“Now take a sip,” she said.
He did and smiled. “Yes, it does taste better this way. What are you drinking?”
“A Malbec.” She swirled the dark burgundy wine around in her glass. “It’s not the best, but not bad for ten bucks.”
“The next one is on me. And that one if you haven’t paid.”
She clinked his glass. “The guy you kicked off that stool paid for it.”
CHAPTER SIX
he way Andrew smiled at Gwen made her toes tingle. He wasn’t very attractive when his Tshoulders were up around his ears. She liked him better this way, relaxed, sitting with his spine softened. The man she’d met a year ago slowly slipped through. Although, she had no plans to fall into his bed again.
She opened her mouth to affirm the parameters of their working relationship, but her phone lit up with a call.
Andrew looked at the screen and wrinkled his nose.
Holding up a finger, she said, “Yeah, Greg?” She rolled her eyes. “I’m still in the city. I know I said I’d be on the earlier train. Well, who told you to wait at the station? I know it’s dark when I get there, but it’s seven thirty.” I’m sorry, she mouthed to Andrew. “There’s a martial arts class that gets out at eight. The street is filled with people. It’s for kids, Greg. I have to go. I’ll talk to you later.
Love you. Bye.” She tapped the screen and turned back to Andrew. “Sorry.”
“If that was a boyfriend, he sounds a little possessive,” Andrew said, hesitantly.
Gwen dribbled her sip. “That was my brother.”
“Oh...” His eyebrows dipped. Damn, he was so hot when he did that. “Older?”
She nodded. “Greg’s not married, so he stalks me and my sister, Skye. He was engaged a while ago to his childhood sweetheart. But...”
“But...what happened?” Andrew asked with sincere interest.
Yes, better to discuss someone else’s disastrous love life. “A few days before the wedding, she took off.”
“Ouch.”
“Another great Mallory family scandal,” she said.
“Why Mallory?” A puzzled look fell upon his face.
“Mallory is my maiden name,” she said.
“You’re married? ” The poor man had gone from thinking she had a boyfriend to a husband in ten seconds, no wonder he looked so shocked.
Except, she didn’t know how to answer a very simple question. Was. She. Married. “Technically, yes. I’m in the middle of a divorce.”
“Oh, dear God, please tell me it wasn’t because we... Because I...” He grabbed his tie. Did he think their wild night was all his own doing?
Gwen exhaled, time to get it all out there. “To answer you, no. My husband Dan moved out a few months before I met you.”
His lips quirked in the corners. “Met me. That’s putting it mildly.”
Met him. And let him have his way with her. Again, and again. She swallowed. “Should we talk about it? Just once, get it out there, so we can move on?”
His eyes fluttered suggesting he was searching for something to say.
“I mean, there’s no way that’s going to happen again,” she assured him. “We work together. And I need this job.”
“I, uh. I agree.” He exhaled. “Office relationships are dangerous, anyway.”
“Right. See, that wasn’t so hard.” She punched him in his arm to be playful.
The fire in his eyes came back strong, like her touch ignited something he couldn’t control.
“Sorry.” She pulled her hand back and grabbed her wine. “I’m a bit of a touchy-feely person.”
“I remember.” He fisted his beer. When he finished his sip, he asked, “So, why aren’t you divorced?” His face fell. “Do you have...children?”
She shook her head. “No. No. Thank goodness. He recently filed divorce papers. I have to sign them.”
“Oh.” Andrew looked down, appearing more confused than before.
Gwen took another sip of her wine and made direct eye contact. “If we can also get something else out of the way. I’m very sorry I brought up your wife the other day.”
He tried to jump in, but her hand flew up to his lips to shush him. They were so pink and full.
Remembering how soft and moist they felt on her mouth, sent a shock of pleasure through her body.
She lowered her hand. “We have to get to know each other professionally before we should discuss anything more about our personal lives,” she said in one breath. “If we do that, I mean. To level the playing field, I’ll tell you when my husband moved out on me, he left me with a house to pay for.” The courts didn’t give a damn that he’d just left. “Anyway, I need this job. I need the paycheck.
And I’ll do whatever you need me to do to make this relationship successful.”
“Gwendolyn, you’re doing a great job.” He kept his gaze on her, his smile sincere.
“Really? I’m so excited about this fashion show. I want to make someone like you proud.”
“Someone like me?” he asked, surprise in his eyes.
“Yes.” She glanced down at her glass. “You were right about Starlight not being very—”
“No, I’m sorry. That was completely out of line.”
“I just need you to trust that I can do this,” she said.
Andrew stared until he inched closer. “As long as we’re talking about former employers, I’ll tell you something about me that only Enrico knows.”
Gwen’s mouth hung open the entire time Andrew revealed his secret past as a male model. It wasn’t hard to imagine. He was the perfect specimen of a man. Tall, broad shoulders, prominent cheekbones, and full lips.
“Is that why you asked me what I thought about male models?” She regretted her choice of words now. Something about being creepy, aliens, and men in thongs.
Good one!
Although, if Starlight had designed male thongs, she’d sign up Andrew up as one of her models in a heartbeat.
“Self-consciously, yes,” he responded sounding troubled. “It’s something I’m proud of, but at times, I’m ashamed of my past.”
“Being rewarded because you’re tall and beautiful is—” She forced her eyes away. I just called him beautiful. Licking her dry lips, she finished, and said, “I mean, having someone think you’re good enough to show off their clothes is nothing to be ashamed of.”
“Thank you.” His head lowered, but his dark eyes stayed glued on her.
“Thank you for confiding in me,” she responded, humbled. Her head was spinning and not because of the wine.
“We’re a team, right?” Andrew had become a different person. He spoke to her like...a friend. A new version of the man had emerged.
“Absolutely.” She clinked his glass again.
Andrew smoothed his tie and sat up straight. “Speaking of being a team, Enrico said you asked for the office on the designer floor.”
Her cheeks blazed with heat. She’d almost forgotten about the request. So, this was business. Not pleasure. She took a breath. “It’s hard to share an office. No matter what the circumstances.” Theirs