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“Deflowered you.” Hannah grinned.
Heat warmed Willow’s neck and rose to her cheeks. “Yeah, that.” Willow thought back to her sixteenth birthday and the bold, shaky words she’d said to Lauder. I want to do it. I want to do it with you. The lopsided smile Lauder had flashed right before he’d kissed her senseless mimicked the one she’d created on his clay face.
Lauder had spoken the truth at the coffee shop. She hadn’t always hated him. That had happened when he’d taken her virginity and then told all of his friends. Then had the nerve to adamantly deny it—more like lie—to her face.
Hannah started again, drawing Willow’s attention.
Reaching for the piece, Hannah said, “Well, the brother is fine. If you don’t want him, I’ll gladly take him.”
Willow swatted Hannah away, surprised by her protectiveness over the bust. How in hell had she managed to sculpt an entire bust of Lauder without realizing it? This man was too much in her head, too potent in her thoughts. She had to stop thinking about him. But how, when his presence had opened a cavern of old memories? Some good, some not so good.
“Don’t let the strong jaw and perfect bone structure fool you. He’s the Antichrist,” Willow said, staring at the figure as if it were speaking to her. She felt like punching it in the face; however, since it was some of her best work, she refrained. But at that moment, she vowed to never think about Lauder Tolson again.
“Um, Willow?”
“Mmm-hmm.”
“You might want to cover the Antichrist.”
Cover him? Hannah was being overdramatic. Lauder wasn’t that dang tempting. Willow tilted her head to one side and studied the sculpture. Actually, he was. Even in clay form, the man was beautiful. Ugh. Never thinking about him again, she reminded herself.
Lauder did foolish things to her system. Sinfully delicious things. Things that got her juices flowing. She made a mental note to call Reggie, her occasional friend with benefits. She needed his benefits tonight. That would help rid her system of Lauder Tolson.
“I don’t think covering him is necessary,” Willow said. “Now, had you said toss him in the trash, I could have supported that.”
“Nah, you should probably cover it. Apparently, someone left the gates of hell open. And look what just escaped. I might just be willing to sacrifice salvation for a night with that delicious devil.”
Willow glanced over her shoulder just as Lauder was being directed toward them. “What the hell—” She gasped. “No way.”
She frantically looked for something to conceal her rendition of him.
“Use your apron,” Hannah said out the side of her mouth.
Good idea. Willow fiddled with the strings. “Shoot. I can’t get it untied.”
“Oh, yeah. He wants you, Will. Look at how he’s undressing you with his eyes. He wants to blow your back completely out. And judging by those long, muscular legs, he could do just that. Lawd, I love a man in a tailored suit.”
Glancing up caused Willow to lose valuable time. Mainly because watching Lauder float toward them stalled her brain. As she raked her eyes over him, her stomach fluttered. Why did she keep responding to him?
Out of time, Willow blocked clay Lauder with her body as the real thing strolled inside the room. The idea that clay Lauder was staring at her ass made things even more awkward. What had she done to the universe to deserve such a disturbance in her life as Lauder?
One good thing came from Lauder’s approach. It shut Hannah up. When he nodded at Hannah, Willow thought the woman would split the corners of her mouth smiling so hard. Shameless, Willow thought until Lauder slid his gaze to her. The mild sensations she’d experienced moments ago blossomed into full-fledged lust convulsions.
“Willow.”
Lauder’s tone was so damn smooth, so damn steady, so damn confident one would think she’d actually invited him to invade her space. “Lauder.” Nope, her tone wasn’t smooth. Probably couldn’t be considered steady. Definitely wasn’t confident. But at least she’d managed not to moan. A triumph in her book. Small, but a win nonetheless.
When Lauder’s eyes lowered to her lips, a bout of nervous tension knotted her stomach. Why was he eyeballing her mouth? Her eyes were what he should have been focused on. They were the only things he would ever connect to.
Lauder’s eyes rose, and his lips curled slightly. “I found you.”
“I wasn’t lost.”
“We’ve all been lost at one point in our lives. Sometimes, we don’t even realize we’re waiting to be found.”
Willow’s eyes narrowed at him. What in hell does that mean? She didn’t bother asking him to elaborate, because she wasn’t interested in his cryptic logic.
