Sorry, Daniel said. Been distracted lately. Lately meaning since last night, and distracted meaning he was unable to concentrate on a damn thing besides Mias enthusiasm and the heat of her mouth.
Eli knelt to tighten his shoelaces. Still obsessing about the committee recommendation? You know the provosts in your corner. I get that waiting sucks, but the decisions in the hands of the president and the board of regents now. Dont make yourself crazy in the meantime.
Tenure. Right. That goal hed busted his ass to attain. Actually, work was the furthest thing from my mind.
Eli stood, his expression perplexed.
What did it say about Daniels life that his friends assumed his career was the only thing he had going for him? I had a date last night. Dinner with Mia.
No kidding? Thats fantas
Daniel grimaced.
Not fantastic?
Actually, it was. Until the very end. I... ...fell on her like a sex-starved maniac? Theyd been only a few feet from passing traffic, and hed gone for second base like a horny teenager. Lord knew what he would have done without Myrons fortuitous interruption. I screwed up.
Hey! Sean dribbled the ball, scowling at them. Considering the embarrassing score, I get the need to talk strategy. But could we return to our game sometime before spring break?
Surprised youre in such a hurry to give up your lead, Eli called back. Might as well savor it while youve still got it. Ready, Daniel?
He nodded.
FYI, Eli added under his breath, Ive screwed up a time or two with Bex. In my experience, flowers help.
Thanks. But Daniel doubted an assortment of plant life was going to make up for his boorish behavior.
Now focus. Quit throwing away your shots.
Unfortunately, Daniel couldnt shake the feeling he already hadnot on the basketball court, but with the sexy-as-hell event coordinator. Shed given him a look of near loathing before shed driven away.
He wasnt sure what he could say to convince her to ever go out with him again. Considering his wildly undisciplined reaction to her, maybe it was best if he stayed away from her. Kept his distance. It was sound logic, but on some primal level, he rejected the idea even as he had it. Never kiss Mia again? Never touch her?
With an inward snarl, he lunged for Sean to steal the ball, knocking his friend on his ass.
Sean grunted a surprised expletive before propping himself up on his elbow. Foul.
Eli fought a smile. Dude, I said focus, not maim.
Right. Sorry. I lost my head for a moment. A moment? Ha. He hadnt felt like himself since Mia turned around at that bachelor party, meeting his gaze. Avoiding her might be the only way to return to normal.
Screw normal. The restless part of him he habitually stifled refused to stay silent. Maybe it was time to admit he didnt want normal. He wanted change. He wanted excitement. And he desperately wanted Mia Hayes.
* * *
BRANT IS PERFECT, Wren gushed as she unrolled her mat along the studio wall. Well, perfect for me, anyway.
Mia and her friend Wren Kendrick had driven to the Tuesday night yoga class together. Wren managed an upscale lingerie store and occasionally gave Mia a generous friends-and-family discount, which was how Mia happened to own the perfect corset and fishnets to work a burlesque party. Both women had been working so hard lately that girl time had been scarce; Mia had yet to meet Wrens new boyfriend. The bubbly blonde had been chatting about Brant nonstop for the past fifteen minutes. Hopefully, shed wind down before class started. Otherwise, they were in for another evening of the instructor shooting Wren pointed glances. Talking was not encouraged during the ninety-minute session.
Ive never dated a man I have more in common with, Wren said.
Thats great, Mia murmured absently. She was glad for Wrens joy but running out of supportive things to interject in the conversation.
Our personalities are just so in sync.
What must that be like? Annoyingly, Mias mind drifted to Daniel. Again. Hed been in her thoughts way too much todaynot that she believed for a moment that the preoccupation was mutual. He seemed to have wiped her from his mind before he even drove out of the parking lot. His expression had been so insultingly blank shed wanted to shake his shoulders. Hi, remember me? Mia? You just had your tongue in my mouth?
Their sizzling kisses might support the generalization of opposites attracting, but she had too much self-respect to share a hot night with a man likely to sneer at her the next morning. Whatever had motivated his stated need for change, modifications to a persons lifestyle or behavior were often fleeting.
Like temporary insanity. Thats what you experienced, a little hormone-driven insanity. Nothing to obsess over.
