All Night Woman: A Contemporary Romance (15 page)

“Is that supposed to be a compliment?”

“Well, yeah.”  He didn’t get a raging hard-on for just anyone.  Being close to her, seeing her, smelling her, even just thinking about her threw him into lust.  No one else had been able to elicit that kind of response by doing nothing other than simply
being
.  That was a compliment in his book.

“I’m flattered really.  The guy who can’t bother to call even though he’s been in town for weeks wants to fuck me.  Lucky me.”

Her sarcasm and uncharacteristic use of vulgar language had his hackles rising, right along with his voice.  “I want more than that, Liz.”

“Yeah, you probably want a blow job, too.  Why don’t you flash some of that cash downstairs and get it from a pro, Miles, because I’m done.”

Why was she being like this?  He was trying to pour his heart out to her and she wasn’t even listening!  It was like déjà vu, except instead of being in a swanky hotel room, he was suddenly back in his shitty studio apartment listening to Mandy tell him what a lousy husband and father he was, despite the fact that he was busting his ass and doing the best he could. 

He stood.  He didn’t need this crap, no matter how much he wanted her.  He wasn’t eighteen, and he sure as hell hadn’t done anything to deserve this.  “Fine.  Maybe I will.”

“We just need to get through this weekend, Miles.  Then I never want to see you again.”

“Sounds about right to me.”

Miles stormed out of the room without looking back.  What the hell had he been thinking?  Would he never learn?  He had been a fool to believe Liz was any different.  Even more of a fool to go and do something really stupid, like fall in love with her.   

He went down to the bar with every intention of making good on his threat.  Within minutes a pretty brunette sidled up to him and took the seat to his left. 
Perfect
.

He signaled the bartender and gave her his best, seal-the-deal smile.  “Whatever she wants.”

* * *

L
iz allowed herself a good cry.  She told herself that it didn’t matter, that he wasn’t worth it.  Her heart called bullshit. 

Liz wiped her nose and splashed some cold water on her face, grimacing when she caught her reflection in the mirror.  Her skin was pale and blotchy, and what little remained of this morning’s carefully applied makeup was now a smudged mess.  She looked tired.  And old.

What had Miles seen in her, anyway?  She wasn’t beautiful.  She wasn’t young.  She wasn’t rich.  She wasn’t even all that good in bed, really, though he’d made her feel like she was.  When she’d been with Miles, he’d made her feel like the most desirable woman in the world. 

Maybe he was telling the truth, her heart tried again.  Maybe he did want more.  Maybe there was a perfectly good reason he hadn’t called or stopped by or told her he was in town. 

God, she wanted to believe that.  But it just seemed so ... impossible.  Miles was handsome, successfully, charming, and wealthy.  He could (and probably did) have any woman he wanted.  Why her?  Did he think that because she was still single at thirty-five and had her own career that an occasional hook-up of hot sex was enough?  That as a mature woman, she wouldn’t want anything more than that?  

Liz turned on the shower, letting the bathroom fill with steam.  She stepped under the hot spray, relishing the burn and pulse of the powerful jets.  Maybe she was wrong to want more.  Just because Holly had found her happiness didn’t make it any likelier that she would find hers.  Less than a year ago, neither one of them really believed in the whole “other half of your soul” concept.

Was she stupid for sabotaging what could be another weekend of incredible passion?  So what if it couldn’t be more than that?  Hot, spectacular sex was still hot, spectacular sex.  And it sure as hell beat crying in a shower all alone.

It had all seemed so clear back in Covendale.  She had managed to convince herself that she would be better off without Miles Grayson, and that surrendering to the bone-melting desire to spend another night or two with him would only be more painful in the end. 

But now, her resolve was wavering, and she wasn’t so sure.  Being around Miles did something to her.  No matter how hard she tried to think objectively and rationally, she couldn’t.  The moment he entered a room all of her senses went into Miles mode.  Her eyes drank in the sight of him.  His scent released more endorphins than a 5K run.  His voice sent shivers up and down her spine, creating erotic little ripples in her most feminine of places.  Her mouth watered for another taste of him, rich and dark and sensual.  And touch... well...

Her nipples hardened and she moaned, remembering exactly what Miles’ touch could do.

