In the parking lot, she stopped with a look of surprise at the sleek black Town Car and the uniformed driver waiting. “Reese?”
“I hate driving in traffic,” he explained as the driver took the bags and settled them into the trunk. At her assessing look while they took their seats in the back, Reese paused. “What’s up?”
Corinne glanced at the driver, now behind the wheel. “I just didn’t think about us being chauffeured.”
“Does it matter?” Reese buckled his belt.
In reply, she leaned back into her seat with a shake of her head. “No. Not really. Just feels fancy.”
“Nothing’s too fancy for you.”
She gave him a familiar look. “Uh-huh.”
“Is that a bad thing?” He took her hand, linking their fingers.
“It’s just strange to me, that’s all.” She let her thumb rub the back of his hand.
They did hit traffic, of course, but even in the standstill moments it wasn’t awful. The driver was capable enough to keep them moving the best he could. Reese’s conversation with Corinne was entertaining. She held Reese’s hand, tracing small circles on his palm with the tip of her finger and sending repetitive shivers of anticipation all through him.
In front of his building, Reese helped her out of the car as the doorman came out to take the bags. He tipped the driver, and, excited about showing off his apartment, he put a hand on the small of her back to lead her inside. She sidestepped him though, turning.
“Thank you…” She looked at the driver’s name tag. “Terrance. For driving us.”
“My pleasure, ma’am.”
In the elevator, she looked Reese over, and though he hadn’t said a word about how the driver had addressed her, she knew him well enough to guess. “Other people are going to call me ma’am, Reese. I’m a woman of a certain age, I don’t qualify for the title ‘miss’ anymore.”
“I know.” Frowning, he pulled her into his arms. “I just don’t like it.”
She tipped her face to his. “You didn’t say a word to him, that’s all.”
“What was I supposed to say?” he asked, surprised.
“He drove us for over an hour. You tipped him, but didn’t bother to even look at him. The same with the doorman. You let him take the bags away but didn’t even acknowledge him. I don’t know. It bothered me.”
The doors opened onto the penthouse floor, a small lobby with the broad double doors to his apartment on one side. His was the only one on this floor. The doorman would deliver the bags to the service entrance off the kitchen. Reese had intended to wow Corinne with this first look at his home, but her words stopped him from making the grand entrance he’d planned.
“Why did it bother you?”
“I guess I’m just not used to having people serve me,” she said with a slight curl of her lip.
Reese had no idea what she was talking about. “You should be. You should be treated like a queen wherever you go. I’m trying to do that for you, Corinne.”
Her smile looked a little forced. “I see that.”
“C’mon inside. We can grab a drink, freshen up before dinner…” He spoke as he led her to the door, opening it and stepping aside so she could go through, first. “I picked this apartment for the view. Had it totally gutted and redone to open up the space so you can see the river from just about every room.”
“It’s gorgeous, Reese. Wow.” She cast a glance and a grin at him over her shoulder. “Who knew New Jersey could look so good?”
He came up behind her in front of the living room’s vast wall of glass overlooking the Delaware River. “New Jersey always looks better when it’s on the other side of a river.”
Laughing, she leaned into his embrace and sighed when he kissed her neck. “Mmm. That’s good. But you promised me a drink, didn’t you?”
“Kissing first,” he murmured. “Please.”
“How could I say no to you?” She twisted to face him, letting him back her up to the end of the sofa facing the windows. She gave him access to her throat, sighing again when he slid his lips over the soft skin.
His hands on her hips to make sure she didn’t fall, Reese nuzzled at her collarbones for a moment before standing and pulling her upright. “Drinks. The powder room is through there, but you can use the master bathroom if you want. It’s down that hallway.”
“I’ll do that.” She pushed up on her tiptoes to kiss him again.
At the bar, he poured them both glasses of her favorite red wine and carried them into the bedroom. It had also been laid out to showcase the view, with glass on three sides and the bed facing the windows. No curtains other than a few billowy white gauzy ones the decorator had chosen. This high up and far away from any other buildings, there weren’t any neighbors to peek in, and he liked the natural light. He could hear water running in the bathroom sink, so he set the wineglasses on the small table set between two comfortable chairs.