So he decided to warn her instead. Hopefully keep her from getting her hopes up too high.
“You’re clearly the kind of gal who throws herself into things wholeheartedly,” he observed. From the tiny furrow between her brows, he figured he’d hit the mark, and she wasn’t exactly thrilled to be read that easily. No surprise. Most of his competitors weren’t. “But in this case, you’d do better to have a backup plan.”
“Because you’re so sure you’re going to win.”
“I’m just saying I don’t want to see you disappointed,” he told her, his smile as soothing as the hand he gently glided over her arm.
Her green eyes chilled and she shifted her arm to one side. Only a few inches, but enough to make it clear that touching her had just made the off-limits list.
“Ooh,” she said, drawing the word out in a husky tone that made him think of bedtime moans and whispered words in the dark. She tilted her head to one side and nodded. “So you don’t want me to be disappointed.”
Never taking her eyes from his, she grabbed her jacket and purse from the seat beside her and slid from the booth. Her body moved with a grace that made it impossible for him to look away, even as manners automatically kicked in and sent him to his feet, as well.
Her lips flicked in a satisfied smile, as if she’d expected nothing less.
Then, in a move as deliberate as it was bold, her gaze slowly—oh, baby, so painfully slowly—drifted down his body. When she reached his zipper, and every wonderful thing contained therein, she gave a sad sort of shake of her head, then looked him in the eye.
“Since our date, and any other plans that it might have led to, are clearly canceled, I’m sure the odds of my being disappointed just plummeted.”
With that perfect put-down, and a smile more wicked than a woman with a face as sweet as hers should be allowed, Hailey turned on one sexy heel and walked away.
Leaving Gage to stare at her very fine ass while trying to pull his jaw off the floor.
THE MAN WAS pond scum. Worse, he was sexy pond scum disguised as temptation. And he was so damned sure he was going to sweep in and snag the contract. Hailey ground her teeth, still pissed. A good night’s sleep might have helped, but she’d spent the night having erotic dreams of Gage, covered in sexy pond scum that looked a lot like his Grinch fur.
Damn him.
There was no way she was letting him take this contract from her. No way in hell.
Hailey stepped into Rudy Rudolph’s office riding high on a righteous anger, a double caramel latte and the feminine confidence only great lingerie and a new pair of shoes could offer.
The black leather of her double-strap Mary Janes was a perfect contrast to her red tights and purple knit slip dress. She’d offset the aggressive colors by pulling her hair back in a loose braid, letting tendrils curl around her face. As accents, she’d assured herself. Not for something to hide behind.
“Miss North, welcome.”
“Call me Hailey,” she told the bald little man for the tenth time. Her smile stiffened when she saw that Gage was already there.
Not only there, she noted, narrowing her eyes. But there, cozied up in the seating area by the window. Right next to a buxom redhead who looked as if she ate sexy guys for breakfast and snacked on the more adventurous ones for dessert.
Hailey’s fashion eye took in the woman’s expensive dress, a Zac Posen cloque in gunmetal, paired with a droolworthy pair of matching Louboutins. You couldn’t begrudge the woman’s excellent taste. In clothes, shoes or—Hailey noted as the redhead reached over to lay her hand on Gage’s wrist—in men.
“Have a seat, Hailey. Can I get you a drink?”
Gage and the redhead still ignoring her, Hailey refused Rudy’s offer, her fingers gripping her leather portfolio bag’s handle so tight she was surprised the stitches didn’t fall out.
“Cherry,” Rudy called as he ushered Hailey across the room. “Here she is. The owner and designer of Merry Widow Lingerie, Hailey North. As you can see, she’s just as fetching as her designs.”
The redhead rose, a slow sinuous move that in the end had her towering over Hailey’s petite frame. It was easy to see why Rudolph wanted her as the face of his spring campaign. She was the embodiment of smoldering sexuality.
“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Miss Bella,” Hailey said, her words stiffer than she’d like. Because Gage was giving her that smug look, she told herself. Not because the woman had just been touching a guy Hailey herself wanted to lick like a melting Popsicle.
“I love your designs,” Cherry said, her trademark voice husky and low, more suited for a dim, smoky bar than a business meeting. But her smile was genuine, and her grasp warm and friendly as she took Hailey’s hand. Not to shake. Just to hold for a second, as if making a connection while pulling her over and gesturing that Hailey take the seat next to her. “You create the most romantic celebration of femininity I’ve ever seen. I’m awed.”
Oh.
Her throat tightened. It was enough to make a girl cry.
“And such a contrast to the raw power of Milano’s designs,” Cherry continued, sliding into her chair with a boneless sort of grace. “Also a celebration of the female form, but with a very different message.”
And that was enough to make a girl want to throw things.
For once, just once, Hailey wanted to be the clear choice. The one someone wanted most. But hey, a lifetime of coming in second, third and fourth best taught a girl a few things about sticking with it.
So she kept her big smile in place and sat, not nearly as gracefully, beside Cherry.
“If you don’t mind my asking, which do you think suits you best?” Hailey heard herself ask. She barely refrained from biting her lip to try to snap the words back. She’d planned to be charming, persuasive and subtle. Like her designs.
But Cherry didn’t seem offended. Instead, she laughed and gave a noncommittal shrug. “I’m a multifaceted woman. Choosing isn’t a simple thing. Much, always, depends on my mood.”
Hailey almost pointed out that her designs suited a variety of moods, while Milano’s only suited the kinkier ones. But this time she managed to keep her mouth closed.
Instead, she—finally—let herself look at Gage.
His dark eyes were aimed right at her, a small smile playing over those sexy lips. As if he were looking into her mind and poking through her plans and ideas, preparing to blow them all to teeny-tiny pieces.
Yet, she still wanted him.
If she closed her eyes, she could still taste that kiss. Could still feel the touch of his fingers against her skin. Remember the scent of his cologne, the feel of his hair.
No,
