The Dating List (3 page)

Carrie opened the door with a mug of coffee in her
hand. Leah's eyes widened.

"This one is mine. There's a full pot in the kitchen.
Come in."

"Running…changing," Colin breathed, following her
into the house, turning toward the stairs.

"I figured. Put on something easy to take off," Leah
tossed over her shoulder as she walked through the living room.

Colin stopped. He and Carrie stood staring at her,
open-mouthed. When Leah entered the kitchen, she turned around.
Grey sauntered down the steps to join them.

"What? He's going to be taking off his clothes…oh my
God!" Leah turned in a circle before facing them again. "Minds out
of the gutter, you two! Changing…as in trying on clothes! You're
something else…" Leah said, shaking her head, laughing.

Carrie and Colin burst into laughter, she hit him in
the shoulder as he guffawed.

"Your mind, Colin," Carrie choked out.

"Me? It's was you!"

They continued laughing while Leah took down three
mugs sporting modern designs in black, beige and brown then filled
them with coffee.

"You should get so lucky," Leah sniffed, adding milk
before taking a sip of her coffee. She handed a mug to him as he
stopped on the way to the stairs.

"Any chance?" The gleam in his eye told Leah he was
only half-joking.

Her throat got dry, words wouldn't come out. She
shook her head.

"Don't know what you're missing," he tossed off as he
emptied the mug then took the stairs two at a time.

"What did I miss? I'm always late for these things?"
Grey asked.

Leah handed him a mug of coffee and raised one
eyebrow at him. "Chip off the old block, isn't he?"

"I heard that!" Colin hollered from upstairs.

"Okay, 'Chip'," Leah called up the stairs, smiling
before she took another sip.

****

Grey's sports car pulled to the curb. He dropped Leah
and Colin off in front of Paul Stuart's men's clothing store on the
corner of 45
^th
Street and Madison Avenue. As they
stepped into the store, the scent of fine wool and good leather
drifted to their noses. Leah noticed the lack of noise the minute
the door closed behind them. The plush dark blue carpet they stood
on absorbed the ever-present sounds of New York City thus creating
the upper class hush. As the heat in the store enveloped them, Leah
pushed back her ermine-lined hood and opened her coat. Colin buried
his hands in the pockets. Accustomed to much colder temperatures in
Pine Grove, he had no need to zip up his coat. A man of medium
height with steel gray hair impeccably styled approached them.

"Can I help you?" he asked, smiling, his palms joined
together in front of his chest.

"We need to outfit my…uh…friend, here with some
dressier clothes. He's Colin Andrews, Grey Andrews' brother. I
believe Mr. Andrews called this morning?" Leah flashed a
thousand-watt smile at the man.

"Of course. Right his way. Let's start with a good
sports coat and slacks, shall we?"

"Divine," Leah said, putting her hand on Colin's
forearm and guiding him along after the salesman.

"My name is Stan Michaels."

"I'm Leah Golden, Stan…a pleasure," Leah held out her
gloved hand to the salesman, he raised it to his lips.

Stan turned to lead them up a flight of stairs. Leah
put her finger to her lips. Colin grinned at her, stifling a laugh.
The store was empty at ten thirty in the morning. Leah located a
comfortable chair, draping her coat over the back. A pair of
chocolate brown wool pants hugged her hips then flared to boot cut.
Her gold top was long-sleeved, stretchy and low cut. A slender
chain with a gold heart hung on her chest just above her breasts.
She had a chunky bracelet thick with gold hearts of differing sizes
that clinked melodiously whenever she moved her left arm. Her
shoulder-length hair was tied back in a no-nonsense ponytail. A
lovely orange and brown print scarf hid the elastic keeping her
hair neat. The faint scent of gardenia drifted from her.

"Let's start with sports jackets. Every man needs a
navy blue jacket…lightweight wool, I think…Colin, do you perspire a
lot?"

He blushed a bit before answering.

"Like most guys, I guess."

"Good. Lightweight wool. And slacks, say…gray and one
in camel. Also lightweight wool…are you allergic to wool?" Leah
turned to address Colin.

"Don't think so. Don't like itchy stuff, though."

"I'll be right back."

