Chapter 14
Rhys headed for his home office, his heart lighter than it had been in days. She wasn’t indifferent to him. She was just scared. He could help her get over being scared. And then they could be together.
After an hour of reading through a contract his lawyer had drawn up for the acquisition of a new company and red-lining it in spots, Rhys got a call from Dan, his other lawyer–the one handling the Skinny case.
“What’s Skinny up to now?” Rhys said.
“She’s got a witness.” Dan huffed.
Rhys’ fingers tightened into a fist. “What witness? I never did anything to her. She can’t have a witness for something that didn’t happen.”
“She says she does. We’ve got to take this seriously. I’m working on finding out who the witness is, and lining up a meeting. We need to find a way to discredit their story.”
“We will.” There had to be a way. He’d never laid a hand on Skinny; he didn’t even find her attractive.
“In the meantime, I think we should strengthen your own witnesses. Janet’s solid, but she’s not very warm. I’d like to get someone else in addition to her, someone the judge will really like.”
Rhys immediately thought of Sophie. Everyone would like her. But there was no way he was dragging her into the middle of all of this. “How about Raymond?”
He knew what Dan would say, and he wasn’t disappointed. “He’s as stuffy as Janet. We need someone warm, friendly. Think about it. We’ll discuss it again the next time we talk.” They hung up.
Dan would love Sophie. Luckily, Sophie stayed in the kitchen which meant Dan had never met her. Rhys would have to keep it that way if he wanted to protect her.
Besides, she wouldn’t make the best witness anyway. She’d have to admit he’d come onto her, and that would make his case worse, not better. So he didn’t need to worry about Dan dragging her onto the stand anyway. Still, he’d keep Dan away from her just in case.
Rhys jumped back into his work. Only another couple of hours before he’d get some of Sophie’s fresh baked bread. And maybe stop by the kitchen to get some cookies.
He dove back into reviewing the contract then got on the phone with his corporate lawyer to go over it. By the end of their phone call, he knew he was going to need to be in on the final negotiations himself. The other party was playing hard-ball and just having Rhys–the big boss–in the room would strengthen his side. Problem was, it meant he’d have to go to New York for at least a week, maybe longer.
That hadn’t been a problem in the past, but right now, he just wanted to stay here, with Sophie. He could admit it. He’d miss her if he had to leave for that long. But it didn’t look like there was any way around it.
By dinner, Rhys’ travel plans were in motion. He hadn’t gotten to the kitchen at lunchtime but he was determined to stop by after dinner. So after eating his incredible mac and cheese in the dining room, he bypassed Raymond and headed for some cookies.
Chapter 15
Once Rhys’ entree left the kitchen, Sophie raced to get things cleaned up. She wanted to get out of there before Rhys could find her. She figured she had at least twenty minutes while he ate his dinner and then all bets were off.
His visit that morning had knocked her off-kilter and the feeling had lasted the entire day. She needed to get some time to herself to think about what he’d said and what she wanted and what she needed. She couldn’t do that with him around.
But before she could leave, she had to finish cleaning up after the staff, who’d eaten earlier. And she had to put out cookies for Rhys’ dessert. And make sure everything was ready for the next morning’s breakfast.
The clock ticked down. When she passed the twenty minute mark, she moved even faster. Then she passed the thirty minute mark and she still wasn’t finished. There was so much to do! At thirty-five minutes, she swiped the dishrag across the counter one last time and tossed it in the laundry.
Done.
She headed for the stairway that led to the servant’s quarters but before she could get there, the door from the house opened and Rhys walked through.
His eyebrows rose. “Cookies?”
“On the counter,” she said, backing toward the stairs. “Shouldn’t Raymond be getting those for you?”
He didn’t move. “Thought I’d come get them myself. Going somewhere?”
“Just...” She motioned toward the upper floors. “I’m finished for the night.”
Rhys sauntered toward her. “Good! Then you’re free to go on a walk.”
