Carly Phillips - Hot Stuff

Vaughn didn't hold the comment against her since she didn't know his history. Yet once again, he couldn't help noticing the contradiction between the warm, loving woman who showered animals with love and affection and Miss Hot Stuff in the stilettos and short skirt. With all the construction going on back at the lodge, he hoped like hell she!d brought sneakers.

"Look," Annabelle said, shooting him a pleading glance. "Many hotels allow pets so it shouldn't be hard to keep these guys out of your way."

Her words brought him back to reality. "Hotel?" He let out a laugh.

"Motel, then."

He shook his head.

"Bed and breakfast?" she asked hopefully.

"Honey, would I be building a lodge if the town didn't have the need?"

She shrugged. "I just got this assignment, remember? I'm not yet up to speed. But I will be." She patted the laptop he'd just hefted on top of her large suitcase at the same time his hand came to rest on the computer.

A jolt ricocheted through him, shaking his equilibrium. She sucked in a startled breath and withdrew her hand fast. Apparently she'd felt the connection, too.

Vaughn quickly grasped for the thread of conversation they'd suddenly dropped. Hotels, motels and where she would stay. Not exactly the safety net he'd been looking for. But obviously Yank hadn't given her any facts on this subject.

Vaughn had always found that truth was best served cold and hard. "There's no B and B, either. The nearest hotel is a solid forty minutes away. You'll be staying at my place."

One delicate, finely shaped eyebrow rose warily.

"Trust me, it's not a come-on," he said, reading her mind.

Or maybe it was his own mind he was betraying, since he couldn't stop imagining her in his king-size bed, the normally cold sheets hot from the friction of their bodies having sizzling sex.

"Are you sure about that? Because I know attraction when I feel it and this is obviously mutual."

Swallowing a groan, he met her gaze. "What my body wants and what I want are two different things." He slammed the trunk shut.

"No sense sugarcoating it," she muttered, a glimmer of hurt in her voice.

Well hell, it wasn't like he didn't desire her or find her attractive. He just didn't need or want the involvement. But, he reminded himself, he cared about her uncle and he certainly didn't want to hurt her feelings, either. He walked around to hold the passenger door open, hoping good manners would make up for the verbal slap.

"Since I'm staying with you and you don't want to make a flashy scene, what exactly are we going to tell people I'm doing?" she asked him.

They'd never settled this question yesterday and he'd spent last night thinking this through. As he'd tossed and turned, thoughts of the beautiful blonde pervading his mind, her sexy scent forever in his memory.

"We'll tell people you're an old college friend with a background in hotel management. Nobody in town will know any better and in the meantime, you'll get an inside look at the lodge and I'll get you a rundown on the problems," he said, repeating the scenario he'd concocted.

She stared at him without saying a word. He took that as agreement.

"You'll be my spin wizard, decide what kind of ad or whatever to take to fix things, and be on your way. And that, as they say, will be that." He slammed the door shut and hoped like hell he was right.

VAUGHN'S HOME TURNED OUT to be a huge, modern monstrosity built in the midst of traditional suburbia, Annabelle thought. If he was seeking to make a statement, something to say I've arrived, he'd done it in a grand way.

She didn't have a problem with the house itself, but the lack of shrubs, trees, plants and flowers gave the white stucco an austere, unwelcoming look. The best thing Annabelle could say about the place was that she'd be guaranteed breathing room and space away from the hot-blooded athlete to whom she was so attracted.

Though how she could be hot for a guy who didn't want to want her in return was beyond her. Damn her hormones anyway. She'd chosen to confront the sexual currents head-on by acknowledging them and, with any luck, neutralizing their power. Hah. If anything, she thought as she watched him unload her suitcases from the back of the truck, muscles flexing beneath his shirt, he intrigued her even more.

As she followed him up the stone steps, she focused on the reason for this trip. Damage control for the lodge, which Vaughn intended to use as a summer place for underprivileged kids. She shook her head, still unable to reconcile that altruistic part of the man with the gruff guy who disliked animals. She wondered if the charity bit was for show and she pursed her lips in thought.

Somehow she had to get a handle on the man and assess this situation and its players. Otherwise she had no way of handling his crisis. So far Vaughn wasn't cooperating. Since she had yet to meet his friends or family, or get a sense of who he was and what image he wanted to convey for the lodge, she had only this house to go by.

The large and lonely dwelling didn't bode well for her vision of a PR damage control plan. Neither did his notion of keeping her in the background for too long. She could lay low for a while, but to fix this situation, she very much intended to make her mark.

"I love your house," she said with forced enthusiasm.

"Really? I hate it." He paused at the door and dug into his pocket for the keys.

Now there was a comment worth exploring. "Then why live here?"

"Because I wanted to move back to my hometown and this was the only place that fit my needs." He flung open the front door and lugged her belongings inside. Her laptop hung from one shoulder, a large suitcase trailed behind him from one hand and he hefted her toiletry bag in the other.

He'd left the animals up to her and she held Boris and Natasha in each hand as she stepped inside. "And what needs were those?" she asked, picking up their conversation.

"Peace, quiet and space."

She nodded as if she understood. She didn't, of course. She'd lived life afraid of being separated from her loved ones. Even now, as an adult, she lived across the hall from Sophie and Micki, needing to hear their voices and feel them close by. She even filled her apartment with things, breathing and otherwise, so she'd never really feel alone.

"So which wing is mine?" she asked, only half joking.

