I wanted to apologize for the trip postponement, he said. Steve assured me that bending the schedule would be no problem. I never would have asked if it werent important, but my
Dont worry about it. Its fine. If her appendix burst Wednesday, Steve would have insisted she be a team player, crawl out of her hospital bed, and get her butt to South Carolina.
Maybe I could make it up to you sometime, he suggested with a flirtatious smile. Buy you lunch, or something.
No! Go out alone with Justin? Bad idea. And she didnt even want to think about the or something. Thats not necessary.
He blinked, and she realized her immediate refusal had probably made her sound like the office poster child for PMS.
She backtracked quickly, not taking the time to organize her thoughts. I meant to say, no, thank you. Nice offer, but, I, um, have these restrictions. Salad only. Which he most definitely wasnt.
I hear a lot of places serve that now. His lazy grin held just the right amount of amusementteasing, but not mocking.
Right. Of course. Bad example. Its hard to explain, but Ive sort of given up She stopped, thank God, just shy of explaining about walking chocolate. Which he most definitely was. Its a diet thing.
Justin pushed himself away from the desk, shaking his head. Dont tell me youre one of those women.
Excuse me? Unless he meant one of those women who couldnt string together a coherent sentencewhich she blamed on how good he smelledhe was about to be in trouble.
Someone with hang-ups about her body, who always wishes she were skinnier.
The angry heat that blazed through her had nothing to do with his hitting close to home, it was based on principle. Youve known me for a matter of hours, Mr. Hawthorne, and you think that gives you the right to diagnose any so-called hang-ups?
He grimaced. In my defense, I was headed toward a compliment.
Yeah? She crossed her arms. Well, you took a wrong turn somewhere.
His gaze slid down her body. What I should have said is that youdont need to
He trailed off, his male admiration too frank to need words. Olivia tried to be offended by the perusalwho the hell was he to so boldly assess her and pronounce judgment? Her body, on the other hand, mustve missed the memo on political correctness. Her skin prickled with awareness, growing warmer. His expression shifted as he raised his eyes back to hers. The appreciation had been replaced by something deeper, more urgent, and Olivia swallowed.
Even if shed been able to muster any indignation, it would have been a tad hypocritical coming from someone so recently having toolbelt fantasies.
Justin, I
Thats an improvement, he interrupted approvingly. Much better than Mr. Hawthorne. Id like us to be on a friendly basis.
Just how friendly did he have in mind? Desire swirled through her abdomen, warm and thick and slow, like honey.
Olivia? A knock accompanied Jeanies voice on the other side of the closed door.
Blinking, Olivia tried to reorient herself to her surroundings. For a moment there, shed forgotten she was even at the office. Carefully looking past Justin, not wanting to risk meeting his eyes again, she called back, Come on in, Jeanie. I have those proofs ready.
The door opened and Jeanie stepped inside, her expression hesitant. I didnt mean to interrupt. Ihello. You must be Justin.
Smiling, he shook Jeanies hand, and annoyance caught Olivia off guard. A moment ago, hed used that smile on her. Had she reacted with the same girlish, awestruck expression that was now on Jeanies face? Probably. Less than a full day into a new resolution to change her dating diet, and here shed been, devouring Justin with her eyes and going all trembly and fluttery inside when he locked gazes with her.
She just needed some distance, time to regroup and strengthen her resolve.
Once Jeanie had the manila folder shed come in for, she walked away, stopping at the door with an inquisitive glance in Olivias direction.
Please, leave it open, Olivia said. Justin was on his way out.
Judging from his raised eyebrows, this was news to him, but he turned without argument. As Jeanie had done, he paused at the entrance to the office. We can just finish our discussion later, he said with a wink.
Hed winked at her? It was such a kitschy thing to do, yet she didnt hear bad 70s pickup lines in her head. Instead, she was tempted to smile. The only thing that kept her from doing so was the threat of finishing their chat. Lets see, which part was she most eager to revisitwhy she didnt think it would be a good idea to have lunch with him, what he thought of her figure, or how attuned their bodies had been? No thank you. With any luck, this little encounter would never come up again.
As if shed ever had any luck with men.
