Bedroom Diplomacy

by Michelle Celmer

Colin had a problem, and currently she was curled up against him, warm and soft and sexy with her head on his chest. It felt as if Rowena were made to fit against him, and the most disturbing part, the thing that should have had him throwing on his clothes and getting the hell out, was that it wasn’t disturbing at all.

  A serious romantic relationship was something he’d always gone out of his way to avoid. Not that women hadn’t tried to tie him down. He just never saw the point.

  Get on, get busy, get off, get out.

  Crude as it might have been, it was the motto he and his mates lived by. Why would they tie themselves down to one woman when there were so many other fish in the sea? But one by one over the years, he had watched his friends begin to marry off, have families. He was the only one who seemed to be at a standstill.

  “I forgot how nice it is having sex in a bed,” Rowena said. “Not that it wasn’t fun doing it against a wall, or a door, or in the shower.”

  “Or bent over the kitchen table,” he said, and felt her lips curve into a smile.

  “Yeah, that was nice, too.”

  Colin’s cell phone started to ring. He grabbed it off the bedside table to check the display. It was Rowena’s father, and it was his D.C. office number.

  Fantastic timing.

  “Senator, hello. I figured you would be on a flight back to Los Angeles by now.”

  “Unfortunately I was held up. I’d like you to meet with me and several colleagues. We want to discuss forming a committee to investigate how ANS is obtaining information about private citizens, including the president, illegally. We’d like you to be a part of it, since you have some experience in these matters and that’s what this treaty we’re working on is all about. Can you come to D.C.?”

  “Of course. But why a committee?”

  “Before I can put the full weight of my office behind this treaty, I need to know the extent of the problem.”

  And apparently until then, he was happy to drop his trail of bread crumbs for Colin to follow. After all the work they had done, the senator still wasn’t committed to the treaty? “When do you need me there?”

  “We’ll meet at 10:00 a.m. Thursday in my office.”

  “I’ll be there.” He hung up and tossed his phone back on the table. Damn, this was his final week with Rowena. He didn’t want to waste it in D.C.

  Rowena rolled onto her back and stretched, yawning so deeply that tears welled up in her eyes. “You’ll be where?”

  “D.C. I have a meeting with your father Thursday morning at ten.”

  “What for?”

  He explained the committee and the reasoning behind his involvement.

  “He doesn’t need a committee, Colin. He knows damn well ANS is behind the hacking in the presidential scandal. He’s just doing this to manipulate you, to keep you under his thumb. You’ll work your butt off for him, and then he’ll swoop in at the last minute and take credit.”

  “Probably.” But Colin had no choice but to play along. Besides, he didn’t care who got credit for the treaty as long as it passed. “You could come with me.”

  She blinked. “To Washington?”

  “Why not?”

  He expected an instant no, and she surprised the hell out of him by looking thoughtful instead.

  “I do have a few things I wanted to get out of storage unit…someone I’d like to touch base with. But my father can’t know.”

  “So we’ll be sure no one knows you’re there.”

  “Unless I have a legitimate reason to be there.”

  “My friend Cara is getting married. I can say that I’m in the wedding party and went with her to pick out dresses.”

  “And when the wedding comes around and you’re not in it?”

  “By then, it won’t matter. And I could see if Tricia could take Dylan for the night. She’s only offered about a million times. And if she can’t take him overnight, I’m sure Betty would stay with him. It’s short notice, but…”

  He sat up and grabbed his phone, handing it to her before she had an opportunity to change her mind. “Ring her.”

  Not only did he think it would be good for her to get away, but he believed it would benefit Dylan, as well. Even Colin could see that he was craving independence.

  She sat up beside him and took the phone. For several seconds she just looked at it, as if she hadn’t quite made up her mind, and he didn’t push. Finally, she punched in the number. “Hey, Tricia, I need to ask you… What? Yes, I’m home, why?” There was a pause and she smiled. “No, I’m calling from Colin’s phone. I just wondered…I mean, you’ve offered before, and I know it’s short notice…” She winced as if she were expecting a no. “Colin has asked me to go to D.C. with him Thursday, and I wondered if there was any way you could stay with Dylan for the night.”

