Close to Perfect (13 page)

Josh frowned. Who said he wanted to be alone?

Who said he could? The moment they got inside his building there were people all around. Not that Josh noticed anyone but Tess, while she noticed every single woman who passed by, as if they might cause trouble.

Josh knew they wouldn't. They could have been buck naked and doing jumping jacks and he knew he wouldn't notice them or care.

None of them were Tess. None of them would have gotten away with a tenth of what he was putting up with, with Tess.

Suppressing a sigh, he followed her through the building until they reached his office suite. Peg was already in the doorway of her office, dressed in more hippie finery, and spritzing herself with perfume.

“'Bout time,” she said, then looked from Tess to him and smiled. “What kept you two?”

“Never mind,” Tess said as she passed Peg and went into his office.

Josh stopped by the woman's side. “Don't worry, you'll probably get a chance to read about it in a tabloid.”

Peg's reddish brows lifted. “Kissed her, again, huh?”

Damn right he did. “Don't you have work to do?”

“I'd rather hear about the kiss.”

Josh moved past her.

She called out, “Don't forget, the press will be here at eleven!”

Josh nodded, then stopped and turned around. “If you see anyone new, check them out. If they're not from a legitimate publication or station, call the cops. And not Bonnie and Clyde, either, but cops who aren't retired and definitely ones who aren't devoted friends of Freddy.”

Peg frowned. “Huh?”

He didn't have time to explain. He didn't want to waste one second of what could be some quality time alone with Tess, just as soon as he got her into the conference room.

Once he was in his office, Josh paused, then looked over his right shoulder, his left, before turning a complete circle to see that those stacks of tabloids had been removed, there were no new baskets of flowers, and Tess wasn't anywhere in sight.

Josh went into the conference room, which had also been cleared of all those unwanted gifts. He was grateful for that, but still looking for Tess.

He went through all the other offices, greeting his staff as he did, then asked one of the older women to check out the ladies' rooms to see if Tess was inside any of them.

Maybe she needed to freshen up. Maybe she needed to adjust her gun.

“Sure thing,” the woman said. “What's she look like?”

“She's younger than me,” Josh said, “but not that young, not that old either, twenty-eight, at most; she's tall, five-seven or eight in her bare feet, so probably five-nine or ten now, and a hundred and—it doesn't matter how much she weighs,” he quickly said. “She's wearing a yellow suit with a skirt that has a back slit, instead of one on the side, since she doesn't wear garters, but she does carry a—well, that's not really important, either,” he said. “She has on high heels that are covering up her toes, and her hair's long.” He put his hand on his own shoulder to show its length. “It's the color of an expensive cognac, and her eyes are kind of golden with—”

“Be right back,” the woman interrupted, then went to check out the johns.

Her head was shaking as she came back. “Not in any of them.”

“You're sure?”

“Given the way you described her, she'd be hard to miss.”

Damn. “Right. Thanks.” Josh finally went to the meeting room that was being prepared for the press conference and the celebration that would be held afterwards.

Catering staff were setting up the area for the food and booze, but still there was no Tess.

Where is she?
Josh looked over his shoulder, then faced the series of windows when he saw her outside by the dock.

The edges of her suit jacket, skirt, and hair were fluttering in the breeze; her gaze was on those docked boats as she spoke on her cell.

Josh moved to the windows, watching her in a way he hadn't been able to since they first met. Was it only yesterday? Amazing. It was hard to remember what it had been like before she was protecting him.

His gaze followed her skirt's back slit as it lifted briefly in the wind. He regarded her shapely calves as she strolled to the right, paused, then strolled to the left, moving like a dancer as she concentrated on that call.

Josh smiled, then lifted his gaze to her narrow shoulders, that long, slender throat, her reckless joy as she laughed to whatever had been said by the person on the other end of that call.

Was that person as aroused as he by her musical laughter, her cocky attitude, that soft, yearning gaze? Was that person able to make her blush as he so easily could?

Josh honestly doubted it. He had stirred her as deeply as she continued to move him, with Tess using very little effort to accomplish that.

She didn't need to be in a string bikini with water dripping over her half-naked flesh to get his undivided attention. That's what those other women didn't seem to understand. It wasn't raw sex Josh was looking for, it was a reason to engage in that sex, to continue it beyond one night.

Tess gave him that in abundance.

Seeing her gaze on him at unexpected times, feeling the warmth of her fingers covering his, experiencing her in his arms during a kiss was far more powerful than any come-on.

Even when Josh had been poor, before romance got all too complicated and litigious, the women he had dated had not returned his kiss as Tess had.

She seemed to require his mouth on hers as much as she needed to breathe. His tongue wasn't an intrusion, it was welcomed and cherished as she gave it a home. And when he became so lost in the moment that nothing else mattered, Tess took that journey with him as his willing companion.

She was his equal in every way. She would really be amazing in bed.

Josh smiled to her remembered words. She was so damned cocky, but he was no slouch, either. He would win her over, along with all of her friends, relatives, and neighbors, too, if necessary, no matter what it took. He wouldn't rush her, he would wait for her to come to him, and she would definitely come.

There would be a night, sometime soon, when Tess would face him with all of the old barriers gone.

She wouldn't be patient, because that just wasn't her style. She would strip herself bare, and if he wasn't keeping up, she would strip him, too, then crawl on top and give Josh what he most wanted.

A woman who celebrated his maleness, who adored his hard cock, and who was genuinely interested in him, not the money or status, making him feel like the most important person in her world.

