by Tina Folsom
The moment he saw an alley to his right, he took it and raced through it faster than he should. But he’d managed to get his precious passenger out of the danger zone. That was all that mattered.
Now his mind was free again to think of other things. Such as how lovely Tessa had looked when she’d walked toward him in the lobby. There’d been a glow about her, and her lavender eyes had looked even more brilliant than they had earlier in the day. And the closer she’d gotten, the more vibrant they’d become. At that thought he caught his own reflection in the windshield and noticed the same color reflecting back at him. But the color didn’t come from Tessa’s eyes, it came from his tie.
He did a double-take. Had he accidentally chosen a tie to match her eyes? What the fuck was wrong with him?
Annoyed at himself for not making more of an effort to suppress the effect rasen was clearly having on him, he tried to concentrate on driving until they arrived at the event.
Just barely on time, he pulled up to the curb where a valet was already waiting to take the car keys. He jumped out and snatched the ticket from the guy, grunted a quick “Thank you” and walked around the car. But he wasn’t quick enough. Tessa had already gotten out. He closed the car door behind her and took her elbow.
She whipped her head around to him. “What?”
“Careful, the stairs are uneven, and there isn’t really enough light.” He pointed to the steps that led up to the entrance of the industrial-looking building. This was definitely not one of those fancy hotel fundraiser events that politicians liked to attend. This looked a lot less elegant. “Take my arm, please,” he said in a softer tone, back in pretend-boyfriend mode now.
When she finally hooked her arm under his, he placed his hand over hers, pressing down gently. He felt a corresponding shiver race up his arm and down his spine, reminding him of how long it had been since he’d touched a woman.
“When we’re in there, I’m going to have to mingle,” she said.
“No worries, I won’t be in your way.” He could just as easily watch her from a little distance. Maybe that would be better anyway.
“Good.”
They arrived at the entrance, where a young Asian woman in her early twenties stood waiting with a clipboard. “Name, please.”
“Tessa Wallace,” Tessa replied.
“Oh, Miss Wallace, I’m sorry I didn’t immediately recognize you. It’s just so dark out here. You know, something went wrong with the lights earlier, and the electricians haven’t been able to fix it yet,” she babbled excitedly.
“That’s alright,” Tessa said in a friendly tone.
The woman leaned in a little, putting Hamish on alert immediately. “And just so you know, you have my vote. We need somebody like you.”
Tessa beamed at her and reached her hand out. “That’s so sweet of you to say. Thank you, I really appreciate your support.”
They shook hands, and the woman looked back at her clipboard. “Odd, you RSVP’d for only one person. Hmm.”
“I’m sorry,” Hamish interrupted and smiled at the woman. “That’s entirely my mistake. I didn’t think I could make it tonight, but then something got cancelled and I was able to accompany Tessa after all. I hope that won’t be a problem.”
She gave him a hushed glance, her cheeks turning a darker shade of red, before she smiled back. “No, of course not, any guest of Miss Wallace is welcome.” She stared at the spot where Tessa’s arm was still linked with his. “I’ll just have to make a note of who you are and in what capacity you’re here tonight.”
“Hamish MacGregor. Just put me down as the lucky guy who’s dating Miss Wallace.” He winked at her.
“Oh, yes, of course, Mr. MacGregor. Have a great night.” She shifted her gaze back to Tessa. “Both of you I mean.”
As he ushered Tessa inside, he glanced back. More people were lined up behind them, waiting to be let in. Hamish let his gaze roam, assessing his surroundings. There was a stage at one end, high tables with drinks and canapés along the walls, and a small dance floor off to one side. A tacky 80s disco ball hung over the center of the dance floor. It turned, reflecting light from several colored spotlights onto the walls and ceiling, as well as the guests. Music was piping in from somewhere. An abundance of sparkling lights provided for a ritzy party atmosphere in the large, industrial-style hall with its exposed ducts and beams running along the high ceiling.
