Page 6 of Love You
“Darcy, I slosh beer on them all day and night.”
Rachel returned with the ointment and began dabbing it on Darcy’s chest in the middle of the bakery while the counter kid mopped up the mess. At that moment, she wished she could curl up and die. Then she suddenly remembered the time.
“I’ve got to go.” The meeting. She’d be late.
“You’re sure you’re okay?” Rachel gave Darcy’s dress one final swipe with the towel. The coffee was already starting to dry, leaving a brown stain in the center of her boobs. Great.
“I’m good,” she said, and grabbed the pastry carton, jogging the two blocks to Garner Adventure.
By the time she walked in the door she was out of breath and sweaty from the early sunshine beaming down on the newly blacktopped road. Only nine and it was almost eighty degrees. She was on her way to the conference room to leave off the pastries before seeing what she could do about her dress when she bumped into Win, capping off her perfect morning.
He of course looked breathtakingly mussed, like a model in a billboard, advertising a singles gym. A Garner Brothers T-shirt, similar to the one he’d lent her, and a pair of long Adidas shorts, and lots of tan, golden skin.
“What happened to you?” He eyed her breasts and not in a good way.
“Nothing,” she said, and tried to walk away.
He caught her arm and flashed his super-white smile. “We still friends?”
“I guess,” she said, though she didn’t know if she would’ve ever gone so far as to call them friends. Acquaintances, coworkers, feeder of his cat.
“You guess? What kind of answer is that?” He folded his arms over his mile-wide chest, looking more confused than perturbed.
“I just don’t know that we were ever pals, that’s all.”Because if you were really my friend you would’ve done me when I needed it the most.
“Bullshit! I’m your friend and you’re my friend. We’re gonna start hanging out.”
“No, we’re not.” She tried to walk away but he wouldn’t let her.
“I’ve got tickets to the Reno Rodeo, box seats one of our clients gave me. Wanna come with me?”
“Uh, A) I hate rodeos, B) why me, you couldn’t get anyone else to go? And C) You don’t have to be nice to me just because you kicked me out of your bed.” This last part she said in a whisper, not wanting TJ or Deb to hear. Win wasn’t as conscientious.
“I didn’t kick you out of my bed.” He had the audacity to grin, then give her a slow once-over. The rat. “You could’ve stayed if you wanted but you chose to leave.”
“What was the point of staying?” Once he’d turned her down, she’d had the sudden urge to clean and organize his apartment. A habit she was trying to break, even if his place was a disaster.
He shrugged. “We could’ve talked.”
That was the thing about Win, he probably meant it. He was as nice as he was good-looking. Darcy had seen him interact with clients. He was always accommodating with the demanding ones, encouraging with the less-than-athletic ones, and patient with the overeager ones. That’s why it hurt so much that he hadn’t granted her one small favor. Was she that bad? That unappealing?
“At two in the morning?” she asked, sticking her chin out in challenge.
“Sure, why not?”
She lowered her voice. “But you wouldn’t sleep with me?”
“It has nothing to do with you.” He gave her another mild once-over. “I just don’t do that anymore.”
Sure he didn’t. Just wait until the next pretty face came along. Win’s promiscuity was kind of legendary. His brothers liked to joke about all the various women he went home with. Darcy had hoped that someone with his wealth of experience could teach her some things, primarily how to be more provocative. But he’d made it clear that that wasn’t on the table.
“Whatever,” she said, wanting desperately to extricate herself from the conversation and get the coffee stain out of her dress. “You’re going to be late for the meeting.”
The sunlight streaked through the window, glinting off the gold highlights in his light-brown hair. The stubble on his face looked sexy rather than unkempt. And his T-shirt matched his blue eyes. Why was life so freaking unfair?
“Meet you in there,” he said, nudging his head at the conference room. Then he cocked his hip against the wall, blocking her way to the bathroom.
“I need to get by, please.”