  There was another pause, and her eyes lit up. “Are you sure it’s no trouble?” She laughed. “Okay, okay, I will.”

  She hung up and handed the phone back to Colin. “As I’m sure you’ve surmised, she said yes.”

  “Fantastic,” he said, already making the arrangements in his head.

  “I’ll arrange for the flight. What time would you like to leave?”

  “Early afternoon. That will give me time to wrap a few things before we go.”

  “Let’s worry about the rest of it tomorrow.” He pulled her down and rolled her under him. “I want to enjoy our first night in a real bed.”

  “But—”

  He smothered her protest with a kiss, then rolled over so that she was on top, which was the best way to distract her from practically anything.

  The closer they came to the end of this affair, the less he wanted it to end, yet he wasn’t ready to settle down.

  Rowena grabbed one of the condoms he’d left on the nightstand, tore it open with her teeth and rolled it down his erection in that slow, sexy way that she knew drove him mad. He tried to imagine what it would be like if he could never touch her again. But then she lowered herself down onto his shaft, her body squeezing him like a fist, and he decided he would worry about that some other time.

  *

  The following afternoon, Rowena said goodbye to Tricia while Colin waited in front of the day-care center in the limo he had hired.

  This would be the longest she’d ever been away from Dylan, and even though she trusted Tricia, it both scared her to death and broke her heart. Dylan, on the other hand, was so excited to have Tricia stay over that he practically shoved Rowena out the door. And after going over Dylan’s meds schedule half a dozen times and pointing out the emergency numbers twice, Tricia looked as though she wanted to shove her out the door, too.

  “We’ll be fine,” Tricia assured her. “Go. Have fun, get laid.”

  Rowena shot her a look.

  “Hey, at least one of us is getting some,” she said. “And don’t worry about me and Dylan. If there’s a problem, I’ll call.”

  The driver opened the door for her. Dressed in charcoal-gray slacks and a sweater that matched the blue of his eyes, Colin grinned as she slid in beside him, then planted one of those slow, deep, delicious kisses on her. They had a long flight ahead of them, and already she couldn’t wait for it to be over so they could be alone.

  “How did it go?” he asked as the driver climbed in and started the engine. “Was Dylan upset that you were leaving?”

  “He couldn’t get me out of there fast enough. I hate to admit it, but he’ll be just fine without me. A year ago he was a clingy, needy baby who couldn’t be away from me for a minute.” He put his arm around her and she leaned into his shoulder. “When did he stop depending on me?”

  “He still depends on you. I imagine every child his age needs a certain degree of independence. It’s a good thing.”

  “I know that in my attempts to protect him, I’ve probably smothered him a little. Or maybe more than a little.”

  “Yet look at how capable and independent he is.”

  She smiled. “He is a tough kid.”


  Colin pressed a kiss to her forehead. “Like his mother.”

  She wished that were true, but she wasn’t nearly as tough as he thought she was.

  She looked out the window and realized they were headed in the opposite direction from LAX. “Where are we going?”

  “To the airport.”

  “LAX is the other way.”

  “I booked us a flight on a private business jet.”

  A private jet? Even her father flew commercial first-class most of the time. She had just assumed that would be the case today. “Isn’t that expensive?”

  Colin shrugged and recited a dollar amount that flabbergasted her, but he might as well have been talking about pennies for all the concern he showed. He was so easygoing and down-to-earth, she sometimes forgot how wealthy and cultured he was. Although, come to think of it, she really didn’t know how much money he had.

  “You know the best part about a private plane?” he said.

  “Free-flowing alcohol? Unlimited peanuts?”

  He chuckled. “Those are nice perks, but I was thinking more along the lines of privacy. Meaning, no other passengers.”

  Well, yeah, wasn’t that the point? Otherwise it wouldn’t be private, would it?

