Unbroken (11 page)

When she walked into the spare bedroom, Brian was j
ust placing the last of the clothes from the photo shoot into the garment bags.  He turned as she entered the room, eyeing her curiously.  “Hey, Miss Taylor.  You okay?”

She scanned the room, looking for any evidence of black licorice.  Thankfully she didn’t see any.  “Sure, everything’s fine,” she assured him with a dismissive wave of her hand.  “It was nothing, really.”  He looked a bit skeptical, but thankfully didn’t press her for additional information.  

“Okay, well, as soon as the girls change, I’ll get the last of the clothes packed up and be out of your hair.”

“It
s fine, Brian, there’s no need to rush.”  She took a few steps farther into the room, glancing toward the rack of zippered garment bags.  “Did the photographer get all of the shots he needed?”

“Yep.  I think he’s just taking some shots of the scenery while the crew ge
ts things packed up outside,” he said, grabbing a pair of shoes from the floor and putting them into a cloth bag.  “Can’t say that I blame him.  This sure is a beautiful place.”

“It is, isn’t it,” Britney agreed.  She hesitated for a moment, feeling her initial spark of courage fading fast.  “Um, Brian?” 

“Uh huh?”

She
had to force the words out of her mouth.  “Candace and April mentioned that you might have some extra bathing suits with you.”

“Oh yeah, sure,” he nodded.  “They said they were going to hang out for awhile, hit the hot tub I guess.”  He rolled his eyes, grinning.  “Let me guess, they changed their minds already about whi
ch ones they wanted?”

“No.”  She bit her lower lip
and then smiled sheepishly.  “Actually, I was wondering if you might have another one, one that I could use?”

To his credit, if Brian was shocked by her request, which she imagined that he was, he didn’t let it show.  “Oh, well sur
e, Miss Taylor.  Help yourself.”  He motioned to a small black wheeled suitcase sitting on the floor a few feet away.  “Now that the shoot’s over we won’t be needing them.  Besides, these are just samples anyhow,” he continued.  We have plenty more back at the studio, so take whichever one you like, no need to return it.”

“Are you sure?” she asked in surprise. 

“It’s no problem, really,” he assured her.  “And it’s the least we could do, considering all the help you’ve given us with the shoot.”

Just then s
he heard voices coming from the direction of the hall. Candace and April were probably on their way to change.  “Thanks, Brian.  I really appreciate it.”  She moved to the suitcase, reached down and quickly grabbed the two scraps of red lying atop the pile, hoping they would fit.  Turning, she flashed Brian a friendly smile and then made a beeline for the door.  “It was nice meeting you.  Have a safe trip home,” she called over her shoulder, hoping he didn’t think she was rude for rushing off.

Walking
in the opposite direction of the voices, she detoured through the exercise room and then backtracked to the stairs.  Thankfully she made it up the stairs unseen and then moved quickly to her room, shutting and locking the door behind her.  Moving toward the bed, she tossed the suit onto the quilt and then sat down upon the edge of the mattress, dropping her head into her hands.  “What have I done?” she muttered softly.  How could she have let Candace get to her like that?  It was just stupid.  She had agreed to put on a bikini for Pete’s sake. 
A bikini!
  And for what?  To prove a point to a vain, obnoxious woman who she would likely never see again after today? 

Or perhaps
there was another reason entirely?  Maybe the real reason she’d done it was because she was jealous, said the little voice inside her head.  Though she wanted to, she couldn’t deny it.  It was true.  She
was
jealous.  In fact, the thought of Jake hooking up with someone like Candace made her feel sick all over again. 

She
dropped her hands from her face and fell backward onto the bed, staring at the ceiling. 
I’m such an idiot!
  What did it matter if he was interested in Candace?  It wasn’t as if he was, or would ever be interested in
her
. He dated actresses, models and bold, charismatic women with loads of self-confidence, she reminded herself for the hundredth time.  Not women like her.

