Something Wild (16 page)

"Now?" She looked amused.

He let his eyes fall briefly shut and let out a sigh. "You're right. We have to work, don't we?"

"Not that I don't find you tempting," she said, biting her lip in that provocative way he loved, "but working would probably be a good idea, since we didn't yesterday."

To his surprise, Ryan found holding back easier now, likely because he knew there would be more, and because he no longer had to pretend nothing was going on between them. In one sense, he knew falling into this relationship was insane, but he really had surrendered to her yesterday in a way he couldn't ignore. When Martin came home— Well, they'd deal with that then. But for now, things felt too good to worry about the future.

"My computer was finally delivered to the office today," he said, taking a seat at her desk. "While the wholesale guy was there, I ordered your floppy drive and modem."

"Thank you," she replied, walking over to place one hand to his cheek.

He grinned uncertainly. "It's only a couple of computer parts."

"No, that's not what I mean. Thank you for that, too. But what I'm really thanking you for is … kissing me hello. I was afraid of how things would be when you arrived today. I thought you'd come in here telling me we can't 'get close' anymore, that things would've changed overnight."

Ryan shook his head and admitted to her what he'd been forced to admit to himself. "I think I've proven I have no self-control where you're concerned. I've given up."

She grinned. "A man at my mercy. I like that."

"Be gentle," he begged, teasing.

After another kiss, though, Ryan forced his attention on her computer.

"What are you doing?"

"Reinstalling your printer," he said, finishing the short process. "Why don't you pull up your system notes and see if it works."

A moment later, the printer kicked to life and Penny's notes started filling the white pages that pushed through it. "Great," she said.

Frankly, Ryan found it unbelievable that Martin couldn't have taken care of something so simple for her. Clearly, the guy hadn't even spent five minutes looking at the problem. "You know what this means, don't you?" he asked.

"What?" She snatched up a handful of pages from the printer tray as if they were the most amazing things she'd ever seen.

"We don't have to confine ourselves to working here anymore." Of course, as recently as yesterday, his plan had been to make sure they started working in the office instead, but circumstances had changed since then. "It's a beautiful day outside," he went on. "Yesterday's rain cooled things down. I've heard a lot about EdenPark since I got here, but I haven't had the chance to check it out, even though it's just up the hill from my condo. So what do you say we take your notes and my laptop and get out in the sunshine?"

Her smile returned. "When do we leave?"

"How about as soon as your notes finish printing? I stopped by my place and threw some shorts in my briefcase, so I'll need to change."

"And I'll need my tennis shoes," she said.

Ryan headed to the bathroom to shed his suit, but he got a bit sidetracked upon stepping back into the little peach-colored room where he and Penny had been so intimate just yesterday. They were so damn good together when he let them be, that the thought filled him with warmth. He wasn't inclined to examine it too closely, but he knew he liked what he was feeling, and that he wasn't ready to let it go.

When he exited a minute later in shorts and a polo shirt, he found Penny in her bedroom, pulling her hair into a tortoiseshell barrette at the nape of her neck. "Almost ready?" he asked. The printer had quieted in the other room.

She swung open a closet door. "Just need my shoes. Can you grab a pair of white socks for me from that bottom drawer?" She pointed over her shoulder at an antique chifforobe just behind him.

"Sure." Bending to open the sock-filled drawer, Ryan grabbed the first pair of white ones his hand fell on, but what rested underneath them caught his eye. Without really thinking, he pushed aside the other socks that lay across the clear plastic container he found.

He stopped breathing when he spied, trapped within the plastic, a pair of heart-shaped handcuffs covered in red velvet. And he'd thought she was wild before? This gave a whole new meaning to the word.

Then again, this
was
the same girl who'd seduced him in a dark limousine. But, knowing her better now, Ryan couldn't resist pulling the package from the drawer, turning toward her, and clearing his throat.

When she spun to face him, the package dangled from his fingertips. "Victim of Love Handcuffs for Lovers?" he asked with one arched brow.

Penny's jaw dropped and Ryan couldn't deny enjoying her stunned expression. "That was a—a gag gift. My sister gave them to me, for some insane reason—" she gesticulated wildly "—on my twenty-fifth birthday."

"Twenty-fifth, huh? How long ago was that?"

"Almost four years."

He grinned. "Keeping them handy for some reason?" She continued to look mortified, and Ryan mischievously took pleasure from it, until she finally let out a huge sigh. "Okay, fine, you caught me. I was cleaning out the basement a few weeks ago and found them. I guess I was sort of saving them just in case … well, you know, in case Martin…"

"Had a wild side," he finished for her.

She nodded, her pretty face nearly as red as the top she wore. "Now may I have my socks please?" She held out her hand.

"Heads up," Ryan said, tossing the balled pair of socks to her. As she caught them, he smiled, but she still looked disconcerted.

He shook his head as he dropped the handcuffs on the bed and came toward her. Although it had been fun for a minute, he didn't want her to be so embarrassed about a side of her that was so fun, so enticing. "Penny," he said, "I like it. And I really don't mind."

"Don't mind what?" she asked, exasperated.

He winked and pulled her into a warm embrace. "What an adventurous woman you are."

* * *

Penny had wanted to die when Ryan pulled those velvet handcuffs from her drawer. She'd forgotten they were even there, and now regretted putting them someplace so accessible. Of course, at the time, she'd thought she'd
wanted
them accessible, just in case anything interesting ever transpired with Martin. But thinking about that now made her want to throw the dumb things in the garbage as soon as she got home.

