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By the time I climbed into bed I felt like I’d been through the spin cycle. My head was pounding, my throat stung like I’d just inhaled half a can of hairspray, and my thoughts weren’t coming as clearly as they usually did. I took my temperature and frowned. Still fevered.
I should’ve fallen straight to sleep. My body was certainly screaming for rest, but my brain wouldn’t stop. I kept thinking about the deal I’d made with Travis from upstairs.
A deal with the devil. Except the man wasn’t like any devil I’d ever met. He was charming, in his own way. Obnoxious and with a face that was begging to be punched, but undeniably pretty with just the appropriate dose of rugged handsomeness.
I caught myself grinning, then corrected the mistake and squeezed my eyes shut tighter. A meeting with my mother and Travis was enough to wipe the smile off anyone. It was going to be apocalyptic, and that was only if I made it out with a generous helping of luck.
Sleep. I needed to rest if I was going to be ready for what tomorrow held. For who tomorrow held.
5
TRAVIS
One of my many talents was planning extravagant dates. I liked to think of myself as a people whisperer. I understood what someone wanted, even if they kept those desires buried so deeply in their hearts, they might not be aware.
And Elizabeth was a luxury woman if I’d ever seen one. She was someone who expected the best, the most expensive, and the most loud kind of treatment I could possibly manage. And that’s exactly what she was going to get.
I showed up at her door half an hour before twelve in my best suit and tie. I’d even taken a comb to my hair in her honor. I knew Adrian was still riding my ass about getting back to the office, but all I needed to do was wrap up this little affair with Elizabeth. One jaw-dropping date, maybe a little romp in the sheets, and I was confident the two of us would be old pals in no time. Bonus points for the friend with benefits I’d have one short elevator ride away.
I’d told her to dress casually and known she’d ignore my request. As expected, she was wearing a nice little designer dress when she opened the door. It was a gray, modest dress with pops of yellow on the buttons and the hem of the pockets. It looked expensive. I’d say it was worth every penny from the way it hugged her figure.
“Shall we?” I asked, hooking my elbow for her to take. She ignored it, walking past me and toward the elevator.
“We’ll be taking that all the way to the roof,” I said.
Elizabeth clicked past in her heels, showing no sign she’d heard me. I got in the elevator and stood beside her.
“You smell nice,” I noted. She was giving off a faint but extremely pleasant scent like vanilla and just a touch of something candy-sweet. It was a more playful scent than I would’ve imagined such a serious woman wearing, and I found myself intrigued. Trying to send a message, are we?
She jerkily pushed her hair behind her shoulder, then scowled at me, as if I’d just told her she should shower more often. “Please don’t smell me.”
I grinned. “I’ll try not to. That one,” I said, pointing to the button for the roof.
“Don’t tell me you set up tables on the roof for this,” she said.
“Would you like it if I did? Because I can make this elevator break down, sneak a quick call, and absolutely have that ready by the time we get up there.”
Her only response was a dry look.
Dry. That was a good word for Elizabeth. Lucky for her, I had a talent for curing that exact ailment. “You know,” I said. “My little sister gave me a house plant once. I thought it was fake, so I never watered it. About three weeks later, it looked like it was on its last legs, so I dumped a glass of water on the thing. Within hours, it was standing up taller, looking more green, and went on to live a spectacularly fulfilling week. I had a pet giant tortoise at the time and he ate it. But I was certain the plant would’ve gone on to live a long life.”
The elevator doors finally closed. “I’m afraid to ask if that story has a point.”
“Sometimes a little moisture is all we need. And, well, I guess you could also say sometimes it’s best to keep your plants up high where turtles can’t reach.”
She blinked slowly, then turned to look at me. The corner of her mouth twitched. Just barely, but it definitely twitched.
I nodded in satisfaction to myself. There was a sense of humor in there. She just had it shoved so far up her ass and clenched behind those toned cheeks of hers. I was absolutely going to enjoy trying to fish it out. But that’s what it would take with a woman like her. I had to push a little harder than usual. I had to take things a little farther than usual because her walls were far more well-guarded than any I’d come across.
