shook her head, and he imagined that tight knot of hair at the back of her neck loose and flowing like a liquid flame. The thought made him want to reach out and start pulling out whatever held it in place, but he stopped the fantasy as soon as it started.
She offered a gentle smile. “In this case, since you’ll be living here for some time, I think it’s best to find something that could become more permanent.”
“I don’t know the area, but I’ll trust your judgment,” he said, thinking he might as well go along with her.
Flipping through a notebook, she stopped and made a note. “I know of an apartment that can be subleased. Even better, you can give it a try for a month before you make a decision.”
Hank didn’t plan to be in town long enough to need a permanent place to live and hoped he wouldn’t get in over his head. He had the money, but getting out of a sublease could be tricky. Or at least that’s what he’d heard. His usual trappings were more temporary.
Before he could voice his concern, the intercom buzzer sounded. “Excuse me,” she said and walked to her desk where she leaned over to pick up the phone. “What is it, Janine?” She paused, listening. “I’ll return her call later…Who? Did you get his number? Any idea—All right. Do what you can.”
Replacing the receiver, she turned back to Hank. “I hate to rush you, but we might as well get started. If you’ll stop at Janine’s desk, she has the contract. Read it, make any changes you think are needed, then sign it. Do you have a car?”
He shook his head. “I left my pickup back in New Mexico. As soon as I landed, I dropped my things at the hotel and came straight here.”
“No need to be in a hurry to get one. I can pick you up at your hotel in—” She glanced at her watch, frowning. “Two hours. That will give me time to make some arrangements on the apartment, and then we can decide where to go from there.”
For some reason, she intrigued him. He wouldn’t mind spending a little time with her. A little fun wouldn’t hurt, either. There was no danger in that. But anything more was out of the question.
Standing, he took the hand she offered and held it. “Your friends call you Lizzie?”
She shook her head, but didn’t pull away. “Professionally, I prefer Elizabeth.”
“If it’s okay with you, I’ll stick with Lizzie.”
“Well, I suppose—”
“Good. And I’m Hank.”
Still holding her hand, he unconsciously rubbed his thumb over hers. He heard her sharp intake of breath and let go. “I’ll see you in two hours,” he said, and noticed his voice was huskier than he’d expected.
He also noticed she didn’t move from the spot when he left the room. As he walked down the hall, he shook his head. He couldn’t deny being attracted to her. But he’d been attracted to women before, and, except for the few times before he knew better, the relationship hadn’t become serious. There wasn’t any reason to think he couldn’t handle it this time. No reason at all.
Lizzie watched Hank Davis leave her office, then took a step back, grabbed the edge of her desk for support and bit back the groan that threatened to give her away. Her legs had turned to rubber the first moment she had laid eyes on him in the reception area of Images, Inc. Hunk? The word made her want to laugh out loud. What an understatement! And she had to work with this man? Every day? Possibly evenings? This time, the groan was impossible to keep inside.
With an unsteady step, she walked to the door and quietly closed it, fighting the urge to follow him down the hall for another look at him. Leaning her forehead against the smooth, cool wood, she was tempted to start banging it. She would never be able to keep her wits about her for the next two weeks if she didn’t pound some sense into her foggy mind.
His voice, low and lazy, like a river slowly moving along a grassy bank on a summer day, had sent warm currents flowing through her body. But it was his dimples that had done her in. Those twin valleys bracketing a sexy mouth had made that smile a true kneeweakener. And Lizzie’s knees felt like warm jelly again, just thinking about them.
She quickly scolded herself for her weakness. She didn’t have time for men, no matter how good-looking. Her life was full enough with Images, Inc., and with Amanda, her daughter.
On her way to her desk, she grabbed the folder she had left on the sofa, hoping to get her mind back on business. But it was impossible. The moment he had looked up from the magazine in his hand, she knew she was in for a difficult time. Professionalism had flown out the window. Clear brown eyes had stared into hers, and she had detected a decided twinkle in them.
Determined to get herself under control, she pressed the intercom button and asked Janine to step into her office. She had a lot to do before she picked up Hank at his hotel.
Janine opened the door and poked her head into the office. “Mercy, that is some man you’re going to be working with.”
Lizzie smiled at her best friend and employee and prayed Janine wouldn’t see how much Hank Davis had rattled her. “You gave him the folder with the schedule, didn’t you?”
“Of course.” Stepping into the room, Janine perched on the arm of the sofa and propped her chin in one hand, her hazel eyes dancing. “Once you’re done with him, there won’t be a woman within a hundred miles of Kansas City that won’t be falling at his feet.”
Lizzie kept her thoughts to herself. No need feeding into Janine’s daydreams.
“It doesn’t take much of a stretch of the imagination to see him all spiffed up in a custom-made tux and starched shirt, charming the Kansas City social set,” Janine continued.
“Clothes can sometimes make the man,” Lizzie said without thinking. And that’s what worried her. Good-looking men in tuxedos had always been her weakness. Amanda’s father had been the first proof of that.
But even in something as mundane as a blue chambray shirt and jeans, Henry Wallace Davis was a sight to behold. He didn’t look like the type who would be comfortable in a business suit. He was too rugged, too rough around the edges. And it was now her job to smooth out those edges.
“Mr. Davis seems pretty well made to me,” Janine said with another sigh. “But you’ll know how to handle him.”
Just the thought of “handling” Hank Davis sent a shiver through Lizzie. She shoved the thought from her mind and returned to the business at hand. “Would you call Bailey and tell him to have the car here in about an hour? I need to return Mrs. Adams’s call at the convalescent center about my mom.”
“How’s she doing?”
“Better. The nurses think the doctor will let her come home soon. That will be a big relief.”
“And more work for you,” Janine pointed out.
“I’ll deal with it.” She placed a finger on her temple, massaging the headache threatening her clear thinking. “I have to. Even with the fee from Hank Davis, we need to bring in more clients. There’s no getting around that. We both know business has been slow this spring. Do you have any idea who called earlier?”
Janine
