He met her gaze. “I know why.”
She swallowed—hard. She wanted to tell him that he didn’t, that she’d just remembered some assignment that couldn’t wait, or that there was an emergency she had to get to. But she didn’t. There was no point. She didn’t know how he understood her so well, but he did. So, instead of making any excuses, she gave him a sad smile. “It’s for the best.”
He slid his arms around her waist and pulled her against him. “I want to argue with you and tell you that you don’t know that.”
She could feel his heart beating in his chest; it seemed to match the hammering of her own. Maybe she should let him persuade her to stay.
“But I can’t.”
Her heart sank.
He tucked his fingers under her chin and made her look up into his eyes. “All I can do is tell you that I want you to stay. That I want this weekend with you.”
She searched his face.
He shrugged and gave her a half smile. “If it’s any consolation, I couldn’t offer you more than that even if you wanted it. Don’t worry. I know you don’t. So, can you honestly tell me that walking away now would be better than walking away on Monday?”
He held her gaze while he waited for her answer. She knew what she should do. She should say yes that it was best for her to go now and never look back. She’d thought an afternoon with him would be a breeze. But he’d gotten to her in the space of a few hours. What would happen over the course of a few days? Apparently, she was going to find out because even though she knew what she should say, she couldn’t make herself do it. Instead, she smiled.
“Is that a yes? Will you stay?”
“Yes.”
He lowered his lips to hers and his kiss had her wanting him again even while it confirmed that she was crazy not to walk away while she still could.
When he lifted his head, she tapped the middle of his chest with two fingers. “This is it, though. Just this weekend. On Monday we go back to our own lives. We’ll work together with Dan because we both need it, and he deserves it. But that’s all.”
He nodded. “That’s the way it has to be, Leanne.”
He sounded sad, and it made her feel sad. But that didn’t have to matter. Knowing that he had his own reasons for not being willing or able to get into anything more made it easier.
She looked around, realizing for the first time that they were still standing in the powder room.
He gave her a sheepish smile. “You can’t say I don’t take you to the best places.”
She laughed as he took her hand and led her through to the kitchen. “Do you want a drink?”
She nodded, wondering whether he planned to hang out here and drink or what he had in mind.
He poured them each a Jack Daniels and slid a glass toward her. “I’ll call and make sure we can have the cabin and we can drive up there tomorrow—if you still want to go?”
She laughed. “I don’t even know where you’re talking about and I don’t remember saying that I want to go.”
He smirked and came to wrap his arm around her waist. He pulled her back against him and brushed her hair off her neck before he nipped it none too gently. She couldn’t help sagging back against him. He made her insides mushy.
“You didn’t say you wanted to, but we both know you do. As for the where, a friend of mine has a cabin in the redwoods.” He winked. “Do you trust me? It might be a nice surprise if you do.”
She pursed her lips—for effect more than anything else. She already knew she trusted him and that was worrying. But he didn’t know her that well yet. “I trust you, but I have some questions.”
The way he smiled told her that she’d answered his most important question already. “Go on. I’ll answer if they won’t spoil the surprise.”
She gave him a stern look. “You’ll answer no matter what if you know what’s good for you.”
He laughed. “Ask away.”
“First of all, what kind of cabin are we talking about?”
“A log one.”
She laughed. “Not what I mean. Are we talking rustic, like does it have indoor plumbing? You should know that I’m not an outhouse in the woods kind of girl.”
He laughed and pulled her back against him, kissing her neck again and making it difficult to remember why on earth she was talking about outhouses in the woods. “I can assure you that there is ample indoor plumbing. There’s a master bath with a walk-in shower and a big tub. In fact, the only outdoor plumbing would be to the hot tub.”
“Ooh. Now you’re talking my language.”
“I figured as much.”
She turned to look up into his eyes. “I’m high maintenance.”
He dropped a kiss on her lips. “Anything worth having requires maintenance.”
Wow. And she thought guys saw high-maintenance chicks as a bad thing.
He chuckled. “You didn’t expect that answer, did you?”
“No, but you won yourself some brownie points there.”
“Good to know. What do my brownie points earn me?”
She laughed. “Maybe you should figure out what you want, and I’ll let you know how many points you’ll need.”
He nodded solemnly. “Deal. I’ll give it some thought.”
~ ~ ~
Ryan set his glass down. “Are you the kind of high maintenance who needs to go get your clothes and makeup and go out for dinner before I take you to bed?”
She raised an eyebrow. “What’s the alternative?”
He smiled. He’d half expected a flat-out, yes, absolutely but he was hoping she might like the alternative better. “Well, if that’s what you want, that’s what we can do. I could take you to your place and we can go out to eat, go to a club if you like. Or …”
“Or?”
He put his hands on her hips. He couldn’t help doing that. She wasn’t a big girl, but she was round in all the right places—her ass, her breasts. He probably kept going for her hips because she’d slap him if he grabbed her other curves all the time. “Or we could just hang here. We could order whatever you like—sushi, Thai, Vietnamese, they all deliver.” He picked up the bottle and waved it, not wanting to pour another if she wanted to go out. “How does that sound?”
She thought it over. “It sounds good … on one condition.”
“What’s that?”
She made a face. “It really does sound good. I haven’t had an evening in just chilling in I don’t know how long, but …” She looked down at herself. “I’m not exactly dressed for it. I could go home and get changed and pack a bag for the weekend?”
He frowned. He’d thought they could stop at her place on the way out of town in the morning. He had the feeling that if she went home alone, it’d be too easy for her to change her mind and stay there.
“You can wear something of mine.” As soon as he said it, he wanted her to agree. The thought of her dressed in his sweats had him hard again.