Collision (4 page)

“Hey, buddy, how’s the big city?” Conner asked.

“Same as it was when we were here with the tour a few months
ago. What’s up with you? You and Jess get the rig to Wichita okay?”

“Of course we did. It wasn’t exactly my first time driving
this thing.”

“I know.”

“So quit worrying. Tell me about the woman. Is she a bitch?
We looked her up on Jess’ phone. Nice nickname.”

“No, actually, she’s not. I dunno what she is, but she’s not
a bitch.”

“Frigid, like her nickname?” Conner laughed and for some
reason his comment rubbed Brady the wrong way.

“Cut it out, man. You don’t even know her. And that’s the
thing. I don’t think she’s cold at all. I think it’s an act.”

Conner let out a low whistle. “I’ll be damned.”

“What?” Brady asked with a growl.

“You like her.”

“I don’t like her, I just know we gotta deal with her and I
don’t want things to be uncomfortable.”

“Don’t bullshit a bullshitter, man. She may be ‘The Ice
Queen’, but you still wanna tap that. Hey, she’s beautiful, I get it.”

Brady felt another growl trying to work free and knew it
would only give Conner more ammunition, so he tamped down his annoyance. “Look,
just don’t be a dick when you meet her, okay? I think she’s going through some
stuff right now and having a hard time dealing with it. She doesn’t need pricks
like you making things worse.” When all he heard was silence on the other end
of the line, he swore. “Look, I’m sorry, man. I know you treat women right.
You’ve been great with Jessica and I had no right to say what I did.”

“It’s no big deal. I knew you didn’t mean anything by it,
but I will say this. Be careful. She’ll eat you alive, man. Anyway, just don’t
do anything you’ll regret later.”

Brady sighed, running a hand through his hair. “Thanks. And
thanks for being straight with me. I needed someone to kick me in the ass.”

“You always do,” Conner retorted, laughing.

He hung up and Brady sat back against the pillows. Maybe a
little wining and dining would melt the “Ice Queen”. He smiled a little just
thinking about it.

After waking from her nap feeling refreshed, Leah called
James to update him on the day’s events. Even though she was an old pro at
doing press tours James still liked to hear from her after each day was over.
He’d always been a worrier, which was secretly kind of nice considering he was
the only person who worried about her at all.

“Hello?”

“Hi, James, it’s me.”

“How did it go? How was the cowboy?” Leah could hear the
amusement in James’ voice and had to laugh.

“Actually, he’s really nice. He seems to be making a concentrated
effort to make me feel comfortable with this whole thing.”

“I saw you guys on the morning show. You killed it,
naturally, but what was up with him?”

“Oh, you mean getting mad at Evan?”

“Yeah, what was that about? Do you think he actually
has
watched figure skating?”

“I’m not sure why he reacted like that…” Leah said with a
note of hesitation. Sometimes maintaining professional distance with James was
difficult since in a lot of ways he was the closest thing she had to a friend
and she found herself wanting to confide in him.

“I thought Brady was going to punch him for a minute there.
Imagine the ratings.” James laughed and Leah joined in, though the sound was
forced. She hated to admit to James that she was so confused about Brady. James
would just tell her what she already knew. It was a colossally bad idea to get
involved with a cowboy she’d be saying goodbye to in a few short weeks.

“Anyway,” she continued, deciding an immediate change of
subject was in order, “everything went fine. We’ve got those other interviews
tomorrow and then we’ll be hopping on the plane to the bustling metropolis of
Pueblo, Colorado.”

James snickered. “Have fun. Let me know when you land.”

“Will do.”

After hanging up and throwing her phone on the bed, she
dressed in a simple black, long-sleeved jersey sheath with a silver belt and
matching ballet flats. She felt a little frumpy not wearing a heel, but had to
be careful about tottering around on stilettos with her ankle injury. She
doubted Brady would notice or care. A trip down to the hotel restaurant wasn’t
worth getting excited about anyway. Even as she told herself that, her heart
skipped a beat as she thought about the prospect of spending the evening with
Brady. She hadn’t anticipated a night out with a man this much in, well, longer
than she cared to remember. And it wasn’t even like they were going on a date—more
like a business dinner. Despite that, she couldn’t calm the butterflies in her
stomach, and she jumped a foot when the knock came at her door.

Opening it, she gasped. There, on the other side, looking
like pure sin, stood Brady in an exquisitely tailored, black two-button suit
with a red shirt underneath open at the collar. “Surprised?” he asked, one side
of his mouth kicking up in a sardonic smile.

“I…just…wow. You look—”

“Devilishly handsome?” he finished, leaning on the
doorframe.

“Devilishly something…”

He laughed. “You about ready?”

