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“That’s all I ask.”
Hours later, when she unlocked the door to her condo, Will stepped inside. He took her arm lightly and turned her to face him.
As she looked up at him, her breathing altered.
“This doesn’t have anything to do with your working for me,” he said in a husky voice. “It’s simply a man and a woman he’s attracted to.” Her lips parted as she drew a deep breath. He leaned down to kiss her, covering her mouth with his before she could answer.
Her heart thudded and she stood still, unresponsive for a heartbeat, and then she melted against his hard frame. She wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him in return. His fingers wrapped in her hair a few moments as he leaned over her and kissed her passionately.
His tongue thrust deeply into her mouth. His kisses were more devastating than before. Desire blazed, threatening her peaceful world. She stepped back. “This isn’t part of the bargain, Will. It just can’t be. I’ve got my life all lined up and you’ve already turned it upside down for the summer. I don’t want a big emotional upheaval on top of that.”
“I don’t, either,” he said solemnly. “It’s kisses and wanting to dance with you and hold you, nothing deep or involved. Get back in the world, Ava. You’re too full of life to withdraw into a shell.”
“You barely know me or what I do or how I am.”
“I’m beginning to know you, and I know that much about you already,” he whispered, showering kisses on her temple and cheek, brushing them lightly across her lips. She closed her eyes and in seconds they kissed again until she stopped him.
“I have to say goodbye now, Will. I’ll see you a week from Sunday afternoon.”
He smiled at her, running his fingers lightly on her throat. “See you at three next Sunday.”
She watched him climb back into the limo and leave. Dazed, she moved through her condo, feeling as if she had been caught up in a whirlwind and now dropped back to earth.
She got out her iPad to check her calendar and begin listing what she needed to do before she saw Will again on Sunday. Then she sent a text to her sister. In an hour, Trinity was at the door.
“Tell me what you’re doing and where you’ve been and about William Delaney!” Trinity exclaimed, rushing inside, her sandy curls bouncing. “I brought pizza,” she said, waving boxes with enticing smells.
“It’s good to see you and to be home,” Ava said, smiling, knowing an explosion was coming. “What would you like to drink?” She headed to her small kitchen while Trinity followed and set the pizzas on the table.
“Water. I have veggie blast and artichoke, basil and onion pizza.”
“Thanks. Let me pay you.”
“My treat, and you talk. What’s he like? Does he look like his pictures? Does he have a woman in his life? Is he nice?”
Ava laughed. “Trinity, slow down. One question at a time. He’s nicer than I thought he would be. He is more handsome than his pictures,” she said, remembering his kisses. “As far as I know there’s no woman in his life right now, but I really don’t know for sure. He was nice. He has a little niece whose dad was killed in a plane crash, and he’s worried about her because she’s sort of closed off the world.”
“That’s dreadful and sad,” Trinity said, her smile vanishing. “How old is she?”
“Five.” Ava set two glasses of water on the table and told Trinity about Caroline’s situation.
Trinity looked horrified. “Poor little thing. So is he going to interview the tutors you recommended?”
Ava braced herself. “No. He’s hired me for the summer to work with her.”
“You’re going to work for him and give up all your plans?” Trinity asked, her eyebrows arching as she stared at Ava.
“Yes. He gave me an incentive.”
Trinity squinted her eyes and tilted her head to study her sister. “You didn’t fall in love with him, did you?”
“Of course, not,” Ava snapped, while a twinge of guilt about the kisses she’d shared with him plagued her. “He made an offer I really couldn’t refuse.” She withdrew the piece of paper from her purse. “You might want to sit before you read it,” she added, bracing again for her sister’s reaction.
With one more long look at Ava, Trinity took the paper to read. Her mouth dropped open and she looked up at Ava. “Is this real?”
“Very. I’ll have money for my dream and be able to help you and Summer through school.”
Trinity looked at the paper again and read it aloud, suddenly screaming as she jumped up and down.