It was embarrassing how distracted shed been today. Thank goodness shed been able to avoid Shannon and any perceptive questions about Mias mood. A dental appointment had kept the woman out of the office that morning, and Mia had been on the go all afternoon. Yoga was the perfect opportunity to regain clarity and perspective. She straightened her legs in front of her, stretching over them as Wren continued her ecstatic Brant-themed babbling.
You know the first time you have sex with someone and he doesnt know what you like yet, so youre trying to gently steer him toward what you want without seeming bossy?
Mia made a noncommittal sound. She spoke her mind, in bed and out of it, and had never much worried about whether she sounded bossy. What would Daniel be like in the bedroom? Willing to follow his lovers lead, or convinced his way was the right one, just as he had been in college? Stop it. At twenty, she may have fantasized once or twice about the opportunity to help loosen him up, but she was an adult now. She didnt have time in her life for a man who wouldnt appreciate her.
My sisters are scandalized I slept with Brant after knowing him less than a week, Wren said, unconcerned that the woman one mat over was shamelessly eavesdropping, but it didnt feel like our first time. It was like wed known each other forever, like we were two halves of the same whole.
Typical Wren. She livedand lovedboldly. Where Shannon was shy and reserved in her personal life, Wren liked to jump in with both feet. Mia couldnt imagine ever declaring a guy her other half after a handful of dates, but she respected her friends optimistic courage. I hope he
Good evening, ladies. The instructor walked into the room.
Hallelujah. Time to begin. Mia wasnt really in the right headspace to gush about Wrens new love, even though that was bitchy of her. If things had gone differently last night, Wren would be the first to cheer for her. If things had gone differently... Her imagination started down that path, but she ruthlessly yanked it back as the class opened their session with a collective Om.
For about an hour, she was able to push Daniel Keegan from her mind. But toward the end of the session, they went into yin practice, which involved long-held poses and encouraged meditation. It gave her entirely too much time to think. Plus, after sixty minutes of focusing so intently on her body, on her breathing, on the pleasant soreness of muscles as she challenged herself... Well, it only made sense that her thoughts were lured back to the sensual experience of being pressed against Daniels body, whod made her breathing uneven and her skin tingle.
She could tell herself all day long that he didnt deserve her, but she couldnt help wondering, if the chance to kiss him again arose, how would she resist? By remembering how aloof he was afterward. Almost as good as a cold shower. She wanted a lover who ran hot. Who looked at her with enough yearning to make her shiver. Who craved her unashamedly. Daniel Keegan was not that mannot based on the evidence of last night.
But heaven help her if he ever got comfortable with his passionate side. Because thered be no resisting him then.
* * *
MUSTVE BEEN SOME date Monday. Shannon flashed a smile over the top of her coffee mug.
Mia froze in the act of removing her coat. Why do you say that? She hadnt pegged Myron as the type who would blab about what hed seen to other people in the building, but maybe shed been wrong.
Shannon pointed toward the reception desk. Because, flowers. You obviously made an impression.
Uh-huh. A slight impression of her butt on the front of her car, maybe. Yet she crossed the room in three long strides to read the card, her curiosity piqued. Given his almost robotic goodbye, she hadnt expected any further contact from Daniel, much less contact in the form of a square vase filled with carnations, white roses and delicate purple filler flowers.
The note was terse. Im sorry. Daniel.
For which part, exactly? Asking her to dinner in the first place? Kissing her? Or was he apologizing for Myrons bad timing?
With a sigh, she crumpled the card.
Shannons eyebrows shot skyward. Dare I ask?
I want to discuss my date with Daniel about as much as you want to discuss your progress with Paige.
Wow. That bad, huh?
Any messages? Mia asked, officially changing the subject.
They discussed clients and the days schedule while Mia fixed her own cup of coffee, although she doubted caffeine was a good idea given her already antsy state of mind. She needed to call Penelope Wainwright this morning, and she needed to be at her most professional when she spoke to the affluent woman. No sense sniping at their biggest client or sounding scattered because she was busy trying to decipher a bouquet of flowers.
Shannon returned to her desk, nodding at the arrangement. Do you want these in your office?
No. Find a place for them out here that isnt inconvenient for you. They brighten up the lobby.
