A roll of laughter escaped his chest. "It's been so long since I've heard you say that." His mind flew back to happy memories of her at his parent’s house for holidays, birthdays, and summer picnics. She’d always been there. Then she’d left for college and he realized how much he regretted never asking her to be a bigger part of his life.
"Why the hell are you sneaking up on me, Trevor MacLaughlin? You will pay for that!"
"You still haven't answered my question. What about the vampires and the princess?" He crossed the space between them quickly and knelt to help her pick up the pens. Her cheeks blushed a beautiful deep scarlet. He loved how easily she blushed. He wondered if she blushed that pretty red all over her body.
"I write paranormal romance."
He cocked his head and handed her the pens he'd retrieved from the floor. "Like books?"
"Yes, like books," she shot back. "They help keep me afloat while I look for a permanent teaching position."
Her breathing was shallow and unsteady. This was his chance to make up for being a jerk earlier, but he didn't know anything about romance novels except that his sister liked them.
"I think that's great. Takes a lot of courage to put something out there for people to see. I know Lizzy likes to read this one author, May Ward. But I'm afraid I don't know anything else on the topic."
She burst into laughter and they both stood. What was so funny? She put the pencil canister on the desk, but the pens and pencils were all mixed together and some were upside down.
Unable to stop himself, he stepped closer and began separating the pens from the pencils and turned them all points down.
He looked over and met her gaze. Her warm honey colored eyes sparkled with mischief. She held up another pencil and stuffed it into the jar upside down. Then turned and waited for him to fix it.
Damn it! He fixed it anyway. She could be amused or not. It didn't matter.
Then she held up another pencil.
"What the hell!" He snatched it from her hand. She chuckled again. He tucked it safely, right side up in the jar. “How many more of those do you have behind your back?”
“Five,” she answered, choking back a giggle.
He held out his hand and she put them gently in his outstretched palm. “You’re funny.”
She snorted and covered her mouth. “I have to amuse myself somehow, since you apparently don’t need any actual help.”
“We just got a contract in northern California. Mudslide. We leave this afternoon.”
Her eyebrows shot up. “We?”
“I can’t leave you here by yourself. I’ll have the office calls forwarded to my cell until my brothers get home and you can help me field them while I work on getting the new contract set up.” He paused, observing her body language. She wasn’t shrinking away, but she wasn’t smiling either. “Unless, you need to stay here. I can try and find an admin when I arrive.”
The wheels were turning in that pretty little head of hers. She rolled the silver thumb ring on her right hand and bit her bottom lip a few times. Mercy! All he could think is how much he wanted to bite that lip for her.
“Alright. Sure. My parents scheduled a Christmas cruise before they knew I was moving back. They are leaving in two days, and I’d rather be doing something other than sitting around the house, alone.”
“Great.” That she agreed to go shocked him. If he was ever going to have a chance to get to know her better, this was the perfect opportunity. Traveling for a minimum of three or four days, sharing three meals a day and working side by side. Perhaps he could redeem himself and show her he wasn’t a complete bumbling idiot.
3
“Honey, take the yellow sweater. It goes so nicely with your eyes,” Katie Ward said, sipping on a mug of coffee and rocking in a little glider in the corner. Lorelei nodded and pulled it down from the shelf before emerging from her walk in closet.
“He said to pack for a week.” She stared down at the huge suitcase filled to the brim with the necessities. “Do you think this is enough?” The bag was overflowing with jeans, slacks, a couple of dresses, shoes for every possible occasion, t-shirts, blouses, bras and underwear. She’d even managed to sneak a few lacy pairs in before her mother had parked herself in the room.
“It’s probably not enough, but if you run out have the hotel clean it for you.”
“It seems like a lot. I’m not sure I really need to pack a cocktail dress and fancy shoes. This is supposed to be work. He said I’d mostly just be in the hotel room making phone calls and filling out paperwork on the computer.”
“It’s better to be over-prepared than under.”
