“You’re…you’re…” Daisy stammered.
He laughed softly and held out his hand to her. “Dylan Anders.”
Of course he was.
Chapter 2
Dylan shook hands with the woman who was still wide eyed and slack jawed, but it was the one directly in front of him who held his attention. She was petite and curvy and maybe it was the glasses but…her eyes looked huge. They were such a deep shade of brown they were almost black and maybe it was his imagination but she hadn’t blinked. At all. Taking his hand from the first woman, he asked, “And you are?”
She giggled. “Daisy. I’m Daisy Garner and I’m a huge fan.” She studied her hand and then sighed. “Wow. I can’t believe you’re here. I was just saying how I was hoping you’d come in and here you are! Can I get a picture of you? Will you wait here while I get my camera? I swear I’ll only be a minute and—”
“Daisy!” the woman in front of him snapped, but she didn’t look away from him.
“Oh…right. Sorry. Give me a minute.”
When she was gone, Dylan relaxed. Smiling, he said, “She’s a bit chatty, huh?”
“You have no idea.”
He waited a minute to see if she’d introduce herself, and when she didn’t, he prompted, “I don’t believe I caught your name.”
She blushed. “Oh…um. Paige. I’m Paige Walters.”
Uh-oh. This threw his plans for a loop. He was all set to charm an elderly librarian type. And Paige Walters was as far from an elderly librarian as they came. She had a studious look to her, but those killer curves and the fact that she was probably younger than him blew that plan to hell. Now what? Maybe she was a fan like Daisy was. That could work in his favor.
“So,” he began, “you’re exactly who I was hoping to see.” Then he noticed her satchel and it dawned on him that she had been waiting for the elevator. “I’m sorry. Is this a bad time?”
“Did we have an appointment?” she asked, her voice sounding a little gruff and shaky.
“Uh…no. We didn’t. I was hoping to talk to you about this campaign that you’re working on.”
Her eyes got wider and then narrowed at him. “Really?” she asked with both sarcasm and disbelief.
Dylan nodded. “Yes. So…do you have some time right now to talk? If you’re heading somewhere, I can walk with you, or we can grab some coffee or—”
“Oh, take her to get some coffee!” Daisy said excitedly, as she walked toward them, smiling from ear to ear. She snapped a couple of pictures of him and then asked Paige to take one of the two of them together before she got back on topic. “Paige was heading out, but she loves that great coffee shop on the corner. They have amazing cake pops.”
“I’m standing right here, Daisy,” Paige said wearily.
“I know you are, but I also know if I didn’t say anything, you’d probably pass on taking the time to talk with Dylan. I’m being helpful.”
“You’re being rude,” Paige murmured and then offered Dylan a tight smile. “Anyway, um…I am heading out for the day, but I can spare a few minutes for coffee if that works for you.”
“And cake pops?” he teased and almost sagged with relief when she smiled. And damn, did she have a great smile.
“And cake pops,” she said as she ducked her head and blushed again. Turning to Daisy, she said, “Go and man the phones and I’ll see you Monday. If anyone comes looking for me—”
“I’ll take care of it,” Daisy replied, clearly suppressing a grin. “Have a great weekend.” Then she looked at Dylan and giggled. “It was nice to meet you!” Then she spun and practically skipped away.
Beside him, Paige shook her head.
“Is she your assistant?”
She nodded and then reached around him to hit the button for the elevator. A few minutes ago, she couldn’t take her eyes off him, and now she would barely look at him. They waited in silence, and once the elevator arrived, he motioned for her to precede him into it and then stepped in behind her.
“If you’d rather not get coffee, you know, I’m sure I can schedule a time to meet with you here next week,” Paige said as soon as the doors closed.
Wait, was she trying to get rid of him?
While looking straight ahead at the doors, she went on. “I’m sure you’re a very busy man and I don’t know if you can have coffee without people swarming you or something, and to be honest, if we’re going to talk about the campaign—and your possible involvement in it—I prefer to do so without fans hovering for pictures.”
Her voice was almost void of emotion, and Dylan realized Paige clearly wasn’t a fan of his.
“I don’t normally get bothered,” he supplied. “I mean occasionally a fan or two, like your assistant, will come over to say hello, but it’s not like my presence in a Starbucks is going to incite a riot or anything.”
“Still… I think it would be better if maybe we scheduled something for…”
Dylan stepped in front of her—directly in her line of vision so she couldn’t ignore him. “How about a compromise?”
She looked at him quizzically but silently. Great. He hadn’t thought about where he was going with this. All he knew was that he didn’t want to wait until next week to talk to her. True, he hadn’t really known that until this minute, but there was something about her that…intrigued him. And more than anything, he wanted to know if she had an aversion to working with him because of his history or because of something else.
Maybe he was paranoid, but he was getting a strong vibe that Paige was trying to get rid of him.
“A compromise?”
Think fast! “Um…yeah. A compromise.” Brilliant. Just keep repeating the same words. That oughta make her want to work on a literacy campaign with you. Moron.
The elevator came to a stop on the first floor, and when the doors opened, Dylan again motioned for her to go first as he frantically tried to think of a reasonable compromise.
