Whatever You Like

by Maureen Smith

  The last thing Lena wanted was to leave Roderick alone with her grandfather, who was clearly up to something. But before she could object, Morgan grabbed her hand and dragged her from the room and down the hospital corridor.

  When they were a safe distance away, Morgan squealed excitedly, “Oh my God! You’re sleeping with him!”

  “Shhh!” Mortified, Lena glanced up and down the hallway to make sure no one had overheard her. Thankfully, the only person around was well out of earshot.

  Turning back to Morgan, she demanded, “What makes you think I’m sleeping with Roderick?”

  Morgan snorted out an incredulous laugh. “You’re kidding, right? It’s so obvious!”

  “How?”

  “For starters, every time he just looked at you, Lena, I expected your clothes to go up in flames. It wasn’t the lewd, crude stare you get from a guy at the club who’s checking you out and wondering how he can get in your panties. No, girl, Roderick looks at you with pride of ownership.”

  “Pride of ownership?” Lena scoffed.

  “Yeah. Like he’s already been in your panties and has memorized every dip and curve of your body, so every time he sees you, it’s like he’s reliving the experience all over again.” Morgan shuddered, fanning her face with her hand. “I’d kill to have a smokin’ hot guy look at me that way!”

  Lena knew “the look” her sister was talking about. Knew it all too well.

  “You spent the weekend with him, didn’t you?” Morgan persisted, a knowing gleam in her eyes. “You didn’t go out of town on business. You were with Roderick. Fess up.”

  “Fine,” Lena groaned in defeat. “You’re right. We were together.”

  “I knew it!”

  “No, you don’t, Morg. It’s complicated.”

  “I don’t see why. Girl, that man is even finer than he looked on Oprah. Those eyes, those lips, those shoulders, those hands. That voice. And you were right—he smells delicious!” Morgan sighed deeply. “I never thought I’d say this, Lena, but I hate you. I really hate you.”

  “Hey!” Lena laughingly protested.

  Morgan grinned. “I’ll only forgive you if you tell me that he has a brother.”

  Lena chuckled. “Actually, he has a tw—” She broke off abruptly as Roderick emerged from her grandfather’s hospital room.

  He glanced down the corridor, his dark gaze latching onto hers.

  “Like a heat-seeking missile,” Morgan murmured.

  Lena blushed. Not wanting to stand there ogling Roderick as he sauntered toward them, she turned away and pretended to admire a pastel seascape, the kind of generic painting that graced the walls of hospital corridors everywhere.

  Morgan, on the other hand, had no qualms about ogling Roderick. As he drew closer, she intoned under her breath, “What a man, what a man, what a man.”

  “Shhh!” Lena hissed. “He’ll hear you!”

  Morgan grinned unabashedly.

  When Roderick reached them, Lena turned and plastered on a gracious smile. “Thanks for bringing me to the hospital, Roderick. I really appreciate it. But you don’t have to stick around any longer. I’m sure you have things to do.”

  He looked amused. “Are you trying to get rid of me?”

  “No.” Hell, yes! “It’s just that I don’t want to take up any more of your time.”

  “I don’t mind. And I promised to drive you home, remember?”

  “That won’t be necessary. I can catch a ride home with Morgan.”

  “Actually,” Morgan interjected, “my car’s a mess, and you always complain—”

  “I’ll deal with it.” Keeping her serene smile in place, Lena said to Roderick, “See? There’s really no reason for you to stay.”

  “Unless you really want to,” Morgan told him.

  Lena skewered her with a look. “Would you mind giving us a minute?”

  Morgan divided a glance between her sister and Roderick, then grinned. “No problem. I need to return a phone call anyway.”

  As she strolled off, Roderick smiled at Lena. “I like your family. I can tell how much you guys love one another.”

  “Thanks,” Lena muttered, then added sullenly, “They seem to really like you, too.”

  His smile deepened. “You make that sound like a bad thing.”

  “I’m not so sure it isn’t. By the way,” she said accusingly, “thanks for letting me twist in the wind when my grandfather asked where we’d met.”

