“Are you trying to scare me off?” Trevor asked, reaching across the table and grasping her hand.
His heat seared her skin but the warmth in his eyes undid her, crumbling defenses she’d tried so hard to build. “I just want you to know who I am, so there are no surprises.”
He grinned. “You’re forgetting I’ve seen you at your worst. I also know you only act out when you’re feeling jealous or threatened.”
Lissa’s cheeks flushed with embarrassment. “Yeah, well, maybe I was jealous. From the outside, it seemed like Faith had it all. Even with her father in jail, she came back and opened a business, immediately fell back in with her old f
riends ... and things were so difficult for me at the time ...” She trailed off, thinking about Faith’s story. “I didn’t know how hard it had been for her until the interview. Not that anything excuses my behavior.” In fact, she’d punish her daughter if she ever treated anyone the way Lissa had Faith.
“Maybe you were afraid that since Faith had returned, she’d take Kate away from you and you’d really be alone?”
Trevor’s perceptiveness took her off guard.
She was mortified he’d homed in on the one thing she’d never admitted out loud—or even to herself. Faith’s return home had threatened the life she’d built, but how had Trevor known? It was so scary, how well he got her, and yet he wasn’t running away as fast as he could.
She didn’t understand it. Her life never went the way she wanted and so she couldn’t begin to trust this fragile thing they were building. Yet Trevor was persistent—with his words, his understanding, and his gentle touch. Even now, he maintained contact, his thumb rubbing circles over her wrist.
“I’m guessing that didn’t happen?” he asked gently. “Kate stuck around?”
Lissa managed a smile along with a nod. “Of course Kate ripped into me for how I treated Faith and she was right, too. But Kate’s persistent. She just kept including me and including Faith. We even did karaoke together at Joe’s.”
Trevor grinned. “I’d have paid good money to see that.”
Lissa grimaced. “Not something I want to repeat.”
His expression sobered as he said, “But Faith gave you that interview when she could have called on any well-known reporter who’d have killed for her story. There must have been a reason.”
Lissa shook her head, still dumbfounded by that. “To this day I don’t know why, but I’ll be forever grateful that she did. Faith taught me about humility and forgiveness and so many other things.”
Trevor treated her to a warm smile. “That’s what I admire about you—your willingness to admit when you’re wrong. Sometimes it takes a while and you come around kicking and screaming, but you do it and that takes guts.” He cleared his throat. “So does having a baby at eighteen and living through a hellish marriage.”
Lissa blinked in surprise, a lump forming in her throat. “Don’t go canonizing me. I’m still no saint,” she reminded him.
“Especially not in the bedroom,” he said, his eyes darkening. And that quickly, serious conversation was over.
*
Lissa and Trevor parted ways after breakfast. Trevor decided to head into the office to get some work done while Lissa went to her hotel room to begin working on the article about him. In truth, Lissa suspected he needed time alone as much as she did.
Time to remind herself that despite how easily they fit together when they were alone, life wasn’t about living in a bubble and they had way too many obstacles between them to think about a future. Back in her hotel, she settled in with her laptop and began writing about Trevor Dane. The boy who’d pulled himself up and out of Serendipity to become one hell of a man.
By the time the evening approached, Lissa had accomplished more than she’d hoped for considering her state of mind, and she’d even managed to take a nap. She luxuriated in a warm bubble bath and then pulled out the simple black dress Trevor’s secretary had chosen for the dinner party.
From the things Trevor had said and things her research had indicated, Alexander Wittman was a big part of Trevor’s life, his mentor as well as his friend. For that reason, Lissa wanted to make a good impression—and not just as a reporter doing a story. Though it was silly, if Trevor was going to bring her as his date, she wanted him to feel proud. Last night had been easier. Dressed in a ballgown and feeling like a princess, she’d almost been able to believe she belonged at the event.
But now, as Trevor helped her out of the limousine, nerves assailed her. Though he hadn’t taken his hungry gaze off her, and though he clearly approved of the way she looked, her insecurities came rushing back. After all, if her husband, the man whose baby she’d borne and who’d married her, hadn’t seen her as country club material, why would Trevor’s business associates and friends see her any differently?
When she’d attended as Trevor’s reporter/date, she had been able to put those feelings aside, but now that he was looking at her possessively, she was petrified she’d fall short and embarrass him.
Unaware of her inner turmoil, he placed a hand at the small of her back. “Ready?” he asked.
She let out a deep breath. “Of course.” She walked toward the waiting doorman, who opened the door for them.
“Good evening, Mr. Dane. Mr. and Mrs. Wittman are expecting you,” he said, nodding politely to Lissa and acknowledging her with a smile.
“Thank you, George. See you on our way out.” Trevor steered Lissa away from the bank of double elevators and toward a separate single lift down the hall. “This way,” he said.
Once they were alone outside the small elevator, Trevor turned to her. “What’s wrong?”