But Not for Me

by Annette Broadrick

  “Hi guys,” she said, holding up two large stacks of phone messages. “These should keep you busy for the rest of the day, at least.”

  Brad nodded and went into his office while shuffling through the stack. He glanced around and saw that Rachel hadn’t followed him. Instead, she’d gone into her own office. Maybe that was better. They could get twice as much done if they parted for a few hours.

  When he had arrived, Brad intended to spend no more than two hours in the office. Instead, he was there almost four before he felt caught up on what had occurred while they were away. He went over to the door that connected Rachel’s office to his and quietly opened it.

  She was on the phone but saw him as soon as he paused in the doorway. She offered him a quick smile and a silent invitation to come in, which he did. He slid into one of the chairs in front of her desk and watched her. This was the woman he knew so well, the one with whom he felt most comfortable, the one who knew him and his temper and his impatience.

  She knew all that about him and had still agreed to marry him.

  He wondered why. Couldn’t be because of his fascinating personality, he was certain of that.

  He listened vaguely as she handled a rather difficult client with firm patience and no sign of irritation in her voice.

  When she hung up, she raised her brows in question. “I’m wondering if there’s anything there—” he motioned to the stacks of files on her desk “—that can’t wait until Monday.”

  She rubbed her forehead wearily and stared at the mounds of work on her desk. “I sincerely hope not,” she responded with a sigh. “I guess this is the kind of thing that you face every time you go out of town.”

  “Not usually, no,” he said with a rueful smile. “You see, I have this terrific administrative assistant who takes care of most things while I’m away so that I can walk back in without a ripple in the routine. There have been times when I’ve felt redundant around here.”

  She chuckled. “Sure there were. Sorry, but I’m not buying that piece of blarney.”

  He raised his arms high over his head and stretched. After rolling his head slowly in a circle to release the tension in his neck, Brad looked at her and said, “I have a suggestion to make.”

  She leaned forward clasping her hands together on the desk. “Shoot.”

  “I suggest that we go home, see what I can find in the freezer to eat, and spend a few hours relaxing. How does that sound to you?”

  The thought of the suggestion he wasn’t making must have communicated itself to her because a soft rush of color filled her cheeks. “You’re the boss,” she replied as her color deepened.

  “Not necessarily in our marriage. I consider that more of a partnership. You get equal voting rights.”

  She stood and stretched. “Then I vote for taking off before the next client decides he has to get all of his complaints in before the weekend.”

  “Who was that on the phone?”

  She told him, summarizing the conversation while she removed her purse from the bottom drawer of her desk. She straightened and added, “I think he’s somewhat pacified now. At least I hope so.”

  Brad walked over to the door that led into Janelle’s office and opened it. As Rachel walked through the doorway in front of him, Brad spoke to Janelle.

  “We’re leaving for the day,” he said briskly, barely slowing down. “See you Monday.”

  Janelle looked startled to see them leaving together, something that rarely happened. Well, she would have to get used to the sight, he thought. He waited until they were in the elevator—alone, thank God for small favors—and pulled Rachel to him. Kissing her with a great deal of fervor, he reluctantly released her when they reached the parking-garage level.

  “Thanks,” he said, feeling lighter for some reason. “I needed that.”

  The elevator door opened and they stepped out, once again the CEO and his administrative assistant. He took her arm and gently tugged her toward his car. “I vote that we go directly home…we won’t pass Go, we won’t collect two hundred dollars and at the moment, I really don’t care.”

  He almost laughed at her expression. She was no longer the administrative assistant. His kiss must have reminded her that she was a married woman who had her wedding night immediately ahead of her.

  He gave her credit for attempting to appear casual about the situation. She glanced at her watch. “I thought I’d go to my apartment first and gather a few clothes and items to take to your place. I’m too tired tonight to think about doing any serious packing.”

  “You won’t need anything tonight, will you? We can wait until tomorrow to go over there and I’ll help you decide what you want to move and what you want to discard.”

  She stopped and stared thoughtfully into his face as though she were meeting him for the first time. The searching look made him a little nervous. He wasn’t used to getting that response from her. He wasn’t at all certain what to make of it.

  Her eventual reply caught him off guard. She gave him a slow, intimate smile. “You definitely have a way with words, handsome,” she drawled, kissing him on the corner of his mouth. “I’m convinced.”

  He laughed as they walked over to his car. He was holding her door open when another car pulled in next to them. Brad glanced around casually and realized it was good old Arthur from accounting. He was in much too good a mood to let Arthur affect him.

  “How’s it going?” he asked, closing the passenger door and walking around to the driver’s side.

  Arthur got out of his car and blinked at him across the roof of the car. He pushed his glasses back to the bridge of his nose before replying. “Oh, everything’s going along well, I think.” He nodded to Rachel. “Hello, Ms. Wood.”

  “Hi, Arthur. Good to see you.”

  Brad slipped into his seat while Arthur walked toward the elevators. Rachel chuckled and said, “That’s the first time I’ve seen you around Arthur without your teeth being clenched.”

  “For good reason. Not even Arthur can get to me today.” He backed out and drove to the exit.

