Red Hot Rose Boxed Set (22 page)

I texted him back.
 
Yes.
 
What time and where are we going?

I walked back to my bedroom so I could shower and consult with Jessica about what a girl wears on a lunch date with her boss and possible future roommate.

I wore shorts and a simple t-shirt paired with flat sandals.
 
The weather was gorgeous, and Alex had texted that we were doing a picnic. I avoided anything too constricting, like the tight dress Jessica had tried to convince me to wear.
 
Waiting outside, I couldn’t help but let my mind wander over the last few days.

I’d gone to a party thinking I was going to have a few awkward conversations and get paid for it so I could afford my last semester of college, and now here I was standing outside my apartment waiting for Prince Charming to come galloping into the parking lot to take me away.
 
I shook my head, refusing to argue with myself about it anymore.
 
It was time to grow up and take a few risks.
 
I wasn’t a little girl who could shirk in fear at anything that was different in life and hope everything would work out.
 
My safety net who was Jessica was getting ready to leave for her new life too, and I couldn’t expect her to always be there to be my crutch.

I stood up straighter and lifted my chin.
 
Rose DuPont, you are a confident woman who knows what she’s doing and where she’s going.
 
You can do this date, you can do the campaign management, and maybe you can even do the moving-in thing.
 
I felt my heart squeeze a little at that last part.
 
Okay, maybe not the moving-in thing, but all the rest of the stuff, yes!

I heard the purr of his engine before I saw it, and then the sleek lines of his high-powered vehicle came into view as it prowled closer and closer.
 
My heart rate picked up speed, and my palms started to sweat.
 
I couldn’t get the images of his gorgeous naked body out of my head.
 
His face hadn’t even come into view yet, but I could picture every bit of it, poised just above my waist as he looked up at me, those eyes of his mesmerizing me with his special kind of magic.

The car stopped in front of me and Alex beeped the horn, making me jump in fright.
 
I scowled at him, but all he did was smile.
 
He left the motor running and got out of the car, walking over to stand with me on the sidewalk.

He was wearing shorts too, bermuda style with a navy polo shirt on top.
 
His chest muscles filled it out nicely and his biceps bulged just below the edge of the sleeves.
 
The color went perfectly with his suntanned skin.
 
My gaze dropped down to his feet, and I couldn’t help but smile at his flip-flops.

“What’s so funny?” he asked, stopping in front of me.

I looked up.
 
“Nothing, really.
 
I’m just not used to seeing you dressed so casually is all.”

He stepped closer to me.
 
I could smell his sexy cologne now.
 
He’d recently showered and shaved, his hair still a little wet.
 
I wanted to run my fingers through it but resisted the urge.
 
I was so hot for him I probably would have agreed to do it in the car right here in the apartment complex parking lot.

He looked down at his feet.
 
“I just got these the other day.
 
Thought I’d take them out for a spin.”

I joined his gaze.
 
“They look comfortable. Where’d you get them?”

“At a surf shop not far from my place.
 
I’ll take you there sometime if you want.
 
You ready to go?”

I nodded, not trusting myself to speak.
 
So many things were running through my mind.
 
Is he going to ask me to move in with him again?
 
Was he only joking or did he change his mind?
 
Will we have sex?
 
Do I want to?
 
Who am I kidding, of course I want to.
 
I can’t believe he’s turned me into a nympho.
 
Everyone’s going to know he gave me the job because I’m sleeping with him.
 
My reputation will be ruined before I even have one!

“Stop,” he said simply, taking me by the elbow and leading me over to the passenger side of the car.

“Stop what?”
 
I let him guide me because my feet were too afraid to move on their own.
 
Within seconds of seeing him, I’d already started to chicken out again.
 
I was being scared away by my own sex drive.
 
Pitiful.

“Stop second guessing everything, over-analyzing, and trying to figure out what my ulterior motives are.”
 
He opened the door for me and gestured for me to take a seat.

“How do you know I’m doing all that?” I asked, getting into the car, looking up at him when I’m settled in.
 
I tried to look confused, as if he couldn’t be farther from the truth.
 
But he’d nailed it, and knowing that he got me so easily like that was freaking me out.

He didn’t answer me at first, walking around the car and getting into the driver’s seat.
 
He reversed out of the lot before he finally responded.
 
“First of all, you’re a woman, and all women do that.
 
But you also seem to have a hard time believing the things I’ve said to you, so I’m guessing whenever you see me, you start thinking about all of it.
 
Doubting it.”
 
He looked over at me.
 
“Am I right?”

Staring into his eyes made me want to melt into a warm puddle.
 
He was turning me into a stupid ninny, there was no other word for it.
 
I breathed out a sigh of frustration.
 
“Okay, you’re right.
 
I’m glad you suggested this date or whatever so that we can finally get to the bottom of everything.”
 
Time to go big or go home.

“You’re ready to do that?” he asked, his attention back on the road.

“Yes.
 
I’m ready to do that.”
 
I slapped my hands down on my thighs and rubbed them up and down a few times, trying to dry them off and warm them up with the friction.
 
“I’m totally and completely ready.
 