No, no, no. Her palms suddenly felt damp. This wasn’t the plan. “I have stuff to do.” Washing her hair, rearranging her sock drawer.
“Just a little walk. And we can eat cookies along the way. I’m sure there are plenty. I remember you saying you were making a double batch today.” Rhys grabbed her arm and led her toward the counter and the plate of cookies. “Come on, you’ll like it.” Leaning close, he whispered, “I promise not to bite.”
Why did that send a shiver through her? This was such a bad idea. Yet she let him walk her through the kitchen and out to the garden, with only a short pause while he scooped up the cookies from the plate.
He handed her one. “These are really good. You should try one.” Then he popped one into his mouth whole. Hand free, he placed his palm on the small of her back.
Sophie tried to slow them down. They stood in the open area in the back of the house where less than a week earlier a dance floor had been laid out and three hundred teenagers celebrated Rhys’ niece’s sixteenth birthday. “I really have a lot of things to do this evening. Maybe we could just talk here for a few minutes and then call it a night.”
He finished chewing. “Are you kidding? The garden’s beautiful at night. Plus, over in that corner we have a night garden. I want to show you.”
It wasn’t full dark yet, but it was getting there. With Autumn in full swing, the days would get shorter and shorter until the sun rose and set while she was still working. Tonight, the sun set in a blaze of pinks and purples that hung over the garden, nearly brushing the trees.
His thumb moved against her back. “Come on. You’ll like it. Did you know there are plants that only bloom at night? Amazing.” With a slight pressure, he pushed her into motion. They strolled to the right, away from the copse of trees where his childhood tree house stood, and in the opposite direction from the butterfly garden he’d shown her on their last walk.
It seemed his love of gardening was real, even if he wasn’t the gardener he’d let her believe. “You work in the garden. Did you plan all this?”
“Every inch. With the help of my gardener, of course. He loves that I give him so much money for the grounds, but I think he hates it that I want to be so hands-on.”
The fading light muted all the colors. While not quite gray on gray, the flowers were nevertheless losing their vibrancy. “I can see his point,” she said. “If you were trying to tell me what to cook all the time, I’d have a fit.”
His hand slid from her back to her waist, pulling her closer. “I’d like to see that.”
“See...?”
“See you pitch a fit. I’ll bet it would be really hot.”
Men. Who understood them? “Sorry to disappoint you, but I’m going to pass on the hissy fit.”
He squeezed her hip. “Too bad.”
They walked down a path lined with bushes and flowerbeds–petunias and roses and gardenias of all different colors. The path led to a little bridge over a pond, then into a sleepy area with big trees and benches. A fire pit sat in the middle, though no fire was lit tonight.
“Here we are. It’s a great place for night time parties, which is why the fire pit’s here.” He steered her toward one of the benches. “Let’s sit. The flowers won’t bloom quite yet.”
Oh, no. He wanted them to wait here while the flowers bloomed? That could take a long time, couldn’t it? “I really need to get back.”
He pulled her down onto the bench. “Oh
, come on. This’ll be worth it.” He slung an arm around the back of the seat so it brushed her shoulders. His thigh lay against hers and his fingers stroked her arm.
Her stomach fluttered. Torture. That’s what this was. She’d wanted some distance so she could figure out what she wanted, and she’d gotten the opposite. No distance; instead, she felt like she was drowning in him. “How’s work?” she stammered.
“It’s fine.” He paused. A long pause. Nearly long enough for her to want to fill the silence. “I’m going to have to go to New York for a while on business.” His fingers continued to rub her arm. “I’d like to call you while I’m gone, if I could.”
She shifted to face him, dislodging his hand. “Rhys. We’re not dating. We can’t. You know that.”
“What I know is that you’re not even giving us a chance. What’s the worst that could happen? The very, very worst?”
She took a breath but didn’t answer.
