She stared at him in surprise. "Are you serious? You want to fill little satin bags with potpourri?"
"Is that what the favor is?"
"It's one of them."
"You know that the guys at the wedding don't give a crap about potpourri."
"Well, the ladies do."
"And the bride calls the shots," he said, an edge of bitterness in his tone.
"What were your favors?"
"Some kind of perfumed package. I didn't pay much attention."
She got up and reached across the table with her good hand to grab a bag of items she'd picked up at the party store. "I know you don't like potpourri; what do you think about dice, cards, and shot glasses?"
"I'm getting a little more interested," he said, as she set the items in front of him.
"Maggie and Jessica are doing both male and female favors. Like you, their grooms weren't interested in potpourri."
"What else have you got?"
"Tiny personalized bottles of Jack Daniel's." She pushed one across to him and saw the gleam of approval in his eyes.
"Nice."
"I also have a key chain bar tool and samples of men's cologne. I just need to put them in some small boxes and tie them with ribbon and put on a seal, that kind of thing."
"What are you doing for the ladies?"
"I have rustic heart favor boxes that hold a small heart-shaped candle, perfume samples, a gold heart bottle stopper, individually wrapped chocolate truffles, and some potpourri."
"Let's do it. Let's put them together. Just tell me what to do."
"You're really going to do this?"
"Consider it a gesture of good will."
"All right. I won't say no." She pushed the small boxes that needed to be put together across the table, while she started cutting ribbon to tie the satin bags holding one of the female-oriented favors.
Barrett put all his attention on the project at hand, while she was more than a little distracted by his presence, caught up in the warm, spicy scent of his aftershave, the way his dark hair fell over his forehead. He was certainly a handsome man, but also a man of contradictions: cool and sophisticated, but also friendly and down-to-earth. She didn't quite know what to make of him.
Barrett had been working for nearly thirty minutes when the potpourri favor he was putting together suddenly fell apart in his hands, the lace and ribbons falling to the floor.
Instinctively they both reached for the favor at the same time, but as Kate grasped the lace, Barrett caught her arm. His warm touch sent her emotions spinning. She looked into his eyes, and her heart seemed to stop. Slowly they straightened, their eyes locked in a gaze of unmistakable attraction.
Barrett pulled her good hand to his lips, never taking his eyes off her face. He kissed her palm, and his tongue moved gently over her fingers, leaving her hot with desire. She felt herself drifting toward him, closer and closer until their faces were inches apart. She could see the faint shadow of his beard, the tiny laugh lines around his eyes. She noted every detail in that split second before his lips touched hers.
A wave of heat rushed through her and she found herself kissing him back as his hand slid around her neck and he pulled her closer.
And then the loud squealing of her cuckoo clock made them both jump back, effectively dousing the fire between them.
"What the hell was that?" Barrett demanded.
"My clock," she said faintly, straightening up in her chair. She tipped her head toward the cuckoo clock on the kitchen wall.
He looked at it in bemusement, then turned back to her. "You have a cuckoo clock? I didn't think those existed anymore."
"It was my grandparents' clock. They gave it to me as a housewarming present."
"It's loud."
"It has charm," she defended. "And it keeps very good time."
"Maybe so, but it has a lousy sense of timing," he remarked regretfully.
She stared back at him, filled with mixed emotions. She wanted to keep going on with that kiss, but her brain was screaming caution. "Or maybe a good sense of timing," she murmured. "We have to work in the same building, and I'm not sure this truce could take another kiss like that. It would complicate things."
"It would do that," he agreed, but the glitter in his eyes told her how much he wanted to keep going.
She cleared her throat. "I can finish the last favor on my own." She stood up. "You've done more than enough."
"I guess that's my cue to leave," he said, as he rose.
"Thanks, Barrett. You were a lifesaver."
"You're welcome." He gave her a long look. "You're not anything like I first thought."
"I could say the same about you," she replied.
He nodded. "Well, I guess I'll see you around the building."
"I'll try not to fall at your feet again."
A smile curved his lips. "I have a feeling that our next meeting will be just as memorable."
"Why would you say that?"
"Judging by our past history, I'd say the excitement is just beginning."
She decided not to touch that comment, because she had a feeling he was right.
She walked him to the door and tried not to think about giving in to a crazy attraction burning between them. She pushed him into the hall and locked the door behind him, then leaned against the solid frame and let out a breath. She hadn't felt so worked up by a man in a very long time.
But it could not be this man. He was her landlord, her office neighbor, but more than that, he was cynical and cocky and not at all the kind of man she wanted in her life.
She just wished he wasn't so damn attractive.
Chapter Six
"And then I toppled down the stairs, jamming and spraining my fingers in the process." Kate extended her hand for Maggie and Jessica to inspect. Her middle two fingers were in a splint. She'd stopped by the ER just past eight to get an X-ray, but luckily nothing was broken.
After that, she'd crammed in visits to a wedding caterer and a photographer before meeting up with Jessica and Maggie for a late lunch on Chestnut Street in the Marina.
"That looks painful," Maggie said.
"It's better today."
