Fireside by Susan Wiggs (pdf e book reader txt) 📗

but not surprised by his rock-solid musculature. Although he was tall and slender, graceful in everything he did, he was incredibly strong. She savored the sensation for a moment, then pulled back. Any longer than that, and she’d be hopelessly lost.

“That’s the second time I’ve saved you from your high heels,” he said.

The morning at the airport seemed so long ago. She’d learned so much about him, probing into his past as she prepared his publicity materials. His frankness in talking about his past was so unexpected, yet so compelling in its honesty, she couldn’t help being moved. What had emerged was a picture of a man who had grown up rough, and emerged honest and hardworking, never afraid of a challenge. Her favorite kind of client.

At the end of the evening they returned to Fairfield House. Bo seemed quite pleased with himself.

The house was quiet at this hour. In the foyer, Bo took her hand and pulled her to him, lowering his head to hers.

“What in the world are you doing?” she demanded, batting him away.

“Kissing you good-night,” he said, as if she were an idiot. “That’s what people do at the end of a date.”

She actually considered letting him. Kissing a person told you so much about him. Once her lips were joined intimately with a man’s, she could let instinct do the rest. Kim wondered if she was strange in that way. There was something about a kiss, some nuance of taste or texture, the angle or pressure, that gave her more data than a background check. Mostly, kissing a man told her in an instant whether her attraction to him was justified or not. Usually, the answer was not.

But in the case of Bo Crutcher, she couldn’t risk it. “News flash,” she said to him. “Number one, this wasn’t a date—”

“It felt like a date,” he objected. “Honey, every time I’m with you feels like a date.”

“I beg your pardon.”

“Because I’m falling for you,” he said. “Hard.”

His words made her ache in places she had no business aching. “And number two, we are not people. We’re a client and publicist.”

“Who happen to be attracted to each other,” he said.

“Speak for yourself.”

“Fine, I will. The first time I saw you at the airport it was like being blinded by the sun. I’m not one to believe in signs,” he added, “but when I showed up at this house and there you were, I figured it had to mean something. And I do believe in second chances. I have a feeling you do, too.”

“You have no idea what I believe. I happen to think—”

He touched his fingers to her lips in a gesture that felt far too good. “Hush. I’m speaking for myself here. You should listen because I don’t say stuff like this every day. You’re a beautiful woman, Kim. I know you know that. But the world is full of beautiful women, which I don’t object to at all. And I can look at them and think, yeah, they’re beautiful, but the attraction’s not there, not in any real way. Then there’s you. For me, you’re like the pull of the moon, I swear. I can’t resist you and I wouldn’t want to. Instead, I want to kiss you until we can’t stand it anymore and we need to be closer. And then I want to unbutton your blouse and—”

“Stop, okay? I get the message.” She had an urge to fan herself. She hoped he didn’t notice her furious blush.

“I love it when you blush,” he said.

“Go away,” she said peevishly, batting his hands again. “I’m not blushing. It’s just hot in here.”

“It is hot in here, and you’re blushing, and it’s all good.”

She marshaled her defenses. “We’re done here, Bo. You did a good job at the restaurant and we’re going to put together a great media kit and it’s all going to be good, just as you said. So good night. Sleep well, and remember we have plans with AJ tomorrow.”

“Yeah,” he said good-naturedly, yet she heard an edge to his voice. “But there’s something you should remember, too. There’s a lot more to us than client and publicist, and you know it. You know damn well I’m right.”

At that, she mustered a bit of humor. “Now you sound like one of my clients.”

“I am one of your clients. But I don’t want to sound just like every other guy.”

“Then quit claiming to be right all the time.”

“Look at us,” Bo said, stepping into the room with AJ in tow. They found Kim at the computer in the study. “We got million-dollar smiles.”

After their final appointment at the dentist, Bo felt as if he could take on the world. He and AJ were both extremely lucky to have reasonably healthy teeth. Each had needed fillings but nothing extreme. Dr. Foley recommended an orthodontic assessment for AJ. The laser whitening for Bo created a transformation that was subtle but definitely noticeable.

“Those aren’t million-dollar smiles,” Kim said. “Those smiles are priceless.”

“Hear that, AJ? We’re priceless.”

“That doesn’t mean you’re off the hook. We’ve got more work to do for your photo shoot.”

Bo gave AJ a nudge. “It’s going to pale in comparison to the dentist, I swear.”

“Don’t be a baby,” she scolded. “I’m taking you to a stylist.”

“What kind of stylist?”

“For your hair.”

“Oh, you mean a haircut,” he said. “I usually go to the barber for that. When I’m really broke, I just don’t bother. That’s how I ended up going for long hair. My girlfriend at the time said it was a good look for me.”

“She was right. It is a good look for you,” Kim agreed.

From the expression on her face, he suspected she was making a picture in her mind of his “girlfriend-at-the-time.” She was probably assuming tight clothes and bleached hair. And she’d be right.

“You got a girlfriend now?” AJ asked.

Bo paused. The boy had never asked anything like this before. Bo thought about Kim, and how much he liked her, and how