Free When Love Takes Over You by Norah C. Peters Page B

you. Hey, maybe you
just met your future husband. What do you think?"
     
    "I wouldn’t go quite that far, Becky. I know
nothing about him other than he has a body to die for and he’s
absurdly wealthy at a young age. I do have standards, you know?"
Susan giggled and poured some more wine.
     
    "Hmm, he sounds terrible. No, he wouldn’t
suit you at all. Plus, you’d have to tame him first before he’ll
ever be husband material. Susan, I take it you know about his
reputation as a player?"
     
    Susan nodded. "I know. I did some quick
research on him at the gossip sites and it looks like he’s out with
a different model or movie starlet every weekend. He’s quite the
man around town as they say. Maybe I’ll have to settle for a short
lived romance with him after the project is over. The next few
months will be tough though. I mean, have you ever worked with a
guy that makes you weak at the knees so much so that you can’t even
think straight? I’ve never felt like this before."
     
    "Yeah, it happened to me once and I married
the guy," Becky raised her glass and smiled as she clinked Susan’s
glass.
     
    "That was different though, Becky. I don’t
feel in control of myself with Mike, I’m afraid I’m going to say
the wrong thing or giggle like a school girl if he cracks a joke.
If this was happening outside of work it wouldn’t be such a problem
but every time my phone goes or I get an email I’m all jumpy in
case it’s him. I’ve only met him once and I can’t stop thinking
about him."
     
    "Sounds like love at first sight if you ask
me." Becky beamed as she looked at Susan’s dreamy expression in the
firelight.
     
    Susan put her hand through her long blonde
hair. "I’m meeting him next week for coffee in Battersea. I can’t
stop thinking about it, I don’t know what to wear and I’m just
hoping I can manage to be professional and keep it together. Of
course, I need to remind myself that this is a huge opportunity for
my business so I better not mess it up. In fact, he warned me not
to mess it up or he’d destroy my reputation."
     
    "He did? He sounds like quite a handful,
Susan. Don’t go all head over heels like this if he’s one of those
high powered maniacs that walks all over people. It’s just not
worth it, that’s way more trouble than it’s worth."
     
    Susan looked into the fire and sighed.
"Maniac, that’s the word he used to describe himself, actually. But
you’re right, I’ll need to tread carefully with this one. I’ve been
burned enough times in the past with his type. Being realistic I
know what I should do, I need to keep him at arm’s length but the
problem is following though and doing that. It’s never quite as
easy as it sounds."
     
    * * *
     
    Mike sat in the cafe at Battersea Park and
looked over as Susan walked in. She looked stunning, he guessed she
was about 32 and young for someone so successful in her field, her
long blonde hair tumbled down to her shoulders and her smart navy
business suit made the most of her slim figure. He liked what he
saw and made a mental note to ask her out at some point in the
future after the project had been completed.
     
    "Hello, Susan! Good to meet you again, I hope
you found this place without too much trouble."
     
    Susan felt her knees go weak as soon as she
spotted Mike. He looked like a movie star who had taken a wrong
turn and ended up in the park. She felt her pulse quicken. "Hello,
Mike! How are you today? Oh, no problem at all, I grew up just down
the street from the park."
     
    Mike sat up. "Oh really? Now there’s a
coincidence. I live only 5 minutes walk from here. I love this part
of town, it’s just such a good spot."
     
    After a waiter took their order and brought
over the drinks, Mike moved the conversation onto business. "Now, I
looked over your initial sketches and I really like what you’ve
come up with. Actually, I’m very impressed."
     
    Susan blushed and looked away, avoiding his
blue eyes. She reminded