Love Proof (Laws of Attraction) - By Elizabeth Ruston Page 0,31
“Go lie down. I’ll wake you up when it’s time.”
She hesitated for a moment, then had to ask him again. “This isn’t some trick, is it?”
“Why would I trick you?”
“I don’t know, let me oversleep and miss the argument so your team can win?”
“You may find this hard to believe,” he said, “but I’m not like you and Ellen. I don’t need to win everything.”
“Neither do I,” Sarah protested. “Just . . . most things. I’ve worked really hard for this.”
“And I promise I’ll get you there on time,” Joe said. “But every minute you’re still arguing with me, you could be sleeping. So get into bed while I take a shower.”
Exhaustion pulled at her like a weight around her bones. She hung her suit in Joe’s closet, then kicked off her sneakers and lay down on his bed.
“Under the covers,” he said. “Go on, it’s warmer.”
She felt odd about it, but went ahead and crawled in, still dressed in her jeans and sweater. Joe turned off the light.
“Why are you doing this?” Sarah asked into the dark.
“Because I like you, Red. And I want you to do well, despite my psychotic partner.” Then Joe closed the bathroom door and turned on the shower.
***
Sarah had had power naps before: those twenty-minute wonders that could take the edge off exhaustion and let her study long hours into the night.
But a full hour of complete, restful sleep in Joe’s bed felt so healing, by the time he woke her up she almost felt whole.
“You should probably call Mickey,” Joe said when she opened her eyes.
“Why?”
“I’m going to take you straight to the school, not back to your hotel. You can tell him you’ll meet him.”
Sarah rubbed her eyes and reached for her phone. She dialed Mickey.
“Where are you?” he asked.
“With . . . Joe. I took a nap.”
There was silence on the other end.
“Mickey?”
“Yeah. Whatever. See you there.” Then he hung up.
“He thinks we had sex,” Sarah told Joe. She surprised herself by saying that out loud.
But Joe took it in stride. “He’s married, you know.”
“What?” Sarah stared back at him . “No, you’re joking.”
“Married, with a kid on the way. You should ask him.”
Sarah’s mouth still hung open. “Unbelievable.” Then she laughed.
“You don’t care?”
“Not in the least—except he’s a douchebag for always hitting on me.”
“It wasn’t going to work one of these days?” Joe asked.
“Hardly.”
“How come?”
Sarah pulled back the covers and swung her legs over the side of the bed. “I’m here to work, Burke. Thanks for letting me sleep. Now I need to get ready for battle.”
Thirteen
When Sarah emerged from Joe’s bathroom with her hair done, makeup on, and wearing the most expensive outfit she’d ever owned—a navy blue pencil skirt and snug-fitting jacket, with a crisp white cotton blouse underneath—Joe took a step back and made a fist at his heart.
“Shut up,” she said, but the gesture pleased her.
“Red, you’re a total knockout.”
“Stop calling me that.”
“Okay, Henley,” Joe said, “but you’re not actually going out like that, are you? Give the rest of us a chance.”
She smoothed her skirt over her thighs. “You think I look okay?”
Joe looked her up and down once more, and let his eyes linger at her chest.
“Nice fit,” he said.
She crossed her arms.
“Don’t ever be embarrassed of having a great body, Henley,” Joe said. “You’re doing a public service walking around like that.”
“Can we go?” she asked dryly.
He stepped closer and pressed a kiss to her cheek.
“Great. Am I going to have a problem with you, too?” she asked. She tried to sound irritated, knowing the flush on her skin might give her away.
“Can’t help it,” Joe said. “You’re that beautiful.”
Sarah glanced at her watch, just to have something to do. He wasn’t making her nervous, exactly, just . . . distracted.
Joe lifted his own suit jacket from where it hung over a chair, and met her at the door. He opened it for her, then followed her out into the hall.
“You’re gonna kill,” he told her. “And not just because all the male judges will be salivating. I’ve listened to your argument, Sarah, and it’s great.”
The compliment pleased her even more than any of the ones about her looks. “Yours, too, Joe. You’re one of the best I’ve seen.”
“In a lot of respects,” he said, and when she raised an eyebrow at him, showing him how unimpressed she was by what was obviously a line, he added, “But we can talk about that after one of us wins.”