MAGGIE DROVE HOME on automatic pilot, grateful she didn’t get a ticket, cut anyone off or cause an accident. How could this be happening to her? How could such a good plan have gone so awry?
When she’d been a kid, the worst thing that had ever happened during one of her plans was that the weather had refused to cooperate during an outdoor party. The decorations had been drenched, but everyone had moved inside and had a great time. And she’d successfully thrown a surprise dinner for her parents’ thirtieth wedding anniversary, planning the entire party while out of town and flying in for the weekend. Quinn often had her oversee a multitude of social get-togethers for his stars—from intimate dinners to thousand-dollars-a-head charity events. And never before had her plans gone so wrong. Quinn thought another woman was responsible for their intimate encounters and she had no idea what to do now. She had never anticipated this turn of events and that upset her.
She didn’t like any of her choices. She could come clean and tell Quinn that she was his mystery lover or remain silent and watch him hook up with one former lover after another in his search for Maggie. Why couldn’t Quinn leave well enough alone?
When Quinn learned Mia was not the women who’d impersonated Laine, what would he do? Renew his acquaintance with his Mia? The thought annoyed her. Why should another woman benefit from Maggie’s scheme?
Maggie parked her car and hurried up the steps to her apartment. She had only an hour to pack. At least she’d recently done laundry. But what was she going to do about Quinn?
She crouched down on hands and knees to pull her luggage out from under the bed and tossed it on top of the mattress, and it bounced and toppled onto her foot. Maggie wanted to sit down and cry. Or have a long girl-to-girl phone conversation with her sister in Michigan. Or fly home and let her mother fuss over her. But she didn’t have time. So, instead, she grabbed the case and placed it back on the bed, resigned to the fact that she had to pack for a weekend in Vancouver while Quinn renewed his ties with his ex-girlfriend.
It wasn’t fair.
It was bad enough that Quinn attributed all their delicious sex to another woman, bad enough that Maggie couldn’t claim the credit, but now Quinn was going to pursue the other woman. And bring Maggie along to work.
Maggie tossed lingerie into her bag. No, it wasn’t fair. But then life wasn’t fair.
She ripped clothes off their hangers and stuffed them into the bag. Tossed in shoes, skirts, blouses without much thought. Her attire didn’t matter. Quinn was interested in his ex, not her.
She didn’t know why she hadn’t anticipated such a possibility. Quinn was unpredictable, always springing surprises on her as well as his co-workers. While Maggie had certainly hoped Quinn would never figure out her identity, she hadn’t thought he would believe she was another woman. Never anticipated he’d think she was Mia.
The hell of it was she wanted the credit but didn’t want to come clean. What a mess.
Maggie stormed into her bathroom. Toothbrush. Toothpaste. Deodorant. Razor. Mouthwash. Hairbrush. Cosmetic bag.
She had two choices. She could tell Quinn the truth and risk losing her job. Maybe he wouldn’t fire her, but she wasn’t sure she was ready to face his temper, one that he usually kept in check but that could be quite alarming.
Her second option was to remain silent and watch him go to another woman and risk losing him.
What was she thinking?
How could she lose him? Quinn had never been hers in the first place. He’d never wanted Maggie his secretary as his lover, only Maggie the bombshell. And after what they’d shared, it hurt that he’d never seen the woman who’d worked by his side in any other light than as a coworker.
Maggie tugged on the zipper. In her haste, she’d overstuffed her bag. Sitting on the case, she again tried to tug the zipper shut. That’s when she heard the ripping sound. The bag couldn’t just rip a little. Something that she could patch with duct tape. Oh, no, the bag had split from end to end.
In frustration, Maggie shoved the bag onto the floor and kicked it. Now what? She didn’t have another suitcase.
Her bell rang. Damn. Quinn was stopping by to pick her up since her apartment was on the way to the airport. The bell rang again. She ought not to answer it. Maybe Quinn would just go without her and she’d have an entire weekend to think what to do.
