SevenSensuousDays (17 page)

Felicity propped her feet on the end table in Tessa’s snug
apartment, her glass of Crystal Light punch resting on her belly. Outside,
children screeched in joy and outrage at whatever game they were playing. It
seemed to Tessa that the kids always got more rambunctious the closer it got to
the beginning of school. Now only a couple of days away.

There was simply no stopping time.

She sighed.

Felicity leaned across the cushions to look at the chess
game on Tessa’s laptop. “Who’s winning?”

“Ah, me, eventually. I’m playing against myself.” She hadn’t
made a move in fifteen minutes. No matter how Tessa tried, she simply couldn’t
concentrate on the plays.

Felicity sipped her drink, then pressed the chilled glass
against her throat. “Do you really need to practice that before you see Charles
again?”

“I don’t want to disappoint him.”

“From what you’ve told me, as long as you’re topless, he’ll
be fine.”

Tessa didn’t return Felicity’s smile. So what if Charles had
preferences? It was no crime for him to want them to play chess poolside,
indoors or outdoors, at his huge Maryland estate. All he asked of Tessa was
that she wear only her bikini bottom and a gold anklet. He liked to look at her
as they played. They’d never shared anything more than a brief hug. Sex wasn’t
what Charles wanted.

“He’s a nice man,” Tessa said. “I think it’s sad that he has
to pay someone to spend time with him.”

“Well yeah. He’s not a troll. He’s what—mid-forties? Still
fairly good-looking, not to mention stinking rich.”

Tessa mumbled, “He’s lonely.”

“Ah hon, with what he has to offer, he’s not lonely. I’m
certain there are any number of women who’d kill to get their claws in him.”

“Exactly. That’s why he doesn’t know who to trust. He can
tell me stuff he wouldn’t share with anyone else.”

Felicity tapped her fingernails against her glass, a clear
sign she didn’t agree.

“He can,” Tessa insisted.

“Fine. He’ll probably have lots to share since you’ve been
putting him off for weeks, ever since you got back from…” Felicity didn’t
finish, as though realizing what she’d been about to say—that Charles hadn’t
seen Tessa since she’d gotten back from Logan’s.

Even the thought of his name caused Tessa’s belly to
flutter, followed by her heart sinking. A little over a month had passed since
she’d hugged him so foolishly…so hopelessly in his foyer. That first evening
away from him, she’d slept with her top pressed to her face because she
imagined it bore a faint trace of his scent. As the days passed, Tessa had
dreaded answering her phone, and had given Ronnie nothing but excuses as to why
she couldn’t accept appointments with clients.

“You want to take some time off?” Ronnie had finally asked,
her question ringing with sympathy.

No doubt Wallace had told her about his and Tessa’s funereal
ride from Logan’s estate. How she’d rested her head against the window and
sighed repeatedly.

“Do you mind?” Tessa had asked. With what she’d made from
that week with Logan, she could afford to take the rest of the year off and
still pay her bills.

“Not at all,”Ronnie said. “Call in when you want to
return. The timing’s up to you, all right?”

No, it wasn’t. Tessa wasn’t certain she’d ever be the same
again. She kept picturing Logan’s face lighting up, his baritone rich with
excitement as he’d explained his work. She recalled those times he’d watched
her when he didn’t think she’d notice. His expression thoughtful and at times
yearning. No different from hers.

She’d wanted them to get to know each other a little and got
more than she’d bargained for. Going through the day without seeing his smile,
hearing his laughter, having him wrap his arms protectively around her while
she did the same with him was nearly more than Tessa could bear. She liked him
so much. Too much.

“When are you planning on seeing him again?” Felicity asked.

Tessa stared, until she realized Felicity was talking about
Charles, not Logan. “In a few days.”

“That means you have tonight free.” She patted Tessa’s
thigh. “Come with me to the club. Have some fun.”

“I don’t know.” She slumped against the sofa’s cushion. “I’d
have to do my hair and nails, wax my legs…”

“Not to mention walking fifteen miles in the snow to get a
cab,” Felicity joked. “Listen to yourself. You’re still in your mid-twenties.
You’re not dead yet. You need to have some fun.”

Tessa shrugged.

This time Felicity sighed. “It’s only fun, sweetie. That’s a
good thing, not bad.”

