Possibly, she owed Reid an explanation, but she wasn’t feeling benevolent at the moment. She wanted to hurt him. Not that it was truly possible, she realized. Hurting Reid was difficult since he didn’t have a soul. No man who treated women the way he had earlier today could have a soul.
So, why were tears streaming down her cheeks as she pulled into the driveway? Parking her car behind the garage, she walked as quickly as she could into the guest house. Reid must have been watching for her though because as soon as she rounded the corner of the garage, he called out to her.
“Selena! Where have you been all day?”
She lifted the silver, tissue stuffed bag into the air, rushing to the guest house. Away from him. “I’m going to get ready. I’ll see you later!”
He stopped, his eyes moving to the bag, then to her face. When he saw the redness around her eyes, he started towards her again. “What’s wrong?”
“Nothing!” she called back.
“Then why are your cheeks red?”
A hand came up to her cheeks and she cursed herself. So much for looking cool and composed. “I guess I got a bit too much sun while running errands,” she told him. “I really need to get ready. I’ll see you in less than an hour,” she called back.
Thankfully, he didn’t follow her into the guest house. Once she was inside, she hurried to the back, hiding from him. When she didn’t hear the door open and close, indicating that he really was giving her a bit of privacy, she leaned her head against the wall and tried hard to pull herself together again.
“Time to get this ‘gorgeous rack’ in gear,” she whispered to herself.
When she opened her eyes, she was startled by her appearance. Her cheeks were definitely red and blotchy. Plus, her hair looked like a rat’s nest! It was dry now but, since it hadn’t seen a brush yet today, the strands were going every which way.
Shower. Makeup. Dress. Get over Reid. In that order.
She could do this, she told herself as she pushed away from the wall.
An hour later, she put the finishing touches on her makeup and reviewed her look in the mirror. She’d chosen to go ultra-romantic for this night’s events. The floral dress and the soft, pink lipstick, the subtle eye shadow and smoky liner did the trick.
With a nod of satisfaction, she turned around and…
“You look beautiful,” Reid was leaning against one of the wooden armoires.
Selena’s determination quivered slightly as she surveyed him in the well-worn jeans and casual shirt. It was tucked in this time, showing off his lean waist and what she knew to be rock hard abs.
“What happened earlier today?” he asked softly, moving towards her.
Selena panicked, lifting her hands to stop him. “No!” she gasped. At the startled look in his eyes, she softened. “Please, I don’t want to ruin my makeup.”
He moved closer, his large, strong hands resting on her hips. “That never bothered you before,” he commented.
She pulled out of his arms before the sweet embrace broke down her newly built defenses. “I’ve never had a string of journalists, models, and others all ready to listen to the new pitch either.”
He grabbed her wrist when she tried to walk around him. “Selena, something is wrong. And it’s more than just nervousness about tonight, isn’t it?”
She looked up into his eyes, astonished that a man as insecure and horrible as to refer to a woman as “a piece of meat”, could be so shockingly sensitive.
Perhaps he was just a sociopath underneath all of those muscles, she thought. A sociopath knew how to mimic emotions, but never truly feel them.
“I need to get ready for tonight,” she repeated, staring at him, silently telling him that he needed to leave.
Reid stared at her lovely features, red and swollen with tears. What had happened? Was she angry about the morning? No, he was sure that she’d enjoyed their morning just as much as he had. Was she upset that he’d kept her in bed too long?
No, that couldn’t be it. He might have initiated their morning activities, but she’d been an enthusiastic participant. Besides, she’d gone for a swim afterwards. He knew how important exercise was to her and admired her for that. Hell, he enjoyed a good workout everyday too. But no, this wasn’t about exercising. She was assertive enough to tell him what she needed in that area.