Make You Mine, page 11
Uncertainty, yes. Curiosity, for sure. Her eyes shone almost emerald in the sunlight coming in the window, her lips parted, and her cheeks flushed. Hunger. Desire. Oh, God, she wants me too. Heat shimmered between them as his whole body tensed. All he had to do was lean down and—
She glanced away and broke the spell. “You got new shoes.”
Blinking, he took a step back, bumped into the chair and sent it scooting into the one behind it. “I-I . . . um, new shoes? Yes, I-I did.” Dammit. He was fumbling like a teenager. How did she manage to make him feel like he was fifteen years old again with only a look? And, God help him, what if he had kissed her again? Right here in the conference room with the door open, where anyone passing by could see them?
She slung the messenger bag over her shoulder, grabbed her jacket off the back of the chair, and strode to the door. “See ya later, Bossman.”
She was gone.
Missy appeared in the doorway, looking smug and bemused. “Hey, Bossman, Elvin’s in your office.”
He stared at her, but he was still picturing Maddie Ross’s jeans-clad behind swinging through the door. “Huh?”
“Elvin Petch. You know, our accountant?” Missy laughed. “Good grief, Jack. You’ve got it bad.”
He wasn’t about to dignify that comment with a response. Huffing with indignation, he grabbed his stuff and stalked past her while she continued to snicker.
Chapter Eleven
Maddie rolled up her yoga mat and secured the fastener, rolling her shoulders as she did so. The Thursday evening class had helped ease some of the tension, but she really wanted a beer and a burger. Oh, and fries. Lots of fries. She shook her head as she pulled her towel from the string bag she carried to class and wiped it over her face. “Lordy.”
“What?” Tall, elegant Annabelle had barely broken a sweat during the class. How did she do that? Stay so cool even after an hour of intense yoga?
“This class always leaves me hungry,” Maddie complained.
“Me too.” Anna jerked her head toward the door. “I’ve got this gorgeous salad I made before I got here, and my mouth’s been watering at the thought of it all through class. Has avocados, beets, edamame, chickpeas, grilled chicken, plus a fab low-fat buttermilk herb dressing. Come share it with me. We’ll eat on my balcony. Great view of the river.”
Disappointment washed over her, but Maddie managed to keep her expression neutral. A salad wasn’t the big juicy cheeseburger and waffle fries from Hutchins House that she was dreaming of, but it was probably a much safer choice. Unfortunately, once she blew the day with fries, stopping to pick up a couple of pints of ice cream at Deke’s would be the next logical step. And ice cream always called to her from her freezer, so she’d probably eat at least half a carton in front of the TV before she even showered and got into her jammies.
Better to accept Anna’s offer. Besides, she’d never seen Anna’s condo; they’d always either met somewhere or they grabbed takeout and went to Maddie’s place because it was so much closer to Tierney’s studio. “Sounds great.” She pinned on a smile and led the way out of the cavernous space above the Bookmark bookstore. The staircase opened onto a small foyer, where one could either go into the Bookmark on the right or into Seams Pieceful, the quilt store, on the left, or up the stairs in the center for yoga. Thursday was the evening most of the businesses stayed open until eight P.M., so both shops were lit up and bustling.
Maddie peeked into the bookstore, wishing for a moment she could go browse. Books were her escape and she wouldn’t mind a quick peruse through their cozy mystery section. But she had three novels and a book about building sustainable houses in her TBR pile on the nightstand, so she didn’t need to spend the money. She shoved the heavy glass door open and stepped into the street. “Every time we pass by this bookstore, I remind myself to go get a library card. Meg told me the library is connected to the Libby app, so I can even get books for my Kindle. I just haven’t made the time yet.”
Anna patted her shoulder. “You’re still settling in here. New place, new job. Give yourself some grace.”
“I suppose.” Maddie gave the bookstore another longing glance as they ambled by the huge front window display, and her heart stuttered. Was that Jack sitting at a table in the Thrillers section? She paused. It is! He was hunched over the table, listening raptly to a kid about fifteen years old or so. “Is . . . is that Jack in there?”