He looked at Tessa, whose eyes were already roaming to ascertain who was in attendance.
“What kind of event is this anyway?” he asked.
“I thought you looked at my schedule.”
“It looks like your campaign manager only sent me the abbreviated version.” Something he had to remedy later. “It only gave me the location and the time.”
“Must have been an oversight.”
Hamish cocked an eyebrow. Oversight, his ass! “Yeah, sure.” Then he motioned to the crowd in the large hall. “So, what’s this all about?”
“It’s the opening of the new drug rehabilitation center.”
“The one the City Council opposed so staunchly?”
She nodded. “You know your city politics. I was able to push it through, but one of the concessions was that they had to establish it out here.”
He looked at her, understanding what she meant. “Not exactly the best part of town. Not a good place for getting addicts away from bad influences.”
Her face lit up. “That’s exactly what I told the other council members. But they refused to see my point.”
“Let me guess: they didn’t want it in their backyard, or the backyard of their constituents.”
She sighed. “But the center was needed so badly, I had to make compromises. I just hope we don’t end up paying for it later.”
“It’s a start. You should be proud of it.”
“I am.” She looked around, motioning to the crowd. “I just wish I could have done more. But Gunn was opposing me all the way.”
“The acting mayor?”
“He wasn’t acting mayor then. He was just a council member like myself. And his district was where the center was supposed to be located. They’d already secured a building. But he mobilized the council to oppose the application.” She suddenly looked past Hamish, her eyes widening, her mouth dropping open. “Oh that little shit! What is he doing here?”
Hamish spun his head in the direction of Tessa’s gaze. There, only a few yards away, Robert Gunn, the acting mayor, was shaking hands with another man.
“Who is Gunn talking to?” Hamish asked, motioning to the well-dressed older man with the dark hair which, judging by his gray eyebrows, was dyed.
Tessa shot him a look, anger spewing from her eyes now. “Bill Mantle, the director of the center.”
Suddenly there was a lull in the music and Mantle could be heard saying to Gunn, “Without you supporting us, we would have never gotten this off the ground. How can I ever thank you?”
Gunn laughed. “Well, not that I’d ever wanted anything in return, but since you’re asking…”
Just then the music got louder again, drowning out the rest of Gunn’s reply. Hamish looked back at Tessa, whose jaw was clenching.
“He’s taking credit even though he opposed the center all along. That jerk,” she murmured, outrage in her voice, and pushed past him.
But Hamish grabbed her arm, holding her back.
“Let me go!”
He pulled her closer, sliding one arm around her waist. “Don’t! You going and accusing him of stealing your thunder won’t help now.”
“But—”
“Trust me, Tessa, you don’t want people to remember you as the hysterical bitch who started a pissing match with the acting mayor. It’ll only play into his hands.”
“I’m not hysterical! He opposed the center, and now he’s pretending to be for it.”
Hamish steered her in the opposite direction, guiding her to the dance floor, while she continued her protests. After all, Cinead’s directive h
ad been to keep her on the right path, and starting a brawl was definitely not the way to go, as much as he understood her anger.
Once on the dance floor, he pulled her into his arms and started to dance.
“What are you doing?” she protested.
“Stopping you from doing something stupid.”
“How dare you?” she hissed and tried to get out of his arms. Without success.
He drew her closer so her body was flush to his, their chests, hips, and thighs touching. She drew in a sharp breath as if only now realizing the intimacy of their situation.
Hamish bent his head to her ear. “Now pretend you actually enjoy dancing with your boyfriend, and don’t look like you’d rather be somewhere else. People are watching.”
She grumbled indistinctly, but fell into step with him. After a few moments, he eased up on his tight grip, but Tessa continued to follow his lead with such grace, it felt like they’d practiced together many hours.
“You dance very well,” he murmured, enjoying the moment. How long exactly had it been since he’d danced with a woman?