Ava smiled and held out her hand. “Now you see why I postponed my plans until fall. Give me back my paper. I want to keep it.”
To Ava’s amusement, Trinity reacted in typical fashion and it was an hour before she calmed. They called their youngest sister, Summer, to tell her the change in Ava’s plans, and then Ava spent the next several hours with Trinity. The only topics of discussion were Will, Caroline and summer plans.
It was almost nine before Trinity left. Ava felt wound up, filled with excitement, trying to ignore the constant simmering prospect of spending the summer with Will Delaney. To tell someone else about Will’s offer, actually show Trinity the amount written by Will, made it seem slightly more real.
At ten, a violin rendition of a Strauss waltz played faintly and she rushed to answer her cell phone to hear Will’s voice.
“Did I call too late?”
“Of course not,” she answered, her pulse speeding simply over the sound of his voice. She sat in a cherrywood rocker, rocking slightly. “My sister Trinity just left a little while ago. She’s very excited about my new job and we called our youngest sister and told her.”
“I hope they’re happy about it.”
“That’s a huge understatement. It’s a wonder you didn’t hear Trinity screaming for joy.”
He chuckled. “I told Caroline. In her own quiet way I think she’s pleased.”
“I’m sure she didn’t say anything.”
“No, but I got a little response because she nodded. That’s more than I usually get, so I took that as a positive sign. She also gave me a long look and I think that was another affirmation.”
“I hope so.” She thought about the little girl and grew somber after the evening with Trinity.
“We already miss you being here” he said in a deeper tone of voice that caused another flurry to her heartbeat.
“I’ll be back soon enough.”
“No, not soon enough. If you wind things up there sooner, give me a call and I’ll send someone to get you earlier. If I can do anything to help you move, let me know.”
“Thank you. It’s just a matter of putting things on hold for the summer.”
“Are there really no guys to say goodbye to?”
“There are really no guys,” she said, smiling. “I meant what I said about that.”
“You’ve been shut out of life long enough.”
“That doesn’t go with the job, remember?”
“This is entirely separate from that. If you’d turned me down on my offer, we would still be having this part of the conversation.”
“Stop flirting and getting personal,” she said, trying to sound good-natured about it, but meaning what she said. “You make it difficult because you’re now my boss, so it’s a little strange to tell you what to do.”
“Then don’t.” She detected the laughter in his tone. “You know I could send someone to help you with the arrangements you have to make.”
“Thanks, but I’ll take care of things here myself,” she said, amused that he would try to take charge of what she was involved in at home.
“Some weekend soon, I’ll fly your sisters here so I can meet them and they can meet Caroline and see where you live and work.”
“They would love that,” she said. “We’re not much alike. I’ll warn you now, Trinity is a little dramatic.”
“She didn’t get that from her older sister.”
“You don’t know me well enough to decide whether I’m dramatic or not.”
“I think I do. I’m not much like my brothers, either.”
They talked easily about their families, and when she glanced at the clock, she was surprised an hour had gone by. “Will, we should end this conversation. Do you realize how late it is? I need to get up early in the morning.”
“I’m enjoying the company. It’s worth losing some sleep.”
“Stop it. I’m saying good-night now. Good night, Will.”
“Good night, Ava. I’d rather kiss you than say farewell,” he said in a husky voice.
Her heart beat faster. All summer with him; he could derail her dreams even more if she wasn’t careful. She inhaled deeply. She had no intention of letting him do that no matter how appealing the man was. Or what he offered her, because he had already promised enough that she could afford to turn him down in the future. Half a million was a fortune beyond her dreams. The wealth would give her independence to do as she pleased about some facets in her life, including Will Delaney.
“Thank you, Will,” she said, remembering his dark gaze on her, trying to avoid thinking about his kisses or his sexy voice as he told her goodbye on the phone.
Will Delaney had just opened a whole new world for her.
