The Plan (Capitol Love Series Book 1) Page 17

  “Who were you using?” Colin asked, suddenly wondering if it had been one of the Allisons’ outfits.

  “Some company that has ties to a board member,” she said. “But it doesn’t matter because they’re in friggin’ Annapolis and all they can do is offer excuses, which is worth a whole lot of nothing.”

  Colin had never seen Savannah this riled up, and despite himself, he found it adorable.

  “What time does the party start?”

  “Less than two hours. And the donors will have no food or alcohol, which is going to make the whole program a lot less interesting.” Savannah had started to pace again, and her voice had gone up an octave. “Is there a Costco near here? Or wait, maybe Ben’s Chili Bowl would deliver and we can act like we did it on purpose?”

  As she talked, she was feverishly googling options on her phone.

  “Were they providing the bar, too?” Colin asked.

  She looked up at him as though she was seeing him for the first time and slowly nodded.

  “Tell me exactly what you need,” he said.

  She suddenly seemed to snap into gear. “We need full bar and fancy heavy appetizers for fifty people starting at 6:00 and lasting for two hours, with coffee and dessert for thirty minutes after that.”

  Colin nodded as he pulled out his phone. “Linens and tables?”

  “We’ve got all of that from another vendor. We’re just missing food, booze, and people to serve it.”

  “OK. I’ll check back with you in half an hour. Just go in and finish getting everything set up,” Colin said as he put the phone to his ear.

  “Wait, how are you…I mean, you can just—” Savannah stammered.

  “I got this, Red. Go back to work.” Then he started talking fast into his phone as he jogged away, and after another stunned second, Savannah went back inside.

  She told Sarah that the original caterer had bailed but that she’d found an excellent substitute and everything was under control, though the food might be just a tad late. Despite Colin’s assurances, she didn’t see how he could pull everything together by 6:00, and she hoped he’d at least send over the wine on time.

  But thirty minutes later, Colin walked through the door of the community center wearing black dress pants and a T-shirt with a case of wine under his arm and a white dress shirt in a dry-cleaning bag hooked over his fingers. Savannah rushed over to meet him.

  “Where’s the bar going to be?” he asked.

  She pointed to a linen-draped table off to the side and turned to see Chase coming through the door carrying another case of wine. He smiled at Savannah and followed Colin over to the tabled she’d indicated.

  For the next hour, more men and women streamed in carrying wine or trays of appetizers that smelled delicious. Colin, Chase, and the other servers soon put on their white dress shirts and black bowties, and Savannah marveled at the transformation and, for the first time in days, started to relax.

  Chase walked over to her with a tray of appetizers. “Can I interest the lady in smoked salmon on flatbread?”

  Savannah laughed as she picked up one of the snacks. “I’m impressed,” she said.

  “You don’t grow up in the Allison family without knowing how to serve a few hors d’oeuvres,” he said with a wink before walking away.

  “That’s better,” Colin said as he came up next to her. “A smiling customer is a happy customer.”

  “I can’t thank you enough. This is...amazing.”

  “Thank me later. Shouldn’t you go get dressed?”

  Laughing, she looked down at her dirty leggings and button-down shirt. “What, you don’t think this will pass for black tie?” Savannah couldn’t ignore the fact that it felt really good to be laughing with Colin again.

  “I think you look great, but I can’t promise your boss would agree,” Colin said with a wink.

  “Yeah, plus I spent like a week’s salary on this dress, so I’d better get some use out of it,” she said with a smile. “Just one thing though. I, um, I didn’t see the dessert and coffee come in?” She hated to push since just having any food at all felt like a miracle.

  “It will be here any minute.”

  “I’m here!” Jessica rushed through the door carrying a stack of thin bakery boxes. “Chase! Grab the coffee urns out of the van.”

  “Yes, ma’am!” Chase said and hurried out the door.

  Colin helped Jessica with the boxes, Chase came back with the coffee urns, and Savannah gaped at them as they moved around the room like a finely tuned machine.

  “It’s kind of a random assortment of desserts from my place and Sweet Happens,” Jessica said over her shoulder as she set up the coffee and hot water for tea. “But they should do the trick. Good luck tonight! Bye!” And Jessica was out the door before Savannah could thank her.

