Blind Love (4 page)

He turned to look at her. “Painting what?”

“She wanted to paint the foyer yellow and red, and the dining room hot pink. Does that sound like his style?”

Tony chuckled. “She sounds almost as bad as this woman in Gig Harbor. Two dinner dates and she thought she owned me. Crazy woman even drugged my dog. That’s why Nick and Cara sent me to California. They wanted to get me out of town while the police looked for her. Nick was afraid she’d hurt my mother, but the cops have her locked up now.”

“This woman my father brought home drugged him, which undoubtedly caused him to fall down the stairs and break his caboose. His leg twisted and broke in three places, and at his age, it might never be the same.” She looked up at Tony. “Is your dog all right?”

“Yeah, he’s fine. I brought him with me to Cara’s estate. The staff there feeds him anything he wants, brushes him, and plays ball with him. He loves it.”

Catherine picked up the lamps while Tony moved the bed and nightstands. When he finished, she stripped the sheets off the bed. “What do you think, Tony? Can you turn those rooms downstairs into something that resembles this?”

He examined the bathroom and closet. “There isn’t this much space downstairs. I can open those two rooms into one big room, increase the size of the bathroom, and put in a small closet. Can you leave some of his clothes up here?” Her father’s closet was filled with business suits and ties and dress shirts, things he wouldn’t need while he recuperated.

“Sure. He’ll need a wheelchair, so I want the doors on the bedroom and bathroom widened. The rest of the downstairs is fairly open, and the French doors open out to the terrace and pool. The only bottleneck will be in those rooms.”

The work sounded easy enough, and looking at the woman, he decided the friend part could be interesting.

Tony moved as gracefully as a big cat, inspecting the rooms, and Catherine couldn’t take her eyes off him. His face and body seemed to have been sculpted by the hands of a master artist, and he had the most incredible smile. The fireman was a great looking man, but nothing like this dreamy guy. Tall, dark, and handsome didn’t do him justice. He could pose for the cover of a romance novel. If his personality matched his looks and he agreed to do the show, she’d found her first bachelor for
Blind Love
.

“Your room is right there, Tony.” Catherine pointed to one of the guest rooms.

“Make yourself comfortable while I fix lunch, and then we’ll talk about the renovations.” She carried the dirty sheets down to the laundry room and started the washer. Since the maid quit, she’d have to take care of the housekeeping chores herself. Another thing to add to her growing list of things to do. Hire a housekeeper and pray her father didn’t immediately fire her.

Would she ever get her own life back, or was she doomed to be Father’s servant until he could function on his own again?

After he deposited his bag in the room she’d given him, Tony met her in the kitchen. “How bad is your father? I mean, what does the doctor say about what he can do when he comes home?”

Catherine started lunch while she described her father’s injuries. “It’ll be weeks before he can walk, and forget climbing stairs. This room will have to suffice for a good long time.” Father wouldn’t like it, but it was his own fault for bringing home strange women. If Fawn had been the one who’d fallen and broken something, she would undoubtedly have sued for millions.

Tony and Catherine sat under the pergola by the pool eating crab salad and crusty bread. Bougainvillea vines snaked around the corners and beautiful purple blossoms surrounded them. Catherine had always loved this garden oasis, but the house hadn’t felt like home since her father sold the hotels. She didn’t live here anymore. This trip was for the sole purpose of fixing the house, hiring nurses, a cook, and a housekeeper. Once Tony got the work done on Father’s new bedroom and she got her father settled at home with the help he needed, she could return to LA and work on the new show.

Glancing at Tony, at his wide shoulders and the solid muscles in his arms, she wondered why he’d have lousy luck with women, as Cara put it. This guy was so gorgeous he could have any woman he wanted.
Including me
, a small voice in the back of her mind whispered. What she wouldn’t give to have Tony Donatelli warming her bed at night. Or any other time.

The great looking guys she knew in college were only interested in her giving them advice on the pretty girls they dated. Then there were the guys who wanted help with their class assignments, the ones who wanted to study with her before exams, who thought her brains could pull them both through. There were others who liked the idea of dating a woman whose father owned a chain of hotels, the ones who thought she had the connections to kick-start their careers in hotel management. Others thought marrying money would lead to a life of luxury and ease. She’d tried to weed them out, but occasionally one snuck through her radar. Looking at Tony, she somehow knew he wouldn’t fit into any of those categories. Cara wouldn’t have sent him here if he was scouting for a wife with money.

She’d met other men through the hotel business, but it was the same old story. They dated her because she was the daughter of Walt Timmons, hotel baron and multi-millionaire.

Catherine hadn’t had a date in three years. Was that why Tony looked so good to her?

She didn’t want a husband. Most of her friends from school had married, then divorced, and hated their former spouses. She figured she’d skip that part and avoid marriage altogether. An occasional affair was enough to satisfy her.
Wasn’t it?
Yes, of course it was.

Shaking off her thoughts, Catherine pulled the pins out of her hair and let it fall to her shoulders. “I don’t know why I bother. It won’t stay up unless I use a ton of hair starch, and I hate that stuff.”

“So leave it down,” said Tony. He flashed a megawatt smile, kicking her heart into overdrive. “Is that Irish red?”

“Apparently. My mother’s maiden name was O’Rooney.”

“I’m Italian.” He shrugged and buttered a piece of bread. “I guess that’s obvious.”

“Cara says the best looking guys are Italian.”

“Only because she married one.”

