Tempting Mr. Wrong (Wrong Man) (8 page)

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry,” she said as her laughter died down. “That was a scary and threatening expression.”

He narrowed his eyes. “I’ve brought insurgents to their knees with that look.”

She nodded slowly and emphatically. “I’m sure it was very frightening for them.”

Shaking his head, Lance whistled low. “You are one tough cookie.”

“We’ll see about that today.” He gave her a questioning look, and Carly decided to spill it. “I’m sorry if I’ve been a little distracted, but I have a job interview this afternoon.”

He grinned and it lit up his entire face, even reaching those dark, impenetrable eyes. “That’s fantastic. Why didn’t you tell me?”

“I don’t know. I was just…”

“It doesn’t matter. This is great. What’s the job?”

She told him all about the position as they fixed Mya’s lunch.

“Young Heroes? That’s a great organization. What time is your interview?”

Carly glanced at the clock and jumped. “Oh damn, I gotta get changed.” She started rushing out of the room but stopped abruptly and spun around to face Lance. “Ballet class.”

He wiped his hands on a kitchen towel. “Carly, don’t worry about it. I’ll take Mya to class.”

“You don’t even know where it is or what she is supposed to wear.”

“I have gotten my entire unit out of a Taliban-infested village in Afghanistan. At night. Without a vehicle. I think I can manage to get a four-year-old to her ballet class.” He pulled his phone out of his pocket and waved it in the air. “Plus, I also have this little baby.”

“I’ll make it a little easier for you, soldier.” Shaking her head, Carly walked to the counter and jotted down the name and address of the dance studio, along with the time of Mya’s class and what she should wear. She ripped the paper off and flung it at Lance.

She could hear his laughter as she ran upstairs to get changed. Twenty minutes later, Carly was satisfied with her choice of slate gray pantsuit, scarlet blouse, and coordinating statement necklace. She’d even pinned back her unruly hair. Grabbing her oversize black Coach bag that would have to double as a briefcase, she gave herself one last look and flew back down the stairs.

After another quick once-over in the mirror in the foyer, she grabbed a light coat and ran into the kitchen. “Oh, I forgot to mention that you have to park around the dance studio in the back.” She skidded to a halt at Lance’s double take.

The way his eyes slowly took in her body now, even though it was currently encased in what Carly considered to be a semi-boring work suit, was unnervingly sexy. Flustered, she tried to chastise him for his ogling, but despite her best efforts, it was no use.

“You look…”

“Yes?”

“Professional.”

Never in her life had such a mundane, unsexy word sounded more erotic. If a word had the power to perform an action, that one would have had her undressed and quivering with desire already.

She was half a second from jumping his bones. In fact, the only thing stopping her—besides the fact that a very curious four-year-old was right across the room—was the reminder that she had a job interview to get to.

Gathering her wits, she pushed past him, trying to ignore the way his finger trailed down her arm because it was way too tempting to stop and give in.

“Um, thanks.” How could one tiny little finger have such a potent effect on her? His touch caused her breath to hiccup and her knees to buckle.

“Knock ’em dead.” His deep voice filtered out to wrap itself around her, offering warmth and support.

“I’ll see you at dinner,” she said and walked to her car, where she willed a very cold shower to materialize.

Chapter Seven

Carly couldn’t believe it. Her interview had been a smashing success. Outside the building, she bounced up and down and pumped her fists into the air for good measure.

Hot damn. She nailed that. All that research paid off. She’d impressed both interviewers with her knowledge of broadcasting, sales, marketing, and the local area. Every question they asked had been her bitch.

After a quick glance up at the second-floor windows that housed the nonprofit, she gave in. Coast was clear. She shimmied her way into a happy dance. She so wanted someone to call and squeal with. In the middle of a world cruise, her parents weren’t an option. She’d tried calling Piper, but her friend hadn’t answered. Things must be interesting today in France. Of course, she’d already texted Anna many smiley faces and bursting fireworks emoji, but they hadn’t been able to talk since Anna was busy in an all-day training session.

