Burn Out (17 page)

“Why don’t you
come over to my place around seven tomorrow night? I’ll order a pizza and we
can have an intense strategy session. If we can iron out most of the details, I
can get Courtney started makin’ those changes.”

“On one
condition.”

“Name it.”

“You let me cook
dinner for us. I don’t think my stomach could handle another night of greasy
take-out.”

Evan laughed.
“You’re on.”

Pacing the house,
waiting for Erika to arrive, Evan cursed himself for acting like a teenager awaiting
his first date. But this night was important. He could tell she was softening,
but she wasn’t convinced it was safe to put her heart on the line yet.

His strategy was
working beautifully. She was still interested in him. The kiss they’d shared on
the park bench obliterated any reservations he may have had about that. Jeff
was out of the way, so the only thing standing between them was memories he’d
like to help her forget.

He’d done
everything in his power to prove to her he was a changed man. Trey had fit into
the company seamlessly, making it possible for Evan to have a life again. He
intended to tell her tonight that he’d done all of this for her, and if the
evening ended the way he prayed it would, they’d enjoy breakfast in bed
tomorrow morning.

The doorbell rang,
pulling him out of his thoughts. He’d texted her with his address and she
offered to bring Skipper over with her. He gratefully accepted, knowing it
would give him a chance to stop at the grocery store on the way home so he
could stock the fridge and cupboards with all of her favorite staples.

“Hey there,” he
said, laughing when Skipper jumped around excitedly, awaiting his greeting.
He’d already bonded with the dog. Skip had helped to fill a void in the huge
house, but he knew he wouldn’t be truly satisfied until Erika filled the empty
space in his bed every night. “How was your day, buddy?” He scratched the dog
behind the ears as Chloe ran past him to explore her new surroundings.

“Sorry about
that,” Erika said, frowning at her dog. “She’s usually so well-mannered.”

Evan chuckled.
“She’s welcome to make herself at home. Come on in. I just opened your favorite
bottle of wine.”

“Hmm, that sounds
great.” She looked up at him and smiled, making his heart stutter. “I just have
to grab something out of the car. Be right back.”

He closed the door
so the dogs couldn’t escape as he waited for her to return. He watched the dogs
trailing each other and it made him smile. Apparently, he wasn’t the only one
who’d found his soul mate. He suspected old Skipper would be more than happy to
share their home with little Miss Chloe when the time came.

She tapped her
knuckle on the door and he opened it, smiling when he saw the cake platter in
her hands. “Tell me that’s not chocolate lava cake. Oh my God, I haven’t had
one of these in ages.” It was her mother’s secret recipe and his favorite
dessert of all time. He knew how long it took to prepare, so he certainly
wasn’t expecting it. “When did you have time to do this? You’ve been workin’
all day.”

“I made it last
night when I went home,” she said, handing it to him. “Turns out I wasn’t as
tired as I thought. I couldn’t sleep, so I figured I might as well do something
productive.”

Now that she
mentioned it, she did look tired. He was glad he’d bought steaks and veggies he
could grill on the barbeque. He wanted her to be able to relax.

She stepped inside
and gasped as her eyes traveled to the twenty eight foot cathedral ceilings
trimmed with natural wood. The previous owners had painted just prior to
putting the house on the market, a rich butterscotch color that Evan loved. It
blended perfectly with the natural wood and stone accents.

“This place is
incredible.” She gazed out the floor to ceiling windows flanking the natural
stone fireplace. “Oh wow, is that a deer I see in your backyard?”

“Yeah, there’re a
bunch of bushes they like to feast on, and since no one’s done anything to
deter them, they keep comin’ back for more.”

She followed him
in to the kitchen, pausing in the doorway as her mouth fell open. “Talk about a
gourmet kitchen.”

“I’m told the lady
of the house liked to cook.” Personally, Evan didn’t have much use for the
state of the art appliances, since he usually used the outdoor grill, but his
real estate agent insisted it was a great feature. Judging by Erika’s reaction,
she agreed, which sealed the deal for him. There was nothing he wouldn’t do to
make her happy. Hell, he’d tear the house down and start from scratch if that’s
what she wanted.

“I love it,” she
said, wandering through the kitchen. “It’s big and open, but still warm and
inviting.”

“Yeah, I thought
so, too.” He poured two glasses of wine, trying to decide whether he had the
courage to voice the comment lingering on the tip of his tongue. “Now, I just
need a bunch of rugrats to fill it.” He immediately regretted his words when he
saw the warmth leave her eyes.

“I guess we should
get started on dinner,” she said. “We have a lot of work to do tonight.”

“We have time,” he
said, offering her a glass. Intent on undoing the damage he’d done, he decided
to keep the toast light. “Here’s to a successful fundraiser.”

She smiled as she
tapped her glass against his. “I want to thank you again for offering to do
this. I can’t tell you how much it means to our organization. All of our
directors are volunteers who do it for the love of animals, but it would be so
great to be able to hire someone full-time. Your fundraiser might allow us to
do that.”

“I hope it does.”
There’s nothing he wouldn’t do to make her smile like that. “Last time we
raised 1.2 mil for the Rainbow Fund, Sierra’s charity. I’m confident we can
pull off those numbers again. It’s a great opportunity for our artists to give
back to important causes and music fans are more than happy to pay $2000 a
table just to see their favorite artists up close and personal.”

She peeked in to
the living room to check on the dogs before climbing up on a stool at the
breakfast bar. “Will any of your artists be performing?”

“Ty for sure. You
know how much he loves animals.”

“That’s great. Do
you think he’d be willing to speak about our cause?”

Evan brought the
glass to his lips. “I don’t see why not. He loves animals and adores you.”