“I really hope these sprinklers work,” Hannah said, eyeing overhead.
Willow scowled at her friend.
Hannah visually attempted to bite back a smile. “I’m going to give you two some priv—”
Willow’s scowl deepened, warning her against leaving the room.
“Like I said, I’ll be right over here.” Hannah pointed over her shoulder and backed away.
Refocusing on Lauder, Willow tried not to pay attention to how good he smelled. Like mature, sexy man. “What are you doing here?”
“I wanted to see you.”
She folded her arms across her chest. “Why?”
“Because you’re nice to look at.”
Hannah made some ridiculous sound that drew both their attentions. Yep, the woman was fired as her best friend. Although, she could admit—only to herself—that he was pleasant on the eyes, too.
“Well, thank you for stopping by to look at me, but I want to do you.”
Willow’s body went board stiff. There were a hundred ways she could have responded to her word blunder: sprint from the room like she was on fire, fake a blackout, slide a heated glance in an audibly tickled Hannah’s direction. Instead, her gaze remained pinned to Lauder’s. She straightened her spine, because that’s what a lady in complete control did. And she was in complete control. Completely.
Clearing her throat, she said, “I apologize. What I meant to say was I have work to do. I should show you out.”
Not bothering to wait for his response, she took off toward the door. Hannah’s warning—a sharp gasp—came a fraction too late. Willow realized the mistake she’d made.
“Huh. Damn, you are good with your hands.”
Lauder said it as if he’d discussed her abilities with someone. Again, straightening her spine, because that’s what a lady in—Oh, hell. Who was she kidding? She wasn’t in control. Hadn’t been since Lauder crashed into her world again. The best she could do was to pretend his presence had no effect on her.
Backtracking to join real Lauder staring at clay Lauder, she said, “I can explain that.”
“Oh, this should be good,” Hannah said just loud enough for Willow to hear.
Lauder lifted one of his large hands. For a brief second, a memory of how his hands used to explore her body—slowly, cautiously, thoroughly—played in her head. Stop it, she warned her defiant brain.
“No need. Obviously, you think I’m nice to look at, too,” Lauder said.
Willow barked a laugh. “Don’t flatter yourself. There’s a perfectly good explanation for this.”
Lauder folded his arms across his chest, causing his biceps to mushroom against the steel blue shirt he wore. The sight was like a magnet, and her eyes were drawn to it. At seventeen, his arms hadn’t been puny, but they hadn’t been sculpted like this, either. Clearly, he spent a lot of time in the gym.
“Okay. So...” Lauder said.
“So, what?” she said absently.
“So, what is the explanation?”
Willow released a nervous chuckle, sobered, then laughed. “I’m a forensic sculptor. This is what I do. I sculpt people.”
“Oh, I get that. But why did you sculpt me?”
Stay cool. You’ve got this. Don’t let him shake you. Play it cool. “Oh, you...you thought that was you?” Okay, so playing dumb was probably not the best strategy.
Lauder narrowed his eyes at her, then slid them to the clay, then back to her. “That’s not me?”
“No.”
He chuckled a sound so smooth and sexy, it caressed her skin, causing fine bumps to prickle her skin.
“That’s not me?” he asked a second time.
“I said no.”
Lauder nodded once. “Huh.” A second later, he glanced in Hannah’s direction. “Excuse me? Can you come over and help me out a second?”
What was he up to? Hannah joined them in front of the sculpture, visibly just as confused as Willow was.
“Lauder Tolson, by the way.” He offered Hannah his hand.
Another toothy smile spread across Hannah’s face. “Oh, I know who you are. Hannah Burrows. Nice to meet you.”
“Same here. So, Hannah, does this excellent work of art resemble me?”
Willow held her breath as Hannah scrutinized real Lauder, then the clay version. She tilted her head to the right, then to the left. A second later, she pressed her index finger into her chin.
“There is a strong resemblance. Especially here in the jaw region.” She used her finger to point out the area. “But I don’t think it looks exactly like you. If you hold your head just right, I guess it could pass for your distant cousin.”
Lauder burst into laughter. “My distant cousin?” He laughed some more. “Okay, I get it. Some kind of woman-code thing going on.”
Willow smirked. Hannah was definitely rehired. Eyeing Lauder, she said, “Now that we have that mystery solved, I’m guessing we can move forward.” Finally getting her apron unknotted, she tossed it over clay Lauder. “I’ll toss it in the garbage later.”
