She swung her bag over her shoulder and continued ambling along, peeking into windows. She approached one set, with a bench in front of them. The bench held a long limbed man sprawled across it, apparently just enjoying the cool night air. “Evening.” Kerry greeted him a she passed.
“Hey, cute lady.” The man responded, in an amiable tone. “C’mere.
You got great skin. Want something gorgeous on it?”
Kerry glanced at the window, which featured the word Tattoo prominently on it. “Not tonight, thanks.”
“Ah.” The man straightened up and glanced at her, his face 12 Melissa Good interesting, and shrewd. “You want one, c’mon. Admit it.”
Something made her slow down, and she paused, glancing curiously at the man’s skin art, which covered pretty much every inch of his exposed body. Some of the marks were bright and very colorful, some were more faded, but none were hideous. “Do you do those?”
“Sure.” the man said. “This is my shop.” He gestured behind him with a thumb. “Wanna come see some etchings?” He waggled an eyebrow at her, but grinned.
Kerry hesitated, then glanced at her watch. “Not tonight,” she said.
“I’ve got some friends waiting on me for dinner.”
“Uh huh.”
“But thanks for the offer.” Kerry ginned back at him, then she turned and continued on her way, before her curiosity could get her into some real trouble. “Etching, huh?” She chuckled and put the idea right out of her mind. “You’ll be thinking about a motorcycle next, you radical nerd, you.”
Five minutes longer down the sidewalk, she spotted Colleen headed her way. Pushing the thought of tattoos and Harleys from her mind, she called, “Hey!”
“Hey, girl.” Colleen caught her up, the redhead hooking her arm through Kerry’s with casual familiarity. “Ready to party? Ray’s on his way.”
“More than ready,” Kerry admitted. “Today was too damn long.”
She tucked her bag under her arm. “Let’s go get some naked, raw fish and have our way with them.”
“Oo…aren’t we the wee wild thing!” Colleen laughed. “Such a rebel you are.”
Kerry chuckled as they headed for the sushi place. “Yeah? Wait ’til you see what I got in this bag. You won’t believe it.”
AS SHE STARED into the mirror with a scowl, Dar twitched her collar straight for the fourth time. Not that there was anything wrong with the burgundy silk business suit; the soft folds draped nicely over her tall frame, sleeves cut specifically to her measure, coming neatly past her wrists. The skirt was just above her knees, and with her tan, she could have gotten away without wearing hose. But she hadn’t, dutifully donning the smoky-dark nylons Kerry had tucked into her bag.
“C’mon, Dar,” she repeated to her reflection. “Just pretend it’s a staff meeting.” With over a thousand people. Dar picked up the towel she’d used after her shower and wiped the sweat off her palms. She’d never admit to anyone just how much she hated public, really public speaking. She hadn’t even told Kerry about it. But here, alone in her hotel room, barely an hour before she had to address the stockholders, she could admit to herself that she was scared senseless.
“Jackass.” She glowered into the pale blue eyes in the mirror. A Red Sky At Morning 13
knock sounded on the door, and she almost hit the popcorn ceiling before she gave herself a shake and stalked toward the entrance. She opened the door to find a plant wanting admittance. “Hello?”
Brown eyes peeked out from between the stems of some extremely gorgeous roses. “Ms. Roberts? This came for you.”
Dar surveyed the arrangement and felt her eyebrows lift. She backed up. “C’mon in.” She watched as the bellman carefully put the basket on the room’s small table, then back away cautiously. “Thanks.”
Dar had taken a bill from her wallet and she now handed it to him, ignoring his departure as she explored her new decoration.
It was way too cute and classy for Alastair, she decided, plucking a small teddy bear from the center. “And he wouldn’t send you, now would he?” She sniffed one of the blooms, which was large and perfect, then realized some of the roses weren’t real. Curiously, she touched one, then unwrapped the foil top to reveal rich, milky-looking chocolate. “Ah.” Cheerfully, she took a bite, then fished around until she rooted out the small card. She opened it and peered at the writing, not really needing the confirmation of the sender.
Hey, sweetie.
Give them heck.
I love you.
K
“Aw.” Dar felt her entire body warm, a gentle flush that chased away the chills she’d been feeling not five minutes earlier. “You’re something else, you know that?” She took another bite of chocolate and considered the roses, then selected one and carefully broke its stem off just below the bloom. A few steps took her to her overnight bag, and she fished inside it, coming up with a safety pin and neatly pinning the rose on her lapel.
Her eyes then fell on the tiny teddy, and she very briefly considered tucking it into her pocket, a sudden smile appearing when she imagined the collective reaction of the stockholders if they saw the little toy peeking out of her jacket. “Oh no...no, Dar, that would just blow that little old reputation of yours right out the window and into the Hudson River.” But she laughed, the light sound echoing softly in the room.
She went over to where her breakfast lay mostly untasted on the bedside table and selected a croissant, cutting it open and covering it with butter and jelly. She ate that and washed it down with a swallow of coffee, then clicked off the television that had been playing soundlessly in the background and took one last look in the mirror.
Chin up, shoulders back. Dar straightened and felt her usual confident attitude drop over her in a comforting sensation. She picked up her slim leather portfolio and headed out the door, hearing it close 14 Melissa Good behind her as she walked down the carpeted hallway, her medium-heeled shoes sinking just slightly into the pile.
The elevator had many nicely dressed people in it. Most of them glanced at her as she entered, and most of the guys sucked in their guts.
Dar graced them with a smile, but kept silent, folding her hands over her folder with its distinctive company logo stamped in leather on the outside.
The trip down seemed to last forever, in that elongated awkwardness that elevators often produce. But they did finally make it, and Dar exited the small space, moving into the lobby toward the convention center, where large groups of men and women were gathered near the double doors.
“Dar!”
She turned and waited for Alastair to catch up to her. The CEO was dressed in a dark-blue suit and red tie, and he smiled at Dar as he took her by the elbow. “Morning.”
“Morning, morning.” Alastair ushered her through the door and up one broad aisle toward the podium. “Sleep well?”
“Fine,” Dar replied as they moved up to the table set on the elevated stage. “Did we get the—ah.” She laid her portfolio down and took over the keyboard of the laptop on the table, rattling the keys with a sense of comforting familiarity. “Good,” she murmured, reviewing the data flashing across the LED screen. The system was hooked to an overhead projector, which would allow her to show the stockholders real-time data moving across their new network. “Looks good.”
Alastair glanced at the figures. “You’d know.” He patted her shoulder. “I’m going to get everyone settled, then I’ll introduce you.
Hey, nice rose.”
“Thanks.” Dar glanced at it. “And thanks for dinner last night.
Damn good pasta.”
“Almost as good as the company.” Alastair returned the compliment courteously. “And speaking of which, don’t let Bob run you ragged tonight, all right? He loves this town and loves to show it off, but he gets a little too enthusiastic about its vices sometimes.”