Convince Me (Holton Series #1) (7 page)

During the day when she was busy,
Anna was able to keep from thinking about Steven but late at night when she was
all alone her mind had a will of its own.  She would replay their kiss in
her mind over and over again.  Anna was having trouble sleeping and it
worried her.  The nightmare had not reoccurred but Anna still dreamed
about Steven or she would lie awake thinking about him.  She had never
lost sleep over a man and didn’t know quite how to handle the situation.

She had worked hard at trying to
discover what it was about Steven that made him so hard to forget.  As she
was unable to come up with a satisfactory answer, Anna decided it was simple
physical attraction.  If she didn’t allow her emotions to become involved,
she knew she would be able to resist him.

Anna glanced at the clock again and
realized that she had wasted yet another ten minutes thinking about him. 
She quickly jumped into the shower to get ready.  Afterwards, she dressed
carefully for the evening.  Julie had told her to dress casual so she wore
black tailored jeans with a soft, pink silk blouse.  Over it she could
wear her short lightweight jacket as the weather had suddenly warmed.  It
was typical for Texas and despite it being January, Anna had used the air
conditioner in her car that very afternoon.

She had just slipped into a pair of
flat, half boots when the doorbell rang.  Taking a deep breath to steady
her nerves, Anna moved across the room and opened the door.

It happened again.  Every time
their eyes met, time seemed to stand still.  Anna stood awkwardly by the
door and drank in the sight of him.  Something inside her relaxed. 
She had missed him.  He looked wonderful.  Dressed neatly in blue
jeans and a button-down shirt the exact color of his eyes, he exuded
masculinity.  She caught just a whiff of cologne and had to steady her
heart.  He gave her his slow, gentle smile and Anna discovered it was more
than simple physical attraction.  She knew, in that moment, that she was
in love with him.

Quickly, she grabbed her purse,
pushed him out of the doorway and pulled the door closed behind her. 
Frightened by the intensity of her feeling, she was unable to face him so she
raced down the stairs and waited at the bottom, her heart pounding.

“Hey,” he said when he reached
her.  “What’s the hurry?  I wanted to see your apartment.”

“I’ll show it to you later,” she
said breathlessly.  “We don’t want to be late to Julie’s.”

He gave her an odd look but to
Anna’s relief he didn’t question her.  He took her by the arm and led her
over to his car.  Once inside, Anna took several deep breaths.  She
couldn’t be in love with Steven, could she?  Anna knew what loving a man
could do to a woman.  She had sworn that would never happen to her. 
It had to be simple physical attraction.

When Steven climbed into the car,
she gave him another quick look and knew she was only trying to fool
herself.  There was nothing simple about her feelings for Steven. 
Miserable, she looked out the window and said nothing.  Steven started the
car and drove slowly out of the parking lot.  Steven was silent for
several minutes and Anna could feel the tension mounting but she didn’t know
how to stop it.

“You want to tell me what’s going
on?” he finally asked.

Anna shook her head and said
nothing.  She heard Steven sigh and waited for his response.  It
never came.  They rode in continued silence and Anna was grateful when he
pulled the car to stop in front of a cozy, two-story house.  She reached
for the door handle but Steven grabbed her arm.

“Wait a minute,” he said.  “We
can’t go in there like this.  Everyone will know something is wrong and it
will spoil Julie’s evening.”

Anna nodded.  Steven was
right.  Julie didn’t get to entertain very often.  With two children,
it was difficult for her to arrange evenings such as this one and Anna knew she
had been looking forward to this dinner all week.  Her mother had offered
to take the children for the night and Julie intended to make the most of her
free time.

“I’m sorry,” Anna said softly.

For a moment, Steven did not say
anything.  He simply watched her but she could not meet his eyes.

He sighed again.  “You don’t
have to be sorry, Anna.  Just tell me what is wrong.  Are you still
angry with me about Monday?  If so, I apologize again.

“No,” Anna shook her head, “of
course not.  I’m just tired.  It has been a rough week and I haven’t
been sleeping well.  New place and all.  Don’t worry, I won’t spoil
the evening.”

