“Oh!” Justyn said. “Actually, not a bad idea. Not bad at all.”
“See?” Blair said, pushing Maggie to the bathroom door. “Now change. We have guy approval. It’s time to get going.” She stuffed the red bra and panties in Maggie’s arms and threw a robe her way. If she could just get Maggie started, the rest would fall into place. “I’m going to dig out that coat now. Thanks for the input, babe. Now, go cue up the movie, and I’ll be downstairs in a few.”
“What, you’re already done with me? I was starting to feel like one of the girls.”
“I think we can take it from here.” She turned and kissed him full on the mouth before gently shoving all 6’2” of him out of the frame and closing the door in his face.
“Maggie! Use a little dab of my bronzer on your cheeks. Mascara and lip gloss. Nothing else. Think natural. Just ran through the rain. Wait, I’ve got it. You should walk over there. You’ll look all dewy and windswept. And if the storm gets worse, you’ll be stuck there. Just like Jane in Pride and Prejudice. Your Mr. Bingley won’t be able to resist.”
“And do you realize you’re casting yourself as Mrs. Bennet in this scenario?” Maggie yelled through the bathroom door.
“No, I would like to think of myself as a slightly more attractive and much more modern Lizzie,” she said. “Now, let’s see you. Justyn went downstairs, so don’t worry. Open the door.”
Maggie swung the bathroom door, first revealing one long sun-kissed leg and then the other. The red lace complemented her golden-hued skin. Blair surveyed her from head to toe, and let out a slow whistle.
“That boy won’t be ready to leave the house for at least two days. You’ll make him forget all about the rain and the numbers.”
“Now here’s your coat,” Blair said, handing Maggie the calf-length London Fog trench. “And we need to pick the perfect shoes. Normally, I’d say you need a black or red high heel, but if you’re going to pull a Jane Bennett, we don’t want you to fall down in the mud or ruin a perfectly good pair of heels.”
Maggie finished tying the coat’s belt and walked over to her closet. She bent down to the shoe rack on the left side. “Maybe these? Not exactly sexy, but they match. Kinda cute?” She held up her red Keds. “Red shoes do always make me happy. If you and Justyn are right about this crazy plan, maybe these will be my lucky charm today.”
“That works,” Blair agreed. “Get going, girl. You have an important ambush seduction to begin.”
“Blair, I don’t know,” Maggie said. “This is ridiculous. What if he says no? What if he doesn’t want me?”
“What’s ridiculous is that you would even think that,” she told her friend. “Did you see yourself in that red lace? You are a hottie.” She winked.
“But what if he says no?” Maggie insisted.
“You’ll be no worse off than you have been the last three days, right?”
“True,” Maggie said. “Wait, I need something if I’m actually going to do this.”
Blair followed Maggie downstairs and to the kitchen. She watched as her friend pulled a bottle of vodka from the cabinet and a shot glass. A steady stream of vodka filled the glass before Maggie tipped the drink back.
“Wow, you really do need some reinforcement,” Blair teased.
“Not a word.” Maggie shot Blair a look, and pulled the ties tighter on the coat. She walked toward the door.
“Let’s do this,” Maggie called back to her friends. “Jane Bennett, Mr. Bingley, eat your heart out. Jane Austen would roll over in her grave, by the way.”
Eight
Maggie
Maggie pulled the strings of her hood tighter around her neck in an attempt to keep the rain from dripping down her neck and soaking her hair. She was going for the dewy look, not the drowned rat look. This was crazy, she thought for the thousandth time as she power walked down the rocky beach toward Reid’s cottage. She should turn around, march upstairs, and crawl into her warm bed. What was she thinking listening to Blair and Justyn? Those two were high on the afterglow of lots of rainy day sex.
Yet, Justyn’s words played over in her head. An important meeting with investors. Reid was obviously worried if he had been sitting in front of the computer all afternoon. Maybe she could help. He needed a distraction, according to Justyn. Why not trust the guy’s best friend? And her best friend had way more successful experience with the opposite sex than Maggie. For once, she decided to put her complete trust in her spirited, blond friend. She did look cute after all. She had been waiting for months to sport the red bra and panties. She clutched the plastic container of cupcakes she was planning to present to Reid against her chest and marched on in the rain.
She hoisted herself over the rocks and toward the three narrow steps that would lead her up the bulkhead and onto Reid’s front lawn.
By the time she made it across the treacherously slick deck and to the sliding glass doors of Reid’s whitewashed saltbox cottage, the rain was pouring. Maggie just wanted to get inside where it was warm and dry. Even if she didn’t carry out the planned seduction. Her objective was to find shelter from this onslaught.
She pounded on the glass. The lights were off, and she didn’t see any signs that Reid was home. “Reid! Reid! Let me in!” she yelled over the howling wind and relentless rain. “Reid!”
“Maggie?” His voice wasn’t coming from the house, but from across the yard toward the boatyard.
Feeling like somehow he had caught her doing something she shouldn’t, she turned in his direction.