Your Room or Mine?

Well, hell. Much as she wished it were otherwise, she simply didn’t have Emma’s daring or extroverted personality. And rather than turning her on, the thought of sex with a stranger turned her into a nervous basket case. As good-looking as Dave and the other man had been, neither of them had inspired the slightest sexual tingle.

“Time to abandon this sinking ship,” she muttered to herself, reaching for her wine. One last sip and she was outta here. Just then her gaze locked with that of a tall, good-looking blond guy. He stood across the room, at a small round table with a quartet of equally attractive men, all of whom held beer bottles. The blond man smiled at her, showing off perfect teeth. He really was ridiculously handsome, but for reasons she couldn’t fathom, just like the others before him, he didn’t light a spark in her.

Not wanting to appear rude, she offered him a return smile, yet immediately regretted it when he picked up his beer and looked as if he were about to leave his group to make his way toward her. But then his gaze shifted to a point over her shoulder. He hesitated, then shot her what seemed like an apologetic look and returned his attention to his friends.

What the heck? Before Maddie could figure out what had just happened, someone squeezed in next to her. Then a familiar voice said, “Bet your date isn’t going to appreciate you smiling at that blond dude.”

Maddie turned and stared at Jack. Jack, who’d buttoned up his shirt and pants-darn it-and whose presence annoyingly made her heart perform some weird swooping maneuver. No longer nervous and now concentrating on her annoyance, she treated him to a glare meant to reduce him to ashes. Instead of taking the hint, he calmly ordered a beer from the bartender then turned to her and asked, “So where is your date?”

Maddie narrowed her eyes. Was it possible he hadn’t read Emma’s note? She highly doubted it. “Not that it’s any of your business, but that ‘blond dude’ might have been my date if you hadn’t happened along. But since you opened my suitcase, I’m sure you already knew that.”

For several seconds his gaze seemed to burn into hers. Then he said, “Okay, I know. I didn’t mean to read the note, but in my own defense, it was just there. Right on top.”

Well, at least he’d admitted it. So now she was officially mortified, which heartily irked her. She had no reason to be embarrassed.

He took a quick glance around. “Based on the number of men in this bar you won’t have any trouble.” His gaze flicked over her dress. “Especially in that dress.”

She narrowed her eyes. “What’s wrong with my dress?”

“Not a thing. You look… um, swell.”

Maddie nearly choked on the laugh that bubbled into her throat. “Gee, thanks. Your shocked tone that I might look um, swell lends that compliment just an extra bit of flash. Now, if you don’t mind moving along, your hulking presence is kinda cramping my style.”

Clearly the man was either deaf or immune to being asked to scram, because he leaned against the bar and continued to study her, as if she were a puzzle he was trying to solve. “Now at least I understand the lingerie.”

Heat suffused Maddie’s face, which only served to irritate her further. “My lingerie is none of your business.” She made a great show of looking around. “So where is your date? Surely she’s missing you.”

“What makes you think I have a date?”

“The room service cart with two glasses and enough covered dishes to feed an army was a good clue.”

“Sorry, Sherlock, but all the food was for me. Cheeseburger, chili fries, cole slaw, and a frosted brownie.” He rubbed his hand over his flat stomach. “Delicious.”

“Sounds bad for the arteries.” Not to mention the hips.

“Yeah.” He flashed a smile. “But good for the soul.”

Okay, why did this man’s smile make her pulse misbehave in a way the handsome blond guy’s hadn’t? From a purely technical standpoint, the blond guy was actually more handsome than Jack. But for some inexplicable reason, Jack was the one who had her hormones in an uproar. Probably because of that accidental chest peek she’d gotten. No doubt the blond guy’s chest and abs were just as nice.

We don’t care, yelled her hormones. We like Jack.

Oh, boy. This was not good.

Plus, we already know Jack, her hormones urged. Better to take on the devil you know.

“Shut up,” she muttered.

Jack raised his brows. “I didn’t say anything.”

“Sorry. I wasn’t talking to you.”

“Oh? Who were you talking to?”

Might as well tell him. If he thought she was crazy maybe he’d get lost. “The annoying little voice in my head.”

Instead of backing away as if she were nuts, he nodded. “I’ve got that same little voice.” Something she couldn’t decipher flashed in his eyes. “I’ve been telling mine to shut up a lot recently, too.”

Curiosity pricked her, but before she could question him, the bartender handed Jack his beer. He raised his drink and said, “To our bet. May the best man win.”

She tapped her wineglass against his long-necked bottle. “Especially if he’s a she.”

After he took a swallow, he leaned back against the bar and again studied her. “May I be perfectly honest with you?”

“I’d prefer if you’d be perfectly absent.”

Instead of looking annoyed, he smiled. “And here I thought women just wanted honesty. Except for that ‘Does this make my butt look fat?’ question. So… may I be honest?”

“Why not? Honesty from a man would be a refreshing change.”

His gaze wandered down her body then back up again. “You’ve surprised me. Or rather, the contents of your suitcase surprised me.”

“I could say the same about the contents of yours.”

“Oh? What’s surprising about sneakers and sweats?”

She recalled the size of those sneakers and felt her cheeks flush. “I meant your reading material.”

“Says a woman with Fifty Ways to Please Your Lover tucked into her bag. That’s much more interesting than anything in my suitcase.” He nodded toward the blond guy. “You were planning to try out one of those fifty ways on him?”

“Again, none of your business.”

“I know. But I’m curious, and not averse to tossing out the brutal truth. So here it is: From day one you struck me as a prim, proper, uptight, rigid schoolmarm type. What I saw in your suitcase, coupled with your obvious intent to meet someone in this bar tonight, blows all my theories about you out of the water.”

“I see. Well, in light of your brutal truth, I’ll return the favor. From day one you struck me as the fast-and-loose, girl-in-every-port playboy type I loathe. What I saw in your suitcase makes me wonder if you might not be quite as loathsome as I thought.”

“Thanks. I think.” His gaze searched hers for several seconds, then he said, “Gavin sent us here to bond, so rather than waiting for tomorrow morning, how about we start now? Since at least some of our preconceived notions about each other seem to be wrong, I vote we start all over. Not as feuding CFO and consultant, but just as… you and me. At work we’re at odds with each other, but we’re not at work now.” He held out his hand and smiled. “Hi. I’m Jack Walker.”

Suspicion instantly filled her. She knew damn well Jack didn’t like her, yet here he was, pouring on the charm. Why? He had an ulterior motive, of that she was sure. But what?

Yet along with her suspicions came a heated awareness. Of him. Of the way he was looking at her. As if he were seeing her for the first time. As if he were really interested. And curious. Just as you’re curious about him. He was undoubtedly playing some sort of game. He had to be. So why not play along? At least her curiosity would be satisfied. And if he could temporarily set aside their work-related enmity, then so could she.