Leah looked down at herself and felt underdressed, which was
definitely an odd sensation for her, especially where she and Brady were
concerned. “Why don’t you come in? I was just, um, putting on some jewelry.”

Brady smirked and stepped into her room. She couldn’t
believe how small the space felt with his male presence overwhelming it.
Backing away, she turned and went to the hotel safe. Extracting a diamond
solitaire necklace and matching earrings, she stood. “Here, let me do that,” he
told her.

She held up her hair as he reached around her neck. Her
necklace looked so incongruous sheltered in his big, rough hands. He fastened
the clasp and then followed the line of the necklace back down her neck, where
he let his hands rest on her shoulders. Leah’s breathing sped up and her
nipples beaded as his fingers inched closer to them. He stopped before he
reached her breasts, though, choosing instead to pull her back into his hard
chest. A soft whimper escaped her as her bottom came in contact with the very
definite evidence of his arousal. Pushing it against her, he let out a low groan.

He spoke, his breath fanning over her ear. “You look
breathtaking tonight. I’ve definitely worked up an appetite, but not for food.
My mama raised me to be a gentleman, though, and I promised you dinner.”
Backing away, he reached for her coat as she tried to get her wildly erratic
pulse under control. It wouldn’t do to faint at his feet.

As she put on her earrings, she asked, “Why do I need a
coat?”

“Because it’s cold outside.”

“I know that. But aren’t we just going to the hotel
restaurant?”

“Nope.” He helped her into her coat and held out his arm.
“Shall we?”

“Don’t you have a coat?”

“Not with me. At least, not one that goes with this suit.”
He smiled. “It’s a short cab ride. I’ll be fine. If I get cold, though, will
you warm me up?”

Not rising to the occasion and answering him, Leah
half-turned and looked at him from underneath her lashes. She could see the
pulse at the base of his neck beating in a staccato and had to restrain herself
from reaching up and touching it. If she did, though, she’d be making the
biggest mistake of her life. Brady wasn’t for her, and she wasn’t for Brady. No
matter how attracted they were to each other, it would never work. Their worlds
were simply too far apart.

She slipped her hand through his arm and he led her out of
the room. When they reached the lobby he gently steered her toward the exit.
“Where are we going?”

“It’s a surprise.” He stepped up to the valet, who hailed a
cab. Once they were inside he leaned forward and spoke in low tones to the
driver, then sat back.

“You’re not going to tell me where we’re going?”

“Nope. But I’ve been told there’s a wide range of stuff on
the menu, so you should be able to find something you’ll like.”

“How fancy is this place?” she asked, eyeing his suit.

He shrugged. “Enough. And I’m buying. I asked, and I’m
buying. You got that?”

“But you paid for the coffee this morning,” she protested.

Brady slid her a mocking look. “Sugar, I can afford to buy
you a three-dollar cup of coffee
and
still buy dinner. I told you, I
asked you out on this date, and I’m paying.”

She winced inwardly at his use of the word “date” and
wondered exactly what he was expecting out of the night. Leah had been taught
to be tactful, though, so she assented. “All right, but I’ll make you a deal.
You have to let me reciprocate sometime.”

“Deal. We’re here.” He handed a bill to the driver and
helped her out of the cab.

Looking up, she saw they were standing in front of one of
New York’s best steak and seafood houses. “You actually got a reservation
here?”

“Yep. Apparently using your name helped. Who knew?” He threw
a thousand-watt smile her way and she didn’t know whether to laugh or scream.

Instead of doing either, she tucked her hand back into his
arm and tugged him forward. “I’m starving.”

“Now, you’ve gotta promise me you’re not gonna order some
dinky salad and call it dinner.”

A laugh escaped Leah before she could help it. “This is a
great restaurant. I promise to eat more than a salad.”

“That’s my girl.” As he said it, he covered her hand with
his free one and squeezed, beaming down at her, and she felt another rush of
heat course through her. At this rate she’d make Brady her dessert. After
ushering her into the restaurant, he spoke to the hostess, who seated them in a
cozy booth overlooking a large dining room. Brady handed her the wine list.
“Pick something. You undoubtedly know more about wine than I do.”

“I really don’t know much about alcohol beyond the standard
things like ordering Dom Perignon if you want champagne. I don’t drink much,”
she answered, shrugging.

“Not even wine?”

“Not really.”

He tilted his head to the side. “Why not?”

“A figure skater only has a finite number of calories they
can take in during the course of a day. I don’t waste them on things like
alcohol. I usually drink water.”

“A finite number of calories? But you must burn off a lot of
them training, don’t you?”

