Model Attraction. Sharon C. Cooper

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СКАЧАТЬ how soft her lips were the last time he had kissed her. Who knew that would be their last time together? Had he known that night that Janna wouldn’t be waiting for him upon his return, he wouldn’t have gone on the cruise. They would have been married with children by now. Instead, she had left him. She had taken not only a part of his heart back then, but also some of his joy.

      Austin had operated on autopilot to get through that summer. It wasn’t until his parents had decided to relocate him and his brother to Atlanta that he’d finally started to move on. He’d poured himself into his schoolwork at Morehouse, where he’d double majored in business administration and finance, then had obtained his MBA. For years, he still hadn’t been able to get Janna completely out of his system. Each time he saw her angelic face or that enticing body on the cover of a magazine or on a billboard, he grew angrier, throwing himself into his work. If he were honest with himself, he would have to admit that it was probably because of her that he drove himself to become a multimillionaire at such a young age.

      He turned to leave, anxious to get away from her.

      “Austin,” Janna called out just before he walked into the bakery. “Can we talk? Maybe over a cup of coffee or—”

      “I don’t drink coffee. Besides, we have nothing to talk about.” He stepped into the establishment, trying like hell not to look back.

      There was a time when she could have asked anything of him and he would have done it. But he had moved on. Or at least he had tried.

      * * *

      Janna stared out the passenger window in the back of the town car as her driver headed to the hotel, her heart heavier than it had felt in years. Austin Reynolds. The man she had loved since she was sixteen. The man she had never stopped loving. It wasn’t the reunion she would have preferred, but to see him again stirred memories that she thought were buried and feelings she thought long gone.

      She laid her head against the backseat and closed her eyes. Austin’s image immediately appeared. Smooth skin the color of toasted almonds, with intense eyes that seemed to look right through her. At first he’d seemed shocked to see her, but then his eyes had softened the way they used to whenever he looked at her. His slow gaze had traveled down the length of her body, as intimate as a lover’s caress. But within minutes those soft eyes had turned hard.

      She hadn’t noticed a wedding ring, but that didn’t mean anything these days. Some men didn’t wear them, but knowing Austin, there was no way he wouldn’t wear one if he were married. When they were dating, he’d often talked about marriage and looked forward to being a husband.

      A shiver coursed through her as she recalled how his eyes had darkened like a storm brewing. She almost hadn’t recognized him. She had always seen him as a gentle giant, one of the nicest people she’d ever known, but what had she expected? Despite the fact that she hadn’t forgotten him, of course he wouldn’t be happy to see her again.

      “Ms. Morgan?”

      Janna’s eyes popped open and she sat up at the sound of the driver’s voice.

      “Yes?”

      “We’re about fifteen minutes from your hotel. Is there any other stop that you would like to make before we arrive?”

      “No. Thank you, Edward.”

      She returned her attention to the downtown traffic and barely noticed the people on the sidewalks hurrying to their destinations. All she could think about was Austin. She felt awful about ruining his suit, but she couldn’t believe how cold he’d been. And it had nothing to do with the mess on his jacket. He was definitely different from the young man she had fallen in love with years ago. There was a time when he had made her feel cherished and loved. At least, until she had decided to pursue the career she had once only dreamed of having, discarding the plans that she and Austin had made for their future.

      Janna sighed. In hindsight, she wished she had handled things differently back then. She shouldn’t have left town without talking with Austin first, especially since they had plans to marry after high school, but everything happened so fast. Getting contacted by one of the top modeling agencies in the world had caught her totally off guard, but accepting the offer was a no-brainer. Modeling was a dream come true, and she couldn’t pass up the opportunity. She hated the way she had to leave, and knew she should have tried harder to contact him once she arrived in Milan.

      Her cell phone rang, pulling her out of her thoughts. She had dropped it into her handbag without checking to see if it still worked.

      “Hello,” she answered after seeing her manager’s name on the screen.

      “Janna, what happened? One minute we were talking and the next the phone went dead. I’ve been calling ever since. Are you okay?”

      “Nelson, I’m fine. I’m sorry I didn’t call you right back. I ran into an old friend.” Actually, Austin had been much more than a friend. He was the man she’d planned to marry and spend the rest of her life with.

      “That’s all right. I just wanted to finish telling you about Blake Dresden.”

      “I’m so glad he’s willing to meet with me.” Her plans for Precious Home, her nonprofit, weren’t totally fleshed out, but she hoped to at least share with Dresden what she had in mind so far.

      “Well, before you get too excited, there’s more.”

      “What do you mean?”

      “He’s very interested in hearing your ideas and was glad you sought him out. He’d like for you...”

      Janna’s mind drifted to Austin again. She might not have done much to contact him after she had left the country, but that was going to change. Now that she had run into him, she was determined to get him to give her a chance to explain her actions. Besides, she was curious. What had he made of himself? Was he married? Did he have children? A lump formed in her chest at the last couple of thoughts.

      “...maybe at his place Friday night.” Nelson’s words drifted into her subconscious.

      “Hold up, wait. What?” Janna said, tuning back in to the conversation. “What did you say?”

      “I said he wants you to meet his son, who is a huge fan of yours. Junior is also a businessman and might be interested in investing. But I have to admit, I think Blake Sr.’s desire for you to meet his son might not have anything to do with your business idea, but be more of a matchmaking idea.”

      Janna was so tired of people trying to set her up with their sons or grandsons.

      “So if I say I’m only interested in meeting with Blake Sr. and not his son, I might be shooting myself in the foot.”

      “I think that’s safe to say.”

      Janna thought about her plans, which were still a little rough. What she knew for sure, though, was that she only wanted to share her ideas with people who were genuinely interested.

      “You know what, Nelson? Why don’t we hold off on setting up anything with Mr. Dresden?” She discussed a few more items with her manager before disconnecting.

      Janna placed her cell phone back in her purse just as the driver pulled up to the hotel. She could easily get her sisters and their millionaire husbands involved, but this was a project close to her heart. She wanted СКАЧАТЬ