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The girl looked up at me and nodded. “Aye. Round that corner there.” She pointed down the street and pulled her arm back tight to her chest. Her eyes cast down at the pavement; her faded, military-grade boots kicked at the broken cobblestone pavers by her foot.
“Thanks.” I wanted to move, to continue walking, but I couldn’t bring myself to do it. “Um.”
Her mocha-brown eyes flitted up to meet mine, and she angled her head.
“Are you okay?” I asked.
Her brows rose, and I wondered if the same thing was going on in her head as was in mine: Why are you asking?
“Just waiting for the rain to let up. It’s a long walk.” She swallowed and leaned back against the building, sheltering herself from the harsh chill of the storm.
“Take my umbrella. I’m almost to where I need to go, anyway.”
Her brows slanted in confusion. “Really?”
“Please, take it.” Something told me she needed it more than me.
“Um.” She wet her lips. “Thank you.”
I handed it over, and she nodded. I stood under the overhang for a moment after she left, preparing myself to dash as quickly as possible down the street. I was about to meet sexy Adam, and I’d be a wet mess. But some things were more important than my looks.
The girl looked back at me over her shoulder, a smile capturing her lips before she continued down the street, picking up her pace.
I sucked in a breath, stowed my phone away, and clutched my purse close to me. “Here goes,” I muttered, rejoining the crowd of people with umbrellas and rain jackets on the sidewalk. Now, why hadn’t I thought to bring a jacket with a hood?
In my dress and heeled boots, I rushed as fast as possible down the sidewalk and turned down the street I’d been looking for. The water on my face made me blink, and I was sure my mascara was smudged beneath my eyes.
A two-story building sat at the end of the street I’d started down. It had to be the place. There was only one building in sight, but there was no name on the outside of the gray-painted bricks.
As I neared, my heel got stuck between the cobblestone pavers and I tripped. I fell forward, my palms skidding against the ground. Well, at least I hadn’t smacked my face against the wet pavement.
How embarrassing. I started to stand, brushing the wet dirt off my hands, but there was someone at my side, grasping my elbow.
“Shit, Anna, are you okay?”
I squinted Adam’s way, trying to shield my eyes from the rain. Sheets of water poured over us. My mouth parted and droplets fell against my lips as I stared at him, dumbfounded.
Wet and soaking. His white dress shirt started to cling to his athletic build, molding to his muscles. Wow, he was hot. And I must have looked—hell, I didn’t want to think about how I looked.
“You okay?” he asked again and took me by surprise by pulling me into his arms, lifting me. Grateful, I slung my arms around his neck as he carried me to the building. Hot and chivalrous.
He set me down just inside, where he shook his head and ran his fingers over his short hair, swiping the rain away.
“I tripped.” I blinked a few times and tucked my arms to my chest, my bottom lip shaking from the cold.
“I saw that,” he said. “Come on, let’s get you changed. You must be freezing. Why don’t you have an umbrella?”
I unbuttoned my jacket and stared in a daze down at the concrete floor. When I pulled the thin wet jacket from my shoulders, his eyes darkened, and his fingers came down over my hands. “Not a good idea.” He tugged at the lapels of my jacket and pulled them together, covering my chest.
“What? But it’s soaking wet.”
I saw him swallow, and I opened up my jacket, wondering what he’d been looking at. The water had soaked through my cotton jacket, which wasn’t made for rain. “Oh jeez.” My cream-colored, fitted silk dress had become nearly transparent. My nipples were hard, poking through the thin lace fabric of my bra.
I snapped my jacket closed, my body heating with humiliation despite the cold, damp material.
Adam took a step back and rubbed the side of his face. “There are clothes here if you want to change.” There was a slight hint of a smile on his lips as one of his brows lifted. Why was this happening to me?
He turned down a dark hall, and I followed after, trying not to look at the hint of ink that was evident now beneath his wet dress shirt. I wondered if he intended to comment on the text I’d sent him earlier in the day. He had never replied to the message, so maybe he wanted to drop it.