“Yes,” Leah acknowledged, “but I’m still careful about what
I eat. If I gain weight my balance gets thrown off for my jumps and spins. It’s
hard to maintain equilibrium when you’re constantly fighting with your
balance.”

“Yeah, I can understand that.”

“You can?” Leah couldn’t believe he’d let it go so easily.
Most guys hounded her about how one glass of wine wouldn’t kill her, how she
needed to lighten up, etcetera.

“Of course I can. Balance is essential for what I do too.
You get bucked off the bull in a heartbeat if you’re not balanced. Water it
is.”

“You don’t have to drink water,” Leah protested. “Really.
Have a glass of wine or a beer. Drink whatever you want to. It doesn’t bother
me.”

“It would bother
me
. Let’s look at the menus.”

The waiter approached and told them about the evening’s
specials. After hearing them, both immediately ordered one. They were left
alone once again and Brady turned to her. “So tell me about yourself.”

“Not much to tell,” Leah replied. “I was born and raised in
Stamford. My parents were already forty when I was born. I wasn’t planned.
Their lives were established, and a child didn’t fit into their grand scheme.
My dad worked in Manhattan as a stockbroker and my mom was one of those types
who hung out at the country club and played tennis and bridge with her friends
whose husbands were also in the city working during the day. I was raised by a
nanny, mostly, and sent to private schools.”

She recited her life story almost as if it hadn’t happened
to her. Through time she’d pushed all those feelings of hurt and rejection far
down into her soul—it was the only way she could survive. “I started skating
when I was six. I think my parents put me in lessons so they’d have some way to
show me off, you know, the beautiful little girl in the beautiful little dress
gliding around the ice. They’d let the nanny get up at five a.m. and drive me
to skating practice seven days a week for months, and then when it came time
for competitions all of a sudden they’d turn into doting parents, pretending to
be all involved with my skating.” She knew her voice had turned bitter and
frankly didn’t care. It was all true.

He slipped his hand into hers on the table and she didn’t
stop him. The contact felt too good.

“As I got better, it was a way to seek my parents’ approval.
So I practiced and practiced and began competing on the junior circuit when I
was nine. I’d moved to the senior circuit by the time I’d turned sixteen. I
filed for emancipation from my parents then. I could afford to live on my own
and I was tired of being their little showpiece.” She took a deep breath and
continued, staring at the table in front of her as she twisted the cloth napkin
in her fingers with the hand that Brady wasn’t clutching.

“They didn’t even contest it when the attorney called. I
think they were secretly relieved. The only thing they were angry about was
that it embarrassed them in front of their friends and colleagues. I found an
apartment and asked my nanny, who was more of a mother to me than my birth
mother ever was, to move in to cook and clean and watch the place when I was
away from home. When I was twenty she left to work for another family.” She
knew how pathetic she sounded. Her skating career was slipping through her
fingers and she had no idea what she was going to do after retirement. She
didn’t have anything or any
one
else.

“So do you still talk to your parents?”

“Not very often. They’re retired and travel a lot. They send
a check at Christmas. I don’t bother sending anything back. There’s nothing
they need or want.” She sighed and withdrew her hand, looking up at Brady.
“Don’t get me wrong. I don’t hate them. It’s not worth the energy to hate
them.”

“That’s kinda sad.”

“Why?”

“Because I think you should let yourself feel things. I’ve
seen flashes of emotions in you, but then you just shut down.”

“It’s easier that way.”

“I’m sure it is. I just don’t think it’s healthy.” When Leah
began to object, he grabbed her hand again and pulled it to his lips. “Shhh.
I’m not trying to make you angry. I just think you should let people in every
once in a while.”

He began to kiss her fingers and she stared at his mouth.
How could such a simple touch undo her? If only he knew how far inside she was
letting him, against her better judgment. There were people who she’d known for
years who didn’t have this much insight into her. A tear formed in the corner
of her eye and she hastily swept it away before Brady noticed and felt even
sorrier for her. She didn’t want his pity.

Their meals arrived and conversation turned to more mundane
topics. When they finished, Brady suggested a walk, and since she wasn’t
wearing heels, she agreed, figuring it would do her ankle good to get some
exercise. They went to Fifth Avenue and strolled along with the tourists,
checking out the window displays of the various department stores.

“I bet you shop in these stores, huh?” he teased her.

“Some of them,” she admitted. As they continued to walk
their arms bumped occasionally, sending pulses of heat through Leah. This man
was too potent for her state of mind. After they’d strolled for a while she
glanced at her watch and then said, “I should be getting back. We have another
long day tomorrow.”

“Sure,” Brady answered. He hailed a cab and helped her into
it. At the hotel, he took her room key. But before he opened her door, he
gently turned her to face him, her back to the door. “Thank you for coming out
with me. I had a great time.”