The Reluctant Beauty(9)
It was hard to make out what they were saying; all of them were talking and snapping pictures at the same time. Noise and white flashes overtook his senses. At the street corner, he looked in all directions and then back at the group of people surging toward him. He bolted, darting into an alleyway and cutting across streets to get away.
In the back of his mind, he knew where he was going, his feet automatically pointing him to one place he felt safe. One person he felt secure with. Peg.
Chapter 4
The pounding on the door matched the pounding in her head. “Geez, Louise, I shouldn’t have had the apple martinis. Sneaky little suckers,” she groaned. “Okay, okay, Rico. I’m coming. Whatcha do, go and forget your key? You know, I shouldn’t even let you into your own house when you left me high and dry like that.”
She kept talking as she moved to the door. “I swear my head’s gonna explode if you don’t quit that racket.” Peg unlocked the door and yanked it open.
Holding her aching head, she stared into the hottie’s pale blue eyes. She gulped hard. “For cripes’ sake, what are you doing here?” She realized she had on her pink polka dot jammies with her silly pink bunny slippers.
“I…messed up. I do need a place to stay,” he said, looking over his shoulder.
“No can do.”
“What? Come on, Peg. Just tonight.”
“Nope.” She went to close the door, but he put his foot out, stopping her.
“I’m in a bind.”
She eyed him closely. He did seem a little out of sorts now. “You rob a bank or something?”
“Come on, Peg, do I look like I would do something like that?”
“You’re nervous. You keep looking over your shoulder. The law after you?”
“No. I need a place to stay. It’s cold and wet outside.”
Dollars to doughnuts, he was hiding something. Could she make this work to her advantage? “I need a date.”
“Seriously? Are you bringing that up now?”
“Terms are, I do you a favor and you do me a favor.”
“How fair is that? I just need a place to crash. You need a, what, two-week commitment?”
“You get free room and board for two weeks. You meet my folks, brother, sis-in-law, and behave, then you dump me, in front of them. Poof, you’re gone. I’m happy. You’re happy. Whatda say?” She stuck out her hand.
***
Two weeks? Two days would be better for him.
But that might give him enough time to hide out, meet up with his sister, catch up on her life, and avoid the fans while he planned his next move out of the limelight. This time he’d fly off to some damn island where no one cared who he was or what he did.
Doubts crowded in. Evelyn would let him bunk there, but she had a chatty roommate. And the press would make the connection and hound his sister. Even after he left, her life would still be upended; they never would believe he’d skipped out of town.
They’d done it before. He’d helped her move to avoid the ongoing aftermath. They’d do it again.
He shook Peg’s hand. “You’ve got a deal.”
***
Peg wanted to do the happy dance, but settled for a handshake instead. She yanked him in and shut the door behind him.
He had no idea what he’d gotten himself into. And she wasn’t about to fill him in on the details. Her family was relentless. Even with her, thus the date thingamajiggy plan had percolated and taken root.
In fifteen minutes, Peg, with Austin’s help, put together his sleeping area: a couple of thick comforters on the floor and a spare pillow and blanket.
“Your friend won’t mind, will he?” Austin asked, sitting on a chair and tugging off his heavy boots.
“Rico? Nah! The more the better. He loves a good sleepover.”
Austin seemed to sag. Peg noted how tired he looked.
“You look beat. Hanging out at bars wears you out?”
He chuckled. “Flying, months of working without a day off, now that does wear me out.”
She frowned. “So what do you do anyway?” Putting out her hand, he took it, and she tugged him to his feet. She liked touching him. Too much. He was close. Now she saw the sleepy eyes and sliver of a smile. Peg gulped hard. That smile…
“Travel a lot. For business.”
He couldn’t even form complete sentences. She nudged him toward the lone bathroom. “You take the rights first; you need it more than me right now.”
Mumbling something, he snatched some things from his duffel bag and went to the barely there room in the loft.
Curious, Peg craned her neck to see if she could find out what else was in that black bag he carried around. Nope. Nothing but clothes on top.