High Maintenance (4 page)

It suddenly became crystal clear. She had to talk to Rick.

* * * *

He never showed up in the lobby. Late that afternoon, a plan in mind, Deidre returned to her room to dress for the evening. Given enough time, she managed to kick out of her jeans. They tore a bit in the process, but she didn't care. Her mother had to slice them up one leg anyway, to make room for the cast. When she returned home, she'd be wearing lots of dresses.

Fortunately, she brought a dress on the trip--dark green, soft velour, perfect party attire. She washed and styled her hair, applying makeup with a delicate touch. She wanted to look just right, and when she finished, thought she'd accomplished just that.

For all the good it did. Rick was nowhere in sight in the already crowded ballroom. Deidre didn't know if she was even on the guest list, but decided she'd crash the party if she had to.

The attendant found her name on the list and asked someone to escort her to a table. It was full, save two empty chairs, and she didn't know anyone there. Her parents sat across the room, her sister and brother-in-law nowhere to be seen.
Great.
She'd end up alone in a room full of happy couples.

Just as appetizers were served, Rick appeared, dressed in a tuxedo, dark hair slicked back neatly. "Good evening." He slipped into the chair next to her.

She blinked.
"Pretty sure of yourself, buster."

"Not sure at all. I've been watching for you, nervously. I barely got my work done."

Deidre picked up her water glass and sipped. "I'd imagine running a resort is a big job."

"Somebody has a big mouth."

"Certainly not you."
She looked at him. "Why didn’t you tell me?"

His face flushed light pink, and he shrugged. "I should have. There've been people in the past who wanted to be with me because of the things I had. It was an awful feeling. I discovered it was just as horrible to have a girl dump me because I didn't have enough. That was a new one, and it shocked the hell out of me."

Floored, she said, "Is that what you think happened?"

"What else could I think? Things were fine until your mother called. She reminded you I was a maintenance man. That one phone
call,
and our evening was over."

"Oh, my God."
She set her glass down. "You got so many signals crossed I'm surprised you didn't electrocute yourself." She glanced around. "Can we go somewhere and talk? I'd like to explain, but not here."

"Dinner's being served."

"I don't care."

"Let's go." He led her out of the ballroom to a quiet alcove. "You look lovely tonight."

"Thank you." She smiled up at him. "You look rather fabulous yourself."

"This old thing?"
He pretended to dust off the sleeve of his jacket, and she reached for his hand.

"Rick, I need to be honest with you. This is difficult for me."

He squeezed her hand, gazing into her eyes. "God, you're beautiful."

"No, I'm not! I'm fat! I've gained a ton of weight since college, and I haven't been with a guy for years. Add to that my leg cast, the fact that it was our first date, I might never have seen you again—"

"Whoa!" He put two fingers to her lips. "Where did all that come from? Is that what was bothering you last night?"

"Exactly."
She shuddered, relieved to get her fears out in the open. What he did with the information remained to be seen.

Rick smiled. "I really was headed in the wrong direction, wasn't I? All the time I thought you were some high maintenance woman, too good for the likes of me."

"Nothing could be further from the truth. I'm a normal, self-conscious woman who doubts herself like crazy."

"I'd like to address your concerns, but this is still too public. I have a suite upstairs; can we go there?"

"Yes, please." She allowed him to lead her to the elevator. Before the door even closed, he kissed her.

"I can't believe you think you're fat," he murmured, mouth pressed against hers. "You're perfect!"

"I've got love handles," she admitted.

"I hope so," he whispered in her ear. "We're both going to need to hang on for this ride."

* * * *

Deidre exhaled and stared at the ceiling. "Wow. That was…wow."

Rick grinned, moving his mouth to her neck, where he resumed kissing. "We missed dinner. We might be able to catch dessert."

"I've had dessert, thank you."

"Me too."
He nibbled her throat.

She giggled. "We can eat anytime. We can sleep anytime. I only have about thirty-six hours left here. I'd like to make the most of them."

"And I like your way of thinking." He nuzzled her earlobe, adding, "Did I mention that I'm a licensed pilot? I fly to and from Denver fairly regularly."

Deidre's heart leapt. "You do?
What for?"

"This and that.
I can see I'm going to be flying there a lot more often."

"Oh, my God!" she squealed, hugging him. "That'd be wonderful! I was trying not to be too needy, but I couldn't imagine not seeing you again. It would have broken my heart."

"Mine too, and we can't have that. No more broken body parts, for me, or my beautiful woman. One leg is enough to deal with. Let me know when you get the cast off. I'll fly up and we'll celebrate—naked in a hot tub somewhere."

"That sounds wonderful." She raised her lips to meet his, and they kissed.

A cell phone rang from amidst the pile of clothes on the floor. "Damn." Rick rose up.

"I don't suppose we can ignore it."

"Probably not.
Excuse me." He made a face as he pulled away then fumbled on the floor for the phone. "Yep," he answered.
"Yeah.
Sure." He flipped it shut.

"That was fast."

"Pretty much what I expected.
My father needs a couple things done at the party. After that, I should be free for the night—if you're interested."

"I am. I'm afraid I'm going to need some help, though."

"Anything."
He helped her clean up and dress then did the same for himself. They made it back to the ballroom in time to grab a bite to eat. While he saw to business, she checked in with her parents. They met at their table shortly before midnight.

"You talk to your folks?"

"Yes. I told them goodnight and that I'd see them in the morning."

He smiled. "Did you tell them I'm not a maintenance man?"

"Nah.
It's much more fun to let their imaginations wander. I'll tell them sometime—later."

He picked up two glasses of champagne the waiter had just poured and handed one to her. "You're going to be busy later."

She batted her eyelashes and smiled. "Yes, I am. Much later, I mean.
Much, much later."

"Right now we have to ring in the New Year. Our first of many, I hope."

Deidre gazed at him lovingly, feeling happier and more excited about life than she had in a long time. Smiling, she raised her glass as the bandleader began the countdown to midnight.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Jamie Hill was born and raised in a beautiful, mid-sized town in Midwest, USA. At various times she wanted to be a veterinarian, teacher, cheerleader, TV star or a famous singer. The one thing she always wanted to be was a writer. Starting at about age ten, she penned romance as she envisioned it in one spiral notebook after another.
 
When she's not working at the day job she loves, Jamie enjoys spending time with her family, reading, and watching movies (the scarier the better!) In her 'spare time' she can often be found writing, editing, or doing something more mundane like housework. After that, she's probably taking a nap. She loves to hear from readers, so feel free to drop
her a
line.

Website:
http://www.jamiehill.biz/

Blog:
http://jamiehill.wordpress.com/

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Best Regards and Happy Reading, Jamie and Jude

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