Jo Leigh - Arm Candy

Owen’s expression said it all. He wasn’t pleased to see Dan. Not even amused. “Yeah. Morning.”

Dan walked straight up to Jessica and said, “Honey, you’ve got a little something right on the corner of your mouth.” Then he touched her there, rubbing nothing, but making sure Owen got the point.

He seemed to. The hand that had been on Jessica’s waist was now at his side. His unsubtle scowl reminded Dan of a kid that lived in his building. Spoiled rotten, and not afraid to show it.

Dan leaned forward and gave Jessica a little kiss. Icing on the cake. This was supposed to be all for show, but the moment his lips touched hers, he forgot about Owen and everything else. It didn’t last long, but the kiss had repercussions. His whole body reacted, came to attention. Not just the lower half, either. It was like touching a live wire.

Well, that answered his question about how to approach tonight. He was going to bring out the heavy artillery, the more intimate, the better.

Sex wouldn’t ruin the project. It would just change it. He could deal with that.

QUOTES FROM WOMEN

You see a lot of smart guys with dumb women, but you hardly ever see a smart woman with a dumb guy.

-Erica Jong

I’m not offended by all the dumb-blonde jokes because I know I’m not dumb…and I also know that I’m not blond.

-Dolly Parton

I’ve been on so many blind dates, I should get a free dog.

-Wendy Liebman

In politics, if you want anything said, ask a man; if you want anything done, ask a woman.

-Margaret Thatcher

I have yet to hear a man ask for advice on how to combine marriage and a career.

-Gloria Steinem

ONCE THEY WERE FINISHED with the shoot, Jessica let out a deep breath, and all her tension and stress with it. No work lay ahead of her until tomorrow afternoon, when she’d have to go to the Rainbow Room and make sure the party coordinator was moving apace. There would be a dessert-and-jazz evening starting at nine, with the guests being more of the celebrities, models and media. She stood under an archway just outside the terminal as Dan hailed a cab. As soon as one pulled up, he opened the door for her and she made her way through the ever-present crowd to climb in.

Once Dan was settled in next to her, he asked, “To the hotel first, or dinner?”

She hadn’t thought much about eating, but now that he mentioned it, she found herself ravenous. “I’d like to change, get freshened up.” She looked at her watch, and it was just past six. “Maybe we could find something at seven?”

“Sure thing.” He told the driver where to take them, then he pulled out a cell phone and dialed a number. It was a while until he spoke. “Andy? It’s Dan Crawford. Can you find a table for me and a friend at seven?” Nothing for a minute, then he smiled. “Great, see you then.” He hung up, his grin looking mighty self-satisfied.

“Where?” she asked.

“You’ll see.”

“You’re not going to make me dress up, are you?”

“Wouldn’t dream of it.”

“Okay, then.” She settled back for the ride home, twice as long with the heavy traffic.

Soon the sounds outside the cab window ran together and faded as her tiredness took over. She barely stirred as Dan closed the gap between them and snaked his arm around her shoulder. It seemed the most natural thing in the world to rest her head on his shoulder, to feel the warmth of his breath on her temple, the gentle brush of his fingers against her arm.

He’d been the perfect escort, everything she could have wanted for the job. Owen had been kept at something of a distance, although every chance he got, he cornered her and grilled her about her relationship with Dan. It had been almost too easy to answer his questions, and by the end of the day she figured she’d made significant headway. The only thing that had bothered her, aside from the attitude of the photographer, had been her reaction to the models. Not when they’d been working, but when they’d hovered around Dan. All of the women had, at one time or another, sat with him, talked with him, laughed at his jokes. It looked as if Dan had been enjoying himself immensely, which shouldn’t have mattered a whit. But it did. She had found herself more than once walking over to him, touching him the way he touched her when Owen was near.

Dan was a free agent, and after this campaign was over she had nothing on him. He could date whomever he wished, and my God, those women were about as stunning as women get. Who could blame him for snapping up the bait. Each one seemed more eager than the last.

Finally, she’d asked Marla to go sit with him, even though the request was selfish, as Marla was all twittery about Shawn. He seemed like a good guy, and from what Jessica had heard of their conversations, he’d been really sweet when it came to Marla.

Jessica just hoped her assistant didn’t get her hopes up. This was a job for Shawn, just as it was for Dan, and when it came to an end, they would both walk off into their normal lives with nary a thought about the two redheads.

She’d said as much to Marla, but it wasn’t any use. The girl was smitten. Shawn was spectacularly good-looking, and any woman would have been flattered at the attention. But Marla was a little too sweet and innocent for her own good, and Jessica was sure she was going to pay.

But even that didn’t seem so important, curled up in the comfort of Dan’s arm. He smelled wonderful, clean, but with a hint of spice. His breath was sweetly cinnamon, and it made her think of the gentle kiss he’d given her earlier.

It hadn’t been much of a kiss, nothing compared to the earthquake of last night, and yet she’d been thrilled by it, and for a long time after, her heart pattered fast in her chest.

Clearly, this attraction wasn’t going away. In fact, each new day it grew deeper and more insistent. She felt quite sure, despite his protestations about his research, that something had to give, and give soon.

She sighed, and he hugged her to him. It felt as if she belonged there, as if she was safe. She tried to think if any man had made her feel like this, and came up blank.

Maybe it wouldn’t be a bad thing to let nature take its course. Unlike Marla, she was a realist, and she knew that nothing was going to happen between them that would have a lasting impact. She wouldn’t allow that. But at this stage of the game, not sleeping with him was probably going to cause her more stress and grief then just giving in.

So give in she would.

THE RESTAURANT was packed, with a long line out onto the street, just as Dan had anticipated. But Andy, the maître d’, was an old friend, and had never made him wait. Once the cab dropped them off, he took Jessica’s hand and escorted her past the line all the way to the dining-room entrance. There was Andy, looking damn fine in her black dress and fancy hairdo.

“Dan!”

“Hey, Andy.” They kissed in the European tradition, with a little American hug thrown in for good measure.

“It’s such a treat to see you,” she said. “You have to try the salmon tonight. It’s a new recipe, and it’s heaven.”

“Will do.” He introduced Jessica, and then Andy led them to a quiet booth in a cozy corner. It was perfect.

After they were settled, and drinks had been ordered, Jessica turned to him. “Ex-girlfriend?”

“Who? Andy?” He shook his head. “Old friend. She used to be my ex-roommate’s ladylove. They broke up a year ago, and I ended up getting closer to Andy than Gordo.”

“So that’s how you can get a reservation at Biggalow’s? Last time I heard, you had to be at least an A-list star to get that kind of treatment.”