“I’m so sorry about your accident, Ms. Rand. I was terribly upset when Mr. Gualdoni called with the news and that someone else would be bringing your car into the garage. I’ll be here all day to run errands for you if necessary.”
“Thank you, Alfred, but I’ll be fine. It’s really nothing.” She wanted to slap Nick for the bored expression on his face. “Nick has volunteered to do all that for me.”
Once out of Alfred’s hearing range, she gave Nick a scathing glare.
“He’s only interested in my welfare. I hope you were nice when you spoke with him last night.” She got into the elevator and automatically waited for Nick to follow her.
He took up the subject with a soft laugh. “I was extra nice to him after telling him about your trip to the hospital. He sounded like a worried mother.” He stepped back and glanced at the smudge under her eye. “I won’t be seeing you at the site for a few days, so if you want me for anything, just call my secretary.”
“I think I can handle my needs, Nick.” His slow grin made her skin tingle, and her vivid imagination had his hands sliding into her panties. She jumped when he spoke to her.
“Sure you can, but you’d rather let me do it.” Nick leaned over to place a quick kiss on her forehead. “I’ll send copies of the pictures.”
Chapter 8
Whoever had coined the phrase I want my space obviously hadn't thought it over. Being solo sure as hell wasn't fun. How could she be dumb enough to keep reminiscing over the man that never missed a chance to kick her in the teeth?
A dozen nice looking, healthy men standing around in that group, but only one demanded her attention. He read the material’s supply report Matt handed him, unaware of her presence. She narrowed her eyes and let her gaze play over him. He'd gotten a haircut recently and a cute little rooster tail popped up at the crown of his head. She loved that willful dark hair.
She’d had trouble remembering the impromptu meeting being held in the courtyard of Nick's project and the reason for its formation. Ordinary, mundane things, like material shortages. Important as they were, she couldn't seem to control her mental wandering.
Her mind drifted and from some hidden corner, an erotic image flashed through her mind. A memory of being naked and telling him how she liked it. The quickening of her body shook Shelby from head to toe. Raw desire flared through her blood. Of its own volition, her hand went to the small, fading hickey at the base of her throat. A love bite from her last night with Nick. What had they done? She wanted to remember every detail, to hear him say he still loved her.
She managed to tip her coffee cup and douse her shoe before rousing from her reverie. She scuffed some dirt over the coffee and straightened her shoulders. If no one had seen her idiotic expression, she would be okay. Her attention went back to the men carrying on a lively conversation a few yards from where she stood.
She had separated herself from the group with the intention of staring at Nick. He could only be described as awesome. The strength of his forearms captivated her. Beautiful sun-touched skin over muscle and sinew roused a hunger to feel his hands on her.
"And, if Shelby hasn’t got any questions, we can all go home.” Matt grinned at her and waved to get her attention.
“Oh. Sure, Matt.” For several seconds, she couldn’t grasp the situation, the reason they all stood around and the crew headed out in different directions. Oh yes. She remembered. “Sheet rock. Yes. Okay. When the shipment comes in, we’ll get back to work.”
Her cheeks burned with a fire of humiliation. Somewhere, there had to be something to end her fascination with Nick. He looked her way and flashed one of his "I-know-what-you're-thinking" smiles. She should have ignored him but couldn’t.
"Come with me for a minute." As if they still cared for each other, he pulled her close to his side and walked a few steps before shaking his head at her glower of disdain. “Ever figure out how you used me while I tended your injury?”
His murmured question deserved an insult to his beloved package. “Yes, and it seems I got shortchanged if you get my meaning.” Her chilly glance stabbed at the front of his pants. “What do you really want?”
He laughed and squeezed her arm. “I haven’t seen you in a week. Your bulldog secretary stops me at the door.”
“She has her orders. No lowlifes.”
“Okay. I’m scum.” His brows quirked at her sudden laughter.
“How’ve you been, Shel?”
“I’m a healthy woman, Nick. You know that.”