Quinn pounded on her door. “Come on, Maggie. We have to go.”
With the racket he was making, she’d be lucky if she didn’t get evicted. With a sigh, she walked through her living area and opened the front door. Quinn stood there in slacks and a long-sleeved shirt, his hair combed, his face freshly shaved. After the fight with her suitcase, she felt disheveled.
“What’s wrong?”
“The zipper on my suitcase broke.”
Quinn had never been to her apartment before and peered at her secondhand furniture as if he expected a spare suitcase to pop out of the stuffing. “I don’t suppose you have another?”
“You’ll have to go without me.”
“Don’t be silly. I need you. You can just buy what you need from the hotel shop.”
“My credit card is maxed out,” she lied.
“We’ll expense it to the company.”
“But—”
“Come on,” Quinn grabbed her arm. “Be spontaneous for once in your life.” His voice sounded mocking. Is that what he thought? That Maggie was a stick-in-the-mud and couldn’t be spontaneous? Showed what he knew. “Just lock the door and let’s go.”
Their driver didn’t say a word when she walked up to the limo with just her makeup bag. He tipped his cap and opened the door for them. Maggie slid onto the leather seat with dread in her heart. She couldn’t make herself look at Quinn, simply stared out the window, her heart a miserable bundle of nerves.
Quinn didn’t seem to mind that she ignored him. He took the opportunity to return several phone calls. Maggie barely listened to him cajole an agent, sweet-talk an actress and demand that a writer bring in a project on time.
Her stomach churned with anxiety and indecision. If she let Quinn approach his ex, she only had herself to blame. By the time the limo dropped them off at the private airstrip, and they entered the corporate jet, Maggie was no closer to a decision.
And as if Quinn was eager to get work out of the way and keep the rest of his weekend free, he kept her busy typing, all the way to Vancouver. Tired, grumpy, hungry and frazzled, she wanted a shower and room service, then a nap. But of course, the way her day was going, none of that happened.
Quinn insisted she peruse the hotel shops and buy what she needed first. Shopping with Quinn was quite the experience. When she looked at two dresses, trying to decide between them, he insisted she buy both. Then he told the salesclerk to add accessories and shoes.
“We can’t charge all of this to Simitar Studios,” Maggie told him.
“Would you stop worrying? Did you forget that my entertainment budget is practically limitless?” Quinn could probably see by her expression that she was about to argue. “Look, you’re tired. Why don’t you go up to the room and rest while I take care of the bill?”
“Fine.” Maggie pressed the elevator button, unappreciative of the crisp Canadian air. She didn’t expect to see Quinn again until Sunday when they left. By not making a decision, by choosing not to tell him the truth, she’d lost her opportunity.
But what else could she do?
Perhaps it was time to face the truth. She didn’t want to give him up. Didn’t want to lose him to another woman. Why couldn’t they just continue their fling? Had that been asking for so much? She hadn’t anticipated these kinds of complications and now she’d boxed herself into a corner.
Damn.
What was she going to do?
She didn’t like her options. And as much as she wanted to blame Quinn for this latest twist in her scheme, she couldn’t when the man didn’t even know he’d been making love to Maggie and not Mia. Still…she’d thought what she and Quinn ha
d together was so precious that his mistaking another woman for her hurt.
Had Quinn and Mia shared this kind of excitement in bed? Maggie sighed. She didn’t want to go there. And yet, how could she not?
She unlocked her room and decided she wouldn’t spend the weekend pouting. Vancouver had a reputation as a beautiful city and she’d never been here before. She’d fill every minute seeing the sights, eating in cheap restaurants so there’d be no chance of accidentally running into Quinn and Mia, and making sure that she didn’t give herself time to feel sorry for herself.
Maggie kicked off her travel-grungy clothes and headed straight to the shower. She availed herself of the complimentary shampoo and conditioner and, afterward, the terry-cloth robe. She hoped her new clothes would arrive soon. In the meantime, she ordered room service.
