For Seven Nights Only - Sarah Ballance Page 0,13

devastation had. His brother was a shell of who he’d once been, and Sawyer just wasn’t ready to trade his blissful bachelor existence for that kind of emotional devastation. He wasn’t sure he ever would be, truth be told.

He shook it off as Kelsie approached.

“Find a date?” he asked.

“No, he’s married.”

Yep, her dog definitely snarled at the wrong person. “That friendly and he admitted he was married?”

“He works for a firm I’m contracted with. He recognized me.”

Sawyer wasn’t convinced the guy was just being friendly, but he was more interested in Kelsie. “What do you do for a living?”

“I’m a digital strategist.”

Jesus. Maybe he should hook her up with his brother Crosby’s almost-fiancée’s brother, Grady. That guy never looked away his from computer screen, and according to Grady’s sister, he hadn’t had a date in ages. He was probably perfect for Kelsie, but the idea didn’t sit well. He frowned, annoyed that he even cared. “What the hell is a digital strategist?”

She smiled brilliantly. Clearly this was a topic she was comfortable with, and to see her loosen up was a beautiful thing. “I advise companies—and sometimes people—on ways to improve their digital presence, and I help make websites more user-friendly and informative and help with social media. It’s an amazing job, but I’m either stuck at home alone or working in-house, which pretty much leaves every guy there off the table for professional reasons.”

“So you don’t mix business with pleasure?”

“That is correct. And,” she added warily, “for some reason, I bet you don’t share that philosophy. What do you do?”

“My three brothers and I own an HVAC company. It’s a family business, three generations and counting. And for the record, I have yet to sleep with someone on the job, which is more than I can say for my older brother.” Crosby had totally nailed one of their clients…and on the day he met her, no less. Sawyer had been damned impressed. Of course, they were practically engaged now…

“But after hours?”

“Do you really want to know what I do in my free time?”

She scowled. “I guess it’s a good thing you do plumbing in your spare time.”

He smiled but didn’t fall into laughter. He was too much on edge. He didn’t like seeing her with other men. Maybe because she wasn’t willing to be with him. That had to be it.

But he wasn’t ready to give her up. Not yet. He wanted his seven dates, dammit, and he wanted to hold more than her hand. Guess it had been a while since he’d enjoyed the chase.

Inspiration struck. “You have plans tonight?”

Her gaze narrowed with suspicion, but a smile toyed with her lips. “You tell me.”

“Put on a dress, sweetheart. And only a dress—no scarves, no shawls, no mummy wrappings of any kind. We’re going dancing.”

Chapter Four

Kelsie dug out her only cliché-worthy little black dress for the evening. She felt naked, and that, along with Sawyer’s suggestion that she not cover quite so much, left her thinking he’d be pleased. Not that she cared if he was pleased, but despite his admonishment at being her own person, she definitely wanted a date. She’d worry about being her own person in two weeks. After the wedding.

Oddly, however, he didn’t seem pleased. Instead he appeared…puzzled. When she opened the door he just stood there, surprise and uncertainty etching his face.

“Something wrong?” she asked. She tried to sound coy, but she didn’t have an authentically coy bone in her body. Instead she sounded a little desperate, even to her own ears. And that made her want to kick him. She’d long bemoaned her ability to snag a decent guy, but she’d never doubted who she was. Not until him and his stupid neck fetish.

“You look great,” he said. “But not like you.”

“Is that one of your usual lines? Because if that’s how you lure women into your bed, they’re even dumber than I thought.”

He took a step inside her apartment, uninvited. “No,” he said, all low and sexy and not the least bit apologetic. “What I meant was you look like you’re trying to be someone else.”

Thrown by the unexpected thrill of his proximity, she took a step back. Retreating on her own turf. Nice. She swallowed. “Was that not the point of this seven-date thing? So you could turn me into something tolerable?”

“No,” he said, a bit sharply. His face softened. “Just a more approachable version of yourself. So go get a necklace or something a little more you so these boys