He waited a moment to see if she was going to pack another photo. He wanted to make sure she didn’t pack the one of her with Mason. Not that he cared, personally. But it wouldn’t be good for her to hold on to it. “Ready,” he echoed, gesturing for her to precede him out. Once her back was turned, he reached out and laid the photo of Mason on the dresser, smug, self-satisfied face down.
Chapter Seven
Dax Harris in a hotel room. Finally, Amy had him where she wanted him. The whole proposal thing had been a trip, but it had ended up being surprisingly emotional. She didn’t want emotional. So instead, she was returning to the plan she’d been formulating before her every move was projected onto the Jumbotron at the stadium. It was time to usher in the era of Amy the Single Girl—the phase she’d totally skipped because she’d gotten serious with Mason so young.
Wild. Oat. Time.
Dinner had been amazing, but endless. They’d opted for the tasting menu, which had been composed of seven tiny, perfect courses, each one an explosion of flavor. But seven! It took forever. She had stopped after one glass of wine so he couldn’t accuse her of having impaired judgment this time. He’d followed her lead, so they were both stone-cold sober as he clicked them into their room—Julie and Jason’s room—on the twentieth floor of the Ritz. She’d thrown on her best underwear when they’d stopped at her house after the game. She might even have tossed a condom (or three—hope sprang eternal¸ right?) in her handbag.
The hotel room was a stroke of good luck, actually, because she wasn’t sure it was proper to take a hookup to Cassie’s apartment. Even though Cassie would never know, it just didn’t seem right. So there was nothing stopping her now except a wicked case of nerves. Which she planned to cheerfully ignore. People did this all the time. She had even done it once or twice herself before Mason.
“You should stay the night,” Dax said as he drew aside the curtains and stood against the glass wall, gazing out at the city. “Treat yourself. Hit the spa tomorrow.”
She went to stand beside him. The view was good, but they were spoiled by working in the Lakefront Centre. They had views like this—better than this, since they were higher up—every day. “I just might. But let’s have a nightcap before you leave.”
“Want to head up to the rooftop bar?”
She shook her head. “Let’s stay here.” Bending over, she examined the minibar. “What do you want?” When no answer was forthcoming, she looked over her shoulder to find Dax…staring at her ass. He looked like he wanted to pounce on her. There was no mistaking it. And she hadn’t even been trying yet. Score! Maybe this was going to be easier than she thought. She raised her eyebrows in what she hoped was a provocative fashion and said, “What do you want?” And God help, her, she stuck her ass out a little more.
“That depends.”
“On what?”
He licked his lips, and she stood up. “If I say it depends on what’s on offer, does that make it sound like we’re in a porno?”
She burst out laughing. So much for seductive. She held up a beer. “Cameron’s?” She remembered it was the same kind they’d drunk at the bar on the night of her non-wedding.
“Sure.”
Instead of taking the bottle by the neck, he closed his hand over hers as she passed it to him, and oh my God, whatever was going on inside her ratcheted up a notch, and she suddenly wanted those big, warm hands all over her. Her skin positively itched for it.
So she wasn’t a natural at seduction. Maybe she should just go the direct route. Dax seemed like the kind of guy who would appreciate a straightforward proposition. The only thing stopping her was fear of rejection. He’d made it quite clear that night in his bathroom that it was only circumstances that had him rebuffing her. But what if he’d just been being nice, letting her down easy? Could she stand to be turned down on her first post-jilting attempt?
Well, there was only one way to find out.
Instead of releasing the beer bottle, she tugged it back out of his grasp and set it down on top of the minibar. “On second thought, I don’t think I want a drink after all.”