She nodded, but still didn’t agree to go.

Felicity let the silence drag on for a bit, then said, “Okay
look, I didn’t want to have to tell you this, but you’re beginning to worry me
with the way you’re holing up in this place.”

“I’m not holing up. I live here. You’re not telling me
anything I don’t know. You’re just interpreting it wrong.”

“That’s not what I wanted to tell you.”

Felicity sounded so serious, Tessa frowned. “What are you
talking about?”

“Logan, what else?”

Her belly cramped.

Felicity put her glass on the end table and pulled her legs
beneath herself as she turned toward Tessa. “I know you really like him, or
maybe you feel you can fix him.”

“There’s nothing to fix. He’s fine just as he is. He is
fine, right? Nothing’s happened to him.” Tessa leaned toward Felicity, her
pulse really pumping. “Oh my god, he hasn’t been in an accident or anything,
has he?”

“No. Of course not. It’s not him I’m worried about, it’s you.
Listen to yourself. You really, really like him. But babe, you need to get a
grip. He’s a client, nothing more.”

Tessa sagged back against her sofa and muttered, “I know
that.”

“I don’t think you do. You’ve been sitting in this tiny
little box you call your home, moping around while he’s gotten on with his
life.”

The pain in Tessa’s gut moved to her chest. Heat stung her
throat and cheeks. “What do you mean?”

Suddenly, Felicity was mute.

“Tell me,” Tessa insisted.

“All right, all right.” She inhaled deeply, then spoke on a
sigh, “I ran into Georgiana the other day. She’s one of the agency’s escorts
you don’t know. We got to talking. Logan has a formal dinner tonight. Something
to do with his business. He called Ronnie and arranged for Georgiana to
accompany him to the event and to spend the night at his penthouse in the
District.

“I know I shouldn’t have done this,” Felicity continued,
talking fast, “but I called Ronnie and asked if Logan had wanted you first.
That maybe you couldn’t make it because of a scheduling conflict or something.
Ronnie said ‘no’. She asked him about you, and he told her to email him photos
and information on her other escorts. He chose Georgiana.”

Tessa tried to swallow and couldn’t. Tears welled in her
eyes. “She’s really pretty, huh?”

Felicity didn’t say.

“Built too,” Tessa said. “Like you, right?”

“I don’t know. Maybe. What’s it matter?”

“It doesn’t.” Blinking tears from her eyes, Tessa made her
voice steady. “Everything’s okay.”

“Are you kidding? No, it’s not.” Felicity scooted over and
hugged Tessa. “I can see how you’re hurting and it’s killing me. Please, come
with me to the club. Have some fun. Forget him.”

How was that supposed to be possible? Only now, Tessa really
didn’t have any other choice, did she? He’d gotten on with his life. He’d so
easily chosen someone else, someone prettier and thinner, even after all he’d
shared with her. Or maybe she was the one who’d been sharing and hadn’t wanted
to see anything except her own dumb fantasy. That they were more than client
and escort…they were actually friends. Real lovers, rather than just two people
going at it as though there was no tomorrow.

He’d told her he wanted to have a good time. Nothing more.

Why in the hell hadn’t she believed him?

“Aw hon,” Felicity said as Tessa’s shoulders shook with her
quiet weeping. “Don’t cry. Or do, if you need to. Just don’t let this hurt you
so much.”

“Okay,” she blubbered.

“Tessa, baby.” Felicity hugged her hard. “I wish I could fix
this for you.”

“It’s okay. I’m fine. Really. I’ll go with you tonight.”

“Maybe that’s not such a good idea after all.”

“No, it’s great.” She returned Felicity’s hug, then eased
away and swiped at her eyes. “I want to go. Dammit, I’m going to.”

“All right…but can you try to sound a little happy?”

Tessa smiled. It felt strange. Forced. “I’ll do better than
that.”

She’d get a grip just as Felicity had advised and start
acting like an escort for a change instead of a gullible preteen. Clearing her
throat, Tessa grabbed her iPhone.

Felicity frowned. “Who are you calling?”

“Ronnie.”

“Why?”

To explain that she was ready to see clients. That Ronnie
could start booking her for those days, weeks and months after Tessa saw
Charles again.

