“How long are you planning on staying?”
He smiled and winked at her. “Hoping to get rid of me?”
She blushed, which was cuter than hell. “Of course not. I was just curious.”
He took a drink of his ice water and watched as Victoria toyed with the hem of her sweatshirt. She suddenly seemed miles away. Why? What had he said? She wasn’t a woman who trusted easily, he was certain of that. It would take time and patience for him to discover all of her secrets.
Good thing he had plenty of both.
“I should be going,” he said as he placed his glass on the coffee table and stood. “Thanks for the water.” Victoria got up to show him out. When he opened the door and turned toward her, he noticed her staring at his wet chest. “Seriously, I earned it, Victoria.” Pain filled her eyes for a brief second, and it tore a path straight to his heart. He needed to wipe away that look. “Just so you know, you’d win my vote in a wet T-shirt contest any day,” he murmured, then bent and kissed her softly on the cheek. He inhaled her sweet scent once more, then walked out the door.
Maybe the brief taste would tide him over, at least until he figured out what the hell his next move would be.
It was Friday afternoon, and Victoria groaned for the umpteenth time as she stared at the pile of clothes Reena had for her to try on. The woman had a full day of shopping planned for the two of them, and Victoria wasn’t sure she’d survive it.
“Don’t be such a sissy, Victoria. They’re just clothes.”
Victoria cursed under her breath and grabbed the
pile of colorful material. “We’ve been at it for two hours solid. Face it, I’m never going to look right in any of the stuff from these upscale stores.”
Reena rolled her eyes and pointed toward the dressing room. “Quit bellyaching and get in there.”
“Fine,” she groused. “But I’m telling you, it’s hopeless.”
A few minutes later, Victoria looked in the mirror of the large dressing room. The woman staring back at her was a complete stranger. Amazing the difference a few scraps of material could make. The short skirt made her legs look miles long. How was that possible when she barely grazed five foot four?
She shored up her nerve and swung open the curtain. “Outfit number one hundred and fourteen.”
Reena stared, her jaw dropping, eyes bugging out. She stared for so long it made Victoria snap out, “If you can’t even form a coherent sentence, then it must be even more horrid than I thought!” She threw her hands up and started back into the dressing room.
Finally, Reena found her voice.
“My lord in heaven, Victoria. You look absolutely gorgeous. I really had no idea.”
That had her stopping and turning. “Gee, thanks, Reena,” Victoria said ruefully and planted her hands on her hips.
Reena shook her head and beamed a smile at her. “No, what I mean is, I knew you had a body under all that material, but Lordy, that skirt looks fabulous on you. Rider is going to swallow his tongue when he sees you, I can promise you that. I know my brother, Victoria. He’ll stop, he’ll stare and then he’ll pounce.” Then Reena’s brows drew together in concern. “Are we sure we know what we’re doing?”
Victoria shook her head in denial of that statement before looking down at the white skirt. She tugged at the hem, willing it to grow another inch. She’d never felt comfortable with her thighs showing. Not even in the dead of summer. It made her feel vulnerable and gangly. Somehow, it just seemed too intimate to have that much flesh on display. She was a throwback to the old spinster days, that’s what she was. And she’d never get Rider’s attention if she continued acting the maiden.
“We made a deal, Reena,” Victoria reminded her best bud. “I’m going to show Rider that I’m not the spinsterish woman he imagines.”
“Well, I know for sure my brother is going to be begging your forgiveness the instant he sets his sights on you in that outfit, girlfriend.”
She turned and looked into the mirror, looking at herself from every possible angle. The white skirt was clingy and short and pretty darned revealing. Her butt seemed to stick out too far, and it made her uncomfortable. Still, all the time she spent running in the mornings seemed to be paying off now.
The pale blue silk blouse with its V-neck and short sleeves was a nice touch. She looked delicate and feminine, which was the plan. The notion was foreign to her. From the time she was big enough to walk, Victoria had been a jeans-and-T-shirt sort of girl. Rider, the rebel with the dark hair, leather jacket and fast car, liked feminine women, didn’t he?
Victoria recalled the first time she’d seen him. She’d melted. Rider had walked into their small town school as if he owned the place. The prettiest girl on the cheerleading squad had practically drooled when he’d strode straight up to her and planted a kiss square on her mouth. All the girls had shamelessly panted after Rider. Deep down, Victoria had envied the cheerleader. But she hadn’t done anything about her feelings. She’d hidden them away. Where had that gotten her? Exactly nowhere.
Until now, when she let her friend give her a complete overhaul in a ridiculous attempt to gain the attention of the biggest playboy and rebel that Summit Green had ever seen.
Once again, she covered her face and moaned like a total ninny. “I cannot believe I’m doing this, Reena!” She felt Reena’s comforting hand on her back. “I’m not cut out to be a sexy siren!”
Reena tsked. “Of course you are, Victoria. Every woman on the face of the earth has it in her to charm the pants right off a man. You just need to dig down deep and set her free. That’s why we’re here, remember? To prove to my lame brother that you’re not a nerd.”
When she put it that way, Victoria’s spirits began to lift. Yes, she did want to make Rider sit up and take notice. No more hiding under a rock. “You’re right.” She smoothed the skirt down and said, “I’m buying this one.”