She turned the
crystal stem between her fingers. “I’ve missed your family and friends, a lot.
It was really nice catching up with everyone at the wedding.”

“You’ll be able to
catch up with them at the fundraiser as well. You know everyone will want to be
there to support your cause.”

“I have a feeling
they’d be there to support any cause Titan backed, but I appreciate the
sentiment.”

He knew he
shouldn’t say it, but he couldn’t help himself. “I’ve missed spending time with
you like this.”

Instead of looking
him in the eye, she peered into the bottom of her glass. “Hanging out with you
has always been fun, Ev. That wasn’t the problem. It wasn’t that we stopped
connecting…” She snuck a peek at him before turning her attention back to the
glass. “It’s just that our chances to connect became fewer and further between.
I missed what we used to have.”

He covered her
hand with his, gratified when she didn’t withdraw from his touch. “I missed it,
too. It may have seemed as though I didn’t care that things were fallin’ apart,
but trust me, I did.”

Skipper sauntered
into the room with Chloe close behind him. He propped his chin on Erika’s knee,
begging for her attention.

She smiled and
patted his head. “I know you cared, but not enough to do anything about it.”

Not trusting
himself to remain so close without making a move that would cross the line, he
stepped back and leaned against the counter behind him. “I didn’t know what to
do about it at the time. That was the problem.”

“It seems as
though you’ve figured things out,” she said, sounding cautious. “You seem to be
working less, finding a little more balance in your life.”

“I’m tryin’.” He
crossed his arms over his chest. “I’m not gonna lie. There’s still gonna be
some travel involved. I’ll probably have to miss a few important events from
time to time, but I don’t want my job to define me anymore. I want it to be
what I do, not who I am.”

“Why are you
telling me all this?” she asked, looking up at him.

“I just want you
to know where my head’s at.” He sighed. “In the Bahamas, I told you I intended
to make some changes…” His heart hammered in his chest. He had no idea how she
would respond to the news he’d made all of these changes to impress her. If she
told him it was all for nothing, he’d be crushed.

“Because you’re
ready to move on to the next phase of your life, I remember.”

His cell phone
rang and he glanced at the call display.
His brother
. He didn’t intend
to answer, but he was grateful for the interruption. He wouldn’t lay his heart
on the line again until she gave him some indication the feeling was mutual.

***

Erika kept one eye
on the dogs running around the huge backyard and the other on the sexy grill
master. “You look right at home,” she said, reaching for the wine bottle in the
middle of the table.

“I love it here,”
he said, setting a platter containing steaks and vegetables on the shelf next
to the grill. “Makes me wish I’d bought a house a long time ago.”

“Gee, I seem to
recall someone suggesting that.” She pressed a fingertip to her lips. “Oh yeah,
that was me, wasn’t it?”

He looked over his
shoulder and flashed a quick grin. “Is this the part where I’m supposed to
admit you were right and I was wrong?”

This vantage point
allowed her to ogle his very fine backside and he was none the wiser. Topping
up her glass, she said, “It’s enough to know I was right. I won’t embarrass you
by demanding an apology.”

Evan turned the
grill off and reached for the platter. Setting it down on the intricately
carved iron table beside her, he leaned over until their faces were a fraction
of an inch apart. “I’m sorry,” he whispered.

Her breath caught
in her throat as she watched his eyes drift over her face. She wanted him to
kiss her more than anything, but she wasn’t brave enough to ask. “Apology
accepted.” If she had any hope of playing it cool, that evaporated when her
voice cracked.

“Really?” he
asked, skimming his lips over her cheek. “Do you think you can forgive me for
everything?”

She knew what he
was asking, but she didn’t know how to respond. She couldn’t deny she was
intrigued by this new side of Evan, the responsible homeowner, dog rescuer, and
philanthropist, but how could she be sure that wasn’t an act just to lure her
in again? If she succumbed to his considerable charms, she may find herself
miserable and alone inside of a month, when he returned to his regular routine
at the office.

“I don’t know
yet,” she said, hoping he wouldn’t be deterred by her honesty. “I like this new
side of you, Ev. But we have so much history. A lot of it good, but I’m not
going to lie; it’s going to take some time to get past the bad.”

“I can understand
that,” he said, standing upright as he reached for the platter. “Let’s head
inside. It’s gettin’ cool out here.” He whistled to call the dogs and smiled
when they raced each other to the patio.

Erika tried to
quash the disappointment that he’d let it go without trying to convince her
he’d changed, that he was willing to make her more of a priority. She knew
actions spoke louder than words, but she wanted to hear him say that he still
loved her and wanted her in his life.

Skip and Chloe led
the way into the house, where they stopped at Skip’s giant stainless steel
water bowl before settling onto an oversized cushion under the window.

“Awww, they look
so cute curled up together like that,” Erika said, grinning.

“I think we have
to face facts,” Evan said, placing the platter in the middle of the large maple
table. “Our dogs are in love.”

She laughed, but
she had to admit she was happy their dogs gave them an excuse to spend more
time together. “Chloe has never been in love before,” she said, sliding into
the seat he held for her. “I hope Skipper will be gentle with her heart.”

Evan walked to the
stove to retrieve the baked potatoes from the warming rack. “I’ll have a talk
with him about it. I’ve heard he’s been flirting with a standard poodle named
Snickers, but don’t worry, I think he’s just doing that to make Chloe jealous.”

She giggled as he
set the potatoes on the table and went back to get the salad from the fridge.
“You’re crazy.”

“Hey, you need to
know that he’s puttin’ his heart on the line here, too.” He brought the salad
back to the table with two glass containers filled with olive oil and balsamic
vinegar. “I’ve seen the way Chloe looks at that Schnauzer. What’s his name
again, Buster?” Evan rolled his eyes. “What kind of name is that for a dog…
Buster?”