Kiss A Handsome Stranger

The gentle, understanding man that she dreamed of marrying would accept her without hesitation and stand by her no matter what. A man like Chance, on the other hand, was likely to wrinkle his nose and hightail it in pursuit of a woman with no imperfections attached.

Did he have to look so gorgeous, with the late-afternoon light bringing out the strength of his face and the deceptive sensitivity of his gray gaze? she wondered. It would have been hard to keep her distance, except for the fact that she could barely move.

“You wouldn’t happen to be in need of mouth-to-mouth resuscitation, would you?” he teased, seeming unaware of the breeze that fluttered engagingly through his soft hair. Even the elements conspired on Chance’s behalf.

“I’m a little cold.” Getting out of the pool would feel even colder, but Daisy needed to escape the curious stares of her friends. Not to mention the ever-inquisitive Frannie Fitzgerald, who stood on her patio with hands on hips, watching them with interest.

“Which towel’s yours?” When she pointed, Chance brought it from a nearby bench.

As she climbed from the water, he wrapped it around her, his hands lingering longer than strictly necessary. Despite her better judgment, she didn’t mind.

“Honestly, we didn’t realize anything was wrong,” Phoebe said. “Should I call a doctor?”

“Nothing is wrong.” Daisy wished her teeth would stop chattering. “It’s my own stupid fault. I had this impulse to see how long I could stay underwater.”

“Why?” asked her friend.

“Because I’m an idiot,” she said.

“You look kind of blue,” Elise said. “I don’t care for that shade. We can scratch it off our list for the wedding.”

Daisy couldn’t help chuckling at her friend’s nonsense. Chance circled his arm more closely around her. He didn’t seem to notice the water dripping onto his suit and shoes.

“I repeat, we need to try on dresses before we make a decision,” said Phoebe.

“There is no ‘we’ making this decision,” Elise said. “I’m consulting you two out of the goodness of my heart.”

“Saturday,” Phoebe said. “I’m free to shop in the afternoon.”

Elise shrugged. “Okay by me.” When Daisy coughed, her friend said, “I’ll answer for her. She’s taking a few hours off to join us.”

“But I have a show opening that night.”

“That’s why you hired that assistant. Right?”

There was no denying it. “Right.”

“I’m taking Daisy inside to dry off,” Chance told them.

“I can go alone.”

“No,” he replied firmly. “You need me to look after you.”

Daisy’s heart twisted in a funny, scary, delicious way. She knew it was just Chance’s suave charm coming into play, but she wished so hard that he meant it.

“Before you go,” his sister said, “was there a reason you wanted to see me, big bro?”

“Nothing urgent. I’ll catch you later,” he said.

Daisy knew she shouldn’t let him walk her to her condo. If she did, he might come inside. And if that happened, she might not be able to resist him any more than she had two months ago.

What power did this man have over her? Sternly she reminded herself that he possessed no power that she didn’t grant him.

Yet, despite her resolve to the contrary, she let him escort her all the way to unit 2E.

AFTER SEEING SO MANY devastated marriages, Chance had set very high standards for the woman he would someday wed, and, since college, no one had come close to meeting them. Certainly he was better off not getting involved with someone as unpredictable as Deirdre.

Yet his feelings refused to yield to logic. Her mercurial quality made her all the more fascinating, and the way she nestled within the circle of his arm inspired a longing to protect her.

From his greater height, he studied Daisy’s well-defined nose and thick lashes. Were her eyes really as green as he remembered? When she opened her condo and turned toward him, he saw that they were.

“Thanks,” she said.

“That’s it?” He couldn’t believe she meant to leave him standing there.

“You want to dry your watch and make sure it works?” she asked.

“Of course it works. It’s water resistant,” he said. “That isn’t the point. Either you’re trying to duck the issue or you want to have a highly personal conversation right here in the hallway. Given the nosiness of your neighbors, I would advise against it.”

A panicky expression crossed her face. It made Chance feel like an ogre for twisting her arm, but darn it, he wasn’t going to let Deirdre escape again. Whatever she was hiding needed to come out in the open.

At least now he knew she wasn’t married. Or an escaped felon. Or any of the other unlikely possibilities that had occurred to him.

“Come on.” He made the decision for her, escorting her inside and closing the door behind them. “Let’s get this over with.”

“That sounds…threatening.”

“Absolutely not,” he said. “I just want to clear the air.”

She took a deep breath. “Okay,” she said, then hesitated, as if thinking things over.

The condo surprised him, when Chance allowed himself to look around. Subconsciously he’d expected to find it flowery and old-fashioned, with a few stuffed animals or dolls tucked among ruffled pillows.

Instead it was subtle with a couple of key focal points. His attention fixed first on a red, orange and pink blanket woven in a jagged design, draped across the back of the off-white couch. Then he noticed, in an opposing corner, a large ceramic planter with a band of molten red against a multitextured blue-gray surface.

Everything else in the room flowed in muted colors and shapes. Chairs, lamps, draperies, all had been selected with a discerning taste.

“Who did your decorating?” He wouldn’t mind hiring the same designer to complete the interior of his house.

“I did.” Nibbling at her lower lip, Daisy edged toward the kitchen. “Would you like coffee?”

“No, but help yourself, if it’ll warm you,” he said. “Better yet, get dressed.”

“I’m not cold.”

“I insist.”

“Are you going to supervise to make sure I put on something warm enough?” Dismay at the implication made her eyes fly open. Definitely green.