Taking a deep breath, Rachel plunged into the work she had neglected in order to satisfy Jesse’s request.
As the photo session wrapped up, Jesse looked around for Rachel. Catching a glimpse of her sexy derriere sliding out the doorway, he hurried to follow her.
“Jesse, could you wait around for a few minutes?” Evelyn’s hand on his arm detained him. “I want to make sure I took enough shots so you don’t have to come back for a retake.”
Suppressing the urge to swear, he stared at the door Rachel had disappeared through and shrugged. “Sure, Evelyn.”
Taking a seat, he waited impatiently for the okay to leave, his mind on the navy-blue suit and the pretty executive in it. He smiled when he thought of how uncomfortable she’d been in front of the camera. When he’d put his arm around her, she’d almost jumped out of her skin.
He’d been surprised too. It had felt “right” to snuggle her up beside him. Her soft brown hair had brushed against his chin, and her heated skin had emitted a faintly musky, wholly feminine fragrance that had almost caused him to embarrass himself. While she wasn’t the usual sort of woman he tended to gravitate toward, there was some indefinable quality that pulled at him.
Captivated from the first moment he’d walked into her office, he was determined to crawl right under her skin like she had unwittingly done to him. Keeping her off-balance seemed to be the key to getting to know the real Rachel Taylor. Her warm blushes betrayed her frosty façade and intrigued him.
“Sorry for the wait, Jesse. I think I have what I need. You can...”
Before Evelyn finished her sentence, Jesse was out of the chair and through the door. Loping quickly to the elevator, he punched the up arrow and waited, oblivious to the admiring stares from passing females. The doors slid open. Stepping inside, he pushed the button for her floor. Before the doors closed completely, a small manicured hand inserted itself through the opening, causing them to part once more to admit a short, red-haired woman.
“Oh, hi. I’m so glad I caught the elevator. I’m already late and waiting for the next one would just make me all that much later. You don’t mind, do you?” She stopped to catch her breath, and then grinned up at him flirtatiously. Her eyes widened as she gave him a long encompassing stare.
It was impossible for Jesse to hold back a grin at the vivacious redhead. “No, ma’am, I don’t mind at all,” he drawled. Flirting with a woman-–young, old, homely or melt-your-bones-gorgeous—was as natural to him as breathing.
Reaching to push a button, her hand stopped in mid-air, “Well, isn’t that nice? At least I won’t hold you up again by stopping on a different floor. We’re going to the same place.” Sticking out a crimson-tipped hand, she introduced herself. “Hi, I’m Genie O’Connor.”
He took her hand. “Jesse Jordan. Nice to meet you.”
“Do you work here?” she asked, her brows arching inquisitively.
Deciding explanations would take too much time, he replied, “Well, sort of. I just finished a photo shoot for a ranch supply store.”
“Oh, so you’re a model. I should have guessed.”
“Why’s that?” he asked in startled amusement.
“Oh, don’t be so modest.” Genie’s gaze ran down his length. “You sure do fill out a great pair of jeans.”
Jesse blushed at her flagrant appreciation. “Do you work here, too?”
“Oh, no. I’m here to meet a friend. We’re going out man-hunting tonight,” she said, grinning at her outrageous statement.
“Man-hunting?” He smiled, and entered the game. “Is your friend homely or something? I can’t imagine you needing to hunt for a man.”
“Oh no, she’s just too wrapped up in her job to take time to meet men. It’s up to me to make sure it happens.”
The elevator bell rang to announce their arrival, and the doors slid open.
“Well, here we are. It was nice meeting you, Jesse.”
“Nice meeting you, too, Genie.”
The two stepped out of the elevator, turned in the same direction and laughed.
“I guess we’re headed in the same direction still. I’m going to Rachel Taylor’s office. Where are you headed?” Genie asked as she walked down the hall.
“Same place,” Jesse said, his smile growing wider. “So, is Rachel the friend you’re hunting with tonight?”
“Yes, but don’t you dare let her know I told you.”
They arrived outside Rachel’s office, laughing together.
“Mildred, is Rachel ready?” Genie asked.
The older woman looked up from her computer screen and nodded her welcome. “Hello Genie, Jesse. She’s finishing up some paperwork. Genie, she told me to tell you to go right in.”
Apologetically, Genie looked over at Jesse. “Did you have an appointment? I didn’t mean to jump in front of you.”
“No, I didn’t. I was just...uh...stopping by...uh...” Looking for a reason, he spied Mildred watching them converse with avid curiosity. “I came to speak to Mildred. That’s what I was doing. Isn’t that right, Mildred?”
“Huh?” Mildred’s eyebrows rose above the top of her granny glasses.
Walking around behind her, Jesse gave Mildred a big hug and leaned down to whisper in her ear. “Go along with me.”
“Go where?”
“Go along with my charade,” he whispered.
“You want me to go to a parade?”
Blushing, Jesse looked up to see Genie valiantly trying to hide a smile behind her hand.
“Don’t let us keep you. I’m sure Miss Taylor doesn’t like to be kept waiting.” His accompanying smile was more a grimace for his clumsiness.
As she opened the door to Rachel’s office, Genie smiled back over her shoulder. Then she stepped in and closed the door behind her.
“Now, Jesse, just what were you trying to say to me? You know I have trouble hearing whispers,” Mildred grumbled, frowning in his direction.
He knew she wouldn’t stay mad at him for long. An old friend of his mother’s, she had known him since he was a toddler. She’d watched him struggle through awkward teenage years and mature into the man he was today. In fact, she was the one to suggest he use Rachel’s agency to promote his business. You could say she was the one who’d turned him on to the delectable Miss Taylor. He hoped one day he could thank her. Right now, it looked like he had a long way to go before Rachel would look at him as anything other than a client.
“So, what’s she like?” He nodded toward Rachel’s office.
“What is who like?” Mildred asked, as she continued to sort through the day’s correspondence.
“Miss Rachel Taylor.”
“Rachel?” Holding an envelope in mid-air, Mildred paused to think about her answer. “Rachel is a tough business woman with an eye for what pleases her clients. She’s intelligent and able to hold her own with any pompous ass in the business, excuse my French.”
“No, no, that’s not what I meant. What is she like on a personal level?”
Her eyes narrowed at him. “Why do you ask? I hope you’re not thinking to use your Casanova wiles on my girl. She’s not your kind.”