Rush: A Second Chance Romance

by Ellen Lane

  I very nearly said yes. An affirmative answer was all but on the tip of my tongue when my rational brain broke through the alcohol haze that was beginning to cloud my mind. A vineyard? He was suggesting that we casually move to a private vineyard for an interview?

  We were already in his ornate, beautifully decorated home, sipping whiskey that I was sure cost more than I made in a month. Going to a vineyard just because it was pretty was overkill - something that he had obviously mentioned purely to impress me.

  The gesture tugged at my heartstrings not because there was pure emotion behind it, but because Rhett was probably treating me like every other woman he’d ever brought into his home - right before bedding them and sending them on their way.

  For a long beat, I stared at his handsome visage, uncaring that we were wasting space on my recorder. Who was he? The Rhett I’d known as a girl stole affection wherever and whenever he could get it. The moment Jeb left the house he was tugging me into his lap, whispering how we should climb the huge oak tree in my front yard so we could be alone to see the stars together. The Rhett of my childhood had been dirt poor, but he hadn’t needed the trappings of wealth to impress me. He’d been in a league all his own without it.

  The Rhett before me was, on many levels, a total and complete stranger.

  “You know, I’m not like them.” I finally reached out to turn the recorder off, ire bubbling in my gut.

  Rhett’s brow furrowed in confusion. “Pardon?”

  When I raised my head to meet his gaze, I did my best to hide my frustration. “Like the women you parade in here to impress with your money. I’m not like them. I never cared about how much money you had, Rhett. I still don’t.” The surprise on his face might have been funny if I wasn’t genuinely hurt by his callous overtures.

  “Cece-”

  “I’m here in a professional capacity only. We do our interviews for the article and I leave. No funny business - no charm. No falling into bed with you because I’m so overwhelmed by your very presence.” That wasn’t the complete truth - Rhett’s presence did overwhelm me, but the effect was lessened seeing how easily he thought he could work his way past my defenses. “So, please, just don’t. Neither of us has the time to waste.”

  I was brusque to the point of callousness - half of me expected he might toss me out of his house on my ear for speaking exactly what was on my mind - you could certainly thank the spiked tea for that. Most of all, however, I was disappointed. Though I hadn’t expected Rhett would recognize me, I certainly hoped he’d have enough respect for me as an old friend to realize I wasn’t just some fly-by-night floozy.

  To my surprise, however, the corners of Rhett’s mouth turned up into an indulgent, amused smile that gave me the sudden urge to squirm in my seat. It was the look a cat gives a canary right before he pounces. “Alright, alright. You win.” He raised his hands defensively, much the same way he had when I first entered the house. “I apologize. I didn’t mean to offend you. I’m sorry I just...seeing you after so long has me thinking - and that’s the honest to God truth.”

  When he looked at me like that - leaning forward, the spicy scent of him enveloping my alcohol-dulled senses - I could almost believe him. I knew if I stayed any longer he would convince me much more quickly than I gave him credit for.

  “I think we’re done for today.” I grabbed my recorder and notepad, slipping them into my bag as I stood. It was probably better I left my second glass of tea half-full anyway - God knows I didn’t need any more liquor coursing through me. It might make me do something stupid, like give into the gorgeous man before me. “I’ll type this up and we can do the next interview whenever is convenient for you.”

  “Of course.” I hadn’t expected him to stand with me, but if there was one thing that hadn’t changed about Rhett, it was his southern gentility. “I’ve got a few meetings but I should be free sooner rather than later. I’ll let you know.”

  He all but towered over me, even in my three-inch heels. His sheer size made me feel small, vulnerable, and, somehow, hotter than I could remember ever being. “Alright.” The word left me on an undignified squeak before I turned on my heels to rush towards the patio door.

  I hadn’t made it more than three strides before his velvety baritone stopped me in my tracks. “It really is good to see you, Cece. It’s been way too long.”

  I merely nodded affirmatively before fleeing the room, wishing I had worn more comfortable shoes so I could flat out sprint.