Lauder unapologetically checked her out. His scrutiny diminished some of the confidence Hannah’s flawless performance had given her.
Finding her eyes again, Lauder flashed one of those lopsided smiles he’d clearly perfected over the years. “Will you have dinner with me tonight?”
“Yes,” Hannah said, answering for Willow. “Um, I’ll be over...yeah.” A second later, she was gone.
“So? Dinner?” Lauder said.
“No.”
“No. Wow.” He massaged his jaw as if she’d slapped him. “Just like that? You sure you don’t need a few minutes to pretend to consider it?”
“There’s nothing to consider. You asked me a question, I gave you an answer.”
“The wrong answer.”
“In your opinion.”
“Reconsider.”
“I have plans tonight.”
“A date?”
“None of your business.”
“How about tomorrow night? Or the night after?”
Why did he seem so determined? And was she actually contemplating a yes in her head? Clearly, his delicious scent had made her delirious. “I’m busy for the foreseeable future.” She shrugged. “Work. I’m sure you know how it is.”
Lauder studied her for a long moment. “Well, if you’re busy, you’re busy.” He flashed a half smile, then turned toward Hannah. “It was nice meeting you, Hannah.”
“Same here. And you have my vote. Edmondson is a joke.”
“I agree. Thanks for the vote. I appreciate that.”
Willow rolled her eyes at the unnecessary charm Lauder dripped all over the place. Just leave already.
“I hope you enjoy the rest of your day, Willow.” He started away, but stopped. “Oh. Here’s my business card. Just in case you change your mind.”
Willow took the wedge with a smile, then watched Lauder glide away like a sexy jaguar. Damn, he should really come with a warning label. Hannah came to stand next to her and shook her head. “What?”
“I can’t believe you lied to that fine, fine specimen of a man like that.”
“I didn’t lie. I am busy. With work...and other stuff.”
“You should have asked him to escort you to the A Hope for Home fund-raiser. With that sexy beast on your arm, every eye in the place would be on you.”
“I don’t want every eye in the place on me. I prefer blending into the background.”
“Remaining in the background is going to be kind of hard as a senator’s significant other.”
Willow whipped her head toward Hannah. “I’m not a senator’s significant anything.” She glanced back in time enough to see the elevator doors close, freeing her from Lauder’s spellbinding presence.
Hannah laughed. “You don’t even see it, do you?”
Willow turned back to Hannah. “See what?”
Hannah pinched Willow’s cheeks like a little old lady did a child. “Your cluelessness is just so adorable,” she said in a voice reserved for babies. “Honey, does Lauder Tolson strike you as a man who would give up that easily? He’s coming for you, sweetie.” She rested her hands on Willow’s shoulders. “I suggest you prepare to be conquered.”
Willow wanted to protest, tell Hannah she was insane. Unfortunately, she, too, had the feeling she hadn’t seen the last of Lauder. Prepare to be conquered? Ha! Lauder would never get close enough to conquer her. And that she could guarantee.
Chapter 3
For the life of her, Willow couldn’t figure out why she’d agreed to spend her Saturday night mingling with total strangers. Why hadn’t she gone with her first instinct and simply written a check to show her support for A Hope for Home Foundation like she typically did?
Hannah, Willow grumbled to herself. Her friend had given her this long, drawn-out speech about how getting out once in a while was good for the soul. Hannah was always giving her speeches, so why had she chosen tonight of all nights to listen?
The gnawing in her gut that urged her to come, she reminded herself. Next time, she’d just take an antacid and go to bed.
Maybe she could slip out as quietly as she’d slipped in, climb back into her vehicle and hightail it back across town. Sipping an ice-cold glass of grape punch in her T-shirt and panties sounded really good right about now.
Just as she made her mind up to leave, she spotted Gloria Barrett—organizer of this fine affair—headed her way. Shoot. She’d never get away now.
In her early sixties, Gloria could easily pass for a woman twenty years younger. With her caramel skin, curves most twenty-year-olds would die for and dazzling gray eyes, she had men flocking to her. But ask anyone and they’d tell you her heart belonged to one man and one man only, her husband of over three decades, Patrick Barrett.
