Her mother’s brow tightened. “Apparently, your father had no trouble using his gift for himself.”
Tori hated that her dad had been a womanizer, although that had nothing to do with his supernatural abilities. It hadn’t been love that he’d sought in the arms of those other women, merely temporary pleasure. Or perhaps, a respite from her mom’s bitterness. “Can we please not discuss Dad?”
Her mother plucked a leaf out of Tori’s hair. “Look at you,” she hissed. “You’re covered in filth now. Why in the world would you do something so silly? That old tree house could be rotten by now. Good thing it didn’t collapse under your weight.”
A stabbing pain started behind her eyes. Ignoring her mother’s barbs was no easier than it had been when she was a child. Arguing with her was pointless. She rubbed the bridge of her nose. “Just give me your banking. I need to get out of here. I’ve still got a lot to do today.”
Heath returned with her shoes and handed them to her. Hanging onto his arm, she slipped them on then she held out her hand to her mother. “Checks?”
She placed a bank envelope in Tori’s palm. “I’ll be at the opening ceremony tomorrow. I wasn’t going to, but the deputy mayor begged me to join him.”
Tori resisted the urge to roll her eyes. If Heath hadn’t been there, her mother would have said Robert, rather than the deputy mayor. Why did she always try to impress people who didn’t give a damn anyway? “We have to go. The bank will be closing soon.”
When they climbed into the van a minute later, Tori leaned her head back against the seat. Some of the tension slipped away as they left her mother’s driveway. “She still drives me nuts.”
He started the engine. “She’s your mother. That’s her job.”
She directed him to the bank.
“I know it’s none of my business.” Heath pulled into the drive-in teller lane.
“What?” Tori handed him the deposit which he put into the tube that sent it shuttling through a clear tunnel and out of sight.
“Why can’t she do stuff like this herself?”
She’d asked her mother the same question more than once.
He draped his arm over the seat. “She’s not helpless. How hard is this? She has a car, she knows how to make out the deposit slip, obviously. Or she could just snap a photo of the checks and deposit them in seconds with her phone.”
“I know, I know. But she’s impossible to talk to.” Tori folded her arms over her chest. Sure, her mother was way too dependent, and someday she’d put her foot down and cut those strings, but today she was too busy.
After her dad passed away, her mom had become so needy, as if she couldn’t function without Tori’s help. She’d tried to get her mom to do more for herself, be more independent, but her efforts had resulted in a suicide threat. Tori had dragged her to a therapist for months. Although the counseling had helped, Tori was still afraid if she pulled back too much, her mother’s emotional state would deteriorate.
After the bank, they headed toward The Breakers Hotel, where she’d booked Heath a suite for the next four nights. Just to be safe, she phoned ahead to confirm his reservation.
The desk clerk told her exactly what she didn’t want to hear—that they had no reservation under Heath’s name and that all their rooms were booked thanks to the tricentennial celebration.
“Please put on a manager.” She’d learned early in her career to go straight to a supervisor. But this time, it didn’t seem to help.
“I’m so sorry, Miss Sutherland, but we seem to have lost the reservation,” the manager told her. “I’d be happy to give you a voucher for another time.”
The Breakers was the nicest place in town and closest to all the events, but there were three other hotels in the area. “Nope, we’ll call somewhere else.”
“Um, I hate to tell you, but between the Cat’s Paw Cove tricentennial and a couple of weddings this weekend, every room within fifty miles of here is booked. Perhaps the St. Augustine Hilton has availability. Would you like me to check for you?”
“St. Augustine? That’s more than an hour away.” Her headache returned for an encore. “No, we’ll figure out a plan B.”
She hung up and faced Heath. “Take a left at the light. We might as well go to my place to regroup.”
He grinned. “You finally going to give in and invite me into your bed?”
She felt another tug low in her belly that definitely wasn’t hunger this time. Being around him was stirring up all sorts of desires she didn’t dare act upon.
