I need to learn all I can and—”
“You know all you need to know about running a radio station, Sherri. Come on, this isn’t the first one you’ve managed. All you had to do is become familiar with the setup of WLCK. You’re good at what you do,” Kim said as they began walking slowly toward Sherri’s bungalow.
“Thanks.”
“You’re welcome. Now back to the reason why you won’t go out with the Holy Terror,” Kim said while looping her arms around her friend’s shoulders.
Sherri couldn’t help but smile. Kim refused to let up, and it served Sherri right for convincing her friend to move to the Keys with her when she had gotten the job offer from her uncle Warrick. Since Kim was a nurse, it hadn’t been hard for her to get a job at one of the hospitals here.
Sherri had just opened her mouth to say something when she saw the floral arrangement in front of her door. “Wow! I wonder where these came from.”
She picked up the vase filled with a beautiful arrangement of mixed flowers. “They’re gorgeous, aren’t they?”
“Yes, so who sent them?” Kim asked.
Sherri pulled off the card and opened it up. Moments later she massaged the bridge of her nose and closed her eyes, not wanting to believe the message written on the card.
“Well, Sherri, who sent them?”
She opened her eyes and frowned at Kim. “They’re from Terrence, like you really wouldn’t know,” she said.
Kim placed a hand over her mouth in surprise. “The Holy Terror sent you those?”
Sherri lifted her heard and quirked a brow. “Don’t tell me you’re really surprised about this,” she said.
Kim shrugged. “Well, I am. I did my research on the guy and everything I’ve read about Terrence Jefferies indicates that when it comes to pursuing women he doesn’t put out a lot of effort or give it much thought. He doesn’t have to since women usually flock to him.” She glanced at the floral arrangement. “I would think a lot of thought went into ordering those.”
Sherri would think so, too, but then, she hadn’t gone to the trouble of doing an investigation of Terrence like Kim had done. “I can’t get weakened by this,” she decided to say. “I’ll thank him for the flowers but make absolutely sure he understands that nothing has changed. I still won’t go out with him.”
She looked at the flowers and couldn’t help but smile.
Her smile faded when she noticed the sympathetic look on Kim’s face. Kim knew her better than anyone. “I’m headed for troubled waters, aren’t I?” she asked her friend softly.
Kim chuckled. “Yes, and I hope you can swim.”
Later that night after taking her shower, Sherri put on her silk bathrobe and then curled up on the sofa with the card she’d received with the flowers. Again she read the message Terrence had written.
Please have dinner with me tomorrow night at my club.
Terrence
The man just wouldn’t give up. She wondered what would happen if she refused him again. Would he continue to be persistent? She felt her body tremble at the thought.
During her first week on the job, Terrence had been out of town attending his sister’s wedding. But from the moment her uncle Warrick had introduced them, she had felt this pull, this sexual chemistry. Unlike him, she had been willing to ignore it, to move on and place her focus on more important issues like becoming acquainted with the day-to-day operations of the station. But that didn’t mean he hadn’t crossed her mind a few times or that he wouldn’t give her system one hell of a jolt whenever she would run into him in the corridors.
She recalled seeing him at the water fountain one day, and the sight of him bending over and drinking water—how his mouth adjusted to take in the liquid—had made her senses whirl and her blood rush through her veins. And when he’d finished, he had licked his lips. She had been totally embarrassed when he had glanced up and seen her staring at him like a ninny.
She reread his card. The least she could do was call and thank him for the flowers, she thought, glancing across the room at them. She had found the perfect spot, right in front of the window. She had the window open and a soft breeze was flowing through, wafting the fragrance toward her.
Before she changed her mind, she called him.
“Hello.”
Even with the noise she could hear in the background, Terrence’s deep masculine voice came through the phone loud and distinctively clear. It moved over her skin like a soft caress. “Terrence, this is Sherri.”
“I know. Your name popped up,” he said, and she could just imagine the potency of the smile he had on his lips.
“Thanks for the flowers. They’re beautiful,” she rushed on to say, deciding to stick with the reason she’d phoned and end the call.
“You’re welcome. I’m glad you like them.” There was a pause. Then he asked, “What about dinner? Will you join me tomorrow night here at the club?”
Sherri closed her eyes. In the recesses of her mind, she could actually pick up the scent of his aftershave and could see that enticing smile on his lips, the one that made her feel as if something akin to liquid fire flowed through her veins. She then thought of his body heat, the heat she felt whenever she was around him. The same heat he had left in her office. She opened her eyes when she actually felt the phone tremble in her hands.
She could think of all the reasons she should not have dinner with him. She had gone over them a number of times before, most recently just an hour ago while she was in the shower. In essence, nothing had changed. Yet for some reason she wanted to have dinner with him.
“Yes, I’ll join you for dinner,” she said quickly, accepting that although nothing had changed, she needed to get beyond this thing with him. Maybe having dinner with him this one time would help her do so.
“All right. Do you want me to pick you up or would you rather we meet here?”
She did not want him to pick her up. Him coming into her home for any reason was something she’d rather avoid. “I can meet you there,” she said. “Will six o’clock be okay?”
“Fine. Do you know how to get to Club Hurricane?” he asked.
“Yes. Although I’ve never been there, I’ve passed by it a few times. It looks like a real nice place.”
“It is. And I look forward to showing you around.”
There was something about the way he’d made that last statement that warned her to keep her senses in check while around him. Not doing so would be reckless. “I’ll look forward to it. Good night.”
“Good night, Sherri.”
Sherri clicked off the phone, feeling warm and tingly all through her body. Terrence had a way of making her feel that way, even when he was miles away.
It took a
