Blue Mist of Morning (6 page)

"Your wish is my command, Miss Fairchild," Ty replied to
her astonishment, gesturing toward a small shed beside the multi-car
garage. Still holding her hand, he strode away in that direction,
walking at such a brisk pace that she had to nearly run to keep up with
him. At the shed, he opened the door, leaned inside, then brought out a
well-used sled, its red frame scratched and its wooden slats somewhat
bleached, but still strong and sturdy. "Ellie's grandchildren use it,"
he explained. "But I don't think they'd mind if we borrowed it for
awhile."

Anne eyed the sled. It would be fun to go swooshing down a
snowy hill again but… She looked up at Ty. "We don't really
have to do this, you know. You did say that you wanted to start working
early this morning."

Pulling back the sleeve of his coat, he looked at his thin
gold wristwatch. "It's only eight o'clock. And since Kirt probably
won't get up until after ten or so, you and I will still have time to
have breakfast and get organized after we go sledding. You said a sled
ride would make you ecstatic, and I would very much like to see you
ecstatic, Miss Fairchild."

His tone was only partially teasing, and Anne felt warmth
tingle in her cheeks. Following, as he pulled the sled toward the
slope, she wished she had never mentioned sledding. She did love snow
and it did make her happy, but perhaps she shouldn't have expressed a
desire to go sledding. It certainly wasn't in keeping with the
dignified, strictly businesslike image she tried to project in the
office. When Ty stopped at the top of the slope and handed her the rope
attached to the sled, she smiled wanly.

"Well, what's stopping you?" he prompted. "There's the
hill and here's the sled. Go ahead."

She wanted to go, but felt too self-conscious. Shaking her
head, she handed the rope back to him. "I'd feel silly, knowing you
were standing up here watching," she told him candidly. "So, I don't
go, if you don't go with me. Besides, it's no fun sledding alone."

"But you won't be alone," Ty replied wryly, inclining his
head toward Goldie. The dog was sniffing the sled with avid interest
and, at last, politely hopped up onto it and sat down, obviously ready
to go. "She always rides down with Ellie's grandchildren, so she'll go
with you."

"Look, why don't we just forget the whole thing?" Anne
murmured weakly. "I was really half kidding when I said I'd like to go
sledding. I didn't expect you to take me seriously."

"Oh, but I did," Ty persisted, catching her hand again and
impelling her toward the sled. "And if I have to go with you to get you
to go, then so be it."

Goldie was not happy about this new turn of events, but at
Ty's command, she jumped off the sled, her ears drooping in
disappointment. But, as Anne sat down on the wooden slats and Ty got on
the sled behind her, the dog began to watch with alert excitement.

A most curious sensation weakened Anne's limbs as Ty
placed his feet on the steering bar, then reached around her for the
rope. She felt surrounded, and the fact that her back was pressed
against his hard broad chest did nothing for her equilibrium. His hands
lightly brushed her thighs as he held the rope out of the way of the
runners, and she impulsively reached out for it. "Let me hold that,"
she said, her voice slightly squeaky. "Since you don't have gloves on,
your hands must be freezing."

"And what do you suggest I do with them, Miss Fairchild?"
he asked softly, very close to her ear. There was a hint of amusement
in his low voice. "I don't suppose you'd allow me to put them in your
coat pockets so I can hold onto you and keep them warm at the same
time, would you?"

Anne turned her head to look at him and, finding his dark,
lean face disturbingly close to her own, she unconsciously moistened
suddenly dry lips with the tip of her tongue. Knowing she would look
foolish if she refused his request, she swallowed with some difficulty,
then forced herself to say, "Why not? Seems like a logical solution."

Logic, however, had nothing to do with the sudden lurch of
her heart as his hands slipped into her pockets and curved firmly
around her slender waist. She tensed involuntarily. Even through the
thin fabric of the pocket and the yarn of her sweater, she could feel
his long fingers brushing over her stomach, and it was as if he had
touched bare skin. Luckily, she had no time to analyze her reaction
because at that moment, he pushed off with one foot, and they were
suddenly speeding down the slope. Goldie bounded along beside,
appearing to find as much fun in chasing a sled as in riding on one.
And after they came to a stop at the bottom, Ty did allow the dog to
ride when he pulled the sled back up to the top.

