Drawing Hearts

“I’m thinking about image. Women aren’t the only ones who consider how they look. Albert Einstein had a wardrobe that consisted of two weeks of the same style pants, shirt and sweater because he didn’t want to think about clothes. Stephen Hawking dresses in Armani. Angelina Jolie wears a lot of black because she doesn’t want to have to think about matching clothes. Even I had to think about my image. I tended to stay out of the public eye, but once my company reached the Fortune 500 list, I was scrutinized for everything. I couldn’t go to work anymore with holes in my jeans. I didn’t understand for a long time that image was just as important as my product.”

“For you, your image is about power,” Kenzie replied. “And success and control. If you looked like a slob, analysts would see your company as ill-run and sloppy, that you didn’t care about profit and the bottom line. Steve Jobs may have worn the same thing every day, but it was neat, clean and looked like he meant business.”

His father had been a naval officer; he cared about projecting power and confidence. Which he did with his pristine uniforms and commanding presence. He always felt he should have been accepted for what he accomplished, not for how he looked.

“You’re thinking hard again.” She shook her head.

“How do you know?”

She rubbed the space between her perfectly plucked eyebrows. “You get this little crinkly line between your eyes.”

Reed shook his head. “When I asked to talk to you about your software program and the problems, I never expected our conversation to veer into such personal territory.”

Kenzie reached across the table to take his hand and patted it. “How well do you know Miss E.? Because she would have had all this information about you thirty seconds after she met you. She could get information from a stone.”

“No kidding. After five minutes I was ready to show her my report card from first grade.” He remembered feeling as if he was under a microscope with the older woman and it made him uncomfortable, but with Kenzie he wanted to tell her things about himself. This was getting stranger by the second. “You are good.”

Kenzie grinned. “I learned at the feet of the master.”

“Is every conversation with you going to end up being so personal?”

She gave him a sly smile. “If we’re going to talk about the weather, we don’t need to personalize it. But we weren’t talking about the weather.”

He felt his blood race through his body. She was sexy and scary. Revealing so much about himself so easily wasn’t in his nature. He’d always been a little reserved. Once he became wealthy people were always at him. They wanted money. They wanted advice, endorsements or to be seen with him. And he just wanted to be normal. He didn’t own any real estate except for a small condo in Seattle and his father’s home in San Diego. He drove a Lexus, his only vanity, because he liked nice cars. He gave 20 percent of his yearly income to charity. He voted in every election, but stayed away from politics. He didn’t want to be a mover or shaker in the world; he simply wanted to be left alone to pursue his own interests.

Kenzie patted his hand. “Stop thinking. What happens happens in its own time. Just stay in the moment. I had a friend who used to say life is what it is, stop tormenting yourself about what life isn’t.”

Her skin was soft on his and he stopped himself from groaning as his pulse sped up and he suddenly wanted more than just a touch from her. “Easy to say, but not so easy to do,” he admitted. “So teach me how to stay in the moment.”

“Stop thinking about the past. Stop thinking about every little thing as it happens. Every day is a do-over. Make it count. Do something unexpected.”

Do something unexpected. For the first time in his life he gave in to an impulse. He half stood, leaned over the table and kissed her on the mouth. Her lips were soft and silky and her breath tasted of the martini she’d drunk. For a moment, her lips opened under his and then she suddenly drew back and pushed him away, her eyes wide in surprise. As he sat down again, she pressed her fingers to her mouth.

“Is that unexpected enough?”

She slid out of the booth. “I have to go.” She turned and half ran out of the bar.

Reed was stunned at his boldness and even more surprised at her response. Was she rejecting him? Of course she was. But there was something about that kiss that stayed with him.

Конец ознакомительного фрагмента.

Текст предоставлен ООО «ЛитРес».

Прочитайте эту книгу целиком, купив полную легальную версию на ЛитРес.

Безопасно оплатить книгу можно банковской картой Visa, MasterCard, Maestro, со счета мобильного телефона, с платежного терминала, в салоне МТС или Связной, через PayPal, WebMoney, Яндекс.Деньги, QIWI Кошелек, бонусными картами или другим удобным Вам способом.