“So do you.” She lifted her eyes to look at him. “But you don’t have to do this. I’m calmer now. I promise. I’m not gonna start a fight with Gunn.”
He chuckled. “Right.”
She stiffened slightly, making him stroke his hand gently along her lower back.
“Hamish,” she ground out under her breath, her eyes darting to the side as if checking if anybody was close enough to hear her. “I said you can let me go now.”
“No, you said I don’t have to do this.”
“Same thing. We don’t need to dance.”
“Why?” he asked, pinning her with his eyes. “What are you afraid of? That you might actually have fun?”
Goddamn it! Before picking her up, he’d resolved to use his charm to make her comply with his commands—just like Enya had suggested (though he would never admit that to his fellow guardian.) And everything had been going well enough so far. So why was he getting annoyed with her again? Was it because she was so adamantly against being touched by him? Did she find him that revolting? And what if that was the case? Why should that bother him? This was just an assignment like any other. She was a human woman, and he’d sworn off human women, not wanting to fall into the same trap a second time.
“I don’t… I’m not…” she stammered, appearing embarrassed.
Despite her words and against his better judgment, he led her into another turn, twirling her, then bringing her back to him. She gasped, and her chest heaved. Her cheeks seemed flushed all of a sudden, a shy smile forming on her lips. For a moment he forgot what he was here for. He only saw her red cheeks, her sparkling lavender eyes, and her plump lips—lips he liked to imagine were parted in invitation. How long had it been since he’d accepted such an invitation? How long since he’d kissed a woman? Did he even remember what the lips of a woman tasted like?
All he had to do was lean in closer...
“Tessa, there you are!”
7
Tessa looked in the direction of the voice and instinctively stopped dancing, easing herself out of Hamish’s arms—arms that had felt far too tempting. She’d nearly forgotten why she was at this event. The person now standing only a few feet away from her reminded her of the purpose of this evening.
“Gabriella, so nice to see you!” Tessa quickly said to the deputy director of the center, and extended her hand in greeting.
Shaking her hand, Gabriella glanced past her at Hamish, then back at her. “I didn’t mean to interrupt, but we wanted to get all the speeches out of the way, so we can all have fun, right?” She giggled like a schoolgirl, her eyes darting past Tessa once more. “Though it looks like you started already.”
At Gabriella’s obvious hint, Tessa turned and motioned to Hamish. “Gabriella, this is Hamish MacGregor, my, uh, boyfriend.” God, that sounded so strange, though she didn’t know whether that was because she hated lying or because having a boyfriend seemed such a distant memory. “Hamish, this is Gabriella VanSant, the deputy director of the new center.”
Hamish shook her hand and unleashed a devastatingly charming smile. “What a pleasure to finally meet you. Tessa speaks very highly of you.”
Tessa nearly choked at the ease with which the lie rolled over Hamish’s lips. What if Gabriella started asking questions about just what Tessa had presumably said about her?
“The pleasure is all mine.” Gabriella giggled again, making her look at least ten years younger. Clearly, even a woman in her sixties could still be charmed by a handsome man, even if that man was a good twenty-five years younger than her. What did they call women like that again? Oh right, cougars.
Just then Gabriella cast her a chastising look. “Where have you been hiding this man all these months?”
“Uh, oh, I didn’t. It’s just, I—”
Hamish took Tessa’s hand. “Tessa and I haven’t been dating for very long.” He smiled at her, then looked back at their host. “Though we are quite inseparable these days. I’m sure a woman like you, Ms. VanSant, knows all about the excitement of new love.”
Gabriella blushed furiously. Hamish had managed to make her a compliment by alluding that she too was desirable and could attract a man who was crazy about her. She was still beautiful despite her age and her wrinkles. Even the extra pounds she carried around her hips and stomach couldn’t detract from that.
Laughing, Gabriella playfully slapped her hand against his bicep, before turning back to Tessa. “Tessa, you’d better watch this guy, or any number of women here will try and snatch him away from you.”