After a few more runs, Anne had relaxed completely. As
they swooped down over the rolling terrain, she laughed, uncaring that
the chill wind nipped her cheeks, leaving them rosy-pink. But suddenly
Goldie, overly exuberant, bounded directly into their path, and when Ty
turned the sled sharply to avoid hitting her, it turned over, dumping
them into the snow where they rolled over a couple of times before
coming to a complete stop.

Unhurt, Anne was laughing, until she opened her eyes and
looked up at Ty, who was practically lying on top of her. But when she
abruptly realized that her slender legs were entangled with his long
ones, the situation no longer seemed funny. Warned by the light that
flared in the depths of his blue eyes, she moved restlessly beneath
him, but that did not stop him from cupping her face in his hands and
winding the wayward strand of hair that had escaped her hat around one
lean finger. Then he lowered his head.

"No," she breathed.

But Ty only smiled softly. Then his lips touched hers,
warm and hard, yet disarmingly gentle. Too surprised to resist, she was
perfectly still until his kiss became more insistently demanding. When
the deepening pressure of his hard lips parted the softness of hers and
sent a quickening thrill of pleasure through her body, she was
astounded by her own intense response. Dragging her mouth away from the
enticing warmth of his, she pushed at his chest and scrambled out from
beneath him. Determined not to reveal the effect his kiss had had, she
made a great show of adjusting her hat, while saying softly, "I seem to
have forgotten for a minute a rule I learned long ago: never kiss the
boss. And that's a rule that makes a great deal of sense to me, Mr.
Manning."

"I'm sure it does," he answered, getting to his feet and
pulling her up to stand before him. Tilting her chin up with one
finger, he made her look at him, and there seemed to be a hint of
indulgent amusement dancing in his eyes. "But we both know some rules
aren't easy to follow, don't we, Anne?"

Unwilling to answer such a provocative question, she moved
away, and as they walked up the hill again, she found it impossible to
look directly at him. It was hard to believe that just yesterday she
had only known him as the cool, brusque businessman she had seen every
day in the two weeks she'd been working for him. But today, she knew he
was much more complex than that. He cared deeply about his sister and
worried about her; with Anne herself, he had exhibited friendliness and
a surprising respect for her thoughts and feelings. And when he had
kissed her, she had sensed an underlying passion in him that might
prove to be quite awesome if unleashed. That made him a dangerous man,
and she now had to wonder if she should regret the fact that in the
past twenty-four hours, she had begun to genuinely like him for the
person that he was.

Monday in Alexandria was damp and chilly. Anne felt oddly
discontent all day and, by the evening, she was glad she had accepted
Mike Bennett's invitation to dinner. She needed to be with someone like
him, someone entertaining and intelligent, yet in no way threatening.
That morning, when he had asked her to a concert and dinner, she had
decided on the spur of the moment that it would be good for her to go
out with him.

She had even gone so far as to buy herself a new dress, a
black sheath of real silk crepe de chine, which she had luckily found
on sale. Her conscience had pricked her slightly when she paid the
clerk, because she normally saved every extra penny to help with her
sister Sue's college expenses. But, just this once, it seemed important
to give herself a present, because, since the weekend at Ty's mountain
house, she had been feeling strangely restless.

Even now, as she waited for Mike to arrive, she sat on the
window seat in her quaint, old-fashioned apartment and stared rather
morosely at the tree-lined street below. Normally, she felt content at
home, finding pleasure in the high ceilings and wainscoted walls of her
rooms. She preferred living here in this once-fashionable old home that
had been converted into apartments. Though most of her contemporaries
sought apartment complexes offering swimming pools, saunas and tennis
courts, Anne was happy here without all those recreational facilities.

