Merry and Bright(56)

She just laughed.

Ned’s flush lit up the dark. “You look really great tonight. Your dress—”

“You can go now, Ned.”

“Thank you.” In a cowardly blink he was gone.

Men. Cami kicked a file cabinet closed as she left.





It turned out Cami was grateful for the masked part of the ball after all—who’d have thought—because it allowed her to stay virtually “hidden” for the hour she forced herself to stay and smile and make nice. Trying to forget the kiss, she danced with Adam and Ed from her department, and she danced with eager-beaver Russ from the Permit Department, though surely her feet would never recover. She danced with a few others as well, mostly because it meant less talking.

And then she made her escape, leaving the festivities that had been meant to boost everyone’s low morale. She drove home reliving the mortifying portion of the evening. In her quiet condo, she decided to grow from the experience. And then she buried herself in the work she’d brought home because, as it turned out, work was all she had.

The next morning, she went into her office early, and to protect herself, she put a sign on her door that said STAY OUT OR DIE.

But apparently the new mayor couldn’t read because half an hour later, Matt stuck his head in, wearing one of those wicked smiles that had always annoyed her in the past but that now inexplicably scraped at a spot low in her belly.

“Hey,” he said. “Busy?”

Just looking at him reminded her of last night. Of his bone-melting, heart-stopping kiss. Of how he’d held her as if he could do nothing else. How he’d gotten hard and rocked her hips to his. She’d dreamed about that part in particular, damn it, and remembering brought the heat to her face. She shouldn’t be picturing the mayor with a hard-on. She especially shouldn’t get hard nipples at picturing the mayor with a hard-on. “If I say yes, I’m busy, will you go far, far away?”

His grin spread.

Good God, could the guy be any more gorgeous? Or annoying? Or sexier? Now it wasn’t just her nipples going happy, but things were happening between her thighs, too. “Didn’t you read the sign?”

“Yes.” He pulled a pen out of his pocket. Clicked it on. Eyed her with a mischievous lecherousness.

“Don’t even think about it,” she warned, gritting her teeth when he underlined the STAY OUT part. Then shut the door—with him on the wrong side.

He smiled.

She did not. But she wanted to, damn him, so she got up, walked around her desk, and reopened the door, silently inviting him to leave.

“Ah,” he said. “Someone forgot to eat her Wheaties this morning.”

“And someone forgot he was an ass—”

“Still mad, I see.” He nodded as if this was perfectly acceptable to him. “How long do you plan on pouting?”

She gaped. “I am not pouting. I never pout.”

“Then what’s this?” He rubbed his thumb over her lower lip, which was indeed thrust out petulantly.

The touch electrified her, and she struggled with her reaction. If his expression went smug, she was going to have to kill him.

But he didn’t look smug at all. He looked as shocked as she felt.

In the startled silence, a woman walked by her office. Danielle was a city clerk but looked like a stripper, and when she saw Matt, she stopped and smiled. “Hey there, big guy. Nice dancing with you last night.” She made some promises with her bedroom eyes and body language before moving on.

“Big guy?” Cami shook her head. “Never mind, I don’t want to know. Please just go away.”

“Yeah.” He looked at her for a long moment. “But only because I have three meetings, all scheduled at the same time.”

“I’m in two of them with you. Oh, and I hope you ate your Wheaties because at the first one, for the proposed amendments to the town plan? I’m planning on nailing you.”

His eyes heated. “Promise?”

She felt her insides quiver at his expression. “Get out.”

“Okay, but first I wanted to talk to you about last night.”

“No. No way.”

“I had some trouble sleeping,” he said, all kidding aside. “I was thinking maybe you did, too.”

“Slept like a baby.” Yeah, if babies had wet dreams.

“You slept like a baby,” he repeated.

“You betcha.”

He didn’t believe her. “Then why are you in such a big hurry to get rid of me?”

“Because I don’t like you.”

He grinned. “Liar.”

“Oh, just get out!” To make sure that he did, she shoved him, then closed the door firmly on his grinning face.

She felt her own reluctant smile and was just glad she’d shut the door before he could see it. The last thing she needed to do was egg him on.

“You still there?” he asked through the door.

“Where else would I be?”

“Just wondering if you’ve managed to bite back your smile yet.”

She threw her pen at the door, then rolled her eyes at his soft laugh.





The next day, the local newspaper broke a story on one of the public officials in the Public Works Department. It turned out the official had once been charged with extortion in Florida, a charge no one here had known about.