"I can't believe you had to show a bride how to walk down a staircase in a hoop skirt," Jessica said with a laugh. "There is no limit to what you will do to make someone happy. You really go above and beyond, Kate."
"It wasn't my best idea." She paused as the waitress set down three glasses of iced tea. "But despite my hand, I did manage to get your favors done."
"How on earth did you do that?" Maggie asked, her bright-blue eyes curious.
"Well, I had a little help."
"From Shari?"
"No." She suddenly realized that her funny story was going to lead to a lot of questions.
"Then who?" Jessica asked.
"Just a friend. I mean, not really a friend, but someone who helped."
"Okay, that sounds like a story," Jessica said, a curious gleam in her eyes. "Why are you being so vague?"
"Because the two of you are going to jump to conclusions."
"Like sexy conclusions?" Maggie asked.
"Was it a man?" Jessica added.
"It was a man. But it wasn't sexy. Well, it was kind of sexy. But nothing happened. Well, something almost happened, but it didn't."
Maggie laughed. "Kate, I haven't seen you this befuddled since you kissed Dax Holmes in our junior year of college."
Her face reddened at that memory. "Don't remind me. I thought Dax was trying to kiss me, but he was just leaning over to help me with my seat belt, which was stuck in the door. I thought he was making a move. It was so embarrassing. He had only asked me out because he wanted me to tutor him in math. He had the hots for that cheerleader, Dee Powell."
"You were way too good for Dax," Maggie said.
"Did you embarrass yourself last night, too?" Jessica asked. "Come on, spill."
She sighed, realizing she'd gone too far to backtrack. "Fine. When I fel
l down the stairs, I landed at the feet of my new landlord and fellow tenant, Barrett Fox. He was wearing a tuxedo and he was with a beautiful blonde. They were on their way to the Winter Ball. They looked glamorous, and I looked like an idiot."
"Wait, Barrett Fox as in Fox Management?" Maggie asked. "His father stayed at the Stratton a few years ago, but he was with a young wife. I doubt that was Barrett's mother."
"Barrett said his father has been married a couple of times."
"Well, that family is loaded. They took our best suite."
"Barrett is part of the family but not in the family business. He's a lawyer, and not just any lawyer—a divorce attorney. We've been battling it out since he moved in, because his clients and my clients are on the opposite ends of bridal bliss," she said.
"Get back to what happened last night," Maggie urged.
"Barrett was concerned about me after my fall, so he stopped by my apartment after he left the ball."
"What happened to the beautiful blonde?" Maggie asked.
"He said she was just a setup. They didn't know each other. I'm sure he came by to make certain I wasn't thinking of suing him."
"And…" Jessica prodded.
"And he wound up staying to share my frozen pizza. He was hungry, and it was ready. He actually turned out to be nicer than I thought. He helped me put the favors together, since my hand was swollen."
"And…" Maggie said with a laugh.
"He dropped a favor, and we both reached for it at the same time, and then we kissed. It was…amazing. Unfortunately, the cuckoo clock went off, which was like throwing a bucket of ice water on a fire. But it turned out to be a good thing, because I am way too busy for dating, and we have to share a building, and he's my landlord—"
"Stop, Kate," Maggie said. "You are making too many excuses. If the kiss was amazing, why didn't you get back to it?"
"Because my brain started working again, and I remembered all the things I just said."
"It's not like you work for him," Jessica put in.
"No, but he and I are not on the same page when it comes to love and romance. Barrett is very cynical. He's divorced. He hates weddings. He thinks big weddings lead to big marriage problems. Everything I do seems like a joke to him. I mean, seriously, there is no way we could have any kind of relationship."
"He hates weddings, but he helped you make favors?" Jessica gave her a perplexed look. "That says something—like he's interested in you."
"I don't think it says that. He was just trying to ward off a lawsuit."
"That's not even close to being true, and you know it," Maggie said.
"You like him," Jessica added, with a gleam in her eyes. "That's a good thing, Kate. You haven't liked anyone in a while."
"I think it's bad, very bad," she said with a sigh, not bothering to continue trying to deny the truth to two of her best friends.
"It's not bad," Maggie said. "When's the last time you had a boyfriend?"
"I don't know. I'm busy."
"It's not about being busy; it's about taking a risk. You like to play it safe."
"I take risks," she said defensively. "I've risked everything on my business."
"But you don't risk your heart," Jessica said, giving her an understanding smile. "And I get it. I was really battered after my first disastrous marriage. I didn't think I could ever get married again, but then I met Reid, and everything changed. I knew he was worth it. Love isn't something to be missed. You, of all people, should know that. You're the most romantic one of all of us."
"That's not really true," Maggie muttered. "About Kate being the most romantic."
"You don't think I'm romantic?" she asked in surprise.
"I think you're romantic for everyone else, but for yourself…not so much. Why don't you ask this Barrett Fox out for a drink? Thank him for helping you with the favors," Maggie continued.
"No way. I already thanked him, and I fed him pizza. That's all he gets." She picked up her menu. "Now, let's order and then we'll get down to business."
