Free A Date on Cloud Nine by Jenna McKnight

mean it like that.”
    Betsy gasped audibly. “Oh, wait a minute! You don’t mean the store clerk?”
    “His name’s Jake, and you should’ve remembered him from the wedding. He was Brady’s best man.”
    “Well,” she said, drawing the single word out very suggestively. “And you want to seduce him?”
    “In a word, yes.”
    “Way to go, girl. Invite him to dinner.”
    “My chef quit, remember? I do takeout now.”
    “Gotta do better than that. I know, have a caterer deliver something yummy, and then disappear. Let’s see, you’ll need candlelight, soft music, sheer blouse, perfume on the pulse points. What’s his favorite hobby?”
    He designed computerized home control systems, but Lilly didn’t know if that counted as recreation. “Selling sex toys?”
    “Hm, I was going to say whatever his hobby is, leave a book on it lying around, as if you’re interested, too? But I doubt that counts unless he designs them.”
    “Oh yuck.” Lilly had a less-than-pretty mental picture of someone bent over his workbench, fashioning the next-generation vibrator.
    “Hey, somebody has to do it.”
    “Let’s say it’s not him.”
    “Okay. So next time you see him, find out his hobby. If you don’t know anything about it, act interested. If you know something—Hey, wait a minute, didn’t you ever seduce your husband?”
    Lilly sighed. “I don’t think I was very good at it.”
    Brady’d had a little trouble in that department, and the more Lilly tried to help him through it, the more distance he’d put between them. He wasn’t the kind of man who asked for help. He certainly wasn’t about to accept any, either. Eventually he’d changed bedrooms.
    “Did you wear red?”
    “I don’t know. Sometimes.”
    “Can’t go wrong with red. It sends a subliminal message.”
    “I thought it was a power color.”
    “Mm-hm, makes ’em feel more man ly, if you know what I mean.”
    “I don’t know, Betsy. Maybe it was me.”
    “Don’t be ridiculous. I’ll take you shopping, and we’ll buy lots of sexy red stuff.”
    “Yeah, let’s not,” she said with a short laugh. “I can’t stand to get blown up again.”
    After the phone call, she sorted boxes, one for her mother-in-law, one for Jake, if he wanted it, seven for a charity, and one she wasn’t quite sure what to do with. She left a message for Andrew that she had a box of his brother’s things he might want to go through.
    The phone rang at eleven, undoubtedly Betsy with more good advice to impart. Hopefully not along the lines of crotchless panties.
    “Lilly?”
    Ah, now there was the voice of the man she might consider wearing them for.
    “Oh. Jake, hi.” If only he were after her instead of throwing out ride-in-the-back ultimatums.
    “Good, it doesn’t sound as if I woke you.”
    “I wish. But I’ve been on this cleaning frenzy.” Don’t babble. “What’s up?”
    “We forgot to set a time.”
    “No we didn’t. Eight o’clock tomorrow morning.”
    “Huh. Oh yeah, now I remember.”
    Maybe this was his subtle way of hitting on her. Smiling to herself, she sank down on the carpet and leaned against the bed, getting comfortable, feeling cozy. “You’re checking up on me, aren’t you?”
    “It’s the least I can do. You know, for Brady.”
    “Really.”
    “Yeah, I owe him.”
    Gee, thanks. “So, you want to check me out, Doctor? Ask me what year it is and who’s president?”
    “Nah, you sound fine. Call me if you need somebody, okay?”
    Now that sounded better. “Promise.”
    “Good. See you at eight.”
    Suddenly she didn’t feel like cleaning anymore. She leaned her head against the comforter and replayed their conversation, not for the words, but to hear Jake’s deep sexy rumble, to relish how nice it was to have a man care enough to call.
    But she didn’t need nice. She needed horny. And potent. Very, very potent.

6
    L illy was up again at 6:00 A.M . She’d chosen red silk pajamas last night, hoping they’d give