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raging inferno.
Curt would be a good neutralizer for her out-of-control libido.
 Put him on, she told Joyce.
 Grace, good morning. His voice slid through the connection.
 Good morning, Curt. Is there something I can do for you? I thought the quarterly
reports were all in order.
 They were fine, he assured her.  As always. Your work is impeccable. He
paused.  I thought I d make my usual pitch and see if maybe this time I could persuade
you to have dinner with me? It s been a long time since our last one. There s a terrific
new Italian restaurant that s opened on the Riverwalk. I understand their food is great
and they have an excellent wine cellar. How about it? Is this my lucky day?
Why not? I need to step away from Ben before he swallows me whole.
Wondering if she d regret it later, she said,  Why, Curt, I think that would be very
nice.
 My god, did you actually say yes?
Grace laughed. She could imagine the shocked look on his face.  I did. See?
Persistence pays off.
 I ll pick you up at seven, if that s all right with you.
For a moment she was tempted to tell him she d made a mistake but she swallowed
her words.  Seven will be fine.
53
Desiree Holt
She sat with her hand on the receiver after she d hung up, still trying to convince
herself she d done the right thing. On impulse she unpinned the little boot from her
collar and dropped it into her purse. There. She might not be superstitious but it was
better not to take chances. Clearing her throat, she dialed the number of Ben s hotel and
asked to be connected to his room.
Please don t let him be there. Please, please, please.
She clutched the receiver so tightly her fingers hurt.
 I m sorry but the room doesn t answer, the operator told her.  Would you like to
leave a message? I can put you through to voice mail.
Relief whooshed through her. Yes. A message. She wouldn t have to confront him.
She d worry about his reaction another time.
 Yes, please. When the recorded tone beeped at her, she got it all out as quickly as
she could.  Hi, Ben. Sorry to leave you a message like this but something came up and I
won t be able to make it tonight. Then,  Bye, and she hung up before she could
change her mind.
She leaned back in her chair, shaking. He d be mad. No, furious. Outraged. He
wouldn t take kindly to being brushed off like this. On the other hand, maybe he d be
glad to be rid of her and find someone else.
No, not Ben.
Sighing, she managed to push it all from her mind and turn back to the file open on
her computer. One thing at a time, she told herself. Maybe Curt Sanderson had
somehow morphed into a hot, sexy hunk who could get her juices flowing. If not, so
much the better. Curt was safe. Settled. Predictable. All the things that Ben was not. But
all the things the sensible side of her brain told her she needed in her life, not some
rodeo drifter taking her on a wild ride.
* * * * *
By seven thirty Grace knew her idea had been foolish if not downright idiotic.
Almost from the moment Curt had ushered her into the restaurant and they d followed
the maitre d to their table, she knew this was a mistake.
As she sipped her wine from the oversized goblet, she let her eyes roam over every
detail of the man across from her that she could see, hoping she was missing something.
But no, it was the same old Curt. The one who had seemed like such a good candidate
for socializing. A carbon copy of the other men she d allowed herself to date since she
took down the Keep Away sign. Gray hair combed so carefully not one strand would
dare move out of place. Closely shaven face pink from the effects, she was sure, of the
three glasses of wine he d already had to her one. Suit almost the same shade of gray as
his hair. With his impeccably laundered white shirt and precisely knotted tie, he looked
like a cover model for a senior citizen s magazine.
54
Rodeo Heat
But Curt no longer appeared to her as a person who was aging gracefully as she d
once thought. Already she could see the hint of jowls along his jawline and the
beginning of liver spots on the backs of his hands. He never worked out, didn t even
play golf and she wondered now if the body beneath the expensive tailoring was
already showing the first signs of flab.
Thinking of him naked, a shiver of revulsion raced over her that she could barely
control.
What am I thinking here? Curt is exactly what I need. The perfect& the perfect& the perfect
what?
The perfect waste of time, her mind screamed at her. Put him next to Ben and there
was no comparison.
Ben!
Get out of my mind. I need to stop thinking about you.
 Grace?
She jerked herself back to the present, realizing Curt was talking to her.
 I m sorry, she apologized.  Just winding down from the day. What were you
saying?
He reached across the table and closed his hand over the one she had resting on the
fine linen. It took all her willpower not to jerk it away.
 I was just remarking how nice it is to finally spend some time with you again that
doesn t involve my business.
 Oh. Yes. Thank you.
Her mind blanked and she sipped at her wine. Without thinking her hand stole to
the pin she d placed on the lapel. She had no idea what had made her fasten it on at the
last moment. Now it was like a flame thrower burning a hole into her body. The tip of
one finger rubbed the burnished surface and instantly an image of a naked Ben flashed
across her brain.
No, no, no! This is what I m trying to get away from.
Ben Lowell had Danger Handle With Care written all over him. The intensity of
what was building between them scared her to death, so she d run back to what was
safe. Secure. Non-threatening. Curt Sanderson.
But when you danced with the devil, you couldn t slow down for a sedate waltz. All that
wild music just keeps on playing, drawing me in. I m afraid to lift the cover and look inside
myself. So here I sit, time moving as if weighted by concrete.
She had no idea how she got through the rest of the dinner. Of course she had no
one but herself to blame. She was careful never to leave her hand where Curt could
grab it again, or to lean forward in an attitude he could in any way consider intimate.
She forced herself to eat enough of her meal so he wouldn t question her lack of
appetite but everything she chewed tasted like sawdust.
This was a stupid idea. Stupid, stupid, stupid.
55
Desiree Holt
And she d broken one of her firm, cardinal rules. Don t date clients.
Thinking she could wipe away traces of Ben by having dinner with Curt was a big
mistake. She might as well admit to herself she was hooked on the rodeo cowboy with a [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]

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