Blaze laughed and she hated to admit how much she liked the sound of it. It was rich and full and real. He was so different from how he was at work, even how he was on their so called dinner the other night, that she found it hard to believe it was the same man. Out of his suit, he looked relaxed. Casual. A little vulnerable. His hair wasn’t slicked back like it normally was. It hung loose and free and he hadn’t shaved that morning. A dark line of stubble shadowed his sharp jawline. It wasn’t fair how devastating the effect was. Nothing about him was fair. He had the kind of body that looked like he was a professional athlete and a face that said he was born to be on billboards. He was. Sometimes. Only, he wasn’t a model.
Colette barely kept herself from telling him that if his company and investments ever tanked, he could definitely be a lifestyle influencer.
Yup. Ridiculous things like that existed, thanks to the internet.
“I don’t know. I like old things. Antiques were- I guess they always were a passion. When I was growing up, we had this old gramophone stand in my room. I don’t know where it came from. I’m pretty sure it wasn’t in my mom or dad’s family. It was, more likely, left at the house when we moved into it. Anyway, I used to hide my stuff in there. I’d pretend that it was a safe. I’d play all sorts of games. Once I…” Blaze’s hands tightened on the wheel. “Never mind.”
The words were casual, but there was something underneath it that got her attention. No, it wasn’t just the words or his tone. It was the fact that, for a moment, Blaze was actually human. He thought. He felt. He liked freaking antiques.
“I- I never thought you would like stuff like that. It seems a little old lady.”
He turned and winked at her. And her heart stopped beating. Actually, stopped and restarted a second later, slamming painfully in her chest. Colette nearly hiccupped with the motion but managed to swallow the strange air bubble blocking her throat back down.
“You never know. Maybe in a past life… or in this one. Maybe I just unzip my skin when I get home and I’m really a ninety-year-old lady underneath this façade.”
“That would be a hell of a hair and makeup job. I don’t think even the amount of money you have could buy that.”
“Don’t put it past me. There are some talented people out there.”
“That would take hours. Every single day? I’m not buying it.”
Blaze chuckled again, the sound filling up the car. Filling up her chest. Filling up… filling up all the empty spots in her heart that she didn’t even really know existed before she heard that deep, low laugh.
“Alright, you got me. I’m not really an old lady. I did book us a tea date after the quad tour, though. Just for you, at a tea house nearby.”
Colette blinked. Blaze turned to her and blinked back. His face was so serious, that for a second she believed him, until his sinful grin gave way. She shook her head and grudgingly let herself laugh.
“So, quads?”
“Yeah. Quads.”
“Why? Do you like riding? Do you come out to the middle of nowhere quite often and try and kill yourself with dangerous machinery?”
“If I did, I’d rather try a tractor pull. I’ve always wanted to do one of those.”
“What on earth is that?”
“A tractor pull? Oh, Office Baby, I have so much to show you.”
Colette pressed her legs together to still the strange sensation creeping up her thighs. Her tightly clamped legs did little to quell the ache building in all the wrong places. She didn’t want Blaze to show her anything. At least, that’s what she kept telling herself. She’d got herself ready that morning, donned a tight zip up that was wind and rain proof, a pair of jeans, and her canvas runners. She had her instructions from Blaze. Wear something comfortable. Something she could ride in. Something she didn’t mind getting dirty and something that was wind-proof. She’d swept her hair into a tight ponytail at the base of her neck to keep it out of her face for later.
All the while she told herself that she just wanted to get through the date. A date which wasn’t a real date. And then it would be over. Her moment of weakness and terrible stupidity would be over. That contract would be ripped up and Blaze would leave her alone.
She could go back to pretending he didn’t exist.
He could go back to screwing everything that was female and breathed.
And no, no that wouldn’t hurt one single bit. Not. One. Single. Bit. And yes. Yes, she was suddenly okay with dying a virgin. The trouble was, she’d always been the world’s worst liar.