Stan hurried away, his highly-polished black loafers
gliding across the thick carpet soundlessly. Colin shifted his
weight from foot to foot.

"We'll try the jackets first, then the pants. Once
you have a jacket that looks good…"

But she could hardly finish her sentence before Stan
had returned.

"I took the liberty of adding camel and a charcoal
herringbone to the jacket selection. Noticing the young man's
coloring, I thought camel would be especially appropriate," Stan
shot a shy smile at Colin and nodded slightly to Leah as he hung
several garments on a rack.

"How right you are," Leah flashed him a wide
grin.

He plays for the other team. He's flirting but
Colin doesn't even know it.
She hid a smile behind her
hand.

Colin deposited his coat on an empty chair and put on
the first navy blue blazer.

"Button it, only one button, darling," Leah cooed,
rising out of her chair.

She moved over to him and stared at his torso, sizing
up the fit of the jacket. She motioned for him to turn around. When
his back was facing her, she noticed a slight pull in the fabric,
so she moved up to him and ran her hand across his shoulders from
left to right. He flinched a bit at her touch.

"A shirt. Stan he needs a dress shirt. Can't tell
about the fit with a t-shirt on."

"Right away…Miss, uh…Miss…"

"Golden, Leah Golden."

"White?"

She nodded.

"I'd say he's a…" Stan closed one eye as his gaze
scanned Colin's torso, "sixteen and-a-half, thirty-five?"

"Think so," Colin said.

Before Colin could turn around twice in front of the
mirror, Stan was back and unwrapping a fresh dress shirt.

"T-shirt off!" Leah ordered, waving her hand at
him.

Colin handed the sports jacket to Leah and ripped his
t-shirt over his head exposing a well-muscled chest covered lightly
with dark brown hair.
Was Stan's
gasp as loud as
mine?
She coughed to cover her delight at seeing his fine
physique. Her fingers itched to touch him.

"Something wrong?" Colin questioned, his mouth drawn
into a frown.

"Shirt, Stan!" Leah commanded before sucking on her
lower lip and balling her hand into a fist to keep her fingers
under control.

Stan jolted out of his temporary reverie and thrust
the shirt into Colin's hands. Then he held up the jacket. As soon
as Colin finished buttoning the shirt, he reached for his belt.
Stan put his hand on the young man's bicep and raised his
eyebrows.

"Shouldn't you at least turn around or are you and
the lady…uh…on…intimate terms?"

Although he said it quietly, Leah's face grew hot.
She turned around to give Colin privacy and hide her
embarrassment.

"You can turn around now," Colin said, buckling his
belt.

Leah spun around slowly. He slipped the navy blue
jacket on again. Leah approached him. This time she walked around
back behind him. Her hands slowly and sensuously smoothed out the
small wrinkle made by the fabric being pulled taut across his
shoulders. He stood completely still as she ran her hands back and
forth across his shoulders.

"This one pulls a little, Stan. Take it off,
sweetie."

"With shoulders like that, they may all pull a
little."

Colin took off the jacket and handed it back to Stan.
Leah stood in front of him and pulled at the sides of the shirt.
She touched his ribs which made him twitch and laugh.

"I'm ticklish."

"There? Oh. Sorry," she turned to Stan, "Don't you
have anything tapered? This is too baggy on him."

"Of course. We have a new Italian shipment, arrived
only three days ago," Stan said as he backed out of the area.

Colin started unbuttoning his shirt.

Leah's breath caught as he displayed his chest again.
She turned away but not before she heard him chuckle.

"Making you nervous, Leah?"

"Who, me?" She turned to face him trying with all her
might to keep her pulse steady and color out of her cheeks but
failing miserably.

Colin gave her a sexy smile. She turned away, facing
the wall and pretended to stare at a painting hanging there. She
hadn't seen such a fine body in quite a while. Stan returned
quickly with the tapered shirt and the fitting proceeded.

