“What didn’t you like about working for him?”
After swallowing, she took a sip of water and laid her fork down. “Where to start? He’s demanding, which I can handle. Designers often are. The difference with David is that he’s high-strung all the time, which creates such a nerve-racking workplace. And he’s such a jealous bitch, treating his designers like slaves, refusing to let them provide any input. It was stifling working for him, which was why I accelerated my move to designing my own line. If he’d once taken any of my suggestions rather than treating me like nothing more than a seamstress, I might have stayed with him, because the man is truly brilliant. But he’s so neurotic and so afraid someone’s going to steal his designs, he’s impossible to work with.”
Drew studied her. “Hard to work in an environment where your contributions aren’t appreciated.”
And just like that, he’d nailed it, when she’d thought for sure he’d just nod and say “uh-huh” or something like that. “Yes, it was. Not that I expected to take over or anything, but I had good ideas, dammit. Ideas that would have helped his line. Not myself, but him.”
“I understand. And it’s his loss, isn’t it? Because you’re going to create your own line now and kick his ass.”
Admittedly, she was shocked by the compliment. “I don’t know about that. But taking that step was freeing in a way I never thought it would be. At least initially.”
“And now you’re nervous because you’re on your own now and you don’t know if you’ll succeed.”
He was also annoyingly keen at identifying her biggest worry. “Maybe.”
“Don’t be worried. You’ll be great.”
She pushed her half-empty plate to the side. “How can you be so confident, when you know nothing about me?”
“Easy,” he said, standing and moving into the living room, where she’d shoved her sketches onto one of the side tables. He picked them up. “This. And this. They’re good, Lina.”
She took a deep breath as his gaze caught and held hers. “You’re hardly knowledgeable about fashion, Drew.”
“Maybe not. But I know what looks good on a woman. You’ve always dressed well. I think you have a keen eye for what makes a woman feel great about herself. And I’d bet you could do the same for a man. You’ve never lacked for confidence.” He gave her a wicked grin. “Hell, you even threw yourself at me back in college.”
Ugh. She couldn’t believe he’d brought that up. “Don’t remind me.”
He came back into the kitchen. “Do you know how much courage that took? It was a huge turn-on, and it showed me how ballsy you were. You were just a girl back then. You’re a woman now. I don’t think anything can stop you from having whatever you want.” He brushed his knuckles against her cheek, forcing her to meet his gaze again.
She lifted her eyes to his and, with him so close, the heat that always seemed to emanate from him surrounded her, enveloping her in a haze of not-so-forgotten lust and longing.
“That’s a nice thing to say.” He’d always said nice things to her—when he wanted something. Which made her wonder exactly what it was that he wanted now.
She studied him, the woman she was now not nearly as naïve as the young girl she’d been back then.
“Exactly what are you after here, Drew? A repeat performance from college?” She pushed her chair back and stood, creating distance between the two of them. “Because if you are, I can assure you it’s not going to happen.”
She made sure to keep eye contact with him, so he understood clearly her meaning. “Never again. Ever.”
TWO
DREW FOUGHT THE URGE TO SMILE AT THE LOOK Carolina gave him. Man, she was fierce and determined to not show that she gave a shit about him, while her body and her eyes betrayed her, just like they had back in college.
If there was one thing he could do and do well, it was read a woman’s body language, and Carolina was all tight with tension and nerves. She always had been around him.
And he’d been a class-A douchebag back then, had taken advantage of a young woman who’d had an obvious crush on him, had used her and discarded her in the dickhead way young guys did. He still felt like shit about it all these years later.
“I’m not here to seduce you, Lina,” he said, though when he’d walked through her front door and seen her again, she still managed to gut punch him like she always had. She was even more beautiful now than she’d been back then. Her light brown hair was cut chin-length and framed her face, and her stunningly sharp blue eyes, as always, just about struck him dead.
“I can’t believe you agreed to do this. It doesn’t seem like it’s something you’d be remotely interested in doing.”
He caught the edge of anger in her voice. “How would you even know what interests me? Maybe I like fashion.”
She let out a snort. “I highly doubt that. You seem more like the bar-brawling, beer-swilling, sweatshirt–with-a-logo-on–it-wearing, sports-watching type to me.”
“Hmmm. I have been guilty of all those things. But I also like to dress well. See, you don’t know me at all, Lina.”
She looked away. “Stop calling me that.”
“Why?”
“Because it’s not my name.”
He moved closer, breathing in the subtle scent of her perfume. “Because it reminds you of that night.”
She stepped away. “No, it doesn’t.” She lifted her head and gave him a look that showed her pain. “You’re trying to piss me off.”
Now it was him who took a step back. “No. I’m really not. I just want to be friends.”
She laughed. “We can’t be friends, Drew.”
Maybe she hated him because of what he’d done. He’d always managed to stay friends with the women he slept with. He was nice to them and never lied to them. He never made promises he didn’t intend to keep. Hell, he never made promises. He’d never promised Carolina anything that night, either. But maybe she’d heard something he hadn’t said. Or maybe he’d said something that night he couldn’t recall saying.
“This isn’t a good idea.” She closed up the boxes of food.
He stopped her, laying his hand over hers and forcing her to turn and look at him. “What’s not a good idea?”