by Lori Wilde
He’d paid a high price.
Other than his father and older brother, he had no one he could truly trust. No one to rely on. No one he could reveal himself to.
Except he wanted to tell Sophia everything.
The first step to achieving his goal was to find her and tell her the truth. That he was both Rex and Mike. He was at once serious and carefree, wealthy and poor, stable yet risky. He was all these things and much more.
Would she take him just as he was? Could Sophia forgive him for deceiving her?
There was only one way to find out. Rex pushed back his chair and stood up. He pulled a handful of bills from his wallet to pay for his drink and left them on the table.
“Where are you going?” his father asked. “Mark and Julie will be here any minute.”
“Give them my apologies, Dad, but I’ve got unfinished business to take care of in Rascal.”
Sophia was working late, trying to keep her mind off both Rex and Mike. She went to print off some documents, but the printer jammed. Dang it. She tried to dislodge the jam herself but got nowhere.
Great. The documents needed to go out first thing in the morning. She needed the printer fixed tonight. She called the maintenance office, but no one answered.
Most everyone left at five, but maybe she could find some kind of tool in the maintenance office to help her get the printer unclogged. As Rex’s assistant, she had a master key that opened most doors in the building.
At least she didn’t have to worry about running into Mike. He was no doubt off riding his Harley through the desert.
Why did she have an urge to be out there riding with him, the wind rushing through her hair, the setting sun in the distance, her arms wrapped tightly around Mike’s warm body?
Stop it! Get into the maintenance office, get something to pry the paper jam from the printer, and get those documents in the mail. Forget about old Harley-riding Mike!
Except she could not forget. Everything reminded her of him. The glass cat paperweight prominently displayed on her desk, the length of rope that had bound them together during the three-legged race in the bottom drawer of her desk, the number of the pizza delivery service on speed dial where Mike had programmed it in.
Agitated, Sophia walked through the empty corridor. The only sound she heard was a janitor running the vacuum cleaner somewhere down the hall.
She got on the elevator and pressed the button for the basement. She watched the numbers light up as the car descended, her chest curiously growing tighter with each passing floor.
It settled in the basement with a ding.
The door slid open.
Sophia stepped out into the darkened hallway and hurried to the maintenance office. She slid her master key into the lock and…
“What are you doing here?”
Startled, Sophia clutched her chest and jumped. Wide-eyed, she looked up to see Mike emerging from a side door, a key ring in his hand.
“I’m sorry,” he apologized. “I didn’t mean to scare you.”
Oh, no! What was Mike doing here at this time of night? He was the last person she wanted to see.
“You didn’t scare me,” she lied. She wouldn’t let him know exactly how much he affected her.
He sauntered toward her, his cowboy boots echoing against the tile. The fluorescent hallway lights flickered off, then buzzed back on.
Sophia gasped involuntarily.
“Don’t worry,” Mike soothed, standing there in the shadows, wearing his toolbelt. “Just a power surge.”
“Of course,” she replied, feeling foolish.
“Working late again?”
She nodded, her heart thumping faster than it should have.
“I wonder if Rex fully appreciates everything you do for him.”
“I was doing some of Amber’s work,” she explained. “While she’s on maternity leave.”
“Oh.”
“Did you need something from the maintenance office?”
“I have a paper jam on my printer.”
“I can help with that.” Mike punched the elevator button.
“Um…okay.”
The elevator door opened. Mike stepped inside. “Are you coming?”
Sophia hesitated. Did she really want to get into that elevator with him? In that tiny little box where they’d be separated by only a few feet.
“Going up?” He quirked an eyebrow and cocked his head sideways.
What the heck? It’s only a few floors.
Bravely, Sophia thrust back her shoulders and stepped over the threshold. Mike stood on the left side of the elevator, near the control panel, his finger on the Open button.
Sophia moved to the right rear of the car and pressed her back firmly against the wall to support her wobbly knees. She clutched her purse to her chest and stared straight ahead while waiting for the elevator door to close.
It seemed to take hours.
She knew Mike was staring at her—the heat from his gaze was palpable—but she didn’t have the courage to meet his eyes.
The tension stretched like a steel ribbon between them. Taut and unbreakable.
Finally, the door whispered shut, and the elevator started upward.
Mike cleared his throat.
Sophia studied her shoes, noticing they needed polishing.
“I turned in my resignation today.”
“I heard.”
“How do you feel about that?”
She flashed him a look. “How do you expect me to feel?”
“I was hoping you’d miss me.”
“Why?”
A puzzled expression crossed his face. “I thought we had something going on, you and I.”
“If that’s true, how come you’re leaving town?”
He jutted his chin forward. “I don’t want to crowd you.”
“That’s just an excuse.”
“Now wait a minute.” He raised his palms. “You made it perfectly clear you couldn’t become involved with me because you had a thing for your boss. What am I supposed to do? Hang around and pine for you?”
“Quit. Run away,” Sophia said. “That’s your M.O. Isn’t it, Mike? Never too long in the same town or on the same job or with the same woman.”