“Willow. You made it.” Gloria snatched her into a tight hug, then held her at arm’s length. “You look amazing. Hon, you’re going to get some of these married men in trouble with this figure-hugging number here. And that deep teal color... Gorgeous.”
Willow ironed a hand down the front of the satiny full-length gown. “Thank you. Just something I threw together.” Which was a lie because she’d spent a month searching every evening-gown site on the internet until she’d finally found something that caught her eye. The sleeveless dress had cost her a pretty penny, but when she’d scrutinized herself in the mirror, she was convinced it had been totally worth the expense.
“Come with me. I have someone I want to introduce you to. Plus, I’m sure he’d appreciate us saving him from those lust-filled vultures circling him.”
Willow didn’t get the chance to protest before Gloria had her halfway across the floor of the large ballroom. With all of the positive energy in the stylishly decorated space, Willow considered being here not such a bad thing after all. And it was for a good cause. Two hours of her Saturday night wouldn’t kill her.
Besides, it wasn’t like she would have been painting the town red anyway. Inwardly, she sighed, agreeing with Hannah’s frequent piece of advice. I have got to get a life. One good thing about being here, it kept her mind off—
Willow gasped. Lauder? What is he doing here?
Something ridiculous crossed her mind. Had he known she’d be there? No. How would he?
Willow’s eyes raked over him. If Hannah thought he looked scrumptious when he’d visited their office, the woman’s mouth would be watering now. Dressed in all black, with the top button of his shirt unfastened, he was so alluring that it was sickening.
She gnawed at the corner of her lip. It made no sense for one man to be so damn gorgeous. Even his body language—sure, confident, relaxed—made him attractive. While there were plenty of handsome men in attendance, Lauder was in a category all his very own. Obviously, she wasn’t the only woman affected by his magnetism. He practically had a harem of women surrounding him.
“Just look at him. Getting every panty in the room soaking wet,” Gloria said in a hushed tone.
Gloria was a mix of a prim and proper socialite and an unfiltered comedian. Judging by the dreamy-eyed women clinging to Lauder’s every word, Gloria was right about the panty thing. Willow didn’t want to be a casualty of whatever drug he was dispensing. But before she could devise an escape plan, Lauder slid his dangerously dark and daunting gaze in her direction.
The intensity of their connection caused her lips to part slightly, a stream of heated air escaping. She refused to label it a searing line of suppressed desire. Swallowing hard, she fought the need to turn away. And let Lauder think he had an effect on me? No way.
The faint furrow of his brow suggested he was just as surprised to see her as she’d been to see him. The straight line of his tempting lips slowly curled into a tantalizing smile. His intense scrutiny felt like delicate kisses feathering her skin. Just the thought of his mouth on her caused the space between her legs to tingle.
Why? She hadn’t known his touch in close to twenty years.
“Excuse me, ladies. Might I steal this handsome creature for a moment?” Gloria threaded her arm through Lauder’s and led him away. “Lauder, sweetie, between you and this pretty lady right here, y’all are going to cause a riot in here.”
Willow could feel Lauder’s eyes on her, but this time she refused to look in his direction.
“Lauder Tolson—future Senator Tolson—I’d like you to meet—”
“Willow Dawson,” Lauder said.
Gloria glanced from Lauder to Willow. “You two know each other?”
“Um...yes. We, um, we knew each other once. When we were younger.” Willow felt as if she were a specimen in a petri dish being scrutinized for the slightest change in composition.
Gloria smiled. “I see. Well, Lauder is one of the most generous contributors to A Hope for Home. And he donated one of his warehouses for us to use as a staging location.”
“Wow. A modern-day Robin Hood,” Willow said. Instantly, she regretted sounding so patronizing.
Gloria started to speak, but someone summoned her. “Excuse me. Got to go earn these zeros,” she said. “I’ll leave you two to catch up with one another.”
A beat of awkward silence lingered between Willow and Lauder. At least, awkward for her because his eyes fixed on her as if trying to read her mind. Oh, he really didn’t want to read her thoughts right now.
Deciding she’d be the bigger person, she said, “The Robin Hood comment... I didn’t mean to sound so—”
“Condescending?”
“Yes.” Another string of silence played between them, Lauder’s gaze never leaving her. “A Hope for Home is a great organization. How long have you been involved?” she asked.
