short compliments.”
“Exactly.” She turned away from him, staring at the bottles of alcohol lined up at the back of the bar. “Okay, I’m Jane Doe, sitting here, minding my own business. Practice on me.”
He looked at her profile, noticing a slight bump on the bridge of her nose. A childhood accident? Definitely not something to compliment her on. His gaze dropped to her lips, pretty and full and still slicked with the blood-red lipstick. Let me muss your lipstick? No, that wasn’t a compliment.
He looked again at that wisp of errant hair that glinted gold under the light. He leaned forward. “You have beautiful hair,” he said in a low, throaty voice. “The color of sunshine.”
She nodded slightly, barely glancing at him. “Yes, yes, that’s good. Try another.”
He leaned closer, easing in a lungful of that hothouse perfume. “If I were your man,” he whispered hotly into her ear, “I’d make sure you were wearing both earrings before you left the house.”
She shuddered a release of breath. Then, as his words registered, she straightened and touched one earlobe, then the other.
“Oh!” she exclaimed, touching the bare lobe. “I forgot to put one on.”
Folding her hands demurely in her lap, she swiveled on the stool and looked directly at him. “All right,” she said, rolling back her shoulders. “You seem to have a handle on one-liners. Just stay away from cooking references. And, by the way, when you enter a bar, no grinning and waving.”
“Huh?”
“Like what you did when you walked into the bar a few minutes ago.”
“What am I supposed to do?”
“You started out right. Self-confident, cool. You paused in the doorway and slowly scanned the room. At that moment, every woman’s eyes were on you, hoping she’d be the one. We’ll go to another bar in a few minutes, practice your entrance…Oh, one more thing. Are you…a bit pigeon-toed?”
“When I walk too fast.” She was more eagle-eyed than the nuns at Catholic school.
“Slow down, then. And before we leave, let’s practice how you sit at a bar.”
He looked down. “What’s wrong with this?”
“You look…perched. Like a bald eagle on a branch.” She darted a look at his head. “Sorry.”
Actually, it was a bit funny even though she didn’t seem to think so. “No offense taken. What kind of animal should I be?”
She paused, then snapped her fingers. “A panther. Sleek, powerful, sensual. And instead of sitting, lean seductively against the bar.”
He frowned. “Seductively?”
“Just lean your hip against the bar. Trust me, it’ll look hot and bad. Go ahead, try it.”
He stood and pressed a hip against the bar.
She tilted her head. “Can you slouch a little? Your hip looks attached to the bar.”
He bent one knee. “Like this?”
“No, no. Watch me.” In one smooth motion, she slid off her stool and thrust one hip against the bar. Leaning back a little, she planted an elbow on the bar while sliding an “I’m here, check me out” look across the bar.
Nigel was spellbound. He’d wondered before where she kept her passion and right now he saw it in action. In that one liquid move, she’d confirmed the old saying, “You can’t judge a book by its cover.”
“See what I mean?”
“Oh, yeah.” His blood was heating up, racing to his groin.
She straightened. “Now, you try it.”
“Uh, I’m tired of practicing here. Let’s head to the next bar, practice there.”
She pursed her lips, looking perplexed. “I want to be a good coach—”
“Trust me,” he rasped, stealing her line, “you are.” He downed another sip of beer, willing the rush of cold to temper his boiling blood.
NIGEL STOOD OUTSIDE THE BAR, a place called Scarlett’s on the outskirts of Vegas away from the hustle of the strip. He wondered how Kimberly picked these places—she seemed too straitlaced to go to them herself.
He inhaled the evening air, grateful as always this time of year not to be in his hometown of Boston where February could be brutal. Unlike Vegas where February was sweet, easy. Like early spring. Balmy, the air touched with scents of jasmine and orange.
He glanced up at the neon sign over the door of the bar. A thin red light flashed along the outline of a woman in a hoop dress. He thought about Kimberly’s red suit and wondered if she ever wore something soft and flouncy. If she ever reveled in her femininity.
His gut told him no.
What a waste of woman.
From helping raise his kid sisters, Nigel had seen firsthand how a girl flowered into a woman. Each of his sisters was different, and yet each had the same need to feel special, be listened to, know that she was appealing to the opposite sex. And in the course of evolving into a woman, each developed her own individual tastes and values.
He pondered what Kimberly valued.
Money, he guessed, was top of the list.
A distant second might be…jelly beans.
Nigel chuckled to himself. Jelly beans. Candy bars. God bless that Maurice fellow for sneaking in an occasional breakfast burrito. Yesterday, watching the exchange between Maurice and Kimberly was priceless—she obviously didn’t approve of her assistant’s meddling and he didn’t give a hoot what she thought.
That had to be the key to getting through Ms. Logan’s uptight persona. Like the saying in that ad, Just Do It.
Hey, maybe he could take this game a step further. Not just try out some stances and lines, but get through to her. If he could shake loose some of Ms. Logan’s frosty exterior, just imagine the power he’d have with other women!
Yeah, he’d wrap up this second step fast, move on to whatever three was. Something about melting women. The sooner he got through these steps, the sooner he’d find true love.
Nigel stepped up to the door, placed his hand on the brass knob, ready to be Nicky, the baddest of the bad.
The bar was darker, moodier than the other one. True to its name, Scarlett’s, pinpoints of red light punctured the smoky atmosphere. An old Tony Bennett tune threaded the air, the deep melodious voice crooning about his solitude and being haunted by the memories of a woman.
He shut the door behind him and stood for a moment absorbing the sights and sounds in the room. Glasses clinked. Tony crooned. At some tables, he saw huddled forms. In the corner, next to a jukebox, a couple danced. To the far left was the bar, its track lighting reflected
