by Cara Summers
“That’s Dakota.”
No doubt they were sisters. The same high cheek bones and heart-shaped face, but her hair was a darker blond and her eyes were more gray than blue. And like Dallas, she had a great smile.
“And this is my brother, Cody.”
The man nodded, his lips barely moving. Eric didn’t take it personally. This was the kind of guy who wasn’t comfortable smiling. Dallas had warned him her brother was conservative. No kidding. One look said it all—the short haircut, the preppy white oxford shirt and khaki slacks, the serious gray eyes, no laugh lines there.
She looked at the woman next to him and smiled. “I understand you’re Clair.”
The brunette nodded and stood, petite, maybe five-two, a Lilliputian in a land of giants. Not a single Shea could be under five-eight.
They shook hands all the way around, Andrea the only one not getting to her feet. Which didn’t bother him. Feeling like one of her biology experiments being viewed under a microscope did. She was someone he didn’t want to end up alone with at any time this evening. She’d be too curious. No telling what she was liable to ask him.
She had to be in her late fifties yet looked more like Dallas and Dakota’s sister. And like her two daughters, she was truly beautiful. She sure as hell didn’t come off as a biology professor.
Tilly brought out their drinks and then took orders from the others for refills. No one demurred, which suited Eric fine. The more relaxed they all were, the better the evening was likely to go.
While Andrea instructed Tilly on dinner, he checked out the three Shea women. Any one of them easily could have enjoyed a lucrative modeling career. They had that look that brought ad campaigns to life. Horn had seen it in Dallas. That’s why he wanted her.
He couldn’t think about Horn right now. Or his demands. Later tonight would be soon enough. When they were alone, back at Eric’s place. He’d lay the whole thing out for Dallas. The offer was good. She could make a lot of money, and with a three-year contract there’d be security, as well.
He glanced from Dallas to Dakota to Andrea and realized his confidence had slipped the minute he’d seen the three women together. They all looked like models, yet they’d chosen traditional careers rather than trading on their beauty. Maybe modeling was taboo. Too frivolous.
Of course, he still didn’t know what Dallas did, which irked the hell out of him. All he knew is that she’d modeled once. Maybe she was trying to get into acting and was embarrassed to admit it. That would work in his favor. As Horn’s spokesperson, she’d be seen all over the tristate area.
“So, Eric, tell us what you do,” Andrea said, and Eric had to quickly regroup.
All eyes on him, he smiled. “Advertising. I work for Webber and Thornton.”
“Oh.” Andrea’s lips lifted in approval. “Where?”
“Manhattan.”
“What exactly do you do for them?”
“I’m an ad exec. I devise slogans, print ads, commercials, billboards—anything that sells the product.”
“How nice. Sounds productive.” She slanted Dallas a brief look that made her stiffen. “Have you two known each other long?”
“A few weeks,” Dallas said quickly and then stared pointedly out at the pool. “Did you have it tiled again?”
Harrison sighed with a hint of disgust. “Your mother didn’t like the dark-blue-and-green combination.”
“But you just had it done last year.”
Andrea sniffed and picked up her glass. Two lone ice cubes clinked together.
“Touchy subject.” Cody gave Dallas a warning look. “Let’s drop it.” His hair was darker than the rest of the family’s, and his eyes were closer to Dakota’s color. Good-looking guy but too serious for the camera.
“Got it.” Dallas picked up her wine and sipped.
Eric turned to Andrea, almost as if he’d sensed her stare.
She smiled. “What else should we know about you, Eric? Where are you from? Where did you meet our Dallas? Not at work, I’m sure.”
“Mother.”
“I’m just making conversation, dear.” She met Dallas’s gaze and held it. “Not to worry.”
“Yes, after all, Clair already has gotten the third degree,” Harrison said. “I think your mother should have been the one who went to law school.”
Eric smiled. No one else did. Apparently Harrison wasn’t just teasing, given the tense looks exchanged by his two daughters.