Hamish laughed. “Not a chance.”
Yeah, Tessa felt like saying, because I’m paying him to be by my side.
Instead, she simply smiled, playing the love-struck girlfriend.
“So, Mr. MacGregor, are you in politics, too?”
“No, far from it. I’m a writer.”
Interest spread on Gabriella’s face. “Oh, how exciting! What do you write?”
“Instruction manuals for heavy industrial machinery. It’s quite fascinating. I’m currently working on a really exciting new machine.”
“Oh!” The disappointment in Gabriella’s voice was palpable. She tried to hide it with a smile. “Well, that’s excellent.” Then she looked at her watch. “Tessa, shall we meet at the stage in about five minutes? I’ll drum up the other speakers by then.”
“Sounds great, I’ll be there in a moment,” Tessa replied. “Oh, and Gabriella, have you seen my campaign manager? She was supposed to meet me here.”
“Poppy is already at the stage,” Gabriella said, before addressing Hamish. “It was nice meeting you, Mr. MacGregor.”
As soon as she was out of earshot, Tessa turned to Hamish. “Instruction manuals for heavy industrial machinery? Why on earth?”
“In my job, I’m used to blending in. Trust me, nobody wants to talk to me once they hear I write instruction manuals. There can’t be anything more boring, and nobody wants to be stuck with a talker who prattles on about some boring technical stuff. Or did you not notice how fast Ms. VanSant lost interest?”
She had to admit he had a point. “I guess.”
He leaned in. “Or would you rather your boyfriend were a doctor or a lawyer?”
“I think I can handle a guy who writes instruction manuals just fine.” In fact if that were Hamish’s real profession, maybe she would find him less intimidating. But as things stood, being in the presence of a bodyguard, even if he was her bodyguard, was still something she needed to get used to.
Tessa pointed to the side of the hall where the stage was located. “I should make my way to the stage and get ready to say a few words.”
Hamish took her arm. “I’ll walk with you.” He started guiding her through the crowd. “So what was this building before anyway? Looks pretty industrial.”
“It was a tool factory once. But the work was outsourced to a country where labor was cheaper, and since th
en the space has lain empty. It turned into an eyesore. Gangs hung around here, doing their worst. The owner turned a blind eye.”
“So he sold it to the center?” Hamish guessed.
“Not exactly. He donated it. Big tax write-off apparently.”
“All’s well that ends well.”
She shrugged. “I guess so.”
Arriving at the stage—a simple wooden construction only about three feet off the floor—Hamish let go of her arm.
“I’ll be watching from here.”
She nodded and took the three steps leading up to the platform where several people were already assembled. She wasn’t surprised to see Gunn there. He was cozying up to the director, Bill Mantle, while Gabriella and a volunteer adjusted the microphone and some cables at the podium. Poppy waved at her, looking all dressed-up and sparkling for the occasion. She wore black pants that flared at her feet and a blouse of the same color covered in silver sequins that reflected the light of the room in rainbow colors. She looked like she’d stepped out of an 80s movie and was going to break into song and dance any second. But before Tessa could go say hi to Poppy, Gunn noticed her, and she had no choice but to greet him.
She nodded to Mantle first. “Nice to see you again, Mr. Mantle.” Then she turned to Gunn. “Robert. Didn’t realize you were attending this event.”
He smiled broadly. “As the mayor—”
“Acting mayor,” she corrected him.
“… acting mayor, I have to attend important events like these.” His smile didn’t waiver. “Besides, I’m a staunch supporter of drug rehabilitation.”
That last sentence was clearly added to butter up the director. But Tessa knew better. Gunn didn’t care one way or another about drug rehabilitation as long as it didn’t take place in his backyard. He didn’t represent the underprivileged in this city. He was on the side of the rich.
“And your support is very much appreciated,” Mantle said before Tessa could find the right words to refute his claim.