by Erika Wilde
Melodie swiped her napkin across her mouth, pushed her half-eaten lunch aside and took Jo up on her offer to express what was bothering her. “Can we talk, girl to girl?” she asked, then rephrased her question. “Or rather, woman to woman?”
A grin quirked Jo’s mouth and interest glimmered in her eyes. “Sure. What’s on your mind?” She finished off her burger and washed it down with the last of her soda.
Melodie paused a moment, then jumped in. “I was hoping you could give me some advice on attracting a man’s attention.”
Jo’s light, good-natured laughter rang between them. “What in the world makes you think I’m qualified to dole out advice on men?”
Propping her elbows on the table, Melodie laced her fingers together and rested her chin on top. “You caught Dean’s attention, didn’t you?”
“There were extenuating circumstances,” Jo replied, brushing a wisp of blond hair off her cheek. “I certainly wasn’t looking for a man when I met him.”
Melodie felt a blush sweep across her skin at the insinuation that she was on the hunt for men. As in plural. “There’s only one man I want,” she clarified.
Leaning back in her chair, Jo regarded her thoughtfully as the waitress cleared their plates. The other woman mentioned dessert, momentarily distracting Jo with more important matters as she ordered herself a slice of chocolate cake. Melodie passed on the offer of sweets, opting instead for a refill on her iced tea.
Once the server was gone, Jo returned to her subtle analysis of Melodie from across the table. “If I had to hazard a guess, I’d say it’s Cole you’re after.”
Melodie opened her mouth, then closed it again, unable to deny the truth. “Yes, it is,” she said, relieved to finally admit her feelings to someone. “Am I that obvious?”
The waitress delivered Jo’s cake and she dove right in to the dessert. “Let’s just say that you have a way of wearing your emotions on your sleeve and in your eyes.”
“Does Cole know?” she asked tentatively.
Jo shrugged. “I have no idea, though I have to say that Cole tends to shut out the things he doesn’t know how to deal with. You could be one of those things,” she added with a smile.
Melodie frowned. “That doesn’t sound very encouraging to me.”
“Knowing my brother all too well, he’s probably avoiding the attraction, and if you want his attention, you’re going to have to force him to acknowledge it.” Jo took another bite of the rich, creamy-looking chocolate cake, and took a long moment to savor the taste. “So what brought all this on, anyway?”
Melodie explained about the Russell case, along with Cole needing a woman to accompany him to the charity auction. “I made the suggestion that I go with him to the affair so I can read those erotic love letters for him. I know the case, and I’ve worked for him for two years doing extended background checks and researching case information. The next logical step would be for me to help him on this case, but he’s adamant that my talents are better suited in the office and not out in the field.”
Jo chuckled in amusement. “Oh, that’s a good one.”
She cringed as she remembered his unflattering comment, but wasn’t about to let it deter her from her purpose. “Also, he claims he doesn’t want to put me in a potentially dangerous situation, yet he’s willing to use another woman as a decoy that he doesn’t even know that well. If all that’s not bad enough, he’s using his close relationship with my father as an excuse to make sure he keeps me safe and out of harm’s way, as if it’s his duty to shelter and protect me. Between the two of them, I’ve had enough of being watched over and being told what to do.”
“Wow, can I ever relate to that,” Jo murmured in understanding. “Cole has always been the same way with me. He’s only eased off since I married Dean. Being protective of the people in his life has been ingrained in my brother since the day my parents divorced, and that trait only intensified after our father died and he had to raise me and Noah. Cole takes his responsibilities very seriously.”
“The very last thing I want is to be an obligation to Cole,” Melodie said, swirling her straw through her iced tea.
Jo ate another sliver of her chocolate cake, her eyes lighting up with an idea. “If you really want to be the woman on his arm at this charity auction, then why don’t you give him what he wants?”
Uncertain what Jo was getting at, she asked, “Which is?”
“A woman who fits his vision.” Jo licked remnants of frosting from her fork as she thought for a moment. “What, exactly, did Cole tell Noah he wanted again?”