“I’ll take your lack of an answer as a yes.” He waggled his eyebrows at her and damned if that flutter didn’t reappear, accompanied by a tightness in her throat she recognized as fear.
“Um, no. I’m sorry I can’t offer you nicer accommodations, but you’ll have to stay at my house. Much as I don’t want to, I’ll bunk over at Mama’s place.” Although the very idea of staying with her mother made her shudder.
“Your mother’s? Seriously, Tori, I could never punish you like that. I’d rather sleep in your van with…” He glanced over his shoulder. “…all your party supplies.”
Having Heath so close could be dangerous. She slid her gaze over him. He was the hottest guy she’d ever known. Truth was, Heath was way more attractive than William. What if she had a sexy dream and climbed into his bed for comfort?
Her connection to Heath went way deeper. He knew practically everything about her, and he still liked her. She could be a goof with him, and he didn’t look at her as if she were an alien. He got her sense of humor, and she loved his. No one else understood her as well as he did.
Too bad he lived three thousand miles away and spent so much of his time traveling. After William had enlisted in the army, they’d spent too much time apart. Enough for him to cheat on her.
No, even if Heath didn’t reject her again—which he likely would—she couldn’t allow herself to go down that path. Still, something deep inside her loved the idea of sleeping under the same roof with him.
With all his flirting, maybe he did feel something for her. The man oozed sexy. As much as she enjoyed having him around, being near him was tough. She suspected half the reason she had so many headaches was all her built up tension and her lack of sexual release.
She’d never engaged in any purely carnal endeavors, but perhaps that was exactly what she needed—a release for all that sexual energy. Maybe Heath would be the perfect guy for a fling. He wasn’t some stranger she couldn’t be sure she could trust. Sleeping together would certainly change their relationship. Who knows? Having intimate knowledge of each other might deepen their friendship.
Or ruin it.
No, they were mature, worldly adults. Well, he was worldly. He’d probably had purely physical arrangements with plenty of other women, and guys seemed to have the ability to separate sex from romantic feelings.
But could she?
Only one way to find out.
And if she got all weird about it after, she’d handle it. Hell, if she’d learned to deal with William’s betrayal, she could surely cope with her feelings after a one- or two-night-stand. Besides, Heath would be three thousand miles away by next week. Out of sight, out of mind.
If he were interested in a no-strings fling, tonight would be the perfect opportunity.
“This is it.” Tori unlocked the front door to her cottage and let Heath inside.
He left his suitcase next to a hot pink upholstered bench in the foyer. When he strode through an arched doorway into the living room, he laughed. The room was an explosion of color with a purple couch, lime-green wallpaper, and throw pillows in a dozen different colors and designs, and a cozy window seat where he could picture Tori curled up with a good book. “This is so you.”
“My mother says a rainbow threw up in here. I didn’t have a lot of money to spend on decorating, so I learned how to reupholster, and I used her castoff furniture.”
Like Tori, the place loo
ked solid and functional yet with tons of whimsy. “It’s very…colorful, but it works. I love it.”
She brightened. “Thanks for saying that.” Dropping her purse on an overstuffed blue chair, she gestured to the couch. “Make yourself at home. How about a drink?”
“Sure.” She headed through another wide archway into the kitchen, which was decorated like a fifties diner. But the graceful swing of her backside captured his attention more than the décor. He couldn’t take his eyes off her to save his life. For the first time in years, he wanted something he couldn’t have.
Two cats—one white and the other black—came out of nowhere and rubbed against her shins. She crouched to pet them. “Hello, kitties. Are you hungry?” She filled three bowls with dry cat food. “There’s another one around here somewhere. Here, kitty, kitty.” She whistled like a truck driver.
“What are their names?”
She retrieved two crystal goblets from a cabinet. “Oh, I’m not keeping them. My friend, Jordan, asked me to take them home since Cove Cat Café, where she works was over capacity. Sooner or later I’ll find homes for them, so I haven’t named them. Then I won’t get attached.”
