Page 64 of Ms Perfectly Fine
MUCH TO AUTUMN’S disappointment, the rest of the week came and went without a repeat of what had happened between her and Elijah in the shower. Since that morning, they’d been like ships passing in the night thanks to their work schedules. Brinkley kept her company while Elijah worked—she was the perfect source of never-ending happiness. If Elijah did ever leave, Autumn didn’t think she could bring herself to part with the dog.
Even the thought of him leaving made her chest tighten, though. She felt safer with him around. No more roses had appeared since the anniversary, putting them both at ease. Thankfully, Elijah being so busy meant their conversation about going to the police had also been shelved. The last thing Autumn needed or wanted was to involve the police right before the showcase. She also didn’t want to be responsible for distracting Elijah from his own work. With the show a week away, she had about all the stress she could handle, and opening Pandora’s box wasn’t going to help.
“Why aren’t you ready? Wehave to leave in thirty minutes,” Elijah said, standing outside his bedroom. He had been out all day; Autumn had assumed he’d crashed early.
“Ready for what?” she asked, sitting on the couch with her favourite crisps on her lap and a tub of Ben and Jerry’s on the table. She was about to start another true crime documentary.
“It’s Friday. Tim’s charity dinner?” he said, blocking her view of the TV. “I meant to remind you yesterday, but you were asleep by the time I finished wrapping up the contract with Nirosoft’s lawyers.” He was wearing a criminally well-tailored black shirt and trousers. It reminded her of how nice his body felt beneath her fingers.
Autumn stopped eating mid-spoonful, suddenly remembering the invitation Anne had sent, sitting in the bottom of her tote bag.
“I’ve been rehearsing all day. I just want to relax. I’m not going. I already told Tim I wasn’t. Only a zombie apocalypse would move me from this couch,” she told him. “You’ve been just as busy as I have; I’ve heard you up at all hours. I think we should just stay on the couch.” She held out her ice cream to him. “I’ll even share my treats with you, and if you’re extra nice to me, I’ll even share my blanket.”
“As much as I want to explore what’s under that blanket, the invitation has both of our names on it. If I have to go, so do you,” he said.
She watched him thread a black leather belt through the loops of his trousers.I shouldn’t be attracted to this,she thought, wondering why him using his hands to do anything was so appealing.
Elijah clicked his fingers to regain her attention. Autumn diverted her attention back to the ice cream—not as satisfying as his touch, but they hadn’t spoken about what had happened, and she certainly wasn’t going to be the first to bring it up.
“I would rather not spend my evening submerged in mindless chit chat, but you have fun.” She smiled, eating a spoonful.
“Either you get up off this couch, or I’ll give you a helping hand.” He sat on the table in front of the couch and rested his elbows on his knees, clearly waiting for her to move. She took the spoon from her mouth. The last time he’d looked at her like this, they’d ended up knotted together in the shower.
“Don’t get any ideas,” she said, thinking of his lips against hers. She didn’t need his ideas; she had plenty of her own.
“My only idea was seeing you dressed, but if you have the opposite in mind…” Elijah ran a hand up her thigh. She shoved him away, and he chuckled, then grabbed her legs as though to toss her over his shoulder. She knew from previous experience that it wasn’t an empty threat.
He pulled her slightly towards him, and she winced a little as her back protested the quick movement. She caught a flash of worry in his eyes, and she didn’t need to say anything before he eased his grip on her. She loved that he knew just by her expression when to be gentle.
“Okay, stop!” She raised her hands in submission. He stilled, his hands on the back of her thighs making her heart race. “Okay,” she squealed, and he released her.
“Was that so hard?” he asked, taking a tie from the table.
“But you have to go to dinner with Nina and her heinous excuse of a boyfriend next Thursday,” Autumn negotiated, putting the lid on her ice cream.
He squinted, clearly thinking it through as he tried to fix his tie in the kitchen mirror. “What’s wrong with him?”
“Who?” Autumn asked, admiring how good he looked in the tailored black suit.It should be a sin to look that good.
“The heinous boyfriend,” Elijah said, folding his arms across his chest.
Autumn dropped her gaze, embarrassed by her blunder. “Heinous might be too strong a word. Garrett is just rather pushy,” she said, not wanting to sound too harsh.
“I take it the dinner was not your idea?” He fiddled with his tie. Watching him butcher a simple Windsor knot was driving her crazy. Once her ice cream was safely tucked away in the freezer, she crossed the kitchen to help him.
“No, definitely not my idea to spend an evening with him.” She swiped his hands away and took the ends of the tie. “He makes me uneasy.”
“How long have you known him? Does he know where you live?” Elijah stared at her while she worked and tried to ignore his tantalising aftershave.
“Nina started dating him about a year ago, so he’s been here once or twice. He’s friends with one of the theatre’s investors. Why do you ask?”
“You’ve been getting the roses for over a year, so we can probably rule him out,” he said, almost to himself.
She yanked the tie to distract him. “Can we not talk about the roses? I promise I’ll deal with it once the showcase is over.”
Elijah placed his hands over hers with a sigh. “Sorry. I just hate the thought of not knowing who’s doing this to you. If I went to this dinner, would you be more comfortable? I don’t want you to have to go alone if he makes you uneasy.”
“I don’t want to go, but I don’t want to let Nina down,” she said, running her hands down his jacket to smooth out the lapels and trying to hide her smile. She couldn’t believe he would go out with her just to put her at ease. Her hands settled on his chest. “Are you sure? I also have to add that he knows who you are, and he’s the type who collects successful people,” she added.