Thankfully, Ryan had been merciful enough not to mention them again and now they shared a lovely afternoon. First, they'd stopped at a shop in MountAdams to grab some wine coolers and fruit to snack on. Ryan had also plucked a small bouquet of daisies from a stand of flowers, thrusting them into her fist with a wink as he told the shopkeeper to add them to the bill. He couldn't know how the small gesture had melted her heart, but she still held the flowers, even as she lay on her stomach on the blanket they'd spread next to the pond at the overlook.

Most people came to this particular spot for the view of the Ohio River wending its way through the valley below, but Penny loved the garden atmosphere, the bridge that crossed the stream leading from the pond, the large shade trees that left the grass dappled with sunlight.

"This is a nice place," Ryan said, looking up from his laptop to watch a few kids run across the bridge.

Penny lay next to where he sat, facing the other way, so she twisted her neck to see. "Yeah, Martin and I come here sometimes."

"Oh." Ryan's smile disappeared. "So then this is kind of a … special place."

Penny sighed and snapped a grape from a bunch lying on a napkin between them. "No, not really. And, as I'm realizing more every day, nothing with Martin was actually all that special. It was more like we were two friends going to the park together. Two
buddies."
She popped the grape in her mouth and stopped short of telling Ryan that today, being here with
him,
was special. In fact, she found herself noticing the park's details in a way she never had before—the ducks' wakes spreading across the water, the vibrant purple flowers that jutted from the garden to their right, and the cheerful old men with their remote control riverboats, one sporting a working calliope. Oh, she'd
seen
all of it before, but she'd never really felt it, absorbed it, the way she did right now.

"Could I have a grape?" Ryan requested, his eyes locked on the screen as he typed furiously. Penny pulled another from the bunch and lifted it to his lips. He reached out and took it with his mouth, along with her finger, which he slowly sucked from base to tip before letting go.

An unexpected bolt of pleasure shot through her, and she gave a barely-there moan.

"That's just a taste of what's to come later," he promised with one of his devilish grins. "If we can get back to work."

On that note, they dove back into the project in earnest and finished reviewing the screens he had created since yesterday. There were a lot, more than she could have imagined a single person designing in less than a day. "I can't believe how fast this is going," she mentioned offhandedly. "I thought it would take weeks to get to this point."

"Usually it might, but I guess I'm a pretty fast worker when I'm into what I'm doing." She found his boyish modesty appealing. "Of course, it'll be a while before all this is fully testable. What I'm showing you now is just to see if we're on the same page before I get it all tied together and functional. And besides, the lengthy part will be the menu and cashier systems."

But Penny barely heard the last part, because she couldn't believe what she was seeing. Was that Grace in the distance? Grace had a Scottish terrier just like the one on the woman's leash, and the woman had the same hair color and build as Martin's assistant.

Before Penny could utter a word, the woman in question turned her head, and sure enough, it was Grace.

"Uh-oh."

"Uh-oh what?" Ryan asked, still focused on the screen.

"Grace is here. Up on the sidewalk by the street."

The announcement got his full attention; he stopped typing to sneak a glance over his shoulder, then dropped his dread-filled gaze to Penny. "What on earth is she doing here?"

"Walking her dog."

"No, I mean why isn't she at work?"

Penny checked her watch. "It's almost six."

He shook his head with a sigh. "Damn it, woman, you make me lose track of time."

Penny would have enjoyed the remark more, but unfortunately, Grace's dog had just frolicked off the walkway into the grass, coming closer. Penny pulled in her breath and spoke lowly. "Don't look now, but Snowball is hunting for the perfect place to relieve himself, and he's heading our way."

8

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R
yan couldn't believe his rotten luck. He didn't know much about the inner workings of Schuster Systems yet, but he'd already figured out that Grace was Martin's right hand around the office. "What are the chances?" he murmured, incredulous. "Of all the parks in the city, she has to choose
this
one?"

Penny ducked her head behind him slightly, then peeked around his shoulder. "Grace lives in Walnut Hills, just a few blocks from here."

He sighed, then muttered, "Great."

"I've never actually seen her here, though," she said, lifting a wary gaze. "I didn't even think about her living so close. Sorry."

Ryan nodded, trying to relax. "It's not your fault."

"Don't look so worried. After all, we're not actually doing anything wrong. We're working. You have a computer and you're keying stuff into it as we speak."

He scowled, keeping his voice low. "Penny, I don't think most system designers lie on blankets in parks with their clients while they work. With fruit and wine and flowers, no less."

Just then, a smile stretched across Penny's face when he least expected it. He didn't want to take the chance of turning his head to see why, so he said, "What is it? What's happening?"

"She's leaving."

"She is?"

"Snowball didn't find the right spot, I guess," Penny said, her tone less furtive now. "He's back on the sidewalk and they're moving past us, headed for home."

Ryan let out the huge breath he didn't even realize he'd been holding.

"I don't think she saw us," Penny added, reaching out one hand to touch his knee.

He finally looked over his shoulder to see for himself, and sure enough, he caught a last glimpse of Grace and her little white dog just before they disappeared from view behind a stand of small trees. Real relief finally washed over him, but he still wished he didn't feel as if they were hiding from a woman they both liked, a woman he knew considered Penny a friend.

"Would you be disappointed," he asked, "if I suggested we call it a day and get the hell out of here before the dog changes his mind and brings her back?"

"Not at all." Penny's tone sounded sincere, and he hoped it was, because he didn't want her to feel as if they were doing something wrong. It would be great if he could just ditch this job for her, but it wasn't that easy, as much as he hated the idea of sneaking around. Powering down his laptop, he decided to change the subject and lighten things up.