sum of her diminutive height. oIf that was your idea of a joke, Mr. Charles, fine itAEs on me. Consider us even.o
Chapter SEVEN
oAmber!o Grayson hollered through the firmly locked door. Down the hall a door opened behind him. A middle-aged woman wearing a housecoat and an array of pink foam curlers glared out the door at him.
Great, now IAEm frightening the neighbors! He leaned his head against the door in defeat. Inside he heard the dull rush of a shower running. After his clumsiness with that pitcher of Sangria, he ought to slink home and hope in time sheAEd forgive him. But he simply couldnAEt leave her like that, thinking the worst of him. God knew what conclusions sheAEd drawn about RogerAEs impersonation of him.
Roger, heAEd deal with later. Right now it was Amber that mattered. Pressing his ear against the door, he heard the shower stop. Footsteps padded past the door.
oAmber!o He glanced cautiously over his shoulder in case the curler lady had heard him again and lowered his voice. oAmber, please! I just want to talk to you for a minute.o
Silence. The footsteps ceased. He pictured her standing still in the hallway, listening, while he embarrassed himself. Grayson knocked again.
oGive it up buddy,o said a male voice behind him. oShe doesnAEt want to talk to you.o
Grayson turned, coming face to face with a man in sweat pants and a t-shirt who likely outweighed him by about a hundred pounds. Not the kind of guy you told to get lost and mind his own business.
oLook,o Grayson said as politely as he could. oItAEs an emergency, okay?o
oSure, pal.o
oAmber,o he hissed desperately into the door.
To his astonishment, it opened. At least as far as the chain barring it would allow it to open. Amber glowered up at him, looking none the less ferocious in her purple and black striped bathrobe and with a multitude of damp crimson curls framing her face. He imagined her that way on sleepy Sundays mornings after a night curled up before the fire in his house leisurely making love. Grayson promptly yanked his thoughts back to the present. If she only knew what heAEd been thinking ... But wasnAEt that what had started the whole mess? His failure to share his feelings for her.
oYou donAEt give up, do you,o she growled, yanking the robe tighter.
oI just want to talk to you for a moment,o he whispered, conscious of their audience. oI promise I wonAEt come further than your front hall.o
oSo talk.o
He glanced behind him. oCouldnAEt we talk about this inside?o
oYouAEve got to be kidding.o
oEverything okay, Amber?o called the guy from across the hall.
She looked crossly up at him through the crack in the door, then her gaze shifted to her neighbor. oYeah, Chris, everythingAEs okay. Nothing I canAEt handle.o
AmberAEs neighbor gave him a long warning glare. oBetter behave yourself, buddy,o he said, then mercifully shut his door.
She was still staring up at him, gray eyes hard as stone.
oI came to apologize,o he said softly. oFor my clumsiness, and for RogerAEs interference.o
oI certainly hope so.o She shut the door, and he could hear the chain sliding free. She opened the door wide enough for him to step through, then closed it behind him. oOkay, letAEs hear it.o
Standing face to face with her in the intimacy of her apartment, the eloquent words heAEd planned to say to her escaped him once again. Grayson opened his mouth, no sound came out. He tried again.
oAmber, I know it sounds crazy, but Roger really was trying to help.o
oStop making excuses for him.
oBelieve me, right now IAEd like to strangle him slowly. ItAEs hard to believe, but he had the best of intentions.o
oI canAEt see how.o
Grayson heaved a deep sigh. oHe thought I was messing things up between us by not telling you how I felt ... about you.o
oAnd how do you feel?o
oI donAEt know.o Truth helped the words flow smoothly. oIAEve never felt this way about anyone else before.o
His confession caught her off guard. Her face softened a little, but her eyes
Chapter SEVEN
oAmber!o Grayson hollered through the firmly locked door. Down the hall a door opened behind him. A middle-aged woman wearing a housecoat and an array of pink foam curlers glared out the door at him.
Great, now IAEm frightening the neighbors! He leaned his head against the door in defeat. Inside he heard the dull rush of a shower running. After his clumsiness with that pitcher of Sangria, he ought to slink home and hope in time sheAEd forgive him. But he simply couldnAEt leave her like that, thinking the worst of him. God knew what conclusions sheAEd drawn about RogerAEs impersonation of him.
Roger, heAEd deal with later. Right now it was Amber that mattered. Pressing his ear against the door, he heard the shower stop. Footsteps padded past the door.
oAmber!o He glanced cautiously over his shoulder in case the curler lady had heard him again and lowered his voice. oAmber, please! I just want to talk to you for a minute.o
Silence. The footsteps ceased. He pictured her standing still in the hallway, listening, while he embarrassed himself. Grayson knocked again.
oGive it up buddy,o said a male voice behind him. oShe doesnAEt want to talk to you.o
Grayson turned, coming face to face with a man in sweat pants and a t-shirt who likely outweighed him by about a hundred pounds. Not the kind of guy you told to get lost and mind his own business.
oLook,o Grayson said as politely as he could. oItAEs an emergency, okay?o
oSure, pal.o
oAmber,o he hissed desperately into the door.
To his astonishment, it opened. At least as far as the chain barring it would allow it to open. Amber glowered up at him, looking none the less ferocious in her purple and black striped bathrobe and with a multitude of damp crimson curls framing her face. He imagined her that way on sleepy Sundays mornings after a night curled up before the fire in his house leisurely making love. Grayson promptly yanked his thoughts back to the present. If she only knew what heAEd been thinking ... But wasnAEt that what had started the whole mess? His failure to share his feelings for her.
oYou donAEt give up, do you,o she growled, yanking the robe tighter.
oI just want to talk to you for a moment,o he whispered, conscious of their audience. oI promise I wonAEt come further than your front hall.o
oSo talk.o
He glanced behind him. oCouldnAEt we talk about this inside?o
oYouAEve got to be kidding.o
oEverything okay, Amber?o called the guy from across the hall.
She looked crossly up at him through the crack in the door, then her gaze shifted to her neighbor. oYeah, Chris, everythingAEs okay. Nothing I canAEt handle.o
AmberAEs neighbor gave him a long warning glare. oBetter behave yourself, buddy,o he said, then mercifully shut his door.
She was still staring up at him, gray eyes hard as stone.
oI came to apologize,o he said softly. oFor my clumsiness, and for RogerAEs interference.o
oI certainly hope so.o She shut the door, and he could hear the chain sliding free. She opened the door wide enough for him to step through, then closed it behind him. oOkay, letAEs hear it.o
Standing face to face with her in the intimacy of her apartment, the eloquent words heAEd planned to say to her escaped him once again. Grayson opened his mouth, no sound came out. He tried again.
oAmber, I know it sounds crazy, but Roger really was trying to help.o
oStop making excuses for him.
oBelieve me, right now IAEd like to strangle him slowly. ItAEs hard to believe, but he had the best of intentions.o
oI canAEt see how.o
Grayson heaved a deep sigh. oHe thought I was messing things up between us by not telling you how I felt ... about you.o
oAnd how do you feel?o
oI donAEt know.o Truth helped the words flow smoothly. oIAEve never felt this way about anyone else before.o
His confession caught her off guard. Her face softened a little, but her eyes
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