The sadness washed over her so fast that she didn’t have any time to guard herself against it. The person she’d usually call in a situation like this was her brother. Chris had pushed her from the time they were little when he’d dragged her door-to-door to sell their grandmother’s belongings for cash. Grandma hadn’t been amused, but Chris swore Carly had a natural flair for getting people to buy things. Hopefully, that would translate into acquiring donations for Young Heroes.

All through college, Chris had encouraged her to study hard and scale back on the sorority house. He’d been so supportive when she’d interned with different nonprofits and other small companies. When she graduated, he’d been in the front row with his camera. Now she’d just nailed an interview for the perfect job—not to mention at one of the organizations that had played a huge role in both of their lives. No doubt, if he were here, he would have gone nuts.

But he wasn’t here. Grief swamped her all over again—grief that she worked very hard to keep away from Mya, but grief nonetheless. Even though they’d practically grown up parentless, they’d had each other. No one could get under your skin, or just get you in general, like a sibling.

Shaking her head, she walked toward her car. There was one person she could call. Pausing before she got in, she debated the option. In the end, the need to pull herself out of this sudden and rare funk overwhelmed her. Reluctantly, she pulled up Lance’s cell number. She figured that even if Mya didn’t quite understand the situation, she might at least be excited for her. At four, most things excited her.

“How’d it go?” Lance said in lieu of a hello.

His excitement took her by surprise. She hadn’t expected that.

“Actually,” she began, “it went well. Really well.”

“Tell me,” he said, that deep voice carrying through the phone and causing her to tremble. Her earlier feelings of lust surfaced faster than she’d said yes to the job offer.

“Well,” she began as her smile spread. “I got it. I got it.” Now she sounded like her niece.

Lance let out a loud whoop. “Congratu-fucking—Oops. No, I didn’t say a bad word,” he said away from the phone. “Fine. I’ll put money in the swear jar.”

Carly held back a laugh when she heard Mya’s sweet voice in the background. “What have you two been up to?” she asked.

“We just got home from dance class. Next, we are gearing up to do some easy fixes around the house.”

“Really?”

“Hang on. Let me tell my little helper what’s going on.”

Almost immediately she heard cheering in the background. She smiled, even as she teared up. Mya started singing one of her favorite “happy” songs and Carly could see her doing the equally happy dance that went with it.

“Do you hear her?” Lance asked.

Nodding, and then realizing he couldn’t see her, she said, “Yeah.” Her voice hitched and he must have noticed.

“Carly?”

Pausing, she took a moment to collect herself. “I’m here.”

“One sec.” She heard him ask Mya to run and grab something for him then he returned to the phone. “Carly, this is a cause for celebration. How about you go do whatever girls do for fun?”

“Do I want to know what you think girls do for fun?” she asked, her tears drying up.

“Naked pillow fights, obviously,” he said. “But seriously, take the rest of the day off from Aunt Carly duty. I got this.”

“Really?” she repeated. How great was this? Having some backup with Mya was a really nice relief. As much as she loved being with her niece, a break now and then was more than welcome.

“Get your nails done or go shopping, or whatever. Give me and Mya a chance to plan something special for you.”

She put a hand to her heart. “Well,” she began. “I guess I could spend some time at the Pine Springs Mall.”

“There you go,” Lance said.

“And they do have a pretty great nail salon.”

“Excellent.”

She could see it now. Something bright and sparkly on her toes and maybe a darker, bolder color for her fingers. Plus, she could take a walk through some of her favorite stores. She’d need a couple new outfits for work. More to herself, she said, “I think Victoria’s Secret is having a sale.”

Silence greeted her on the other end of the phone. She scrunched her nose up until she realized what she’d just said.

