Glamour Girl (West Coast Girlz: Book Two) (3 page)

“Don’t you dare.” He touched her arm. “A lady should never have to open a door.”

“I rarely get accused of being a lady.” She laughed to cover the discomfort her declaration brought. She didn’t know why it bothered her that he might not think her a lady. Even so, it did.

“Well then...” he said, “you’re not hanging out with the right people.”

He didn’t give her a chance to respond. He had his door open and was out of the vehicle before she could catch her breath.

As he helped her out of the Jeep, she found herself wishing he wouldn’t bid her adieu at the door of her motel room. It’d been a long time since she’d wanted a date to linger instead of ending early. But this wasn’t really a
date
. She had to keep reminding herself of that. Otherwise, she’d be headed for heartbreak.

Jase walked her to the door, and she wondered what she’d done to deserve having such a gorgeous, great guy—who she could never have even a one-night stand with, much less a relationship—walk into her life.

Just my luck
. There was a reason she’d chosen the glamorous life, instead of opting to settle down in suburbia—to keep her dumb butt from ending up with a broken heart.

She swiped the card key and the door popped open. She sucked in a deep breath, hoping to sound cheerful, instead of broken when she said, “I really did enjoy dinner. I hate dining alone.”

“Me too.”

She stepped inside the doorway and turned back to face him. “Now you’re just being nice.”

“Is it working?”

“Depends on what you’re hoping to accomplish.”

He laughed. Not one of those
I’m-laughing-at-you
laughs, but more of an enjoyable one, like he was having fun. He leaned in and kissed her cheek. As he backed up, he said, “I’ll see you in the morning, Rosanna.”

“Oh...don’t forget, I’m arriving early. Before daybreak.” She watched him take a few steps toward his Jeep before she closed the door, hoping to break the attraction consuming her.

If was a good idea to wrap up this shoot tomorrow, if she could.

* * *

Rosanna had tossed and turned all night with images of a straight Jase filling her dreams, and had no trouble rising well before dawn since she was already awake.

She was convinced now, more than ever, that she needed to make this a one-day shoot. She had to be done at the end of this day, so she could head back to L.A. and put Mirabelle Winery behind her. In light of that, she wanted to be at the vineyard and ready to snap some shots when the sun peeked over the horizon. She hoped Jase remembered she was coming early. Somebody had to let her in the gate.

If Gavin still wasn’t receptive to the idea, maybe he’d let her use Jase as a model instead. He’d sell far more bottles of wine than Gavin ever could. Not that she was superficial. It was a simple fact. Society always responded better to magnificence, in any form.

After dressing in a pair of jeans, a front-buttoning blouse and her sweater, she grabbed her camera bag and her purse and headed out.

Darkness painted the sky above the tiny town tucked up against the Sierra Nevadas, a place that made it was tough to see the eastern horizon.

Rosanna reached for her car door and glimpsed at her watch on her free arm. She had about an hour before daylight peeked over the mountaintops.

The drive to the vineyard was peaceful and quiet, and she had plenty of time to let her mind wander off to Jase. He was a stand-up guy. Handsome and attentive and totally off-limits. Maybe that’s what made him so appealing—the off-limits part.

Rosanna resigned herself to simply admiring his good looks, and perhaps do a little daydreaming, but she’d have to remind herself not to drool.

* * *

After Gavin emerged from his bedroom, he wasn’t thrilled to see Rosanna wielding a camera and actively taking shots. But as the day passed, the idea seemed to grow on him. By the time the sun was getting ready to set, he was even smiling for the camera.

“You have a beautiful smile, Gavin.” Rosanna took advantage of his new attitude and clicked away. “You should try that more often.”

“Well I don’t know...” Jase laughed. “Do we really want people to think he’s nice?”

Rosanna tried not to laugh. Instead, she surveyed the house’s main patio where they were sitting. A gentle breeze blowing in from the Sierra Nevada prompted her to sit down and enjoy the magnificent view. Once she left here, it’d be a while before she’d see anything like it again.

“I kind of like that most people think I’m an ass,” Gavin said.

She glanced back and forth between the Jase and Gavin. Granted, Jase didn’t exude homosexuality, and he and Gavin weren’t exactly affectionate with one another—at least not openly...but why else would Jase be here? Alone with Gavin.

“You must have
some
redeeming qualities,” Rosanna said, thinking mainly of how he’d caught Jase’s eye.

“His father thinks otherwise.” Gavin looked at Jase. “Doesn’t he, Jason?”

“Well let’s face it.” Jase sat down, but closer to Rosanna than Gavin. “You do give him lots of ammunition.”

“Your father’s an ass.”

“My mother says it runs in the family.”

There was a tense silence stilling around them—for about five seconds. Then both men burst into laughter.

Rosanna didn’t get it. There was nothing asinine about Jase, and it surprised her that his mother would suggest otherwise.

“Seriously, back to business.” Jase cleared his throat. “We really need to talk about this wine tasting thing.”

“Wine tasting?” Gavin’s distaste spewed out with his words. “You’re joking, right?”

“Not quite.” Jase shook his head.

“My brother’s an idiot.”

Uh oh
. Back to his brother again. In hindsight, maybe it would’ve been better to stick to poking fun at Jase’s family.

“Why don’t you just have a masquerade party?” Rosanna suggested, hoping to diffuse the situation. “That way…” She fought the snicker rising up into her throat. “Gavin can pretend like he doesn’t know who anybody is. He can avoid talking to all the guests, but they still get to taste the wine.”