Anna peered in the window. “Yeah. Oh, I think this is his night to tutor Logan.” She squinted and craned her neck to see over the book display. “Yep.”
“Jack tutors?” Maddie tried to keep the shock out of her tone, but this was unexpected, to say the least.
Anna’s smile was indulgent as she walked away from the window. “We all do. Walker is part of the ‘B2K’ program that River’s Edge schools started a few years ago.”
“B2K?” Maddie hurried to catch up to her.
“Business to Kids,” Anna explained. “Businesses in town help kids who are struggling in school. I tutor French and English. Jack and Eli help kids with math and history, I think. Eli’s a history fanatic and Jack’s a math whiz. Joe and Cam tutor the sciences. I think Missy does English too.”
“Isn’t that cool?” Maddie was impressed. “I wonder if Dad knows about this program. And where do I sign up?”
“Talk to Missy,” Anna suggested, as they crossed at the light and headed down Pearl Street toward the Box Factory condos. The river gleamed wide and lazy in the lights that lined the River Walk, and the scent of spring flowers filled the air as they passed by the restored Warner mansion.
Maddie inhaled the mingled scents of the river and flowers and fresh-cut grass, glad again that she’d made this move. She’d never imagined herself as a small-town girl, but River’s Edge was a fit. She was comfortable and already loved this town.
“This way.” Anna pointed to a concrete pathway that led between the old Box Factory buildings that had been turned into elegant condominiums.
The walk was lined with spring blooms—colorful tulips, daffodils, and even tiny purple crocuses filled the spring gardens. Breathtaking. “Anna, these gardens are gorgeous!”
“Aren’t they? The gardeners will fill in with annuals when these spring bulbs die back and, by June, they’ll be full of new color.” Anna turned up another walk, equally flower-lined, and punched a number into the pad by a glass door. Inside, the lobby was tastefully decorated in shades of gray and blue, with a row of mailboxes on the far wall and an elevator right in front of them. “I’m on the third floor, but I don’t do the elevator. You okay with the steps?” Anna said over her shoulder as she keyed open her mailbox and pulled out some envelopes before checking the packages on a nearby table. “Ah, it came!” She held up a box. “It’s my new swimsuit.”
“I’m fine with the stairs,” Maddie said and followed Anna up the wide, brightly lit staircase. “I can’t believe this place used to be a factory. This is amazing.”
Anna smiled. “Thank you. This was actually one of Walker’s gigs before my dad and uncle retired. It was a huge deal because the buildings are historic and the hoops we had to jump through . . . oh my God! But Dad and Uncle Corny convinced the historical society that turning them into living spaces beat letting them rot on the riverfront or tearing them down.” She opened a door past the stairwell. “Ta-da!”
The condo was huge, high-ceilinged, and in the daytime was probably full of light from the windows that overlooked the river. Her eye was immediately drawn to an amazing quilt hanging on the wall behind a big overstuffed chintz sofa, with antique tables and toss pillows in every chair.
“That sofa used to be in your apartment, Mads. I bought it from Mac when he and Carly redid your place a couple of years ago.” She tossed her yoga bag on the floor by the front door. “Make yourself at home. I’ll grab the salad. I think it’s warm enough to eat out on the balcony.”
While Anna bustled about in the kitchen, Maddie wandered, admiring a framed poster of the Eiffel Tower, a pair of flower prints, and a vase full of dried lavender. The home was surprising—eclectic and girly and, yet, totally Anna. One wall in the short hallway that probably led to the bedrooms and bathroom was covered in framed photos of every possible size and shape. Maddie longed to peruse, but the bathroom was more urgent. “Okay if I wash my hands?”
“Help yourself.” Anna’s voice was muffled as she leaned into the fridge.
The bathroom was charming—painted soft sage green, with a vanity that looked as though it was made from an antique dresser or chest. Maddie took care of business, splashed some water on her face, and washed her hands. Her messy bun was even messier after yoga, but it was only her and Anna, so she didn’t attempt to fix it.
She followed her nose to a delicious odor wafting from the kitchen, where Anna was plating salads. “What’s baking?”