For pants, Colin retreated to the dressing room. Leah
checked the hook at his waist as well as the waistband to see if it
was too snug. He cleared his throat as she unhooked it, hooked it
up again, then slipped her fingers down an inch between his skin
and the material. She looked at the fit in back, noticing how cute
his butt was. She longed to smooth the material over it but
refrained. Once the suits, sports jackets and pants were selected,
Stan took the measurements. Plans for alterations were underway.
Leah let out a sigh of relief that touching him so intimately was
over. His presence made her nervous and fluttery. Her body
responded to the feel of his under her fingertips. She didn't like
it, not one bit...no, not much.

"Can I take you out for a snack…coffee, at least?"
Colin asked her as they left the store two and a half hours after
entering.

"Daddy Michael's ice cream parlor is up the
street."

"Ice cream on a cold day like today?"

"Need something to cool us down," she chuckled,
taking his arm as they left the store.

****

The waitress handed menus to Leah and Colin. They sat
on ice cream parlor chairs, hunched over a small round table. The
décor of the parlor was eclectic with old wooden signs, small
ornate mirrors, antique dolls and various knickknacks on the walls.
The menu had generous helpings of ice cream in sundaes and other
confections, including parfaits and banana splits.

"I don't usually eat this stuff," Leah explained.

"Want to split something? How about the large hot
fudge sundae. You can pick the ice cream."

"Well…you're tempting me."
In more ways than
one.

"Come on. Hot fudge and whatever ice cream you
want."

"Okay, either…chocolate chip or peanut butter swirl."
She ran the tip of her tongue over her bottom lip.

"Hmmm. Tough choice…chocolate chip?"

"Perfect!" She smiled in anticipation of the
forbidden treat.

"Coffee, too?"

She nodded.

Colin placed their order while Leah looked around.
There weren't many people in the place and certainly no
thirty-four-year-old women with twenty-nine-year-old men. She cast
her gaze down as one man, obviously interest in her, gave her a
curious stare. Glancing at the table, she saw Colin's cheerful face
smiling at her. A mischievous gleam, youthful and full of fun lit
up his eyes. She weakened.
When was the last time I just had fun
with a man?

"Penny for your thoughts," he said as the waitress
set down two mugs of steaming coffee.

"Thinking how ridiculous a woman my age looks sitting
here, like on a date, with a man your age," she blurted out,
instantly regretting her honesty.

"Really? I think we look cute together. You're so
small, petite…who cares what other people think? A few years, what
difference does that make?"

"You don't care?"

"I'm sitting here with the most gorgeous, elegant,
talented woman in the place…no…in all of New York City. I'm the
luckiest guy alive."

At his compliment, the heat of pleasure rose in her
cheeks.

"You even blush beautifully. You're stunning, Leah.
What man of any age wouldn't give a fortune to change places with
me right now?"

She looked down at her hands, fiddling with her cloth
napkin as his fingers folded over hers. Her eyes looked up into
his, noticing the dancing green flecks mixed with gold. Her resolve
to treat Colin like a little brother melted along with the sugar
she put in her coffee. The heat of his stare, his frank admiration
broke through her first line of defense.
He seems to be for
real.
When he raised her hand to his lips, she smiled.

Their private moment was shattered when the waitress
arrived, carrying their ice cream sundae piled high with a mountain
of whipped cream. He scooped some onto the spoon and fed it to her.
She did the same to him, giggling like a schoolgirl.
Shut up
conscience. I'm having fun. Go away.

"How long are you staying?" she asked.

"Just through New Year's. But I plan to come back in
February."

"For Valentine's Day?"

"Of course. Love that holiday." His eyes glowed with
naughtiness.

So did I when Hank was alive.
Feeling a
momentary tightening in her chest, Leah dropped her gaze to her
spoon. Colin frowned.

"Did I say something?"

"No, no. It's not you. Me…nothing to do with…do you
come to New York often?"

Colin's eyes searched hers but Leah had regained
control, changing the subject, hiding a quick flash of pain behind
a soft sigh.

"Didn't used to. How come I never met you
before?"

"I'm Carrie's friend. I didn't know Grey before he
met her."

He nodded.

"I'll be back more often now." He moved his hand
closer to hers again.

"Where do you live?"

"Town called Pine Grove. Upstate."

"Country boy. I like that." Leah shot a flirtatious
smile at Colin.
So he wants to come back? He's adorable.