Oh well. If Lance truly couldn’t think of her as anything but Chris’s baby college-aged sister, maybe her little slip would remind him that there was more to Carly Quigley than that.

There. She hoped his mouth was dry as he envisioned her in some super-sexy lingerie. See how he liked it.

…

Lance nearly swallowed his tongue, which would be a bad thing since he’d never get to use it on Carly again.

Holy hell. What was he thinking? Obviously he wasn’t, but not his fault. The woman had mentioned Victoria’s Secret. It’s not like you went there to buy overalls. Is that where she bought her, um, panties and things?

He wiped his damp palms on his thighs. More than anything he wanted to say something flirty. Maybe he could ask about what color bra she wore.

Silently, he cursed. He didn’t lead women on. That wasn’t his style and, quite frankly, it wasn’t cool. But the sexy redhead was making it harder and harder to remember his morals. Swallowing a few times, he said, “Um, well, it’s important to hit up the sales. Always good to save pennies where you can.”

She didn’t reply right away, but he could hear her breathing. Finally, she spoke up. “You’d think tiny scraps of lace and silk wouldn’t cost that much. Oh well.”

He gulped. “Right.” His voice actually broke on the word. What the hell? He hadn’t croaked out a word since he’d hit puberty.

“Well, thanks again, Lance. I’ll see you later.” Her voice had sounded sinfully smooth and seductive.

He disconnected the call and ran a hand down his face. Yep. She was spirited, and a handful. Christ. What was he getting himself into?

“Lance,” Mya called from the other room.

He coughed and jumped, feeling like a teenager who’d been caught looking at his first dirty mag. Shutting that half of his brain down, he made his way back into the living room to find Mya playing with her dolls on the floor. She looked up when he entered.

“How come your face is red?” she asked, the picture of innocence.

“Well…”

“And how come your breathing is so loud?”

Cursing himself silently, he quickly came up with an excuse. “I’m excited about Aunt Carly’s new job.”

“Me, too.” Mya stood up and started dancing in a little circle.

Phew. The kid may like to ask a million questions, but at least it was easy enough to move her onto a new topic. “I think we should plan a surprise for Aunt Carly.”

Mya stopped and her face morphed into a serious expression, her tiny lips set in a straight line and her eyes widening. “Yes!” Then she started hopping up and down again. “Can we make Aunt Carly a sprinkle cake? Can we? Can we?”

This kid is beyond adorable
, he couldn’t help but think while she continued to bounce in front of him. “What exactly is a sprinkle cake?”

“It’s so good.” Then she ran from the room, leaving Lance wondering what had just happened, but she quickly returned toting a large photo album. She climbed into his lap and flipped through the pages until she found what she was searching for. “There.”

Mya had pointed to a photo of her parents sitting at the table, a really delicious-looking cake in front of them. Chris was holding a much younger Mya as Gretchen was poised to blow out the candles.

“Daddy made Mommy this cake.”

The cake in question appeared to be a confetti cake with extra confetti and sprinkles on the top. Rubbing a hand over his jaw, he considered the idea. “You know, I think I can swing a sprinkle cake.”

Taking Mya’s hand in his, they walked into the kitchen. He opened the pantry and studied the contents. They were in luck. Pulling a boxed confetti cake mix and a bottle of sprinkles out of the cabinet, they got busy. But as Mya was preoccupied thinking of cakes and frosting, it was Carly’s bare skin wrapped in silky lingerie that haunted his every thought. The idea set his pulse racing and his mouth drying up.

It was going to be a long couple of hours.

…

Carly arrived home right around dinnertime feeling rejuvenated. This had been the best day with the best job interview and the best pampering session.

Biting her lip, she glanced at the house. A smile spread on her face as she thought about the last couple of hours. A spontaneous mani-pedi, plus that promised shopping excursion. She’d splurged on not one, not two, but multiple bra and panty sets. A new-job present for herself, and hopefully, for someone else. Not that she was counting on Lance. She knew he’d been interested during her somewhat unfair phone-flirting session earlier. But the man had made it clear that he wasn’t going to act on that interest. No matter what.