She flicked on the television, but nothing caught her eye. And her thoughts kept returning to Quinn. What was he doing now? Where did he plan to spend his evening? And with whom?
She turned off the television with a sigh.
Maybe she should have just told him the truth. So what if he fired her? She could find another job. She really shouldn’t have allowed their game to go so far, but she’d gotten carried away. Now all she had to look forward to was a weekend in a strange city. By her lonesome.
When Maggie heard the polite knock, she scrambled to open the door. Her new clothes had arrived in an assortment of bags. She couldn’t remember buying quite so many things, but then she hadn’t paid much attention as she’d been preoccupied with her dilemma.
“Thanks.” She tipped the bellhop.
“Oh, yes, almost forgot. You’re supposed to open this package first.”
Maggie took the flat box from him. Before she could ask a question, he’d disappeared.
She sat on the bed and looked at the card attached to the box. Quinn had probably left her some final work to do.
Maggie opened the note. “Pick you up in thirty minutes. Please wear this.”
Puzzled, Maggie opened the box. And found the blindfold.
God!
Quinn knew that Maggie was his secret lover.
He knew.
And the entire trip up here he’d let her stew about thinking that he was coming to see another woman. Maggie wanted to scream. And she wanted to laugh. And dance.
She wanted to kiss him and shake him and yell at him all at the same time.
Quinn knew she was his lover. And he still wanted her.
If Quinn wanted her to wear the blindfold, he didn’t intend to fire her. And he wanted to keep playing their games or he never would have brought her with him to Vancouver.
Relief and happiness made her eyes mist. Quinn knew. And he didn’t care that his lover had turned out to be his secretary. He knew. And he wanted her. She’d never expected this turn of events. Never dared to hope. And suddenly all the aggravations of her day disappeared in a flash.
She wondered when he’d found out her secret and how. Then decided it didn’t matter.
She only had twenty minutes left. Twenty minutes to get ready.
The realization that he’d planned for them to spend the entire weekend together in Vancouver had her skipping across the room. She was happy that he knew, delighted that he didn’t mind that Maggie had deceived him.
Quinn had gone to a lot of trouble for her which meant that he was enjoying their time together as much as she’d hoped and suspected.
Where would Quinn take her blindfolded? Obviously he’d made elaborate plans. Hurriedly Maggie dressed. And realized they’d neglected to buy underwear. Since her old ones didn’t appeal to her, she simply didn’t wear any and the cool air under her skirt made her feel decidedly wicked. And after she donned the blindfold, she trembled in anticipation.
Obviously he intended to continue their fling.
QUINN OPENED MAGGIE’S DOOR at exactly seven o’clock. She was sitting in a chair fully dressed. She wasn’t wearing the blindfold but running it between her fingers. And if that action wasn’t enough to signal that something was wrong, her face, carefully blank, would have. The determined part of his character made him step inside and pull the door closed behind him with a soft click.
“Maggie. You okay?”
She wet her lip, a little nervously, perhaps. “When did you figure out…”
“That you were my lover?”
“Uh-huh.”
She appeared more nervous than he would have imagined. However, before the evening was done, he wanted her comfortably snuggling against him. However, she appeared to need to talk things through first, and he supposed they’d waited long enough to have this intimate conversation.
Quinn kept his tone light. “The blindfold slipped for a second.”
She folded her hands on her lap, but he noticed that her hands were trembling. Her voice, however, remained strong and husky. “And what did you think when you learned it was me?”
“That I was a very lucky man.”
He strode close to her, bent down and kissed her lips. “By the way, I like your new hairstyle. It looks good on you.” She jerked a little in surprise, then pulled back, her eyes wide and haunted looking. He took her icy fingers in his and smoothed his thumb over her out-of-control pulse at her wrist.
“And that fax you had me type was a setup? You let me think you were coming up here to be with another woman.”