“I’m warming up blueberry bran muffins in the micro. They’ll go perfectly with this salad. I’ve got chilled chard or iced tea or water or coffee. What’s your pleasure?”
“Iced tea sounds great.”
“Tea, it is.” She passed a spray bottle, a handful of paper towels, and a long butane lighter to Maddie. “Go wipe down the table out there and light the candles. Light switch is next to the sliding door.”
Coach lights on either side of the wide sliding doors gave the balcony a muted glow, perfect for dinner by the river, as Maddie cleaned off the table. Lights came on in the condo next door and easy jazz drifted out into the cool night—the perfect background music to dinner with a friend.
Anna came out, balancing a tray with salads, a basket of warm muffins, and two glasses of iced tea in one hand and carrying place mats and napkin-wrapped silverware in the other. “Want to grab this?” She tipped her head toward the tray and Maddie took it carefully. “Thanks.”
They settled into the comfortable chairs at the smallish bistro table and Anna passed her the pitcher of dressing. Everything was delicious and Maddie closed her eyes to savor the taste as the music switched to Miles Davis’s “Kind of Blue,” music she recognized from her dad’s passion for jazz.
“Your neighbor has great taste in music,” she said, forking up a bite of the tasty salad.
“Ya think?” Anna grinned and jerked a thumb toward the sound of the music. “That’s Jack. Frankly, it’s not my taste, but I’m learning to like it, because, since we’ve been able to open our doors, it’s all I hear.”
That damn fluttery sensation filled Maddie’s chest and she put a hand to her neck, hoping her racing pulse wasn’t showing in the low neckline of her tank top. She zipped her jacket all the way up as an extra measure of protection.
Anna’s brows came together in a look of concern. “You cold? We can go back in.”
Maddie gave her an over-bright smile. “No, I’m fine. These muffins are amazing. Did you make them?”
*
Jack pulled on his jogging shorts and a long-sleeved T-shirt, letting Miles Davis’s easy trumpet notes wash over him as he changed. He was disinclined to run tonight. Maybe the bike? But it was still under cover in his garage, and the tires probably needed filling, and truth was, he simply wasn’t up for digging out the air compressor and dealing with the tires. It was easier just to head out and run.
So why was he plopping down on his sofa? He swung his feet up, closed his eyes, and laid one arm across his forehead. It had been a long day. The theft out at the spec site had gnawed at him all day. Not that they hadn’t had materials taken from construction sites before—every contractor dealt with that sort of thing. Rarely, it turned out to be workers helping themselves. Most often, the thefts were by vandals. This one was more bothersome because the site was so far off the beaten path. Someone would have to know the work was happening up there or see it if they were at the back of Dykeman’s orchard, among the older trees. Plus, the thief had made off with the one item that made continuing work impossible. That was weird.
The look on Madeline’s face when she told the board about the missing boxes broke his heart. It was as if she’d taken the nails herself. She looked that fraught. He’d ached to take her in his arms and soothe her the way he’d reassure a child who worried that her parents would be mad at her for getting less than an A on her report card. The vulnerability only made him want her more and he hadn’t believed that was possible.
Fact was, Madeline Ross was the best crew super he’d ever seen, and that was saying a lot, considering he’d worked with Howard Farley, who was stellar. The app she’d developed put her a step ahead of any other supervisor he knew. He’d spent a couple of hours perusing it as he ate lunch in his office. It was simple and clear, and his crew chiefs—Don, Gus, Steve, Tammy, and Joe—had all adapted to it perfectly. Even Missy had said how much easier it was to handle time cards, since all the projects were in Maddie’s app. Everyone remembered to get their crews’ cards in on time because they could do it from their phones. That alone was a boon.
He’d also gotten the bad news that they’d lost the bid on the Aurora casino. His heart had fallen to his socks when he read the email from the owners of the operation. That job would’ve gone far to lift Walker out of the doldrums they seemed to have fallen into. Freaking Jess Beakins had gotten the job, and no doubt he’d hold that over Jack’s head the next time they ran into each other. Exactly like you did after you got the Pelkey dealership, his conscience nudged him. That had been their last huge contract, and it had happened under Eli’s watch, not his. The theater had been his biggest job since taking over as CEO.