  I thought I could handle this. A few weeks with a man I hadn’t seen in over a decade seemed like a small price to pay to jump-start my career. But I had obviously underestimated Rhett’s sheer sex appeal. He might have been acting like the typical womanizer, but I found myself strangely vulnerable to his tactics. Maybe because I remembered a simpler time with less bravado. I remembered the boy who’d jumped naked with me into the nearest lake on a dare and given me my first and most perfect kiss.

  And lamented what he’d become.

  Chapter Four

  ~ Rhett

  I didn’t get much sleep that night. When I closed my eyes, all I could think of was the disappointment on Cece’s face when I did my best to woo her. The vineyard was usually a sure-fire thing, and she was right, it had netted me more than my share of women. The fact that she saw through me, even a few drinks in, both amused and frustrated me.

  But then, she’d always been one smart cookie. Top of her class all through middle and high school, first prizes in the science fair and spelling bee. And she was always so humble. Though her parents usually insisted that Jeb help her with her homework, it probably should have been the other way around. She’d always been an uncontrollable ball of energy -never afraid to speak her mind to anyone who happened to be listening.

  Nothing had changed.

  After a restless night, I got up the next morning around seven. I thought a run might clear my head, but I should have known better. The moment I stepped into the backyard to stretch, my gaze was drawn to the guest house. Was she still sleeping, or did Cece have just as restless a night as I had?

  I wondered what she slept in. Was she a negligee kind of girl? T-shirt and panties? Or did she sleep absolutely nude, without a stitch of clothing to speak of?

  Fuck, now I was going to have to run with a boner.

  At my side, Mason whined in impatience. He was used to setting off the moment I stepped outside, and I’d dawdled too long for him. “Sorry, boy.” Leaning down, I stroked his head affectionately. “I’m a little preoccupied.”

  Truth be told, there was a part of me that was jealous of the canine. He didn’t have to put up an emotional front. The moment he’d seen Cece the previous day, all the happy neurons in his animal brain had fired and he’d leapt on her in an enthusiastic greeting.

  If only I had the same luxury.

  I set off at a moderate pace, prepared to do my usual circuit. A run into the downtown area, along the pier and back was about seven miles, and I could do that easy. Maybe I’d tire out myself enough to sleep before I had to fly into the office later on that afternoon.

  Though I doubted I’d be able to get any quality rest knowing just how close Cecily was.

  The fiery brunette had taken my vineyard suggestion as an insult, and she’d been more bored by her tour of the house than impressed by anything in it. That was a first for me. I usually didn’t get much further than the expansive kitchen and game room before women were climbing all over me - but I realized, now, that I’d been naive to group Cece in with those women.

  She was different - always had been. Maybe that’s why I’d never been able to stop thinking about her. She seemed dead set on the idea that my words were simply meant to charm her out of her panties, but the truth was there was a good deal of honesty in them. Out of all the women I’d ever been with, I remembered Cecily the most vividly - and she’d only been fourteen or fifteen when I left.

  Even I knew that had to mean something. I had hoped that something was a stray
emotion I could fuck out of my system and get on with my life but now I realized how idiotic that notion was.

  This was Cece we were talking about - not some actress prima donna or ballerina. To my knowledge, she’d lived in Georgia her entire life contentedly. She wasn’t out for fame and riches, and those things weren’t going to impress her.

  Which put me in more than a little of a pickle.

  I had no problem admitting it: I was used to using my money to dazzle women. It was easier than trying to connect with them emotionally. I wasn’t looking for a wife or a girlfriend - I didn’t have the time and I tended to live in the moment. A tennis bracelet was always better than a long conversation - a trip to the Bahamas safer than a cozy night in.

  But those tactics weren’t going to help me with Cece. I was going to have to go another route entirely...and the realization alone was enough to intimidate me.

  Even by the time I’d finished my run, I hadn’t come up with a solid plan. By that point, I knew she had to be up - getting started with her own day. Though Mason drank his entire bowl of water and collapsed the moment we got into the house, I grabbed a towel and headed to the back porch, hoping to catch a glimpse of her.

