“Six thirty at Dante’s okay?” he asked, naming a place where they’d had coffee a few times. “Not too early for you?”
“No. Actually, that works out fine. We can have some time together before you go home to catch a nap and I get ready for the staff meeting.”
She nibbled on a sandwich while she reviewed the plan one last time, making a few notes, then turned off the television after the news. She wanted to be well rested in the morning. For Josh. The man who was coming to mean more and more to her.
* * * * *
Josh pulled his overnighter and briefcase from the cab, paid his fare and strode into the terminal. The past two days had been intense and stressful but finally he’d hammered out everything he needed to get the first architectural drawing going for the new client. A multi-use development took a lot of creativity to give it an original look and Alex was a maniac about giving each project its own unique look.
He glanced at his watch as he strode through the terminal. Time enough to get through security and grab a cup of coffee before he had to board. He was dead tired but the thought of seeing Ness at breakfast kept him buoyed.
I should have told her I’d come straight to her apartment. Crawled into bed with her. Celebrated my homecoming.
But Ness had an important meeting this morning and he respected her obligations as she did for him.
He had just gotten in line to go through security when his cell rang. Pulling it from his jacket pocket he saw that it was Alex.
“Do you know it’s two thirty in the morning?” he growled.
“Yeah, yeah, yeah. And I also know you’re still awake because I have your flight schedule.”
“So what’s up?”
“Change in plans. Martinez and Sons are ready to meet with us on the huge residential village they plan to build. Right now. So change your reservations for Tampa and get going.”
“What? Now? They want to meet now?” Shit! “Can you put it off for a couple of days? Give me time to get home and do some turnaround?”
“You mean some time to spend with Ness, right?” Alex’s voice held just a hint of disapproval. “If she’s so great she’ll understand.”
Yeah, If I can just get hold of her.
“Listen,” Alex went on. “Don Martinez was here all day. He and his son. They looked at some of our local projects and Tyler and I did the dog and pony show for them. They flew back to Florida tonight on their plane all hyped up. They want to go now. And I don’t want us to lose this opportunity.”
“Yeah, I get it.” Josh ground his teeth. “So what’s the setup?”
“I’m sending the info on your hotel, car rental and tomorrow’s meeting to your cell. Call me when you land in Tampa so we can touch base.” He clicked off.
Josh shoved his phone back into his pocket and looked at his watch. Too early—or late—to call Ness. If he could get a flight out to Tampa in the next hour he’d call her the minute they landed. Maybe be able to catch her before she left for Dante’s. Or at least not leave her hanging for too long.
Because he knew exactly what she’d think when he was a no-show.
* * * * *
Damn.
Vanessa punched the button for the elevator impatiently. Why of all mornings did she have to automatically press the snooze button and steal that extra fifteen minutes of sleep. She was afraid instead of looking like a dream walking she’d ended up like the end of a nightmare. In the elevator she scanned her image in the reflecting walls, smoothed her hair and straightened her skirt. A last check of her makeup, the doors opened and she dashed to her car.
Of course traffic didn’t cooperate so it was almost six forty-five when she scored a parking space just down the street from Dante’s and dashed in, looking for Josh. The coffee shop was half filled with people chatting and drinking coffee but none of them was Josh. She let out a breath. Okay then. She found an empty booth where she could watch the door, ordered coffee and leaned back to wait.
An hour later she was still waiting and drinking her fifth cup of coffee. Her eyes were tired from straining every time the door opened and her patience had long since worn thin. She’d deliberately kept herself from dragging out her phone to check for messages under the fading expectation that Josh’s plane was just late or he was stuck in traffic. Finally at eight o’clock she reached into her purse and pulled out her phone, checking for messages. Nothing. No text, no missed calls.
Okay, Ness. Don’t panic. Something came up or you know he’d be here.
Yes. Absolutely.
Be an adult about this. He’ll call. He will, he will.
And speaking of being an adult, she had to get her ass to the office or in Prater’s mood she might be an unemployed adult.
Slapping some bills on the table she hurried from the coffee shop to her car, praying she didn’t get caught in rush-hour traffic. The plan that was due still needed the new revisions added and she couldn’t afford to be late for the meeting. Only how was she supposed to concentrate now when she had all these jittery feelings running through her? What if the man of her dreams did turn out to be just as much of a louse as everyone else she’d dated?
* * * * *
Josh was sure by now he was developing a full-blown ulcer. He hadn’t wanted to call Ness at some ungodly hour. He’d still have time when he arrived in Tampa. But the plane to Tampa had been late taking off. They ended up sitting on the runway for a good forty-five minutes. He never did find out why the delay. He only knew that once they were away from the terminal he couldn’t use his cell phone and wouldn’t be able to until he landed.
Damn.
They made up a little time with a good tail wind but then they’d been forced into a holding pattern for thirty minutes. Josh was sure fate was playing a cruel joke on him. He couldn’t even call Dante’s and see if by some chance she was still waiting for him. By the time they landed he was close to being a raging maniac. The first thing he did was punch in Ness’ cell number. No answer. He checked his watch. Eight thirty in San Antonio. An hour earlier than Tampa. Damn again. She’d already be in her meeting. Still he gave it a shot, only to have her phone go to voice mail. He left a brief message then texted her, covering all his bases.
