and Stacy began to discuss placement of tables and the dance floor that Trey wanted. As the two women spoke, Debra was acutely aware of the scent of Trey’s cologne, the warmth of his body far too close to hers.
Somehow, someway, she needed to get over the silly, schoolgirl crush or whatever it was she had where he was concerned.
Even though the night they’d shared was burned indelibly into her brain, she doubted that it had crossed his mind after he’d put her in the cab to take her home the next morning.
Trey Winston was off-limits, always had been and always would be. He had no interest in her other than using her as an effective weapon to achieve his ambitious desire of becoming the next senator of North Carolina.
She’d told herself she would do whatever she could to help him because of her devotion to Kate, but the truth of the matter was she’d do it because she cared about him enough to want to see him get everything he wanted in life.
* * *
Trey tried to keep his gaze off Debra and Stacy as they went over the initial planning stages. The two women were polar opposites. Stacy looked like a fashion doll with her bleached blond hair and black-fringed blue eyes. Her pink dress hugged her body in all the right places and she would instantly draw the gaze of any man who was breathing.
Debra, on the other hand, flew just under the radar in her brown suit and with her hair pulled back into a messy knot at the back of her head.
And yet it was Debra who kept drawing his gaze. She had the loveliest eyes he’d ever seen, so big and so green. Her slightly heart-shaped face expressed each and every emotion she felt.
As the two women talked, Debra displayed both earnestness and an underlying will of steel. She listened to Stacy’s ideas, tossing some while accepting others.
He knew Debra was his mother’s go-to woman, practically Kate’s right hand, moving behind the scenes to keep his mother’s life in order and running as smoothly as possible six days a week.
He also knew that the night they had met up in the bar, Debra had been upset about a breakup with some guy named Gary or Larry, or something like that.
Initially, he’d just wanted to console her, but he was in such good spirits about his own business deal, it wasn’t long before he had Debra laughing and the surprising sparks had flown between them.
Debra was a constant at the Winston Estate, but he suddenly realized he knew virtually nothing about her personal life or who she was when she wasn’t Kate Winston’s assistant.
Did she like to dance? What was her favorite kind of music? Did she have any hobbies? How did she spend her evenings and Sundays?
He frowned and stared up at an elaborate crystal chandelier. He shouldn’t be wondering about Debra’s personal life. It... She was none of his business. Just because they’d hooked up for one night didn’t mean anything at all.
He knew without doubt that it was a secret neither of them would speak of to anyone else. He trusted Debra. Her loyalty and love had always been with the family.
Still, she had stunned him with her passion, delighted him with her abandon that night. Granted, they’d both been buzzed on champagne, but neither of them could claim inebriation to the point of a lack of consent.
He knew he shouldn’t even be thinking about that night. It had been a foolish misstep on both their parts. Instead he should be thinking about Cecily and her excitement when he’d called her the night before and told her about the dinner party and his decision to enter the race.
“Then I guess we’re done here for now.” Stacy’s perky voice brought him back to the present. “I’ll email you the various menus and a couple of tentative table and floor plans first thing in the morning.”
Debra nodded and stood. “And I’ll get back to you on exactly what we want for a speaker’s podium and maybe a head table.”
“Sounds like a plan,” Stacy replied and also got to her feet. Trey followed suit, rising and taking Debra’s coat from the back of her chair to help her into it.
Even her coat smelled of that fresh scent that had dizzied his senses when he’d held her in his arms. She quickly slid her arms in and stepped away from him with a murmured thanks.
Trey pulled his coat on and at the ballroom doorway they both said goodbye to Stacy, who scurried off in one direction while Trey and Debra headed back to the lobby and the front door.
They stepped outside into the bracing air. “It’s after eleven. Do you want to go someplace for a quick lunch before you head back to the office?” he asked.
He could tell that he’d surprised her by the look on her face. “Oh, no, thanks. I really need to get back to work. All I need from you is a guest list as quickly as possible so that we can get the invitations out.”
“I’ll work on it this afternoon and how about I drop it by your place this evening? That way you’ll have it first thing in the morning to start working on. I’ve got business meetings tomorrow that will keep me at Adair Enterprises for most of the day. You’ll be home this evening?”
“Yes, I’ll be home by six-thirty or so.”
He shoved his hands into his coat pockets, noting how the brisk breeze whipped a pretty pink into her cheeks. “How are things with Larry?” It was the first time either of them had made any mention of what had transpired six weeks ago.
“It’s Barry, and things are fine. He’s gone and I’m happy. He was nothing but a creep.”
“You seemed pretty upset about the breakup,” Trey replied.
The pink in her cheeks was definitely brighter now and he had a feeling it had nothing to do with the weather. “I was mostly upset because I intended to break up with him that night and he beat me to the punch and broke up with me first.” She looked toward her car and shifted from one foot to the other, as if wishing for an immediate escape route.
“Okay then, I guess I’ll see you later this evening. Shall we say around seven?” he asked.
She nodded. “That would be fine.” With a murmured goodbye she made her escape, hurrying away from him as if unable to get out of his presence fast enough.
He frowned as he headed for his own car. He found it impossible to discern what Debra thought of him. In all the years he’d known her, he’d never been able to figure out if she actually liked him or not. The night of sharing a bed and hot sex hadn’t changed the fact that he didn’t know what to think about her or what she might think about him.
And it irritated him that he cared. He got into his car and tried to push thoughts of Debra Prentice away. He had so many other things to focus on, like how he intended to continue to run the successful Adair Enterprises at the same time he launched a campaign.
Grandfather Walt would be proud of him. The old man was probably dancing with the angels at Trey’s decision to enter the world of politics. Running the family business and politics had been what the old man had wanted for him.
Trey knew he had a good chance of winning. He didn’t lean too far left or too far to the right. His politics were middle-of-the-road.