He hated having to tell the others that Beakins had bid another job out from under them. Walker had to get the housing contracts from Hiko. They just had to. Maddie’s app would make bidding jobs easier because he could look through and see exactly what was being spent on current projects, so maybe they could come in closer to the competition. Although Jess had certainly underbid Aurora. That was the only way he could’ve come in with better numbers than theirs, which had been fair and honest.
He should get up and run, but the buttery-soft leather sofa was comfortable. Too comfortable. His stomach growled. Maybe he should at least go scare up something for supper since he’d had a skimpy lunch, burying himself in work to avoid thinking about both the lost contract and Madeline Ross’s delectable, round, swaying behind as she’d sauntered out of the conference room.
Behind his closed lids, he could still see her, intense and flushed with pride, maybe a little bit of anxiety, as she showed him the application she’d built. The sunlight coming in from the huge windows had struck her hair, making the strands that escaped the long braid hanging down her back gleam golden red. He’d practically had to sit on his hands to keep from reaching out to finger the curl over her ear. And that moment, when they’d both stood up, barely a breath between them . . .
A quiet knock on the door jerked him out of his fantasy and he sat up, rubbing his eyes with the heels of his hands. God, how long had he been lying there? A quick glance at his watch told him it was nearly ten, so it could only be one person; his cousin Annabelle must need to borrow something. “Hold your horses, AB, I’m coming.”
He unlocked the door and yanked it open, declaring, “What could you possibly need at this—”
Madeline stood there, looking almost shy, even delicate in her pink—pink?—fleece jacket pulled over workout clothes, her bag and yoga mat slung over one shoulder.
Jack had no idea what to say as they stood there staring at each other as one of the lights down the hallway buzzed, flickered, and went dark.
“You wanted to kiss me again, didn’t you?” Her voice came out small too. Not at all like herself. “Today, I mean. In the conference room.”
“Yes.” He didn’t even bother to deny it. She’d know he was lying and what was the point, really? If she hadn’t figured out yet that she turned him into a stuttering, quivering fool every time he was in her presence, then she wasn’t as smart as he knew her to be.
One corner of her lush mouth lifted. “I thought so.”
What was he supposed to say to that? Moving aside, he held out one hand in invitation. He trembled, longing for her to accept, yet in some strange way, hoping she wouldn’t because whatever got started here tonight would affect every aspect of their fragile relationship.
Maddie shook her head. “No.” She broke eye contact, looking around the carpeted hallway, up at the burned-out light, down at her shoes. “I wanted you to kiss me.”
The revelation didn’t shock him; he’d seen in her eyes that she wanted him. What surprised him was that she confessed it so baldly. That she’d knocked on his door to tell him she’d wanted him to kiss her. He was lost again, had no words, no idea what to do next.
Then she reached out a hand and touched his face, trailing one finger down his cheek before cupping his chin. Her touch made him shudder, and he moved a step closer. Tilting her head, a question in her eyes, she brushed her thumb over his lower lip. “Can we? Now? I need to know.”
His whole body was on point, every muscle tensed, but he didn’t touch her. He didn’t dare for fear that he’d simply grab her, haul her inside, and ravish her right there on the cold tile floor. The ache for her was bone deep and so totally unfamiliar that he flinched involuntarily at her touch.
She dropped her hand and stepped back, her gray-green eyes wide, crimson color flushing her cheeks. “Oh, God . . .” She spun around and ran for the elevator.
Startled into motion, Jack followed her and caught her arm just as she punched the button. Turning her toward him, he didn’t even stop to think, to wonder if what he was about to do was the right thing. Instead, he tugged her to him, so close he thought he could feel her heart pounding . . . or maybe it was his. “Never imagine for one second that I’m not dying to kiss you,” he whispered as their breaths mingled.
She gulped, closed her eyes, and ever, ever so slowly, reached up and pressed her lips to his. A lingering touch that nearly brought him to his knees. He fell into the kiss, hot and hungry, and the most sensual thing he’d ever known. All his instincts told him to sweep her up into his arms and carry her back to his bed, but then the elevator doors whooshed opened.