“Like what?” she asked as she came to a stop in the middle of the massive lobby. There were a few people walking around, but no one was paying any attention to them. Maybe that would work in his favor, if she noticed he wasn’t one of those mob-inducing celebrities.
“Well, you seemed like you were on your way out to…someplace. Maybe I can tag along and we can talk. Like in the car. We’ll grab our coffees—if you even want one—and drive for a bit. No one’s going to chase after the car or anything,” he said with a small laugh and instantly stopped when he saw she wasn’t laughing.
Or smiling.
“I’m going to the grocery store,” she stated. “And then home. I don’t think that’s going to work. Really, we can do this next week. I’ll have Daisy call you. I think we have your number on file so—”
“No!” he quickly interrupted. Okay, this time he was definitely being paranoid, but he knew if he didn’t talk to her today, didn’t convince her to let him in on this project, that he wasn’t going to get another chance.
“Excuse me?”
He sighed and figured he had nothing left to lose. “Look, I get it. You know who I am and I can tell you’ve got no real interest in working with me. But really, I don’t get it. If you feel like this, why reach out to me at all?”
“Actually…I didn’t,” she said hesitantly and then instantly looked down at the ground.
“I don’t understand.”
Now it was her turn to sigh, but then she looked up at him. “I had… And then my sister…” She stopped and sighed again. “Maybe we should go and get that coffee.”
Two minutes ago, Dylan would have considered that a victory, but now he had a feeling she was using it as a way to let him down easily. “Yeah. Okay. Sure.” She gave him a brief nod and then led the way out of the building. He got in step beside her, and neither spoke as they walked along the sidewalk to the corner coffee shop.
Once inside, they still didn’t speak except to give their orders. He breathed a sigh of relief that no one seemed to recognize him, and when Paige offered to get a table, he agreed to wait for their drinks. Dylan motioned to the barista and asked for a couple of cake pops to be added to their bill. He noticed Paige hadn’t ordered any, but at this point, he wasn’t above using whatever he could to get on her good side.
As he waited, his mind raced. Why was this so important? When Mick had first mentioned this project to him, it wasn’t something he’d wanted to do. Then he’d made his peace with it, but it wasn’t as if it were mandatory that he do this project in particular to meet his community service commitment. There were plenty to choose from. Maybe it was ridiculous for him to be getting in a snit over it and trying to win over a chick who didn’t seem like she wanted to be won.
Dylan looked over to the table in the far corner that Paige had snagged for them and smiled. She looked flustered, and she fidgeted with her hair and then her glasses as she looked around the room as if waiting for some sort of flash mob to jump out at any moment and demand he perform with them.
“Oh my God! Are you Dylan Anders?” a voice whispered from behind the counter.
Dylan turned and smiled at the young girl holding his tray of cake pops and coffees. He leaned in a little and whispered. “I am.”
She blushed and slowly handed him his tray. “I thought it was you and I didn’t want to say it out loud and embarrass you—or me, in case I was wrong. Wow! I…I’m such a big fan. Really. You’re awesome.”
“Thanks,” he replied and looked at her name badge, “Tammy. I appreciate that.”
She looked over her shoulder as if gauging the line. “Would you mind signing something for me?”
“Not at all.” He waited as she reached for a cup and then grabbed a Sharpie and handed it to him.
“Sorry. It’s all I can find, and I don’t want to draw attention to you or get in trouble with my boss.”
“No worries,” he said, still smiling, as he signed the cup and handed it to her. “And thanks. I appreciate you keeping it quiet.”
“Oh,” she sighed happily. “Sure. No problem. Enjoy your coffee!”
With a wave, Dylan made his way to the corner where Paige was waiting, frowning.
Great.
Deciding to ignore that look, he put the tray on the table and smiled. He handed her the white chocolate mocha Frappuccino and then the plate of cake pops. He saw her eyes light up briefly and decided right then and there that if he managed to get her to agree to let him work on this project, he would have to remember that she clearly had a sweet tooth.
Placing the empty tray aside on a vacant chair, he stripped off his jacket and was about to sit down when he saw the horrified look on Paige’s face.
She was staring at his arms—at his tattoos—with more than a hint of disgust. Okay, not everyone was a fan of tattoos, but his weren’t anything to freak out over. It wasn’t as if he were covered in demons and skulls, for crying out loud! His sleeves were deeply personal to him. Every drop of ink on his skin held a special meaning—his latest tat finished the sleeve on his right arm and said, “Inhale the future, exhale the past.” It was a good motto to be living by right now. The rest on that arm had to do with music and was filled in with roses, which were symbolic of deep love, passion, and balance. Or so he’d been told. They were also sometimes seen as a message for healing, rejuvenation, and courage.
That described his journey of the past several months.
Not deterred by her reaction, Dylan sat and took a sip of his dark roast. Not that he didn’t enjoy a good latte or espresso, but right now, he really needed some straight coffee.
“So,” he began after his first sip, “I read the packet you sent along, and I have to admit, it sounds great.”