Maybe she had been too rash.  Maybe they could do this.  Maybe she didn’t need more.  After all, she was doing fairly well on her own, right?  She had a good job, a nice place to live, a decent car.  She took at least one really nice vacation every year.

She didn’t need a man to make her happy.

This time it was a different part of her that cried bullshit.

Liz reached out and turned the faceted crystal knob from hot to cold, hoping the cool blast would stem her rampant lust.  She gritted her teeth, and willed her body to stop wanting Miles Grayson. 

It didn’t work.

She stepped out of the shower, teeth chattering, body shivering, and still horny as hell.

“Well, you’re not going to get any tonight, Elizabeth,” she scolded herself.  “You made damn sure of that.” 

She pulled on her soft cotton Eeyore pajama pants and matching camisole top, resigned to spending an uneventful – and completely frustrating – night alone.  It wasn’t much different than a typical night at home, actually, except Miles Grayson didn’t have a room less than a hundred feet away.

A soft knock sounded at the door, and Liz’s heart leapt with hope.  Maybe it was Miles.  Maybe he felt just as miserable as she did, and wanted to make amends.

“Liz?  Did I wake you?”  Holly asked when Liz opened the door. 

“No, just making use of the mini-bar and watching a movie,” she said, hiding her disappointment.  It wasn’t exactly a lie; the TV was on and she’d had that Coke.  “Are you feeling better?”

“Yeah, loads, thanks.”  She smiled sheepishly.  “I just have to remember to stay away from anything with garlic for a while.  Apparently it’s a trigger for me.”  Holly peeked into the room, but made no move to enter.  “Are you, um, alone?”

Unfortunately.
  “Yes, of course.  Come on in.”

“Oh, I thought maybe Miles was here.  The way he was looking at you today...”

“No, Holly.  Miles isn’t here.”  The howling ache in her core attested to that.

Holly’s sigh of relief was audible.  “Yeah, I should have known better.”

Liz refrained from asking Holly exactly what she meant by that.  Either it implied that she didn’t think Liz was up to Miles’ standards, or that she didn’t think Liz was stupid enough to be seduced by him.  Neither of those possibilities was particularly appealing.

In any event, it wasn’t what had brought Holly to her room.  “Is there a problem?”

“Sort of.  Brandon’s been in a car accident.”

“Oh my God!  Is he okay?”

“Yeah, he’s fine, just a few bumps and bruises. They’re not even keeping him overnight.  Apparently some idiot ran a stop sign and T-boned him in town.”

“Have you tried Miles’ cell phone?”

“Yeah.  He’s got everything going to voicemail, but I think he’d want to know about this.”

“Yeah, of course he would.”  She might not know all that much about Miles, but there was no mistaking the look in his eyes whenever he talked about his son.

“Adam’s gone down to the bar to see if he’s down there.  He’s probably just gone for a drink or something.”

Or something
. “Want to hang out here till he comes back?”

“Thanks, but I’d better get back in case someone calls the room.”

Liz nodded.  “Makes sense.”

As Holly turned to go, the elevator doors opened and Liz’s heart dropped.  Miles was in the car, a young, attractive brunette flanking him on either side.  His eyes opened wide when he spotted her. 

“Liz - ”

Liz couldn’t have spoken if she wanted to.  Seeing that Miles had actually picked up two women and was bringing them back to his room hurt more than she possibly could have imagined.  For several long seconds, her lungs refused to expand, and her eyes burned. 

Holly, however, straightened to her full height. “Miles.  We need to talk.”

T
he minute he’d left the bar he had known it was a mistake.  Instead of looking forward to blowing off a little steam with the willing brunettes, he was dreading it.  Yeah, he wanted to have sex.  But not with them.   

As they rode the elevator up to his room, the shorter one (Krista?) was palming him through his slacks; the taller one (Pam?) was licking around the outer shell of his ear.  It should have been hot.

It wasn’t.  It was... uncomfortable.  It felt wrong.

Shit, he couldn’t do this.

He watched the progression of the lighted floor numbers, each one accompanied by a soft chime.  He made up his mind.  As soon as they reached his floor, he was going to get off the elevator
alone
.  He would express his apologies, maybe give them a little something for their trouble, and send them on their merry way.  Then he was going to go to his room, shower off the smell of smoke and whiskey and perfume, and pound on Liz’s door until she agreed to talk to him.