Lorelei chewed on her bottom lip a moment and then pulled the suitcase lid over and zipped it up. “It’s packed now. So hopefully it will be fine.”
“Are you sure you are going to be okay going away with him like this? I know you were sweet on him for a long time and he never returned your feelings.”
“I’m fine, mom. You and dad enjoy your cruise and I’m going to go chill in the redwood forest and make a little spending money. Lizzy thought Trevor and I might hit it off, but after seeing him this morning, I don’t think that’s going to happen.” She laughed a little and heaved the heavy suitcase from the bed to the floor. “You know his brother Caiden flirted with me on the phone, though. Maybe I was paying attention to the wrong brother.”
Her mother made an indecipherable groan about boys never growing up and took another sip of her coffee.
The doorbell rang. Her father’s welcome to Trevor echoed from the front of the house. Her mother hopped up and hurried past her out to the living room.
“Tell him I’ll be there in minute,” she hollered a minute later, grabbing her reading tablet from her recently cleaned desk.
A cough caught her attention and she turned to see Trevor staring at her from the bedroom doorway. His blue eyes were laser focused, driving a beam of heat straight to her core.
How was she ever going to last a week with those eyes? She already wanted to throw herself into his arms, but that wasn’t in the cards for her. He’d made himself quite clear with his handshake earlier this morning that he wasn’t into her.
“Do you need any help with that suitcase? It looks a tad on the heavy side.”
She stepped aside and nodded. “Yes, please. Thanks.”
He grabbed the handle and pulled it through the doorway. She followed him down the hall to the front living area where her parents were still standing, apparently waiting for them to reappear.
“Sweetie, be careful.” Her mom gave her a quick hug.
“I will,” Lorelei answered. “I’ll see you guys in a week. Enjoy your cruise.”
“We will, sweetheart. Love you,” her Dad whispered and hugged her too. She was so happy they were taking some time off work and going on vacation alone. They needed a recharge. Her mom worked a lot of hours at the hospital and her father was an attorney. They never seemed to slow down.
“Take care of my girl, Trevor MacLaughlin. We just got her back from the east coast.”
“I promise, she will be well looked after, Mr. Ward,” he answered, giving her father a friendly handshake.
Damn handshakes.
<><><>
The drive to the airport was quiet. She didn’t know what to say to him, so she just decided to start asking questions. If it annoyed him, oh well. She wasn’t going to handle this awkward silence much longer.
“So I guess you travel a lot with this job?”
“Some. My brothers and I take turns. Usually we aren’t all gone at once, but sometimes the jobs pile on.” He paused for a moment, passing a slow car in the right lane. “But yes, there is regular travel with this job.”
“Do you like traveling?”
“I like visiting other places, but it’s just work. I don’t normally have time for much sightseeing.”
“Well, that’s a shame.” She watched the prairie grass fly by through the window of his truck. They were almost to th
e DFW airport. She could hear the roar of planes crossing overhead and see several arriving low on the horizon. “Though, I guess you are usually visiting right after a disaster, so it’s probably not the best time to traipse around the cities you are visiting.”
“Yeah, not so much.” He chuckled.
She relaxed at the sound. Maybe, they could figure out how to be friends on this trip. Her heart sunk at the thought. She didn’t want to be friends with Trevor MacLaughlin. And, she didn’t want to flirt with his brother Caiden. She wanted Trevor to flirt with her.
Damn it. What was so wrong with her that he wouldn’t? He’d looked at her twice now, like he was contemplating what she looked like underneath her clothes. His gaze both times had soaked her panties. Something no other boyfriend had ever been able to do with just a glance. But then, he quickly backed off both times too. Physically and emotionally. It was enough to drive even a fly-by-the-seat-of-her-pants fine arts major insane.
