I laughed and kissed him, savoring the taste of him. The feel.
We made love softly and slowly, both knowing this was only farewell—not goodbye. Before this weekend, the thought of pursuing something meaningful would’ve terrified me. It would’ve made me wonder if I’d just get dumped and then wig out again. I had left the Bay Area a little off kilter.
Truth be told, I had left a lot off kilter. My head had been a mess. Even on Friday, I’d been jaded and burned out.
Just two days later, I suddenly had a new spice for life. I had something to look forward to.
I also had business information to steal, because I would definitely be asking Bradley Resslen questions, that was for sure! He was a genius, and his belief in me had inspired a change. He had been right—I needed to own my ability and sell myself with confidence. The only thing stopping me was me.
I blew out a breath as we got out of the shower and I looked at the time. “I should start packing up. I need to leave the hotel in an hour or so.”
“I’ll take you. It’ll give you a little more time.”
I didn’t argue, nor did I point out that it would only save twenty minutes at the most. Any excuse to be with him was a good one.
We ate breakfast, laughing and chatting, as I’d come to expect with him. Then we took a cab to my resort while he called Clive to get the keys to the car—apparently they were all sharing.
“It better be a Rolls-Royce,” I said with mock severity.
He regarded me solemnly. “It’s a Ford…of some kind.” A smile quirked his lips. “Are you dumping me because of my car?”
A thrill arrested me. I tried to play it cool. “Oh my God, are you saying we’re…like…together a little?”
And totally failed.
He kissed me as the cab pulled up to the resort. “Yes. I like you. I want you to move closer to me. It’s only been a weekend, but it was the best weekend in memorable history. What we have, even after so short a time, is rare. I want to hold on to it.”
“There’s just one thing, though,” I said, letting him direct me toward my building. If it were up to me, I’d end up at the blasted outdoor check-in again.
“What’s that?” he asked, holding the building door open for me.
“You should know that my friends call me…Devastating. As in Devastating Delilah.”
“I can see why,” he said. I frowned as we rode the elevator. Until he followed it with, “You’ve devastated me for other women.”
Totally the right response.
After we made it into the room, I forced him into a quickie, because saying sweet things demanded sex, and then packed everything up. His rental car was just as normal as he’d claimed, and I was thankful for that fact. After all that time in the giant suite, it was nice to get back to my reality. The fact that he didn’t always need a super-exciting and highflying lifestyle made it that much sweeter.
“Delilah…” Brad said as we pulled up to the airport a half-hour later.
“Question—do I call you Brad or Bradley?” I blurted.
Confusion stole his expression for a moment before he shook his head and grinned. “You make my head spin. I love it.”
I wasn’t sure how. It was a pretty logical question…
“People who know me usually call me Bradley. But listen…” He let out a frustrated sigh and glanced beyond me at the airport sidewalk. When his gaze came back to me, it was imploring. “Are you sure you won’t come to Austin? It’d be easy to find you a job. And I have a huge house for you to stay in. You can have a whole wing to yourself. We can be roommates until you want to officially live with me.”
Something in me wanted to say yes.
Damn that community service!
“I can’t,” I said in a dour voice. “I have another fifty hours of litter-removal detail. And possibly weed pulling. The judge must’ve somehow known that I hate pulling weeds, which was why she slapped on the garden detail.”
His gaze rooted to mine. “Do you want me to visit?”
He was trying to get an honest answer. Why this man was insecure about me liking him, I had no idea. It was completely illogical.
“Yes,” I said without a twinge of discomfort. “Soon as you can.”
He kissed me in a rush. I fell into the feeling of being connected to someone in a way I hadn’t ever been. When we separated, we were both breathing heavily and my body was tingling.
“I’ll hold you to that,” he whispered. “Text me when you land. And then call me before you go to bed.”
“Okay. Goodbye—”
“Don’t say that word. I’ll see you soon.”
“Okay. Goodbye—” I winced. “Sorry. It’s a habit. Buu… I almost did it again! See ya, then. Bub.”
He smiled at me, kissed me one last time, and watched me exit the car.
I leaned back in. “Help me get my suitcase?”
“Oh shit. Right. Sorry!”