“Indeed I do.” He glanced at her breasts poorly hidden under the silk cream of her tank top.
“Do you have to keep touching me?” The shrug to free herself came off feeble at best.
“Of course I don’t mind touching you.” He grinned at her. “Oh, you said, ‘have to’.”
Shelby handed him her empty Styrofoam cup. “You’re not cute. What do you really want?”
“My, my. Aren’t we hostile?”
“The crew is gone. You don’t have to pretend to be a human now.”
He glanced in the direction of departing pickup trucks. “Yeah. Right. I really did want to see how you are doing since I am more or less responsible for the great black eye.”
She ached to smack his grinning mouth. “The nice yellow and purple colors will fade in time.” She didn’t want to meet his gaze or look at his damned wonderful face. She would be lost. She chose to look at her watch. “I have a client waiting.”
He leaned so near his chin brushed the top of her head. She was sure he had moaned. But no, he smiled at her with a certain tease in those damned dark-as-night eyes.
“So, Shel. I’m taking the long weekend to get in that fishing trip you cost me.”
“Nick. You’re making small talk. So unlike you. What is it you’re having problems saying?” Why couldn’t he lean against her again? She wanted to feel the press of his shoulder and the warmth of his body.
“No problem, Shel. Did you get your car to a body shop?”
“Something tells me you know I didn’t.”
“It’s going to start rusting.”
“I don’t have time to fix crap like that.”
He flicked at a wisp of hair that played around her ear. “You have now.” His dark lashes shuttered his eyes and his voice deepened into a husky caress. “You okay? No more headaches or anything?”
Her heart quivered and every nerve crackled. “No. You’re off the hook.” She could smell the intoxicating mixture of his soap and aftershave perking over the scent of clean clothing he wore. He made her drunk with pleasure.
His grip on her arm tightened a little and his smile softened. “Okay, Ms. Independence. I’ll see you in a few days.”
He walked away, picking up speed after glancing at his watch. She wanted to run after him, make him late for whatever he’d planned. After he had driven out of sight, the urge for a chocolate fix hit Shelby like a tornado. Her destination had been set for a trip to the Russell Stover Candy Shop.
* * * *
Shelby steered with one hand while digging deep into the bag of double-dipped chocolate-covered peanuts and stuffed her mouth full. She bobbed her head in time to the rock music blaring from her CD player. She felt good now. Good music, good food and—Good lord! The car behind her looked as if it were about to barrel up her tail pipes.
She tapped her brakes to alert the driver he might be too close. His speed didn't alter. Using her turn signals didn't seem to help either. Nervous now, she pulled over into the right lane to let him pass. That stretch of roadway had always been allowed to grow wild for the migratory birds and ducks and had no street lights for several blocks. Pitch black at night, the weed choked ravine on her right dropped off sharply into a creek, and could be dangerous if a motorist got careless. She shivered in apprehension of the other driver’s intent.
A warning came back to haunt her. Don't drive alone late at night. Her father had nagged her plenty of times about it. Now, she was alone and afraid. The other car pulled up so close
the headlights blinded her. Her head snapped upon the impact of the car hitting her bumper. She gasped in surprise and gripped the steering wheel. The driver obviously had been drinking and she had to get away.
Her foot tromped the gas pedal and her sports car jumped into high gear, quickly speeding away. Her heart missed several beats when she looked in the rearview mirror and saw him still on her tail. He hit her bumper again and this time, she skidded against the retaining wall separating her from the long fall down into the gully.
She screamed, but she barely heard it. Not over the loud hammering of her heart. Her survival instinct kicked in and she pushed the pedal to the floor. Looking from side to side for another car or a lit up building, she got back into the left lane. Her eyes misted up and she couldn't see well enough to be driving so fast. She shuddered in pure relief when off in the distance the flashing lights of a patrol car came into view in her rearview mirror. The other car rammed her bumper a final time, then sped around her and out of sight. After what seemed an eternity, a patrol car pulled in front of her and stopped.