It was a need Josh hadn't noticed until now. He had been too busy with work to realize that he was actually lonely.

Not anymore. Not with Tess in his life.

Trouble was, she was still outside, when Josh wanted her in here. He had a slice of time before the conference and needed to relax. She could help him with that.

But only if she wanted to.

Josh lowered his fist before he knocked on the window to get her attention.

If he asked her to come inside to hold his hand, and a whole lot more, she'd be insulted because he was keeping her from doing her job. If he didn't respect that, he'd lose whatever chance he had with her, not to mention pissing off Hank, Sammie, and Freddy.

As if he needed that. Already the unholy trio wanted to crush every bone in his body.

Sighing, Josh turned away from the window only to come face-to-face with one of the catering staff.

She was in her early twenties, heavily made up, and wearing a hungry expression that had nothing to do with the food she was supposed to be putting out.

“Mr. Wyatt,” she said, moving closer, “so nice to meet you.”

Josh had already backed away. Although her gaze and voice were probably meant to be seductive, he found them downright predatory. “Excuse me,” he said, then turned to leave.

She so easily stepped to the side, blocking him, it seemed almost an afterthought on her part. “We'll be finished setting up in here in no time at all. Of course, if you have any special needs, I'd be happy to take care of them... just let me know what you want and—”

“Excuse me,” Josh said once more, then turned back to the window and pounded on it with the heel of his hand.

Tess's cell was still to her ear as she looked over her shoulder, then turned completely around.

Josh gestured for her to get in here, now. If ever there was a moment when she should pretend they were romantically involved, this was it, and Josh wasn't about to miss out on a chance to get her into his arms, again.

Tess frowned as if she didn't quite get that, until she noticed the young woman behind him. Tess's frown faded; she mouthed
be right there.

You better be. Josh turned, then nearly collided with the young woman who had edged even closer. It was as if she wanted him to touch her in all the wrong places, in public no less.

And hadn't Alan warned him about that?

Josh didn't even want to consider the rest. “I said, excuse—”

“Not until you hear me out,” she interrupted, then smiled. “I can stay after the rest of the staff to—”

“No, thanks.” Josh went around her.

She followed, touching his sleeve. “But you haven't heard what I was going to say. Now, I could—”

“Excuse me, Mr. Wyatt?”

Josh looked over his shoulder. A middle-aged man in a tropical shirt and cargos was frowning at the girl.

“Robyn, don't you have work to do?” he asked.

“Well sure, but—”

“Then do it,” he said, his tone allowing no argument.

As she finally moved away, the older man spoke to Josh. “Sorry about that, Mr. Wyatt. She's my sister's second cousin, and she gets kind of stupid sometimes, but I'm sure she meant no—”

“You're right. I'm sure she didn't.” Josh patted the man's shoulder, then looked past him to see Tess watching the exchange.

Josh went to her. He kept his voice low. “Where were you? Didn't you see that girl practically wrestling me to the ground? I thought you were supposed to be protecting me. I thought you were supposed to be pretending to be romantically involved with me.”

She leaned close and whispered, “You never gave me the chance, Josh. In fact, you did so well yourself, I have to wonder if you need me at all.”

As she straightened, Josh looked at her. “You want to cancel the contract?”

She didn't miss a beat. “Would you let me?”

He smiled. “Hell, no.”

Her expression was smug. “That's what I thought.”

“Cocky, aren't we?”

She returned his gaze for a long moment, then lowered it to his fly, as if she just couldn't help herself. “You tell me,” she murmured.

Damn, this woman. “Just wait until we're alone.”

Tess's gaze finally lifted. Her cheeks, throat, and chest were flushed. “And when might that be?”

“Soon.”

“There you are,” Peg said.

His shoulders slumped.
Please, go away.

She slipped her arm through his instead, then pulled him away.

Tess lifted her brows as Josh looked over his shoulder at her. Poor guy. Absolutely nothing was going the way he would have liked. Not only was Peg shaking Josh's arm to get his attention, she was talking a mile a minute about some business problem that he just had to solve.

Josh finally said something that got Peg to shut up and to stop, without pissing her off.

Smart guy.

Tess's brows lifted again as he looked over his shoulder at her.

“No matter what happens between now and eleven,” he called out, “I want you in this building, not outside.”

Oh, yeah? Tess crossed her arms over her chest.

“Please,” he added. “Be here, in this room, at eleven for my thing.”

The tone of his voice, the look in his eyes turned her resolve and brain to mush. “I'll be here.”

Satisfied, Josh went his way, while Tess went hers.

She spoke with building security to make certain they kept an eye on the dock, just in case that paparazzo decided to return. She got today's amended guest list from a member of Josh's staff, and checked out everyone's credentials. When more flowers and photos arrived from Josh's fans, Tess refused those deliveries and made arrangements with the area florists to deliver all future gifts to retirement homes, instead.

“With the photos, too?” one of the male florists asked.

“I'll leave that up to you,” Tess said, then continued with the rest of her business.

At ten minutes to eleven she returned to the meeting room. Members of the press were already inside along with the people who helped make this newest development happen.

To fit in with the rest of this crowd, Tess grabbed a press kit and a bottle of Perrier, then smiled blandly and kept milling about so no one would ask her any questions.

Like who she was, where she had come from, what she was doing here, and how long she had been romantically involved with Josh. Tess finished half that bottle of Perrier as she considered the answer, since that wasn't something she and Josh had talked about. Instead, they had held hands, kissed, and chased each other around his car.