“Sorry. Something came up. Will explain when I can talk to you. Josh.
Under any other circumstances he’d just let it go and figure out a way to fix this later. But with the history she’d shared with him—including some very esteem-damaging episode which he still couldn’t understand—he was worried that this would just set her off. Abandonment all over again. Was she so angry by now she wouldn’t answer her phone?
Next he tried his brothers, but neither of them was answering, either.
Great. Just great.
All during the cab ride to the hotel he tried her number, leaving so many voice mail messages he figured her mailbox was in danger of self-destructing.
Damn it, Ness. Answer. This is not deliberate. It’s not my fault.
It was after nine when he checked into the hotel and made it up to his room. He tried Ness’ cell phone again, and again he got voice mail. The best he could do for now was call her office and leave a message with her secretary. And hope she didn’t just ignore all the messages he’d left.
* * * * *
“I am being reasonable.” Ness slammed a desk drawer shut. “He’s just like all the others. I was crazy to think he was different.”
Carolyn stood in the doorway to her office, studying her. “Give the guy a break, Ness. Don’t condemn him until you find out what happened. He probably has a good explanation.”
Vanessa snorted. “Yeah, right. Are you working on those changes to the plan? I need twelve copies before the meeting.”
“Got it under control.” Carolyn shook her head. “But just for the record, I think you’re making a big mistake.”
“He didn’t even have the decency to call.”
“And you’ve check your phone, right?”
More times than I wan
t to think about.
“It doesn’t matter. Nothing he says could possibly be of any interest to me. Not anymore.”
Ness had had it with all men. They could go to hell as far as she was concerned.
* * * * *
“I don’t give a flying fuck what’s on your calendar or what your opinion is,” Josh shouted into his cell. He paced his hotel room, knowing he should concentrate on the meeting ahead but too agitated to do so. Ness should have had at least one of his messages by now but she hadn’t called him back. Yeah, she was pissed. Plenty. “Just get it done.”
“Okay.” Tyler’s voice was measured. Even Josh could tell he was trying to hold onto his temper. “I’m out here in the middle of fucking noplace, lucky I can even get a signal, trying to keep this job on schedule. And you want me to drop everything and hold Vanessa Bowen’s hand?”
Josh rubbed his neck, the muscles so tensed he thought his head would snap off. “There’s a very good reason for it.”
“Yeah? Can you explain it in words of one syllable?” Tyler’s irritation was loud and clear. “Because she doesn’t seem to me to be the type that needs that kind of thing.”
“Look. This whole thing is screwed up and I can’t get hold of her.” He blew out an impatient breath. “Switching plans just put me behind the eight ball.”
“Well, excuse me all to hell for us thinking work is important. Especially a project this size. Call her later. She’ll be fine.”
“There are things here you don’t know about.” He clutched his cell tighter.
“Yeah? Like what? Maybe if you just open your wallet a little wider all will be forgiven. Right?”
“Never mind.” Josh picked up his coffee cup, tasted the liquid now cold and made a face. “I’ll get hold of Alex. He’s a little more civilized than you are.”
He disconnected the call, raked his fingers through his hair and took in a deep breath, letting it out slowly. He hoped to hell he had better luck with Alex.
* * * * *
The meeting lasted nearly three hours. Prater had been in one of his especially picky moods today, pulling apart the budget, the marketing plan, the production schedule, everything his executive staff had worked so hard to prepare. Then after explaining why his suggestions didn’t work they’d had to put it all back together again.
By the time the meeting was over Ness practically ran to her office. Prater always insisted no one bring cell phones to the meetings so hers sat on her desk. She kept telling herself to quit being such an idiot. There’d be no message from Josh. No text. Nothing. Not that it would do the jerk any good. She’d already written him off. Why had she set herself up for such disappointment? Again. She should have known he was just too good to be true.
Carolyn’s words echoed in her head. Give the guy a chance. He’s sure to have an explanation.
But the wounded woman inside her tough and sassy shell didn’t want to be reasonable. She only saw a pattern repeating itself. If it weren’t for the fact that he had a business to run she’d be certain he’d taken off on a whim—maybe with a plastic blonde—the way the biker had.
For a supposedly smart women her judgment seemed to be seriously flawed. Maybe she just used up too many brain cells at work so she turned into an idiot where men were concerned.
She pulled up short when she saw Alex McMann sitting in an armchair in Carolyn’s area. On the chair next to him was an enormous bouquet of flowers, a box of candy that would give everyone in the office diabetes and a balloon that said Forgive me.
“Oh no.” She dropped her tablet and files on the corner of Carolyn’s desk and stared at Alex. “He can take all his presents and…well, he knows what he can do with them.”
The man rose, as lithe and graceful as his brother, his presence just as magnetic. Although he didn’t push Ness’ hot buttons the way Josh did.
“Give me five minutes.” He smiled, the trademark McCann smile. “Just five. If I can’t change your mind in that time I’ll give the flowers and candy to Carolyn here.”