She’d meant it as more of a joke than anything, but she could see by the looks on their faces that that’s not the way they’d taken her proposition. She wasn’t serious, but they sure were.

Gavin pointed a finger at Jase. “Go call your dad. Tell him we’re having a masquerade party and he’s not invited.”

Jase pushed himself up and turned to Gavin. “Good luck with that.” He laughed and left Rosanna and Gavin alone on the patio.

Rosanna waited until Jase had disappeared inside the house before she turned to Gavin. “So I guess nobody ever told you about flies and honey?”

“I know all about flies and honey.”

“You’d probably get a lot farther with Jase’s dad.”

“Why would I want to do that?”

“Well it would make things easier for you and Jase.”

“In what respect?”

“Well, you know...” Suddenly, Rosanna felt uncomfortable chatting it up with a virtual stranger about his sex life.

Gavin shook his head. “I don’t believe in that sins of the father crap.”

“Huh?”

“How I feel about my brother has nothing to do with my relationship with my nephew.”

“Nephew?” Reality was knocking on the door, but she hadn’t opened it yet. “What’s your nephew got to do with this?”

“You’re the one who’s so worried about our relationship.”

“I’m lost.” For the first time in a long time, Rosanna was feeling utterly stupid. “What does Jase have to do with your nephew?”

“Jase
is
my nephew.” He looked at her with his own curiosity now. “Who did you think he was?” His eyes lit up, like the light had just turned on. “Ah...” He nodded. “Wait until I tell Jase...” His words trailed off into mischievous laughter.

Oh, God. I
am
stupid.
If Jase wasn’t gay, that meant she’d probably been coming across as a complete idiot.

“Oh...” Rosanna stood, suddenly anxious to get the hell out of there. “I think it’s time for me to go.”

“Will you be back tomorrow?”

“Oh, I think I have enough shots.” When she looked at him, he frowned. She added, to assure him, “I promise...your layout will leave even your brother speechless.”

“You’re not going to say goodbye to Jase?” He was teasing her now. She knew that, but it made little difference.

“Oh, I think I’ve said enough.”

CHAPTER 5

ROSANNA STOPPED AT THE FRONT DOOR
. It was her escape, but still, she hesitated. Her friends may call her the
glamour girl
, but she wasn’t known for being thoughtless, at least not without provocation. And Jase had done nothing to warrant her walking out without saying goodbye.

Quietly, she set the camera bag and her purse on the floor and went to look for him. He was probably in the study, making that phone call to his dad. Gavin’s brother. How could she have been so stupid?

“Well, now we have proof,” she said softly as she traversed the maze that was Gavin’s home. “I’m
not
the brightest bulb on the Christmas tree.”

Getting closer to the study, she heard his voice. “Well actually the idea came from Rosanna Carmichael.” He was silent for a brief moment and then he said into the phone, “Yes, she’s got numerous commendable qualities.”

Okay. This could get embarrassing. He thought she was great, and she’d thought he was gay. Rosanna would never live this one down.

She stopped in the doorway, leaning against the doorjamb. She wanted to steal a moment to look at him one more time. To see the smile on his face when he saw her standing there. That’d end, just as soon as he found out about her thinking he was gay.

When he looked up, he smiled. Rosanna’s heart pounded. The last time she was this excited, she was snapping shots on the red carpet.

“Hey, listen…” Jase said into the phone, “I’ve got to go. I’ll talk to you in a few days about the party.” He winked at her and waved her inside the room. “Tell mother I’ll do my best to see that she attends.” He ended the conversation with a hint of laughter, and then said his
goodbyes
. Still looking at Rosanna, he hung up the phone.

“I wanted to say goodbye before I left,” she said, before he had to chance to say anything charming that’d make her second-guess her decision to leave.

“Goodbye?” He pushed himself up from the desk. “You’re not leaving?”

He moved around the desk. Her instincts urged her to step back and leave, before he reached her. But her legs wouldn’t budge.

“I think I should.”

“But I haven’t even had a chance to kiss you.” He was at her side now. “I know you want me to. I just can’t figure out why you’re avoiding it.”

“Now that’s a funny story.” One she hoped he’d find humorous.

“Want to share it over dinner?”

Rosanna shook her head. No way would she tell him that in public. She scanned the room. Her eyes stuck on the two chairs in front of the desk. “Oh, man.” She moved toward them. “You’d better sit down.”

She dropped into one of the chairs, dragged her fingers through her hair and tangled the ends around her fingers.

“Come on…” He let out a little nervous laugh. “It can’t be that bad.”

“Trust me.”

“What are you trying to tell me?” He turned the empty chair to face her and sat down. “Are you married?”

She shook her head.

“A boyfriend then? Is that why you’re resisting my kisses?”

Again, she shook her head. “If you’d just told me when I first got here...” She shook her head. “That your last name was Elliot…” She sucked in a heavy breath.

Jase’s mouth dropped open into a facetious grin. “You thought I was gay…?” He just sat there with his mouth hanging open; it was his only reaction.

“Well…you were here, alone, with a man who came out a long time ago.”

Jase’s laughter ripped over the room, encasing her in humiliation. “Does Gavin know?”

She cut her glare at him. “I mean, most people call their uncles
uncle
.”

Jase grinned. “Did he think it was funny?”

“What’s wrong with you people anyway?