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emphasized the shade of her dark-blue, passionate eyes.
The unique lavender flecks sparkling in the center of her irises intrigued him
from the first day they’d met. They appeared richer in color tonight, but the
dull lighting might have been a factor.
    “I guess in my case, it’s fear by
association. Trauma,” she continued. “When I was a little girl, a yellow truck
rear-ended my mom’s vehicle. We were banged up pretty badly, and they rushed us
away in an ambulance. The doctor said it probably caused the phobia.”
    “Well, baby, I can take care of that right now.” He stood
and yanked the bedspread off the bed. “Problem solved.” Other than driving to
the store to buy his own bath and hand towels, there wasn’t anything he could
do about the bathroom linens. With a hotel named Sunshine Inn, the contents of
the rooms were pretty self-explanatory. “You’ll want to shower at home though.”
He folded the bedspread and set it on a high shelf inside the closet.
    “That’s fine,” she said, her voice sounding more relaxed.
“How do you and your brother both fit in this puny place?”
    “We don’t. I wouldn’t have brought you here if we bunked
together.” Strolling back to the couch, he held out his hand. The arousal she’d
stirred when he’d held her flush against his body on the dance floor had
reached its peak. For such a little woman, she left a big impression. But from
prior experience, he’d already known that. “C’mere.”
    As she stood and slipped her hand into his palm, her fingers
trembled.
    He cupped her face and caressed both delicate cheekbones
with his thumbs. Lazily her black lashes fluttered upward.
    “Relax, Annalee.”
    She smiled but it seemed contrived. “I’m…um…am…a little
nervous.”
    “Don’t be.” He found that hard to believe. This was by no
means the self-assured woman whose gaze he’d caught fondling his crotch at
Whiltby’s office more times than he could count. The fundamentals of being
alone in a cozy room were totally different than sitting side by side at an
office desk though. Or her ex seriously fucked her up. “Let’s start with this.”
He slid his fingers into her hair, searching for clips to un-secure the
headpiece.
    She reached to help but he replaced her hands at her sides.
“I’ll do it.” He needed to set the tone for the evening and give insight into
who’s in charge. I’m not afraid to try anything once. Tonight he’d
discover just how willingly she’d back up that statement.
    Gently he pulled two metal clips free and set them in her
hand. “How many more?”
    “Three.”
    While he searched, she shifted weight to her right foot and
brought her hands up once more. “They’re right here,” she said, grasping one
with her fingernails.
    “I told you,” he grabbed both hands, lowered them to his
mouth and kissed her palms, “I’d take care of it.”
    After returning her hands to her sides, he dislodged the
final three, patting flyaway strands of hair that pulled free with the clips.
After he slipped her ponytail through the headdress, long, straight tresses
fell over her shoulders and chest. A fruity aroma drifted to his nose,
instantly taking him back to the days at the office. Many times she’d squeezed
his hand, branding her touch into his memory. It’s not something he’d
forgotten. When he’d departed for Seattle, he’d carried the essence with
him—even out to sea, where its power nurtured him through lonely nights and
comforted his battle wounds.
    He tossed the headpiece on the couch and delicately massaged
her scalp where the hair had been tugged up at the sides. The soft, silky
strands worked as an elixir to his calloused fingertips. “You’re beautiful.”
    He attended the party for one reason. One. Hoping to find
her in attendance. And when he’d spotted her in back by the bar, damn—why
hadn’t he come back sooner? He’d wasted a lot of time. Time he’d never recoup.
    Finding her in the realm of a broken