Читать книгу Campaign For His Heart - Joy Avery - Страница 12

Chapter 2

For the past week, Lauder hadn’t been able to think about anything but Willow. Even now, in the back of the sedan on his way to an interview, he studied the picture of Willow on the About Us page of her company website.

He liked her brown hair cut in that sassy, short style. It gave an unobstructed view of her neck. Man, his lips yearned to explore that neck. She was far more beautiful in person than on a screen. Though he knew it was real, recalling seeing her in the Drip Drop felt like a dream. A dream come true.

“I guess there’s no changing your mind about her, huh?” Chuck asked, seated in the back of the chauffeured vehicle with Lauder.

Without looking away from the screen, Lauder said, “Nope. She’s definitely the one.”

Lauder had agreed to Chuck’s charade, but with one condition: Willow played the part of his would-be lover. Chuck had rattled off his objections, but in the end, Lauder had made it clear that it was either his way or no way.

Now, all he had to do was convince Willow. And judging by the icy reception he’d received from her, that wouldn’t be easy. But he liked a good challenge.

“The one?”

Lauder could hear the surprise in Chuck’s tone. This brought Lauder’s gaze to him. “You know what I mean. She’s the perfect one to play this part. We have history. That’ll make this thing appear much more authentic.”

“Uh-huh.” Chuck rummaged through his briefcase, removed a stack of binder-clipped papers and flipped through them. “History you probably should have thought to mention to me. The fact that you two resided in the same group home for a while does play well.”

“It didn’t—Wait. How do you know that?” Lauder scrutinized the papers Chuck held. “What are you reading?”

“You didn’t think you could send me an email stating you’d found the perfect candidate to play the part of your fake girlfriend and not expect me to vet her, right? And for future reference, it’s best we talk about this face-to-face.”

Lauder laughed to himself. Chuck sounded as if he was running for the presidency. No one cared what was in his emails. Still, he nodded his agreement, then said, “Vet her? You had Willow investigated?”

“Don’t sound so surprised. I have a dossier of people attached to this campaign. Politics can be ruthless. I want to make sure we’re not blindsided.”

Lauder was unsure how he felt about Chuck invading Willow’s privacy or the privacy of the others in his camp. “This feels an awful lot like crossing the line, Chuck.”

“Calm down. Most of the information is public knowledge.”

“Most? And how was the rest gathered?”

Chuck sent a gaze in Lauder’s direction, the look on his face suggesting Lauder didn’t want to know. Lauder shook his head and slid his attention out the window. This was the murky part he hated about politics. How far was too far?

Chuck continued to peruse the papers. “Her credit score is better than mine. Highly respected in the law enforcement community. Her company does a lot of work with Raleigh PD. Obviously, she’s good with her hands because she’s won a ton of awards for her clay work.” Chuck flipped several more pages. “Uh-oh.”

Lauder whipped his head toward Chuck. “What was that for?” When Chuck didn’t readily respond, Lauder leaned in to see for himself.

Chuck moved the pages out of view and laughed. “Chill, man. You’re invading my personal space.”

“What the hell is uh-oh?” Lauder couldn’t explain his dire need to know what had happened in Willow’s life that would warrant an uh-oh. An urge to wrestle the man for the papers came over Lauder, but he resisted.

“Seems Ms. Willow Dawson has been bitten by the baby bug. She has a pending adoption application. Looks like she tried to adopt once before. A kid she’d been fostering.”

“What happened?”

“The application was denied.”

Lauder’s brow furrowed. “Denied? Why?”

“‘We feel the applicant lacks a stable enough home structure and financial outlook to support adoption at this time,’” Chuck read. “It looks like she was just starting her forensic facial reconstruction company and had quite a bit of her finances tied up in it. The social worker made a note about not believing Willow would have enough time to dedicate to a start-up and raising a child. Especially as a single parent. That’s cold.”

“That’s bullshit,” Lauder said, sending a hard stare out the tinted glass. How many kids had been denied a loving home because of BS like this? The system has to change.

“Whoa.”

This drew Lauder’s attention back to Chuck. What had he uncovered now? And could it be any more devastating than the adoption news? “What?”

Chuck waved him off. “Nothing. I just didn’t realize she used clay and skeletal remains—namely, a skull—to recreate what a person looked like. A deceased person,” he said, as if the skull hadn’t been a giveaway. “It’s kind of eerie.”