Tilly showed up with a tray, and as everyone busied themselves with claiming their respective drinks and sampling the crab-stuffed mushrooms, the tension quickly passed. Before she left, Tilly informed them that dinner would be served in half an hour.
“Excuse us for a moment, would you?” Dallas said as she rose from the table. “I’d like to show Eric Mother’s garden before the sun sets completely.”
Eric got up just as Andrea said, “Really, Dallas, we just met the man. Must you drag him away?”
“Good idea. Check out the roses,” Dakota said quickly. “The salmon-colored ones are awesome.”
“The garden lights will come on at any moment. You can go for a stroll later.” Andrea waved a hand as if the matter were closed.
“We won’t be long.” Dallas took his hand. With her other one she grabbed her glass of wine. Even after their short acquaintance he recognized the stubborn set of her jaw and didn’t argue.
He did give the others an apologetic shrug of his shoulders as he was led away. Not that he wouldn’t rather be alone with Dallas, but he didn’t want to piss off Andrea either. The woman obviously could be a real pain, but she was Dallas’s mother and he preferred she be on his side.
Frankly he wasn’t sorry Dallas had chosen that moment to liberate them. He hated the eventual turn Andrea’s question would take. Hated admitting he was from Pittsburgh. That his family was a bunch of steel workers. Hated even more that he felt that way.
As soon as they got past the white gazebo on the other side of the pool, Dallas mumbled under her breath, “God, why did I come here? I should have known better.”
“Hey, come on. It’s not so bad.”
She looked at him with miserable blue eyes. “Plus, I drag you here to suffer, too.”
“Fair is fair. I dragged you to Horn’s party.” He squeezed her hand. “Seriously everything’s been fine. I feel totally comfortable.”
“Right.” She withdrew her hand and sipped her wine, staring out over a sea of yellow and pink roses sheltered by an ivy-covered brick wall separating their property from their neighbor’s.
“Look, I don’t understand your family dynamics. Obviously there’s an undercurrent I don’t get. But I am sorry you’re annoyed.” He decided not to tell her that he thought she was overreacting.
“No, I assure you, you don’t get it. Hell, I don’t totally get it.” She bit her lower lip. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to snap.”
He remained silent for several moments, not sure what to say. He really didn’t know this woman. Not the way he wanted to. All he could do was change the subject. “This garden is something. It’s been so damn hot the last couple of weeks, I’m surprised these roses held up.”
She smiled as if she knew he had no idea what he was talking about. Maybe roses liked the heat. What the hell did he know about flowers or gardens? Not a Pittsburgh boy like him.
Dallas leaned against him, and they looked out over the mass of roses and ivy and some other little white flowers he didn’t recognize—miniature roses maybe. Clinging to a vine, they climbed over the top layer of a white flagstone fountain nestled in the corner.
She breathed in the heady scent. “They are beautiful. Remind me to snitch a few before we leave. Look, those are the salmon-colored ones Dakota was talking about. I’m definitely swiping one of those.”
He slid an arm around her shoulders. “Your mom doesn’t seem like the type to garden. Of course, she doesn’t seem like a biology teacher either.”
“Don’t let her hear you refer to her a
s a ‘teacher.’”
“Excuse me. Professor.”
Dallas laughed softly. “That woman hasn’t seen the inside of a classroom in years. She’s the head of research.”
“Ah, that I can see.”
“As far as gardening, the closest she comes is putting on a hat and sunglasses to come out and supervise their gardener.”
He grinned. “Gotta admit, that would be my idea of gardening.”
Her lips curved in a grudging smile. “Okay, I’ll con cede that one.”
The lights came on, and Dallas jumped a little. He held her tighter, inhaling the vanilla scent from her hair. Man, what he wouldn’t give to lay her down right here, in the middle of all those roses. Naked.
“What are you thinking?” she asked, looking up at him, a smile dancing at the corners of her mouth.
“Why?”