“I’m serious. Tell me what the worst that could happen is. I’ll go first. We could fall in love and then something horrible could happen and we could be torn apart, never to be together again, and I could be so distraught that I commit hara-kiri. And with my death, my company will fail and all the people who work for me will lose their jobs and one of them will be so upset he’ll invent a death ray that blows up the earth and everyone will die. Well, except for me, because I’ll already be dead.”
She tried to swallow her laughter. “That’s ridiculous.”
“So’s this idea that we can’t date. So go ahead. Your turn.”
She couldn’t do this. “What–you want me to make something up where everyone dies at the end?”
“Or whatever your version of ‘worst thing ever’ is. And then when you see how ridiculous it is, you’ll be able to see this whole thing in perspective.” His arm dropped down the back of the seat to rest around her hips, its warmth surrounding her and causing a riot of excited tingles all through her.
She’d had enough. “Do you always have to do that? Touch me? Don’t you know how hard this is?”
He leaned into her so fast she didn’t even see him move, cupping her face, their foreheads just an inch or two away from each other. “I know exactly how hard this is. Do you? Do you know how bad I want you? Want to touch you, kiss you–hell, just want to be around you?”
She didn’t know what to say. In the second that she hesitated, he leaned forward and pressed his lips against hers. When he pulled back, he didn’t go far. “Just give us a chance, Soph.” Then he kissed her again, softer this time. Their lips parted and his tongue slipped into her mouth, tangling with hers.
She couldn’t force herself to pull away. She should; she knew she should. But it felt so good to be held in his arms, so right, and she wanted to stay there forever and forget the rest of the world existed.
Rhys’ arm tightened around her back, pulling her closer. Twining her arms around his neck, she let him draw her in. With a groan, he dragged her onto his lap, ending with one arm around her waist and the other hand threaded through her hair to hold her in place as their kiss deepened even further.
She forgot...everything. She forgot her reasons for needing to stay away from him. She forgot that she shouldn’t be doing this. She forgot her name. Instead, she pulled him closer and opened to him, ready to give him the world if he’d just keep kissing her like that.
Rhys broke the kiss, pulling back by a hair. When he spoke, his lips were still so close they brushed against hers with every word. “Let’s go back to the house. To my room.” His eyes, so close to hers, were dilated with desire, his breathing ragged.
She could only imagine what he saw when he looked at her. She still couldn’t think straight, but she knew this was her only chance to stop this. But why did she want to? She couldn’t remember.
Rhys’ hand cupped her cheek again. With a groan, he pulled her back into a kiss. She gripped his shoulders to hold on as he plundered her mouth.
But as she held him, she remembered. The last time she’d felt like this, she’d thought it would last forever. And then she’d lost everything, bit by bit...her pride, her job, her child. A thread of fear wormed its way through her gut. What if this was the same? Rhys may not intentionally hurt her, but he lived in a different world. He couldn’t possibly mean this to last forever. So she’d get hurt. Again.
Pushing him away hurt too, but she did it. “We shouldn’t.”
“Why?” His warm breath brushed against her lips.
Gazing into his eyes, she couldn’t say what she really thought–that falling for him would crush her. “It’s too soon, too fast.”
He swallowed. “We can wait as long as you want. Just don’t make me let go.” In the same instant, his arm tightened around her.
That worked for her. She didn’t have the strength to push him away completely. Instead, she hugged him, her head on his shoulder. Her heart still beat harder than it should, the desire oozing through her.
Rhys rubbed her back, his head resting against hers. “We can make this work. We just have to try. I know it’s hard for you to trust me, but if you give me a chance I’ll prove to you that you can.” He kissed her temple. “Just give me that chance.”
And again, it felt right to be in his arms. Maybe she was wrong. Rhys and Stanford were nothing alike; maybe thinking the two relationships would end the same way was unfair of her.
Maybe she should do as he asked and give him a chance.