“Doublespeak, Sophia. You say one thing but mean another. How am I supposed to stay and fight for you when you made it abundantly clear I’m not good enough?”
“I never said that.” She glared at him. He was so damned handsome and so spectacularly sexy-looking in those faded jeans and that form-fitting T-shirt.
“But not rich enough, right?”
“Be fair. This isn’t about money.”
“Then what’s it about?”
“It’s about having a man I can count on,” Sophia murmured. “A man whom I can trust to be there in the tough times. An honest man who won’t lie to me or make excuses for his behavior. A man who will assume responsibility and hold down a steady job.”
“And you don’t think I can be that man?” He sank his hands on his hips.
“No, I don’t.”
“But Rex Barrington fits the bill, and it doesn’t hurt that he’s a multimillionaire. Does it?”
“This isn’t about Rex. This is about you and me,” Sophia said.
Suddenly, the elevator jerked to a stop. The cables whined, echoing loudly in the elevator shaft as the car ground to a halt.
“What was that?” she asked.
“I’m not sure.”
They both glanced up at the lights over the door. Their destination. The fifth floor.
But the door did not slide open.
“Mike?” Sophia hated that her voice trembled, but she was a tad claustrophobic. “Why isn’t the door opening?”
“Minor glitch. Nothing to worry about.” He leaned over and mashed the Open button.
Nothing happened.
Sophia took a deep breath to steady herself while Mike tried the button again. “I get nervous in small, confined places,” she confessed.<
br />
“I’ll get us out of here,” he reassured her. “Stay calm, sweetheart.”
Sweetheart.
He punched the Open button again. The door remained closed.
They heard a clanking noise, like something mechanical malfunctioning. Mike frowned. “What the heck?”
And then the lights went out. Darkness closed around them like a gloved fist.
“Mike!” Sophia squeaked.
“Right here, sweetheart.”
Her hand groped for his. He found her palm and squeezed it. “Don’t worry. I’m here. You’re not alone.”
No, she was not alone. Instead, she was trapped in the darkness with the one man in the world who stirred her soul and set her body aflame. A man she loved so desperately yet was terrified to claim as her own.
13
Are you all right?” Mike asked, his fingers twined with Sophia’s.
It was odd to feel him but not see him.
“Yes.”
“Do have your cell phone?”
Sophia groaned. “I left it in my office. You don’t have yours?”
“I was headed to charge mine when we met in the hallway.”
“That’s just great,” she muttered. “Technology is failing us all the way around. What do you think happened?”
“Power failure.”
Under the anonymity of darkness, his voice sounded exactly like Rex Barrington’s. It oozed a warm sensuality that surprised Sophia in its likeness to her boss’ whiskey-smooth tones.
“I’m going to fumble around over here, see if I can find the elevator phone and call for help. Will you be all right if I let go of your hand for a moment?”
Sophia nodded then realized how ridiculous that was. He could not see her. “I’ll be fine,” she said, fighting panic at the thought of losing contact with him.
“Are you scared?”
“A little.”
“Don’t be. I’m right here with you.” He let go of her hand, and the surrounding air moved as Mike inched his way in the pitch-black.
Sophia heard Mike running his hand along the wall of the elevator.
“Ouch,” he exclaimed.
“What happened?”
“Jammed my thumb.”
“I’m sorry.”
“Not your fault.”
There were more fumbling noises. Then the sound of a telephone being knocked off the hook and the familiar dial tone filled the small space.
“Hello?” Mike spoke.
Sophia huddled against the back of the car, waiting. Already it was growing warmer, and the air seemed stale.
“Did you get someone?” Sophia whispered.
“Not yet.”
“Hello? Yes.”
Someone had answered! Sophia exhaled, and it was only then that she realized she’d been holding her breath. She listened while Mike explained their situation to whoever was on the other end of the line. Seconds later, he hung up.
“Well?” Sophia asked.
“There was a major accident on the freeway. An eighteen-wheeler ran into a transformer, knocking out the power in a twenty-block area. They’re sending someone after us, but apparently, we’re not real high on the priority list. They have several other emergencies.”
“What does that mean?”
“We may get stuck here for hours.”
Stuck? Here? In the elevator car? Alone? With Mike?
Sophia gulped and closed her eyes against the emotions rushing through her—excitement, trepidation, nervousness, longing, anticipation.
“Maybe the power outage is a sign.”
“What kind of sign?”
“We’ve had the hardest time getting together for a serious talk. Maybe this is life intervening.”
“Oh.”
Mike inhaled loudly. “Sophia…”
“Yes?”
“There’s something I’ve been trying to tell you for weeks now, Sophia, and it won’t be easy.”
Alarm raced through her at his words. He was leaving Rascal with her heart in his hands. What else could he have to say that would change that?
“Maybe you shouldn’t bare your soul to me,” she said. “What’s the point?”
“We might as well sit down. It will be a long night.”
“Mom will be worried,” Sophia said. “Do you think I can call her?”
