Sizzling (18 page)

* * *

LORI HOVERED by the stairs for most of the afternoon, wanting
to see Reid, but in a casual way. The most sensible plan was to
simply go up to his rooms, knock on the door and talk to him. It was
the mature thing to do. The problem was, she wasn't feeling
especially mature these days.
She'd been lurking for so long
that she was startled when he finally appeared and she didn't know
what to say.
She stood at the foot of the stairs for his whole
journey down and still couldn't come up with a way to say what she
needed to.
"I was scared," she said at last, which
without an explanation probably didn't make much sense.
Reid
stood in front of her and waited.
"I don't want to do
this," she continued. "I don't want to try. I don't want to
risk the pain."
"Are you breaking up with me?"
She
tried to read his expression and couldn't. What was he thinking? Did
they have enough of a relationship for there to be a breakup?"
"It's
too hard," she admitted. "I'd done all this stuff and sure,
some of it was me, but it was mostly for you and what if you didn't
notice or didn't care? What if I'm yet another in a long line of
one-night stands? Does any of this matter to you? Am I getting
involved with someone who has no plans to be involved with me? I've
never gone out with a guy like you. I don't know the rules. I've been
warned to protect myself from you and while I appreciate the
information I want to know why no one is warning you. Maybe I'll
break your heart."
"Maybe you will," he
said.
"I'm not saying I want to," she
clarified.
"Yes, you do."
Did he really think
that? "No. I just want to be equals in this. I want to be more
than a supplicant at the altar of Reid."
"I have an
altar?"
"You know what I mean." She shrugged.
"That was all." She turned to leave.
He grabbed her
arm and held her in place. Then he moved close, put his hands on her
waist and drew her against him.
"Why do you doubt
yourself?" he asked. "You look great. You looked great
before. If you're happy with what you did, then I'm happy. You don't
have to change to get me interested." He smiled, but continued
to stare into her eyes. "I think I've already proved that.
Several times over."
She appreciated the reassurance and
refused to let herself point out that there hadn't been a repeat
performance of that single, amazing night. She stepped back.
"I'm
not looking for a one-night stand," he continued. "As for
you hurting me, of course it could happen, Lori. I have as much on
the line as you do. You're right— we're not equals. You have
the advantage."
"Oh, please." Who was he
kidding?
"You don't trust me," he said.
"Why?"
"Because…Because you're Reid
Buchanan and I don't know how to be in a relationship. Because I'm
afraid. Because this is hard."
"So you run?"
"It
seems a good plan."
"Maybe you could find another
one."
She stared at him, not sure what to say. Did she
want to stay? Not because he asked or because Madeline said it was a
good idea, but for herself?
"I'm not running," he
said. "You think that doesn't terrify me?"
"You're
trapped here."
He touched her face. "You're wrong.
There are a thousand places I could be. I'm here. With you."
She
liked how that sounded. In the past, she'd always avoided making the
effort. Maybe it
was
time to change that.
"I'll
stay," she whispered.
"I'm glad."

* * *

DR. GRAYSON WAS a friendly woman who listened as Lori told her
sad tale of being unable to wear contacts.
"How long has
it been since you tried?" the doctor asked. "The new soft
lenses are mostly water and many of my patients don't feel them at
all."
"It's been about five years," Lori said.
"Maybe longer."
"Do you want to try a pair
now?"
Lori really didn't but somehow her makeover seemed
incomplete. Besides, as spineless as it made her, her recent
encounter with Reid had inspired her to go to the next level, or at
least talk about it.
Dr. Grayson pulled out a plastic
container of contacts. "You're a perfect candidate for Lasik,"
she said. "If that interests you."
Lori was too
caught up in watching the doctor put liquid onto a seemingly innocent
piece of flexible plastic to do more than murmur, "I'm not wild
about the idea."
She swallowed hard, then tried to relax
as the contact got closer and closer to her eye. When it was nearly
touching, she flinched.
Dr. Grayson chuckled. "This goes
better if you leave your eye open. Do you want to try putting it in
yourself?"
"Not even for money."
"Okay.
Deep breath. Here we go."
The contact slipped onto her
eye. Lori could instantly see better out of that one eye, which was
kind of nice. Maybe this wasn't so bad. Maybe she'd overreacted to
the whole contact lenses issue. Then she blinked.
It was like
having a boulder in her eye. Pain shot through to the back of head
and tears poured down her cheek.
"Get it out, get it
out," she said quickly.
"Okay. Look up. Keep your
eye open."
Then it was gone. Dr. Grayson handed her a
tissue. "So maybe contacts aren't for you."
"Maybe
not."
"There are a lot of great styles in
glasses."
Lori blinked several times to clear the tears,
then looked down at her glasses. Maybe it was time to admit
defeat.
Five minutes later she walked out into the waiting
room. Madeline stood up.
"You're not wearing
contacts."
"I'm not a good candidate."
"Oh.
Okay. Now what?"
Lori pulled the appointment card out of
her back pocket and tried not to hyperventilate.
"Now I
get my corneas burned off by a stupid laser."

