LITMIR.BIZ

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into his job. It made it easier to forget that he didn’t have a life beyond work. And not having a real life just made it easier to work harder. He was caught in a vicious circle and he needed a way out. When he was kid, he’d always considered running away as a viable option. But as an adult his options were—

      It was the perfect answer. No explanations necessary, no opportunities to reconsider. Just pick up and leave, deal with the consequences later. “Did you ever feel like taking off?” Derek asked. “Just dropping all of your problems and worries and running in the opposite direction?”

      “Never,” she said. “I’ve always stayed and worked them out.”

      “Me, too. But I’m starting to think that every now and then, it might be nice to just go. Run. And don’t look back.”

      “I was supposed to get engaged tonight. At the party.”

      The news took him by surprise—first, that she seemed so blasé about their predicament and second, that he felt a sliver of envy for the man who was about to claim her as his own. This was crazy! He’d met her only a few minutes before. Yet he was selfish enough to want her to stay here, with him.

      “I guess we’d better get you out of here, then,” he said.

      “No.” Her voice was soft and unsure. “I’d rather stay.”

      She reached for the bottle at the same time he did and their hands touched. The contact was electric and for a moment, neither of them moved. Derek smoothed his fingers over the back of her wrist, imagining the contours in the dark. “With me or inside this elevator?”

      “Both,” she said.

      “All right, then.” He grabbed the bottle and held it up. “Another toast. To a rather unconventional meeting. And to the good fortune that put us in this elevator together.”

      The lights flickered, then came on. Tess held up her hand to the glare, squinting at the sudden change. Derek cursed beneath his breath. Why the hell did the staff have to be so damn efficient?

      A knock sounded and then the doors were slowly forced open. The car was stuck between two floors and the maintenance men were standing on the upper floor. “Sorry about the wait,” the hotel manager said, bending down to speak to them. “We’re bringing a ladder and we’ll have you—”

      “Don’t bother,” Derek said. He stepped over to the doors, setting the scotch down in the corner. “Come on, I’ll lift you up.” He held out his hand and helped Tess to her feet. Slipping his arms around her waist, he gently lifted her up until the maintenance men grabbed her hands. Then Derek boosted himself up and climbed out into the lobby of the fifth floor.

      He dusted his hands off on his pants. “Thank you,” he said, nodding to the manager. “And don’t worry. I’m not going to mention this to anyone.”

      “Thank you, Mr. Nolan. I appreciate that.”

      Tess turned and looked back inside the elevator. “We left the scotch.”

      “Oh, I can get that for you,” the manager volunteered.

      “No,” Derek said. “There’s more where that came from.”

      They both slowly walked toward the door to the stairwell. When they’d regained a bit of the privacy they’d shared in the elevator, Derek turned to her, still holding on to her hand. “So …”

      “So …” she said softly, a winsome smile curling her lips. “It was a pleasure, Mr. Nolan.”

      “Derek,” he murmured.

      “Derek. It was nice meeting you.”

      He knew he had to find some way to keep her with him. But she was late for her engagement party. What could he possibly say to convince her to spend the evening with him? “You don’t have to go upstairs. You could stay here with me.”

      “Right here?” she asked.

      “Here. The bar. My suite.” He paused. “Or we could always run away.”

      She drew in a deep breath and to his surprise, he watched her consider his invitation. It was clear from the confusion etching her features that she wasn’t thrilled with what awaited her upstairs. “I don’t expect anything,” he assured. “I just want to get out of here and I’d like you to come along. It’ll be an adventure, I promise.”

      “Why me?” she said.

      “I don’t know. I like the sound of your voice. It relaxes me. And I don’t want to go without you.”

      “Where will we go?”

      “I don’t know. We’ll figure it out.”

      She smiled, then nodded. “All right. Yes, I’ll go with you.”

      Derek grinned. “All right.” He pushed open the door to the stairwell. “We’re going up,” he said. “It’s going to be a hike.” Pointing to her shoes, he shook his head. “And those are going to kill you.” He turned his back to her. “Hop on.”

      “You’re going to carry me up the stairs?”

      “Yes,” Derek said. “You don’t think I can do it?”

      “I’m perfectly capable of walking.” She kicked off her shoes, picked them up and handed them to him. “I bet I can beat you to the top.” With a laugh, she started up the stairs. Tess was already on the first landing before he’d even moved.

      Derek chuckled to himself. Now, this was going to be fun—a woman as beautiful as Tess challenging him to a race in her party dress and bare feet in a hotel stairwell. Either she’d had too much scotch or she was the most charming creature he’d ever met. He intended to spend the rest of the evening figuring out which it was.

       2

      WHEN THEY GOT TO THE DOOR of his room, they were both out of breath. Tess leaned back against the wall as he slid the key card through the lock. Suddenly it felt as if the weight of the world had been lifted from her shoulders.

      It wasn’t really right to run away from her doubts and insecurities—or from Jeffrey—but she was tired of always choosing the safe route. From the time she was seven, she’d had to be the responsible one, always doing her best to choose the right path, make the right decision. For once, she wanted to do something impetuous. She wasn’t sure what she’d tell Jeffrey or how he’d feel about being stood up. For one night, she could be wild and spontaneous. Tomorrow she’d start the rest of her life, but tonight she’d be the woman she always wanted to be.

      Derek pushed open the door and stepped aside, leaning against the wall and gasping for breath. “Man, you are fast.”

      “You’re not one of those guys that always has to win, are you?” Tess asked. “Because we can go back and do it again, and I can pretend to pull up lame on the last flight of stairs.”

      He laughed, then swept his arm in front of him. “After you, Secretariat,” he said.

      “Was that a horse joke?”

      “A bad attempt at one.”

      “Very clever. But Secretariat was a stallion. Genuine Risk was a mare and she won the Derby. And placed at Belmont and Pimlico. My horse, Genny, is named after her.”

      “You’re faster than me. You’re prettier than me. And you have your own horse. I think I may have found the perfect woman.”

      Tess strolled into the suite. It was so easy to relax around Derek. She could be herself, say anything that came into her head, something she’d never been able to do around Jeffrey.

      The lights were low and through the wide windows on the opposite wall, she could see the far side of the Cumberland River. She walked over and looked down, watching a barge slowly float south with the current. A moment later, he joined her, bracing his hands on the windowsill next

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