Gift Wrapped (16 page)

“Wow…you sold me.”

“Thanks. That helps take the edge off my nerves.”

“Nerves? What nerves? You’re dressed for success, have a great plan and pitch, and when you talk about food, it’s with absolute passion.” To hell with professionalism, for once. She planted her hands on his chest, rose to her toes and kissed him. “For luck, though I know you won’t need it.”

“I hope you’re right.” He pulled his hands from his pockets and flicked the black lapels of his tailored-to-perfection jacket. “And this is okay for that kind of meeting? I thought a two-piece suit might be over the top. Then I didn’t know if I should wear a tie, or go without, since I wasn’t wearing the suit pants.” He swiped one palm over his head, down the back of his neck, which he massaged with rough-looking pinches. “Food is my thing, not fashion. I should’ve asked you before you left for work, but I was hoping to surprise you with some good news of my own later.”

God, she loved this man.

“Hey, you okay?” He gripped her elbow when she took a dizzy step backward. “Did you bring the lunch stuff I set out for you? Maybe you should take a break and get something to eat.”

Every word out of his mouth, every caring action, made the realization worse. She hadn’t just gotten addicted to the sex, or a little emotionally attached. She’d fallen
in love
with Davis. Madly. Completely.

She nodded and rallied some steel for her spine. “That’s probably a good idea. I’ll go on break soon.”

“Good. Do that.” He rubbed circles over her forearm with his thumb, his narrowed eyes fixed intently on her face. “You’re probably suffering from fatigue too. I’ve been depriving you of too much sleep. You should stop waiting up for me every night.”

If they had any amount of future, that’d be a practical point. With only a limited number of nights together left, wasting them on sleep wasn’t an option that crossed her mind for a single moment.

“I’m sure it’s just low blood sugar. I’ll take time to eat when Lori comes back, I promise.” As if cued, her assistant came around the corner, and twenty seconds later, walked into the store. “Speak of the devil.” Brinn freed her arm from his protective touch and put space between them. “What time is your meeting?”

Davis flipped the edge of his sleeve up to check his watch. “Shit. I’m not late, but I’ve got to move it.”

“Get going,” she said, shooing him with her fingertips. “Impress the hell out of them.”

Halfway out of the store, he turned back and pointed at Lori. “Make sure the manager goes on a break and eats soon.”

“Will do,” Lori said, issuing a salute.

“Let me know how it went,” Brinn called before he got underway again. “I’ll still be awake when you finish your shift.”

“Noted.”

“Whoa.” Lori fanned herself after Davis and his killer smile disappeared from sight. “That man is a serious upgrade from your last boyfriend.”

“I know. He’s got a great job that he cares about, he makes me laugh all the time, and he listens to me. Really listens to me, not just the typical nods and grunts. He even makes my lunch so that I won’t eat from the food court.”

“Girl, you’re in so much trouble.” Lori moved to the opposite side of the rack Brinn had leaned against. “I was talking about his exterior. You’re talking about his interior.”

Brinn straightened and busied herself ordering the hangers by size, smallest to largest, from left to right. “I’m just noting that he has things going for him besides his hotness.”

“You, my soon-to-be-former manager, are gonzo for this guy. And from the little bit I saw just now, I’d say that feeling is mutual.”

“It’s a temporary thing, nothing more. We’re just enjoying each other’s company until I leave town.”

Lori’s snort would have turned heads, if they’d had any to turn. “I bet he doesn’t want you moving anywhere.”

“That’s a bet you’d lose. He helped me find a new apartment yesterday. He watched me write the check for my first month’s rent, dated for two weeks from now. He told me he’d rent a pickup truck and help me move my stuff.”

“For a manager with excellent people skills, you can be really dumb when it comes to your personal relationships. You’re mistaking supportive behavior for happiness about a thing. Not the same at all.”

“True, but—”

“Forget ‘but,’ let’s bet instead.”

Oh boy, this ought to be interesting. “Bet what?”

Lori tapped her index finger against her temple. “I’ve got it. I bet you a month’s worth of Starbucks that before moving day rolls around, he asks you to stay.”

A bet Lori was sure to lose.