Got it. She hesitated, her expression apologetic. Do you want me to put him through or take a message if he calls?
She thought about his withdrawn manner, the perfunctory message on the card. He wont.
* * *
GLANCING FROM THE stack of tests on his desk to the clock on the wall, Daniel felt a tug of dread in the pit of his stomach. You have officially overextended yourself, he muttered. In addition to the classes he taught and the articles he was scheduled to publish this year, hed signed on for some extra volunteer activities, hoping theyd help him stand out as a tenure candidate. He was the faculty advisor for two student clubs and was serving on the curriculum review committee which met every Wednesday. In ten minutes, as a matter of fact.
Grade faster.
When his office phone rang, his first impulse was to let the call go to voice mail. He didnt have time to talk to anyone. But what if it was Mia? She shouldve received the flowers by now, so she could be calling to thank him.
He grabbed for the phone, almost fumbling the receiver. Professor Keegan speaking.
Daniel?
Felicity. He was shocked to hear her voice; he was also a little stunned to realize she hadnt even crossed his mind in the past two days. His thoughts had been too full of Mia. How are you? Wait, I should let you know, I have a meeting to get to in a few minutes. When he abruptly ended the call, he didnt want her to take it personally.
Im fine, thanks. And this wont take long. I just wanted to let you know I wont be at the wedding this weekend. I RSVPed yes before the holidays, but obviously that was when Id planned to be your date.
Felicity, you dont have to cancel because of me. Running into her was no longer the awkward proposition it would have been a week ago. Not just because hed gone out with someone else but because his response to Mia had helped demonstrate that his relationship with Felicity had lacked passion. Eli and Bex are your friends, too. The four of them had double-dated often, spent holiday weekends together, celebrated promotions and other milestones.
And I wish them every happiness. Its Rebekahs big day. I want her to be able to focus on that, not worried about any confrontations between us.
He almost laughed. Neither he nor Felicity were the type for angry confrontations. I trust us to be cordial. Maybe even friends, eventually. Down the road, once his pride had fully recovered and he was no longer worried that friendship between them would give their manipulative families false hope. After all, weve known each other for most of our lives.
Friends, she echoed. Then you arent mad at me for breaking up with you?
No. I wish youd told me sooner that you were unhappy, but Im not mad.
I... She chose her words carefully, haltingly. I wasnt unhappy, exactly. I care a lot about you. We had a very comfortable relationship built on mutual respect. It just...wasnt enough.
Yeah. I get that. His scandal-phobic family, still reeling from the antics of his infamous uncle, had always encouraged Daniel to live a muted existence, but why should Felicity settle for that? Why should I? Look, I really have to get to this meeting, but please know that youre welcome at the wedding if you change your mind.
Thank you.
He hung up the phone thinking half a dozen things at oncefrom wondering whether hed convinced her to attend the wedding to being relieved that hearing her voice hadnt hurt. But his strongest reaction was disappointment that it hadnt been Mia on the other end. He made himself a deal as he caught the elevator downstairs: if Mia hadnt gotten in touch by the time his committee meeting ended, he would call her.
Theyd had a lot of fun during dinner the other night. Yes, hed screwed up the last twenty minutes of the date, but if Eli was right about flowers smoothing over social gaffes, maybe Mia would be willing to see him again.
Curriculum meetings were long and boring. Daniel usually resented the intrusion on his schedule. But leaning back in his chair and imagining the best-case scenarios of his upcoming conversation with Mia made it the most enjoyable hour of his day.
* * *
AS IT TURNED OUT, Shannon neednt have worried about what to do if Daniel called the office phone because he called Mias cell phone directly. When she saw his name on the caller display, she briefly considered ignoring him to continue the email she was typing. Avoidance is the cowards way out.
With a sigh, she hit the accept button. Hello, she said flatly.
Hi. Its Daniel. I, uh... Did you get the flowers I sent?
I did. What she didnt get was why. What were they supposed to accomplish? They add a nice splash of color to the office.
Good.
A long pause stretched between them, an almost expectant silence. If shed opened solitaire on her computer, she could be halfway through a game by now. Thank you for the flowers, Daniel. Was that why hed called, to give her the opportunity to express socially mandated gratitude? If so, mission accomplished. Now he could go away. But I have a lot to do and