He smiled softly. “Don't mention it.” His thumb skimmed along her bottom row of teeth.
“I transferred all my guilt to you,” she admitted. “I saw only what I wanted to see, heard only what I wanted to hear. I saw only your vices and was blind to your virtues.” She lay on her back, urging him to his side with a compelling hand on his shoulder. “I'm not sure you have any vices.”
“Oh, I have plenty.” His eyes began a lecherous trek down her body. “One being…”
“Yes?” she hummed when his hands joined in the carnal activities his eyes had initiated.
“One being a naked lady with cinnamon-colored hair, perfect breasts, satiny skin, pink nipples that…”
Megan knew that the night was far from over.
Ten
She woke to the sound of her shower running and tuneless whistling. A smile played about her lips, becoming full-blown. Suddenly she laughed out loud and hugged the pillow that retained the scent of Josh's cologne. She buried her nose in its soft depth and inhaled deeply.
Had she ever known contentment like this? Never. Had her body ever been so satisfied? Never. Had her mind ever been so expanded, her senses so alert? Never. Had she ever so looked forward to a new day? Never.
Having had very little sleep, she didn't know why she wasn't exhausted. Instead, tiny capsules of energy were exploding inside her, filling her body to overflowing with enthusiasm for living.
She swung her naked legs to the floor and bounded out of bed, intent on joining Josh in the shower. Indeed, he had his nerve, using her shower without first asking permission! She laughed again before assuming a perturbed expression and stalking toward the bathroom, where the whistling was increasing in volume.
She was brought up short by the strident ringing of the telephone. “Damn,” she cursed before lifting the receiver to her ear and saying an impatient good morning.
“Uh, good morning, Ms. Lambert. This is Barnes.”
Megan's brow wrinkled with puzzlement. Whatever could he want, calling long-distance at this time on a Sunday morning? “Hello, Barnes.”
“I guess you wonder why…. You see, I was really calling Mr. Bennett, but there was no answer in his room. I knew I could count on your giving him a message.”
Her heart slowed after having lurched in panic. Had Barnes known Josh was in her shower at this very minute? She wasn't ashamed of it; she just didn't want it to be made public yet. “What kind of message?” she asked.
“Well, it's kind of complicated,” he began.
‘Try it out on me.” She shifted her weight impatiently from one foot to the other. Damn it, she didn't want to talk business; she wanted to jump in the shower with Josh, to caress with lathered hands the body she now knew so well.
“Well, one of Josh's men, his name is Clancey—his last name, not his first. Anyway this Clancey is in charge of the new Air South campaign. You know they're ready to launch a new fleet of airplanes to—”
“I know all about Air South's expansion and the ad campaign that will go with it. I also know that Josh's ‘agency is handling their advertising. Now, what's the message for Josh?”
“This guy Clancey was at a party last night and got slightly sloshed. Actually, he got very sloshed. Anyway, seems Josh came down hard on him just before he left for Seascape. It's not the first time. I've heard Clancey bad-mouthing his, quote, ‘high and mighty’ boss before. No one pays any attention. I mean, everybody complains about their … uh … their…”
“I get the point, Barnes,” Megan said dryly. “Please get to yours.”
“Well, last night was different. He was really vindictive, you know? He threatened to take the ad campaign and sell it to Powell Associates, which is—”
“Josh's chief competitor,” Megan finished in a hushed voice as she sank onto the bed. Her mind, catapulted out of her impatience with Barnes, was now churning with the possible repercussions such an embezzlement would have on Josh's agency. It happened, though rarely, when an ad man from one agency worked on a campaign and then auctioned it to the highest bidder. Such espionage could bring ruin to an ad agency.
“Are you sure about this, Barnes? You're not exaggerating, are you?”
“No. Clancey was drunk, but he knew exactly what he was saying. His wife was there. She kept begging him to shut up before he ruined everything. No, he meant it.”
“Why would you call and tell Josh about this?”
She could imagine the chagrined look on Barnes's face as he sighed. “I guess I feel I owe him. He didn't have to warn you about the Dixieland account. He could have let me hang myself, and it would have been no skin off his nose. As it was, well, he was responsible for my getting chewed out, but I needed chewing out.”
Had it not been for her concern about Josh's business, she would have smiled. As it was, she said tersely, “Don't talk about this to anyone.”
“I won't.”