Shelby buried her face in her hands and sobbed. When the officer shined his spotlight on her, she had stopped crying. Her shoulders still shook when he approached the car and tapped on her window.
"Ma'am, are you all right?" He carried on a conversation with both her and a dispatcher. "We got a call from another driver that had witnessed your car being rammed. Trouble is he didn't call soon enough for us to catch them in the act. Are you okay?"
With the window down, she gave him a weak smile and switched off the key. "Yes. Thanks. I can't believe that drunk didn't see me." She wanted to cry again. "I gave him all kinds of room."
The officer asked to see her license and radioed in the information while taking a look at her car. After taking a deep breath, Shelby got out to see the damage for herself.
"I can't believe this. Why would he do that?"
What a mess. The rear end of her car looked like an accordion. The back window had spider web cracks that looked like a large sunburst.
While he wrote down her information, he took time to give his opinion. "Looks like he wanted your car. There have several car jackings in this area." He directed the beam of his flashlight on her face. "You need an ambulance, ma’am? I'll call for a wrecker if you need it."
"No. If my car still runs, I'll go home." When she got behind the wheel, her hands shook and her lips felt numb. She turned the key and the motor responded instantly. After what seemed like hours, the officer said she could leave. Seeing him follow behind for most of the way to her apartment seemed like having her own guardian angel. She would never bad-mouth the police again. The man didn't know how close she had come to kissing him.
She glanced up in time to see the little salute he sent her way when he passed her.
Home had never looked better to her tear reddened eyes. Thankfully, she didn't have to take time to talk with Alfred. He was wrapped up in dog walking duties at the moment. The service elevator moved quickly up to her floor without the usual stops.
The moment she got inside her apartment, Shelby realized the seriousness of what had happened. For the first time in her life, she had known what it meant to fear another human being.
She immediately dialed Nick’s cell phone number. The hollow ring brought home the fact she couldn’t run to him with her problems anymore. She cancelled the call.
It hurt her deeply to have to admit he probably wouldn’t want to hear her sorry excuses for getting herself in a mess like that. She had been out on a shopping spree and using a road that she had always avoided at night. The imaginary repudiation sent her into a wave of sobbing. Nick. She needed him.
Flopping onto her couch, Shelby cried herself out, hating the fact she’d become a weeping basket case lately. And whose fault had that been? Sniffing and wiping her eyes, she got up and walked to the bathroom to wash her face. After several minutes of glaring at the red-nosed image in the mirror, she grumbled. “Okay, lady. That’s it. There are going to be some changes around here.”
* * * *
Nick was tired of the river and tired of the smell of fish. Three days of climbing mountain stream riverbanks and slapping at mosquitoes had lost its appeal. He decided to go home. "Hey, Savage." He whistled and waved at his childhood friend, Jack Savage. "Let's pack it in and go back to civilization."
Jack grinned and reeled in his line. "I wondered when you would get tired of playing wilderness man. Let’s hit the trail, buddy."
Nick released the trout he had caught and washed his hands in the icy water. "It isn't as much fun as I recall it being when we were twenty."
"That’s not it, Nick. You're just anxious to get back home to your woman."
Nick stumbled, almost falling into the swift stream. Jack didn't know the stolen plans involved Shelby. It was too personal to bring her into the spotlight, and to Jack, nothing legal could be too personal. It had been Jack who’d convinced him to build in Kansas City since he lived there and Jack had suggested the S. Rand Architectural Company design the place. Thanks to Jack, he had all this worry on his mind. Nick didn't want to discuss it. "Yeah. You're right, my woman."
Back in their cabin, Nick packed in a hurry, and listened to his fun-loving companion talk on the phone. He wondered at his reluctance to lay the whole thing out on the table for Jack from the first. After all, Jack was his best friend and attorney. There wasn’t anything he couldn’t tell him. Nick rolled a shirt up in a ball and dumped it into his weekender. Truth is, old boy, you're afraid of looking less than a man by admitting she took you. Most of all, and to his great shame, he didn't want to lose touch with Shelby.