Brinn extended her hand across the top of the floor rack. “You’re on. I’ll think of you when I’m in the middle of my million-dollar store, drinking my free daily latte.”

“See, I already know your view of the future is a lie. There’s no way you’d drink a latte on the sales floor.”

She laughed at the well-intentioned dig at her store rules. Inside, the truth of Lori’s words twisted around Brinn’s heart. It didn’t matter whether she pictured herself happily flying solo in a new city, or allowed herself to imagine a scenario where Davis continued to be part of her life. Neither would happen. Lori was right—Brinn’s view of the future was a lie.

* * * * *

The promise of a bright day—albeit a cold one—streamed through Brinn’s bedroom window. Morning sunshine warmed her face, but nothing warmed the space beside her. She’d slept alone.

She patted around beneath the covers until she found her cell phone. Plenty of battery left. She hadn’t accidentally muted the ringer either. A few quick taps revealed no missed texts or calls.

The last time she remembered seeing on the digital clock by her bed was 10:20. Shit. She should’ve stayed upright, on the couch, instead of getting horizontal. Fatigue had caught up with her and won.

Davis hadn’t called or texted, but he might have come straight over after work, as he’d done several other times. What if she hadn’t heard him knocking, then he’d left? Damn it. Stupid sleep had caused her to miss a night with him—and she didn’t have enough nights left to squander any.

She’d rectify the situation right now, by ensuring it didn’t happen again. A little advance planning to let him know she’d be awake and waiting for him after his shift tonight.

He answered her call with, “Hey, hang on a sec while I take care of something.”

“Um, okay…” Her response was pointless. From the void-like air on the other end of the call, he’d obviously set his cell down and walked away. She pressed her phone tightly to her ear. Closed her eyes in hopes it’d heighten her hearing.

“Yeah, that works for me,” he said to somebody other than her. “I’ll swing by later. And I’ll give you a call tonight.”

Swing by where? Give who a call tonight? Try as she might, she couldn’t hear a second voice. Just Davis’s brief laugh at something the anonymous person must’ve said.

Then a corresponding
feminine
laugh.

Brinn’s stomach lurched. The room felt as if it’d been sucked into a tornado. That’s why he hadn’t joined her in her bed last night—he’d had another woman in his. Now what? Hang up and give him the freedom he’d obviously been missing? She banged the heel of her hand against her forehead. Stupid, stupid, stupid…

“Still there?” His deep voice cut through her fog of self-loathing.

“Sorry for interrupting when you had company. You shouldn’t have answered if you were in the middle of something.”

“I wasn’t. Barb was on her way out when my phone rang.” He hadn’t bothered to hide the fact that he was saying goodbye to not just a woman, but one with whom he’d previously admitted to having a longstanding fuck-buddy relationship. Asshole.

“Barb.” God, that name tasted like poison. Brinn wanted to spit when she said it. “
Barb
was on her way out of your house at nine in the morning. I see.”

Several seconds of thick silence passed before he answered. “I had a shitty fucking night last night. The owner rejected my menu proposal. Made it clear the changes I’d suggested were never going to happen. Then I spent the next nine hours making the same old fucking food. Food I’m going to be stuck making forever, unless I find somewhere else to work. Even if I do that, you know what’s going to happen? More of the same, just under a different visionless boss. So when I left there, finally, I had to blow off some steam.”

“And your choice for that was Barb.”

“My choice was the 24-hour gym. Then a beer and hockey highlights. Then sleep. Alone.” He exhaled low and long. “Jesus, Brinn.”

She cringed. From across the city, she could practically see him rubbing the back of his neck. Trying to work out tension
she’d
just created, on top of his disappointment from yesterday.

“As for Barb being here so early, she stopped by to ask a favor. And before you dig yourself in deeper with the jealous-girlfriend bullshit, the favor was to make sure Alicia gets home from school, and to fix her some supper before I go to work. Barb usually works dayshift, but has to pull a weird split today. Alicia’s your typical picky, moody teenager. Without a proper meal set in front of her, supper would probably be potato chips and hot chocolate.”

She ought to spare him any more grief and end the call. But she couldn’t—yet. “I’m really sorry your meeting didn’t go the way you hoped. Your boss is a fool not to hand you the reins with the menu.”