“If you say so.” She’d always collected strays when they were kids. Hell, he’d been one of her rescues.
“Remind me to pick up more cat food,” she said. “I’m almost out.” A calico scampered into the room, and Tori immediately picked it up and snuggled it against her neck. “Where were you hiding, silly girl?” After she set the feline on the floor, she threw away the empty bag of cat food, then washed her hands.
“Why not get larger bags?” he asked. “A small one like that can’t last very long for three cats.”
Tori shrugged. “I told you, they’re only here temporarily. As soon as the right home opens up, they’ll be moving on.”
“You seem awfully enamored with them. Sure you’re planning to get rid of them?”
Waving away his question, she poured two glasses of merlot and handed him one. Her cell rang just as she sat down on the sofa. She glanced at the display. “Sorry, that’s one of my assistants. I have to take it.”
Giving her a thumbs up, he went to check out the shelves in her living room that held her Cloisonné objects, many of which she’d inherited from her grandmother. The collection had grown substantially since high school. In the middle of the second shelf, he spotted the autographed baseball and an Angels ball cap he’d given her right after he’d signed with the team. And a framed picture of the two of them at her high school graduation, the only photo in the room.
She kept those items with her most prized possessions. His throat thickened with emotion.
“Oh, Delia, no,” Tori said into her phone. “You’ve got to be kidding.”
He tried not to eavesdrop, but as her voice rose higher, the more obvious it became that something had gone very wrong at work.
“No, it’s not your fault, honey. I’ll take care of that.” She hung up, then drained her wine. Setting the glass hard on the coffee table, she let out a sigh.
“What happened?”
Her forehead wrinkled with tension. “That was one of my assistants, Delia. The custom decorations for one of our weddings this weekend were delayed. Apparently, someone at the factory in Taiwan thought we needed them in three months rather than the three weeks we were promised. One of my assistants now has to make four dozen assorted Papier Mache tropical fish for the centerpieces. God, that’ll take her all day tomorrow.” She hung her head. “Which means I’ll have to stuff the goody bags she was supposed to handle this weekend.”
“What can I do to help?”
She sighed. “Clone me.” She paced the small room, mumbling under her breath and ticking off some mental list on her fingers.
“There’s only one of you, Tori.” He’d learned that the hard way. Deep down, he’d probably been searching for a woman like her for years. A woman who not only turned him on physically but who was also intelligent, capable, funny and didn’t see him as a ticket to fame or fortune.
“I have to be in two places at one time tomorrow. My assistants are already booked. I need to oversee the setup for the opening ceremony of the bicentennial at three. Now I have to find the time to stuff three hundred goody bags for a corporate event. There’s no way I can do it all.”
“Sit down, would you? You’re making me dizzy.” When she did, he rounded the couch and rubbed her shoulders. Her throaty moan made him think wicked thoughts. Like what else he wanted to do to her to elicit such an erotic sound. Darn good thing he was behind her with the back of the sofa between them. The more he massaged, the more her sensual sighs aroused him.
Standing over her, he feasted on the view. And what spectacular scenery it was. The top of her dress was cut low enough for him to see her cleavage. He could only imagine how those full breasts would fill his hands, how her nipples would harden under his touch.
Damn it, he wasn’t some horny teenager, and he felt like a voyeur. He forced his gaze away and tried to concentrate on something else. Focusing on baseball didn’t help, though. First base with Tori, second, third… The metaphor got him right back to where he’d started.
“It’ll take hours to get those bags ready, and no one has a free minute, let alone that much time.” She mumbled a curse under her breath.
He pushed her hair aside, grateful for an excuse to touch her silky curls. “What about your mother? She doesn’t seem to have much to keep her busy. Can’t she stuff goody bags?”
“Ha! Want to know what happened the last time she helped me out?”