Because this was only about having a good time and earning a
great living. Emotions weren’t in the equation any longer. They never should
have been. Hadn’t Felicity tried to tell her that repeatedly?

Sharing likes and dislikes, goofing around, teasing each
other, making love as though it mattered hadn’t made Logan her friend or caused
him to fall for her as she’d been doing with him. It had merely given her false
hope.

She recalled when they’d been discussing TV and then books.
How surprised he’d seemed that she liked
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
and
the subsequent novels in the celebrated Millennium trilogy
.

One part of those tales returned to Tessa now—when a
character said to the heroine Salander that friendship was the most common form
of love.

When it comes to how
you
feel,
Tessa thought,
her heart breaking all over again, because Logan clearly didn’t see things her
way. Never had. Never would. He’d chosen Georgiana, gorgeous, thin Georgiana,
and had gotten on with his life. His good time.

For Logan, one of the best things about tonight’s dinner was
that he wasn’t the guest of honor. The event celebrated one of his many mentors
who sat at the raised table in front, light flooding it.

Logan’s table was in the back, relatively shadowed and
secluded. Four other couples completed the circle, none of them his colleagues,
all potential investors and strangers. They hadn’t questioned or even seemed
interested in his relationship with Georgiana, a lovely redhead clad in an
elegant gown that didn’t show too much cleavage or skin. Its cream shade
complemented her fair complexion perfectly. She wore very little jewelry—a pair
of dangling pearl earrings and a pearl bracelet that matched the cascade of
subtle beading that ran down the left side of her dress.

The fabric cinched at her waist. Logan regarded the slight
curve of her belly, looking for the outline of body jewelry. Perhaps several
pearls dangling from her navel. No, wait. Not pearls. Garnets. A deep red that
matched her fingernails. He looked at her hands, realizing suddenly that she’d
painted her nails an ivory shade that matched her dress. Not red as he’d
thought or had imagined.

She leaned toward him, her perfume something deep and
exotic, reminding Logan vaguely of incense. Not flowery and light, like spring.

“Will Dr. Robinson be giving a speech?” she murmured.

“He has no choice.”

Georgiana smiled at Logan’s answer as though she’d found it
exceedingly insightful and witty. “I’m sure it will be fascinating. The work
all of you do is so wonderful.”

Logan guessed she’d read up on it in preparation for
tonight, since he hadn’t told her anything about what he did. He glanced at her
pearl-encrusted evening bag. Small and compact, not anything like the huge
purse Tessa had hauled around so she could take her laptop with her.

There certainly wasn’t any computer in Georgiana’s bag just
in case she wanted to do a Google search on what everyone said. So she wouldn’t
be bothering him with a lot of silly questions.

He thought back to Tessa’s, which hadn’t been foolish at
all, but bright and perceptive. Even if they hadn’t been, he wouldn’t have
minded her asking him to explain something. Her interest had fueled his. He’d
boasted like a teenage boy on his first date, eager to prove his prowess.
Rather than giving him an adoring you’re-so-big-and-strong look, Tessa had
actually challenged him on a few points. Making him think. Stunning him with
her insight into a subject she knew very little about.

It wasn’t that she’d questioned the engineering aspect of
it, but the human component. What such a thing would do to a child. How they’d
react when told what the surgeons had planned.

Without thinking, he said, “So you like what we’re doing
with magnets?”

Georgiana didn’t miss a beat. “Let’s say I’m intrigued.” She
gave him another smile, then practically stated word-for-word what he’d written
in some of his articles.

Impressive…if he’d just given a lecture with a pop quiz at
the end. “What do you think it will do to the children?”

“Repair what’s wrong,” she answered without hesitation. “Of
course, nothing’s perfect. There will probably be some setbacks.”

Weren’t there always? Marriages that hadn’t work out.
Children who hadn’t survived long enough to grow up, their futures stolen. A
woman who wanted to be friends in order to make everything else richer, fuller
when that wasn’t what Logan had been looking for.

Georgiana studied him.

She really was quite beautiful, just as her agency photos
had shown. Her shoulder-length hair an amazing titan, not honey blonde, her
irises a sheer blue rather than green. Her expression not guileless and filled
with unrestrained wonder, but questioning.