I have to—”
“To hell with being professional!” he yelled, his control finally snapping. “You’re afraid of what it’ll look like if you’re sleeping with one of his employees, isn’t that it? I wasn’t good enough for you ten years ago, and I think you still feel that way! It was all right to get a little down and dirty with me on the coast because no one was looking, but here at the farm, there’s a chance someone will see. Someone will notice.” He took a steadying breath. “I thought you were different, Taylor. Back then and now.” He looked at her with disappointment. “I guess I was wrong.”
Her silence spoke volumes.
Taylor stood rooted to the spot. Maybe that was it. She had been so lost in the intense emotions Mike brought out in her that she had temporarily forgotten her purpose in being here. Being thrown back into the reality of it all, she feared what it would look like to others for her to be found in bed with Mike.
Hanging her head in shame after seeing the hurt in his eyes, Taylor realized he was right—she was no better than all the friends who had simply tolerated Mike’s presence but secretly thought him beneath them. Though it hadn’t been her intention, that’s exactly what her reaction had screamed.
Walking over to the refrigerator, Mike pulled it open and grabbed a bottle of water, showing no outward sign of emotion. He closed the door and turned to Taylor, his expression carefully blank. “I won’t embarrass you by having you be found sharing a bed with me. And you don’t have to worry about me telling Wade about this either.”
His words were ice cold and cut Taylor like a sword.
“Help yourself to whatever you want in the kitchen. It’s been stocked.” He turned and walked toward the door. Because he was clearly a glutton for punishment, he looked back at her one more time. “For what it’s worth…thanks.”
Taylor was practically choking on the sobs that wanted to come out. “For what?” she whispered.
“For being willing to slum it for a weekend.” And then he was gone.
Taylor stood stock-still for long minutes before her brain began to fu
nction again. Her appetite was long gone, so she very calmly left the kitchen, shutting off the light as she left, and walked as if in a daze back to her room. Once inside, she stripped, found a pair of pajamas, and then crawled under the blankets. She could still smell him from earlier.
How could she have been so…what was she? Was it so wrong to want to make a good impression on Jonathan Wade? Was it wrong to not want to be labeled a slut who was sleeping with an employee to get information? Even though Taylor knew that had nothing to do with why she’d slept with Mike, others might not view it the same way.
While it was true she had temporarily lost her focus, she could see now how much spending time with Mike had meant to her. But even so, it couldn’t be—at the end of the day he lived in Maine and she lived in New York. Any kind of future relationship between them wouldn’t be practical.
And if Taylor was one thing, it was practical.
She had been living a lonely, solitary life for so long that this weekend had given her a glimpse of what a shared life could be like. It made her long for what she had never known. Mike’s lovemaking had brought her body back to life and she knew it would be a very long time, if ever, until she got over it. She couldn’t imagine any other man touching her soul the way Mike had touched hers with just a look.
Wiping away a lone tear, Taylor finally let exhaustion claim her and she slept.
* * *
It was after nine on Friday morning when she woke up. Gasping when she saw the time, Taylor jumped from the bed and grabbed her robe. Today was the day: her first meeting with Jonathan Wade.
Mike had been painfully absent for the past few days. Taylor had been completely alone, and the only reason she was aware of Wade’s return to the farm was because his attorney had called her the day before to let her know. She had eaten and slept alone and was miserable. She missed Mike with an intensity she couldn’t believe. Perhaps having Wade here and getting to the heart of her assignment would help her get over the feeling of loss.
She doubted it, but tried to be hopeful.
With her clothes for the day laid out on the bed, Taylor was heading into the en suite to take a shower when her cell phone rang. It was Victoria. “Hey, Vic,” she said, forcing enthusiasm into her voice. Taylor had a feeling she was in a bit of trouble for not calling the office more, but she didn’t even have the energy to care.
“I thought we understood one another, Taylor,” she said by way of greeting. “You were supposed to keep in touch with us.”
“There wasn’t anything to report,” Taylor said with a hint of irritation.
“Be that as it may, we expected you to be a bit more professional.” She waited to see if Taylor would say anything and when she didn’t, Victoria went on. “Anyway, legal looked over the document you sent over and we emailed it back with our approval. Did you get it?”
Taylor had completely forgotten about it. “Actually…no.”
Victoria sighed loudly. “This is why you should have checked in!” She quickly regained her composure. “I’m sure it’s there in your inbox. We also copied his lawyer on the email, so be sure to sign it today before you go into your first meeting. Understand?”
“Yup.”
“What’s going on with you?” Victoria asked, and Taylor got the feeling that Victoria knew she was hiding something. “Did something happen up there that you’re not telling me?”
There was no way she was going to share anything about what had happened with Mike with Victoria. Ever. “No. I’m just…it’s been a lot of sitting around and waiting. I’m not used to this slow of a pace. I’m ready to get moving on this and get home.”
“Ah,” Victoria said, seemingly pleased. “Well, don’t you worry. Once this piece goes to press and is out there, you will be in big demand. You won’t have to worry about boredom ever again!”
Somehow Taylor doubted that, but she kept that observation to herself. “I hope so.”
“Okay then. I want you to do a better job of keeping in touch from this point on, Taylor. Remember to sign the document, and I want daily updates from you.”
