“I don’t expect you to kiss and tell, but have fun tonight.”
She offered a nod. “Thanks.”
Work was the last thing on her mind at this moment, but she hadtwo projects waiting on her desk. She also had several hours to fill beforeshe’d see Amanda. And as much as she didn’t like to think of herself as theimpatient sort, keeping busy would help them go by faster.
Chapter Eighteen
Quinn let out a contented sigh. She could get used to havinga girlfriend who liked to cook.
“So, Joss thinks things are moving along on schedule?”
She contemplated a second helping of potatoes but thought betterof it. “From what I can tell, yes. Demo is completely done, framing isunderway, and materials are arriving on schedule.”
Amanda raised a hand. “Not that I was doubting, based on what Isaw today, but I’m glad.”
“The thing with renovations like this is the parts you see takethe least amount of time. Does that make sense?”
“That’s usually the way with cakes, too.” She tipped her headslightly. “Usually.”
“There are cakes that take longer to decorate than bake? I mean,I know those crazy ones on TV, but ones for real people?”
Amanda sniffed, making her worry maybe she’d accidentally saidsomething offensive. “Sometimes real people want those crazy designs.”
It hit her that she’d sampled plenty of Amanda’s work, but she’dnot seen much of her decorating. “Do you like doing that? The elaborate decorations?”
“It has its moments. I like the creativity of it, doing somethingI’ve never done before. But it’s always the inside that counts.”
They were talking about cakes, but she got the feeling thephilosophy extended to all aspects of Amanda’s life. Reassuring in a way. Notthat she thought Amanda might be superficial, but it seemed like her ex had oneof those big, flashy personalities. The kind of personality she couldn’t evenpretend to compete with. It made her feel better to think Amanda didn’t put alot of stock in—or perhaps more importantly, have an inherent attractionto—that sort of person.
“What? Why do you look so concerned?”
She didn’t want to bog down their evening with the trajectory ofher thoughts. “I’m imagining you on one of those shows, disheveled and frantic,climbing a ladder to decorate a cake as the clock winds down.”
Amanda shuddered. An honest to God shudder. “It wasn’t a hugeproduction, but you’ve already seen me frantic.”
She smiled at the memory, and everything that had unfolded since.“You were adorable.”
“You are way too kind.”
“Not at all. We all have those moments. At first, I was afraidI’d made so little impression you found me forgettable.”
Amanda’s smile managed to be both sensual and playful.“Absolutely nothing about you is forgettable.”
She didn’t want to read too much into the compliment, but it washard not to. For someone with a track record of being overshadowed, Amandafinding her memorable went a long way in boosting her confidence. Paired withthe text exchange from earlier, it was enough to give her some swagger. Okay,maybe not quite swagger, but closer to it than she’d been in a while.
“What? You seem incredulous.”
Not the time to own the extent of her slump. Especially sinceshe’d sort of done that the last time. “I was calculating out how to return thecompliment without being corny.”
Amanda raised a brow.
“See, now that ship has sailed. Such a shame.”
“Maybe I like corny.”
It was a game now, not some self-deprecating move she’d kickherself for later. “No, no. Don’t try to make me feel better now. The nextthing I know, you’re going to be calling me nice.”
Amanda took a sip of her wine, studying Quinn over the rim of herglass. “You are nice.”
She shook her head. “You can’t tell a woman she’s nice, then ask herto strap on.”
Amanda set the glass down. She leaned back in her chair andfolded her arms. “Well, that’s just silly.”
“I have it on pretty good authority the two are mutuallyexclusive.” Part of her problem of late, landing in the you’re too nice category.
“I reject this hypothesis.” The comeback—instant and adamant—madeQuinn smile.
“Do you, now?”
“I do. And I’m going to prove it.”
She had no idea how Amanda would go about such a thing, but shewas having fun. “How do you propose to do that?”
“Well, we’ve already established you’re nice.”
Quinn let out a sign. “We have. Kiss of death, really.”
“But you came prepared to…” Her gaze flashed to Quinn’s crotch.“You know.”
Oh, this was fun. “I did.”
“And if I asked you to take me to bed right this instant, surelyyou wouldn’t want to disappoint me.”
“I don’t think I could deny you a thing you asked for.” Even ifthe full truth of that gave her a hitch of anxiety.
“Quinn?”
“Yeah?” Even knowing where the conversation was headed, gettingAmanda to say the words was a total turn-on.
“Take me to bed.”
She got up from the table. “Do you want to clean up first? I’mmore than happy to do dishes when a beautiful woman cooks for me.”
Amanda shook her head.
Quinn extended her hand. “Well, then. Lead the way.”
* * *
Amanda blew out a breath. She sat on the edge of the bed, one legcrossed over the other. Her foot bounced. She forced it to stop. Why was shenervous?
Because she’d gone back and forth about fifty times before askingQuinn if she liked to strap on. Because a tiny part of her still worriedQuinn’s reply, while enthusiastic, was more about pleasing Amanda than herself.Because it had been more than ten years since she had done it with anyone andthat alone was scary as hell. What if her body didn’t work the same way? Whatif she’d put it out there but couldn’t actually do it? What if—
Quinn emerged from the bathroom in a pair of loose fitting boxersand a black T-shirt. Amanda couldn’t stop her gaze from going right to thebulge in the fabric. Even as her mouth went dry, wetness gathered between herthighs. Nerves or not, she wanted this.
Quinn crossed the room slowly, like she was giving Amanda time toget used to the idea. Or maybe she was psyching herself up. Her gaze moved upand down Amanda’s body. “I feel underdressed.”
Amanda stood, the black silk of the slip slinking over her body.She’d hesitated