“Life goes on.”

It did, and his would. More smoothly once she was out of it. “And I’m a different kind of sorry for acting like a bitchy jealous girlfriend.”

“It happens.”

“Well, it won’t happen again with me.” She closed her eyes and drew a fortifying breath. “To make sure of that, it’s probably best if we don’t get together again. My brain knows this is a casual, temporary thing, but my heart refuses to follow the memo. Whether you and Barb spent the night together or not shouldn’t matter to me, but it does.”

“We weren’t together.”

“I know.” She sighed. “You’re missing my point. You said I was acting like a jealous girlfriend, and you’re right. Because that’s how I feel—like I’m your girlfriend. I tried not to let it happen, but I got attached. I like you too much to keep seeing you.”

“That’s possibly the craziest thing a woman has ever said to me.”

“I’d ask if there’s a trophy for that, but it’d just be one more thing to pack.”

He laughed—a brief one—then cleared his throat. “This is really what you want?”

“No. But it’s the smart thing.”

“You mean the safe thing.”

“That too.” She wiped her tears on the quilt. “I had a great time with you. Every day has been…” The relationship of her dreams. “So much fun. Meeting you was the best Christmas present ever.” With speedy fingers, she ended the call. With shaking hands, she turned off her phone.

Being smart and safe were currently the suckiest things on earth.

* * * * *

Since Davis had entered her life, Brinn had opted for the closing shift more days than not. Her noon to nine thirty didn’t match Davis’s usual weekday schedule exactly, but it was close enough. Late-night sex, talking into the wee hours, waking up next to his strong, warm body, the lazy—or not so lazy—mornings together…she would miss those things. Starting tonight.

An announcement that mall hours had ended for the day echoed in the too-quiet corridor. Thank goodness. There’d been no TGIF in this Friday shift—it’d dragged at a snail’s pace. Low sales and budgets at this time of year didn’t allow for additional staff, so she’d spent the last three hours alone in the store. Alone in her head. Neither were fun places to be at the moment.

Head down, she dragged the rolling racks in from the lease line. A hissed curse escaped when her hip connected with the corner of a shelf. She jerked at the streak of pain shooting down her leg, clipping a floor mannequin in the process.

“Shit!” she said, this time at full volume, as the life-size dummy careened sideways. She let go of the rolling rack and lunged for the mannequin clearly bent on escape.

“Got it.” The unmistakable deep voice came from behind the mannequin. Another second and it would’ve crashed spectacularly against the neighboring store’s bay display window. Davis to the rescue, once again.

“Thanks.”

“No problem,” he said, moving in tandem with her.

She busied herself with the racks and the roll-down door. Anything to avoid meeting his warm hazel eyes. To spare her heart the pain that would come from seeing his handsome face.

“Stop.” He reached out to halt the door’s descent when she pulled the metal rungs downward.

“I need to close the store. Mall security gets a little lax at this time of year and I don’t want to be the last person making the long, dark walk to the edge of the parking lot. Especially on a Friday night.”

“I’ll walk you to your car.”

Still averting her gaze, she tugged at the door—which didn’t budge.

“Brinn, look at me.”

She shook her head. “You’re supposed to be at work.”

“I called in.”

“Because of last night?”

“No. Because of you.”

She raised her head and got instantly caught in his determined gaze. “Other than a fit of klutziness, I’m fine.”

“Never said I thought otherwise. I’m not here to check on you, I’m here to give you something.” He released the overhead door to retrieve a box from inside his coat. “For you,” he said, offering it up.

Bigger than every girl’s dream of a ring box. Less than half the size of a shoe box. The red package tempted her, but she kept her fingers safely curled around the metal rungs of the door. “Why?”

“Because I wanted to.” The same reason he’d given when she asked why he’d bought her a Christmas present. He stepped inside the store, removed her hand from the door and pulled it down, closing them in together. “If you want me to leave, I will. After you open number one.”

“Number one?” Damn his mystique and pretty presents. How was she supposed to resist? She accepted the box, shivering when his fingers trailed over her palm.

“Number one of ten.”

“There are
ten
things in this box?”