  Rachel watched his capable hands lightly gripping the leather-covered steering wheel. She had always admired his hands. They were a workman’s hands, callused despite the years that had passed since he was part of a construction crew.

  She moved from that thought to another one. “How did you manage to learn anything at school if you were moved around so much?” she asked.

  “My curiosity, I suppose. I remember being full of questions. Plus I really enjoyed school—the routine that other kids complained about I found reassuring. Because I knew I wouldn’t be there on a permanent basis, I worked hard to catch up with the other kids and to learn as much as I could while I had the chance.

  “Even when I wasn’t in school, I’d look for the local library and go there to read whenever possible. Most of the time my dad never asked where I’d been. When he did, he always laughed when I said the library. I realized later that he thought I was lying to hide my real activities. He never did learn that I don’t lie. It was a vow I made to myself when I was just a kid and heard all the preposterous stories my dad told.

  “I didn’t want to grow up and be like him. I figured an education was the only way I could escape.”

  “Your plan obviously worked.”

  “I guess.”

  She heard the aloof tone that told her he didn’t want to discuss his past anymore. She was still stunned that he’d told her as much as he had. She had to respect his boundaries where his childhood was concerned. She never wanted him to regret having shared so much of his life with her.

  When they reached his property, Brad turned into the driveway while he pressed a series of numbers on an electronic pad clipped to his sun visor.

  Rachel sat up straighter, looking around as the gates opened and they drove between them. She’d been there one other time, when Brad had been felled by a virulent case of the flu and was confined to bed on his doctor’s orders.

&nb
sp; He’d complied with the letter of the instruction, but not the spirit. He’d called the office one morning and asked her to bring him some files. She’d suggested that he might want to rest for a few days but got nowhere with that argument. Thus, she’d come to his home and dropped off the files as instructed.

  He’d given her the combination to the electronic gate, which he’d told her he changed on a regular basis. She’d had fun with the idea of having so much control over one’s environment. No solicitors ever bothered him!

  During that quick visit, she’d seen the foyer and living room of the house, as well as a grumpy, disheveled boss with a three-day growth of beard. He’d worn a robe that revealed his bare, broad chest more than he probably knew, and he, no doubt, ran a fever.

  His voice sounded scratchy and he’d looked as though he felt miserable, but it would have done no good for her to suggest that he hire some nursing care while he recuperated.

  She had delivered what he’d asked for and left. Now she would be living there. How strange was that?

  Brad followed the driveway past the house and turned toward a three-car garage. One of the doors opened as they neared the bay. Once inside, he got out and came around to open her door.

  She didn’t know why she was more nervous now than she had been all day. She’d managed to hold herself together thus far. She’d been able to do so by blanking out the fact that today was her wedding day, no matter how impersonal the event had been.

  “Come on, I’ve got the perfect thing for you,” he said, taking her hand. His boyish grin caught her by surprise. She’d never seen Brad so lighthearted.

  She knew her hand felt clammy despite the fact that she’d quickly wiped it against her skirt before taking his. Rachel followed him through the door between the garage and a large utility room that held a washer and dryer, an upright freezer and a series of cabinets that covered two walls.

  Before she had a chance to do more than scan the room, he’d pushed open a swinging door into the kitchen. He paused long enough for her to see that the room had been designed by a person who enjoyed a well-laid-out place to work.

  “This is beautiful, Brad,” she said, awed.

  “You like it? Good. My housekeeper comes in Monday through Friday. She prepares meals that she puts in the freezer. All I have to do is pop them into the microwave.” He gave a gentle tug. “I’ll see to that a little later. But before that…”

  He let his words trail off as they continued from room to room until they reached the foyer, which she recognized. He turned down a hallway that seemed to go on forever before they reached beautifully carved double doors.

  Brad opened them and Rachel couldn’t believe her eyes. The bedroom was obviously the master suite, but it was the size that had her taking a quick breath. A basketball team wouldn’t have trouble practicing in here, she thought, looking around.

  The room had a masculine flavor with its massive furniture. A bank of windows lined one wall. She barely noticed when Brad dropped her hand and moved away from her. Rachel was too intent on seeing what the windows revealed.

  She walked over to the middle one and peered through a beveled glass pane to discover one of the most beautifully kept gardens she’d ever seen.

  The various bushes and flowering plants were laid out in such a way they resembled an English formal garden. She could see a couple of paths following the sloping ground toward the thick stand of trees at the back of his property.

  “It must take an army of gardeners to keep everything looking so healthy and blooming,” she said, turning back to the room, only to find it empty.

  Where had Brad gone? She hadn’t heard a door close. She listened and identified a sound she’d been hearing…water running in another room. Rachel followed the sound to a door that was open a few inches. She pushed lightly and it swung open to reveal a bathroom as large as her apartment bedroom. Golden faucets gushed a steady supply of steaming water into an oversized tub surrounded on three sides by mirrored walls.

  She blinked in surprise to see Brad—already out of his suit coat and tie—checking on the temperature of the water. He straightened and turned to her. “Did you say something?” he asked.