She gave him a bright smile aimed
somewhere near his ear.  She still couldn’t look him in eye.  Again,
she reached for the door handle.  This time Steven did not stop her but
got out of the car and walked around to join her.  They walked quickly
toward the house.  Right before they reached the door, he took her arm and
pulled her around to face him.

“I think it’s more than that but I
won’t push you.  You do look tired.”  His finger gently traced the
circles under her eyes.  Anna’s knees went weak at the tender look on his
face.  “We’ll make an early night of it and you can get some rest.”

In spite of the fact that his
statement told her he had made another decision without her consent, Anna was
willing to go along with it.  She could use an early night.  She just
hoped she could make it through the rest of the evening without falling apart.

Steven made no further comment but
rang the doorbell.  A large man with a broad face answered the door. 
He was tall, even taller than Steven and big boned.  His face was coarse
and his shoulders wide.  His hair was dark, not black like Anna’s but
darker than Julie’s chestnut brown and he wore it long and tied in the back at
his neck.  His eyes were an unusual mixture of brown and gold.  His
face was naturally tanned and Anna knew in an instant that he was Native American. 
He gave them a broad grin and opened the door wider.

“Steve,” he said in a booming
voice.  “Come in, Come in.”

“Evening, Nick,” Steven said as he
led Anna into the house.  “This is Anna West.  Anna, this rascal is
our host, Nick Riley.”

“I’m very pleased to meet you,
Anna.  Julie speaks highly of you.  I’m glad you could come.” Nick
turned and led them into the living room.  Anna followed slowly.  She
hadn’t known that Nick was Native American and it had never been mentioned in
any conversation she had with Julie or Steven.  She wondered if it was
because they were ashamed of him.  Anna instantly dismissed that
thought.  Julie was very proud of her husband and spoke of him only in
loving terms.

When they reached the living room,
Anna saw Andrew had already arrived and was sitting talking to a woman she did
not recognize.  They both looked up at the sound of their entrance and
Andrew rose to his feet.  Anna had only spoke to Andrew a few time since
their first meeting at Steven’s impromptu lunch but she found him charming and
friendly although somewhat reserved.  He greeted her warmly and then
introduced her to the woman.

“Anna, this is Rachel Lewis. 
Rachel was recently promoted to head Liberian.  Julie may have mentioned
her.”

Anna had heard Julie speak of
Rachel.  She knew Rachel had been raised in Holton but had only returned
recently to work at the library.  She and Julie were good friends and Anna
had been looking forward to meeting her.  Rachel gave Anna a friendly
smile and offered her hand.

“I am very pleased to meet you,
Anna.  I have been wanting to tell you how grateful I am you moved to
town.”

Unsure what she meant by that
statement, Anna returned her smile cautiously.  She heard the others laugh
and saw Rachel smile again.

“Sorry.  That sounded a bit
odd, didn’t it?  What I meant was I am glad you took over the Brockman
firm because when Mr. Brockman retired so did his wife.  Doris Brockman
was the head Liberian and I return to Holton knowing that the job would be mine
when she finally did retire.  Only she was waiting for her husband and he
refused to retire until he found someone to take his place.  So in a way,
you did me a big favor.”

“I’m glad I could be of help,” Anna
replied with a laugh.  Rachel seemed nice.  She had a wonderful
voice, low and husky.  She was not an outwardly attractive woman but there
was something that drew you to her.  She wore loose fitting clothes and
little makeup.  Her hair was a lovely share of red, not bright flaming red
but a more subtle strawberry color.  She wore it in a short easy style. 
Her eyes were hidden behind dark framed glasses but Anna could see they were a
clear green.  She had a quiet serenity about her that was very attractive.

Nick asked them what they wanted to
drink and Julie came in from the kitchen to greet them.  They all settled
down in the living room and Anna began to relax.  She glanced again at
Nick.  He was very comfortable in this group of people.  The Riley
home reflected his proud heritage and Anna was glad to know that her newfound
friends really did look beyond the color of a person’s skin.

Her own experience with prejudice
had left her cautious and she wanted to see how Julie and Nick handled their
situation.  Anna knew she was acting out of character.  She also knew
Steven was the reason.  Her subconscious was working overtime.  She
wanted a relationship with Steven even if it meant heartache.  Was she
brave enough to try?