  “So I was curious,” he said, and she recognized that teasing lilt to his tone. “Ever been a member of the mile-high club?”

  She looked up at him and laughed. There was a twinkle in his eye. “Of course not!”

  With one of those adorable grins, and mischief still sparkling in his eyes, he said, “Would you like to?”

  Twelve

  Though Rowena hated to admit it, returning to D.C. after so long felt a little bit like coming home. In the limo from the airport to the hotel, every landmark, every street, evoked a memory. Some good, some not so good, but all told, being back left her feeling not only nostalgic, but maybe even a little homesick.

  Not that she would want to live there again. She’d grown too fond of the slower, less frenetic pace of Southern California living, not to mention the warmer weather. Even more crucial was that all Dylan’s doctors and therapists were based in L.A., so relocating would be impractical.

  That didn’t mean she wouldn’t mind visiting Washington occasionally, touching base with old friends. And tonight, spending time with a new one, she thought, looking over at Colin, who was gazing out the car window, his hand wrapped around hers.

  When Colin made that mile-high club crack in the limo, she had assumed he was joking, that he was only teasing her. She had assumed wrong.

  When the jet had reached cruising altitude, the initiation into the “club” began. Since there was only so much they could do under a blanket in their seats, which in itself was probably not lost on the flight attendant, the only place to fool around was the bathroom. And for a guy who swore up and down that he’d never done it on a plane either, he sure was creative in small spaces.

  For so long now her entire focus had been on Dylan and being the perfect mom. Somewhere along the way she’d completely forgotten how to have fun. How to be silly. She hadn’t felt this carefree, this excited about life, about what the next day might bring, in ages. She’d forgotten it was even possible to feel this way.

  In the limo from the airport to the hotel she called Tricia to check in.

  “We’re having a blast,” her friend told her. “Dylan has been a little angel, as usual. He took an hour nap, and now we’re making dinner.”

  Rowena almost expected to feel jealous for missing out on the fun, that Dylan didn’t need her as much as she’d thought he did; instead it was a bit of a relief. She could be Dylan’s mommy, yet reclaim her own identity, have a life outside of parenting. Without feeling guilty about it. Much.

  They pulled up in front of the Four Seasons Hotel in Georgetown, and when the driver opened the door, a damp, icy wind greeted them, reminding her just how much she preferred the Southern California climate.

  The lobby was just as she remembered. Spacious and modern, yet warm and welcoming. While Colin checked them in, she walked over to the fireplace to get warm and couldn’t escape the feeling that, despite being two unattached and consenting adults, they were doing something risqué.

  “Ready?” Colin asked, joining her by the fire, holding two card keys. He handed one to her and she slipped it into her purse.

  “Ready,” she said, feeling a bit like a princess as they walked to the elevator, his hand resting intimately against the small of her back. He was different in public. Everything in his stance, in the way he moved, demanded attention and respect. A week ago, what she would have pegged as arrogance, pretension and entitlement she now knew was confidence. He couldn’t have been more polite and gracious to the staff, and when the porter met them at the door with their bags, Colin pulled out a leather billfold thick with cash and credit cards and tipped him handsomely.

  The suite was ready for their arrival with a fire already blazing in the fireplace and a bottle of champagne chilling beside it—champagne that she couldn’t drink. But upon closer inspection she realized that it was a bottle of nonalcoholic sparkling cider.

  “I was thinking we could order room service and eat dinner in tonight,” Colin said, and with a grin added, “Clothes optional, of course.”

  “Room service sounds nice.”

  “Room service it is.” He shrugged out of his coat, then helped her with hers, draping them both over the back of the sofa. “Are you hungry now?”

  “Famished. I was so busy getting ready to leave I skipped lunch.”

  “What sounds good?”

  “Right now, anything.” She walked over to the desk, where she figured she would find the room service menu. Through the window overlooking Pennsylvania Avenue, she could see that a light snow had begun to fall, making her grateful for their decision to stay indoors.

