Page 29 of Taken With You
“Do you play golf?”
The word bounced through her head, meaningless.
“Give me a mulligan, Amanda.” He moved back a fraction more. “A pass for bad judgment.”
He was shutting this down? When they both were on fire?
“Wait until after the crush,” he said. “That was the deal I made with you a week ago. What kind of ass would I be to take advantage of you now? You’re too exhausted to think straight. You admitted it yourself.”
She definitely, positively wasn’t thinking straight, but it wasn’t due to exhaustion. In her imagination, she was already naked on the floor, pressing her heels against the dimpled small of his back.
“Promise me you’ll delegate.” His expression tightened. “As for everything else…we’ll deal with that later.”
She couldn’t move from the spot where she stood, but she managed a nod. But as Garrick growled, dropped his hands, and strode up the basement stairs, she knew one thing was true.
Latercouldn’t come soon enough.
CHAPTER NINE
No staring. No touching.
Definitely no kissing.
Garrick muttered the mantra in the hallway outside of Amanda’s bedroom before knocking on the door. Attending the gala with her was sure to test his crumbling will. Buttoning his Armani suit jacket at the waist, he straightened his shoulders and braced himself for the evening.
The door swung open to a sight that hit him like an uppercut. Amanda had pulled back her hair in a sexy twist and slicked her lips with bright red lipstick. To avoid staring at her mouth, he let his gaze roll down the halter top of the clinging, sapphire-blue dress. The vision sucked the air from his lungs.
“I’m ready,” she said, gesturing behind her. “I just need to put on earrings and shoes.”
“We’re…good.”
“I was delayed in the cellar,” she said, stepping aside to give him leave to enter “The glycol system on the fermentation tank is fritzing now, and the ambient temperature in the cave is unseasonably warm.”
“I’ll take your word for it.”
She turned her back to him and headed toward the bed. He couldn’t react quick enough to catch his gasp. She stopped, caught the direction of his gaze, and stretched a chin over her shoulder to look down. Her lovely spine arched as she perused the scooped-out dress.
Raising her lashes, she said to him, “Too much?”
“No.” Damn it. Control, dude.
“I rented two other designer dresses, just in case.” She bit a lip, considering. “Maybe I should change—”
“Don’t.” He shoved his hands into his pockets. “The dress is elegant. It’s stunning.”You’re stunning.“I just… need a beer.”
Maybe whiskey.
Maybe Valium.
Rushing blood thrummed through him, heading south. Her slim shoulder blades gently flexed like nascent wings, and her sinuous back curved in at the waist. No tan lines marred the pale, pearly beauty of her skin. When she twisted, her lean muscles moved in confluence. He’d done a damn good job of controlling himself around her since they’d kissed after foosball, but tonight was going to kill him.
She tilted her head as if she sensed his thoughts. “I can count on you, right, partner?”
With effort, he smoothed his expression. “Don’t doubt it.” He would not add another burden to those slender, delicate, overworked shoulders.
“I suppose it doesn’t matter what I wear.” She straightened and swept up an earring from the bed. “Let’s be honest. There will be talk about us, Garrick. We haven’t discussed this, but it’s inevitable.”
“I know.” He’d screwed up big-time by kissing her after foosball, in more than one way. The awkwardness between them made it difficult to bring up the insinuation in the CWA piece, the suggestion that he’d chosen to partner with her less for her credentials than for her looks. It pissed him off, and he imagined it pissed her off, too. It made the evening’s gala even more fraught.