“A sexy, sophisticated, intelligent woman.” The prerequisite was burned in her memory.
A disarming grin curved Jo’s mouth. “Then that’s exactly what you give him.”
“Take a look at the woman sitting in front of you, Jo,” she said, her tone dry. “I’m not exactly sophisticated, sex kitten material.”
“No, but you most definitely have the potential to be,” Jo countered confidently. “If this is what you really want, you’re going to have to be willing to play the part to the nines. You’ll need to learn to walk the walk and talk the talk and shed a few inhibitions along the way. Think you can handle that?”
A spark of excitement flared within her. This was exactly what she needed—a friendly shove to break out of the straitlaced, conservative lifestyle she’d led for too long. “I’m certainly willing to try.”
“Oh, this is going to be fun.” Jo’s eyes glowed with mischief. “Tomorrow’s Saturday. What do you say you and I plan a girls’ day out and do the works, from head to toe? Haircuts, manicure, pedicure, and a few new outfits?”
Melodie’s spirits lifted as she envisioned the new and improved her. “Just so long as Dean doesn’t mind me monopolizing your day.”
“Are you kidding?” Jo brushed off her concern with a wave of her hand. “He’ll reap the benefits when I come home with some sexy lingerie.”
She exhaled a deep breath. “Then consider it a date.”
Jo leaned across the table, her expression filled with glee. “Come Monday morning, you’ll knock Cole’s socks off.”
Among other things, Melodie hoped. She grinned at Jo and said, “Let the transformation begin.”
* * *
By Sunday evening Melodie decided that being sexy and sophisticated entailed a whole lot of hard work. Talented beauticians had managed to transform her into a woman she hardly recognized as her former self—from the cut, color, and style of her hair, to her subtly made-up face, all the way to the pale pink polish on the nails of her fingers and toes. Salesladies with an eye for flattering outfits had given her a whole new look. Coupled with Jo’s approval and coaxing, her wardrobe now consisted of the kind of form-fitting and stylish clothes she’d always admired on other women but had never bought for herself.
Outwardly, she had to admit she looked like a whole new woman, the kind of worldly, wise, and attractive date Cole needed on his arm in two weeks. Now she had to work on the “inner her,” and all the personality traits that came with being bold, confident, and assertive.
Luckily she’d been blessed with a good amount of intelligence, she thought wryly as she crawled into bed, or else she’d be in big, big trouble, because she doubted there was a trained professional she could hire to implant a quick dose of brilliance. And to her credit, she already knew the PI business, and the details of the Russell case. So, she figured she was as ready as she’d ever be.
Fluffing her pillows against the headboard of her bed, she propped herself up, made herself comfortable and grabbed the book she’d left on her nightstand the previous evening. The book was chock-full of sexy, provocative advice on being aggressive and uninhibited. The Good Girl’s Guide to Being Bad covered everything from walking the walk and talking the talk, as Jo had put it, to how to tease, flirt, and seduce a man with a glance or a touch. The book was all about breaking good-girl rules and embracing sensual, bad-girl pleasures. Later chapters included advice on enjoying
every aspect of hot, erotic sex with the man of her choice, and how to make him a slave to her every desire.
She absorbed every page, every written word, and put it all to memory. By the time she’d finished the book it was nearly midnight, and there was no doubt in her mind that bad girls had the market cornered on fun. She’d also realized how to use an erotic letter of her own to show Cole she was a grown, sensual woman who could handle the Russell case, as well as him.
A smile curled her lips. Her fun would start tomorrow morning at the office, and she couldn’t wait to see the expression on Cole’s face when he laid eyes on her.
CHAPTER FOUR
Cole walked into the office Monday morning and came to an abrupt halt in the reception area when he caught sight of a woman going through the case files in the drawers behind Melodie’s desk. Startled, he cast a quick glance around the area for his secretary, but she was nowhere in the vicinity.
Frowning, he quietly moved forward, wondering what the woman was up to—was she searching for information on a client case? And where was Melodie? He’d seen her car parked outside, so she had to be in the building somewhere.
