Take Me Home: Home is Where the Heat Is, Book 3 Read Free Page B

words, but Cash nodded.
    “Me too. I’ll see what I can do.”
    “I’m sure we’ll see them eventually.” She smiled up at him, a bit more at ease to chalk up their time together as a job. “So, seven it is. Not the quiet evening we’d planned though. I’ll pick you up?”
    “I’m game as long as I’ve got you in my corner.” He winked then. And she decided winking wasn’t as stalker-pervish as she’d once thought. Heck, on Cash, it was downright debilitating. “I’ll be waiting.”

Chapter Three
    Shawna grabbed her phone and dialed Cash’s room as she rechecked her reflection in the large mirrors lining one wall of the hotel lobby. She hated dressing up. Yoga pants and a tank top were more her speed. Add on a slice of cheesecake, a glass of wine and Sleepless in Seattle and she’d be in heaven.
    And the unemployment line. Chloe would hit the roof if she found out a StyleU escort had taken Cash out on the town in normal, everyday clothing.
    Keeping that in mind, she’d dressed in a shorter-than-her-norm black skirt. The matching high-heel boots would give her blisters, but they did tend to make her legs look a little longer and a bit less thick. Her breasts looked large in anything, there was just no helping it, so she’d settled for a pale-blue silk blouse that flowed freely and hid the upper portion of her arms.
    She’d tried on every ensemble in her closet and nothing had come close to how she wished she could look for Cash. She’d never be model material, but she was passing for the evening, and her hair looked good for once. Win. The tight bun she’d put it in was neat, and the couple of wisps of hair escaping complemented her face. All in all, she looked appropriate for representing StyleU .
    “Hello, darlin’.” The moment he answered, the butterflies in her stomach morphed into lunar moths focused on finding a way free.
    “Are you ready?” she asked.
    “Not yet. Come on up. I have a surprise for you.”
    He hung up before she could say a word.
    Chewing at her lip, she considered her next move. Go to Cash’s room or leave StyleU ’s newest god without an escort? Neither option seemed safer than the other. Chloe could throw her out on her ass over the consequences of either choice. At least going up might hurry him along…
    Mind made up, she rushed to the elevator. The ride seemed to take forever, and she glanced at her watch several times on the way up to the sixty-fifth floor. Cash was staying in one of the posh rooms the magazine held in reserve for guests. When the elevator door opened she found him standing just outside of it with a devilish grin.
    He grabbed her hand and spun her in a quick circle. “Hot damn, you look good. Those boots are kickin’ my ass. Come with me.”
    Pulled down the hall by his smile more than his hand, a lighthearted contentment stole over her. He was easy to be around, his smile lighting up his face and crinkling the skin around his eyes. It was an infectious expression, full of real emotion.
    While they walked, she let herself enjoy how good he looked. A light gray shirt encased his broad shoulders, the material clinging to his bronze skin. The shirt tapered into a pair of washed-out jeans with fray marks at the pockets and knees. Everything fit to perfection, accentuating his incredible body. The toppings on this cupcake were his black cowboy hat and snakeskin boots.
    He was straight out of a dream.
    They reached his room, and she laughed when she saw a small wastebasket holding the door open. He pushed it aside with a little shrug. “Can’t find my key.”
    “I’ll have the front desk issue you a new one when we go down.”
    She’d barely finished the statement when he had her across the room. He stopped in front of a laptop and pointed to it. “I’ll look for my key while you open the file. It’s our pictures. Chloe agreed to copy them for me, but I can’t figure out how to open it.”
    The spacious room closed in around her, his scent