At least, she was usually happy, but tonight she felt
considerably less content and she knew why. The memory of Ty's kiss
hadn't diminished as she had hoped it would. Still disturbed by her own
response to his touch, she was rather displeased with herself. She
simply couldn't forget the lesson her first employer had taught her
when she was eighteen, just out of business college. And the lesson was
that getting involved with the boss was the prelude to pain and
humiliation.

Strumming her fingers on the windowsill, she resolved
firmly to cease these foolish thoughts about Ty Manning. Certainly, he
had already forgotten the kiss they had shared, and if he could forget
it, so could she. Despite that resolve, it was still a relief when Mike
arrived a few minutes later. Forced to turn her thoughts to him, she
relegated Ty to the back of her mind and smiled as Mike complimented
her on the new dress with an exaggerated wolf whistle.

As Anne allowed him to drape her cashmere stole over her
shoulders, she commented offhandedly, "I've never been to the Kennedy
Center before, so I'm really looking forward to this evening."

"Let's go then. We'll have dinner first, because I
remember you don't like late evenings on weeknights." He grimaced playfully. "You're too much the perfect
employee to go in to work sleepy."

She grinned. "A real party pooper, that's me."

"But a very pretty one," he replied boldly, taking her arm
to escort her from her apartment.

Dinner was enjoyable and relaxing, and the concert was
very entertaining, but, unfortunately, while leaving Kennedy Center,
Anne and Mike encountered Ty and his date for the evening in the lobby.
Resplendent in an ivory satin designer gown and a luxurious mink stole,
Millicent Beaumont flicked a rather amused gaze over Anne's less
extravagant attire. With her barely audible greeting, she conveyed her
boredom at running into two such unfashionable, unimportant creatures
as Anne and Mike. Ty, however, seemed more interested in talking to
them, much to Anne's discomfort. She tensed when he actually suggested
that she and Mike join Millicent and him for dinner. When Mike
explained that they had already dined, Anne apparently didn't
sufficiently disguise her relief, because Ty's gaze suddenly grew cold
as it swept swiftly over her.

"Remember we have a busy morning tomorrow, Anne," were his
parting words as he and Millicent started to move away. "In fact, I
think you should plan to get to the office early."

Nodding, Anne returned his murmured goodnight, then forced
herself to smile up at Mike as they, too, made their way through the
mingling crowd in the lobby. Later, at her apartment, Mike showed some
desire to come in with her, but she diplomatically reminded him that
she had to be at work early the next morning. Yet when he left her, she
almost wished she'd asked him in for a cup of coffee. Already, she was
beginning to feel discontent again. The evening out certainly hadn't
lifted her spirits, and it didn't help to realize that her feelings of
restlessness had increased the moment she had seen Ty with Millicent.

While Anne was driving to work the next morning, her
long-suffering, old car at last gave up the ghost. Without any warning
at all of its imminent demise, it simply and quietly went dead while
Anne was waiting for a light to turn green. Despite everything she
tried, the engine wouldn't start again. In the line of traffic behind
her, motorists began to irritably beep their horns. She waved them
around her, as she continued to turn the key in the ignition, but to no
avail. The engine wouldn't even give a sick cough. Luckily, there was a
gas station just down the block, so after glancing at her wristwatch to
see how much time she still had to get to work, she walked for help.
Unfortunately, the station attendants were all busy, and it was nearly
fifteen minutes before one of them was able to help her.

Back at the car a few moments later, the man bent over to
get a better look at the inner workings. Then he straightened again,
shaking his head. "She's an old one, ain't she? Hard to tell what's the
matter with her. Just have to tow her in and take a proper look. But I
have to tell you, miss, an old car like this might take a lot of
fixing. Might cost you more than it's worth."

Anne sighed, then took a pen and a piece of paper from her
purse. "Here's the number where you can reach me all day," she told the
man. "After you get an idea of how much work needs to be done, call me
and we'll decide whether it's worth it."

Nodding, he gave her a sympathetic smile and took the
ignition key she handed him. As he ambled back toward the station to
get the tow truck, Anne rushed across the street to the corner where
the downtown bus stopped. Though it came only a short time later, she
was still twenty minutes late, as she rushed into the modern building
where she worked and took the elevator up.