Single, Available, and Completely Attached (23 page)

He was wearing a charcoal colored suit, with no tie—and she would be lying if she said she wasn’t having a hard time taking her eyes off him, too.

When he took her hand again, he didn’t let go, even as they crossed the parking lot.
 
She headed toward his SUV, but he stopped her, tugging her in another direction.
 
“But you’re parked—”

“Come on,
”
 
he
encouraged, nodding his head.

And then she saw it.

A classic car, just across the way.
 
She could only assume it was a 1968 Mustang.
 
Hadn’t that been the car Drew said he’d restored?
 

It was beautiful, even to her—and she wasn’t much for the whole car thing.
 
But the silver of the body almost sparkled.
 
It was smooth and sleek, with black stripes on the hood, and Anna imagined it was very, very fast.
 

“Is this—?”
 
She walked around the car, taking care to observe every inch of it.
 

“This is my baby.”
 
Drew caressed the hood.
 
“I spent every cent I could scrape together on this girl.
 
Took me about five years to finish, but I did it.”

“It’s gorgeous.”
 
Anna told him, meaning the compliment.

“Oh, I know.”
 
She looked up to find his eyes on her, resting her hand on the body of the car.
 
He held open the passenger door for her.
 
“Want to hear her purr?”

“Should I be concerned that you refer to your car as if it were alive?”
 
Anna asked, raising an eyebrow.

“Once we start driving, you’re going to think she is too.”
 
Anna couldn’t help but giggle, smoothing down her dress before sliding into the car.
 
She buckled in, waiting for Drew to join her.
 
“Ready?”

“Go on and introduce us.”
 
She told him.

As soon as he started the car, she felt the engine purring—there really was no other word for it—all around them.
 
Anna couldn’t help but watch Drew as he drove the car, and she knew that
this
was something he was proud of.
 
This car, the fact that he worked for it, that he used his own hands—it meant something to him.

And she couldn’t be happier that he was sharing it with her.
 

They didn’t speak as he drove to the station.
 
When the arrived, he handed the keys over to the valet attendant, taking Anna by the hand.
 
As they started walking toward the building, he pulled her closer to him, slipping his arm around her.
 
“What’d you think?”
 
he
asked.

“Oh, she purred.”
 

“If I have my way, she won’t be the only thing purring.”
 

Anna laughed then—a real laugh, shaking her head at his cheesiness as they entered the building.
 
Drew ginned happily at her as he directed her toward a large room in the back of the building.
 

“The building used to be a hotel or something, way back when, and they decided to keep this space available.”
 
He informed her.
 
Several tables filled the room, with a stage at the head.
 
“I apologize in advance for the incredible amount of ego you’ll encounter tonight.”

“Oh, I think I’ve spent enough time with you that I can handle it.”
 
His only response was another grin as he placed his hand on the small of her back and led her around, introducing her to various people—and without fail, he was certain to mention the community center to every single person they spoke to.
 

Whether it was a reminder about the auction, or the prom, or even simply to introduce her as the head of the center, Drew made sure every conversation was a sales pitch.

Anna watched him, soaking it all in.
 
With every new introduction, she felt an extreme sense of affection toward him.

Drew, the man she had never thought capable of thinking of anyone but himself—and here he was, doing everything in his power to help out a random group of kids with whom he had literally no connection.

She knew she was going to have to think of some way to repay him—she wasn’t sure how, but she knew that it had to be something special.
 
After everything he’d done for her, she at least owed him that.

“So
this
is the platonic friend you’ve been talking about all the time.”
 
Anna looked up to find Drew’s partner, Dave, standing in front of them.
 
“It’s nice to finally meet you.”

“Anna, this is Dave.
 
Dave, meet Anna.”
 

“I hear you play a mean game of Call of Duty.”
 

“I handle my own well enough, thank you.”
 
Anna smiled at him, reaching out to grab a glass of champagne from a passing waitress.
 
“I hear you’re pretty awful.”
 

And Dave laughed, nodding his head.
 
“I like this one, Drew.
 
She seems like she’s got a good head on her shoulders.”
 
Dave told him, patting him on the back.
 
Anna took a drink from her glass.
 
“So what are you doing with this guy?”
 

“Oh, you know.
 
Mostly, I just use my feminine wiles to convince him to do my bidding.”
 
She slipped her arm through Drew’s, smiling.
 
“Speaking of which—it appears that there’s a dance floor in need of some serious attention just over yonder.”

“How could I say no to such a pretty face?”
 
He threw his hand up as Anna pulled him away from Dave, leaving her glass on a table and leading him toward the empty space in the corner of the room.
 
She wrapped her arms around his neck as they swayed slowly.

“So, what is it we’re celebrating?”
 
she
asked.

“Oh, well, the station has done pretty well.”

“No, what are
you
celebrating?
 
You don’t have a modest bone in your body, Drew.
 
It’s okay to brag.”

“Well,
I
—or, I should say
we—
were number one in the ratings, for the third year in a row.”
 
Anna pulled back, her eyebrows raised.
 
She knew they were popular—but number one?
 

“That’s something worth bragging about.”
 
She told him.

“Something else worth bragging about?”
 
Drew leaned in, his mouth very near to her ear.
 
“I’ve clearly got the hottest girl in the room in my arms.”

