Model Attraction. Sharon C. Cooper
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Название: Model Attraction
Автор: Sharon C. Cooper
Издательство: HarperCollins
Жанр: Короткие любовные романы
Серия: Mills & Boon Kimani
isbn: 9781474050074
isbn:
“Hey, Nelson. I hope you have some good news for me.”
“Let’s just say that you picked the perfect time to be in Atlanta. Philanthropist Blake Dresden agreed to a meeting with you.”
Yes! Janna tried to keep from doing a happy dance in the semicrowded bakery. Instead, she retrieved her latte from Iona and bade her farewell before heading toward the entrance. She had identified several people to pitch an idea she had to start a nonprofit for teens aging out of foster care to adulthood. Unlike her, many foster children didn’t have a loving family to depend on once they turned eighteen. For those individuals, she wanted them to have a safe place to stay that would not only provide a roof over their heads, but also an environment that would support them as they transitioned into adulthood. This cause was very personal to her and she couldn’t wait to speak with Mr. Dresden.
Juggling her boxed cupcake and her drink, Janna wove through the small crowd in order to get to the door.
“Nelson, thank you so much for making this happen.”
“My pleasure, doll. There is one catch, though.”
Distracted and tuning out her manager, Janna slowed to reposition her cell, holding it to her ear with her shoulder. She pushed against the door, but someone yanked it open at the same time.
“Oh, crap!” Her cell phone slipped from her ear and her drink went flying when she lost her balance. Her baseball cap and sunglasses—gone. Trying to catch the cupcake box, she would have fallen face-first had it not been for the strong hands gripping her arm.
Face-to-face with the front of a man’s suit jacket, she realized where her latte had landed.
“Oh, no, no, no.” She wiped her hands feverishly down the guy’s jacket until he took a step back out of her reach. Janna pushed a lock of her hair behind her ear and stood upright.
“I’m so sor...” Her words lodged in her throat and her breath caught when she met the gaze of the fine specimen standing before her. It couldn’t be. “Au-Austin?”
At five-eleven, wearing three-inch wedge heels, she was taller than most women, but he still towered over her by at least three or four inches. Prior to seeing him from a distance six months earlier, she hadn’t seen Austin Reynolds in almost ten years. Not since she had left Edison, New Jersey, to pursue a modeling career in Milan. They had both been so young then, but a quick perusal of the guy standing before her showed that he had grown into an extremely handsome man.
Tall, with dark eyes and chiseled features, he had a wide chest and broad shoulders, and he knew how to dress. Austin was clothed in what felt like virgin wool twill, and the jacket, tapered to enhance his athletic build, had high peaked lapels and a single-button closure. The expensive garment looked as if it had been made specifically for him. And she’d bet her last check that it was Armani. If she didn’t know anything else, she knew her materials and designers.
“Janna,” he finally said.
Her eyes met his, and chill bumps scurried up her bare arms at the coldness behind the one word. Not even the deep, raspy voice that she’d once loved could hide the fact that he was less than thrilled to see her. But who could blame him? One of the decisions she had regretted most in her life was the way she’d left him behind. And by the glare in his intense brown eyes, he hadn’t forgiven or forgotten.
Austin’s heart slammed against his chest. Janna. Seeing her standing in front of him didn’t seem real. The moment reminded him of six months ago when he had caught a glimpse of her at the grand opening of a new medical complex there in Atlanta. He’d been caught off guard then, too.
Judging by her wide eyes and her mouth hanging open, she was just as shocked. She wore that same sweet, girl-next-door expression on her face that he had fallen in love with years ago. Her big, innocent eyes were free of the major makeup he’d seen in many of her photos, and her cinnamon-brown complexion was as vibrant as her personality. Assuming she was still the free-spirited, fun-loving person she once was. And those lips. Lips that used to be so soft that he looked forward to kissing her so that he could taste the strawberry lip gloss she’d always worn when she was in high school.
As she stood there, accepting his perusal, her features softened even more. Her long, thick hair with auburn highlights flowed in waves over her shoulders, a few strands flying into her face. His gaze went lower, to her perky breasts hiding behind a pink tank top, and even lower, to her tiny waist that flared out slightly into curvaceous hips. The jeans that hugged her body like a second skin stopped at her ankles, forcing attention to her sexy high heels, showing off pretty feet with painted toenails.
His shaft twitched at the once-over and he cursed under his breath. Damn his body for responding. He didn’t want to like what he saw. He didn’t want to be attracted to her.
Austin tried to look away, but he couldn’t. Gone was the tall, skinny girl who used to wear ponytails on top of her head and get into all types of mischief. Instead before him was an incredibly sexy woman with curves in all the right places.
Anger bounced around in his gut. How could he still be attracted to her after the way she had disappeared from his life?
Besides saying her name a moment ago, no other words formed, especially since he was fighting against some type of magnetic pull. A pull that he’d only ever experienced with her. A pull that made him want to move closer and wrap her in his arms. A pull that could almost make him forget the hell he went through when she left him.
His gaze went to her mouth again. Were her lips as soft and sweet as they once were?
“It’s nice seeing you again, Austin.”
It was as if someone poured a bucket of ice water over his head. Tension gripped his body and his heart rate picked up.
“I wish I could say the same.”
She flinched, and he immediately regretted his words. He could be angry without being a jerk.
“I’m sorry about your jacket.” Her apology snagged his attention when she nodded toward the huge wet spot on his suit coat, tie and dress shirt. “I feel awful.”
You should was what he wanted to say, but he remained silent. Cell phones might be one of the greatest inventions, but there were times when he hated them. Had she not been talking into the device, maybe she would have been paying attention to what she was doing.
He snatched his pocket square and cringed as he cleaned up the mess the best he could, glad he didn’t have any more meetings for the rest of the day.
His attention returned to Janna when she quickly picked up her cell phone, hat and sunglasses strewn on the ground around them. Normally a gentleman, Austin was still in too much shock and hadn’t even thought to retrieve her items and hand them to her.
Once his mind cleared, he bent down and picked up the cup that once held her drink, and tossed it in a nearby trash can.
“I’ll be happy to take care of your dry cleaning. We can exchange contact info—”
“That won’t be necessary.” Unwelcome memories invaded his mind, like how perfect СКАЧАТЬ