  No such luck. Maybe she was a late sleeper.

  Jesus, I was acting like a teenager again - peeping through windows and hoping to catch a glimpse of a girl. If anything, that was testament to just how determined I was to have Cece in my arms. Call it lust, attachment, or whatever you wanted...I wanted to taste her. To hear her moan my name.

  I wanted her to admit she’d missed me just as much as I missed her.

  It was a tall fucking order, and I knew it.

  I was making a recovery shake when the intercom rang and I answered. I was surprised to see the grinning face of Tony, my lawyer - and one of my closest friends. I certainly hadn’t expected him, but it was good to get a break from my ruminating.

  “What the hell are you doing here? Vampires turn to dust in the sun, you know that.”

  “You’re hilarious.” Tony rolled his eyes with a good-humored smile. “Let me in. It’s burning up out here.”

  He’d never been one for cardio. The man was a beast in the weight room but he couldn’t run a mile to save his life. I should know - we went to Stanford together. I buzzed him in, arching a brow when I saw he was toting a work briefcase. When we were at Stanford together, people had called us Fric and Frac - two sides of the same coin. Where I was blonde, Tony had dark hair. My southern drawl opposed his thick New York accent, and his brawn juxtaposed with my leaner muscle. Arguably, he was just as successful a lawyer as I was a businessman -I was his number one client, after all.

  “Thought you didn’t work on Fridays.” I slid a glass of my shake across the table at him and he made a face before turning the glass up anyway. One swig and he was scowling.

  “That stuff is poison. No idea how you drink it.”

  “It’s part of a revolution called health food. You should try it sometime.”

  Tony merely rolled his eyes at my sarcasm. “I’m taking advantage of my high metabolism while it sticks around. Gimme a burger and fries over a protein shake any day.”

  “For breakfast?” I arched a brow incredulously. “Gross.”

  “Yeah, yeah. I bet you can’t even pronounce half the shit in that shake.” He took a seat on a barstool before setting his briefcase on the counter. “Got some stuff for you to look over. You’ve been hard to get ahold of the past few weeks.”

  “Been all over the place,” I groaned, “Trying to get plans for the next quarter up. I’m being run ragged.”

  “Speaking of running,” Tony extracted a sheaf of papers from his bag, sliding them across the table to me. “Who’s the brunette with the nice legs I saw jogging down the front drive? Gave me an eyeful as I was pulling up.”

  My stomach twisted in a mixture of envy and pride. So Cece was up - and she was out exercising. How had I missed that? I could see her in my mind’s eye in a pair of tiny running shorts and a sports bra...and little else. “Hello? Earth to Rhett. Asked you a question.” I snapped back to the present to see Anthony grinning at me. “What’s up with you? You spaced out on me for a minute there.”

  I sighed, running a hand through my sweat-damp hair. “She’s a reporter.” I could only imagine the shit I was going to get for this. It was only because Anthony and I were so close that I could even tell him. “Doing an article about me...she’s not too happy about the strings I pulled to get her here though. Righteously pissed when I tried to make a move. Guess I’m not as charming as I was when I was seventeen.”

  It took Tony a minute to comprehend what I was implying, but once he did, his dark eyes widened in shock. “That’s Cecily Warner? The chick you never stopped talking about. The little southern girl that speared your heart with a fucking steak knife?”

  “I wouldn’t go that far.” I cut him off dryly. Pretty sure I hadn’t pined over her as much as he was insisting I had, but Tony wasn’t the type to argue over trivialities.

  “Damn. No wonder you were so hung up - not that I would call her a girl or little anymore.”

  “I know,” I groaned, doing my best to concentrate on the conversation at hand and not on Cece in her running attire. “She’s killing me, Tony. During the first interview, the other day I did my best with her. Got so close I could smell her perfume.” Jesus, I was getting hard just remembering it. She’d walked in looking like a vision in that yellow dress, smelling to high heaven of lavender and roses. I was surprised I hadn’t visibly salivated.