They chatted a little more about the different places he’d traveled to and not seen, laughing about all the missed opportunities. He even asked her about college and what she’d enjoyed. By the time they reached the express parking lot, she realized he’d asked her question after question and she’d rambled on about school and professors for the rest of the drive. He couldn’t have possibly wanted to listen to her prattle on about school.
“Sorry I talked your ear off,” she offered as they walked to the shuttle stop. Trevor was towing both suitcases behind him, one in either hand.
He flashed her an encouraging smile. “No need to apologize. I enjoyed hearing about your adventures in animal science.” He chuckled. “I forgot how much there was to learn about sponges.”
A giggle slipped from her lips. “Professor Kerrigan really did like sponges.”
<><><>
Trevor checked both their suitcases and led the way to their gate. The line through security went quickly. They were in the first group and boarded within ten minutes. It was a smaller plane, maybe only about fifty passengers.
They filed on slowly. He led the way, checking several times over his shoulder to make sure she was still there. She’d been rather quiet since they’d gotten into the terminal. He’d enjoyed her stories about classes and professors. Her college experience sounded like it had been much more fun than his. But how exciting could you make business finance? He shook his head and grinned.
“Are we here?” Her voice stopped him. He looked back a row and then up at the label.
“Yep, this is us.” He stared down at the row of three seats and groaned. He’d been hoping to be on the double side.
“I have the middle seat,” she informed him. “You go in first. You have the window.”
“Lorelei, take my chair. I’ll sit in the middle.”
“Really?” The excitement in her eyes was adorable. She cast a worried glance at the passengers still filing onto the plane. “You can scootch over toward me if you need to. I’m a lot smaller than you.” She slithered into their row and settled into the furthest chair. Then arranged her purse behind her feet on the floor.
Trevor bit back a grin. Scootching wasn’t quite what he had in mind, but at least she was open to him invading her personal space. That was progress for sure, after his idiot handshake this morning.
He just wasn’t good with women. Never had been. He’d dated a few girls in high school, but nothing serious. In college he was too busy for more than drinks out and a couple of movie dates. The one woman he’d dated longer than a few months got the job offer of a lifetime and moved to New York last year. That relationship ended quickly. Long distance was for the birds.
Lorelei was it for him. His mind wouldn’t let him settle for any substitute, even if it meant being a lifelong bachelor. He slid into the center chair and leaned on her armrest, inhaling the fresh lavender scent wafting from her curls.
“You smell so good,” he whispered. The words slipped out before he could stop them. Her head whipped around and her beautiful brown-eyed gaze locked with his. Their faces were mere inches from each other. Her lips parted and she took in a small gasp of air. You can’t kiss her! Not now!
A shove from behind knocked his forehead into her face. Shit!
“Ow,” she whined, leaning back and rubbing her bruised nose.
Trevor turned, ready to chew out the passenger who shoved him into her face. But it was just a worn-out old middle-aged man. The guy met his gaze and glanced away embarrassed. “Sorry.”
Trevor nodded and then turned back to Lorelei. “Are you ok?”
“Yes, I’m fine.” She flashed him a quick smile. “Thank you for not beating him up.”
“I wasn’t go—” He stopped when one of her eyebrows rose questioningly. What an imp! She was knocking him off his game. What little he had, anyway.
“You know, I’m confused, Trevor MacLaughlin. I can’t tell if you are coming or going. You stared hungrily at me with those gorgeous blue eyes earlier this morning, then try to get rid of me. Then you give me another I-want-to-eat-you-for-dinner glances at my house, in my bedroom, as if I were the last woman alive on the planet. Now you think I smell nice. What’s next? Are you going to change your mind and start ignoring me again? Leave me locked in the hotel room by myself answering phone calls all day.”
Her arms crossed and her brow scrunched.
He wasn’t getting away from this one.
“I should have told Lizzy no when she called and begged me to come fill in for Karen.”
She did what! He kept his voice even and low. “Why would Lizzy beg you to work in our office over Christmas?”
She frowned. It didn’t matter if he knew anymore. “We’ve had one awkward moment after another. So there you have it. The set-up was a bust.”
