“Sorry if I kept you waiting,” she said, when she reached the bottom step. Why did he have to smell so good?
“You didn’t. I was just anxious to see you again.”
He always said the nicest things. “And I thought it was just me.”
From the smile that appeared on his face, one that made him look even more handsome and distinguished, she surmised that he liked her response. “Come on then,” he said, tucking her hand in his.
The moment he took her hand, heat flowed through her, and she wondered if he felt it, too.
“That’s another thing we need to talk about while we’re here,” he said.
She glanced over at him. “What?”
“The fact that we desire each other so much.”
She didn’t say anything. Denying it would be a waste of time. They were adults and he was older and much more experienced about this sort of thing than she was.
They walked hand in hand through the house until they reached the set of French doors that led to the pool area. “We can take our shoes off here,” he said.
“Alright.” Sitting down on a bench she removed her sandals and glanced up to see Frazier staring at her feet. “Is something wrong?”
He glanced up into her face. “No. I just noticed how small your feet are. They are pretty.”
She’d never had a man compliment her feet before. “Thanks.” She glanced down at his feet and figured she should extend him the same compliment. “So do you.”
He threw his head back and laughed. “Rylee, you are such a joy.”
Now she really was confused. Why would complimenting him on something he’d complimented her on make him laugh? Unable to help herself, she let her gaze roam over him. She’d never seen a man so fit.
She had run into Boris a few months ago. He’d been wearing a pair of shorts that clearly showed the beer belly he’d acquired over the years. His lazy lifestyle was finally catching up with him. And he no longer had that full head of hair he’d been so proud of. The little bit he still had was already turning completely gray early, like his father’s had.
Frazier’s stomach was flat as a board and he still had a head full of hair. Except for a few gray strands at the temple, the rest was all black. He looked like a man barely forty. Frazier might be a number of years older than Boris, but he looked a whole lot younger and was definitely more fit.
“Ready?” he asked taking her hand again.
“More than ready.”
• ••
As they walked out towards the beach, Rylee indulged in the feeling of the cool sand sliding between her toes. They were quiet for a few moments, just soaking up the beautiful atmosphere, then Rylee decided she might as well take the bull by the horns. In two previous encounters with Frazier, she’d let too much slip. This weekend, she was going to find out about him. “So…tell me about yourself, Frazier.”
She was pleasantly surprised when he began talking, telling her about how he’d gone to private schools all his life, before going to college. He had finished law school and had worked under his father at the company a few years before his father’s fatal heart attack.
She got the impression he’d had a close relationship with his parents and brother Murdock, who was deceased. Then he surprised her by even mentioning his other brother by a different mother--Roland Summers.
There was no reason to pretend she hadn’t read all about Frazier’s father’s illegitimate son in the newspapers a few years ago, but it was good to get Frazier’s perspective on it. He even told her how hard it had been on him to learn about Roland and how unfairly he’d treated Roland as a result.
“The two of you are close now though, right?”
He looked over at her and she could see the strain around his eyes. “We’re working hard at it. We can’t help it--my niece Margo is determined that we become a family.”
Rylee stopped walking and glanced up at him. “That’s admirable, but I’d think that you and your brother mightwant a close relationship because, well, the two of you are brothers, after all.”
She could tell from the look on his face that her words had struck a nerve. Whether it had caused pain, annoyance or insight, she didn’t know.
Rylee didn’t have a degree in psychology, but she’d been lucky enough to be chosen to narrate a number of psychology books written by the renowned Penny Murphy, PhD. Dr. Murphy had written several top selling academia books, as well as research journals on a number of family issues.
Before narrating a book, Rylee always read the work over, usually more than once, to get a greater understanding of it. She wanted to make certain the audio version enhanced, as well as improved, the listener’s comprehension and pleasure.