“Since its inception, so a little over two years. Gloria can be very convincing, but when she told me the foundation intended to furnish the first permanent home for foster youth who’d aged out of the system, she had me. I’m too familiar with the struggle of trying to survive after foster care.”
The sadness that flashed in Lauder’s eyes stirred Willow’s curiosity. Had he gone through something? If he had, he’d clearly gotten through it okay.
“I usually never attend these things,” Lauder said.
They had that in common. Not that she was keeping a tally. “So how did you end up here tonight?”
“Something drew me here.”
A similar thing had happened to her, but she would never in a hundred years share that with him. The smile melted from Willow’s face, her stomach fluttering from the way Lauder eyed her. Was he insinuating she had led him here? How ridiculous. Lines like that probably worked on his other women, but it wouldn’t work on her. “Uh-huh. Well, if you’ll excuse me.”
Lauder flashed a half smile and gave a single nod. “It was nice seeing you again.”
Willow walked away without mirroring his sentiment, because it wasn’t nice seeing him again. In fact, she’d prefer to never see him again. Unfortunately, he seemed to keep popping up.
Not wanting Lauder to believe he’d run her off, she forced herself to stay at the event a little while longer. Despite her attempts to maintain a safe distance from the man who made her body hum, everywhere she turned Lauder was there. Looking like a ripe apple straight out of temptation’s orchard.
Was she crazy or did he seem determined to be near her? The fact that she found the idea faintly endearing angered her. What was he doing to her? And why in hell was she allowing it?
Lauder joined her at one of the fabric-draped highboy tables. “If we keep bumping into each other like this, I’m going to call it fate.”
“Oh, yeah? Well, some people would call it stalking.” She flashed a low-wattage smile.
He laughed a sweet, sexy sound that made her stomach quiver. Why? Why couldn’t she simply ignore him? Ignore his delicious scent, those hypnotizing eyes, that gobble-you-all-the-way-up mouth, the way he filled out that suit. What kind of sorcery was this man? Shaking some sense into herself, she dispelled the idea he’d cast some sort of seduction curse on her.
“Do you want to get out of here? Grab a coffee or dessert or something?”
Willow glanced to the overabundance of desserts on the long table several feet away, then to the coffee bar next to it. Eyeing Lauder again, she said, “I should really get home. I have—” she searched the depths of her brain “—church in the morning. Early in the morning. Like seven o’clock.” Lying on the Lord. Yep, she’d just secured herself a nice, hot front-row seat in hell. “Good night, Lauder.”
When she turned to leave, Lauder captured her arm. She gasped at the onset of tiny lightning bolts striking through her system. The raw intensity of his touch overtook her. And had she not placed a hand on the table, she was sure she would have toppled over.
Lauder’s tone was gentle when he spoke. “Willow, wait.”
He was in luck. She couldn’t budge, despite desperately wanting to sprint away from him, from this—the insanely powerful connection that had her rooted to the floor. Maybe he was the energy she’d felt earlier. Not the entire room. Just one man.
Drawing in a deep breath, she spoke over her shoulder. “What do you want, Lauder?”
“You.”
That was the last answer in the world she’d expected and not one she wanted to hear.
* * *
It was a long while before Willow turned to face him, but when she did, Lauder could tell he’d stunned her. Hell, he’d stunned himself. Yes, he’d been thinking the word you, just hadn’t meant to say it aloud. Or had he?
Truth be told, he did want her. Wanted her in the best and worst ways imaginable. Wanted to yank her into his arms and kiss her like a madman. Wanted to strip her out of that curve-hugging dress that made the sexually deprived beast inside him ravenous with desire. Wanted to explore every inch of her with his tongue. Wanted to taste and savor her essence. And after all of that, he wanted to make slow, passionate love to her. All. Night. Long.
But right now, he had to push that want aside and focus on need. He needed her, because like he’d told Chuckie, no other woman would do. Seeing her tonight, experiencing this unexplainable tug toward her, made his desire to get close to her even more urgent.
Confusion replaced the shock on Willow’s beautiful face. A thousand scenarios had to be rushing through her head. At least she hadn’t taken off across the room. She seemed pretty good at running. Mainly from him.
“Can we talk?” he said, holding out his hand for her to take.