Free Designed for Love by Roseanne Dowell Page B

minutes to nine, I glanced in the
mirror one last time, smoothed my skirt and patted my hair. I pulled the door
open to find Bill, hand raised, ready to knock. He stepped back and looked at
me, top to bottom.
    "Nice." He whistled
appreciatively.
    I swore you could probably cook an egg on
my face. Lord, what this man did to me with just a look. I moved my gaze from
his head to his feet and took him in, too. Not too bad himself. How a guy could
look so sexy in casual clothes was beyond me.
    The steel blue of his polo shirt brought
out the silvery gray of his eyes. The way his faded jeans hugged his small hips
and muscular legs caused a tingle to go up my spine. So taken aback by his good
looks, not to mention the desire in his eyes, I could hardly speak.
    "Are you ready? I'm half
starved." I finally found my tongue.
    "Ready as ever. Where would you like
to go?"
    "You know the area better than I
do." Small volts of electricity rushed through my body when he put his
hand on the small of my back and guided me to the car.
    "Okay, I know a little restaurant,
The Brunch Place. It's not too far up the road." Bill opened the passenger
door, waited until I got in, and went around to the driver's side.
    He pulled out into traffic and settled
back against the seat. "So what's on the agenda today, besides dinner,
that is?"
    His admiring look wasn't lost on me. Nor
was the bulge in his pants. Shivers ran through me. How was I ever going to
avoid a relationship with this man? He did things to my insides that no man had
ever done before. Besides enjoying his company, I had a feeling I could enjoy a
whole lot more.
    I leaned back and watched the scenery
pass. I loved Florida.
Loved the warm. Not enough to live here, but sure would be nice to spend part
of the winter here. Someday, maybe. After I opened my own business and it took
off. Then I could afford to take an extended vacation. Yep, that's what I'd do.
Rent one of those condos along the gulf and bask in the sun, walk along the
beach and just relax.
    "Here we are." Bill's voice
brought me out of my reverie.
    I looked around. We were in a shopping
mall. "Where's the restaurant?"
    "Around the corner from the bank.
There weren't any parking places in front. I hope we don't have to wait too
long."
    Bill came around the side of the car and
waited while I got out.
    I stood next to him. "Lead the
way."
    He put his arm around me and pulled me
against him, leaned down and kissed my cheek.
    I pulled away. "Watch it." The
kiss felt too familiar. Too unnerving.
    "Just practicing for tonight. You do
want to make it realistic, don't you? I mean we have to act like we've done
this before."
    The teasing twinkle in his eyes ignited a
flame deep inside my stomach and surged outward. This was a mistake. I never
should have asked Bill to do this. We'd never pull it off. "Let's just get
something to eat."
    Somehow I had to get through breakfast,
meet with Nick and Gladys, do dinner, and hopefully be on a plane out of here
tomorrow. Something told me that wasn't going to happen. Past experience with
Gladys for one.

 

 
 
    Chapter Fourteen

 
    Later, I put the finishing touches to my
make-up and looked in the mirror. I felt different, did it show? Exactly what I
was looking for, I wasn't sure.
    A sparkle in my eyes, something written
all over my face? Here I stood, me, Wendy Seidel, confirmed bachelorette. Was I
infatuated? Ridiculous. Okay, so we had a great breakfast and Bill made me
laugh. So what? A lot of guys made me laugh. Didn't mean anything.
    Yet, something felt different. Something
I never expected to feel. I even looked forward to tonight. Hell, I looked
forward to going to the beach, maybe even a moonlit dinner somewhere quiet.
    I shook the thought from my mind.
"You're getting in too deep, girl. Watch yourself. You're looking for
trouble."
    I laughed and picked up my car keys.
Thankfully, Nick left a message to meet him at the restaurant. I much preferred
driving myself. Especially after