At that moment, Nick didn't care how big a pushover he looked like. He wanted to see Shelby, to hear her voice and to touch her. Screw the macho pride. He was still crazy for his blue-eyed witch.
* * * *
Nick dropped Savage off at his place and then drove straight to his favorite steak house in south Kansas City. He couldn't understand Jack not wanting a good hunk of beef after all that camp cooked fish.
The parking lot of Jess and Jim's Place was packed, but he lucked out and found a space. His stomach growled and his mouth watered in anticipation of a good meal. He stepped inside the crowded place and smiled at the hostess.
She gave him a second and third look before seating him. He wondered what she saw that warranted such close scrutiny. His khaki shirt and Levi's were clean and he wore shoes. She handed him a menu and glanced away.
"I'll have a K.C. Strip with a baked potato. And, I’d like a cup of coffee, please.” He rubbed his jaw. No wonder she wore that stunned expression. He sported a three day growth of beard. It was a tradition. They didn't shave until they got home from a fishing trip. He probably looked like an ape to her.
While he waited, the antics of a little girl at the next table amused Nick. She looked beautiful, blond and spoiled rotten. His thoughts went to Ms. Rand. Her father had spoken about Shelby's tantrums with some pride it seemed to him. It didn't surprise Nick. Always beautiful, blond and spoiled.
He ordered a scotch and water to take the edge off his hunger and helped the little girl up when she fell over his feet. Of course, she crawled under his table where she shouldn't have been. He just hoped she didn't decide to stab him with the fork she carried.
Her parents took control of the child and he got to eat his meal. After he finished, the idea of dessert was appealing, but he decided to forgo the sweets and give up his table. While he waited for the check, his gaze moved over the crowd, not focusing on any face in particular until one bloomed in his line of vision. Blond, beautiful and with another man.
Of all the places he could have had dinner, he’d chosen this place. He considered making an exit before Shelby spotted him and assumed he stalked her. What the hell had come over him? Nothing new, just the need to let her know he wasn’t buying her attempt at deception.
He took his cell phone from his belt and dialed her number. Her warm cognac voic
e licked over his ear when she answered. His hand shook. “Hi. Shel. Just checking in.” So smooth, you fool.
“Nick?”
“Everything okay, Shel?” Okay, just ask who that jerk is.
“Perfect. And yourself?”
“Tired and ready to get back to work.” Had she rubbed her forehead in irritation?
“That should be in several days according to Matt.”
“Sounds good to me. Where are you?” He knew it invaded her privacy to ask, but his life hung on her answer.
“On my way home.”
The icy pain that gripped his gut shocked him. “You’re already driving? Be careful.”
In the brief silence, he knew pure agony, wanting to know what she was thinking, feeling. “Shel?”
“Sure, Nick. You do the same.”
He shut down his cell and leaned back in his chair. What was that guy to her? Nick studied the man seated across from Shelby with a critical eye. Blond, tan and muscle bound. Nick guessed the guy to be a lot older and hot for her. He kept touching her hand and smiling into her face. She laughed at something the guy said and then wrote in her notebook. Giving him her private cell phone number? Hell, he'd have that already.
It hit him like a brick. This might be her partner, the man he’d been hunting, the rat Savage had been trying to root out into the light.
Nick got to his feet and walked the few feet to where Shelby sat. He smiled at her when he took the chair next to hers. "Hello, Shelby. What a surprise seeing you here."
"Nick."
Much to his chagrin, she didn’t look guilty or remorseful. Only irritated and beautiful in her white suit.
"You look great.” He gave her companion a cursory glance. "Aren't you going to introduce me?"
She leaned toward him and murmured. “What are you trying to prove? Leave now.”
“Have a drink? Why, sure.” Nick thrust his hand out to the man seated across the table from him. “Nick Gualdoni. And you’re...?”
A big grin livened up the guy’s tanned face. “William Wallace.”
Hot For Nick Page 9
