Jeanie London – Hot Sheets (страница 3)

He appeared as if conjured straight from her imagination, one of those stop-traffic gorgeous men who couldn’t walk into a room without drawing attention. Not because he was loud or showy but simply because he was there.

He had that something about him, and it didn’t matter whether he wore a business suit or workboots and a hard hat. A hint of bad boy lingered in his easy smile, in his smoky-gray eyes and the way he made everywhere seem like the perfect setting for his dark good looks.

Laura drank in the sight of him, her body instantly on red alert. The bottom dropped from her stomach, and the reaction was so intense, so automatic, that she might have laughed. But there was absolutely nothing funny about the sultry brunette dangling from this man’s arm.

DALE EMERSON NOTICED the lovely Laura as soon as he walked through Falling Inn Bed’s front door. She stood showcased in the open area that led to the promenade, breathtaking, her suit hinting at all the sleek curves hidden beneath its tailored lines. Not to mention showing off a great pair of legs.

Her gaze lingered over him as if she’d been waiting for his arrival, as though she somehow knew he hadn’t been able to get her out of his head in the month since he’d left Niagara Falls.

Laura…what was it about her?

Dale couldn’t answer the question, damn it. He only knew his own gaze lingered as if he’d been waiting every day of the last month to see her.

As always, she wore her long hair swept back in an elaborate French braid that hung heavily down her back. He’d had fantasies about unraveling her white-blond hair and draping it across his naked body. He’d had fantasies about how he’d enjoy her naked body, too, and about those long, long legs sweated up enough to glide sleekly through his.

Even the way she moved made him think of sex, all that graceful, breathless energy…just the thought made him aware, and too damned horny.

Oh, man, he so didn’t want to see Laura again. If not for his obligation to attend this grand opening, he’d have spun the invitation back without opening it. But as project architect for the new addition, Dale was obligated.

This Wedding Wing marked his firm’s first foray out of historic restoration and into construction, an expansion that had been solely his idea. He hadn’t wanted to leave his firm for another job, but he had wanted to direct a team of his own, which meant finally breaking up the dynamic duo that he’d been with his buddy—the company’s owner—Nick Fairfax.

He’d come up with the compromise of the expansion, a decision Dale hadn’t made lightly. He’d been Nick’s right hand for a long time, and the two of them had not only earned significant recognition with their restoration work, but had entertained themselves by chasing women on job sites all over the globe. But ever since Nick had married a fellow preservationist, things had been changing.

The beautiful Julienne had consumed Nick from the get-go, and Dale had laughed like hell while watching Nick do the bump and grind of making himself a serious contender for her affections.

He was still laughing when he stood beside Nick at the altar as his bride had walked down the aisle.

But Dale’s humor eventually had started to fade when he discovered the thrill of chasing women wasn’t nearly so much fun when he was pursuing them alone. He hadn’t lost his best friend exactly…it was just damned hard to discuss the finer points of the opposite sex with a man who had everything he wanted in his bed every night.

This was a concept Dale flat-out didn’t understand.

He’d never had a hard-on for a woman that the next beauty who walked by couldn’t cure. Except for one…

The one who had zeroed in on him across an entire lobby of milling guests.

If it was any consolation—and it wasn’t—Laura Granger had always been as aware of him as he was of her. When their gazes clashed across the distance, every muscle in his body galvanized at the appreciation he saw in her crystalline blue eyes.

They’d been wired with some sort of sex radar, and after all the time he’d spent working with her, he should be used to the effect. He wasn’t. He’d been telling himself this acute awareness was nothing more than a side effect of this project. The Wedding Wing equaled sex, which had meant conversation after conversation about the topic with Laura.

He wouldn’t be surprised if they’d talked more sex that he’d actually had in his lifetime—and he’d had his fair share. But sex had become an obsession with the Wedding Wing’s bedding consultant, and while that might seem like a good thing given their chemistry, it wasn’t.