And to keep things … professional … I think we should not, you know … have sex or anything like that.”

I looked over at him in time to see the side of his mouth quirk up.
 
“I agree,” he said, nodding once.
 
“No sex.
 
No touching.
 
Just talking, eating, and some walking.
 
And possibly rowing.”

I should have been completely satisfied with that answer but a piece of me was a little bit disappointed that he’d agreed so readily and enthusiastically.
 
“Good,” I said, not really meaning it.
 
“So where are we going?”
 
The word
rowing
had kind of thrown me off.

“To the park that’s attached to my place.
 
That okay with you?”

“We’re not going into your house, right?”

“Nope. This is a picnic date.
 
We’re roughing it.”

I nodded.
 
“Sounds fine to me.”

A little while later we pulled up into his driveway.
 
He continued around the edge of it and took a right turn where it branched off and led to a large garage.
 
It was big enough for ten cars or maybe more.
 
We parked at the edge of a paved area that was used to turn cars around.
 
As I got out, he went into the trunk, taking out a large wicker basket and a blanket.

He joined me on my side of the car, gesturing with a jerk of his head.
 
“Follow me.”

I went along dutifully behind him, enjoying the rear view my position offered me.
 
He had a nice round butt, well-muscled and tight like an athlete’s or a dancer’s.
 
My face got a little warm when I pictured it naked and on top of me, pumping up and down, flexing with the thrusts of his cock inside me.
 
Holy crap!
 
What am I doing!
 
This is a no touching, no sex date!
 
Think unsexy thoughts, think unsexy thoughts…
 
“So, Alex … ummm … where exactly are we going?” I wiped the sweat off my upper lip, taking a deep calming breath and forcing myself to focus on the view that didn’t include his butt.

The property was heavily treed in this area with large pines that left murderously sharp pinecones on the ground.
 
I could hear them crunching beneath our feet.
 
A picnic on top of these wouldn’t be the most comfortable event I’d ever attended.

“Just a little farther,” Alex said.
 
“I promise, you’ll like it.
 
It’s worth the walk.”

“Okay, I’ll take your word on that.”
 
I concentrated on avoiding as many of the sharp pinecones as I could, not convinced they wouldn’t poke through the soles of my thin sandals at some point.

Eventually the pines gave way to oaks with huge branches that spread out far and wide.
 
All of them had bunches of Spanish moss hanging down from them, giving them almost a mystical air.
 
The sounds of civilization had faded out to nothing; now the only thing I could hear was our footsteps and the occasional call of a bird.

As we rounded a bend in the path we were on, a small lake came into view.
 
On the edge of it was a dock with a couple of canoes sitting on it.

“Wow,” I said, staring at the sparkling water.
 
The surface looked like it was covered in diamonds.
 
“It’s beautiful.”

Alex had reached the location of our picnic apparently because he put the basket down and got busy with unfolding and spreading out the blanket.
 
“Yep.
 
This is my favorite place on the property.”

I raised an eyebrow at that.
 
I would have expected his favorite place to be the bedroom.

“Don’t look at me like that,” he warned.
 
“I’m not superman.”

I wasn’t so sure I agreed with that statement, but I didn’t argue.
 
I walked over to help him straighten out the far corners of the blanket.
 
“You come here a lot?”
 
I was wondering how many other girls had enjoyed the view with him.

“I haven’t lately, but I used to, yes.”

“How come not lately?”
 
I looked first at him and then out at the lake.
 
If I lived here, I’d come to this place every day with a chair and a book.
 
My troubles were literally fading away right out of my head, being replaced by feelings of serenity and appreciation for nature’s beauty.

“I’ve been too busy with work and shoring up holes in my campaign to spend any time relaxing.”

“That’s too bad.”

“The campaign will be over soon, and I’ll be able to come out more often.
 
Take a breath now and again.”

“Are you planning on losing?” I asked, surprised at his defeatist attitude.

“No, not at all.
 
I still have a chance of winning, especially with you on my team.
 
But even if I win, I plan on taking time every day to chill out.
 
I can’t be an effective leader if I’m constantly stressed.”

“That’s true,” I said, wondering if he’d really take the time to do that if he won.
 
He didn’t seem the type to slow down once he got started.

He gestured to the blanket.
 
“Have a seat.
 
We can have a drink before I give you a little tour.”

I sat down across from him and watched as he took out a bottle of wine and uncorked it.
 
He had two plastic wine glasses that were fit into neat little elastic bands on the inside of the basket.
 
The pink wine came out cold, making the glasses mist a little.

He handed me one and took the other for himself.
 
Holding it up, he made a toast.
 
“Here’s to a revitalized campaign and a clean slate.”

I touched my glass to his.
 
“A clean slate for whom?”

“For both of us.”
 
He took a sip and gulped it down.
 
“Do you like it?”
 
He gestured to my wine.

I took a sip and swallowed it, ultra conscious of the fact that he was staring at me.
 
It was a totally innocent look, but he was so amazingly beautiful it was hard not to want to read something extra into his expression.
 
Why does he want to be with me when he could be with anyone?