She looked good tonight in one of her usual business suits. Black, which seemed to be one of her favorite colors, and tailored to within an inch of its life. The skirt hung just above her knee, and those shoes she wore played up her toned calves, too. She walked through the front doors of the hotel and outside with Radell and his wife.
Gavin stepped outside unnoticed while Liz talked with Radell. Gavin stood in the background and watched until Radell and Teesha’s taxi arrived.
After they left, Liz leaned against the brick wall and closed her eyes. She looked tired. Or defeated. Her guard was down.
Time for Gavin to make his move. He stepped in front of her.
“You’ve been avoiding me, Elizabeth.”
Her eyelids shot open, and her eyes widened with shock. She started to push off the wall, but he pinned her there by placing his hand on the wall by her shoulder. There was a planter on the other side, so she had nowhere to go.
“Gavin. What are you doing here?”
“It’s the sports banquet. You knew I was here. In fact, I’d say you danced around tables doing your best to not run into me tonight.”
She blinked. Her sweetly painted mouth worked, but nothing came out for a few seconds. He didn’t think he’d ever seen her at a loss for words before. Her gaze darted from side to side like a cornered animal looking for escape.
Finally she relaxed and the old Elizabeth was back, her game face on. She tipped her finger down the lapel of his jacket.
“I wasn’t avoiding you, sugar. I picked up a new client, so I had to babysit him a bit and introduce him to all the right media people. Then there was Radell, and we had a few things to discuss that were important. I’m so sorry we haven’t had a chance to catch up. Did you need me for something?”
“Yeah. We need to talk.”
In an instant, the warmth fled. Her expression narrowed. “About what?”
“You and me.”
Something flashed in her eyes, something hot he’d never seen before.
Or maybe never noticed before. As soon as it was there, it was gone.
Maybe he’d just imagined it. But Gavin didn’t imagine things, and what he’d seen caused a tightening in his balls. It was like the kiss that night, throwing him for a loop and making him second guess everything he thought about her. He’d always maintained his distance from Liz because they had a professional relationship. Besides, she didn’t pay much attention to him other than in a professional capacity. She never fawned over him in the same way she did with a lot of her other clients. He figured she didn’t have a personal interest in him, which suited him just fine since he had no problem finding women, and women had no problem finding him.
But what he’d just seen in her eyes had been . . . interesting.
“You and me? What about you and me?” she asked.
“You finished with all your client stuff?”
She nodded.
“Let’s go somewhere and . . .” He skimmed his gaze down her body, lingering where her silk blouse lay against her breasts. He dragged his gaze back to her face, searching for a reaction.
She swallowed, and the muscles of her throat moved with the effort.
Elizabeth was nervous. Gavin didn’t think he’d ever seen her nervous before.
This was perfect.
“Talk.”
“Talk?”
“Yeah.” He pushed off the wall and signaled for the valet, gave him his ticket, and grabbed Elizabeth’s hand, bringing her with him to the curb while he waited for the valet to bring his car.
Fortunately, the sports banquet was in the city where the Saint Louis Rivers spent spring training. Damned convenient and no travel biting into his schedule. He traveled enough during the season, and having to add one more event where he had to hop on a plane would have been a drag.
He tipped the valet when he brought the car. He and Elizabeth got in, and he zipped onto the highway.
“Where are we going?”
“My house.”
She arched a brow. “You have a house? Why not one of the hotels?”
“I stay in enough hotels during the season. I want a place to myself during spring training.”
They drove in silence. Gavin made the turn north toward the beach.
“A house on the beach?”
“Yeah. It’s remote and I can run in the mornings.”
She half turned in her seat. “Dammit, Gavin. Are you going to fire me? Because if you are, I’d rather you just do it right away. Don’t drag me out here to your house, then expect me to take a cab back to the hotel.”
Gavin fought back a laugh. “We’ll talk when we get inside.”
“Shit,” she whispered, then folded her arms in front of her and propped her head against the window for the remainder of the drive.
He turned off the highway and took the beachfront road, pulling into the garage. Elizabeth let herself out of the car and followed him inside, looking like a prisoner on her way to an execution.
He flipped the lights on and opened the sliding door leading out to the back porch.
“Nice place.”
He shrugged. “It’ll do for now. Want a beer or some wine?”
“Why? Trying to soften the blow?”
He slipped his hands into the pockets of his slacks. Ignoring her question, he asked again, “Wine, beer, something else?”