  Roderick grinned unrepentantly. “I was waiting to hear your answer. I wanted to see how good you are at thinking on your feet.” He shook his head, tsk-tsking. “Not very good at all.”

  “Oh yeah? Well, I wouldn’t have had to come up with any answer if you hadn’t put me in that position in the first place! I thought I told you to stay in the waiting room!”

  “You did,” Roderick said mildly. “But I wanted to meet your grandfather.”

  “Why?” she burst out in exasperation. “It’s not as if you and I are dating!”

  “We’re doing something.”

  “We’re having sex. Wild, unbelievably hot sex. That doesn’t warrant me introducing you to my family. Now they’re going to have all these questions for me, questions I can’t answer!”

  Roderick’s expression softened. For the first time, she detected a trace of guilt in his eyes. “Let me take you and your sister out to lunch,” he gently suggested. “I’ll have you back before your grandfather wakes up.”

  Lena shook her head, dragging a hand through her hair. “Thanks for the offer, but I’d prefer to stay here in case Poppa needs anything.”

  “That’s what the nurses are for.”

  “I know. And they’re perfectly capable. But I’d really rather not leave. In fact, I’m going to need my evenings free this week to stay with Poppa while he’s hospitalized. Given his age and health issues, the doctor wants to keep him for observation for a few days before he goes back to the retirement home.”

  Roderick nodded. “I understand.”

  “So you don’t mind that I might not be able to see you this week?”

  He smiled at her surprised tone. “I’m not an ogre, Lena. I know that you have priorities, and your grandfather is one of them. If we have to postpone spending time together, then so be it.”

  She gave him a grateful smile. “Thank you for being so understanding.”

  “Of course.” He paused. “But you should know that your grandfather asked me to take you to dinner and a show sometime this week.”

  “He did what?”

  Roderick’s lips twitched. “He asked me—”

  “I heard you,” Lena interrupted, frowning. “Why did he ask you that?”

  “He said you’re always going places alone. Museums, restaurants, movies. He thinks you’re lonely.”

  “I’m not lonely,” she snapped, flushing with humiliation.

  “Your grandfather thinks you are. So he wants me to take you out on another date—”

  “Another?”

  Roderick grinned. “He seems to be under the impression that we’ve just started dating. And since you didn’t correct him—”

  “Neither did you, obviously.”

  His grin widened. “I didn’t have the heart to do it. And it wasn’t really my place.”

  Lena scowled. “Your ‘place’ was the waiting room, where you were supposed to stay out of sight. But, nooo, you just had to go rogue.” She groaned, slapping a hand to her forehead. “This is just the beginning. First he’s planning our dates, next he’ll be planning our wedding.”

  Roderick chuckled. “Come on now. Let’s not get carried away.”

  “Okay, but don’t say I didn’t warn you.” Out of the corner of her eye, she could see Morgan hovering near the end of the corridor, pretending not to watch them.

  Lena sighed. “I should go. My sister’s waiting.”

  Roderick glanced over his shoulder, met Morgan’s stare and smiled. When Morgan grinned and fluttered her fingers in a wave, Lena rolled he
r eyes in disgust.

  Turning back to her, Roderick said, “My lunch offer still stands.”

  “Thanks, but my answer’s the same.”

  “Then maybe I should ask your sister.”

  She stared at him. “You wouldn’t.”

  His eyes glinted wickedly. “I might.”

  Lena folded her arms across her chest. “Go ahead.”

  A slow grin curved his mouth. “Is that a dare?”

  “Maybe.”

  He laughed softly. “You should never dare me, unless you’re prepared to deal with the consequences.”

  Lena sniffed. “What consequences? Morgan thinks you’re hot, but she also believes you and I are involved, so she wouldn’t—”

  “Encroach on your territory?”

  “Exactly.”

  He smiled mischievously. “Are you sure about that?”

  Lena didn’t hesitate. “Positive.”

  “Okay.” He reached out and stroked his knuckle over her cheek, a slow, lingering caress. “I’ll be in touch.”