“You started breathing hard.”
He laughed. “You don’t want to know.”
Her eyebrows went up, and she drew the tip of her finger across his lower lip. “Try me.”
After glancing over his shoulder, he whispered, “What time do they go to bed?”
That startled a loud laugh out of her, and she quickly covered her mouth with her hand. “Not here. Not in this lifetime. I’d rather run naked around Columbus Circle.”
“Hmm, that has possibilities.”
She bumped him with her hip. “The lights make the garden look almost magical, don’t they?”
“So, you’re not going for it, huh?”
“You are crazy.” She bumped him again, which wasn’t helping to sidetrack him. “Now, can we please enjoy the moment? Eventually we do have to go back to the patio.”
“We do?”
She turned to look at him.
“Only kidding.”
“No, you’re not. But that’s okay.” Something caught her attention and she squinted. “Looks like there’s an opening in the wall.”
“An opening?”
“Yeah, see where some of the bricks have crumbled. We could be out of here before they knew we were gone.”
He laughed. “You wouldn’t do that.”
“Bet me.”
“No, because then you’ll do it.” He turned her to face him. “You’d make me look bad to your parents.”
“Why would you care?”
Eric brushed the side of her jaw, liking the silky feel of her skin. Remembering how soft her back was, the inside of her thighs, her perfect breasts. “I plan on sticking around for a while. That’s why.”
“A while, huh?”
“A long while.”
“We’ll see,” she murmured just before he kissed her.
At least, that’s what he thought he heard. But it made no sense. Unless she figured he wasn’t a commitment kind of guy. The only way she could have arrived at that was by Tom.
He pulled back. The mood was ruined. “What do you mean by that?”
She slowly opened her eyes. “What?”
“You don’t think we have something going on here.”
“Of course I do.”
“What did Tom tell you?”
She looked as if she were about to deny Tom’s duplicity, but then she sighed and said, “Just enough for me to feel safe showing up at the party.”
“Okay.” He smiled. “That’s progress. Now I know I’m not crazy.”
She didn’t return the smile but moved away and drained the rest of her wine. “We’d better go back. The sooner we eat dinner, the sooner we can leave.”
He didn’t like her attitude. Textbook passive-aggressive behavior. “Sorry if I ruined your fun.”
She touched his arm, and when her lips lifted, it was in such a sad smile that he softened. “It was a mistake to bring you here. I’m sorry.”
“Why was it a mistake?”
Her brows lifted in surprise, and then she gave a helpless shrug. “My mother— I have too many issues with her. I think each time I come home it will be different, but it never is.”
“Turn around.”
“Excuse me?”
He took her by the shoulders and prodded her into giving him her back. “You’re tense,” he said as he started massaging the tight muscles around her neck.
“No kidding.”
Eric smiled. “We’ll get you to relax.”
“Good luck.” She sighed and then moaned a little when he worked on a particularly tight knot. “She irritates me just being in the same vicinity. She could be somewhere in the house and I have no idea what she’s doing and she still irritates me.”
He chuckled and kept working. She was tight, all right. Tomorrow he’d treat her to a professional massage. The new Hush Hotel had a couples’ massage that was supposed to be pretty awesome. He’d have to call and see if you needed to be a registered guest to use the service.
“It’s not her fault. In fact, some of it’s mine. I totally get that, in spite of all my childish carrying on.” She laughed softly. “I’m her daughter and she wants what’s best for me. The problem is, what she thinks is best, I don’t.”
“Gee, never heard that one before.”
She hooked her arm around and pinched his waist.
“Hey, no manhandling the masseur.”
“Like you’d be so lucky.”
“Good point.” He hesitated. She was starting to relax, and he didn’t want to stir things up. But he’d have to know sooner or later if modeling was one of the issues that polarized them. Selfishly, later was out. Once back at his place, he didn’t want to ruin the mood by bringing up Horn. “I have a question.”
“Uh-huh.”
