Part 14 (2/2)
”You heard me. I'm not letting you put Dave in a kennel. I'll take care of him.” Nick moved in close. They were nose to nose. ”When did you plan on telling me you were leaving?”
Rosalie backed into the sink. ”I was going to call from the airport. How did you find out?”
”Mike called. He was concerned. You canceled your appointment without rescheduling.”
”So you came all the way over here?”
”I called first. The line was busy.”
”I spent the morning on the phone with Gina. I've got to go to Michigan and deal with a few things and have dinner with an old college buddy.”
”You're having dinner with an old... buddy?”
”Yeah, is that a problem?”
h.e.l.l, yeah, it was a problem, but he wasn't about to tell her that. ”No, no problem. Have a nice time.”
”I will, but it's mostly business. I need to see if Leisure can give me any information.”
”Leisure?”
”A nickname. Someone's been spreading a rumor that Premier Motors is having trouble with their financing. I'm hoping Leisure can help ferret out the culprit. My plane leaves in three hours.”
Good luck with that. There was absolutely no way that information could be traced back to him. ”It won't do any good to tell you that you shouldn't be traveling, so I'll ask if you've packed all your medicine.” ”Yes, it's in my carry-on.” ”Your nebulizer?”
”I've got my inhaler. I'm not taking the nebulizer.” ”Lee.”
”Do you know how heavy that d.a.m.n thing is?” ”Lee.”
”Fine. I'll probably die of exhaustion from carrying it and then you can live with the guilt.”
”I'll have someone take you-”
”Oh, no. I'm not going to get into a wheelchair.”
Nick held his hands up. ”No wheelchair, I promise. They'll drive you to the gate in a golf cart. Give me your itinerary. I'll set it up.”
”That's not necessary.”
”Lee.”
She pushed away from him and went into the living-room. Nick followed so closely, he b.u.mped into her when she stopped to pull her itinerary out of her briefcase.
”You know I hate when you're pushy.”
”I know.” Nick smiled and pulled her into his arms.
G.o.d, he felt good. She rested her head on his chest and listened to his heartbeat. He rubbed her back, and the tension she'd been holding since he walked in drained away. She'd thought for sure he was going to do something stupid, like tell her she couldn't go. Then she'd have had to stop seeing him, and she really didn't want to do that.
Nick kissed her temple and gave her a good squeeze. ”Better?”
She nodded. She couldn't very well tell him that dressing, packing, and working on the phone all morning had left her so drained, she only had enough energy left to crawl into bed and sleep. ”Are you packed?”
”Yes. I'm just waiting for a fax from Gina, and the limo will-”
”Call her and tell her to cancel the limo. I'm taking you to the airport.” ”Nick.”
He handed her the phone and called the airport on his cell.
Twenty minutes later, Nick and Rosalie left for the airport. She spent the drive fighting to stay awake while Nurse Nick gave her the daily lecture on taking her medicine, drinking fluids, and working no more than four hours a day. Yeah, like that was going to happen, but she saw no need to tell him.
They pulled up to the curb. Nick released the trunk, got out, and unloaded her bags. She checked her suitcase curbside, and Nick tipped the baggage handler before she could get money out of her wallet. She decided not to argue with him. She was way too tired.
Rosalie waited for Nick to say good-bye. She wasn't sure how one went about doing that. She'd never had a guy take her to the airport before.
”Try to sleep on the plane. You look exhausted.”
Nothing got by him. ”Okay.”
”Call me when you get in and let me know how to get in touch with you.” ”Why?”
”In case I need to get in touch with you. What if something happens to Dave?” ”Fine, I'll call.” ”Fine.”
He scowled at her. His jaw had a tick in it, and he raked his fingers through his hair. Why was an irritated Nick such a complete turn-on? Her body started buzzing; her hormones did the hula; and when she met his gaze, he had that stormy eye thing going on in a big way.
”Transportation is waiting for you by the ticket counter. They'll take you to your gate.”
She nodded.
”You take care.” He pushed a lock of hair behind her ear. Tingles shot through her body. ”You, too.”
”Call me when you get to your hotel. You have all my numbers. I'll pick you up from the airport when you come home.” He gave her his don't-you-dare-argue-with-me look.
”Fine, I'll call you with my return flight information.” Rosalie waited for him to do something. He must have been waiting for the same thing. She decided to make a fast retreat.
”Well, I'll see ya.” She picked up her bag and headed to the terminal.
A heartbeat later, he caught her arm. ”Lee?”
She turned, and he was right there, against her. She lost her balance, and he caught her. He'd snuck up on her again. d.a.m.n him. She opened her mouth to yell at him, but he kissed her and stole her thoughts. She'd almost forgotten how fabulous a kisser Nick was. It had been so long since he'd done anything but pat her. He sure wasn't patting her now. No, he was nibbling on her lips, teasing her with the hot tip of his tongue, and making her want more.
A car behind them beeped, and the driver yelled, ”Get a room!”
Nick gave her another hard kiss, winked, and let her go. ”Later.”
Later they'd get a room, or he'd see her later? His smile told her he knew that a room sounded really good-any room with him in it. But that wasn't going to happen. d.a.m.n him.
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