  She swallowed and nodded, then watched as he sauntered away. When he reached Morgan, he stopped to say something to her. Lena was too far away to make out the words, or Morgan’s reply. She told herself it didn’t matter. It didn’t matter whether he invited her sister out to lunch, and it didn’t matter whether or not Morgan accepted. They were both adults, and Roderick didn’t belong to Lena.

  So she had no reason to feel a stab of jealousy when Morgan rested a hand lightly on his arm, or when Roderick threw back his head and laughed in response to whatever she’d said.

  And she definitely had no reason to feel a huge wave of relief when Roderick glanced over and met her gaze, winked at her, then left—alone.

  When she caught up to her sister and suggested they grab a bite to eat, Morgan said, “Girl, you’d better be glad I love you. That man is too damn tempting for his own good.”

  “Let me guess,” Lena said flatly. “He asked you out to lunch.”

  “No.” Morgan looked puzzled. “Why would he do that?”

  Lena shrugged. “I don’t know. To be polite. To rescue you from hospital food.”

  “Wouldn’t he ask you out to lunch?”

  “He did. Invited both of us. I politely declined.”

  “Well, damn. I’d have gone with him.”

  “Alone?”

  Morgan gave her a sly look. “Would you have minded?”

  “No.”

  “Liar!” Morgan laughed, then linked her arm through Lena’s as they headed for the cafeteria.

  Yeah, Lena had no reason to feel relieved.

  But, damn it, she did.

  Chapter Seventeen

  By the end of the week, Cleveland was back at Lakeview Manor, where he was welcomed like a conquering hero returning from battle. The staff pampered him even more than before, and the other residents filed in and out of his room to admire his cast and hear all about the miraculous breakthrough he’d experienced. Cleveland told and retold the story with great relish, shamelessly basking in all the attention.

  Every evening, Lena got off from work and headed straight to the retirement home, where she kept her grandfather company until he nodded off around eight. And then she returned to an empty apartment, her chest filled with an inexplicable ache that told her something was missing.

  With each passing day she expected to receive a call from Roderick, summoning her to the spot of their next tryst. But he didn’t call.

  At first she was relieved. She’d asked for time to look after her grandfather, so Roderick was respecting her wishes. Good for him.

  But he’d also promised Cleveland that he’d take Lena out on a date that week. Although she’d resented her grandfather’s meddling, she’d actually found herself looking forward to dinner and a show with Roderick.

  But as the days wore on and her phone remained silent, she went from feeling relieved, to perplexed, to annoyed. Downright annoyed. So when Zandra called on Saturday morning to ask whether she was available to meet a new client that evening, Lena was tempted to accept out of spite.

  “Lena?” Zandra prompted when she didn’t immediately respond.

  “I can’t,” Lena declined apologetically. She’d made a deal with Roderick, and a deal was a deal.

  “Are you sure?” Zandra prodded. “The client specifically asked for you, and I’d really hate to refer him to someone else. He says he met you a few months ago at a party, and you two struck up a conversation he really enjoyed. Medium height and build, dark hair, green eyes, British accent. Do you remember?” She didn’t use his name. It was one of her unwritten rules: Never identify clients over the phone.

  Lena smiled. “I do remember him. Nice guy. Great accent.”

  “So you wouldn’t mind going out with him?” Zandra asked hopefully.

  “Not at all. But I can’t. Not this weekend.”

  Zandra paused, undoubtedly surprised. Lena was always available on the weekends. She purposely kept her schedule clear to accommodate the agency.

  “Is something going on, Lena?” Zandra asked, a note of concern in her voice.

  Lena saw her opening, and seized it with both hands. “Actually, my grandfather just got out of the hospital.”

  “Oh, no,” Zandra exclaimed. “Is he okay?”

  Lena gave her an account of everything that had happened over the past week, omitting any mention of Roderick.

  When she’d finished speaking, Zandra said gently, “Oh, Lena, I’m so sorry your grandfather had to go through all that. But that’s exciting about him being able to walk again.”

