baking desserts for Celebrations, Inc., a catering company, Caroline barely had time to sleep.
So, no, there was no time for a man in her life...well, beyond tonight, anyway. So maybe that was all the more reason she should put away her prude and just go for it.
She had to look away and bite the insides of her cheeks to rid herself of the thoughts that were ringing in her head right now. Not to mention, at this point she was surely the same shade of red as the cranberries in the table centerpieces.
What was wrong with her? Too much champagne? Sugar overload?
“Sugar,” he said.
Great. And now he was reading her mind.
“Excuse me?”
“I was thinking you looked more like a sweet sugar pumpkin in that dress rather than a carving pumpkin.” He grinned at her, relaxed and casual in his chair, obviously aware of how flustered he was making her. “There is a difference, you know? One of the reporters at the Journal just wrote an article about a pumpkin farm over in Celina. She said you should never use a big carving pumpkin for pie. It will be bitter. You have to use the small, firm sugar pumpkins. They’re much sweeter.”
Again, his eyes meandered the length of her dress.
Small, firm sugar pumpkins? Was he speaking metaphorically?
She shivered, but this time she did not cross her arms to hide herself. Instead, she blinked at him. “Is that supposed to be a compliment?”
“Yes, ma’am.”
She reached out and swatted his arm. “If that’s the best you can do, that’s pathetic.”
See, the other dangerous thing she had learned about Drew Montgomery this weekend was that he had a way of pulling her out of that awkward, tongue-tied mire she initially found herself in when she was with him, and then it was a slippery slope into the sea of longing. Tonight, it seemed, there was no life preserver to save her. No lifeboat in which she could stash the bald truth: this man made her think and feel things she had no business thinking and feeling, because the places they led were dangerous.
He motioned to a woman carrying a tray of champagne. She wasted no time appearing at his side. Drew replaced Caroline’s empty flute with a full one.
“Pathetic, huh?” he asked.
“Pretty much.”
“Damn, I guess that means I’ll have to make it up to you. Or at least prove to you that I’m not pathetic. At least not when it counts.”
Good Lord, his smile was enough to push her over the edge of that slippery slope.
“Would you wear your sugar pumpkin dress out on the town if I wore this monkey suit? Tie and all—we match. See, pumpkin tie. Pumpkin dress.” He motioned back and forth.
She blinked, unsure of what to say. If she let herself go there, she might believe he was asking her out on a date.
“But that would mean you’d have to rent the monkey suit again, and I’d have to postpone burning this hideous dress.” She shook her head, feeling pretty clever for keeping up her end of the push-and-pull banter. “So, I don’t think it will work.”
He frowned and, oh, how she wanted to believe he really was disappointed by her pretend rebuff. This was simply casual flirting, but somehow it didn’t feel like the brand of casual they’d established this weekend.
“Well, then, if you’re turning me down for a date,” he said, “the least you can do is make it up to me some other way.”
Date? So he was asking her out on a real date? She in her hideous pumpkin-colored bridesmaid dress and he in his matching bow tie. That was a vision. Something in the mischievous look on his face hinted that he never took life seriously. She wasn’t quite sure if he was serious about this pumpkin-themed date.
Still, play along...
“What exactly did you have in mind?” she asked.
“Right at this moment?” He smiled, grabbed another glass of champagne off a passing waiter’s tray and set it in front of her.
She narrowed her eyes at him. “I’m onto your plans for the moment. You’re trying to get me drunk. So, does that mean you plan on taking advantage of me?”
“Is that an option?” he asked. “Because if it’s not, you’re perfectly welcome to take advantage of me.”
The dance beat slowed to something soulful and their gazes locked. The air between them shifted.
“You have to admit, Caroline, there’s some serious chemistry between you and me. And I don’t think you’re going to be in any shape to catch the bride’s bouquet until we do a couple of chemistry experiments and contain all this...you know—” he motioned back and forth between the two of them again “—this energy. Otherwise, it might throw you off your flower-catching game.”
See? He’d done it again. He’d started off talking about the chemistry between them—a chemistry that was so real it was almost palpable. No one with eyes could deny that. But then he switched tracks to something light and funny, leaving the serious edge hanging between them. Still, Caroline was no dummy; she knew that when he defaulted to light and funny it was because what was happening between them was simply casual flirting.
So keep it casual, Caroline. Don’t make this more difficult than it needs to be.
“Whoa there, Romeo, what makes you think I want to catch the bridal bouquet? And don’t you dare say all women want to catch the flowers.”
“You don’t like flowers?”
“I love flowers.”
He leaned in a little closer, resting his arm along the back of her chair. He was so close, she could feel the heat of his body and smell the intoxicating scent of him. It made her want to breathe in a little deeper. Suddenly, she forgot her entire case against catching the bride’s flowers. But then again she wasn’t really going to make a case. She was keeping this light and casual.
“Then why wouldn’t you want to catch them?” He whispered the words in her ear. His breath was hot on her cheek. It was all she could do to keep from dragging him straight up to that big marble Jacuzzi and having her way with him.
Instead, she reached out and ran her finger along the edge of his bow tie. Good lord, the man looked devastating in a tux, despite the dreadful pumpkin tie. Actually, it didn’t look bad with his dark eyes and hair...and he was so close. All she would have to do was lean in a fraction of an inch and her lips would be touching his. The realization made her bite down on her lower lip.
“My philosophy,” he said, “is you have to go after what you want in life. If not, what’s the point of living?”
His words hit home and were a little sobering. Why not go for something she wanted? Why not just this once do something completely out of character and take something just for herself? Even if it was impermanent...even if she could only have Drew for one night...
She had never slept with a guy before they were solidly in a committed relationship.
