[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]
.As he drove away, the faint scent of French lavender lingered inthe car.He grabbed his cell to phone Annabelle, but he was too revved to go home.He wantedto talk to her in person.Singing along with the radio in his off-key baritone, he headed forWicker Park.Annabelle opened the door.She wore a V-necked striped top and a blue mini that did greatthings for her legs."I should have issued my ultimatum sooner," he said."You definitely knowhow to deliver under pressure.""I thought you'd like her.""Did she call you yet?"Annabelle nodded but didn't say more, and he tensed.Maybe the date hadn't gone as well as hethought.Delaney was a blue blood.What if she'd caught too strong a whiff of the trailer park?"I talked with her a few minutes ago," Annabelle finally said."She's smitten.Congratulations.""Really?" His instincts had been on target."That's great.Let's celebrate.How about a beer?"Annabelle didn't move."It's& not a good time."She glanced over her shoulder, and that's when it hit him.She wasn't alone.He took in herfresh lip gloss and the blue mini.His good mood fizzled.Who did she have with her?He gazed over the top of her head, but the front room was empty.Which didn't mean the samething was true of her bedroom& He fought the urge to charge past her and see for himself."No problem," he said stiffly."I'll talk to you next week."But instead of walking away, he stood there.Finally she nodded and shut the door.Five minutes ago he'd been on top of the world.Now he wanted to kick something.He headedfile:///C|/Downloads/Susan%20Elizabeth%20Phillips%20-%20Match%20Me%20If%20You%20Can%20(v1.0).html (246 of 329)10/12/2005 17:39:42 SEp Match me if you candown the sidewalk and climbed into his car, but it wasn't until he edged out of his parkingspace that his headlights caught the vehicle across the street.Earlier, he'd been toopreoccupied to notice, but he wasn't preoccupied now.The last time he'd seen that bright red Porsche, it had been parked at Stars headquarters.* * *Annabelle trudged into the kitchen.Dean was sitting at the table, a Coke in one hand, a deckof cards in the other."It's your deal," he said."I don't feel like playing anymore.""You're no fun tonight." He tossed down the cards."Like you're a barrel of laughs?" Kevin had sprained an ankle in Sunday's game, so Dean hadtaken over in the second quarter and thrown four interceptions before the final whistle.Thepress was all over him, which was why he'd decided to hide out at her place for a while.Water dripped from the sink faucet, its irritating plunk plunk getting on her nerves.She'dknown Delaney and Heath would be a match.The enticing combination of Delaney'sappearance, her tomboyish athleticism, and her impeccable pedigree had predictably knockedHeath off his feet.And Delaney'd always had a weakness for macho men.Annabelle had met Delaney twenty-one years ago at summer camp, and they'd become bestfriends, even though Delaney was two years younger.After their camp days had ended, they'dseen less of each other, mainly meeting in Chicago when Annabelle had visited Nana.Duringcollege, they'd drifted apart, only to reconnect a few years ago.Now they met every fewmonths for lunch, no longer best friends, but friendly acquaintances with a shared history.Forweeks now, Annabelle had been thinking about how perfect Delaney and Heath were for eachother, so why had she waited so long to introduce them?Because she'd known how perfect they'd be for each other.She gazed over at Dean, who was tossing popcorn kernels in the air and catching them in hismouth.If only his passing game had been as accurate.She turned off the dripping faucet thenslumped down at the table, a kindred soul in depression.The refrigerator's compressor clicked off, and the kitchen fell quiet except for the ticktock ofthe daisy wall clock and the soft plop of popcorn finding its target.file:///C|/Downloads/Susan%20Elizabeth%20Phillips%20-%20Match%20Me%20If%20You%20Can%20(v1.0).html (247 of 329)10/12/2005 17:39:42 SEp Match me if you can"Do you want to make out?" she said glumly.He coughed up a kernel."No!""You don't have to look so outraged."His chair banged back down on all four legs."It'd be like making out with my sister.""You haven't got a sister.""No, but I've got an imagination.""Fine.I didn't want to anyway.I was just making conversation.""You were just trying to distract yourself because you've fallen in love with the wrong guy.""You're so full of it.""I heard Heath's voice at the door.""Business.""Whatever gets you through the day." He pushed the popcorn bowl back from the edge of thetable."I'm glad you didn't let him in.It's bad enough having Bodie tail me.He won't give up.""It's been over two months.I can't believe you still haven't found an agent.Or have you? No,never mind, I'd just tell Heath, and I don't want to be in the middle.""You're not in the middle.You're on his side." He tilted back in the chair again."So why didn'tyou take advantage of this golden opportunity to make him jealous and ask him in?"Exactly what she'd been wondering herself except, really, what was the point? She was sick ofdeception, sick of keeping her guard up.She'd only invented her crush to keep from losingHeath as a client, and she no longer had to worry about that."I didn't feel like it."For all his dumb-jock ways, Dean was smart as a whip, and she didn't like the way he waslooking at her, so she frowned at him."Are you wearing makeup?""Tinted sunblock on my chin.I've got a zit.""It sucks being a teenager.""If you'd invited him in, I'd have nibbled on your neck and everything."With a sigh, she picked up the deck of cards and began to shuffle."My deal."Delaney stayed by Heath's side as he spent halftime traveling between the skyboxes at thefile:///C|/Downloads/Susan%20Elizabeth%20Phillips%20-%20Match%20Me%20If%20You%20Can%20(v1.0).html (248 of 329)10/12/2005 17:39:42 SEp Match me if you canMidwest Sports Dome to press the flesh of the city's movers and shakers.While he attendedthe Stars game, text messages were arriving from all over the country updating him on hisother clients' games.He'd been working the phones on and off since early morning, talking towives, parents, and girlfriends even Caleb Crenshaw's grandmother letting everybodyknow he was on the job.He glanced at his Black-Berry and saw a message from Bodie, whowas at Lambeau Field with Sean.So far, their rookie fullback was having a great year.Heath had been seeing Delaney for a month, although he'd been traveling so much they'd onlygone out five times.Still, they talked nearly every day, and he already knew he'd found thewoman he'd been searching for.This afternoon Delaney wore a black V-neck sweater, hergreat-grandmother's pearls, and a trendy pair of jeans perfectly cut to fit her tall, thin figure
[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]