Single and Searching (6 page)

"I had a dream last night," she said, her voice husky. "It was a fantasy come true."

He leaned forward on the edge of his seat, his interest obviously piqued.

Underneath the table, she uncrossed her leg, kicked off her shoe and rubbed her foot against his calf.

Gabe's smoldering look sent a sharp pain of desire through Casey. She wanted it to be real.

She wanted to forget the hurtful things he'd written about her. She wanted to forget his father was a Pulitzer Prize winner and that he might be put off by her past. She wanted to forget the fact that he'd called her a loser and that he didn't think she had a brain, right side or otherwise.

But she had to follow through.

"Last night I dreamed about a man who looked like you," she murmured. "In fact he was you. Oh, you were a little rougher looking, you know unshaven, tough looking. You undressed me in the moonlight, and I peeled off your clothes, layer after layer, taking my sweet tune. We made love under a billowing oak tree with millions of stars glittering above us, a soft breeze fluttering my hair so that it tickled your stomach when I lay down upon you."

Gabe, very methodically, placed his fork and napkin on the table, never once letting his gaze leave Casey.

"It was chilly, and goosebumps covered my body. You wrapped your arms around me and hid me from the cold. My body was tight, and I was nervous, afraid someone would see us out in the open. But you mumbled such erotic things in my ear that I suddenly didn't care if anyone saw us. Or heard."

Casey swallowed against the rising tension in her voice. This was exactly what she'd dreamed. And saying it out loud only intensified her yearning that it be real. "I felt the thick coarse hair of your chest touch my naked skin, and it made me go wild." Casey looked into Gabe's eyes. "I'm usually shy, not like this at all. But the dream was so vivid... you were so real... I had to meet you."

"Let's go," Gabe said in a choked voice. He clutched Casey's hand in his, brought it to his lips, then tenderly kissed the palm of her hand. With his other hand, he motioned for the waiter.

When the waiter laid the check down, Gabe reached for it, but Casey quickly slipped it from his hand.

"No, I invited you. I owe you for last night."

"For the dream? It was that good?"

Tingles raced up Casey's spine. Gabe's charcoal gray eyes were almost black. She nodded. "It was that good."

"I want to hear the rest of it when we're alone."

Casey forgot about Gabe the plumber, forgot about her plan, forgot everything as passion flared in his eyes. She wanted to tell him every detail of the dream and then act out the fantasy.

The waiter handed Casey a pen, and she quickly signed her name.

"Thank you, Ms. McIntyre," the waiter said.

Casey nodded, then turned to face Gabe. It took a fleeting second for realization to dawn, and when it did a horrified expression turned Gabe's face chalky.

A hollow, sad feeling washed over Casey. She'd never get to tell Gabe about the rest of the dream. She'd never get to act it out.

Gabe stuttered something unintelligible, reminding Casey of the night before. Her voice was barely above a whisper when she spoke.

"That's right, Gabe. I'm Casey McIntyre."

Chapter 3

It was impossible.

Ridiculous.

A joke.

Gabe clenched the tablecloth with white knuckles. The gorgeous, sexy woman who had just aroused him to the point of pain was Casey McIntyre? The same woman he'd met last night with the wild hair and green face? The woman he'd verbally maligned in his article?

Gabe groaned and dropped his face into his hands as Casey walked away. Images of a woman in a tattered robe revealing slender, long, red toenails popped into his head. Following that vision flashed memories of lacy lingerie and neon green condoms, triple extra-large size. Casey's soft southern drawl echoed in his mind. Yes, it was the same woman. The woman of his dreams.

He glanced up. When she reached the door, she turned back one last time. She wasn't just leaving; she looked mad as hell.

Every word of the article, every detail of their conversation pounded through his head. He'd called her a loser, implied she didn't have a brain—what else? His article insinuated that people shouldn't expect personal ads to lead them to true love.

He thought of the neatly typed list of requirements for the perfect woman hanging on his refrigerator and shook his head. Maybe Casey wasn't his future wife, but the images from her dream raced through his mind, and his list didn't seem to matter. The powerful attraction between them did. Answering her ad might not have led him to his ideal mate, but it had definitely led him to his fantasy woman. Only he hadn't recognized it. And now he'd blown it.

He noticed the car keys lying on the table, grabbed them, then darted for the exit. He'd never groveled before, but he'd get down on his hands and knees to apologize if that's what it took.

* * *

Casey blinked back tears and searched for her keys. Making a hasty exit was important, and here she was locked out of the car! She peeked inside but couldn't see the keys.

"Drat!" What if she'd left them in the restaurant? There was no way she'd go back inside for them. Hiking up her dress, she dropped to the ground and crawled under the car to get the spare one Brick kept taped underneath.

Gabe stopped in the parking lot and sighed when he saw Casey. He
was
going to have to get down on his hands and knees. Come to think of it, it was the second time in two days she had him on his knees and not the way he wanted.

But there was no other way to talk to Casey. She was lying on her back underneath the car, her shoes thrown aside, her dress hiked up, and she
was
definitely wearing a garter belt!

He could see the lacy edge peeking out from the hem of her dress.

What the hell was she doing sprawled underneath the car?

His first instinct was to stand in front of her so no one else could see up her dress. His next instinct was to drag her out.

"Casey?" Gabe stooped down and peered underneath, trying to avoid letting his eyes linger on Casey's legs.

Casey arched her neck, glared at him and scooted further underneath the car.

"Go away!"

Gabe shook his head, half at Casey, half at himself. He wasn't giving up that easily.

Then he unbuttoned his sleeves, pushed them up and squatted beside the car. "Casey, please come out and talk to me."

"I said, go away!" Casey's muffled shout almost made him laugh, but the quiver in her voice quickly stifled that impulse. Was she crying?

