Free Payoff Pitch (Philadelphia Patriots) by V.K. Sykes Page A

for a moment she forgot the dogs, the airport and everything other than the insanely seductive man looming over her. For a moment, Teddy even thought he might slide his lips along her cheek or neck, but instead he pulled away and made a hand gesture to the agent as he said, “Ready to go, Teddy?”
    She blinked like an idiot before finally pulling herself into a semblance of order. With a quiet murmur, she gave a very gentle tug on the leash to tell Sadie they needed to get moving. She followed Noah out of the terminal to curbside, where he tipped the agent and hustled off to retrieve the SUV as Teddy settled in to wait with the dogs.
    That little encounter inside the terminal wasn’t the first time Noah had given her something of a come-on, but the pure, unfiltered sexuality that had darkened his whisper banished any shred of doubt as to his interest in her. Still, Teddy’s rational mind tried to reject it. Okay, she’d been attracted to Noah, but how could the same thing possibly have happened to him? Any woman in her right mind would be drawn to his looks and laid-back charm. She, on the other hand, couldn’t be more ordinary, especially compared to the kind of women he usually dated.
    Several travelers had taken up positions around her, waiting to be picked up. Toby and Sadie pulled on their leashes a few times in the vain hope that Teddy might let them pay those people a friendly visit, but she kept both dogs in a firm hold, soothing them with pats and whispers that Noah would be back soon.
    As she waited, her nerves started to dance with an uncomfortable combo of anxiety and excitement at the idea that she might end up alone with Noah at his house tonight. But surely the housekeeper would be there, too, wouldn’t she? Teddy hoped so, because she really needed this job, and she needed to be a professional. What she
didn’t
need was a client relationship that was becoming more complicated by the second, complicated in a way that could eventually lead to losing a lucrative contract.
    Act like a professional, Teddy, and everything will be fine.
    Toby gave a loud snort against her leg, as if he understood exactly how difficult that was going to be.
     
    * * *
     
    “Hi, Cristina. It’s really nice to meet you,” Teddy said after Noah made the introductions. She offered her hand to the diminutive housekeeper who looked as if she’d rather be anywhere else at that moment. The three of them stood awkwardly in the foyer while the dogs remained in the car. Noah had wisely decided not to spring them on Cristina until he’d introduced Teddy.
    “Hello,” the woman said with no hint of a smile. Nervousness radiated from the slim Filipina, which Teddy decided to assume was caused by the dogs’ arrival, not hers.
    Cristina was a very attractive woman—despite her dour demeanor—and Teddy guessed her to be in her late thirties. Her brown, almond-shaped eyes were striking, and her prominent nose and full lips gave her face both character and sexuality. She wore her glossy, raven hair in a short, elegant cut and had dressed in close-fitting designer jeans, Polo T-shirt and new-looking, strappy sandals. She’d also had a recent mani-pedi, too, by the perfect look of her pearl nail polish. Next to her, Teddy came off like a country bumpkin.
    When the stray thought whispered through her brain that maybe the beautiful Cristina and Noah were involved, she squashed it. Besides, it was none of her business who Noah was involved with.
    Keep telling yourself that.
    “Are you ready for them, Cristina? We’ll just let them say hello, and then you can go back to your suite if you like.” Noah maintained a serious face but Teddy could tell he thought Cristina’s apprehension about the dogs was over the top. He’d said as much when he called to ask her to come with him tonight.
    His offer to let Cristina withdraw after meeting the dogs had sounded more like an order to Teddy’s ears. Maybe he was thinking the meeting might be too