ONE NIGHT ONLY

Chapter 7

While her mother-in-law went to let Philip in, Rosa panicked.

Oh, my God.

After one second of paralyzed helplessness, she jumped to her feet, checked her reflection in the tiny mirror over the stove, fluffed her hair and wished she’d thrown on something other than her faded jeans and long-sleeved T-shirt.

Ah, well—too late now. At least she’d brushed her teeth.

She arrived in the foyer in time to see the tail end of a bear hug between Philip and Lucille. Philip had been laughing—he had a devastating smile, all flashing white teeth and dimples—and he caught Rosa’s gaze over Lucille’s shoulder.

For the first time ever, he didn’t treat Rosa to one of his automatic scowls. Instead, his smile widened a notch or two, and Rosa’s knees weakened accordingly.

Surely that wasn’t a normal smile; it felt like a gift, a bright rainbow, a wonderful surprise and the promise of beautiful things to come.

Rosa’s heart contracted and she had to look away.

Pulling out of Lucille’s arms, Philip gave the old woman a kiss on the forehead but spoke to Rosa in an intimate tone that was for her alone. "Good morning."

How was she supposed to think clearly with him looking so happy to see her? "Hi," she said.

"Have you got a minute?" he asked. "I don’t feel like we finished our conversation last night."

The poorly hidden vulnerability and hope in his eyes disarmed Rosa almost as much as seeing him in baggy jeans and a sweatshirt rather than his usual corporate suit and tie. She was used to thinking of him as a glowering enemy rather than an approachable man, and she wasn’t sure she liked the change.

"That’s not such a good—" she began.

"Philip!"

Brennan, now wearing only blue Batman undies on his narrow backside and sporting wet hair that dripped down his back, appeared at the top of the staircase and raced down the steps like Carl Lewis trying to set a new world record. Reacting quickly, Philip squatted, caught him and swung him in a circle that sent the boy’s skinny legs flying.

Rosa’s jaw dropped because she’d had no idea that Philip and Brennan were on such good terms. A sneaking suspicion made her glance at Lucille, who had the grace to hang her head and look guilty. Rosa narrowed her eyes at her mother-in-law, making a mental note to deal with her later.

"Are you going to play baseball with me at the park today?" Brennan asked.

Rosa stifled a snort as the light came on over her head. All those grandmother-grandson trips to the park, all those secret giggles between Lucille and Brennan. She should have known something suspicious was going on.

Before Philip could answer Brennan, Lucille, who was obviously anxious to get out of the hot seat, hurried forward to take her grandson’s hand. "You’ll see Philip later. Right now, you need to put some clothes on this tiny hiney."

Ignoring the boy’s loud protests, Lucille took him back upstairs.

In the echoing silence, Rosa could hardly bring herself to look at Philip. His gaze was too intense, his interest too sharp. And her body’s reaction to him was too acute.

Especially when he edged closer, took her hand and stroked the back of it with his thumb. "Hi."

Hot sparks of unwelcome sensation shot through her. Pulling away, she shoved her hands in her pockets, where they were safe. "Hi. You shouldn’t have come."

A subtle change came over his face, a hurt he couldn’t disguise. "No?"

"No. And you really put me in a tight spot with Greg last night. He was very upset. I’m going to have to find Brennan a new dentist."

"I apologized to him. And I didn’t come to talk about Greg. I came to talk about our date tonight."

"We don’t have a date tonight."

"We absolutely have a date tonight." Philip flashed that grin at her again and it was wicked this time, thrilling—as tempting as an open box of Godiva milk chocolates. "It’s Valentine’s Day and I have a proposition for you. Would you like to hear it?"