Page 4 of Smoke Screen
Step one: Meet a gorgeous man.
Step two: Fall hard for said man.
Step three: Dream of a wedding.
Step four: Get her heart broken.
Every time, the fairy tale seemed just … out … of her … reach.
At this point, she’d become convinced it had something to do with losing her father so young. Daddy issues, one of her friends claimed.
Whatever the problem, when it came to Phin Blackwell, she needed to steer clear. Far, far away.
This guy had to be a total player. Way out of her league.
Kayla on the other hand? Beautiful, successful Kayla would be his perfect match.
A woman unafraid to disrupt established rules. When Kayla Krowne entered a room, her confidence came with her. Something Good Girl Maddy admired and maybe even craved.
Yeah. Good luck. She was too worried about pissing people off to become such a dynamo.
Kayla and Phin? That would be a power couple.
With the way Phin filled out a suit, Maddy wouldn’t mind being the female dynamo in that power couple instead of Kayla.
Kayla, a board member and major donor for the Thompson Center, had said they were friends. Whether that included sex, Maddy didn’t know. What she did know was thefriendshiphad garnered this meeting.
The bottom of the stairs welcomed them to a finished basement painted a muted gray bordering on white. Subtle lighting warmed the space and,whoopsie,Maddy averted her eyes from a couple on a large sectional, their bodies close as they peered out another set of floor-to-ceiling windows.
From the sofa, the man, clearly irritated by the interruption, shot Phin a look.
“Apologies,” he said.
He leaned down, getting close to Maddy’s ear where his warm breath tickled her skin and, well, other parts that Good Girl Maddy had been ignoring lately. Parts that reminded her she hadn’t been touched by a man since that last blind date four months ago when the guy continually ran his foot up her calf under the table.
“There’s a guest suite with a sitting area,” Phin said. “It’s private. Are you comfortable with that?”
Meaning, was she comfortable going into a bedroom with a strange man who made her nipples hard and whom she’d like to see without a shirt?
Typically, no.
Never.
But this was Kayla’s friend, and she trusted Kayla.
“It’s all right,” Maddy said. “Good thing you know the house.”
And yikes. Had she really said that?
“I do. She invites me to a lot of her parties.” He paused at a door, meeting Maddy’s eye. “I interned for her and another lobbyist my junior year in college. She’s a friend who knows I have a long ride home and lets me stay in this room when the parties run late.”
The hot sting of humiliation crawled up Maddy’s throat. “I wasn’t …”
Who was she kidding? Of course she was. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have jumped to conclusions.”
Phin shrugged. “Most people do.”
“That must be hard.”