* * *

A TRUTH OF BASEBALL IS that the pitcher is going to get hit by
a few balls. Either throws that go wild or an unexpected low hit that
flies right down the middle. Reid had taken his share of knocks and
he remembered how each one hurt like hell. The ones that hit him in
the gut had pushed the air out of his lungs.
He felt like that
now— as if he'd been sucker punched. He wondered if he would
ever catch his breath again. Sure he'd done the right thing, but
damn.
He walked into the kitchen and saw Lori making Gloria's
lunch. She turned, smiled, then put down the knife she'd been using
and hurried over to him.
"What's wrong? Do you feel okay?
Are you sick?"
"I'm good."
"You
look awful." She touched his forehead. "You don't have a
temperature, but you're a little pale."
"I'm fine.
Just getting used to the fact that I gave away one hundred and
twenty-five million dollars."
Her eyes widened. "You
did what?"
"Gave it away. I'm starting a foundation.
Its mission is to help get kids involved with sports. We'll give away
equipment, build play fields, send kids to camp, that sort of thing.
At least that's what we're working out right now. The details."
Lori
touched his arm. "Impressive. That's a lot of money."
"I'm
just getting that."
She smiled. "So are you poor
now? Do you have to get a job?"
"I'm trying to do
the right thing, but I'm not crazy. I have money left. Besides, I
have a job. I've quit the sports bar and now I'll be working at the
foundation."
"Running it?"
"No. I'm
hiring experts for that. I'm going to be the front man. I was talking
to Cal about it. I want to do something. Those letters…"
He shook his head. "They haunt me."
She squeezed his
arm. "It wasn't your fault."
"It was my picture
and fake signature that got sent to those kids. When I think of how
disappointed they must have been…" He didn't want to
think about it, but he couldn't seem to stop.
"I don't
want it to happen again," he said firmly. "I'm going to
make sure I get it right. I'm a celebrity of sorts. I can use that.
I'll go out there and meet people. I'll get other donations, bring
focus to important causes. Who knows— maybe I can even make a
difference."
Even saying the words felt uncomfortable.
While he'd tried to be a decent guy, he'd really only ever cared
about himself and his family. Taking on the world's troubles seemed
daunting. So he would start small. One problem at a time.
"You'll
be great," she said. "Maybe this was your destiny all
along. Maybe you were supposed to end up here, doing this kind of
work."
He wasn't a big believer in destiny, but maybe she
was right. But if all this was his destiny, what did that make
her?
He stared into Lori's eyes, liking the way the colors
swirled together. She was so beautiful, he thought. Beautiful and
bossy and sexy as hell.
He dropped his gaze to her mouth and
thought about kissing her. Kissing Lori was a great way to spend a
day. Of course there was the issue of Gloria, and Lori being in the
middle of preparing lunch, but…
He stared more
intently. Something was different. Something was…
"You're
not wearing your glasses," he said.
She nodded, her mouth
pulling into a slight smile. "I know."
"Contacts?"
"We're
not compatible."
"Then?"
"Lasik
surgery."
He winced. "I thought you were never going
to do that."
"I changed my mind. It wasn't bad at
all. They gave me a tranquilizer and I let them burn away. The whole
thing took about fifteen minutes. There isn't any downtime at all.
Madeline even watched."
He grimaced. "Eye surgery?
No, thanks. When did you have this done?"
"Yesterday."
"And
you're okay?"
"I'm great. I can see perfectly."
Her smile broadened. "It's kind of a miracle. And no more
glasses."
He sensed he was on dangerous territory. If he
said or did the wrong thing, he could really piss her off.
"I'm
glad you're happy," he said carefully. "You looked great
before and you look great now."
"You're so
politically correct."
"I don't want you to beat
me."
She laughed. "When have I ever beaten
you?"
"You were very disapproving when we first
met."
"I thought you were useless."
"Plus
you were wildly attracted to me and you hated that."
He'd
been teasing and expected her to deny his statement. Instead she