Lauder shook his head at his friend, then turned his attention back out the window. He couldn’t explain why, but his urge, his need to get close to Willow was greater than ever.

* * *

Willow preferred clay over people. Clay didn’t disappoint. It simply remained there in one big clump allowing you to manipulate it in any manner you wanted, not the other way around. Clay didn’t work you like men.

A vision of Lauder’s handsome face burned into her thoughts, and she gritted her teeth. Her best friend, Hannah, stood next to her and laughed, pulling her from the offending image.

“Um, sweetie, everything okay?” Hannah asked.

“Perfect. Why do you ask?” Willow said without looking at her friend.

“Because instead of John Doe, you’ve sculpted a Nubian god. One that looks very familiar.”

“Huh?” Willow eyed her work and gasped. “Oh, God.” How had she... She groaned. It had been two weeks since she’d seen Lauder. Why couldn’t she stop thinking about him?

“Who is it?” Hannah asked, scrutinizing the form.

Willow sighed heavily, debating whether or not to go into details. Deciding it might help her rid the thoughts of Lauder, she said, “Remember the guy I told you about? The one from Drip Drop?”

“Dude from your past?”

Willow nodded, then fanned her hand toward the chunk of clay she’d unconsciously molded into Lauder’s likeness. “Meet Lauder Tolson.”

Hannah’s cinnamon-colored eyes widened, awareness apparently setting in. “Senatorial candidate Lauder Tolson?”

Willow wiped her hands down the front of her brown apron. “Yep, that’s the one.”

“Oh, my good Lord. Lauder Tolson is your ex? The Lauder Tolson?”

“He’s not my ex. He—”

“Deflowered you.” Hannah grinned.

Heat warmed Willow’s neck and rose to her cheeks. “Yeah, that.” Willow thought back to her sixteenth birthday and the bold, shaky words she’d said to Lauder. I want to do it. I want to do it with you. The lopsided smile Lauder had flashed right before he’d kissed her senseless mimicked the one she’d created on his clay face.

Lauder had spoken the truth at the coffee shop. She hadn’t always hated him. That had happened when he’d taken her virginity and then told all of his friends. Then had the nerve to adamantly deny it—more like lie—to her face.

Hannah started again, drawing Willow’s attention.

Reaching for the piece, Hannah said, “Well, the brother is fine. If you don’t want him, I’ll gladly take him.”

Willow swatted Hannah away, surprised by her protectiveness over the bust. How in hell had she managed to sculpt an entire bust of Lauder without realizing it? This man was too much in her head, too potent in her thoughts. She had to stop thinking about him. But how, when his presence had opened a cavern of old memories? Some good, some not so good.

“Don’t let the strong jaw and perfect bone structure fool you. He’s the Antichrist,” Willow said, staring at the figure as if it were speaking to her. She felt like punching it in the face; however, since it was some of her best work, she refrained. But at that moment, she vowed to never think about Lauder Tolson again.

“Um, Willow?”

“Mmm-hmm.”

“You might want to cover the Antichrist.”

Cover him? Hannah was being overdramatic. Lauder wasn’t that dang tempting. Willow tilted her head to one side and studied the sculpture. Actually, he was. Even in clay form, the man was beautiful. Ugh. Never thinking about him again, she reminded herself.

Lauder did foolish things to her system. Sinfully delicious things. Things that got her juices flowing. She made a mental note to call Reggie, her occasional friend with benefits. She needed his benefits tonight. That would help rid her system of Lauder Tolson.

“I don’t think covering him is necessary,” Willow said. “Now, had you said toss him in the trash, I could have supported that.”

“Nah, you should probably cover it. Apparently, someone left the gates of hell open. And look what just escaped. I might just be willing to sacrifice salvation for a night with that delicious devil.”

Willow glanced over her shoulder just as Lauder was being directed toward them. “What the hell—” She gasped. “No way.”

She frantically looked for something to conceal her rendition of him.

“Use your apron,” Hannah said out the side of her mouth.

Good idea. Willow fiddled with the strings. “Shoot. I can’t get it untied.”

“Oh, yeah. He wants you, Will. Look at how he’s undressing you with his eyes. He wants to blow your back completely out. And judging by those long, muscular legs, he could do just that. Lawd, I love a man in a tailored suit.”

Glancing up caused Willow to lose valuable time. Mainly because watching Lauder float toward them stalled her brain. As she raked her eyes over him, her stomach fluttered. Why did she keep responding to him?

