Page 17 of Moonshine and Magnolias
“Oh, no, I didn’t mean to insult your work.” She sighed when she caught sight of his grin. “The past is important, but not as important to me as the present and future.”
“Hey. Don’t go knocking the past,” he teased. “It led to me being here, too. In the present.”
Her teeth snuck out to bite at her bottom lip. Slowly she nodded, bringing her eyes up to meet his. “Yeah, it did.”
God, he wanted her sexy mouth beneath his. He put his drink down on the nearest flat surface and grasped her hand, breaching the safe-distance barrier she had set up around herself. Her breath caught, but she didn’t step away. Need thickened the air between them as he leaned forward, slowly, so slowly, making his intentions clear. He was going to kiss her.
***
Wendy’s whole treacherous system craved him.
She had to shut it down. Caving to a fleeting moment of desire wasn’t worth giving up the control she worked hard to maintain. She flinched away from theintensity in his face, the raw emotion she would never herself expose, and held up a hand. “Dr. Upshaw. Stop.”
Hunger darkened Rob’s eyes, but he raised his hands and stepped away. His lips tilted in a sensual smile. “Don’t you think it’s time you started calling me Rob?”
Something stirred in her chest at his playful tone. She opened her mouth to protest, but couldn’t make a sound.
A chime sounded in the hallway, indicating the end of the after-dinner hour and breaking the hold of his words. The noise served as a good excuse to put distance between them while she caught her breath and dealt with the mixed feelings of confusion and pleasure. She kept her back to him and locked the empty liquor cabinet and put their jars on the tray.
Finally the turmoil inside her subsided and she was able to face him. “Ready for those forms, Dr. Upshaw?” She kept her voice calm and even, as if nothing had happened.
One eyebrow quirked up, but he nodded and followed her out of the library. She should have felt relief. Instead, the tension and ache in her body hinted she had cast aside a chance for something…more.
No. That was just hormones and emotions working their black magic on her. With her experience of letting herself get close to someone, only to have them pass her over for something more exciting, she knew better than to trust them.
The office loomed in front of her, bringing on an unexpected wave of sorrow. Guess she hadn’t conquered the sense of loss. She held the keyring in a death grip so Rob wouldn’t see her shaking hands. Just a few more steps.
“It will be okay,” he murmured behind her.
He was too observant by far. His voice warmed her chilled body, and tears pricked behind her eyes. Damn him, those words were just what she needed to hear. “It’s just a room,” she said, echoing her earlier sentiment. It lacked conviction.
“We both know it’s not.”
It had to be, if she was going to survive. She unlocked the door and pushed it open. One flick and the room flooded with light.
“Have a seat,” she said, proud that she could keep her voice strong and unwavering. She motioned to the visitor chair while she booted up the computer. If she wanted to prove her words, she’d have sit in the antique Chippendale.
“Sure thing, Boss.” Rob’s long legs carried him to the chair, but he didn’t sit. Instead, he raised his chin in a gesture aimed at the picture behind her. “Is that a reproduction of Fountenoy Hall’s blueprints?” He scooted around the desk to get a better view of the hand-drawn building.
She exhaled to keep from breathing in his male woodsy scent. “Yes. Based on the original design, I think.”
One long finger traced the thick lines. She followed the movement out of the corner of her eye while she tried to find the right files. What would it feel like for him to trace her the same way, all over her body?
“There are extra spaces and rooms where now there are walls,” he noted. “Like here, in the library. According to this, it should be at least five feet wider.”
“Something probably changed while it was being built. And it’s been renovated a few times.” And, of course, keeping those extra spaces secret had aided her nefarious ancestors during Prohibition.
Oh, victory. The directory labeled Employment Papers put her back on familiar ground. Wendy sent the necessary forms to the printer, then went around a filing cabinet to retrieve them as Rob sat down. The machine had printed a blank page, so she crumpled it up and pitched it at the recycle bin ten feet from the desk.
“Impressive aim,” he said. “Two points for the home team.”
“A strike, actually.” She mimed swinging a bat on her way back to the desk. The awkwardness of being in Grandma’s seat had lessened when she had an activity to do, but she still tensed as she eased herself onto its smooth surface.
Rob picked up his chair and scooted it beside her. “I can’t see you over the back of the desk,” he said by way of explanation.
Maybe she had preferred being separated by a thick, wooden barrier. Shehanded him the first form. “Permission to do a background check.”
“You a baseball fan?” He scanned the paper and she gave silent approval of him reading before he signed.