But
then again, just because she couldn’t have Jake, didn’t mean that all hope was lost. If she was physically attracted to Jake, then conceivably she could at some point be physically attracted to someone else.  Maybe she wasn’t
entirely
beyond hope after all.  Maybe she
could
have a relationship with a man, maybe not with Jake McCoy, but someone else perhaps.  Of course, if she never made an effort to step outside of her comfort zone, how would she ever know?  Maybe putting on that stupid bathing suit and meeting Candace’s challenge was exactly what she needed to do to muster her own self-confidence.

Sitting up,
she reached for the bikini, holding the two pieces out in front of her.  And for the first time, she took a really good look at the two tiny scraps of scarlet red fabric she held in her hands.  “Oh dear God,” she breathed as her eyes grew wide.  She dropped them into her lap, slowly shaking her head back and forth.  This was crazy!  She should just forget about the whole thing, make up an excuse, something work related, she thought frantically.  But then, there it was again, that stubborn little voice that wouldn’t be silenced. 
Don’t be such a coward!
  “Fine, I’ll do it,” she mumbled to herself as she rose from the bed.

Walking into her bathroom, she
quickly rummaged through her bag of toiletries.  Since she’d stopped wearing makeup her choices were pretty limited, but she did find a tube of pink tinted lip balm.  It wasn’t ruby red lipstick, but it would have to do.   

The first thing Jake noticed as Britney exited the house and walked out onto the back deck, was that she wasn’t wearing her glasses.  The second thing he noticed was that her hair, no longer coiled at the back of her head in its customary cinnamon roll, fell loosely over her shoulders in lustrous blond waves.  He stared, completely unable to help himself, his eyes going wide in astonishment.  It was the first time he’d seen her face unobstructed by enormous plastic frames and tinted glass, and damn
,
what a face it was!  Britney Taylor, his demure, woefully unfashionable assistant was absolutely stunning.

He watched as she walked forward, his breathing
suddenly uneven as he gazed into her brilliant blue eyes, eyes fringed with incredibly long, dark lashes and topped with perfectly shaped, delicately arched brows.  She met his gaze and smiled, the gentle curve of her glossy pink lips utterly captivating.

As Britney held Jake’s
unwavering gaze, she struggled to keep her features cool and composed, hoping that he, as well as the others, couldn’t tell that her show of bravado was a complete sham and that she was really trembling inside.

As his
befuddled mind struggled to make sense of what he was seeing, Jake watched in fascination as Britney unbelted the white terrycloth robe that shrouded her figure, letting the sides fall open.  His mouth went dry as she slipped her arms from the sleeves and then casually tossed the garment onto the back of a nearby patio chair.  He knew he was staring, but he was quite simply incapable of looking away.  He was aware of nothing else in that moment, not Bruce, not April or Candace, only Britney.  She returned his stare, her expression an odd mixture of bravado and defiance, despite the smile.

“
Holy shit,” Bruce muttered under his breath, his own eyes wide in disbelief.

It was Bruce’s low murmur that finally broke Jake from his silent
stupor.  His eyes flickered briefly to the other three occupants of the bubbling hot tub.  Bruce looked flabbergasted, April looked surprised and a little pleased and Candace looked petulant and slightly hostile.  His eyes immediately flashed back to Britney as she walked the few remaining steps toward them, her chin held high, her eyes almost challenging as she came forward. 

If he weren’t seeing it with his own eyes, he never would hav
e believed it.  Britney Taylor was not only drop-dead gorgeous, but she had the body of a Playboy centerfold.  The tiny scraps of red fabric that comprised the skimpy bikini she was wearing did little to conceal the lush curves of her full breasts, left the flat plane of her stomach enticingly bare and accentuated the delicate curves of her hips.  He swallowed hard as she lifted her foot onto the top step of the hot tub.  Then, just as her toes slid into the hot, steamy water, a shrill ring caused him to start. 