Out of time, Willow blocked clay Lauder with her body as the real thing strolled inside the room. The idea that clay Lauder was staring at her ass made things even more awkward. What had she done to the universe to deserve such a disturbance in her life as Lauder?

One good thing came from Lauder’s approach. It shut Hannah up. When he nodded at Hannah, Willow thought the woman would split the corners of her mouth smiling so hard. Shameless, Willow thought until Lauder slid his gaze to her. The mild sensations she’d experienced moments ago blossomed into full-fledged lust convulsions.

“Willow.”

Lauder’s tone was so damn smooth, so damn steady, so damn confident one would think she’d actually invited him to invade her space. “Lauder.” Nope, her tone wasn’t smooth. Probably couldn’t be considered steady. Definitely wasn’t confident. But at least she’d managed not to moan. A triumph in her book. Small, but a win nonetheless.

When Lauder’s eyes lowered to her lips, a bout of nervous tension knotted her stomach. Why was he eyeballing her mouth? Her eyes were what he should have been focused on. They were the only things he would ever connect to.

Lauder’s eyes rose, and his lips curled slightly. “I found you.”

“I wasn’t lost.”

“We’ve all been lost at one point in our lives. Sometimes, we don’t even realize we’re waiting to be found.”

Willow’s eyes narrowed at him. What in hell does that mean? She didn’t bother asking him to elaborate, because she wasn’t interested in his cryptic logic.

“I really hope these sprinklers work,” Hannah said, eyeing overhead.

Willow scowled at her friend.

Hannah visually attempted to bite back a smile. “I’m going to give you two some priv—”

Willow’s scowl deepened, warning her against leaving the room.

“Like I said, I’ll be right over here.” Hannah pointed over her shoulder and backed away.

Refocusing on Lauder, Willow tried not to pay attention to how good he smelled. Like mature, sexy man. “What are you doing here?”

“I wanted to see you.”

She folded her arms across her chest. “Why?”

“Because you’re nice to look at.”

Hannah made some ridiculous sound that drew both their attentions. Yep, the woman was fired as her best friend. Although, she could admit—only to herself—that he was pleasant on the eyes, too.

“Well, thank you for stopping by to look at me, but I want to do you.”

Willow’s body went board stiff. There were a hundred ways she could have responded to her word blunder: sprint from the room like she was on fire, fake a blackout, slide a heated glance in an audibly tickled Hannah’s direction. Instead, her gaze remained pinned to Lauder’s. She straightened her spine, because that’s what a lady in complete control did. And she was in complete control. Completely.

Clearing her throat, she said, “I apologize. What I meant to say was I have work to do. I should show you out.”

Not bothering to wait for his response, she took off toward the door. Hannah’s warning—a sharp gasp—came a fraction too late. Willow realized the mistake she’d made.

“Huh. Damn, you are good with your hands.”

Lauder said it as if he’d discussed her abilities with someone. Again, straightening her spine, because that’s what a lady in—Oh, hell. Who was she kidding? She wasn’t in control. Hadn’t been since Lauder crashed into her world again. The best she could do was to pretend his presence had no effect on her.

Backtracking to join real Lauder staring at clay Lauder, she said, “I can explain that.”

“Oh, this should be good,” Hannah said just loud enough for Willow to hear.

Lauder lifted one of his large hands. For a brief second, a memory of how his hands used to explore her body—slowly, cautiously, thoroughly—played in her head. Stop it, she warned her defiant brain.

“No need. Obviously, you think I’m nice to look at, too,” Lauder said.

Willow barked a laugh. “Don’t flatter yourself. There’s a perfectly good explanation for this.”

Lauder folded his arms across his chest, causing his biceps to mushroom against the steel blue shirt he wore. The sight was like a magnet, and her eyes were drawn to it. At seventeen, his arms hadn’t been puny, but they hadn’t been sculpted like this, either. Clearly, he spent a lot of time in the gym.

“Okay. So...” Lauder said.

“So, what?” she said absently.

“So, what is the explanation?”

Willow released a nervous chuckle, sobered, then laughed. “I’m a forensic sculptor. This is what I do. I sculpt people.”

“Oh, I get that. But why did you sculpt me?”

Stay cool. You’ve got this. Don’t let him shake you. Play it cool. “Oh, you...you thought that was you?” Okay, so playing dumb was probably not the best strategy.

