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“Me, either. Plus, I’m not much of a sweets person.”
No, but you can be very sweet, she thought. “I do have a sweet tooth, but I generally pass on dinner and go right to dessert if I’m going to indulge.”
He stared at her, his mouth open just the tiniest bit, showing his surprise. “That is not healthy.”
Rowan laughed. “No, but it is so satisfying. Thankfully, I don’t do it very often.”
“You live life according to your own rules, don’t you?”
“Well, sure. Otherwise, I’m living someone else’s life.” She cocked her head. “Don’t you do the same thing?”
“Not as much as you might think,” he said.
The wistful edge to his voice tugged at Rowan. She wanted to do a deep-dive into what made the man tick.
Danger, Will Robinson. Danger. The quote, from an old science fiction show, reminded her once again that her boss was not for her. Besides, he dated models and starlets. She had curves in all the wrong places and a bit too many of them.
“Penny for your thoughts,” he said, sneaking into her reality like soft cashmere.
Uh, nope. Not telling you those. She hedged. “Something you mentioned earlier keeps nagging at me. What do you think about skewing the entire Scott proposal toward family, making it personal, and using actual employees.”
He turned his chair so he could look at her, managing to scoot closer in the process. “Like how?”
“Just brainstorming here, but themes like ‘from our family to yours,’ or ‘securing your family’s future,’ or even ‘we’ll protect—or grow—your assets like they’re family.’”
“I like that last one. I think that’s a great idea.” He touched her arm for a brief moment, and a warmth that had nothing to do with the firelight spread through her.
“Thank you.” Rowan was enjoying herself but couldn’t stifle a yawn.
“We’ve had a long day,” he said, standing up. “How about we sleep on it and attack this first thing in the morning.”
He held out his hand to help her up, and Rowan reminded herself that she’d drawn the line, and he’d honored that. Any good host would offer assistance. That warmth she felt didn’t translate to him. He was only being kind.
She pulled her hand from his, wishing she didn’t have to. “I can usually burn the midnight oil, but tonight, I’m done in.”
“It’s the altitude and clean mountain air,” he said, grinning.
“What about the fire?”
“I’m more used to the altitude. I’ll stay out here for a while longer and watch it burn down.”
“Are you sure you don’t want to do some work on the bid tonight?”
Gerard stepped toward her. When he reached up and tucked a stray lock of hair behind her ear, Rowan froze, her heart racing. Maybe he hadn’t completely given up on the attraction between them. She wanted time to stand still, but he dropped his hand to his side. “Go sleep. Tomorrow is soon enough.”
She nodded and headed for the A-frame. At the sliding glass door, she glanced back. He stood facing the fire, head down, hands in his pockets. In that moment, he seemed the loneliest man in the world, and it hurt to see him so vulnerable. Rowan hurt for him. Letting go of the door and taking a step toward him, she stopped. This wasn’t something she could fix. They didn’t know each other well enough for that. Pressing her palm to her chest to stop the ache, she went inside and into her room. Closing the door behind her, she told her brain she was closing the door to her heart at the same time. And throwing away the key.
She locked the bathroom doors and got ready for bed, running the day over and over in her head. Gerard was not her type, and she’d do well to remember that. Except when he tucked her hair behind her ear. A vision of how things might be in different circumstances drew a need from her so strong it made her weak in the knees.
Sleep did not come easily that night. She’d been in bed quite a while before she heard him come inside and climb up to the loft. She tossed and turned, her mind awhirl, her heart and body wanting to throw caution to the wind and join him.
The night passed slowly, filled with unsated wishes and having to remind herself over and over again why following those desires was a horrible idea. Rowan fell asleep in the early hours of the morning, beyond tired. Yet her body, used to early rising, was wide awake by seven. She lay there, hearing no movement, surprised that Gerard still slept. Had his night been as rough as hers? She wanted to wish that it was.
Get a grip, girl. She needed action. Throwing back the covers, she grabbed the running gear she’d stowed in her suitcase at the last minute and changed. Then, quiet as a mouse, she crept through the house and out the front door.
She drew in a deep breath. The clean, fresh smell here was so different. Evergreens fragranced the air, wildflowers graced the low areas. Beauty abounded, and she planned to embrace it, at least until they got down to work.
Taking a couple minutes to stretch, she struck out at a good jog, sticking to the road, but chose to head uphill to see what she hadn’t seen as they drove in yesterday. It didn’t take long for her to slow, then drop to a walk, huffing for breath. Recognizing that she’d need to get used to this altitude before she could exert herself more, Rowan was content just to walk. This was a different world, and she could see why Gerard came here to ground himself.