  “So, what happened?”

  I winced at that particular recollection. “She called me on it. Told me she wasn’t out to be another conquest. I got the vibe that she prefers the seventeen-year-old me better.”

  That was a bigger blow than I let on.

  I’d grown up in poverty of the extreme sort. The house was about the only asset my family had. How many nights had I gone hungry because we paid the mortgage instead of eating? At the time, I’d just been a pissed off kid. I couldn’t understand how my own father could want a house over feeding his own family.

  There were, of course, a lot of things I hadn’t understood as a kid - why my dad treated me like shit among them. My mom defended her abusive husband even on her deathbed - about a year after he drank himself to death. She insisted that he wanted a legacy for me - something to leave behind.

  I’d sold the house the moment I could. It held no good memories for me - just childhood pain and the agony of a few foster families trying to cheat me out of it. Maybe it might have had more sentimental value if I’d ever let Cece over the threshold.

  I’d always been reluctant to let her see that side of my life. To her, I was just Rhett, her brother’s friend. The guy who made her laugh and dried her tears when she was frustrated. The boy who loved her smile and the way the sun caught the gold in her hair.

  Fuck.

  I swore I’d never be that poor again. That I’d get my degree and better myself at Stanford so I’d never have to worry about where my next meal was coming from. I’d do better than either of my parents ever had to remind myself that I wasn’t them.

  And I’d succeeded. But it seemed Cecily didn’t want anything to do with the more evolved, wealthier Rhett. How the hell was I supposed to impress her the same way I had twelve years ago? I wasn’t the same person I’d been at seventeen.

  “So, she’s not into the fancy stuff.” Anthony shrugged the fact off like it was no big deal. “It’s not the end of the world. You’ve been with women who are more into your sensitive side, right?”

  I shot him a flat look that plainly told him that he knew better and Tony chuckled. “Right. My bad. Well, at least she didn’t storm out. As long as she’s here, you still have a chance. Quite frankly, I’m elated for you.”

  “You’re elated she rejected me?”

  Tony smirked. “That she’s still here, asshole. It means there’s still something between you two. Nice to know, considering you ha
ven’t shut up about her since the day we met.”

  Was it really that bad? I’d never even noticed. Talking about Cece and I was something that always came naturally to me when I was comfortable around someone. Then again, there weren’t very many people I was so at ease with. Making as much money as I did, meant you had to be careful who you shared your secrets with. Most people were willing to sell them for a tidy profit.

  “So, what am I supposed to do?” I queried, flipping absently through the papers he’d brought me. “She’s staying here. Surrounded by reminders that I’m not the kid she used to know. How do I bypass that?”

  Anthony shrugged. “Try thinking with your head instead of your dick. There’s gotta be a way to strike a balance between new money and old nostalgia.” He took another sip of his shake, his face pulling into a grimace. “Christ, that’s foul.”

  Rolling my eyes, I turned my attention to the papers before me even as the cogs of my mind began to turn. The agreement Tony had typed up for the proceedings the next day in Atlanta were fairly straight forward. They only required a few signatures, which I was glad to provide as I tried to think of a way to win Cece over that didn’t have to do with throwing money at her.

  “That should do it.” When I handed the papers back to Anthony, he caught my arm with a small frown.

  “You Ok, Rhett? Don’t burn out that brilliant brain of yours.” It was enough to dispel the tension of the moment and I laughed, punching his shoulder firmly.

  “It would take a lot more than this.”

  “Glad to hear it. Just give it a little time.” He tucked the papers back into his briefcase before downing the rest of his shake with a small shudder. When he returned the empty glass, the corners of my mouth twitched.

  “You’ll have the best work out of your life later. I’d bet money on it.”

  “Please. You’ve got plenty of that to lose.” Anthony rolled his eyes before clapping me on the shoulder. His expression warmed to one of sincere support as he squeezed firmly. “I’ve the utmost faith in you. I’ve never seen you fail when there’s something you set your mind to.”