looked away. "I need to finish Gloria's lunch."
"Lori?"
She
shrugged. "It was stupid, but, yes, I did kind of have a crush
on you. I hated that I did. Men like you never notice women like
me."
"All evidence to the contrary," he said.
He wanted to jump up and down and yell that Lori liked him, but he
had a reputation for being cool, so he didn't.
"If you
hadn't had to hang out here, nothing would have happened," she
said.
"My loss."
She looked at him, her eyes
wide. So many emotions raced across her face, he couldn't read any
one of them.
"I don't know how to deal with you,"
she admitted.
"Why do I have to be dealt with?"
She
sighed. "I don't know what's going on. We're not dating. We're
friends, I guess. It's confusing. I'm confused."
"Me,
too." He kissed her.
He liked her. He liked being with
her. He wanted to keep being with her. But if she was asking him to
define what they had, he was the wrong guy.
"I have
something to ask you," he said. "Something
important."
"Okay."
"I want you to
think it through before you answer."
"You're making
me nervous."
"No reason to be. Will you be on the
board of directors for my foundation?"
She looked as
stunned as if he'd just transformed into a cartoon character.
"What?
I don't know anything about being on a board. I don't know anything
about sports or charity work. Reid, you don't have to do this.
Seriously."
"It's not about experience," he
said. "You don't have to worry about that. The other members of
the board are pros at this sort of thing. But I want you on the board
as well. You won't let me get away with any crap. I trust you to kick
my ass when I need it. You're the most down-to-earth person I know.
You'll keep me and the foundation grounded. It's only a few hours a
month. You'll get paid for your time, but it's not big bucks."
Lori
couldn't believe what he was saying. Reid actually wanted her to
serve on an advisory board for a new foundation funded by a hundred
and twenty-five million dollars? Her?
"That's kind of a
long-term commitment," she said. "If things don't go well
between us, you'd be stuck with me."
"I'm good with
that. No matter how much I pissed you off personally, you'd never
mess with the foundation."
She wouldn't, of course, but
she appreciated that he knew it, too.
Making a difference had
a lot of appeal. Who wouldn't enjoy being in that position? It was a
once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, compliments of a man she'd once
thought of as having the emotional depth of a cookie sheet.
She
walked into his embrace and hung on tight.
"I was wrong
about you," she murmured, burying her face in his shoulder.
"You're much more than a pretty face."
"I'm
overwhelmed by your flattery."
She chuckled, then raised
her head and looked at him. "You didn't have to do any of this.
You could have lived off your millions and not given a damn about
anyone."
"I'm still going to live off my
millions."
"You're a good guy. Don't hide that. We
need good guys in the world."
In truth, she hadn't
expected him to be one of them. But now that he was, it made him even
more irresistible.
She felt her heart give a little zip. As if
it had just opened up to Reid. As if she could now let him inside.
The thought of caring more was terrifying, but how was she supposed
to stop herself? He was better than she could ever have imagined.
He
kissed her lightly. "You'd better feed my grandmother. She's
skinny and needs to eat."
"You're right." But
he didn't let her go. Instead he kept his arms around her.
"What
are you doing later?" he asked. "After work?"
Anticipation
exploded inside of her. "I don't know. What did you have in
mind?"
"My place." He jerked his head toward
the ceiling. "Say four o'clock. I'll be the good-looking guy
waiting for you."
She would be the quivering female, but
there was no reason to actually say that.
"Sounds like
fun," she whispered instead and stepped back.
Reid looked
at the clock. "That's a long time from now."
"Four
whole hours."
"You still wearing a thong?"
There
was something in his voice. Something low and throaty that made her
thighs twitch.
"Uh-huh."
He groaned. "Ask
my grandmother if you can leave work early."