AFTER A NIGHT spent in an apartment empty of her ex-boyfriends presence and her ex-roommates couch, Olivia entered the office Tuesday with renewed resolve. Her thoughts had strayed to Justin Hawthorne several times during the night, but echoes of heartache and humiliation had quelled her unwise attraction. Lifting her chin, Olivia strode toward her office, saying good morning to Jeanie as she passed. Im here to work, not think about men.
Three hours later, she leaned back in her chair, congratulating herself on a productive morning. Shed even managed a quick conversation with Steve on the interoffice line without wanting to strangle the man with his own necktie.
I deserve a break, she muttered, stretching her muscles as she stood. A cup of tea sounded good, and maybe shed drop by Megs office on the way back from the break room, see if her friend had any fun model gossip this morning.
The break room was a beige room with scuffed cabinets and absolutely zero decorative qualities. There was, however, always a ready supply of hot and cold beverages, the days copy of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution to read, and usually people with whom to shoot the breeze. All in all, a good source of procrastination.
Today, the coffee rooms inhabitants were female, with one notable exception.
Justin Hawthorne sat in a blue plastic chair amid five women, including Kate from HR; Steves personal secretary, Diane; a couple of ladies from accounting; and even sixty-seven-year-old Ms. Phipps, who kept casting wish-I-were-forty-years-younger glances in Justins direction.
The admiring glances Olivia could empathize with, but really, had Diane forgotten this was a place of business? When the curvy redhead asked Justin if she could have the issue of the AJC lying on the table in front of him, she managed to phrase the request in a breathless sultry tone that insinuated she wanted something much more. Instead of waiting for him to hand her the paper, she slowly leaned forward, brushing against him in a way Kate could have used as the what-not-to-do example in her sexual-harassment seminar.
Waggling his eyebrows, Justin said something in a low voice that caused Diane to laugh, and Olivia ground her teeth. Her annoyance was only heightened when she couldnt help an admiring glance of her own. No man should look that good! His all-black attire today was a great foil for his light hair and bright eyes.
Basic black is back, and what could be sexier?
The man lounged in his chair like a sexy monarch surveying his coffee-scented kingdom. Or a sheikh with his harem. Olivia reached blankly for one of the mugs kept over the sink, but instead of seeing the cabinet in front of her, she envisioned herself in a flimsy costume of veils, summoned by Justin to
Basic black is back, and what could be sexier?
The man lounged in his chair like a sexy monarch surveying his coffee-scented kingdom. Or a sheikh with his harem. Olivia reached blankly for one of the mugs kept over the sink, but instead of seeing the cabinet in front of her, she envisioned herself in a flimsy costume of veils, summoned by Justin to
Morning. His warm deep voice in her ear caused her to jump, and she clenched the handle of the blue mug to keep from dropping it.
Justin! I didnt notice you. More accurately, shed been too lost in her own torrid fantasies to see him stand up.
Apparently. He raised a dark blond brow. Not very flattering, you realize.
Olivia said nothing as she filled her mug with water. Was his teasing comment an invitation for her to appease his ego? Why would he need it when, as far as she could tell, the other women in the room had been generously feeding his self-esteem?
Seans parting words echoed in her mind. It wouldnt be fair to the women of the world to limit myself to just one. Was Justin cut from the same cloth? Wanting that sixth womans attention when he already had the adoration of five, including a gorgeous redheaded secretary who was now glaring daggers at Olivia? Was that all the moment of sexual connection in her office yesterday had been about? For a few seconds, with his eyes on hers, hed made her feel no one existed beyond the two of them, but maybe he would have behaved the same with any other woman.
Justin reached past Olivia to the coffeemaker, glancing over his shoulder at the female-inhabited table. Did you want sugar in this, Ms. Phipps?
Two packets, please.
As he stirred the sugar into the cup hed just filled, Olivia sighed. It was much easier to maintain her cynical image of the man when he was enjoying Dianes cleavage instead of doing a favor for the elderly Ms. Phipps.
Diane, however, wasnt impressed with his small act of kindness. She left the room in an Im-not-used-to-sharing-a-mans-attention huff. The two women Olivia recognized from accounting followed behind, chatting as they walked, but they both shot wistful glances in Justins direction.
Seemingly oblivious, he handed Ms. Phipps her cup of coffee.
The older woman smiled. Thank you, but I should be getting back to work now, too.
My loss, Justin said with a rakish smile.
