He stepped around her and into the room. Simple furnishings with whites and neutrals, a white rug on the hardwood, a sturdy white chair in the corner with a black-and-white-striped pillow.
“Is this where you keep all your journalism secrets?” he joked. “Cocktail recipes or dinner party themes? Am I close?”
“Funny,” she mocked, crossing her arms over her chest. “I don’t have secrets and even if I did, you would already know them.”
The closet door was open just enough for Reese to see a slash of red. Interesting, considering he never saw her in an actual color, let alone something so vibrant.
He moved to the closet and revealed a walk-in space full of the widest variety of colorful clothes he’d ever seen. There were two rows of hanging clothes...all with tags dangling from the sleeves. Boxes of shoes lined the perimeter of the floor and the most insane number of designer handbags in all colors and patterns topped off the high shelves.
Reese glanced over his shoulder, turning his attention to Josie, who glared back at him.
“Opening a department store, Jo?”
She tipped her chin in that defiant way of hers. “No.”
“What’s with all the brand-new clothes?” he asked, glancing back to the closet that clearly held thousands of dollars’ worth of merchandise. “And all this color? Are you giving yourself a makeover?”
Josie’s eyes darted to the open room, then down for just a second, but enough for him to see her vulnerability.
“Want to talk about this?” he asked.
She shook her head. “Nothing to talk about. I come in here every morning before I get ready.”
“Trying to find something to wear?”
Why was she not just saying whatever she was thinking? For someone who wore black like it was her job, she certainly had a hell of a lot of funds tied up in a brand-new, not-black wardrobe.
“I can’t be her,” she murmured.
What? What did that even mean? Who couldn’t she be?
Forgetting the lame joke he’d been going for when he first saw this shocking surprise, Reese took a step toward her, wondering what she’d been hiding and why she seemed so sad, so...almost helpless.
She’d just told him she didn’t keep any secrets, but that had clearly been a lie because all of this was obviously something she wanted to keep to herself. How long had this closet full of color been here? And who couldn’t she be like?
“Jo—”
An alarm went off from somewhere in the house. Josie immediately turned from the room. Confused as to what had just happened and what the annoying noise was, Reese followed her. He was tempted to grab something from the newly discovered closet to throw over her excuse for pajamas to conceal that dark skin of hers. Granted, he wasn’t covered much, either, but she was a temptation he was having a difficult time resisting.
There was only so much a man could take, but the risk of taking what he suddenly wanted was too much. Their friendship was too special, too perfect the way it was. He couldn’t afford for his life to get any messier.
Reese found Josie back in the kitchen tapping away on her phone and thankfully killing that annoying alarm.
“Sorry,” she stated with a smile. “That was my reminder to check my planner.”
Reese stared at her as she continued to scroll. “You need a reminder to check your schedule? Isn’t that just a given?”
Her eyes darted to his and for the briefest of seconds, that heavy-lidded gaze dipped to his chest. Well, well, well. Even with the caffeine and a somewhat better mood, she wasn’t immune to his nakedness.
So now what? There was a sudden sexual pull that confused him, intrigued him...challenged him.
“I have an alarm to remind me about nearly everything,” she informed him, setting her cell back on the table and turning to face him fully. “A reminder to drink all my water, feed my plants, check in with my new assistant because she seems a little overwhelmed at times, and—”
Reese held up a hand. “I get it. I knew you were structured, but I had no idea it was to this extent.”
Josie smiled. “I can set up your phone so you are more organized with various reminders if you want.”
“I’ve got it all up here,” he said, tapping his head. “And my assistant is on everything before I can even think, so I’m good. I wouldn’t know what to do with that annoying alarm going off all the time.”