The Unidentified Redhead (Redhead #1)(33)
Author: Alice Clayton

“I told you so! And your sense of humor is so corny!” he yelled back. I saw Holly and Nick shake their heads at us.

Nick pointed at my hoohah and said, “Is that what you call cornpone?”

“Hey, your favorite show is on, Grace. It’s The Corny Collins Show!” Holly chimed in.

“What’s your favorite Poison song, Nick?” Jack asked.

“I don’t know, Jack. What’s yours?” Nick answered back, vaudeville style.

“Every Rose has its Corn!” he shouted, as they both waved around jazz hands.

Mother-fucking jazz hands …

I glared at all of them as they laughed, making my way back toward the stairs, shaking out niblets the entire time. “Whatever, Hamilton. You were an infant when that song came out,” I mumbled.

“What’s that, Sheridan?” he yelled as I walked up the stairs.

“Oh, suck it!” I yelled back. I could hear them all laughing as I went in for my second shower of the day.

Every Rose has its Corn … funny.

After that, I refused to see Jack. I did communicate with him through a series of notes passed under the door of my bedroom. I agreed to meet him later at my new house, and then we were going out for dinner. I was excited, as this would be our first official “date”. It was weird that he had already had his mouth on my lady business before our first date, but then again, nothing was conventional about us, so why start now?

After my audition, I went straight to my new house. I was excited to see how things were coming along since I had been there last week. Things were almost done. They were just at the end of refinishing the hardwood floors and tiling the kitchen. Many of my new appliances had just been delivered and were being installed, and most of the crew had already gone for the day. I walked with Chad, the contractor, making notes here and there on things that were still being finished.

“Hey, Sheridan, where are you?”

My heart lurched at the sound of his voice. Even though it had only been a few hours since I’d seen him, I’d missed him.

This is getting serious.

No kidding.

“In here!” I yelled, and listened to him walk toward us. When he came around the corner, I grinned at the sight of him. I let my eyes travel over him.

The late afternoon California sun was streaming through the windows, making him glow. Black leather jacket, green t-shirt, black jeans, and … the ball cap.

Dammit, the ball cap would have to go. I needed to see those curls. They were just too good. He smiled, biting down gently on his lower lip, and I nodded to him as I continued talking to Chad.

“So, the colors for the painter have already been chosen and I taped the swatches up in each room. Also, there are some scuff marks on the tile in the shower that have yet to be removed. Can we take care of that this weekend?” I motioned to Jack to follow us as we finished our tour, and he tagged along. He was smiling at me with that devious grin, and I wondered what he was thinking.

He watched me as I walked around the house, making notes with the contractor on things that they were still working on. I noticed he was eying my legs with great interest. I was still wearing what I had worn to my audition, black pencil skirt, black turtleneck, wide red belt and red pumps, very ‘40s style. I had my hair pulled back into a sleek ponytail, and I was still wearing my glasses. I winked at him over the rims when I was discussing the new Viking stove with Chad, and he winked back. I felt his eyes on me as we walked around, and I might have put a little extra sway in my hips. I knew he was watching, you see …

By the time Chad had left, the rest of the crew had disappeared, and it was just Jack and me. Most of the lights were off, and he’d wandered back into the house while I saw Chad out. Then I walked through the rooms, looking for him.

“Hey, Hamilton, where are you?” I called out.

“In here, Nuts Girl,” he answered. He was in my bedroom.

I walked in and saw him looking at the walls where I had instructed the painter to test out different swatches of paint color.

“Hey,” I said softly.

“Hey, yourself,” he answered.

We stared at each other from across the room for a moment.

“Is it crazy that I missed you, even for that short amount of time?” I asked boldly, putting it right out there.

“Is it crazy that I missed you and I almost called Holly to find out where your audition was so I could pick you up?” he answered.

“Is it crazy that I want to kiss you so badly right now I almost can’t stand it?” I countered, walking across the room toward him.

“Is it crazy that when I saw you in that insanely sexy outfit that I wanted to ravage you on that pile of furniture pads in the other room?” he finished, crossing to me and meeting me halfway.

“Is it crazy that—” I couldn’t finish, his mouth was on mine.

Is it crazy that you are probably in love with this guy after only a few weeks?

Yep. Apeshit, batshit, insane crazy in love. Shit.

Just don’t tell him that …

Don’t worry.

Chapter 15

We made out like teenagers, standing in my new bedroom, kissing and caressing softly. There wasn’t the urgency of earlier, although I could sense that it could be brought to the surface within seconds. Now there was gentleness, a quietness to our exploration. I had forgotten what it felt like to simply kiss a man and have him kiss me back, echoing my pace. This was sweet, nurturing, lovely and loving.

This was a romance that was beginning.

We kissed until the sun began to set, and he leaned my head on his shoulder, catching me into a close embrace. He smoothed my hair back into a ponytail and kissed near my ear.

“Is it crazy that—” he began.

“Let’s not start that again. We agree, we are both crazy,” I interrupted, patting him on the backside.

“I wasn’t finished, you rude girl,” he said, frowning down at me.

“Oops, sorry. Please continue,” I apologized.

“I was going to say, is it crazy that I think your tits look amazing in that turtleneck?” I pulled back to look at him. He was gazing down at me with a twinkle in his eye.

“You have a one track mind, Johnny Bite Down.”

“That’s true, I do.” He laughed.

“And the turtleneck might have something to do with the hickey you left behind!” I scolded, pulling it down so he could see what he did. He just rolled his eyes and laughed.

“By the way, I’m going to make a rule, right here and now,” I continued, pulling out of his arms altogether and facing him with my hands on my hips.