CHAPTER FOUR #12
Oh and by the time he left the penthouse, he was over an hour late. An hour late, and sated. Oh yes, he’d convinced her and left her in a tousled mess, naked in his bed. She was asleep and didn’t even hear him leave.
Before she knew it, Vern was knocking on the door of his room. She lifted her head and looked around trying to gauge her surroundings. Her hair fell over her face, and she blew it off.
“Tammy?”
She rubbed her forehead and sat up staring at the large double doors. She gathered the sheet over her breasts feeling suddenly exposed. “Yes?”
“Mr. Hartley called. He’s running late and asked me to fetch you. He’ll meet you at the entrance of the event,” came Vern’s muffled voice through the heavy doors.
“Oh dear. Of course! Twenty minutes?” She threw back the covers and hopped out of bed.
“That will be perfect.”
***
Okay, she wasn’t expecting a gathering this big. She’d never been to the IVOC charity dinner, but it felt as though she was attending a Hollywood premier with the amount of press and people present.
Vern glided the car up to the entrance and someone opened the door for her and offered her his hand. She accepted and got out to flashes of light. Gosh, she certainly wasn’t a celebrity but she supposed they were taking pictures just to make sure they didn’t miss anyone important.
After a moment the flashes started to subside because another stretched limo pulled up to the entrance and they focused on those occupants.
She saw Lance then. He was standing beside Marianne and she had her arm looped through his.
It looked like they were being interview by a reporter.
He was still a vision of masculine perfection though.
How he ended up in a tuxedo from the suit he had on a few short hours ago surprised her.
Did he change here? Maybe he changed at Marianne’s?
Oh, why was she being like this? Surely there was nothing left in him after he’d left her that afternoon. She felt herself smile.
It was at that exact moment another flash went off in her face.
Then Lance saw her. His expression barely revealed it, but she could see it clearly now because she knew him better—desire.
Unmistakable, red-hot, desire. His eyes went down her body slowly and a carnal look appeared in his eyes.
When they met hers again there was a mixture of that and possessiveness.
She walked toward him just as the interview ended.
There were many other people along the entrance way, arriving the same time as her, but she never even noticed any of them.
Marianne was distracted by someone else who greeted her as Lance turned and walked away without a word. Tammy could see the look of disappointment on her face as he’d left, but she’d yet to recognize her yet.
His arm went around her waist and he leaned down and kissed her cheek before whispering in her ear. “This is not a fair fight. Marianne is going to faint.”
She smiled. “I never claimed to play fair.”
“I just want to rip that thing off you right here. You are the most desirable woman I’ve ever laid eyes on. I’m going to be impatient as hell to get you home and be inside you again.”
His deep husky voice just exacerbated that promise. And her heart leapt. Oh lord, she could just melt. Every inch of her throbbed at those words.
“Oh Tamara, how lovely for you to join us. I wasn’t sure you were coming when you didn’t show up with Lance.”
Us? She moved back and saw Marianne come and stand a little too close to Lance for her liking. “I was getting ready.”
“Of course. Your dress is lovely.”
Marianne wore a black sequined number that was strapless, and she could see now that the woman was heavily endowed.
She was practically spilling out of the top.
Gosh, she was really pretty and the dress only flattered her more.
“You look beautiful.” Tammy couldn’t help it.
She was being honest despite her jealousy.
“Oh, this old thing. I’ve had it for months now.”
As if sensing her failing confidence, Lance moved his arm around Tammy’s waist as if confirming who he came with. “Ready?”
“I am.” She smiled widely at him.
“We’ll see you in there Marianne.” His eyes stayed on Tammy as he led her away and into the building.
Tammy could feel the other woman’s eyes burning into her back.
She saw the unveiled expression of surprise when Lance showed his possessiveness.
She felt some pity for her because she knew exactly what she lost. Tammy would have a problem with his affections turning elsewhere too.
It was then that she decided to do all she could to be polite.
She couldn’t help it. This was who she really was.
“Tammy, you are a real genuine sweetheart.”
“How so?”
“You could have made this difficult for her, but you didn’t. She even called you Tamara again. Don’t tell me you didn’t notice.”