She still felt scared, but all the same she looked into his eyes and said, “Okay.”
Rhys brushed the hair away from her face and laid a sweet, gentle kiss against her lips. “Thank you.” Then he rested his forehead against hers and they gazed into each other’s eyes for several long moments.
Rhys ran his hand down her hair. “I think the flowers are blooming. Want to see?”
She nodded. When he pulled her to her feet, the first thing she saw was the white moonflowers in full bloom. When she and Rhys had first gotten here, the moonflowers had been tight white buds, and now they had opened as though spreading their arms to the moon.
“They’re beautiful,” she said.
“That’s just the beginning.” With a light pressure on her back, he led her to the pond. “Look at the lilies.”
Bright pink and purple lilies had opened all across the pond, drenching it in color and a pungent scent.
“Those are Nymphaea Red Flares. They bloom in the evening twilight. What do you think?”
“Rhys, they’re gorgeous.”
He led her around the small garden, showing her flower after flower. She couldn’t remember the names of most of them, just marveled at the bright colors, the pale pale whites and the delicate blooms.
He brushed his fingers over the leaves of a Dragon Fruit Flower. “There are so many kinds of plants and they all fascinate me. Why do some grow better in the tropics and others in the north? Heck, why some in the shade and others in the sun? Some at night and others during the day? I want to learn them all.”
She thought she heard wistfulness in his voice but she wasn’t sure. “Is this what you want to do when you grow up? Be a horticulturalist?”
He laughed. “Yeah. When I grow up.” The sadness was definitely there in the tone of his voice.
Sophie put her hand on his arm. “This is what you wish you could do, isn’t it? You’d rather be out here in the garden than doing whatever it is billionaires do.”
He stilled, just his fingers moving over the petal of one flower. “Yeah. But I can’t. My family depends on me. So does the company, all my employees, all the staff at the house. Even you.”
“Surely you’ve amassed enough wealth to live quite well for the rest of your life?”
“That depends on what you consider ‘quite well.’ I’d be happy with a cottage on a big plot of land where I can put my hands in the dirt every day. But my family wants more than that.”
This sounded too much like her family. Except she’d bucked their expectations an
d done what she wanted, while he was still stuck. “If they want the money so bad they should make it for themselves.”
He jolted. “They can’t–I mean, I’m the one with the gift for running a company. My brothers would run the place into the ground.”
“You could hire someone else to run it.” It seemed so simple to her. He had tons of money. What couldn’t you do with tons of money?
He shook his head, still rubbing the petal. “What, and give all this up? How could I have gardens like this anywhere else?” He squeezed her tight then kissed the side of her head. “Let’s talk about something else.”
Clearly he was avoiding the whole issue. That was fine, whatever. It was his life. All the same, she didn’t like seeing him in pain.
Chapter 16
Rhys couldn’t believe Sophie had agreed to give him a chance. He could barely believe he was standing in the garden with her, his arm around her, and she wasn’t trying to step away or shake him loose. He actually had a shot. Now he had to make sure he didn’t screw this up.
He’d heard what she said in not-so-many-words about living his own life and not bowing down to the pressure his family put on him. Except he cared about his family too, and their well-being was just as important to him as that of the staff and employees who depended on him.
But there was one area where he’d be happy to rebel. His mother wanted him to marry some debutante and she kept pushing them at him, one after another. But he wanted Sophie. And if things didn’t work out with Sophie, at least now he knew that he wanted someone like her–down to earth, real. Not someone who’d botoxed their brain until they could do nothing but fall in lockstep with everyone else in ‘polite society.’
He’d buck his family on this. And if they tried to bring him to heel, he’d show them just how thankful they should be for everything he did.
He ran out of flowers to show Sophie, but he didn’t want to go back to the house yet. Going back to the house would undoubtedly mean he’d have to let go of her, and he sure as hell didn’t want to do that.
Crazy About Curves: 10 Luscious Reads Page 85