  Cold was bad enough. Snow she could really do without.

  After they studied the menu and made their choices—she tried not to look at the jaw-dropping prices—her phone rang. Her first thought was that something was wrong with Dylan, and in her mind she was already formulating the quickest possible way home. But when she saw on the display that it was Cara, she exhaled a quiet breath of pure relief.

  “Sorry I didn’t get back to you sooner,” Cara said when Rowena answered. “Your message said you had news.”

  “I do. You’ll never guess where I am.”

  “I’m guessing not California.”

  “D.C.”

  “Are you really?” she squealed, sounding so much like the schoolgirl she used to be. It was a comfort to know that not everyone had changed completely.

  “We’re staying at the Four Seasons.”

  “We? You and Dylan?”

  Oops. “Um, no.”

  Cara was quiet, then said, “Not you and the senator.”

  “No, not him either.” Rowena hadn’t mentioned Colin to her the last time they spoke, simply because it hadn’t seemed worth mentioning. She’d had no plans to start any sort of relationship with him, so what was the point? It would just be one more person to hound her about her personal life. And here she and Tricia had been right all along.

  There was a long pause, and then she gasped. “Oh, my God, are you with a man friend?”

  “I might be.”

  “Oh, my gosh! I’m so excited for you. Can you tell me who he is? Where you met him? What he looks like?”

  Rowena laughed. “How about we meet and talk about it tomorrow? Since I’m here, I’m going to visit my storage unit and look for that yearbook.”

  “I’d love to meet with you! How about an early lunch? My treat.”

  “Hold on a sec.” She muted her phone and asked Colin, who had poured the cider and made himself comfortable on the sofa, “When is your meeting tomorrow? Because I was thinking of having lunch with an old friend.”

  “Ten. I’m not sure how long it will last, though.”

  “Maybe when you’re finished, you could meet us.” What was the point in hav
ing a rich, gorgeous man in her life if she couldn’t show him off a little?

  “Is this friend male or female?” he asked, and she could swear a hint of jealousy tinted his words. Which, she was a little ashamed to admit, she liked.

  “Female.”

  “Sounds all right to me,” he said.

  She switched back to Cara. “Would eleven work for you?”

  “That would be perfect.”

  They decided on a quiet bistro just down the street from the hotel.

  “Oh, and do me a favor,” Rowena said. “Don’t tell anyone that I’m here. Especially my father.”

  “Why?”

  “I’ll explain tomorrow.”

  After she hung up, she joined Colin on the sofa to wait for the food. She cuddled up against him and he handed her a glass of cider. She couldn’t recall the last time she had felt so pampered.

  “Tell me about Dylan’s father,” he said.

  The request surprised her. She turned, looking up at him, and asked, “Why?”

  He shrugged. “Just curious.”

  “It’s not something I like to talk about. The few months that I was with him were the lowest in my life.”

  “Dylan doesn’t see him?”

  She shook her head. “Dylan has never seen him.”

  “Why not?”

  “My father offered him a big fat check and he gave up his parental rights.”

  “Why would the senator do that?”

  “The truth is I barely knew Wiley—and yes, that’s his real name. He was a drunken one-night stand that I met in a bar. Which is where he hung out a lot back then. He was a loser. A washed-up politician.

  “When I found out I was pregnant it was such a shock. I was in no condition to be taking care of a kid. I couldn’t even take care of myself. Then they did the ultrasound and I saw his tiny little heartbeat. It was like a sign. I just knew that I had to change, for him. I quit everything cold turkey, which was hell on earth. Cara helped me through it. It took me months to work up the courage to tell my dad. I didn’t even know where Wiley was, but the senator found him and paid him to go away permanently.”

  “How do you feel about that?”

  “On one hand I hate that Dylan will never know his real father, but on the other, Wiley was a loser, and odds were pretty good he wouldn’t have been around anyway. Besides, who would want that sort of male role model for their child? In this case I think it’s definitely for the best.”