“The phone’s only for emergencies,” Mike said. “It’s not connected to an outside network.”
“Oh, dear.” She felt him moving closer to her.
“I’m sure someone will notify your mother when word gets out we’re trapped in here.”
Mike sank to the floor of the elevator, reached out, took her wrist, and eased her down beside him. They sat in complete and utter blackness. No light of any kind bled into the elevator car. It was as if they were suspended in an endless tunnel where nothing existed except the two of them.
Mike slipped his arm around her shoulder and pulled her closer. “How’s that?”
“Good.” She leaned into him, pressed her ear to his chest, and listened to the steady, comfortable lub-dub of his heart.
His stomach growled, and Sophia giggled. “You’re hungry.”
“Didn’t eat supper yet.”
“Me, either.”
“Too bad we don’t have that pizza we ordered that evening and never got around to eating,” Mike said.
Heat rose in her cheeks as Sophia remembered exactly what had taken their attention off the pizza.
“I’ve got cheese and crackers in my purse,” she volunteered, groping in the darkness for the handbag she’d set down. She blindly searched the interior of her purse until her fingers grazed across the cellophane wrapper.
“You must have been a Girl Scout,” Mike teased. “You’re always prepared.”
“No,” Sophia said. “No Girl Scouts for me.”
“Why not?”
“Mom couldn’t afford it, but I always wanted to join.” Sophia peeled open the package, passed him a cracker, and then took one for herself. She munched the cracker, surprised at how good it tasted. The black void must have sharpened her sense of taste.
For the first time, Sophia detected the scent of oranges in Mike’s cologne. Was this what it was like to be blind? Once your sight was gone, all your other senses intensified, heightening awareness?
They sat for a time, eating crackers and not talking.
“You were really poor growing up?” Mike asked after a moment.
“Yes.”
“It must have been hard for you.”
Sophia snorted. “You don’t know the half of it.”
“No,” he said. “I don’t, but I want to know.”
“What was your childhood like?” she asked, shifting the subject onto him. “Tell me about your parents? Where did you grow up? What kind of kid were you? We’ve got nowhere else to go. Might as well tell all.”
Maybe, Mike thought, this was the perfect entry into what he had to tell her. Brushing cracker crumbs from his fingers, he tugged her closer. It felt great to have her snuggled against him.
The inky darkness seemed to make things easier. He pressed his nose to her head, inhaling the sweet scent of her hair. Heaven!
“My mother’s no longer living,” he said. “She died of breast cancer when I was eighteen.”
“Oh, Mike. I’m sorry.”
“She was a truly wonderful woman.”
“My mother had a stroke when I was eighteen. I know what’s it like to have a family member who’s seriously ill.”
“Yeah,” he said huskily. “It’s rough.”
“What about your father?” she asked.
“He’s fine.”
“Where does he live?”
The time had come to tell her the truth. “My father lives right here in Rascal, but he’s about to retire.”
“Really?”
“Yes.”
“Why didn’t you tell me that Rascal was your home?”
“What about your father?” he counter
ed.
Sophia tensed.
Mike felt her muscles contract as she shifted away from him.
“My father was a liar and a cheater.” Her tone turned bitter.
“Oh.”
“He told my mother that he loved her. That he wanted to marry her. But he was lying just to get her into bed. Mom was only seventeen and so much in love, she couldn’t think straight.”
“And she got pregnant with you.”
“Yes,” Sophia whispered.
Mike said nothing. The pain in her voice was sharp. She’d never forgiven the man.
“When Mom told him about me, my father demanded she have an abortion. He didn’t want me or my mother. But she refused to get rid of me. Later, she learned my father was already married. Can you believe that?”
“Your mother must have had a very difficult time.”
“Terrible. Her parents were ashamed of her. My mother was from El Paso, and they sent her away to live with her aunt here in Rascal. They wanted her to give me up for adoption, but Mom refused. I was all she had.”
Suddenly a lot of things made sense. Jannette’s anger toward men. Sophia’s devotion to her mother. Sophia’s desire to marry a rich man who could take care of her and her mother.
“What happened to your father?” Mike asked. “Did you ever hear from him again?”
“Thankfully, no. I tried to look him up a few years ago, but I learned he’d died in a car accident.” Sophia shuddered.
Gently, he pulled her closer against him. “Shh, it’s all right. You don’t have to tell me any more details.”
“No,” she denied. “It’s not all right. Because of him my mother was never happy. It scared her to trust men again. She never even tried to date. Her resentment grew, and she developed high blood pressure which eventually caused her stroke.” Her body shook, and he realized she was crying.
Mike reached up with his thumbs and brushed the tears from her cheeks. Her skin was so soft beneath his fingertips. He battled the urge to kiss her. No. Not yet. Not until he’d told her who he was.
“My father’s abandonment affected me, too,” Sophia admitted. “The way I think about men.”
“I get it.”
She drew in a heavy sigh. “I thought all I had to do was find a kind man with a good job. One who could support me. One who would never lie to me or take advantage of me.”