“I was hoping that fax would make you realize you could come to me, tell me the truth. When were you going to tell me it was you?”
“Why would I admit the truth when I thought you were coming to see another woman?” she countered.
He supposed she had a point. “Actually, I am up here to see another woman.”
“What?”
He wished they could have the weekend to themselves, but he had to take care of business. “Laine’s here in Vancouver and O’Donnel’s trying to sign her to star in his film. I’m here to talk to her—”
“Fine.”
Surely she couldn’t be so withdrawn because he’d let her think that the meeting with another woman was an ex-girlfriend? Maggie wasn’t petty and she’d deceived him, too. He didn’t get it. She couldn’t be angry about Laine. She knew how important the woman was to his career.
Maggie tried to pull her hand from his, but Quinn didn’t let go. “Laine is having lunch with us tomorrow. Tonight is all ours. Now tell me what’s wrong.”
Maggie shook her head. “Exactly why did you bring me to Vancouver?”
Uh-oh. “So we could be together.” He could have said more, but started out slowly.
“I’ve worked for you for four years. You never wanted us to be together before.”
“We never made love before.”
That statement earned him a scowl. “You never saw me as a potential lover, did you?”
Quinn sat next to Maggie on the bed. Despite the wintry edge in her tone, he still didn’t release her hand. “I don’t date employees.”
“That’s an excuse. You weren’t interested.”
“I am now,” he told her simply.
Her tone was flat but her eyes flashed with heat and annoyance. “You liked the sex.”
He nodded agreement. “And I like you.”
“You didn’t even know it was me until the blindfold slipped,” she countered.
Quinn would have to be an idiot not to see that she was hurting but he didn’t understand why. However, he knew Maggie well enough to know that she didn’t get upset easily. So he schooled himself to patience. “I didn’t know your name, true. But I knew you had a giving nature that’s full of fun and a zest for life.”
“That’s just lust.”
Was she going to make some demand on him in order to keep up their relationship? Quinn steeled himself, waiting for her to ask him for something. “What we have is more than lust. Tell me, Maggie, why did you take Laine’s place?”
“I had this idiotic idea that I was infatuated with you, and that after we made love, I’d be ready to mo
ve on.”
Well, that sounded honest. He was flattered that Maggie had initiated a personal relationship between them, pleased that it was working out so well. And he wanted more. “But after we made love at the hotel, you phoned me. Why?”
Maggie’s voice was sad, her expression wistful. “Because you pranced—”
“Men don’t prance.”
“—into the office the next morning telling me how wonderful our night had been, so I figured, why not hook up again? I never meant for you to learn who I was.”
Quinn had a difficult time believing that. “Why not?”
“Well, at first,” she bit her lip, “I worried that you might fire me.”
Huh? “Fire you?”
“For pulling off that kind of deception. But then I figured that we had such a good time that…”
Here it comes. He’d had such a good time that he’d give her anything she asked him for?
“I figured out later that you probably wouldn’t fire me.”
“Of course not. That wouldn’t be very kind of me after all the pleasure you’ve given me,” he teased.
Maggie sighed and drew her hand from his. She stood and paced. “You said you brought me here because you wanted to be with me.”
“Yes.” The best times he’d had this year had been with Maggie. Change that. The best times in his life had been with Maggie. He enjoyed working with her, depended on her to keep his business life working smoothly. But even more important, she made him eager to get out of bed in the morning to see just what she’d planned next. Practical Maggie was the most exciting woman he’d ever known.
She strode back and forth furiously, then halted and boldly placed her hands on her hips to face him. “So where exactly are we going from here?”
He wasn’t quite sure what she was asking him, but tried to answer anyway. “I thought we’d work together. You’d help me to convince Laine to star in my next movie, and at night we’d be together.”
“I don’t think so.”
Her defiant tone surprised him, shocked him, taunted him, almost as much as her words. Apparently she intended to give him the brush-off. “So you’re done with me?”
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