“I did.”
“Just when I thought you were out of surprises, you keep on shocking me. You are an angel.”
She didn’t think so, but she still thanked him for the compliment.
He led her toward their table and she was delighted to see her parents, mostly her father, already seated, and talking to none other, than the mayor of New York. “Is that—“
“Yes,” he answered tightening his hand on her waist. “But don’t worry. He’s pretty down to earth. He’s also a hockey fan. We argue quite bit about the state of our teams.”
“How so?”
“I love the Rangers. He’s an Islanders fan.”
She laughed.
Both men at the table stood when they approached. Lance introduced Tammy to the mayor, and her father gave her another reserved hug. Her mother, to her shock, actually told her she looked lovely.
She took the offered seat beside her father that Lance pulled out for her.
He sat beside her and soon, two more prominent couples joined them.
There were just two seats left, and one obviously belonged to Marianne.
She was hoping the woman brought a date, but she didn’t.
She took the seat right next to Lance explaining that she’d been so busy, she couldn’t find someone on short notice.
Her eyes flicked to Lance when she spoke.
Tammy wondered if it was because she thought that she and Lance would be a couple.
Did Lance not tell her he had a date? He must’ve because he had two tickets.
Introductions went all around, and try as Tammy might, she knew she wouldn’t remember names. She was too busy being aware of Marianne’s close seating to Lance.
Lance leaned over and told Tammy that this particular table was going for two thousand a plate.
“Why?”
“The mayor, and those two men are very important council members. People want to sit next to them during dinner.”
Soon the seat next to Marianne was filled. He obviously also came alone. It was a familiar face.
“Well as I live and breathe. Tammy Easler, where have you been?”
She ignored the look of disdain on her mother’s face at the use of her grandmother’s maiden name. “Hello Doctor Anderson.” She was surprised actually. Most doctors don’t remember your last name, just the name they read on the nametag you wore on your uniform.
Marianne gave a flirtatious laugh. “Well, I see we don’t need much for introduction. Doctor Anderson is a prominent cardiac surgeon,” she said to Lance in particular.
“Yes, and we miss you something terrible,” he said directly to Tammy as if Marianne hadn’t spoken. “My patients miss you even more.”
“I moved to Montana.”
“So far?” His brows lifted.
Tammy suddenly felt Lance’s hand slide to her thigh.
She ignored the look she knew she was getting.
Doctor Anderson was in his mid-forties, fairly nice looking and a widow.
He got a little promiscuous after the death of his wife.
It was the way he coped. He was very much in love with her, well, she’d heard.
Yes, he was known to chase nurses, but he never chased her. He had an unusual respect for her.
“Do you still have that surefire temper? Hell, I miss that.” he directed his attention to the rest of the people at the table. “She would threaten to cleave me in two if I didn’t listen to her. She was all about patient advocacy. I swear I’ve never prescribed more treatments before or after you.”
“Is that right?” George asked.
She looked at her father and felt a blush rising. She could see pride in his expression.
“I thought about going into nursing,” Marianne spoke up hoping to draw the attention back to her. She then went on some long winded story about how she had low arches and couldn’t work the floor for those long shifts.
“We will discuss that relationship later.” Lance bent over and said quietly in her ear while the others were occupied. His long fingers curled over her thigh. The material of the dress easily stretched to accommodate them.
“There never was one. He’s not interested in me,” she whispered back keeping a smile in case anyone got suspicious.
“I’ll be the judge of that. He looks at you like Richard does—like all men do. You don’t even know your own desirability.”
He seemed a little angry. Her eyes went over his handsome profile as he straightened to answer a question the mayor asked him.
To her own surprise his mood didn’t bother her like she thought.
For some reason she believed she’d be feeling a little insecure, but instead she bit her lip to keep from smiling.
Lance Hartley was jealous! She could certainly get used that.
Just then his eyes flicked to her seeing her restrained smile.
He gave a very subtle, almost undetectable, shake of his head before angling it just enough for a look of warning.
She grinned this time unable to hold it back any longer.
Then, she suddenly dropped her grin to stifle a gasp as his warm hand slid through the slit of her dress, over her thigh and up between her legs.