“Not a problem.” What else was she going to do in her spare time? Somehow, she doubted Wade was going to entertain her from sunup to sundown. There was only so much writing she could do to pass the time. There was a very real possibility that talking to Victoria was the only thing that would keep her sane.
Taylor glanced at the bedside clock and saw it was getting late. “Listen, Vic, I was about to get in the shower when you called. I’m supposed to meet him for lunch and then start the interview.”
“You sound so calm, Taylor. I’m very proud of you. I know you’re going to do a great job on this piece.”
“Thanks, Vic.” Hanging up, Taylor felt a sense of calmness come over her. She took her shower and got dressed, doing her hair and makeup all without worrying about meeting a man considered to be a living legend.
The plan was to join Wade for lunch downstairs at noon, but by eleven thirty, Taylor had nothing left to do with herself in her room. Gathering everything she was going to need for their first interview session, she left the security of her room and went downstairs. She put her satchel down in the kitchen next to the table. For all she knew they were going to use part of their lunch conversation for the article.
The table was set, but there was no one in sight. She wondered if Mike had done this or if someone else had been brought in to handle it. The house had been silent for days, and if Wade was in residence, she never heard him. True, the house was large enough that she might not hear another person walking around, but she couldn’t imagine anyone being that quiet.
As if on cue, the front door opened. Taylor’s heart skipped a beat. Was it Mike? Was it Wade? Straightening her slacks and sweater, she ran a hand over the sleek ponytail she was sporting and took a deep breath. “This is it,” she whispered as she walked toward the entryway.
A well-dressed man stopped when he saw her. “Ms. Scott?” he asked as he straightened the wire-rimmed glasses on his nose.
Taylor smiled brightly as she approached and held out her hand. “It’s a pleasure to finally meet you, Mr. Wade.”
The man gave a chuckle. “I guess I should have introduced myself first,” he said. “I’m Tom Levinson, Mr. Wade’s attorney. We’ve talked on the phone.”
Taylor deflated. “Of course. It’s nice to meet you. I didn’t expect to see you here today.”
Without waiting for an invitation, he walked into the kitchen and placed his briefcase on the countertop. “Your office approved the last of the paperwork that requires your signature. I wanted to get that taken care of.” In a no-nonsense manner, he pulled a file out of his briefcase along with a pen and laid them out for Taylor. “If you’ll sign here…here…here…and here,” he said as he indicated all of the required places, “I’ll get this filed with the rest of the contract and then I’ll take you down to meet Mr. Wade.”
Taylor’s eyes went wide. “He’s here?”
Tom chuckled again. “Of course he’s here. He knows the two of you have an appointment at noon for lunch. He’s very much looking forward to getting the process started.”
That greatly relieved her. Quickly, she signed the document and handed the pen back to him. “That should be everything, right?” Oh gosh…could she sound any more anxious?
He smiled at her before placing the document and pen back in his case. “If you’ll follow me.” Not waiting to see if she was following, Tom walked out of the kitchen and through one of the living areas toward a door in the far corner of the house. Taylor remembered that it led to the downstairs, to Wade’s office. She had hoped to save that for later and have him greet her over lunch. With a mental shrug, she continued to follow Tom down the stairs.
Walking through the gym area behind him, she began to feel a bit nervous. This all suddenly felt too formal, too…orchestrated and calcula
ted. Why did this have to be so dang complicated? Was Tom going to stay with her through the introductions? Through lunch?
The door to the office was ajar and Tom gave a light knock before entering. Taylor needed a minute. This was it. Once she walked through that door her life was never going to be the same. She had been given the assignment of a lifetime on a silver platter; all she had to do was take those last five steps.
Tom turned and looked at her expectantly. Snapping out of her haze, she walked toward him until she was in the office standing beside him. Looking around the office, Taylor didn’t see anyone other than the two of them. She stared at Tom in confusion and was about to ask what was going on when she heard someone coming down the stairs behind them. Her breath caught in her throat when Mike walked through the door. He wasn’t dressed in his customary jeans and flannel. Today he had on khakis and a thick cable-knit sweater. Taylor looked from him to Tom and back again.
“Taylor,” Tom said, “allow me to introduce you to Jonathan Wade.”
Chapter 9
Everything in Taylor went numb and her knees almost gave out. Mike’s eyes never left her face, as if he was daring her to say something. So she did.
“You son of a bitch,” she snapped, tossing a glance at Tom Levinson before storming from the room. “Excuse me.” She ran up the stairs and made her way to the kitchen to grab her satchel and was about to exit the room when she heard both men coming up behind her. Turning, she gave them an icy stare. “Is this some sort of joke?”
Tom stepped forward first. “Ms. Scott, there is no joke here. Mike Greene is actually Jonathan Wade. It’s his pen name. Surely you’re aware that authors use those.”
She gave him a disgusted look. “Of course I’m aware of that. But if that was the case, then why go through all the nonsense? Why not say who he is, let me come in here and get the interview, and go? Why did I have to be here for two weeks? Why did you have me believe I was going to be meeting two different people?” She wouldn’t even look at Mike at this point. She couldn’t. Betrayal made her feel sick.
Exclusive / a Touch of Heaven Page 12