Paige took another sip of her drink and then put it down before speaking. He watched her eye the plate of cake pops, and he had a feeling she was fighting the urge to at least taste one before talking to him. But she looked up at him and gave him a small smile.
At least she wasn’t sneering or looking at his arms anymore. She cleared her throat and straightened in her chair.
Here we go.
“Mr. Anders—”
“Dylan,” he corrected with a smile.
That seemed to relax her a little. “Okay…Dylan. There seems to be a bit of a…misunderstanding.” She paused. “You see, my original plans for this campaign involved using well-known authors and only authors. After all, who understands the love of reading and the importance of it more than an author?”
“That makes sense.”
She nodded and took another small sip of her beverage. “Well, that was the plan I laid out to my firm, and the person I asked to reach out to those authors took it upon herself to…expand upon my list and reach out to…”
“Me?”
She nodded again. “And others.”
“And that’s a bad thing?”
That had her hesitating, and he watched with a mixture of annoyance and amusement as she eyed the cake pops again. Knowing he’d never have her full attention at this rate, Dylan reached over and picked one up and held it out to her. “Here. Eat it. Please!” he said with a forced chuckle. “Just…get it out of the way so we can talk.”
Her cheeks turned a deep shade of red, and Dylan realized it probably wasn’t overly proper or polite of him to point out that she was agonizing over a piece of cake, but they had bigger issues to discuss, and dammit, he deserved her full attention.
“Sorry,” he murmured as she reluctantly took the pop from his hand. “I hate sitting here watching you argue with yourself over this. Take it and enjoy it. I got it for you.”
“Thanks,” she said quietly. “It’s not very professional, or ladylike, for me to be paying more attention to cake than a client so…I’m sorry.” Then she took a delicate bite of the pop and groaned with pleasure.
Dylan’s immediate thought was how the cake was bite-sized and wondered why she took such a small bite, but as soon as she groaned, he realized he didn’t give a damn how many bites it took for her to get through it. Never had he seen someone take such extreme pleasure in their food—especially such a tiny bite of food!
He shifted in his seat and thought of helping himself to one of the pops but immediately reconsidered. If they had to sit here for the rest of the afternoon, he was willing to torture himself and simply listen to Paige enjoy each and every bite.
“Oh, that’s good,” she said and smiled at him. “Thank you.”
“My pleasure,” he replied, and meant it. “So…someone messed with your list…”
She took another bite, moaned, and nodded.
Dylan shifted again to ease what was sure to become a very evident reaction to the sound of Paige’s throaty voice.
“My sister,” she said. “She doesn’t think authors—bestselling authors—are a big enough draw for the campaign. So she decided to reach out to bigger names, but to be honest with you, I don’t understand her reasoning.” She studied him for a moment. “I mean, overall I do. Many literacy campaigns in the past have used athletes and celebrities to help sell the cause. But…is there something about you that would have her believe you’d be a good fit for a literacy project? Have you ever done anything for this cause before?”
He shook his head. “Honestly, I’ve never worked on anything like this before.” He paused and tried to work out in his head what he wanted to say, but his mouth didn’t want to wait. “Look, I’m a musician. Normally my time is spent on tour or in the studio. There was never time or a need to do anything like this. But right now? I’ve got nothing but time on my hands and this is a project I’d like to get involved with.”
With a tilted head, she looked at him, and he noticed the slight frown. “Why? Why do you have so much free time?”
“The band
’s on hiatus.”
Straightening, she nodded. “Oh. Okay. For how long?”
“I don’t know. Things are a little…complicated right now. But from what I saw of your timeline, it’s not going to cause a conflict.”
“How can you be so sure? What if things worked out and someone wanted to perform next week? Then what?”
“Then I’d make it work out so I would honor my commitment to you first,” he said quickly, feeling the first twinge of hope since this conversation began. “If I sign on with you, Paige, then I promise I will see it through to the end. Although I can’t imagine that you’d need me to be an active participant 24/7 for the entire run. But the campaign would be my first priority. You have my word on that.”
That seemed to please her. She took another sip of her Frappuccino and then picked up the next cake pop. Dylan almost leaned in in anticipation.
“I, um…I wasn’t sure which flavors you liked,” he said as she studied the pop. “That one is red velvet, I believe.”
She gave him a shy smile. “Red velvet is my favorite, but they’re all good.” Then she took a small bite and—God help him—let out another little moan.
He felt a bead of sweat start to trickle down his neck.
Was she even aware that she was doing it?
Clearing his throat, he said, “I think what you have planned is impressive. I can imagine it’s going to be successful and I want to be a part of it. So what do you say, Paige?”
Rather than answer, she took her second bite and finished the cake pop. Dylan had to distract himself until he was certain she was done.
Clearly, it had been way too long since he’d had sex if he was getting this hot and bothered over a woman eating dessert. He made a mental note to work on rectifying that.
Tonight.
Paige shifted a bit in her seat and studied him. “Dylan, I’d like to say yes to you, but…I can’t.”
Dammit.
“I was leaving early today to look over all the information Ariel changed and sort of wrap my head around it all and see if it makes sense or if we should stick to my original list of contributors and authors. It’s nothing personal—”
Holiday Spice Page 32
