Page 15 of Seducing Cinderella

“Not that I’m complaining,” he said, “but what was that for?”

She studied her feet in the strappy heels before looking up from under her lashes. “Because you’re a good man. And to thank you for a wonderful day.”

His wicked smile was breathtaking under the light of the moon. “Well, in that case, Miss Lucie Miller, I’m going to make sure you have a whole slew of wonderful days.”

Lucie laughed and climbed into the car, but her amusement screeched to a halt before he even made it around the car.If that wasn’t her most recent lesson in high-def, she didn’t know what was.Yep, she’d just witnessed a master flirt at work. And she totally fell for it hook, line, and sinker.

Now she knew what it felt like for those women who Stephen turned his charm on for. She couldn’t wait to be on the receiving end of his dimpled smile. The one that said he couldn’t wait to devour his latest catch instead of the buddy version she’d always gotten. Yes, sir, the doctor wasn’t going to know what hit him the next time he saw her. She could hardly wait.

Chapter Seven

Lucie couldn’t believeit had already been a week since Reid moved in. The days had been a whirlwind of physical therapy sessions for him and beautification appointments for her. She’d had her hair trimmed with some long layers added in, which she really liked and had felt foolish for worrying about so much. It wasn’t until they did the foil highlights, making her into an aluminum Medusa, that she had an anxiety attack. Thankfully the girl knew her stuff and the subtle caramel streaks gave her darker brown a beautiful depth she hadn’t known was possible.

After that her brows were waxed, shaped, and plucked to the extent she thought her eyes would never stop watering. When it came time for her nails she’d had to admit to never doing anything other than trim them when they got too long, which made the nail technician place a hand over her heart and look at her like she was a charity case off the streets before setting to work. Now they were filed, devoid of excess cuticles—she hadn’t even known that was athing—and polished a dark purple called Extreme Eggplant that sounded less like a color and more like a dish onIron Chef America.

On top of all that, Reid handed her over to Trixie at the Nordstrom’s makeup counter with instructions to give Lucie a How-To for every possible life situation. After learning how to apply everything from a five-minute dash of color to an evening look to a dramatic photoshoot session, Lucie was confident she could moonlight as a makeup artist for a morgue or circus if the economy tanked. Though some of the lessons were obviously unnecessary, she gave Trixie her head and let her have fun. Her excitement had been too endearing to crush with the reality that only a quarter of what she taught would ever see the light of day. Or night.

However, at the end of the week, Lucie had to admit that she looked almost…beautiful. It was crazy the difference some slight adjustments in her beauty regimen could make. Or, to be more exact, acquiring any sort of beauty regimen at all.

“Gorgeous.”

Lucie spun around from the full-length mirror in her bedroom to find Reid leaning against the doorjamb, arms crossed over his chest, the elastic cuffs of his black polo stretched to their limits over his biceps. The deep arcs and swirls of his tattoo seemed to extend from his shirt, making it look more like futuristic armor rather than a mere cotton blend. His dark jeans encased his muscular thighs and fell straight to bunch at the hem around his bare feet. She’d learned over the last week that he didn’t put socks or shoes on until he absolutely had to. And with that came the accompanying lesson of how sexy a man in jeans and bare feet was.

He pulled off the polished bad boy look flawlessly. His hair was brushed into his usual style, but tonight the tips ended in a small peak over his forehead drawing her attention to his intense eyes. He wore earrings, square-cut diamonds that somehow managed to make him more manly, not less. When she’d cataloged every detail and finally let her brain acknowledge the whole package, her mouth dried up and she had to swallow hard before she was able to speak.

“You look pretty good yourself,” she said. “But I still don’t know why you want to come to Lizzie’s baby shower with me.” Lizzie was one of the best nurses on staff at NNMC and was a month away from having her first child, so her friends and coworkers were throwing her a shower at a swanky steakhouse. “You’re going to be bored out of your mind.”

He pushed off the frame and crossed into the room. “I’m never bored. I always manage to entertain myself one way or another. Come on, we’re already going to be late.”

Lucie glanced at the clock on her nightstand, confirming their tardiness. “Crap!”

He chuckled as she raced to her closet to snatch her heels and purse. “Relax. Cinderella’s supposed to be late to the ball so that everyone notices her when she walks in.”

“That’s exactly what I’m afraid of,” she said as she hopped on one shoed foot while trying to make the other side match with little success.

“Here, let me.” Reid took the silver shoe from her and lowered himself to one knee. She stood holding onto the bedpost, mesmerized by his hands as they helped slip the shoe on her foot. The warmth of his fingers as they grazed her ankle sent shivers up her leg and spread through her sex as though he’d touched it directly.

He held her foot on his thigh with one hand while the other opened, releasing a silver chain he’d been hiding in his palm to dangle from where he held the end. Surprise left her speechless as she watched him wrap it around her ankle and clasp it in place.

The delicate chain was practically weightless, and she wondered if she’d feel it at all if it wasn’t for the charm and beads attached to the small links. In the front, a small silver bird in flight hung from the chain. Crystalline beads of sky blue dangled every inch or so, completing the piece with a classic beauty.

“It’s beautiful,” she said. “But you’ve gotten me so much already, Reid. You don’t need to keep getting me things.”

“I know, but as soon as I saw it, I thought of you.”

“Really? Why?”

“This is a sparrow.” He looked down and fingered the bird charm. “When a sparrow finds its soul mate, they stay together until the end of their life.” Raising his head again he met her gaze. “Making them the symbol for finding one’s true love.”

Finding one’s true love. Lucie merely wanted to find her one true companion and wasn’t holding out much hope for the love part anymore. Regardless, the sentiment was the sweetest thing she’d ever heard, and knowing he’d thought of her when he saw it touched her deeply.

He carefully placed her foot back on the floor and rose to tower over her at his full height. She tried thanking him but the words got stuck somewhere in her throat as her gaze traveled up from the open V of his shirt revealing the tanned skin at his neck, past his freshly shaven jaw and full lips, until it was trapped by his eyes. They changed color depending on his outfit or his surroundings or even the lighting. Now they were a light green shot through with streaks of caramel, reminding her of a taffy apple.

Reid Andrews was an absolute enigma. In Vegas, she knew he lived the life of a rich playboy fighter, spending the majority of his time either training or casually “dating” more women than she cared to think about. But since he’d moved in with her for this truly crazy deal they’d struck, he’d been nothing but charming, supportive, and thoughtful. Just like she remembered him to be when she was young and hopelessly crushing on her big brother’s best friend. If she’d thought he was fantastic back then, he’d grown to be even more so now.

She cleared her throat and gave the whole speaking thing another shot. “Thank you, Reid. I love it.”

“You’re very welcome. Now let’s go. I can’t wait to see that doctor’s jaw unhinge when he sees what he’s been missing out on.” When she scrunched up her nose in doubt, he kissed it and said, “Trust me,” and grabbed her hand to lead her out of the room.

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