His mind considered the odd scenario while more masculine instincts took note of the way the woman’s fitted black skirt clung to her trim backside and the sweet curves of her hips and ass. The hem ended midthigh, drawing his gaze to the long, shapely legs that led to a pair of three inch heels. He’d yet to see the woman’s face, but there was no denying she was a knockout from the back down.
Banishing those wayward thoughts, he stopped in front of Melodie’s desk and cleared his throat to get the other woman’s attention. “Excuse me, can I help you with something?”
She whirled around and pressed a hand to her chest in surprise. “Cole!” Melodie exclaimed breathlessly, her eyes wide. “I didn’t hear you come in!”
Cole stared at the gorgeous vision before him, unable to believe his prim, proper, and very reserved secretary had somehow metamorphosed into this head-turning, stunning creature. His mind reeled and his body felt as though he’d been delivered a punch to his midsection.
Gone was the long, tidy braid his secretary always wore, replaced by a tousled, shoulder-length cut that framed her face in soft waves and looked sexy as hell. Cinnamon-hued highlights had been added to her brunette hair, causing the silky strands to shimmer with the simplest movement of her head. The subtle application of makeup on her face brought out threads of bright gold in her brown eyes he’d never noticed before, and her lips were slick with a glossy shade of lipstick that reminded him of a succulent peach—one he wanted to gently sink his teeth into and taste…badly.
The knot in his stomach tightened, yet he couldn’t stop staring. The cream silk blouse she wore clung to her full breasts in a way her other outfits never had and was buttoned just low enough to provide him with a glimpse of cleavage edged in provocative lace. She’d tucked the hem into the trim waistband of her skirt, giving her a sleek, sexy, well-put-together kind of look.
Jesus, Christ. Who knew Melodie had the kind of lush curves that warranted a second glance? And all these years she’d hidden them beneath loose dresses and conservative outfits.
Still in shock, his mouth opened to say something, anything, but no words emerged.
She laughed, the soft, throaty sound unlike anything he’d ever heard in her tone before. “What’s the matter, boss?” she asked as a slow, sensual smile lifted her glossy lips. “Cat got your tongue?”
The proverbial cat not only had his voice, but his traitorous dick seemed to be just as affected by her transformation. If he’d thought he’d been fighting his attraction to Melodie before, he currently felt as though she’d launched a full-out assault on his libido, and his restraint!
He shook his head, hard, and tried to regain his composure. “What’s with…” Unable to grasp the appropriate word when his mind was muddled with arousal, he gestured from the top of her head to the three-inch heels on her feet, with an impatient wave of his hand. “Everything.”
“It’s the new me,” she replied, and twirled around, giving him a three-hundred-sixty-degree view of her very feminine assets. “I was in the mood for a change. What do you think?”
The problem was, he couldn’t think, at least not with any part of his anatomy located above the belt. Mind-blowing was the first word that came to mind, followed by seductive. With all that soft looking hair he wanted to grab in his fist, those luscious lips he wanted to lick and bite, and those impossibly long legs that had him envisioning how they’d look wrapped around his waist, she was his most carnal fantasy come to life.
Although it seemed crazy, he wondered if their conversation last week about her not accompanying him to the charity auction had instigated this radical transformation in her. Not that he had any intention of changing his mind about her doing the job.
He swallowed to ease his parched throat. “You look…” Amazing, tempting, and too damned fuckable. “Really nice,” he forced out blandly.
Some of the confidence glimmering in her gaze dwindled, and he experienced a mixture of relief and regret for bursting her enthusiasm. But the last thing he wanted to do was encourage her brazen behavior in any way. He was already having a difficult enough time with his body’s reaction to this new and sensual Melodie.
So, instead, he focused on business. “Any calls this morning?”
She hesitated for a moment, then straightened her shoulders once again, as if attempting to rebolster her fortitude. Reaching across her desk, she gathered a few pink message slips and handed them his way, her movements slow and unhurried instead of quick and efficient, as was her usual manner.