Lauder narrowed his eyes at her, then slid them to the clay, then back to her. “That’s not me?”

“No.”

He chuckled a sound so smooth and sexy, it caressed her skin, causing fine bumps to prickle her skin.

“That’s not me?” he asked a second time.

“I said no.”

Lauder nodded once. “Huh.” A second later, he glanced in Hannah’s direction. “Excuse me? Can you come over and help me out a second?”

What was he up to? Hannah joined them in front of the sculpture, visibly just as confused as Willow was.

“Lauder Tolson, by the way.” He offered Hannah his hand.

Another toothy smile spread across Hannah’s face. “Oh, I know who you are. Hannah Burrows. Nice to meet you.”

“Same here. So, Hannah, does this excellent work of art resemble me?”

Willow held her breath as Hannah scrutinized real Lauder, then the clay version. She tilted her head to the right, then to the left. A second later, she pressed her index finger into her chin.

“There is a strong resemblance. Especially here in the jaw region.” She used her finger to point out the area. “But I don’t think it looks exactly like you. If you hold your head just right, I guess it could pass for your distant cousin.”

Lauder burst into laughter. “My distant cousin?” He laughed some more. “Okay, I get it. Some kind of woman-code thing going on.”

Willow smirked. Hannah was definitely rehired. Eyeing Lauder, she said, “Now that we have that mystery solved, I’m guessing we can move forward.” Finally getting her apron unknotted, she tossed it over clay Lauder. “I’ll toss it in the garbage later.”

Lauder unapologetically checked her out. His scrutiny diminished some of the confidence Hannah’s flawless performance had given her.

Finding her eyes again, Lauder flashed one of those lopsided smiles he’d clearly perfected over the years. “Will you have dinner with me tonight?”

“Yes,” Hannah said, answering for Willow. “Um, I’ll be over...yeah.” A second later, she was gone.

“So? Dinner?” Lauder said.

“No.”

“No. Wow.” He massaged his jaw as if she’d slapped him. “Just like that? You sure you don’t need a few minutes to pretend to consider it?”

“There’s nothing to consider. You asked me a question, I gave you an answer.”

“The wrong answer.”

“In your opinion.”

“Reconsider.”

“I have plans tonight.”

“A date?”

“None of your business.”

“How about tomorrow night? Or the night after?”

Why did he seem so determined? And was she actually contemplating a yes in her head? Clearly, his delicious scent had made her delirious. “I’m busy for the foreseeable future.” She shrugged. “Work. I’m sure you know how it is.”

Lauder studied her for a long moment. “Well, if you’re busy, you’re busy.” He flashed a half smile, then turned toward Hannah. “It was nice meeting you, Hannah.”

“Same here. And you have my vote. Edmondson is a joke.”

“I agree. Thanks for the vote. I appreciate that.”

Willow rolled her eyes at the unnecessary charm Lauder dripped all over the place. Just leave already.

“I hope you enjoy the rest of your day, Willow.” He started away, but stopped. “Oh. Here’s my business card. Just in case you change your mind.”

Willow took the wedge with a smile, then watched Lauder glide away like a sexy jaguar. Damn, he should really come with a warning label. Hannah came to stand next to her and shook her head. “What?”

“I can’t believe you lied to that fine, fine specimen of a man like that.”

“I didn’t lie. I am busy. With work...and other stuff.”

“You should have asked him to escort you to the A Hope for Home fund-raiser. With that sexy beast on your arm, every eye in the place would be on you.”

“I don’t want every eye in the place on me. I prefer blending into the background.”

“Remaining in the background is going to be kind of hard as a senator’s significant other.”

Willow whipped her head toward Hannah. “I’m not a senator’s significant anything.” She glanced back in time enough to see the elevator doors close, freeing her from Lauder’s spellbinding presence.

Hannah laughed. “You don’t even see it, do you?”

Willow turned back to Hannah. “See what?”

Hannah pinched Willow’s cheeks like a little old lady did a child. “Your cluelessness is just so adorable,” she said in a voice reserved for babies. “Honey, does Lauder Tolson strike you as a man who would give up that easily? He’s coming for you, sweetie.” She rested her hands on Willow’s shoulders. “I suggest you prepare to be conquered.”

Willow wanted to protest, tell Hannah she was insane. Unfortunately, she, too, had the feeling she hadn’t seen the last of Lauder. Prepare to be conquered? Ha! Lauder would never get close enough to conquer her. And that she could guarantee.