“Fine. You don’t get to see my underwear, buddy. And it’s really cute underwear, too.”

She felt sexy as sin, probably because she’d slipped on one of her new purchases before leaving the store. Something about wearing the lacy number under her professional business attire made her feel confident and a little bit naughty, like she had a secret and only she had the power to choose who else would get to know it. Again, she glanced at the house. Lance stood in the window and motioned with his hand for her to come inside.

Her belly was filled with anticipation as she got out of the car and strode toward the house with her large purse and multiple bags from the lingerie store. She could hardly wait to see Lance and Mya and tell them all about the interview and new job.

She pushed open the door and entered the house.

“Aunt Carly, we’re in the dining room.”

With a smile, she threw her purse and bags on the floor next to the console table and turned the corner into the dining room, greeted by the man she’d been lusting over all day and her beautiful niece. Only the happiness she’d expected to feel instantly evaporated when she took in the scene. Pink and purple balloons were tied to each chair. Matching streamers had been tied to the chandelier and stretched to the far corners of the room. Most of the chairs were occupied by Mya’s dolls and stuffed animals. The room was festive and celebratory, yet all of her breath whooshed out of her body when she saw a cake held securely in Lance’s huge hands.

No. Not just a cake. A sprinkle cake.

Her heart dropped the way her money had during her impromptu shopping spree. A sprinkle cake, the very thing she and Chris used to make when one of them had a good day. One of the few things she actually knew how to cook. One of her last memories with her brother.

“Congratulations, Aunt Carly!” Mya yelled and threw her arms into the air.

“Congratulations,” Lance said.

She looked at the cake with its white frosting and rainbow sprinkles.
You Did It
was written across the top.

Carly shook her head, glancing around the room, almost expecting to see her brother standing there with his big, goofy smile on his face.

Without warning, she burst into tears.

Lance looked alarmed. He set the cake down and took a step toward her. “Carly, what’s wrong?”

Before she could even attempt to answer, she heard Mya gasp and whisper, “She hates it.”

Lance glanced down at the little girl, whose face had fallen and bottom lip was trembling. She looked absolutely heartbroken and that only made Carly’s tears come faster and harder.

Lance picked up Mya and cradled her to his chest. Mya curled into him and he mouthed over her head, “What’s going on?”

Get yourself together
, she admonished herself.
You made your niece cry.
Carly quickly wiped the tears away even as a huge lump remained in her throat. She shook her head and took a deep, calming breath. She was horrible to ruin something Mya obviously thought was special.

And it was special. Only, Mya didn’t understand why. In fact, she wondered how Mya and Lance had thought to make this very specific cake.

“Mya, sweetie, it’s okay.” Carly crossed the room and ran a hand up and down Mya’s back as Lance held her. Almost instantly, Mya turned and climbed into Carly’s arms.

“I’m sorry, Aunt Carly. You don’t like our cake.” She hiccupped as a single tear trickled down her cute little cheek.

“Are you kidding? I love this cake.”

Mya tilted her head. So did Lance, who had taken a step back and was eyeing Carly curiously.

“But you started crying.”

Carly bit her lip and willed her brain to work in overdrive. She needed to come up with an excuse fast. Unfortunately, nothing was coming to mind.

“I think those were happy tears,” Lance said.

Mya’s head whipped around to face him, and Carly let out a breath she hadn’t been aware she’d been holding.

“Yes, exactly. Thank you, Lance. They were happy tears.”

“What are happy tears? I thought you cry when you are sad or hurt.”

Carly pulled out a chair and sat down with Mya still in her lap, her hands clasped tightly behind her neck. “You cry for all different reasons. When I walked in and saw this cake, I knew you must have worked really hard on it, and it made me cry happy tears.”