Playing for Keeps/A Tempting Stranger (50 page)

Read Playing for Keeps/A Tempting Stranger Online

Authors: Lori Copeland

Tags: #Fiction, #Romance, #General, #Contemporary, #Westerns, #test

BOOK: Playing for Keeps/A Tempting Stranger
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fighting to gain control of his thoughts. ''Janet and I . . . well, you know we always enjoyed the same things. . . ." His voice trailed off.
"Yes, I know she loves sports the way you do . .  go ahead, Phillip," she urged, wondering why he was so upset.
"One night after a long day in court last week, I took her out to dinner. We had a few drinks . . . one thing led to another . . ." Phillip's eyes were tormented as he looked at Chandra helplessly. "There's just no way to say this without hurting you . . . I'd give anything not to hurt you, Chandra, but you have to know. Janet and I spent the night together. I don't know how it happened . . . or even why. . . . It just happened."
Chandra stared at Phillip's anguished face, his words rattling emptily around in her head. He was telling her he had slept with Janet Rayburn. Where was the pain, the anger, the sense of betrayal?
"I wouldn't blame you if you threw my ring back in my face," he told her truthfully, "but, if you'll still have me, the wedding will proceed as we planned."
"Do you care for Janet?" she asked calmly.
"I . . . we feel something for each other. I'm not sure what." Phillip dropped his head shamefully. "Maybe it's just that we enjoy the same things."
Chandra's heart began to lighten, a tiny smile creeping over her features as she reached out and took his large hands in hers. All of a sudden a fountain of bubbling laughter erupted from her, her clear, tinkling tones filling the small bar as the irony of the situation dawned on her.
Phillip glanced up in astonishment at her peals of laughter, his eyes filled with concern. "Honey . . . don't get hysterical on me. Maybe I shouldn't have told you . . . but I like you far too much to go into a marriage with this between us. I mean it, Chandra, the marriage is still on if that's what you want." He shifted around uneasily in the booth, completely at a loss as to what to do for her. The few people sitting at the bar swiveled around on
 
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their stools to stare in their direction. ''Chandra . . . stop that laughing!" he ordered roughly, trying to snap her out of it.
"I'm sor-ry, Phil-lip," she chortled, "you just don't know how happy this makes me!"
"Happy?" Phillip looked blank. "What are you talking about, Chandra? Don't you understand what I just told you?"
"Oh, Phillip!" Her laughter was building again, elation filling her heart. She didn't have to hurt him! Thank God, she didn't have to hurt him! "You remember before, when I told you I needed to talk to you about something too?"
"Yes, I remember."
"Well, hold on to your seat, dear Phillip, because you're not going to believe what you are about to hear."
As the waitress set their drinks before them, Chandra began to pour her story out to him, sparing no details of what had occurred since she came home. Her emotions swung like a giant pendulum, going from tears to radiant smiles as she told him of her feelings for Garrett and the utter hopelessness of her situation. Phillip listened intently, stopping her occasionally to ask her for more details on certain parts of the story, squeezing her hand in comfort as she told of Garrett's proposition of love, but no marriage.
After the story was related in full, she leaned back in the booth tiredly, yet feeling like a tremendous weight had been lifted from her. "I didn't want to hurt you either, Phillip, but I knew that I couldn't marry you after I met Garrett."
Phillip's eyes were shining with love and admiration for her as he brought her fingers up to his lips, kissing them fondly. "You're one terrific woman, Chandra Loring. . . . My loss, I'm afraid." He grinned tenderly.
"I want you and Janet to find happiness together. I've always thought she would be the perfect woman for you," Chandra told him gently. "Tell her I think you're a super kind of a man. . . .
My
loss, I'm sure!"
"Thanks, I will tell her that. She's been worried sick over how
 
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you would take this news,'' he confessed happily. "I told her you'd wish us happiness."
"Now, wait a minute, Phillip," she grinned pertly. "What made you so
sure
I would take it this well?"
"Because I know you, babel And I don't honestly think you were ever in love with me to begin withnow were you?"
Her sunny smile faded into a loving one as she looked deeply into his eyes, his friendship very important to her. "I don't think I ever really was either, not in the way you so richly deserve, Phillip. Forgive me?"
"Only if you and Garrett name the first boy after me," he teased solemnly.
"I wish I could promise you that, but I don't think it's going to work out for me and Garrett," she told him sadly.
"Maybe you should take the chance with him, Chandra. Who knows, it may all turn out fine," Phillip encouraged, hoping to ease the pain in her eyes.
"I don't think so. On top of all our other problems, I'm virtually a hex on him. He's bad more accidents since he met me than in his entire lifetime," she confessed miserably.
Phillip's deep laughter rang out loudly as Chandra related some of Garrett's accidents in the last few weeks.
"It's not funny," Chandra scolded seriously. "He was in bed for a couple of days with that back injury." She had discreetly left out the events leading up to Garrett slipping on the soapshe didn't want to bore him.
"Were really something, aren't we?" he grinned engagingly. "Sitting here discussing our new love lives, when we should be depressed and angry with each other over these"his grin widened"shocking developments."
"Yes, we should be discussing important things, such as whether we know anyone that could use one five-tiered wedding cake, three hundred hand-decorated mints, and enough punch and champagne to Boat a battleship." A fit of laughter overtook her.
"If you happen to run across anyone like that, tell them I'll
 
