Red Carpet Romance Read Online Free Page B

forks, put the
napoleons on a plate, and pushed to his feet. Quinn stuck his hand out, and
Susanna accepted it. He led her around the corner, then opened the sliding
glass doors. There was a round, wrought iron table with a glass top and four
wrought iron chairs with plush cushions in a floral print with green, white,
and coral.
    He placed the plate on the table and
pulled a chair out for her. She sat down while her gaze scanned the view. It’s a full court press. Can I resist? “This is…incredible. This view…it’s…awesome. If I lived here, I’d be on this
terrace all the time.”
    “You do live here,” he said, softly.
The sky had just begun to turn pink, indicating the next day would be sunny.
The air seemed fresher on the twenty-first floor, above the exhaust fumes
choking pedestrians below.
    Heat flamed her cheeks. “Guess I do.
At least for now. But I’d be afraid to bring Junior out here, especially when
he starts crawling.”
    “Get a playpen. Do they still call
those things playpens?”
    “They do. Deal. I’ll tell Maggie. A
rocking chair will be nice…to soothe the baby.”
    “Better make a list.” Quinn took a
forkful of the sweet confection.
    “You’re going to be investing a
bunch of money for your son to have him with you for only a few months.”
    “It’s…complicated.”
    That’s
what they all say. The dads who don’t want to be dads. She turned her gaze
away from his handsome face and back to the park. She could see across it,
though the blossoming trees were beginning to create a wall of green, limiting
the view.
    “I bet you can see clear across to
the cars driving on Fifth Avenue in the winter.”
    “You can. I prefer the spring and
summer view. The trees, flowers, horses and their carriages.”
    “I like warm weather, too. Hate the
cold.”
    “But you lived upstate, right?” He
cocked an eyebrow at her.
    “Never liked it. At least not in the
winter. I prefer the city or the beach.”
    “Me, too. I have a place in Malibu.
Near the ocean.” He moved his chair closer to the table.
    “Makes sense. I mean, since you have
to be out there a lot, working.” She cut a piece of the napoleon with her fork.
    “Hotels add up, and sometimes I like
to make a cup of coffee or have a drink when I want. Nice to have a place for
my stuff, too.”
    “Place for your stuff? Reminds me
of…”
    “George Carlin! Yeah!” And he burst
out laughing. She joined him. The sun fell lower in the West, darkening the
park, casting bigger shadows on the city. Susanna glanced at her watch then
pushed to her feet.
    “Think I’ll read for a bit.” She
stood awkwardly, gathering up the dishes. He opened the door for her.
    “I’ll do those. You had a long day.”
    “Thanks,” she said, handing him the
dessert plate. She lingered at the doorway, uncertain what to do.
    “It’s weird to have a beautiful
woman in my house who’s not here with…for…staying with me.” He blushed, casting
his gaze at the dishes in his hand.
    Open
mouth, insert foot, Quinn? She chuckled behind her hand before placing it
on his forearm. “I know, right? I was going to say sort of the same thing. I
mean, having dinner with a gorgeous guy who wasn’t going to jump me afterward.”
    He laughed, his gaze connecting with
hers. “You’re here for Junior. No plans to jump you, not that I wouldn’t like
to. Maybe I should just shut up.” He walked toward the kitchen.
    She snickered, heat coloring her
cheeks. “Goodnight then.”
    He nodded back at her. The last
sound she heard when she closed the door to her room was the sound of water
sloshing over dishes and, perhaps, a small sigh.

 
    * * * *

 
    Susanna draped a short, pink
seersucker robe over the foot of the double bed. She pulled down the covers and
slipped her naked body between cool, high quality cotton sheets. She opened a
paperback she bought at the second hand bookstore on Broadway and positioned
two pillows to support her back.
    Although she tried to