Damn. If she wouldn't come out, he'd have to crawl under there with her. He had to talk to her.

He dropped to the ground, lay down and scooted underneath the car beside her. He wished he hadn't. The scent of peaches bombarded his senses, and the tears that streamed down Casey's face made his gut clench. He reached out in an attempt to wipe away the moisture, but she brushed at the tears with the back of her hand, smearing a line of grease along her jaw.

"I told you to go away."

Gabe ignored her icy tone. "I'm not getting up until you do." He'd dealt with criminals before. He could deal with a woman scorned. "By the way, what are we doing under here?"

Casey fixed him with a stare that could freeze fire.

Maybe he couldn't deal with her.

"I know what I'm doing here, but I have no idea why you're here."

"If you're hiding out, it won't work?"

"Of course I'm not hiding out. That would be pretty stupid. Oh, yeah, but that's right. Brainless me might do that."

"Listen, I'm sorry—"

Casey threw up a hand. "I don't want to hear it. I'm getting the key and leaving."

"You put your key under the car?"

Casey elbowed him, catching him in the groin.

"Ouch!"

"It's an extra one," Casey muttered. "I locked the other one inside. And don't you dare say a word."

Gabe dangled the keys in front of her, and Casey fumed. Then he tried to move, but bumped his head on the engine and moaned.

"Listen, Casey, be fair about this and hear me out. I'm sorry. It's just... you look so different than last night."

"So do you, you lying snake. In fact, I think I liked you better as the dimwitted plumber."

"Dimwitted? You thought I was
dimwitted?"

Casey nodded and snatched the keys from his hand. "Yes." You stuttered when you came in." She heaved a disgusted sight. "I guess it was all an act, so I'd believe you were the plumber. What I can't figure out is how you knew I needed one."

"I didn't. I mean I came to take you out, then..." Gabe clamped his lips together, realizing he'd just stuck his foot in his mouth.

Casey's eyes widened in understanding. Fury practically oozed from her mouth. "I see. You came to take me out dressed like a bum, then you saw me and decided I wasn't attractive enough for you! That's just like a man. You want a combination Suzy Homemaker sex slave."

Casey began scooting out from beneath the car, but he grabbed her arm to stop her. She kicked him, and he yelped, then released her.

"Dammit, Casey, stop kicking me and give me a chance to talk to you."

Casey quickly escaped his outstretched hand and scrambled to her feet. Still flat on his back, he had a great view of her ankles. But her accusations stung.

He wasn't normally obsessed with a woman's looks. In fact, he'd placed looks number three on his list of qualities to look for in a woman, the first being neat and a homemaker, the second understanding the demands of his job. Casey's implication that he was shallow hurt. Excuses raced through his head, but how could he defend himself when she was right?

Excuses or not, he couldn't let Casey get away.

He slid from underneath the car and stood then straightened his clothing, Casey ran a hand through her disheveled hair, drawing his gaze to the decadent silky strands. He itched to finger the luscious mass, but jammed his hands in his pockets to keep from touching her as Casey unlocked the door.

"So, all this today was payback? You wanted revenge."

Casey glanced up at him and squared her shoulders. Gabe towered over her, but relaxed his stance when she took a step backward. He knew his height was intimidating, and she was a small woman. The last thing he needed was to frighten her. She'd probably sue him for slander and intimidation tactics, too. He had enough to grovel over already.

"I wanted you to see what you missed last night." Casey planted her hands on her small hips, then jutted up her chin. "If you'd shown up at the right time, I would have been dressed exactly like this. I bought this dress for our evening out."

She put up a good show of anger, but hurt shimmered in her eyes.

He sucked in a deep breath as the dress stretched across her breasts and hips, accentuating her soft feminine curves. She looked young and vulnerable, and made him feel like a heel. Maybe he should crawl back under the car and let her run over him a few times.

"The purple and orange hair? The blue lips?"

"Henry S. put Kool-aid in my hair while I was asleep. The blue came from his jawbreaker."

"The green gunk?"

"It was a facial mask. I was trying to... oh, rats, forget it." Casey gripped the door handle and took a sudden interest in the toes of her shoes.

Gabe tensed. Dammit, she was going to cry again.

He wanted to take her in his arms and wipe out all the hurt, but judging from her expression, she'd never allow it. Hell, he had caused it. "If the mask was supposed to make you more beautiful, it worked." He hoped his voice sounded sincere, not like a come on. She was beautiful. How had he missed those violet eyes last night?

Casey laughed, a soft sound that held no mirth. "Right."

"It's true. But I don't understand." He reached for her, but she flinched away. "I was on time. Our date was for seven."

Casey's expression softened a little as she studied him. "I was running late because of some problems at the juvenile home where I volunteer, but you came at 6:00."

Gabe frowned.

"In your article, you said you'd just flown in from out of state. What time zone were you coming from?"

Gabe's hand flew to his watch. A sinking feeling enveloped him. Casey was absolutely right.

"You were an hour early, Gabe. And I'm the one without the brain." Several long seconds ticked by while Gabe searched for words. Casey shivered as a rumble of thunder shattered the silence. "I need to leave before this storm breaks."

"It'll pass," Gabe said, his voice filled with regret.

She chewed her lip while she studied him. "I don't think so, Gabe."

His chest tightened. "I wasn't talking about the storm."

Casey glanced away, then opened the car door. "I know."

He fisted his hands by his sides. Damn. She was leaving. Walking out of his life.

"Let's try again. We'll have a real first date. Forget about last night. Forget about today." Gabe hated the way he sounded, like a begging, pathetic lover. He took his handkerchief from his pocket. When he cupped Casey's face in his hand, she tensed.