Not Quite Mine (Not Quite #2)(39)
Author: Catherine Bybee

He dropped the paper and looked up with an instant smile. His gaze traveled her body and his smile fell.

“What? I don’t look as good in the morning?” she teased.

“No.” He set his coffee down and walked to her side. “You look even better.”

It was so easy fishing for compliments with Dean. “You’re full of shit, Dean Prescott. I have mascara smudged under my eyes and eye shadow on my forehead. I look like day old bread.”

He grasped her slim waist and pulled her into his arms. “I like day old bread. A little hard on the outside with the insides still soft and tender. Warm it up, and butter melts on it all the same.”

She couldn’t stop smiling. “That’s one heck of a line. Might need to write it down and blog about it.”

“You blog?”

“No.” But she’d thought about it after visiting several in the last month. Between designer blogs and mommy blogs, Katie had opened up an entire world of cyber information she couldn’t find in books. “But I might wanna.”

Dean brushed his lips over hers. “Good mornin’, darlin’.”

Katie sighed. “Good morning.”

He turned toward the service and poured her a cup of coffee with cream and sugar, just the way she liked it.

“Thanks.”

“I took the liberty of ordering a few things. I know you’re not big on breakfast, but—”

“You are,” she finished for him.

“Right.”

The first sip of coffee opened her eyes even wider. It felt wonderful to have a morning of relaxation. A tiny bit of guilt pulled at the back of her brain. Monica would expect her there by ten. Which meant Katie would have to find a way to have Dean leave without any questions.

“You got up early,” Katie said. It was Saturday and neither one of them would go to work.

“Couldn’t avoid it. My cell phone started chiming thirty minutes ago.”

“Is everything OK?”

“Probably. I need to go by the site. The Santa Ana winds started up last night and there’s a mess at the hotel.”

Katie looked out the window and noticed a haze. Being on the top floor of the hotel, she didn’t see any trees blowing around and the thick windows didn’t allow any wind noise. “Jack said the winds here can be nasty.”

“The gusts can reach hurricane speeds. They knock down power lines, semitrucks. Out here, they kick up dust and topple trees. Leaves quite a mess most of the time.”

She sipped her coffee. Well, at least she wouldn’t have to push him out the door.

Dean topped off his coffee and brought a plate of fruit and toast over to her.

“You don’t have to wait on me.”

“It’s my way of assuring you’re going to eat since I can’t stay here and watch.”

“I don’t forget to eat.” Actually, she had forgotten to eat…more than once in the past month.

“I’m sorry I have to run off. I’d rather we spend the day together and talk about us.”

She bit into the dry toast to hide her expression. What could she say to hold him off on pushing “us” right then?

“You know, Dean. It might be good for us to think about the us part before we talk about it. I wasn’t exactly expecting this.”

He sat beside her, his face blank. “You don’t look like a woman filled with remorse.”

“That’s because I’m not.” She didn’t want to lead him on or shove him away. Patrick was due to call her over the weekend to update the baby status. If Katie could hold off Dean until Savannah was out of the closet…

“I’m not either.”

“I need to think. And I can’t do that with you by my side.”

“All right. I can accept that.”

Good. One hurdle down.

“There’s just one thing I want you to do when you’re thinking,” he said.

“Oh, yeah…what’s that?”

He took her lips with his and tilted her head back. The taste of coffee and jam laced his tongue as it took its sweet time playing with hers. Katie’s eyes fluttered closed and thoughts of thinking drifted away.

Their slow morning kiss ended too soon. “Think of that.”

Dean sure knew how to stack the cards in his favor. It would be impossible to close her eyes and not think of him.

“Go to work, cowboy.”

He winked, kissed her forehead, and sauntered to the door. Yep, he’d certainly developed a certain swagger since the last time he’d shared her bed.

She liked it.

“Have a beautiful day, darlin’.”

Katie kissed her finger and waved in his direction. “’Bye.”

She took her time finishing her coffee and eating her toast.

And she thought.

Denying her attraction, her emotions, when it came to Dean felt like a waste of energy. She didn’t have a deep reserve of energy.

She’d walked away from him, and everything he wanted in life when she found out she couldn’t have children. Yet here she was with a child counting on her every single day.

No. There had to be a better reason to stay away from Dean than a dysfunctional…no, the doctor had called it an inhospitable uterus.

There was always the question if Dean could accept Savannah and what he would do when he found out about her.

“I’ll have to think about everything later,” she told herself.

After a quick shower and packing a small bag with fresh clothes, Katie made her way out of the hotel. She stopped at the reception desk. Naomi had a younger woman beside her watching every move she made.

“Hi, Naomi.”

“Miss Morrison, hello. Have you met Tammy? She’s new with us.”

Katie put on her most congenial smile. Most new employees tripped over themselves when they found out she was a Morrison. Katie always did her best to be as unassuming as possible. “Hi, Tammy. How are you liking it here?”

“I love it. Thanks for asking.”

“Good, good. Listen, Naomi, I need you to be alert to any phone calls coming in for me.”

Naomi picked up a pen and waited for Katie to continue.

“If Patrick Nelson or a Ben Sanderson call, have them call my cell. Oh, and Dean Prescott.”

“I can do that.”

“Good.”

“Tell housekeeping I left my laundry in the bedroom closet and be sure and send the red dress to the dry cleaners.”

“Will we expect you this evening?”

Katie glanced at the time on the clock behind the desk. “No. I will check in tomorrow.”