That wasn’t the only reason. She’d met Cara’s husband, Nick, and aside from some scars on his face, he was a great looking man. He had a sparkle in his eyes and he obviously loved Cara. He treated her like she was the most precious woman in the world. Now they had a sweet baby boy, and she’d never known Cara to be happier. When Catherine thought about Nick and Cara, her life felt empty and sad in comparison.

Catherine’s thoughts snapped back to reality TV. She needed to talk Tony into doing the show. She eased into it slowly, talking about some of the reality shows on television. “Have you watched any of the shows where people are trying to find love?”

“You mean the ones where a bunch of gorgeous women compete for one lucky guy? Yeah.”

“I work for a producer, and we’re looking for a guy to star on one of those shows. One bachelor choosing between thirteen women. Are you interested?”

He froze with a piece of bread halfway to his mouth. “Whoa. Hey, I love women, but since Nick married Cara, it’s hard to tell whether they’re interested in me or in Cara’s money. I have to work for a living, but try convincing women of that. They think I’m rich.”

“Cara and I had long talks about money when we were in college. Neither of us dated much, because our money always got in the way.” They’d both led solitary, sheltered childhoods, and they were awkward and inexperienced with men. “It was always easier to keep our distance than try to figure out if guys liked us for ourselves or for our money.”

Tony finished the bread, pushed his empty plate aside, and leaned back, stretching his long legs out in front of him. “So, where would this television show be filmed?”

“At Cara’s estate.”

Tony shook his head like he couldn’t believe it. “Did she put you up to this?”

She couldn’t lie to him. “No, it was my idea to use her estate. She had some conditions. One was for me to be at the estate to supervise, and another was to interview you for the bachelor.” She met his gaze. “Cara said you were perfect for the show, and after meeting you, I agree. If you don’t want to do it, I’ll understand, but what could it hurt? We won’t tell anyone your last name. You’ll just be Tony, a handsome guy who’s looking for the love of his life.”

A slow smile spread over his face and her heart went into overdrive. When he was
on
, this guy was really
on
. “You think I’m handsome?”

He knew he was, and she hated to feed an ego that was already out of control. Then again, saying the words could mean the difference between him accepting the role and refusing it. “Tony, you are the most magnificent man I’ve ever met.” It wasn’t a lie or even a stretch. He had the kind of face and body that women dreamed about. She wondered what kind of woman
he
dreamed about. Maybe he’d find her on
Blind Love
.

As if anyone could fall in love while the world watched.

Catherine glanced at her watch and stood. “If you’ll excuse me, I need to go to the hospital and check on my father. Why don’t you think about the show and figure out what needs to be done in that bedroom while I’m gone? I’ll be back in an hour or so.”

He caught her hand as she walked by, and the warmth of his hand traveled up her arm and into her face. “Thanks for asking, Catherine. Or would you rather be called Cat?”

“I don’t care. Just don’t call me Cathy.”

“I like Catherine. It suits you.”

“Does it? I always thought it was a little too dignified for me.”

“Nah. It’s a nice name, a lady’s name.”

A lady.
He thought she was a lady. It was the nicest compliment anyone had ever given her. Catherine smiled all the way to the hospital.

<>

After Catherine left, Tony carried their dirty dishes into the kitchen, then got to work. The wall between the bedroom and sitting room in the maid’s apartment wasn’t load bearing, so it should come out easily. The bathroom was too small for a wheelchair, but if he bumped the bathroom wall out into the existing closet, he could put in a walk-in or roll-in shower. The shower head could be replaced with one of those hand-held things.

A man tapped on the door and opened it. “Hey, Tony, I’m Sanchez. I work here. Catherine said to give you a hand moving furniture to the storage room behind the garage. There’s a workshop back there, too.”

“Good. Okay, let’s do it.”

After they moved the furniture, the two men pulled up the old, rotten carpet. Someone had spent a whole lot of money in this house, but none of it had been spent in these rooms.

Catherine returned with a load of groceries. Tony helped her carry them in and put them away. “No cooking tonight, Catherine. I’m taking you out for dinner. Go make yourself beautiful while I take a quick shower.”

A half-hour later, she came downstairs wearing a pretty yellow print dress with a halter top and enough cleavage to make it interesting. Her red hair curled around her bare shoulders. Tony whistled and held her arms out to get a good look. She looked nothing like the frumpy woman who’d picked him up at the airport. “Now you really look like a Catherine.”

She cocked her head. “Catherine the Great?”

“More like Princess Catherine.”

Her eyes were no longer red and swollen. Her green eyes were clear, and she wore a little makeup, although she didn’t need much.

The restaurant was cool, quiet, and expensive, and every guy in the place turned to get a second look at Catherine, but she seemed unaware of all the looks directed her way.

They were seated, and the waiter brought a bottle of wine to the table. “Your usual?”

Catherine caught Tony’s eye. “Would you rather have something else?”

“Whatever you want. I usually drink beer.”

“That sounds good.” She looked up at the waiter. “What kind of beer do you have?”

Seeing her in a sexy dress and makeup, with her hair loose around her shoulders, he had to keep reminding himself of the purpose for being here. If they were out on a date, he’d be feeding her a line right about now, anything to get an invitation into her bed. But he was here to help her, not to seduce her.
No sex this time, Donatelli.
Catherine was Cara’s friend, not some woman he’d picked up in a singles bar.

Tony had never made a move on a woman without an invitation, and even then there were times he held back. He’d flirt and tease, but a woman had to give him a clear signal that she was interested before he’d touch her. He was secure with his looks and his talents in the bedroom, but he didn’t like to risk his ego or his heart.