Olivia grabbed a single-serving bag of decaffeinated tea, wondering if he was a great guy who was kind to his elders, or if he was just so in the habit of flirting that he never turned it off.
After the small exodus of women, the only one remaining was Kate, who sidled closer to Justin and delicately cleared her throat. So, um, about that dinner.
Ill call you after the South Carolina trip, Justin said. You pick out the restaurant.
Not a week on the job and he already had a date. Now why isnt that surprising? The only surprise was that his plans were with fresh-faced Kate and not Diane, who stood a better chance at holding her own with a man in Justins league. Trying to look like something other than a disapproving eavesdropper, Olivia set her mug in the microwave.
Kate bounced out of the room with the enthusiasm of a teenager whod just been asked to the prom, and Olivia almost winced on the poor girls behalf. When Olivia had been younger, shed worn her heart on her sleeve in much the same waybut after it had been broken a few times, shed moved it for safekeeping.
Instead of also leaving now that his admirers had gone, Justin leaned against the counter. She watched the microwave, willing it to beep. Thursday, when shed be trapped in the car with him, was plenty soon enough to be alone with him. She pondered the possibility of his becoming less sexy between now and then. Was there a polite, logical way to insist he didnt wear black?
Probably not.
TRYING NOT TO BE too obvious, Justin studied his beautiful co-worker. Her gray eyes were frosty today, with no hint of the molten silver desire hed seenand feltyesterday in her office. He wanted to cajole her into a more receptive mood, to prove the woman hed seen glimpses of was in there somewhere.
Hows your day going, Liv? He assumed she went by the office nickname, but, personally, he didnt think it suited her.
The more lyrical Olivia fit perfectlyas did the navy turtleneck and long tailored skirt she wore. There was a sexy contrast between how little skin was revealed and how boldly the lush curves of her body were delineated. Stopping short of a noticeable leer, he discreetly traced those curves with his gaze, wishing it were with his hands instead.
Fine. She dipped her tea bag in her mug. Busy.
Not a woman of many words.
Licking her lips, she took a step forward to go around him. I should be getting back to my office.
The scent of her light floral perfume and the warmer fragrance of her body wafted over him. You smell incredible.
She froze, spine rigid, her only movement the now double-time dunking of her tea. If he didnt know better, hed say her expression was hurt. He was willing to admit that yesterday, when hed commented on her figure, his words had come out wrong, but now he could only conclude that the lady didnt take flattery well. She ducked her head, and her long wavy hair fell over her shoulder in a dark curtain, partially obscuring her face.
I meant it in the complimentary sense, he said.
Yes. I know.
I thought women liked it when men notice personal details and comment.
Maybe some do. She looked up then, her eyes steely. Personally, Ive had my fill of handsome charmers with ulterior motives.
Now hold on a second. Noticing the way her skirt hugged her tight perfect derriere wasnt a motive. Hed get back to that handsome and charming part later. I
I apologize. She exhaled, her shoulders rounding. You said something kind, and I was rude.
More defensive than rude, and her eyes reflected a vulnerability that seemed an odd reaction to a comment on her perfume.
Justin told himself to end this exchange and forget it ever happened. After the responsibilities of the last few years, responsibilities that unofficially ended tomorrow night, hed earned the right to uncomplicated fun. Olivias changing moods and mixed signals screamed complications.
A man with any brains would ask Diane out when he got back from South Carolina. Hed been caught off guard by Kates dinner invitation and reflexively said yes, but she seemed like a sweet kid who needed an equally sweet boyfriend. Justin was looking for something a little less lastingsimple, clear-cut, adult enjoyment.
He looked into Olivias soft gray eyes, and desire tightened his body. Too bad he didnt think the offer of no-strings fun would appeal to her.
Maybe I should be the one apologizing, he said, if my remarks were too personal for the workplace.
No, I overreacted. Ive beennever mind. Maybe you really are a nice guy.
Just maybe? he teased, giving her a look of mock-indignation.
She laughed, and the husky sound affected him even more viscerally than when hed overheard it yesterday, because this time hed won it from her. Her open, welcoming expression was unexpected and transformed her from attractive to so sexy his breath caught.
He held the door open, and as she passed by, she tossed one last smile over her shoulder. I really am sorry if Ive been curt. Im glad were going to be working together, Justin.