A Woman's Touch

gently.
    He looked at her, unable to explain how crucial every single night was when a man was living on borrowed time. He had no way of knowing when the lawyers were going to catch up with her and he didn’t want to waste a minute.
    „What are you going to do while I’m gone?“ he asked.
    „Go out partying with the boys from marketing, I think,“ she said musingly.
    „You’re going to do what?“ He saw red for an instant. And then he saw the teasing laughter in her amber eyes.
    „Baby, don’t ever make jokes like that, okay? It’s dangerous.“
    „For who?“
    „Guess,“ he retorted succinctly. „Now tell me the truth. What are you going to do tonight?“
    „Go home, have a drink, have dinner and read that new thriller I bought the other day.“
    He nodded in satisfaction. „That’s better. I’m going to miss you, Becky.“
    „I’ll miss you, too.“ She got up from behind her desk and came around to slip into his arms. „Call me as soon as you get to the hotel in Phoenix, so I’ll know you arrived safely.“
    Kyle grinned as he stroked her soft nape. The novelty of having to phone someone to let her know he was okay filled him with deep pleasure. He liked the sense of being tied to Rebecca. „I’ll call right away.“
    „Promise?“
    „Promise.“ Then he kissed her thoroughly and forced himself to leave before he missed the plane.
    Hours later in Phoenix he reached for the bedside phone as soon as he got rid of the bellhop.
    „I’m here,“ he announced. „Safe and sound. What are you doing?“
    „Right this minute? I’m in the kitchen chopping some cabbage. What are you doing?“
    „Getting hard.“
    Rebecca giggled on the other end of the line. „At the thought of me chopping cabbage? Now that’s interesting. Is it the image of the knife in my hand, or the thought of my cute little apron that’s turning you on?“
    „The apron,“ he replied unhesitatingly. „I’m picturing you wearing it and nothing else.“
    „I’ll wear it for you tomorrow night when you get back from Phoenix,“ she promised in a husky voice.
    „Yeah.“ Kyle lounged against the pillows, aware of the tightness in his lower body. It was going to be a long night.
    „How’d everything go at work after I left this afternoon?“
    „We all survived. Flaming Luck didn’t go bankrupt or anything. Rick Harrison says he’s got the Jamison deal under control.“
    „He’d better have it under control,“ Kyle retorted. „If he loses that one, I’ll have his head and then I’ll have your sweet little tush.“
    „My little tush?“ she asked with innocent surprise.
    „You bet. You’re the one who talked me into delegating the responsibility for the Jamison deal to Harrison, remember? That project’s important to me, Becky. If we don’t get it, Clear Advantage Development will and I’m not about to let that happen.“
    „I see,“ she said lightly. „Well, goodness. If I’d known my tush was on the line, I might have thought twice about encouraging you to let Harrison have the responsibility for closing the deal.“
    Kyle grinned. „In the long run, it doesn’t really matter.“
    „No?“
    „Nope. I’m going to have your cute little tush, either way. Fill me in on the status of the Jennings-Hutton deal.“

    She did, eventually ending the conversation by telling him she would be at the airport to meet him. Kyle hung up the phone reluctantly and went to take a cold shower.
    The next afternoon she was there in the waiting lounge just as she said she would be. Kyle couldn’t remember the last time anyone had met him at the airport. When she came running forward to throw her arms around him, he was overcome by a wave of happiness.
    They drove home where Rebecca had dinner and a bottle of wine waiting. Kyle felt as if he’d been dropped into a magic world where reality was temporarily suspended while he learned the heady little glories of domesticity.
    Later that night Rebecca put on a frilly apron, just as she’d promised. She wore nothing underneath. Kyle thought he was going to go out of his mind.
    When she shuddered delicately in his arms and cried out his name, he decided to wait just a little while longer before he told her the full truth. Normally a blunt, realistic man who met problems head-on, he discovered he couldn’t bear to shatter the fragile illusion he’d created for himself.
    The Stockbridge luck ran out the following Monday morning. When the dust had finally settled, Kyle