Page 24 of Just What She Needed

"Okay, now I'm curious," she told him as she put her hand in his. "No shoes?"

"You'd better take your key, though," Mel said, and Rhett repressed a start of surprise. She'd forgotten her sister was even in the room. "I may be in the shower whenever you get back."

"Right." Rhett rummaged through her purse on the long glass-topped table in the entryway and came up with her keyring. "Okay, got it."

"Let's go." Rhys put a hand in the small of her back and propelled her out the door and to the elevator.

"Where are you taking me with no shoes?"

"Can't tell you that." He pushed the call button and assumed what Rhett supposed he thought to be an air of nonchalance. But his face was alight with his secret, and he bounced lightly on the balls of his feet as they waited for the elevator to arrive.

Curious, Rhett narrowed her eyes. "You're about to burst wide open. Should I trust you?"

A muted ding announced that the elevator reached the floor just before the doors slid open.

"Hey," Rhys said as he steered her inside. "I got into a car with you thinking you were a reformed axe-murderer." He reached in his back pocket and extracted his security card. After sliding it into the slot, he pushed the button for the twenty-third floor.

"I never said I was reformed," Rhett said. "I just said I didn't do it anymore." A mixture of excitement and nerves accelerated her pulse rate. He was taking her to his place! In what she hoped was a casual move, she lifted one hand to her head and pretended to smooth her hair. A slight tilt of her head accompanied by a quick, silent indrawn breath reassured her that her deodorant was working. At the same time, she ran her tongue over her teeth in an effort to remove anything that might remain from the bowl of Cheerios she'd eaten in lieu of lunch.

She was relived to note that Rhys didn't appear to notice any of this but simply removed his card from the slot and slipped it back in his pocket.

"I didn't know that, though," he said, and it took Rhett a moment to remember they'd been discussing her imaginary career as a serial killer. "But I trusted you anyway, so you'll just have to trust me now."

The doors opened, and Rhett stepped out into a small vestibule. A round mahogany table holding a vase full of summer flowers occupied the middle of the space, lit from above by a pot light. Two doors stood shut on either side, and Rhys led her to the one on the left. He unlocked it, swung the door open, and motioned for her to precede him inside.

Just over the threshold Rhett stumbled to a stop and looked around in astonishment. Though she knew on some level that a penthouse would be fancier than the other units in the building, this place was nothing like Mel's. In fact, Rhys's foyer was almost as large as Rhett's bedroom.

Cream marble tiles were cool under her bare feet, and a stainless and wood staircase curved grandly up the wall to her right. Just past the stairs she caught a glimpse of a kitchen with beechwood cabinets and sand-colored marble counters. Despite the dreary weather, the condo was filled with light since the entire back wall appeared to be nothing but windows beyond which the Dallas skyline rose in majesty.

"Holy shit," she breathed before she could stop herself.

"Over the top, isn't it? None of it's my style, but I have to admit it's grand." Rhys put his hands on his hips as he gazed around the opulent foyer and into the living room beyond. "You should see the master suite. It takes up the entire top floor. The closet alone is almost as large as the flat I had in Chicago."

Rhett shook her head in amazement. "How many bedrooms are there?"

"Three. The one upstairs and two on the floor below us."

"Wait. This thing has three floors?" At his affirmative nod, she threw her arms wide. "Good grief, Rhys. What kind of business is your friend in that he can afford a three-story penthouse?"

"I'm not sure. Arms dealer, drug smuggling. Something like that." He broke into laughter at her shocked face. "Honestly, I'm not sure what he does, but he's a nice, respectable person. He's my manager's older brother. But enough about him. Let's get to your surprise." His warm hands descended on her bare shoulders, and he steered her through the living room to where a set of glass doors were thrown open to a large balcony. Two lounge chairs with plump blue-and-white striped cushions sat side by side under the slight overhang from the balcony above, and just out of the range of the rain pattering on the slate floor.

"Here we are," Rhys said as they stepped outside. "You said you missed the sound of falling rain."

Wonder flooded Rhett's chest as she looked around at the way he'd set things up for her. There was even a small red cooler between the two chairs.

"Oh my God, Rhys. This is...you are so incredibly sweet." She turned to him with a tremulous smile. "I can't believe this." Overwhelmed by this thoughtful act, Rhett's instincts took over before her mind could react, and she hugged him.

Her brain caught up a split second later and provided a steady stream of details. How warm and solid he felt in her arms, the soft tickle of his hair against her face, the chocolate and rum scent that came from his skin, the fact that he was hugging her in return.

Flustered, she stepped back with a nervous laugh. Was it her imagination, or did he let her go with reluctance?

"Here, sit down." He gestured to one of the loungers with a soft, almost pleased smile. After he stretched out on the chair next to her, he flipped open the lid of the cooler. "Beer? Bottle of water?"

Okay. They weren't going to mention it. Best to act like it never happened, then. In an effort to appear unaffected by the embrace, Rhett crossed her ankles and leaned back onto the cushion that was apparently stuffed with feathers from the wings of only the best angels. Now that she'd had a minute to absorb everything, she started to regain her equilibrium.

"Water, please, garçon," she said with a grin. "Seriously, though, this is one of the nicest things anyone's ever done for me."

Rhys twisted the top off a bottle of water and handed it to her. "You wouldn't believe what I went through to arrange today's weather." The mischievous sidelong look he sent her left her snickering. "What actually happened is that I took a break from working and opened the doors to see how warm it was outside. When I heard the rain on the slates, I remembered what you said, and I thought you might like to sit and listen to it with me." Reaching into the cooler again he pulled out a bottle of Sam Adams for himself. "I suppose that makes us a couple of pluviophiles."