CHAPTER TWO
The elevator shuddered and groaned before stopping completely. Heavy sigh, Skylar set his box in the corner. He hit the emergency button and spoke to the doorman about getting someone to fix the problem. Of all the days to be stuck inside the elevator. He should have been home already. It was one of those days. He felt like he was lagging a few minutes behind where he was actually supposed to be, a shadow of his true self.
When he turned to tell the other occupant it would probably be a while until they got rescued, he saw the deep fear in her eyes. The woman he thought of as Miss-Know-it-All looked pale and on the verge of having a total meltdown. What was her real name? He couldn’t remember. Burr-tart? He’d given her the unflattering nicknames when they worked on a case together years ago. Using the names over and overin his mind—never aloud—had caused him to forget her real one. He had been trying to sober up when they met, and she’d been super-sensitive about being a female lawyer in a predominantly male law firm.
All he remembered about her was that she questioned his every move. She spoke to his client behind his back and put doubts in the guy’s head over how he was handling the case. Then she went to his father to complain about him.
He sat next to his box on the floor and watched her pace, clearly agitated. Something must have been wrong with his eyesight three years ago. She had the kind of beauty that stopped a man dead in his tracks, definitely worth a double-take.
His eyes started with her shoes, expensive black heels, and traveled slowly up her long legs. Pantyhose made them look tanned, but they were no doubt the same flawless ivory as the rest of her skin. The brown suede skirt started just above the knee and molded to the perfect curve of her bottom. Nice. A perfect butt if he’d ever seen one, not too small and not too big. Pearl buttons on a crisp white shirt peeked out beneath an open jacket. The top three were undone, revealing a creamy throat and the gentle swell of her breasts.
His body reacted to hers in a way that set his teeth on edge. Why notice her now when he hadn’t during their shared trial? He didn’t sleep with coworkers. Maybe it had been too long since his last meaningless sexual encounter. “It’s fine,” he said in a brisk tone. “They’ll send a repairman to get us out. Have a seat. It’s gonna be a while.”
Her eyes grew wide, obviously horrified by his words, but all Skylar could do was focus on her soft lips as they formed an O. Dumbfounded, he realized he wanted to kiss her. His fingers itched to comb through that long mane of whitish-blond hair. Parted slightly off-center, it fell over her shoulders in loose waves. An unbidden image sprang to mind: her lovely hair fanned over his pillow after a long night of passion.
What was wrong with him?
Instead of sitting, she began to pace and mumble beneath her breath. It took him a moment to realize she was making a list of state capitols. “Boise, Idaho... Carson City, Nevada... Boulder, Colorado.”
“You’re just making it harder on yourself,” he said.
She glared at him. “I suppose you’re an expert on claustrophobia.”
He grinned, knowing how to make her sit. “You know, your skirt is a bit too short. When you move a certain way, I can see all the way up to—”
“Hey!” She backed away until she hit the wall opposite him. Left without much choice, she slid down until she was sitting on the floor. She pressed her knees together and pulled on the skirt to cover as much of her thighs as possible. Still glowering at him, she said, “This is already one of the worst days of my life, and it’s not even nine o’clock yet. I think I’d rather be trapped in here with an out of control monkey.”
“If it makes you feel any better, I’m right there with you.” At her confused look, he added, “Today sucks.”
The elevator shuddered again, and she slapped a hand over her mouth to capture a frightened shriek.
“Think about something else,” he demanded. “Come on. Tell me about your morning. What’s the problem with today?”
She blurted out, “I was just promoted, and my colleagues think I slept with one of the senior partners to get the job. Probably everyone here believes it.”
“I don’t believe it.”
“You don’t?”
“A lot of bad things can be said about my father, but he is faithful to my mother. He would never cheat on her.” Skylar counted off the senior partners for her. “Hyde is a woman and a married woman at that. Thompson brags about his every conquest, so everyone would know if you were seeing him. Shale is too shy, too reserved to sleep with you, and Pierce is gay.”
“He is?” Her blue eyes widened.
“Yeah. Don’t pass it around. He is extremely private about the whole thing. The only reason I know is I overheard him talking to my father after-hours one night. They don’t know that I know.”
Her shoulders sagged, and her head dropped forward. “If only there was some way I could convince everyone else I earned the promotion...”
“You know what?” He grinned again. “There just might be.”
“What?”
The elevator groaned and dropped an inch. Panic filled her eyes. If he didn’t do something quick, she was bound to lose the tenuous grip she had on her emotions. He didn’t want to be trapped with a hysterical woman.
“Hey, hey, hey.” He waved his arms to get her attention. “It’s okay. Think about something else. Come on. Stay with me.”
“I can’t.” A tremor ripped through her slender frame. “I can’t breathe. Can you breathe?” She pulled on the top of her blouse, and a pearl button slipped free, revealing a wisp of white lace. “Are we running out of air?”
Skylar used a trick he usually reserved for kid parties. He threw his voice at her purse since he didn’t have a dummy to work through. The rough-sounding voice sounded like it was coming from her Prada bag. “Let me out, lady. It’s dark in here.”