“Does your mother object to your modeling?”
“No. But, of course, I really don’t model anymore. But she’s never had a problem with it as long as it’s tasteful. Even Dakota did some modeling for a couple of local stores while she was in college.”
Relief washed over him.
“Now, if either of us had decided we wanted to model and skip college, that would have been a major problem.”
“Understandable. Only a few models make really good money. Unfortunately it isn’t as glamorous as it looks, and their shelf life is shorter than a jar of peanut butter.”
“Amen. That’s why I quit.”
Eric had to tamp down his excitement. None of those problems were attached to Horn’s contract.
She sighed and covered one of his hands with hers. “As wonderful as this has been, I think it’s time to go back.”
“To Manhattan?” he joked.
“I wish. To the lion’s den.”
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
TILLY ANNOUNCED THAT DINNER WAS GOING to be ready in ten minutes. Dallas knew her mother wouldn’t be content to stay out of the final preparations, and when, true to form, she headed for the kitchen, Dallas followed.
She’d actually thought tonight might work out. She’d psyched herself up for two days, telling herself it would be okay to bring Eric. The conversation would remain neutral because she’d received her mother’s reassurance that she’d make nice.
Clair’s presence changed everything. Damn it. It blew all illusion of control.
“Why didn’t you tell me Cody was bringing some one?” she asked as soon as they were in private. Tilly was there, of course, standing at the butcher-block is land, tossing some field greens in a glass bowl, but Dallas trusted her implicitly.
“I’m not sure I knew when you called.” After setting her wineglass on the granite counter, Andrea picked up a fork Tilly had left beside the stove and stuck it in the rib roast. She made a face. “Tilly, are you sure this is done enough? It looks awfully rare.”
Tilly grabbed the fork from her and waved her away. “Go back to your guests and let me handle dinner. The meat is still cooking while it rests. In ten minutes it’ll be just the way you like it.” Tilly winked at Dallas.
They must have had this conversation twenty times in as many years. But Andrea always had to stick her nose in things.
“Dal
las, bring out your grandmother’s silver tureen,” her mother said. “I think we’ll serve the consommé from the table instead of bringing it to the dining room in individual bowls.”
“No, we’re not. I have everything set out already.” Tilly looked at Dallas. “Would you please get your mother out of here?”
“Really, Tilly, I’m only trying to help.” Andrea grabbed her drink off the counter and turned to leave in a huff. Amazing how Tilly was the only one who could get away with speaking to her like that. Dallas never could figure it out. Not even her father dared being that high-handed—not overtly, anyway.
“Wait, Mother.”
She stopped and looked impatiently at Dallas.
“I want tonight to go smoothly, okay?” Dallas said slowly, enunciating every word.
“Don’t be absurd.”
“Please, Mother, keep your promise that you won’t manipulate the conversation as a means of attacking my job. Am I clear?”
“Everything isn’t about you. You’re old enough to know that.”
Dallas shook her head. “I wish you understood that. Why you have to keep—” Dallas stopped herself. This wasn’t going anywhere. It never did. “Never mind.”
Her mother blinked, and something changed in her expression. Regret flickered in her eyes. “I know you think I ride you too hard, that I meddle too much. But you’re so damn smart, Dallas, what kind of mother would I be if I let you slide in life?”
“You’re right. I think you push too hard.”
“I probably do. Your father and I have always been proud of all three of you kids. But you were always the brightest, the one with the most potential.”
Dallas stared in disbelief. For years she’d felt like the runt of the litter. The one who’d always disappointed them.
“Someday when you’re a mother maybe you’ll understand.” She touched Dallas’s arm in an uncharacteristic gesture of concern, and Dallas’s defenses began to crumble. “I’m glad to see you brought a decent man with you.”
Just like that, the forgiving mood was shot to hell. “A man who gets his hands dirty making a living can be just as decent.”
Andrea huffed. “You know what I mean. Must you take everything wrong?”