“Lance Keesling returned your call from Friday,” she said, and even her voice sounded lower, huskier, to his ears. “Jonas Goodwin would like an update on the Williams insurance fraud case, and Bobby Malone will be stopping by later this afternoon to discuss the information you needed on the MacGregor custody case.”
He nodded succinctly. Bobby Malone was a detective with the Oakland PD, and also a good friend of Noah’s. The two of them traded professional favors on cases when needed, and Cole was waiting for crucial information on a prior felon embroiled in a custody dispute with one of his clients.
“Great,” he said, glancing back at her after reviewing the messages she’d taken for him. “Could you pull the Goodwin case file for me and bring it to my office, please?”
“It’s already on your desk,” she replied efficiently.
“Thank you.” At least some things hadn’t changed, he thought gratefully. Despite Melodie’s new attitude and alluring appearance, she was still the same old reliable, conscientious secretary he’d come to depend on in the office.
And that’s all he cared about, he told himself firmly.
“Good morning, everyone,” Noah’s deep, cheerful voice sounded from behind Cole as he entered the reception area, followed by a quick inhalation as he obviously caught sight of Melodie. “Holy sh—” he cut himself off. Cole turned to see his shocked outburst replaced with a wolfish grin. “Who in the heck is this impostor? Certainly not our sweet Mel!”
A pink blush swept across her cheeks, but something much more mischievous flickered in her eyes. “Maybe I’m her naughty twin.”
“Oh, I like that,” Noah said with a too-charming laugh that grated on Cole’s nerves. Noah circled around the desk, grabbed Melodie’s hand, spun her in a circle for a full inspection, then made a low, growling sound of approval and appreciation. “You look incredible. I think I need to modify ‘sweet stuff’ to ‘hot stuff.’”
She beamed up at him. “That would definitely go with my new image.”
“Hot stuff it is,” Noah confirmed, winking playfully at her.
An odd tension tightened at the nape of Cole’s neck and he was loath to acknowledge its source. Noah had always been a shameless flirt when it came to all women, yet Cole didn’t care for the way his brother was eyeing Melodie’s newly revealed figure he, himself, had ogled
earlier.
He clenched his jaw in frustration and issued a stern internal lecture. He’d never been a jealous man when it came to the opposite sex, and he didn’t intend to start now with a woman he had no business lusting over.
“I’m glad you came in early, Noah,” he said, drawing his brother’s gaze back to him. “Can I see you in my office for a few minutes?”
Noah let go of Melodie’s hand and nodded. “Sure.” He followed Cole down the short hall to his office, then dropped into one of the chairs in front of his desk. “What’s up?”
Taking his own seat, Cole rolled his shoulders to ease the taut muscles stretching across his back. “Do you have time this week to do some surveillance work?”
“Yeah, I can wing it. What do you need?”
“It’s for the Russell case. I’d like you to tail Jerry Thornton and see if he’s involved with another woman and uncover whatever you can regarding his credibility.” Withdrawing a piece of paper and a small picture from his side drawer, he pushed them across his desk toward Noah. “Here’s his home and work address and a photo, along with other pertinent info.”
Resting an ankle over the opposite knee, Noah gave the notes a cursory glance, then slanted Cole a furtive look. “Speaking of the Russell case, your sexy, sophisticated, intelligent candidate for the charity auction is standing in the other room.”
“Who? Melodie?” he asked, his tone infused with a plausible amount of incredulity—he hoped.
Noah smirked. “No, her naughty twin.”
“Forget it,” he told his brother firmly. “I refuse to cross that professional line with my own secretary.”
“In order to cross a professional line you need to be attracted to her,” Noah drawled, insinuating as much. “Come on, Cole, she’s perfect for what you need.”
Cole’s needs were making themselves known with a vengeance. Since the moment he’d laid eyes on Melodie’s newly revealed ass and long legs, his body had been clamoring for a more physical kind of contact. A languid dose of desire had settled beneath his skin, a nagging ache he feared would get much worse if Melodie continued her beguiling performance.