Carolyn laughed. “Now I don’t know whether to root for you or not.”
“Five minutes,” Alex repeated. “Then we’re done. Okay?”
Ness sighed. She might as well do it or he’d probably hang around and pester her secretary all day. “Okay. Come into my office.” When they were inside she closed the door, looked at her watch and said, “The clock is running.”
Speaking rapidly, Alex explained about the new client, the sudden change of plans, the trouble with Josh’s flight.
“This really wasn’t deliberate, Ness. And I have to take most of the blame for it.”
For the first time since Josh’s no-show this morning Ness was forced to admit that her history had made her ultrasensitive to the situation and created her knee jerk reaction. But she still couldn’t help wanting Josh to squirm a little.
She dropped into her desk chair. “When does he get back?”
“Late tomorrow night. I told him to wait until the next day but he’s hell-bent on getting back here.” He chuckled. “Can’t imagine why, with a hellcat waiting to scratch his eyes out.”
“Okay, okay.” Her lips curved in a tiny smile. “Tell him let’s try for breakfast again the morning after he gets in. Eight o’clock. Same place.”
“Whew!” Alex blew out a breath. “Thanks. I’d hate to be the one telling him he was still in the doghouse.”
Ness cocked her head. “I’m curious. I get the feeling you and Tyler don’t much care for me, so why would you agree to do this?”
He had the good grace to look slightly embarrassed. “I know he told you about Jiliane.”
She nodded. “I gather he was very much in love with her.”
“Ass over teakettle. When she turned out to be…what she was it nearly destroyed him. Remember, we didn’t have much when we started out and then suddenly we were rolling in it. We became targets for every female over the age of sixteen. He thought Jiliane was different. Believed it.” He shoved his hands in his pockets. “Tyler was the one who nursed him through the bender and I guess the memory of it has always stuck.”
“But you don’t feel quite as strongly. Why not?”
“Because I’m willing to look beneath the surface and see who’s there. And because I could tell the first time I met you that you were a different breed. So if you’re what Josh wants I’m happy to do what I can to help things along.”
“Thank you.”
“Besides.” His eyes held a wealth of compassion. “Josh mentioned that you have issues of your own that just made this whole thing that much worse.” He pulled one hand out of his pocket and held it up. “And before you get uptight he didn’t give me any details. Just wanted me to know why this was so important.”
After Alex left, Ness asked Carolyn to put the flowers in water and leave the candy in the reception area. She ordered in a sandwich for lunch and tried to concentrate on the latest revisions to the marketing plan. After that she had the policies and procedures manual. More than enough to keep her occupied for the next two days. Yet even as she tried to focus on what she was doing her mind kept drifting to Josh. She had a feeling when he came back he was going to push for a deeper commitment. Was she ready for that? Ready to trust him that much?
She leaned back in her chair, closed her eyes and massaged her temples.
If he can do that for me, can I do any less for him?
The question plagued her all that day and the next. By the time she climbed into bed the next night—early so she’d have time in the morning to primp for breakfast—she hoped she’d come to the right decision.
* * * * *
Vanessa wasn’t sure if the noise was in her dream or really happening. She just knew it was annoying the hell out of her. She pulled two pillows over her head and tried to re-immerse herself in the dream but it just wasn’t happening. Finally she realized someone was pounding on her door and ringing the bell. Opening one eye she squinted at the readout on her bedside clock. Four. In t
he morning.
What the hell?
“This better be a damn emergency,” she muttered, pulling her robe on over her sleep shirt and shuffling to the door. “Okay, okay,” she shouted. “I’m coming.”
She peered through the spyhole in the door and her knees went weak.
Josh!
Ohmigod!
Her hands trembled as she undid the locks. The moment she opened the door he nearly fell into her little foyer. He dropped his overnighter and his briefcase with his laptop on the floor and swept her into his arms.
“I couldn’t wait.” His voice was hoarse from fatigue. “I look like hell and probably smell worse but I had to see you.”
He kissed her with such a force of passion that she could barely stand. When he slid his lips to the side she ran her fingers through his hair and rubbed her face against the stubble on his jaw. He felt so damn good, his hard, warm body against hers. His arms banded around her.
And he’d come here first. First! Before he’d even gone home. After four intense days on the road she was his first thought. How could she argue with that? No guy who wanted to dump her would be doing this. Would he?
No, idiot. He wouldn’t.
He held her slightly away from him and frowned. “Whatever’s going through that head of yours, get rid of it right now.”
She smiled. “All I’m thinking about is how glad I am to see you. And that I’ll never forget my cell phone again.”
Josh pressed kisses all over her face. “I knew exactly what you’d be thinking and I was going nuts.” He brushed her hair back from her face. “I need a shower bad. But then I’m going to show you exactly how I feel, Ness.” His faced was completely serious. “Let’s get this out of the way first. I don’t think you’re after my money, and I’ll never ever walk out on you. Ever. I want us to be together always.” Another light kiss. “I love you, Vanessa Bowen.”
Erected (Erector Set, Book One) Page 10