LITMIR.BIZ

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      “But it was cheating.”

      He laughed. “Not when both teams are rooting for the same person. Besides, it broke the ice for Paula. In the end, I’d say several good things happened there. Everyone worked together, they all went away happy and now people are speaking to Paula so she can concentrate on her work more.”

      “If she wasn’t concentrating on her work before, it was because she has a crush on you.”

      “That’sjust because she’s lonely. It will pass.”

      “Etienne?”

      “Yes?”

      “Thank you for trying to make me believe that I don’t suck at baseball. I knew it wasn’t true, but it was nice to be forced to pretend for a while.”

      “So you’ll let them continue to believe you believe?”

      “If it will keep everyone happy, I will. And…when I said that I won today, well, I did. Maybe I didn’t break my long running record of never scoring a run, but the fact that people cared enough to make me want to believe that I had…that was winning for me. So no, I won’t say anything.”

      “You’re going to be so good at this, Meg. You have the love and loyalty of the people who work for you. I didn’t teach you that.”

      She smiled. “But you are responsible for this.” She looked down at herself. “Daniel sent someone to my house to teach me how to apply makeup and do my nails. A woman showed up and gave me all kinds of instructions on the best clothing to, quote, accent my physical features. She even showed me how to walk with more confidence so that I would ‘wear my clothes well’ and they wouldn’t wear me. I know that was all your doing.”

      “Window dressing,” he said. “Polish. So…since we’re discussing clothing, I notice that you, Meg Leighton, are dressed all in white tonight. No other color. Meg?”

      She shrugged. “It seemed to fit the mood.”

      Etienne frowned. “But it’s not you. Don’t try to change yourself in order to accommodate someone else’s mood.” He turned the corner. It wasn’t the way to his car.

      “Where are we going?”

      “Somewhere…I know there was a man the other day when I was out this way…Here,” Etienne said, satisfaction coloring that rich, deep voice of his. He stopped before a flower vendor, picked out a nosegay of wine-red roses and handed them to Meg.

      When she took them, Etienne moved back two steps. “Yes. All’s right with the world now. Red. It’s you. Passionate. Colorful. Exciting.”

      She laughed. “Is there another woman standing behind me that you’re talking about? No one has ever said that I was exciting.”

      “Well, now they have. I have. And you know that I don’t lie to you.”

      They had backtracked and were on their way back to the car when the threat of rain became a reality. A light mist began to fall and quickly became harder.

      Automatically it seemed, Etienne put his arm around Meg and pulled her under the shelter of an awning.

      “Wait here,” he told her as he rushed back out into the rain, which was coming down harder now.

      “Etienne, you’re getting soaked,” she yelled, but he paid her no mind. Instead he ducked into a nearby hotel. Through the glass doors, she could see him speaking to the doorman, gesturing to the man. Then he reached into his pocket and pulled out his wallet. Within seconds he was running back to her carrying a large black umbrella. He flipped it open and when he reached the awning, he took her hand and pulled her under the umbrella with him.

      “The man sold you one of the hotel’s guest umbrellas?” she asked, laughing as Etienne wrapped one arm around her waist to hold her close and keep her out of the rain. “I’ll bet he’s not supposed to do that. Did you have to give him half your fortune?”

      “Meg,” Etienne lectured. “Are you making fun of me for trying to keep you from getting soaked?”

      Suddenly she stopped. She turned in his arms and faced him. “Not at all. I like the way you identify a problem and then immediately identify a solution. You’re a magic man, mon cher. Is that how you say it?”

      But he was still holding her against him, the flowers crushed between their bodies. “That’s how you say it, my Meg. And no, I’m not a magic man. Just a man. A man who has to do this. Right now.”

      His mouth came down on hers. He pulled her closer still. She dragged her arm, flowers and all, free and looped it around his neck, trying to get closer to him.

      The rain came down, and Etienne’s kisses became deeper, more demanding.

      Meg tilted her head and gave and gave. And took and took. She tasted him, she savored him, she wished this moment would never end, that they could stay beneath this cocoon of an umbrella in the rain forever. Alone. Just the two of them. With nothing else to come between them.

      But in the distance a car horn honked. People yelled at each other, they laughed. More traffic noises intruded, and the streetlights came on.

      The real world returned, and in the real world Etienne was a man who might want kisses but didn’t want more. He could have any woman he wanted, but he wanted none. At least not for more than this.

      And Meg realized how unprotected her heart was. She was in grave danger of doing something very unhealthy to herself. Something she had sworn not to do again. Fall for a man who would, ultimately, break her heart. Etienne might not want to do that to her, but it would be done nonetheless.

      And when it happened, he would know. It would send him to a very bad place, emotionally. She needed to keep that from happening. Somehow she needed to be a woman who dealt in solutions. Emotional solutions.

      Gently, carefully, reluctantly, Meg eased herself away. “That was…very nice. You’re exeptionally good at that. But I suppose you know that. It was…a very effective lesson.”

      He frowned. He growled. “You know that was no lesson.”

      “I know you didn’t mean it to be one, but nevertheless it was. If I’m going to be doing business with the big boys, I have to know how to go one-on-one with them. I’m assuming that now and then there might be temptation. I need to know how to…to walk away from it, don’t I?”

      For several seconds Etienne didn’t answer. He was looking angry, angrier than she had ever seen him. “You definitely need to know how to walk away from temptation. Especially temptation that is bad for you.”

      She just couldn’t do it. No matter the need, even to save Etienne in the end, she just couldn’t pretend in this way. Instead she touched him on the sleeve. “I didn’t mean it. You’re not bad for me. You know how much you’ve done for me, but…this…this part of the two of us…it’s only going to hurt us both in the end. I don’t want to hurt you.”

      “Dammit, Meg, I’m the one who’s supposed to say that. I pulled you into this. I get to be the protector.”

      She placed her palm across his lips and slowly shook her head. “You can’t be my protector, Etienne. You can’t save me. In the long run we both know that that job can’t be yours. And I don’t want you to regret it. I want you to enjoy your time with me.”

      “I do,” he promised. “I am. I will.”

      “For now,” she whispered. “We still have some time left. And we have rain and red flowers and a beautiful umbrella. Let’s walk in the rain.”

      “Impetuous,” he said and the word was a caress. “But your leg. I’ve walked you too far already.”

      “I don’t even feel it anymore,” she promised. And it was true. For now all she felt was the need to walk with this man who had changed her life so much. For this one moment she would not worry about tomorrow

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