He slid his hands lower on her back. She’d tensed at his mention of her mother but he was enjoying touching her, and eventually, she’d relax. Hopefully before his right elbow got sore.
“I gave her the job of making centerpieces for a sweet sixteen party,” she said “The design was simple. I laid out exactly what went into each vase, just a matter of sorting the items, then putting one of these, two of those, one of that. You get the idea?”
“Sure. Sounds easy enough.”
“You’d think. She made such a mess of the project.” She growled. “I don’t even want to talk about it. It’ll get me pissed off all over again.”
“Too late.” He bent to kiss the top of her head. There was that wonderful scent again. It was so tempting to trail his tongue over her earlobe and her jaw then finally taste her mouth. Reluctantly, he squared his shoulders and went back to his task. “Did it ever occur to you that your mother does things like that on purpose?”
“Mess stuff up? Why would she?”
“To stay dependent on you.” Tori was so bright. Yet when it came to her family, she was blind. She either didn’t understand that her mother constantly manipulated her, or she was merely in denial. Her father had been even more controlling.
Not that his own parents had been any better. His dad had stayed drunk most of the time, and his mother had enabled his bad behavior. When his father wasn’t falling down drunk, he often became physically abusive.
When Tori didn’t say anything, he dropped it.
“I have an idea.” He came around the couch to sit next to her. “What if I help you make the bags. I promise I won’t screw it up.”
She destroyed him with a look. Her eyes glistened, and she pursed her lips like she was holding something back. Finally, she spoke. “You’re so sweet to offer, but I can’t ask you to do that. You’re supposed to be relaxing in a luxurious suite at The Breakers, not slumming at my place. You’re the guest of honor, not the hired help.” When she set her hand on his knee, he stiffened.
She didn’t mean anything by it, that was just Tori. He twirled a strand of her hair around his finger. “You’re not asking, I’m offering. And it’s not like I’m some stuck-up celebrity. I’m your friend, and that’s what friends do for each other. We’ll knock those bags out in no time.”
She hugged her arms around him. Her body was warm against his, way too temptin
g. It took everything he had to extricate himself and stand up. Safer to keep some distance between them.
She rubbed her hands together. “How about a movie? I have Young Frankenstein on Blue-ray.”
She’d remembered his favorite movie. That got him right in his gut. None of the women he’d dated had shared or even knew about his love and appreciation for Mel Brooks’ work. “How can I refuse?”
Crossing the room to an armoire, she glanced over her shoulder at him. “You can’t. I bought it just for you.” She slipped in the disc then tipped her chin toward the couch. “C’mon.”
He took the far end of the sofa, hoping she wouldn’t sit too close. Why torture himself? But despite his well-meaning strategy, she settled in the crook of his arm and snuggled against him as she started the movie.
Much as he loved the film, his concentration kept wandering elsewhere. Like every point where Tori’s body touched his. Her hair tickled his neck and arm, tempting him to thread his fingers through her curls. It would be so easy to reel her in for a slow, tasting kiss.
Every time she shifted against him, he had to remind himself that their relationship could never cross the line between friends and lovers, but damn, it was difficult.
Halfway through the film, she paused it and got herself more wine. Which was a good thing since his side hurt from laughing so hard.
“Want some?” She returned from the kitchen and lifted the bottle toward his goblet.
“Nope. One’s my limit.” Watching his father destroy their family had cured him of drinking more than an occasional glass of wine.
“Right, sorry.” She topped hers off, then set the bottle on the coffee table. “I’m going to change into my PJs. I’ll be right back.”
What if she returned in some slinky see-through negligee? He swallowed hard as she disappeared down the hallway. His mind came up with an image of her in a short, barely-there scrap of fabric. He tried to think of something else, but he couldn’t erase the vision.
The front was all red laces like the best Christmas present ever, waiting for him to untie it. And when he did, the material fell away. She strode toward him, licking her lips as if she were as hungry for him as he was for her.
Her Homerun Hottie Page 6