“Hey!” Set-up? Lizzy had purposefully sent Lorelei!
“Tell me it isn’t true.”
He couldn’t. He’d been a mess since she walked into MacLaughlin Corp. that morning.
“I didn’t think so.” She turned away and stared out the window. Clouds were rushing past. He hadn’t even paid attention that the plane had taken off. “It’s ok. I was a willing participant in the plot,” she whispered, her voice trembling just a little. “Sometimes things just aren’t meant to be, no matter how hard you wish for them.”
He stared at the magazines tucked in the pocket of the seat in front of him. What was he supposed to do with that? How was he supposed to explain that he’d ignored her and avoided her all this time out of respect for his sister when it was his damn sister who was now trying to set them up? It would have been really nice to have been in on it for this one Lizzy. Now I just look like a jackass.
4
“Where are we going?” Lorelei handed off her bag to Trevor and waited holding a big umbrella over both of them while he loaded it into their rental vehicle. Rain poured around them and the bottom of her jeans and her tennis shoes were already soaked through.
He closed the back of the small crossover, and then walked around and opened the front passenger door for her to get in. Then he hurried back to his door.
“Honeywell, it’s a little town about two hours north of Crescent City,” he answered after climbing into the driver’s seat. “They had a mudslide and it damaged several buildings belonging to Rivner Logging Inc.”
“It’s still raining. Don’t they want to wait until this blows over?”
“They can’t wait. They need the building operational and the equipment protected.” The vehicle pulled forward and thankfully Trevor drove carefully through the deluge of rain.
He was quiet and she let him be. They hadn’t talked much after she spilled the beans on the plane. It had been a stupid idea in the first place. Why had she agreed with Lizzy? If he was the least bit interested, the man would have spoken up by now…right? She should just forget about creating chemistry with Trevor and move on.
<><><>
The vehicle jolted and shook. Lorelei opened her eyes and glanced around. Trevor was p
ulling to a stop in front of a small motel.
“Did I fall asleep?” She glanced over at him.
A smile tugged the corners of his lips upward and his dimples showed. “You were out like a light after ten minutes.”
“Sorry. I didn’t think I was that tired.”
“It’s alright. You missed a few trees, but otherwise it was uneventful. I was on the phone half the time with the client, so it was good you drifted off.”
She’d drifted off all right. Her dreamland happened to be in his arms, naked in a bed. That moment on the plane, right before knocking heads, had given her just an inkling of hope. Maybe the damn man just didn’t know how to communicate. Maybe there was something going on she didn’t know about. Whatever it was. She was getting to the bottom of it, because the only thing she could seem to think about was Trevor without any clothing on.
“At least the rain let up some.” Weather was safe. She could talk about the weather without giving him a clue to the naughty gutter her brain had found to occupy.
She opened the vehicle door and stepped out into a fine mist. No need for an umbrella, but her hair would be a mess later regardless.
Trevor grabbed the bags and she followed him into the small entryway of the hotel, her eyes trained in on his fantastic ass.
“Good afternoon, sir. Can I help you?” A pleasant male voice spoke from the other side of the counter. She peeled her focus from Trevor’s butt, and glanced up at the counter. The clerk stepped into view a moment later. His nametag read – Jack.
“I have reservations for two rooms under the name MacLaughlin,” Trevor stated quietly.
The clerk’s face darkened. “Sir, I only have one room for you. I’m very sorry for the inconvenience,” he apologized. “The mudslide took out several homes this morning and we had to make room for the families.”
“I understand, but…”
Lorelei stepped up beside Trevor. He looked down at her, his eyes conveying his apology. “It’s alright. We can share the room. Don’t worry about it.” Her insides were screaming for her to worry about it. He’s going figure out that I’m into him. It’s going to be so awkward and uncomfortable. How do I get myself into situations like this?
Trevor (A MacLaughlin Family Novella) Page 2