Britney halted with
one foot poised to take the next step, turning her head toward the ringing sound of her cell phone. 
Right on cue.
  She’d set an alarm just before heading outside, programming the phone so that it would ring at a specific time, sounding just like it was an incoming call.  She turned back around, an apologetic smile on her face as she regarded the four occupants of the hot tub.  “I should see who that is.”  Turning her back to them, she stepped from the water and made her way to the discarded robe, carefully hiding her smile of satisfaction.  The look on Candace’s face had been everything she’d hoped for and more. And so had Jake’s.

Bending over slightly to retrieve the phone from the pocke
t of the robe, Britney gave the foursome an unhindered view of her firmly rounded derriere.  Then, standing upright, she raised the phone and put it to her ear, keeping her back to the others.  “Hello,” she said to the fictitious caller.  “Um, hmm,” she murmured a moment later.  “Of course, it’s no problem at all.  Can I give you a call back in a few minutes?”  She paused, as if listening to the caller’s response.  “Alright, thanks.”

Picking up the robe, she slung it casually across her arm, and then turned back toward the hot tub.  “Duty calls,” she said,
shrugging her shoulders and feigning a mock look of disappointment.  “I guess I’ll have to take a rain check.”  Without another word, she turned and walked calmly back to the house, pulling the door closed softly behind her.

Shoving her arms into the sleeves of the robe, she quickly darted to the stairs and made her way back to her room.  She was trembling by the time she
reached it, but nonetheless she couldn’t help feeling an extraordinary sense of accomplishment as well.  She’d done it.  She’d taken the first step.

Less than an hou
r later, Jake was walking Bruce, Candace and April to the front door.  As they passed the closed French doors that led into the office, he couldn’t help glancing through the beveled glass.  Britney was seated behind the desk, glasses firmly in place, hair pinned up at the back of her head, holding a phone to her ear.  She undoubtedly heard them, but didn’t look up as they passed. 

“Are you sure you wouldn’t like some
company tonight?” Candace murmured, casting Jake a sultry, sidelong glance as she walked at his side, a few steps ahead of Bruce and April.   “Our flight doesn’t leave until noon tomorrow.”

He could tell the brunette beauty
wasn’t happy about being sent on her way, but he simply wasn’t interested.  “It’s a very tempting offer.”  He smiled and tried to look sufficiently disappointed.  “But as I mentioned earlier, I’ve got plans this evening.” 

“Well, maybe another time then.”
 

It was clear that
Candace was frustrated, but trying not to show it. 

“Are you sure I can’t convince you to join us for dinner, Jak
e?”  Bruce called from behind.

Jake
stopped and turned.  “Sorry, but as I was just saying to Candace, I’ve got a prior commitment.”

“
Oh yeah, I must have forgotten,” Bruce nodded with a knowing smirk. 

Jake shot him a quelling look, then r
eached into his pocket and grabbed his wallet.   Pulling out several large bills, he handed them to Bruce.  “Here, dinner’s on me tonight.”

Bruce grinned, taking the bills and tucking them into his pocket. 
“Looks like it’s just the three of us this evening,” he said to Candace and April.

“I don’t mind,” April said,
smiling affectionately at Bruce.

Jake glanced back and forth between the two. 
He was glad to see that Bruce and April seemed to be hitting it off.  Bruce deserved to have a little fun and April seemed nice.  Who knew, maybe it would turn into something. 

“
Shall we, ladies,” Bruce said, motioning to the door.  “See you tomorrow, buddy,” he said to Jake.  “And tell Britney goodbye for me, will you?”

“Sure thing.”

“You can tell me all about it tomorrow,” Bruce said in a hushed voice then, winking as he stepped past Jake and onto the porch.

“Bye Jake.”  April said
, following a sullen-looking Candace outside and down the porch steps toward Bruce’s rental car.

As soon as Bruce’s car was out of sight, Jake closed the door.  He took a few steps toward the office and then stopped.  Wait, what the heck was he going to say? 
Hey, Britney, thanks for doing such a great job with the photo shoot.  Oh, and by the way, do you have any idea how smokin’ hot you are?  So what’s with the schoolmarm get up? 
Uh, no he thought, rolling his eyes and shaking his head.