  “Uh, yes, I was just—uh—commenting on your garden…Brad, what in the world are you doing?”

  “Preparing your bath, my good lady. I thought it would help you to rest and relax before we eat.” He pointed to a shelf of bath crystals. “Add what you like to the water. Sarah, my housekeeper, brought those one day. She swears this aromatherapy stuff really works.” He walked over to where she stood in the doorway and kissed her briefly on her forehead. “Enjoy this while I find something for us to eat.” He moved her aside and briskly left the room.

  The thick towels were the same soft teal green as the plush carpeting. She saw her image reflected everywhere she looked. The mirrors made the room appear even larger than it was.

  Rachel sat on the vanity stool and pulled off her shoes and hose. After shrugging out of her suit jacket, she unfastened her blouse, laying both items on the marble counter beside her. She quickly stripped off the rest of her clothes and approached the massive tub in anticipation. She chose a bottle of lavender-scented bath crystals and sprinkled them across the surface before turning off the water.

  She perched on the side of the tub and swung her legs over. Tentatively she lowered her feet into the water and saw her reflection grinning back at her with delight.

  The temperature was perfect. She quickly slid into the water, which came to her shoulders. Rachel had never seen a tub this large or this deep. She felt a guilty pleasure for being there when she knew that Brad had to be as tired as she was.

  No wonder Brad would greet her in a relaxed mood and charged with energy after a weekend spent at home. Anyone would be able to recharge in this environment.

  With a sigh of contentment, Rachel closed her eyes and allowed her mind to drift. This was just what she needed, even if she hadn’t recognized it herself. Brad certainly knew how to pamper her.

  She must have dozed, because the next thing she knew the water rippled around her in a gentle wave. Lazily she opened her eyes, then sat bolt upright when she discovered Brad lowering himself into the water. Since he was facing her, she had a full view of his well-honed, muscular body.

  Her eyes widened further when he sank into the water and casually brushed his calf against hers. “Sorry. Didn’t mean to startle you,” he said, looking very innocent. She doubted that he’d been born as innocent as he looked at the moment.

  Determined not to stammer, she waited for a few heartbeats in the hope that they would slow down before she replied, “I must have fallen asleep.”

  “I’ve done that a time or two in here myself.”

  The room had grown darker since she’d first come in. The indirect lighting, which Brad must have turned on when he returned, gave a soft glow to the ceiling and left the rest of the room in shadows.

  “You certainly know how to a show a woman a good time,” she said.

  The slight smile on his face vanished. “You’re the only woman who has seen this part of my home with the exception of Sarah, and she’s old enough to be my grandmother.” He studied her briefly before asking, “Is this how you thought I ended a social evening with a woman?”

  “I wasn’t thinking much of anything. Besides, I’m not asking for a list of the women you’ve dated over the years.” I don’t have to, she added to herself. I know each and every one of their names.

  He floated to her side and said, “Would you like me to scrub your back for you?”

  Calm down, she told herself. Just because Brad’s the first man I’ve seen nude, much less bathed with, there’s no reason to freeze at the suggestion that he might come closer. Wasn’t this the epitome of the fantasies she had secretly harbored since she’d met him? Not even her imagination could have dreamed up a scene like this one.

  Without waiting for her answer, he slid his arms around her waist and gently tugged her in
to the V formed by his legs, her back to him. She swallowed a gasp, afraid she was going to make a complete fool of herself. Now she understood the term sensory overload.

  He reached for a nearby washcloth and a bar of soap and lazily stroked her back from her neck to the bottom of her spine. He made no effort to disguise his arousal, which caused her blood to heat and race through her veins. Feeling him gently nudge her bottom was another new experience, but one that gave her a great deal of pleasure.

  She pushed more fully against him and was rewarded with a convulsive response. She might have imagined it, but she thought she heard him moan deep in his chest.

  After completing the serious duty of running his hand over every inch of her back, he slipped his hands around to her chest, where he cupped her breasts.

  He no longer made any pretense of bathing her, which was just as well. If the cloth touched her now, it would immediately burst into flames.

  She leaned against his chest, resting her head against his shoulder. She could feel his breath on her neck, or was it his lips that brushed against her? She tilted her head and he ran his tongue along the line between her ear and shoulder.

  She shivered in delight. Her hands drifted downward to rest on his hair-roughened thighs. He tensed, and she smiled at his reaction. He gently nipped the tendon along her neck, then stroked the place with his tongue.

  Her eyes had closed when he’d moved her closer to him, savoring all the things he was doing as well as her own responses. When she opened them she saw Brad holding her. Their reflections were multiplied in each mirror around the tub. She watched his face as he obviously savored her touch. She continued to explore with her palms, running them from his knees to his hips, this time knowing with certainty that she heard the deeply buried moan in his chest.

  This was Brad, she reminded herself. Before this week she could never have imagined that she would be in such an intimate position with him. She wanted to savor every moment…but she also wanted him to do more. Her body throbbed and she trembled as he continued to play with her breasts—lifting them in the palms of his hands, placing his thumbs on her nipples and lightly circling them until they became hard.