She glanced at him and felt her
hear race.  Watching him was both joy and grief.  As if he had felt
her, Steven turned his head and their eyes met.  He returned her gaze,
serious and steady.  He was not going to give up.  He was there for
her and wanted her.  All that came through in that look.  Anna knew
at that moment their relationship had changed.  Steven knew it also and
Anna hoped she was strong enough to handle it.

#

The food was delicious and the
company enjoyable but Steven could not relax.  Something had frightened
Anna earlier and it worried him.  It was a different kind of fear than he
had seen before which worried him even more.  When she had first opened
the door of her apartment, she had given him her usual polite smile but then
their eyes met and her smile faded.  Her face paled and Steven had seen
the fear flash across her face.  He had started to reach for her when she
suddenly burst past him and ran down the stairs.  He had wanted to
question her but she had seemed so upset that he decided against it.

Hearing her laughter, Steven
studied her now.  The fear was gone and she seemed perfectly at
ease.  He knew she was enjoying the evening so he put is concerns
away.  The look she had given him before dinner had told him all he needed
to know.  Anna was no longer running.  Something had happened to her
and he had seen it reflected in her eyes.  She was no longer fighting
their attraction.  Steven was glad but knew it wasn’t enough.  He
wanted more from Anna.  He wanted a future.  He wanted forever. 
But at least this was a start.

After the meal, they all gathered
once again in the living room and the conversation flowed.  Nick and Julie
were considerate hosts and Nick had a very dry sense of humor, which kept them
all laughing.  As with most discussions lately, the talk turned to his
parents’ thirty-fifth wedding anniversary.

“Thirty-five years,” Julie said
softly.  “I wish Mom and Dad could have had thirty-five years together.”

“They had thirty,” Andrew said to
his sister.  The two of them exchanged a sad look and Steven felt their
sorrow.  Jack Moore had died six years earlier and they all still missed
him.

“What crazy thing does Victoria
have planned?” Andrew asked Steven trying to lighten the mood.

Steven flashed him a grin and
shrugged his shoulders.  “Who knows?  With Tori anything is possible
and remember, she has been planning this party for ten years.”

“Ten years?” Anna questioned.

“Well, I guess that’s not exactly
accurate.  You see, Tori had wanted to give them a surprise party for
their twenty-fifth anniversary but she was a senior in high school and she
contracted mono and her plans fell through.”

“Yes and then,” Julie said picking
up the story, “she had the whole thing planned for their thirtieth anniversary
but Mitch was out of the country and hadn’t been getting his emails so he
didn’t know about the party.  He arranged for a Hawaiian cruise for Dan
and Patricia so the party was canceled again.”

“She was so angry,” Andrew said
with a laugh.  “I thought Mitch was a goner.  I am sure she will have
thought of something incredible for this one.”

“What do you mean?” asked Anna.

“Victoria tends to do things in a
big way.”

“Unfortunately, her plans aren’t
always completely thought out ahead of time,” Steven remarked with a
smile.  He loved his sister but she was a little crazy.

“Oh, I don’t know,” Nick said in
his dry voice.  “I have always thought she knows exactly what she is
doing.”

Steven found that remark a little
odd.  Nick really didn’t know Victoria all that well.  When he and
Julie married, Victoria had already been living in California for years but
Nick often defended her and Steven never knew why.

“She does,” Julie said confirming
Nick’s remark, “that’s why everything is so much fun.”

“She sounds wonderful,” Anna said
quietly.

Steven turned to smile at
her.  “She is wonderful.  You will like her and I know she will like
you.”

He watched as her face
flushed.  He hadn’t meant to embarrass her but it had been a long time
since he had made a woman blush.  He enjoyed the feeling that his
compliment could do that to her.

Soon after that, Steven decided it
was time to leave.  Anna was looking tired.  He could tell she hadn’t
been sleeping well.  There were dark circles under her eyes and some of
her usual energy was missing.  He wanted to know if the fear he had seen
earlier had anything to do with her sleepless nights.  It was time to find
out.