* * *
As much as she'd been reluctant to see Barrett again, Kate was a little annoyed when Wednesday came around, and she realized it had been five days since she'd seen him. She'd heard his voice a few times when he'd walked a client out the door, but that was about it. He'd made no attempt to come upstairs, and every time she'd entered the building, she'd rushed up to her office, trying not to glance at his door, trying not to think about him, trying not to wonder about the kiss she wished they'd kept going.
Pressing her fingers to her temples, she realized she'd drifted off in the middle of a meeting, but her client had been going on and on for a good ten minutes, about pretty much nothing. Jana Davis was a twenty-three-year-old spoiled rich girl, who had been referred by another one of her brides, but so far couldn't seem to find anything she liked, whether it was flowers or cakes or music. She also couldn't pick a wedding venue, even though they'd toured several locations twice already. They were getting nowhere fast, because Jana couldn't decide on anything. Her latest ramble was basically a stream of consciousness monologue about what she might want or not want.
"I just don't know if the winery in Napa is right, Kate," Jana said more loudly. "What if some people don't want to travel? But then, the Vicksham Manor is a little dark and I didn't care for their menu. My mother wants me to do it in Hawaii, but if people won't go to Napa, will they go to Maui? I don't know what to do. Tell me what I should pick."
"I can't tell you. It has to be your choice. We can go over all the pros and cons again," she said, forcing back the urge to scream in frustration. They'd already gone over that list three times.
"Maybe I should have gone with a bigger wedding planning service, one who has florists and caterers on staff."
"I can get you anything you want," she said, realizing that Jana was now taking out her frustration on her.
Jana crossed her arms and tapped her foot impatiently on the floor. "You couldn't get me into the Palmer Hotel."
"They're booked years in advance."
"If you had clout, you could have gotten me in."
"The room at the Palmer is out of your budget, Jana, even if it was available."
"My mother can cough up more money. She can take it out of her facelift fund." Jana paused as loud voices rang through the air. "What is that about?"
"Those people must be going to the office downstairs." She got up from her desk. "Let me shut the door."
When she reached the doorway, a string of obscene swearwords floated up the stairway.
"What is happening?" Jana demanded, following her into the outer office. "Is that another bridal couple?"
"I seriously doubt it. They are probably visiting the attorney downstairs. He specializes in divorce law."
"Well, we can't continue our meeting with all this noise."
She frowned. Shari had gone home for the day, so she couldn't send her downstairs to shut things down. Where the hell was Barrett? Why wasn't he dealing with his clients?
As more sexual insults rang out, she said, "Let me just tell those two to take their argument elsewhere."
She marched down the stairs, her annoyance turning to fury as Barrett stood in the doorway to his office, listening to the man and woman vent their anger.
"What on earth is going on?" she demanded, stopping halfway down the stairs.
"They're having a minor disagreement," he shouted back, running one hand through his hair in agitation.
"Well, do something," she ordered.
He turned back to the arguing couple, who were standing no more than six inches from each other but were yelling at the top of their lungs. "Gary—Janice. Please, calm down."
They both ignored him, and he threw up his hands in disgust. "See what I mean?"
Kate took a deep breath, furious at the disruption. She stomped back up the stairs and into her office only to run into Jana, who was obviously on her way out.
Kate tried to apologize, but Jana was not about
to be placated. "This is totally unprofessional," she said angrily. "I'll expect my deposit back in the morning."
"Please, this is a very unusual occurrence. Why don't we meet at your home tomorrow? Then we can avoid any other unfortunate situations."
Jana hesitated, still plainly irritated by the events. "All right. But you'll have to call me for an appointment. I don't have my date book with me, and I'm not sure I'm free tomorrow. This is really inconvenient, Kate."
"I agree, and I'm sorry. I'll call you tomorrow," she said hastily, as Jana left the office. While she wouldn't really mind losing Jana's business, her bank account would miss her large deposit, and she'd already spent a lot of time on Jana's wedding. She needed to salvage things.
But first…she was going to end the scene going on downstairs.
As she spied the water pitcher on the table, a really bad idea came into her head, but she was just that annoyed.
She grabbed the pitcher. It was only a quarter full, but that should be enough to get someone's attention. She walked down the stairs and noticed that Barrett was nowhere in sight. The coward. He had probably gone home and left those two to destroy the building.
"Excuse me," she called out loudly.
"Stay out of this," the woman shouted, without missing a beat in her continuing tirade.
"Look, this has got to stop," she said. "This is a place of business." Neither one paid any attention to her, and Kate's irritation turned to full-blown fury when the woman grabbed the large brass coatrack at the bottom of the stairs and pushed it over, narrowly missing her opponent. Without further thought, Kate raised her arm and tossed the water into their faces.
Time stood still as two dripping faces looked at her in confusion, and the resulting silence was deafening. Kate eyed them warily, wondering if she had gone too far.
"Well, well, well." Barrett clapped his hands as he came through the door. "Very nice, Kate."
"This is outrageous, Mr. Fox," the woman said, finally getting her voice back. "This is a five-hundred-dollar dress." She glanced down at the rumpled silk in complete dismay.
"No, your behavior is outrageous," Barrett replied angrily. "I have just called the police, and they should be here at any moment to see that the two of you conduct your argument elsewhere."
DREAMING OF YOU GO PL Page 6