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throw in reservations at the Hilton for forty people for a sit-down chateaubriand dinner. Plus''he held up one finger temptingly"I'll give them a hot tip on a men's apparel store that has five maroon-colored tuxedoes they'll rent out for a good price on the thirty-first of this month."
They were both having so much fun talking about their disastrous wedding plans they didn't see the tall, dark-headed man with a stunning redhead on his arm enter the small bar and seat themselves at a table not far from them.
"Are you going back to Kansas City in the morning, or are you going to help me call all the kople we've sent invita" Chandra's voice suddenly dropped off as she recognized the new occupants in the room.
"What's the matter?" Phillip asked, turning in his seat to get a better look. Her laughter and gaiety had died an instant death on seeing Garrett.
"It's him," she whispered desperately, her heart pounding in her throat as she surveyed the woman he was with.
"Who?" Phillip was straining to make out faces in the dim light.
"Garrett! He's right over there at that table by the jukebox." Chandra suddenly felt like crying. Garrett was talking in low tones to the girl beside him, his deep laugh reaching her painfully.
"No kidding." Phillip let out a low whistle. "Get a load of the dish he's got with him."
"Phillip!" she hissed angrily. "You don't need to point her out to me. I noticed her right off." Chandra was absolutely miserable now, wanting to slink out of the room unnoticed.
All hopes of that vanished as Garrett looked up, his eyes turning to cold slits as he spotted her and Phillip together at the table. Deliberately ignoring her presence his eyes dropped back to the redhead continuing on with their conversation.
"Let's go, Phillip," Chandra pleaded under her breath. She couldn't stand to sit here a moment longer.
"What's your hurry?" He pulled her back in the booth firmly.
 
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''Don't you think it would be obvious if we jumped up and ran out the door right now? Just relax. Let's have another drink, then when the time's right we'll leave."
Chandra slid back into the booth and sat mutely as Phillip signaled to the waitress for two more drinks.
"Do you know the woman with him?" he asked conversationally, picking up one of her hands to study intently.
"No," she said in a miserable tone of voice. "I didn't know he knew anyone in town yet."
"Maybe it's just a friend," Phillip suggested, tracing the outline of her trembling fingers with one of his.
"Sure, that's probably it," she agreed dishearteningly. How gullible did he think she was?
After their drinks were set before them, someone put some money in the jukebox and a few couples stood up to dance.
"How about it?" Phillip held out his arms in invitation as he stood up.
"No, Phillip," she protested.
"Come onwhat's it going to hurt?"
With a sigh of resignation, she slid out of the booth and walked to the dance floor. As she went into his arms she saw Garrett stand up and escort the redhead out onto the floor.
Chandra tried to relax and enjoy the music as Phillip pulled her close, dancing intimately with her to the slow love song that was playing. The words were sweet and haunting as they glided around the floor, dancing in perfect time together. Phillip kept edging her across the room little by little, until she felt them bump into another couple unexpectedly.
"Excuse us," Phillip apologized profusely. "I guess we were too engrossed in each other to look where we were going." He grinned at the couple engagingly.
"It's quite all right," she heard Garrett's deep voice answer curtly.
With a quick intake of breath Chandra turned her head to encounter the deep, blue eyes of the man standing practically on
 
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top of them. She froze for a moment as his eyes bored into hers, her knees turning weak and watery.
''Chandra," he nodded briefly.
"Garrett," she acknowledged back softly.
"Hey! Do you two know each other?" Phillip's face lit up in smiles. Chandra had to force herself to keep from kicking him in the shins. What did he think he was doing?
"We've met," Garrett responded coolly.
"Well, hey . . . how about joining us for a drink? I'm Phillip Watson and you're Garrett . . ." He paused, waiting for a last name, his hand extended in friendship.
"Morganson."
"Garrett Morgansonand I didn't catch your date's name."
"I didn't throw it," Garrett said bluntly.
"A man with a sense of humor," Phillip laughed, completely ignoring Chandra's frantic punches with her elbow in his side. "Let's all sit down and have a drink."
The four approached the table in silence as Phillip stepped back and directed the redhead into the closest chair. Chandra's mouth dropped as he unconcernedly slid into the one next to her, talking a mile a minute. "So what
is
your name?" he asked sincerely.
"Jill Jenson." She glanced at Garrett questioningly.
Garrett and Chandra were still standing uncomfortably in front of the table, watching Phillip introduce himself to Jill.
Without a word Garrett took her arm and ushered her into the other chair, Chandra's stomach churning with butterflies as his familiar aftershave reached her. She wanted to scream, pull her hair, cry. All those emotions filtered through her mind as she sat trying to keep her leg from brushing against his at the small table. Phillip ordered a round of drinks once again, then settled back to get acquainted.
Chandra's nerves were at the breaking point as she sat and listened to Garrett and Phillip discuss everything from football to airplanes. Jill tried to make small conversation with Chandra,

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