"The house is huge, but I only reopened one part," he explained. "I didn't need the rest and didn't see the need to have it cleaned out or fixed up."

Odd for a man who'd just claimed he needed space, Annabelle thought.

He walked her through the hallway, which had been painted white, and pointed directly in front of her. "That's the kitchen," he said, showing her a state-of-the-art room with stainless steel appliances, white cabinets and white walls.

Then he started down a long hallway and halted halfway. "This room has a double bed for friends who come by. My room's that one there." He gestured to a closed door and a room with which hers shared an adjoining wall. "You have your own bathroom, so you should be fine," he added.

She choked back a laugh. A bed in a sterile white room, and a bathroom with shower. "All the comforts of home." Or a prison cell.

"I thought so."

"What's up the center stairs?" she asked of the grandiose circular staircase she'd seen when she'd walked in.

He shrugged. "More rooms I don't need."

Upstairs probably held a huge master bedroom and a variety of other larger rooms, while he chose to stay downstairs, in an area originally designated for staff. Strange and stranger, she thought. Looking at the bright side, this area was small and cozy, or would be if it had been decorated at all.

"Down the stairs behind the kitchen, there's a gym in the basement, and a hot tub and sauna. Make yourself at home," he said, turning away.

She glanced at her watch. "It's almost dinnertime and I still haven't seen the lodge."

"Hang on." He disappeared into his room and returned with a stack of files in his hand. "I thought you could go through notes on the problems we've been having. Tomorrow you can see things for yourself." He handed her the large pile of papers. "I'll go get your luggage.”

She narrowed her gaze at his retreating back. "Is it my imagination or is he being deliberately distant and businesslike?" she asked, unzipping the dog bag so Boris could pop his head up and lick her cheek. The rabbit could take care of business in the crate, but the dog needed a walk.

She hooked him on to his leash and headed back into the hall just as her host was returning, suitcases in hand. No room on either side, she attempted to slide past him, her back flat against the wall. Her maneuver forced Vaughn to do the same and their bodies brushed evocatively against one another.

Chest against chest, thigh against thigh. Nothing could disguise the instant heat they generated. Even the impassive look on his face disappeared, warmth replacing his steely resolve. His sexy blue gaze deepened, darkening to sapphire pools she wanted to dive into.

Annabelle inhaled, trying to fight the pull, but his potent masculine scent that had surrounded her for two and a half hours in the truck suddenly enveloped her again. And this time she was face-to-face with temptation.

His full lips beckoned to her and her entire body waited for the touch of his mouth on hers. She darted her tongue out, moistening her lips. Waiting, hoping…

Until the dog barked loudly, shattering the silken silence surrounding them and startling Annabelle out of the ridiculous spell holding her captive. She let the dog, who weighed less than twelve pounds, pull her away from Brandon Vaughn.

As she headed outdoors for fresh air and sanity, she wished she could have left the burning desire behind as well.

"SHE's HOT STUFF, Vaughn. Are you sure you aren't doing her?" Nick Gregory, Vaughn's lifelong friend, asked.

Nick was also an investor in the lodge with as much at stake as Vaughn. Nick had been recently laid off from his job at CNT Sports Network and had wanted in on the project. Vaughn hadn't needed the money but he'd agreed anyway because there was no one he felt closer to than Nick.

Vaughn and Nick had grown up together in Greenlawn, New York. They'd rebel-roused throughout high school varsity football and as a result, the people in town remembered them as a collective pain in the ass, even if both had returned as hometown heroes, Nick from his stint for Detroit and Vaughn for Dallas.

"Earth to Vaughn. I asked if you were doing the lovely Miss Jordan "

It was Nick's best friend status that kept Vaughn from strangling him now.

Vaughn paused from lifting free weights, and with Nick spotting, put the 380 pounds back in their holder. "Hell yeah I'm sure." Not that it stopped him from wanting to bury himself inside all that lush femininity. "I wouldn't need to release all this pent-up energy if I were."

He vividly recalled the moment in the hall when he'd almost pinned her against his rock-hard body, lifted her tiny skirt and taken her right there against the wall. Vaughn sat up and let the blood rush out of his head. It had already permanently settled in another body part and would remain there as long as Annabelle stayed in his home.

He shot Nick a warning glance. "You'd better not be thinking of touching her, either, or her uncle will come after you with a shotgun." Reminding Nick that Yank would be pissed served as an important reminder to himself. Screwing Yank's niece would put him back in the doghouse he'd just crawled out of.

"Considering she's way over eighteen, I don't mink Yank Morgan would be all that upset. You on the other hand-" Nick barked out his trademark laugh.

Vaughn merely frowned. "We have enough busi₇ ness problems without adding a woman to the mix. Let's just try to get things sorted out and back on schedule."

"Good by me. I'm outta here. I'll meet you at the site tomorrow 10:00 a.m.?" Nick asked.

"Yeah."

"You coming upstairs?"

Vaughn eyed the treadmill. Though his knee prevented him from playing ball, he still kept in shape. "I'm going to run a mile or so first."

"No problem. I think I'll stop and say goodbye to your houseguest on my way out," Nick said, a wicked grin crossing his face.

Vaughn scowled, pushed the safety key into the treadmill and joined Nick as he headed up the stairs.

ANNABELLE SAT ON THE BED in the guest room, paperwork, laptop and documents around her. "Micki, are you still there?" She adjusted her cell phone so she could hear her sister's voice more clearly.