He never should have stormed out of her room; it had been a knee-jerk reaction based on prior experiences.  Yes, she’d unwittingly hit a few nerves.  Yes, he’d been pissed.  But after he had a chance to think about it, he couldn’t blame her.  She couldn’t be expected to know how he felt, not when he had made no effort to tell her.  When he looked at it from her point of view, he could understand why she had come to the conclusions she had.  They had only been together twice, really, and both times there hadn’t been a whole lot of talking or traditional romancing.

What there had been was lots of hot, sweaty,
spectacular
sex.

As wonderful as it was, he wanted more.  And he was going to rectify that, even if it took him all night.  By the time he was finished, she would know
exactly
how he felt about her.

When the elevator doors finally opened, however, everything went straight to hell.  

Holly was staring daggers at him and Liz just looked... shocked.  Had Liz confided in Holly?  Or was that blatant look of disdain because of the giggle twins currently latched onto him and making a game out of searching his pants pockets for his room key?

“Adam’s been looking everywhere for you,” Holly practically barked at him.  “Can’t you answer your goddamn phone?”

Just what he needed.  Someone else pissed off at him.  Holly might as well get in line. Liz was his top priority.  Once he explained everything to her, then he would deal with everyone else. 

“Must have left it in the room.  I wasn’t aware that I was on call.”

Holly’s eyes narrowed and her hands went to her hips.  “You’re still a father, aren’t you?”

The words stole the breath from his lungs, turned his blood to ice.  “Something happened to Brandon?”

Holly looked pointedly at the brunette on his left, then the one on the right.  Then her eyes bore into him like lasers, her fierce expression and thinned lips clearly broadcasting her disapproval. 

“Yeah.  He was in a car accident.  He’s fine, but it shook him up.  He’s been trying to reach you all night.”

All thoughts of clearing things up with Liz were pushed into the background.  His son needed him.  Miles peeled the two women’s hands away.  “Sorry, ladies.  Here,” he said, whipping out two one-hundred dollar bills and pressing them into their hands.  “Have a nice dinner on me.”

Miles stalked toward his room, leaving the four women to glare at each other across the hallway.  “Go on, now,” he heard Holly say to them, “Go find your thrills elsewhere.”

“And who the hell are you?” said one of them in a challenging tone. 
Great
.  On top of everything else, he was going to have to break-up a cat fight.  Thankfully, the second set of elevator doors opened and Adam appeared.  He followed Holly’s fierce glare to the two women in the elevator then caught Miles’ eye.  There was disappointment there, but understanding, too. 

“Go,” Adam said.  “I got this.  Brandon’s cell got busted up, so call him at the house.”

Miles nodded his gratitude, leaving Adam to deal with the situation.  He had to call his son.

An hour later, Miles hung up the phone.  Brandon was fine (thank God), but the used Subaru Impreza he had been driving was totaled.  Miles didn’t give a shit about the car, but hearing the extent of the damage made him realize just how bad it could have been.

And once again, Adam had been the one to be there for him.

It had been Adam the hospital called.  It had been Adam that had talked to Brandon first.  It had been Adam who had been ready to postpone his wedding in order to fly back to Covendale, though Brandon had talked him out of it.

And where had he been?  In a bar, picking up women, because Liz had called him out. 

Liz
.  The urge to see her was strong, and not for the usual reasons.  He just wanted to be close to her.  To hold her in his arms and breathe in her soft scent until she worked her magic.  Because Liz had a way of making him feel like a better man than he was.

Unfortunately, chances were that she wasn’t too keen on seeing him.  The look in her eyes when those elevator doors opened still felt like a blade slicing into his chest.  It was no less than he deserved.  Hell, if he had seen Liz getting off the elevator with two guys from the bar, well... he really didn’t know what would have happened, but it wouldn’t have been good.

He took a quick shower and pulled on some clean clothes, giving himself a mental pep talk.  Even if she turned him away, he had to try.

Taking a deep breath, he raised his hand and knocked on her door.  “Liz, it’s Miles.”