Heated Rush - Leslie Kelly [70]
No way. She wouldn’t have given up going to that auction for anything in the world.
“See? Nobody even noticed him,” Sean said. They’d strolled with complete innocence through the massive lobby and down a short corridor leading to a bank of elevators going up to the rooms above.
“Thank God there wasn’t a dog around, or they would have heard Wally screeching from the fortieth floor.”
“Nah, he’s a big pussycat, aren’t you, boy?”
She was smiling over his cooing tone—the man could charm four-legged beasts as easily as the two-legged kind—when the elevator door in front of them opened with a quiet whoosh. Two women were inside, well-dressed ones carrying designer purses, with diamonds proclaiming their wealth around their necks and on their fingers.
Annie barely paid attention to them, at least until she felt Sean freeze beside her.
He didn’t move. Didn’t step inside, didn’t get out of the way. Instead, he merely stared as one of the women—a very attractive brunette who was probably in her early forties—spied him and stepped so close their bodies almost touched.
“Sean!” the woman said, sounding completely delighted. Her smile tugged ten years off her face.
Oh, fabulous. An ex. As if they really needed something to bring back the tension that had finally seemed to be dissipating after the long car ride.
A tic appearing in his temple, Sean forced a smile of his own. “Constance.”
“I had no idea you were stateside,” the woman gushed. Then she looked down, saw the cage and the cat, and gaped. “You must be working for a real cat-woman this time, rather than just a catty one like me.”
Annie, who had obviously become invisible—or was simply uninteresting enough to blend into the background—cleared her throat. “Sean, do you want me to take him so you can talk to your…friend?”
He met her stare, which was when she noticed that Sean hadn’t turned to ice. No, there was heat in his eyes. Fiery heat. And not the kind he displayed when he looked at her with raw hunger.
His emotions were roiling inside him like the churning of a massive storm. Entirely foreign emotions—some she’d never associate with this man—oozed almost visibly from his every pore. She saw anger there. Embarrassment. Sadness.
Oh, God. This wasn’t just an ex-girlfriend, she suddenly realized. He must have loved this woman. Though her comments about his working for someone were a little confusing. Had he gotten involved with his boss? Is that what had sent him into his current world-hopping career, which had no fixed address, no stability?
She reached for the cage.
“I’ve got him,” Sean insisted, his words thick, his throat obviously tight.
“Sean?” the other woman said. Finally noticing Annie, his “friend” studied her closely. The assessing amber eyes noted the windblown hair, the off-the-rack T-shirt, the jean capris and the kick-around sandals.
They had absolutely no common ground, not a single thing that could make them relate to one another. Except the man standing between them.
“Oh,” the wealthy woman finally murmured, blinking rapidly. Her face suffused with color, and she cleared her throat before turning her attention back to Sean. “I’m sorry. You…I mean…”
“It’s all right,” he bit out. “Nice to see you.”
The woman nodded at him, then looked at Annie. “You’ve got a great guy,” she said, her small smile appearing almost genuine. Then, grabbing her wide-eyed companion by the arm and tugging her away, she hurried down the hall and disappeared into the enormous lobby.
They stood in silence before the elevator door, which had closed again. Sean made no move toward the call button, and she could almost see his mind working. As if he had to decide—proceed up to his room and pretend the interruption hadn’t happened?
Or deal with it?
Almost afraid to know what he would tell her, Annie wasn’t sure what she most wanted to happen. She still wasn’t sure what he had decided when he finally reached over and pushed the Up button. Because he certainly didn’t put his arm around her and tug her close, or kiss her lightly to reassure her that their afternoon