didnât begin to address what Josh felt. He scanned that silky, peach-colored fabric hugging all of Tessâs curves until she moved out of view. Only then did he look at Peg. âYou were right.â
âAbout what?â
He turned back to the exit. Tess was gone, but only for the moment. âThis stuff with the tabloidâitâs not so bad.â
As his mind returned to that last image of his bodyguard, the exceptional woman who would now be living with him, looking out for him, pretending to be romantically involved with him, Josh thought that it was looking pretty damn good.
Chapter Three
O n the way to her dadâs house Tess had the stereo and air-conditioning pumping full blast. Didnât help. Her thoughts were still tangled, while the backs of her thighs were glued to the seatâs buttery leather as she continued to sweat.
So much for being Ms. Cool and enjoying this Mercedes.
Tess eased to a stop at a red light and sagged into the seat. In a little over an hour sheâd have to be at Joshâs place. She was cutting it close, but getting ready for this new job had eaten up a lot of time. There were clothes and toiletries to pack, a shower to take; she had to wash her hair, give herself a manicure, wax her legs even though they didnât need it, launder the T-shirt and cutoffs she was currently wearing, and figure out how she was going to tell her dad that she would now be living with Josh, while also pretending to be his girlfriend in public, at least until this all blew over.
âIt will, you know.â Her voice sounded loud even though it had to compete with Christina Aguileraâs lusty wails; it also sounded as bummed as Alanâs had earlier.
The man hadnât wanted her to leave, but hadnât pushed it because he knew he didnât have a chance with her. If he wanted to see her at all, it would have to be at another meeting to tweak the contract.
Poor guy. After this was all over maybe she would suggest a yearly reunion where theyâd share drinks while she pumped him for information about Joshâs newest romance, since it wouldnât be covered by any publication if he remembered to stay dressed whenever he was outside.
When he was behind closed doors, however...
Uh-uh. Tess wasnât going there, again. That earlier fantasy about him nicely nude and cuffed to a bed would have to be enough, at least until she got aroused all over again as she explained to her dad about the public kissing, touching, and flirting she and Josh were going to share.
He was just gonna love that.
The driver behind her honked his horn.
Tess gave him an apologetic smile, then pulled away more slowly than he would have liked. She didnât have a choice. The only way to control the coming situation with her father was to give it as little time as possible. Sheâd rush through the good news about the contract, zip through the bad news about Josh, then quickly cut out to meet her seven P.M. deadline. After that, she wouldnât answer her phone for days until her father calmed down and got on board with all of this.
Sure.
Tess sighed deeply, wondering how she could have agreed to this even if it was the job of a lifetime. It wasnât as if Privacy Dynamics was totally without clients, though it certainly didnât have any in Joshâs league.
Even if it had, Tess seriously doubted she would have kissed those clients, agreed to move into their homes, or pretended to be romantically involved with any of them.
She had done that far too easily with Josh, because even when he flirted with her or teased, Tess sensed a core of honesty in him she had never seen in a player. The guys she had dated would have been burning up Instant Messenger, bragging like mad if even one babe had been sending them naked pictures and flowers.
Not Josh.
And it wasnât only because Alan was getting a new bald spot worrying about potential lawsuits. Tess sensed right off
âAbout what?â
He turned back to the exit. Tess was gone, but only for the moment. âThis stuff with the tabloidâitâs not so bad.â
As his mind returned to that last image of his bodyguard, the exceptional woman who would now be living with him, looking out for him, pretending to be romantically involved with him, Josh thought that it was looking pretty damn good.
Chapter Three
O n the way to her dadâs house Tess had the stereo and air-conditioning pumping full blast. Didnât help. Her thoughts were still tangled, while the backs of her thighs were glued to the seatâs buttery leather as she continued to sweat.
So much for being Ms. Cool and enjoying this Mercedes.
Tess eased to a stop at a red light and sagged into the seat. In a little over an hour sheâd have to be at Joshâs place. She was cutting it close, but getting ready for this new job had eaten up a lot of time. There were clothes and toiletries to pack, a shower to take; she had to wash her hair, give herself a manicure, wax her legs even though they didnât need it, launder the T-shirt and cutoffs she was currently wearing, and figure out how she was going to tell her dad that she would now be living with Josh, while also pretending to be his girlfriend in public, at least until this all blew over.
âIt will, you know.â Her voice sounded loud even though it had to compete with Christina Aguileraâs lusty wails; it also sounded as bummed as Alanâs had earlier.
The man hadnât wanted her to leave, but hadnât pushed it because he knew he didnât have a chance with her. If he wanted to see her at all, it would have to be at another meeting to tweak the contract.
Poor guy. After this was all over maybe she would suggest a yearly reunion where theyâd share drinks while she pumped him for information about Joshâs newest romance, since it wouldnât be covered by any publication if he remembered to stay dressed whenever he was outside.
When he was behind closed doors, however...
Uh-uh. Tess wasnât going there, again. That earlier fantasy about him nicely nude and cuffed to a bed would have to be enough, at least until she got aroused all over again as she explained to her dad about the public kissing, touching, and flirting she and Josh were going to share.
He was just gonna love that.
The driver behind her honked his horn.
Tess gave him an apologetic smile, then pulled away more slowly than he would have liked. She didnât have a choice. The only way to control the coming situation with her father was to give it as little time as possible. Sheâd rush through the good news about the contract, zip through the bad news about Josh, then quickly cut out to meet her seven P.M. deadline. After that, she wouldnât answer her phone for days until her father calmed down and got on board with all of this.
Sure.
Tess sighed deeply, wondering how she could have agreed to this even if it was the job of a lifetime. It wasnât as if Privacy Dynamics was totally without clients, though it certainly didnât have any in Joshâs league.
Even if it had, Tess seriously doubted she would have kissed those clients, agreed to move into their homes, or pretended to be romantically involved with any of them.
She had done that far too easily with Josh, because even when he flirted with her or teased, Tess sensed a core of honesty in him she had never seen in a player. The guys she had dated would have been burning up Instant Messenger, bragging like mad if even one babe had been sending them naked pictures and flowers.
Not Josh.
And it wasnât only because Alan was getting a new bald spot worrying about potential lawsuits. Tess sensed right off
Similar Books