  “Very exciting,” Lena agreed. “We’re all keeping our fingers crossed and praying for the best.”

  “Amen to that.” Zandra paused. “Hey, do you want to grab a massage with me? I’ll be heading out soon for my appointment, and I’d love your company.”

  “A massage, huh? I haven’t had one of those in months.”

  “Then you’re long overdue. My treat.”

  Lena grinned. “A free massage? I’m there.”

  Two hours later, after a lavishly relaxing massage, Lena and Zandra lounged in the upscale day spa’s steamy sauna.

  As Lena felt the final traces of tension melt from her body, she closed her eyes and sighed contentedly. “This was absolutely wonderful, Zandra. Thanks for inviting me.”

  On the bench beside her, Zandra murmured, “No need to thank me. You deserve some pampering after the week you’ve had.”

  “Mmm.” A hazy smile touched Lena’s mouth. “I didn’t realize how much stress I was carrying around until your masseuse got her hands on me. She’s very good.”

  “The best,” Zandra agreed. “I have a standing appointment with her every week. You’re more than welcome to join me any time.”

  Lena chuckled softly. “I just might take you up on that offer.”

  “I hope you do.”

  A companionable silence lapsed between them.

  It didn’t last long.

  “So,” Zandra began conversationally. “I spoke to Roderick yesterday.”

  “Oh?” Lena kept her tone neutral. “How’s he doing?”

  “Busy, as usual. He mentioned something about traveling to Japan next week to meet with his transition team and work out some kinks regarding the merger.”

  Lena nodded, remembering that he’d invited her to accompany him to Japan. As if.

  “I think he’s going to be dividing his time between Chicago and Tokyo over the next couple years or so,” Zandra continued. “He already has a real estate broker looking for apartments.”

  “Really?” Lena’s chest squeezed with an emotion she refused to identify.

  As if sensing it, Zandra added smoothly, “But I don’t think he’d ever decide to move there permanently. Chicago has always been his home. He has too many ties here, too many family members who’d start a revolt if he even thought about leaving.”

  Wondering where the conversation was leading, Lena cracked one eye open and p
eered sideways at Zandra. Long strands of black hair had escaped from her upsweep and clung damply to her face and neck. Like Lena, she was wrapped in a plush towel emblazoned with the spa’s fancy logo. Beads of water glistened on her smooth brown skin and trickled down the valley between her full breasts. With little or no effort, she oozed sensuality like a perfume laced with pheromones.

  And, remarkably, Roderick was immune to her. Hallelujah!

  “Before we got off the phone,” Zandra said casually, “Roderick made the strangest request.” Lena tensed. Uh-oh. Here it comes. “What?”

  “He asked me not to send any clients your way until further notice.”

  Lena gasped. “He did what?”

  Zandra met her outraged stare. “Is there something I should know about you and Roderick?”

  Lena scowled, then covered her face with her hands and groaned. “He wasn’t supposed to say anything.”

  “He didn’t. Not much, anyway. Shortly after he made the request, he had to run to a meeting. So I didn’t have a chance to follow up with any questions.”

  “I’m so gonna kill him,” Lena muttered darkly.

  Zandra chuckled, a low, throaty sound. “In all fairness to Rod, I sort of tricked him into saying what he did. I was fishing for information, trying to find out whether he wanted to see you again. He doesn’t know that you told me what happened between the two of you the night of the party. I guess I wanted to rattle his cage a little. So at the end of our conversation, I casually mentioned to him that a new client was interested in going out with you.” She grinned. “The first word out of his mouth? Shit! He muttered it under his breath, but it came through loud and clear.”

  Lena shook her head, mentally firing off a few expletives herself.

  “That’s when he told me not to set you up with any more clients until further notice,” Zandra continued. “As you can imagine, my curiosity went through the roof after that. So I called you this morning to test the waters, to see whether you’d be willing to go out with a client.” She paused, searching Lena’s face. “Taking care of your grandfather isn’t the only reason you declined, is it?”

  Lena hesitated for a prolonged moment. “No.”