Smiling, Will shut off his phone. Before he set it down a tune began to play. He answered the call to hear his brother Zach’s voice.
“Had a moment and thought I’d check with you. I’m in the L.A. airport, but I won’t be coming home. I’m on my way from Australia to Winnipeg. Any luck with tutors for Caroline?”
“Actually, I’ve hired the teacher who gave me recommendations. I wanted to get to know her better, and then when she was here, Caroline responded to her in a small way.”
“If Caroline responded in the least, it’s worth a try. Don’t blame you.”
“Caroline asked Ava if she hurt. Ava is a widow.”
“I’ll be damned,” Zach said. “Caroline hasn’t said a word to me since she lost her dad. That’s something.”
“It’s a small thing, but I’m willing to take it. I just have a feeling about this, and with Caroline asking Ava a question—I couldn’t let that go.”
“Hell, no, you couldn’t. That’s amazing. A widow. That’s nice for Caroline. Our mother isn’t grandma material and our stepmother has never been interested in Caroline.”
“Zach, Ava isn’t exactly grandma material, either. She’s twenty-eight. Widowed in college. They married before they graduated. She doesn’t date though.”
“Okay. I assume she’s good-looking.”
“Good-looking wouldn’t have mattered if I hadn’t thought she’d help.”
“I know. Well, that’s good news. I’ll pray for Adam’s dear Caroline and this tutor. What’s her name?”
“Ava Barton.”
“I’ll meet her next time I’m home. Whenever that may be. Let me know how things go. When does she start work?”
“Next Monday.”
“Good deal. And good job, Will. Hey, they’re calling my flight.”
“So long, Zach. Take care.” Will broke the connection, staring into space, but lost in thought about Ava.
After a busy week, Ava wound everything up by Saturday. She’d taken Trinity for a goodbye dinner, then woke up early and excited on Sunday. She dressed with care, in blue linen slacks and a matching shirt, and wound her hair into a bun, fastening it with a clip. She made some last-minute phone calls, did some research and waited for Will.
Promptly at 3:00 p.m. her doorbell rang.
When she opened the door, her breath caught. Tall and handsome, Will smiled at her and stepped inside, closing the door behind him. His brown eyes swept over her, stirring tingles. The impact of seeing him was greater than ever, and she locked her fingers behind her back.
“Hi. You look gorgeous,” he said in a husky voice.
“Thank you. Is it possible for you to keep this a purely business arrangement?” she asked, hating the breathless sound of her voice.
“No,” he said, smiling at her, an irresistible smile showing snow-white teeth and creases bracketing his mouth. “I don’t think it is for you, either, only you won’t admit it. I’ll bet your pulse is racing right now because, all business aside, we react to each other.” He reached out to place his fingers lightly on her throat to feel her pulse. She twisted away from him.
“You’ve proven your point,” she remarked dryly. “I’m ready.” She turned to pick up her things, but he stepped past her to shoulder the carry-on and gather her other bags.
She locked up, and when they stepped out, the chauffeur standing by the limousine came forward quickly to take her luggage.
“I’m glad to get you back to Dallas.”
She smiled at him. “So I might as well save my breath on telling you to keep all this impersonal?”
“Now you’re catching on. If you didn’t react to my flirting and remarks and kisses, I would back off, but you do respond.” He leaned down by her ear. “You set me on fire with your responses.”
“Stubborn, stubborn,” she said before stepping into the limo.
Looking relaxed, Will sat facing her.
“Rosalyn is with Caroline until we get home. Then she is taking tonight off. Tomorrow I’ll be home since it’s your first day. Did you get everything taken care of to your satisfaction?”
“Yes. With money in the bank, it gets easier.”
Will nodded. “Good. I don’t want you to have any regrets. Far from it. We’ll be home in no time.”
In what seemed a short flight to Ava, they landed at Love Field in Dallas. As soon as they were in his mansion, Will turned to her. “I’ll have your things put away.”