“Oh, you and your charms, Mr. Whitman.
 
However is a girl to refuse?”
 
She laughed, pulling away from him—only to have him pull her in again and lean her backward.
 

There was that grin again—the one with the dimple, that made everything disappear.
 

“So—this is your building then?”
 
Anna asked and Drew nodded.
 
“Could I see your office?”

“You want to see my office?”
 
he
clarified.

“You’ve seen mine a million times.
 
It’s only fair.
 
Besides, I bet the number one morning show has an office worth showing off.”
 

“Oh, fine, if you insist.”
 
Drew took her hand and led her back into the main entryway, where he stabbed at a button.
 
The elevator arrived immediately, taking them up several floors.
 
“This is where we all convalesce,
”
 
he
pointed toward a larger conference room just across from the elevator.
 
“Over here are our offices.”

“Lead the way, Mr. Whitman.”
 
He stopped here and there to point out the copy room, the office shared by the show’s interns, and the communal bathroom.
 
All of the walls were glass—aside from the bathroom, of course—and some were covered by blinds while others were wide open

“But, as one of the headliners,
I
get my own bathroom.
 
Well, technically, I share with Dave—but still.”
 
Drew was telling her.

“I don’t have my own bathroom.”

“Exactly.”
 
She nudged him with her hip as they came to a stop in front of a door with his name on it.
 
“And here we are.”

“Aren’t you going to let me in?”
 
she
asked.

“Of course.”
 

As soon as Drew opened the door, Anna crossed the threshold, taking in her surroundings.
 
Plaques announcing his achievements lined the wall, and around those, posters for the show.
 
She stopped in front of them, examining each one, before she crossed to the floor to ceiling wall of windows across from the door.
 

“Now that’s a beautiful view,
”
 
she
whispered, staring out at the city before her.
 
It seemed to glitter and sparkle, rain having fallen after they’d entered the building.

“I’ve seen
better
.”
 
He was standing behind her, and Anna turned to face him, understanding what he was trying to suggest.
 
She was certain it was just a
line,
but still, she couldn’t ignore the way her heart fluttered in her chest at the compliment.
 

“Have you, now?”
 
She asked, closing the distance between them.
 

“I can say that with one hundred percent certainty, yes.”
 

“I bet you say that to all the girls.”
 

She kissed him then, surprising them both.
 
Her hands slid upward, gliding over the smooth fabric of his shirt until she reached his shoulders, where she quickly removed his jacket.
 
He broke away from her, touching his lips to her neck while his hands cupped the back of her thighs—and a moment later, he’d hoisted her up onto his desk.

She opened her legs, pulling him closer to her as she fiddled with the buttons of his shirt, longing for the sight of what was hidden behind it.
 
As soon as she tugged the shirt free of his waist band, she leaned forward and kissed his chest, darting her tongue out at him here and there.

The moment his hand touched the bare skin of her thigh, she gasped, pulling him in, her body aching for the feel of him.

But he wasn’t going to give in so easy, and as she felt his fingers touch her, she cried out, dropping her head back.
 
She knew he was watching her as he teased her, bringing her closer and closer—

And soon, she could stand it no longer.
 
She tugged forcefully on his pants, undoing the belt and the button and the zipper—running her fingers over the length of him through the thin fabric before pulling him free.

The moment she felt him inside her, she arched into him, the need overwhelming her—and Drew matched her urgency, pushing her onward until she cried out, clinging to him as if her life depended on it.

They remained silent for several
moments,
the only sound that of their breathing as they laid back on his desk.

“Annabelle
Maloy
, you might very well be the death of me.”
 
Drew finally spoke, still breathless, and Anna only chuckled, her own heart still pounding away inside her chest.

“Do you think anyone heard us?”

“They probably heard us in Moscow.”
 
She lost it then, burying her head in Drew’s chest.
 

“So much for the platonic show, huh?”

“I don’t think anyone believed it for a second.”
 
Drew wrapped his arm around her.
 
“Want to get out of here?”

“Now that we’ve gotten that out of the way, shouldn’t you be more inclined to enjoy your party?”

“Now that we’ve gotten that out of the way, I’m already thinking about the next round.”
 
She laughed again, pulling herself up into a sitting position.
 

“You’re insatiable, aren’t you?”

“It’s been said before.”
 
She rolled her eyes as she hopped off the desk, crossing the room to the bathroom, where she took a few moments to clean herself up.

It was definitely best that they leave, she thought as she saw the faint markings of a hickey forming on her neck.
 

Drew was waiting for her at the door, and rather than put his jacket back on, he held it out so that she could slip into it.
 
“It’s going to be much cooler out there, since it rained.”
 

“Thanks,
”
 
she
told him, sidling up alongside him as they made their exit.
 
The valet who returned Drew’s Mustang complimented Drew on the car, but Anna had the feeling he was giving him credit for something else, too, and she felt her cheeks redden.
 

“So—what made you decide to dedicate yourself to restoring this fine piece of automobile?”
 
Anna asked, breaking the silence.
 
She angled herself toward him, resting her head against the window.
 

“Will you take ‘chick magnet’ as an acceptable answer?”
 
Anna shook her head.
 
There was more to it than that.
 
“I didn’t think you would.”
 
He sighed, turning on his blinker, waiting for the light to turn.
 
“My dad had one.”