Laura was an idealist. She believed in romance with her sex. Knights in shining armor, who rescued their damsels on white horses. She believed that fairy-tale weddings translated into happily-ever-afters.

She was exactly the kind of woman who usually shut off his libido like a spigot. Except that every time she smiled one of those breath-stalling smiles, his temperature shot to full-blast and all he could think about was his body tangling around hers beneath that cool silk hair.

Almost as if she knew he was mentally undressing her again, Laura gave him one of those smiles. Then she took off, leading her guests along the promenade, her graceful steps putting more and more distance between them and giving him an incredible shot of the way she moved, all elegant swaying and subtle energy.

Running a hand through his hair, Dale stared after her, wondering what it was about her smile that made every nerve in his body tingle. Tingle, damn it.

“Remind me again why you bothered bringing me along.” The demand in the accented voice jolted Dale from his thoughts enough to remember the woman beside him.

“Monique love, I brought you along to enjoy your company, of course,” he said automatically.

“Then why are you staring after that blonde like some lovesick puppy?”

Lovesick puppy?

Glancing down at the beautiful French woman with cascades of rich brown hair and a pouting frown, Dale wondered how in hell to answer that question. He couldn’t recall being lovesick in his thirty-three years, not even as a kid. He’d dived into dating headfirst and hadn’t looked up since.

“How could I look at any woman with you on my arm?” He lifted her hand and brushed his mouth across her smooth skin.

“You promised to show me a good time.”

“And I will.” He directed her gaze to the lush main lobby that surrounded them. “Look at this great old place. We’ve got three weeks together to enjoy ourselves in five-star luxury, far away from our lives. What could be better?”

From what he’d heard, Monique had needed a diversion after being dumped by some actor she’d been dating. When her scowl faded, he knew she’d forgiven his screwup and was looking forward to this vacation and putting her West Coast lover behind her.

“Let’s check in and I’ll give you a tour. Between these accommodations and the grand opening events, we’ll have fun while we get acquainted.” He only hoped Monique didn’t let his mistake set the tone for the weeks ahead.

“Welcome back!” a familiar female voice called out.

“Great to be back, gorgeous.” In his fantasies at least. “Monique, this is Annabelle Simmons, the inn’s sales director.”

With a regal expression, Monique held out her hand.

“Welcome, Monique,” Annabelle said cordially but he didn’t miss the assessing way she took in Monique. “You’re in for an exciting visit. And, Dale, I’m so glad you could make it back for the grand opening. How’s it been going?”

“Appreciated the time off.” He appreciated a break from his Laura obsession, even if he hadn’t gotten it under control.

“All that hard work—you deserve a chance to enjoy the fruits of your labors.”

“I was on this property a long time, so I know all the hours you’ve put in, Annabelle. You make sure to pencil me in on your dance card because I expect you plan to follow that advice yourself.”

Annabelle grinned. She was a hardworking, old-school businesswoman with a head full of gray curls who’d always struck Dale as out of place in a hotel that held weekly marketing strategy sessions to discuss new and improved ways to get their guests to do the nasty.

“All right, all right,” she said. “No argument. There’s always so much to do around here. You know that as well as anyone. But the staff intends to lighten up for Laura’s grand opening and celebrate our achievement.”

“Sounds like we’re in for an interesting few weeks.”

“Oh, we are.” She rolled her eyes and motioned them to the front desk. “So come on. We’ve got to get our celebration underway. There’s a whole new wing filled with sexy suites that need couples to play in them. Let’s choose your poison.”

Dale didn’t know what to make of that statement, but when he caught sight of the new assistant general manager near the concierge desk, he steered the conversation back to business. “How’s Adam making out? Have you worked your magic and gotten him into the spirit of things yet?”

Annabelle didn’t slow her brisk steps. “Let’s leave it with he’s been trying to interject sanity into our grand opening.”

“He’s got his work cut out for him.” Dale gave a low whistle before explaining to Monique, “There’s nothing sane going on in this place on a good day.”