  Savannah’s phone beeped to remind her that the reception was going to start in thirty minutes. Running back to the room where she’d left her dress, she did the fastest wardrobe change of her life, and fifteen minutes later, she walked back into the party room dressed in a knee-length navy blue cocktail dress that crossed her chest in a deep V, hugged her waist, and flared slightly to the knee.

  Colin noticed her the minute she walked back into the room, and the sight of her took his breath away. Even from this distance, he could see that the navy dress made her eyes turn a deep, entrancing emerald color. He watched from behind the makeshift bar as she moved rapidly around the room making sure everything was in place, the click of her high heels echoing the beating of his heart.

  As Savannah hurried around the room checking and rechecking every detail, she tried not to look for Colin. She told herself she didn’t care what he thought of her dress and wished she still had a rubber band on her wrist to snap. Clearly he had no interest in her after their little scene the other night. She was still trying to hold onto her indignation and anger that he’d lied to her, but the truth was that she could see why he had. She may have gotten a little obsessed with the dating part of The Plan. But Colin had thrown her off balance since the moment she’d met him. Her attraction to him was so strong it had to lead somewhere bad. The Plan was her protection.

  “You look amazing.” Colin’s soft and familiar voice broke into Savannah’s thoughts, and she spun around to find him standing close enough that she could smell the fancy cologne he was wearing in place of his normal earthy, soapy smell.

  Smiling and resisting the urge to fidget with her dress, she gestured to the room. “I can’t believe you did all this on such short notice.”

  Colin waved her words away. “You’d better go. If you need anything, I’ll be behind the bar.”

  Then he took a step backward, hands in his pockets, looking sexier than should be legal, and said, “Knock 'em dead, Red.”

  Savannah took one last survey of the room. Food stations had been set up around the room, waiters were stationed strategically with trays of appetizers and glasses of wine, and the bar was beautifully appointed. She didn’t think anyone would be able to tell this had been a last-minute job.

  Sarah joined Savannah. “Everything looks incredible,” she said. “I don’t know how you managed to get another caterer in here so quick, but I’m impressed. Outstanding job.”

  Savannah flushed with pride and glanced toward the bar. Colin gave her a thumbs-up and a smile, and her heart started to melt. But she had no time to think about it because the guests were starting to arrive.

  The evening passed in a blur of smiles, applause, and delicious food. And seeing Colin behind the bar had the surprising effect of keeping her calm and centered. As the last of the guests were leaving, Sarah said, “That was a well-run event, Savannah. First rate. I think you’ve got a very bright future at the Capitol Foundation.”

  “Thank you, Sarah. I’m so happy you’re happy with how it went,” Savannah said. She felt exhilarated, but she also felt exhaustion starting to creep up on her.

  “I hope you don’t mind, but I need to take off. I fig
ured you could handle the cleanup, especially since it looks like that sexy bartender has taken care of most of it already,” Sarah said with a smile. “He didn’t take his eyes off you the entire night—even as he poured drinks and charmed every person he talked to. He’s quite a multi-tasker.”

  Savannah glanced over at Colin, who was packing up the leftover wine bottles. “Yeah, he’s a pretty good guy.”

  “Why don’t you take Monday off? You’ve earned it,” Sarah said. “I’ll see you in the office on Tuesday.”

  After she left, Savannah walked over to Colin.

  “What can I do to help?” she asked.

  “It’s all under control,” Colin said as he handed the last of the garbage bags to one of the waitresses. The woman walked out the door, and Savannah was suddenly alone with Colin. Her heart beat faster, and a blush started to creep its way up her neck.

  “Well, Red, I’d say you pulled it off,” he said.

  He was smiling a little awkwardly, and his hands were shoved in his pockets. Savannah realized that he was nervous, too. She knew that when he was happy his eyes became a brighter blue, and when he was mad, they turned almost indigo and he got a little crease across his forehead. She remembered the sound he made in the back of his throat when he was really turned on. And, she realized with a stab, she knew what he looked like when he was heartbroken.

  And she knew that when his eyes crinkled at the edges and the muscle in his jaw twitched, like it did now, it was because he was anxious.

  “OK, well, I should probably get going.” Colin started to walk away, and Savannah realized she’d been staring at him without speaking for the last minute or so.

  “No! Wait,” she said, putting her hand on his arm. “I wanted to… I mean, I can’t believe …” Savannah stopped talking, took a breath and tried again. “I mean, thank you. Thank you for doing all of this. I don’t know how...I couldn’t have…” As the words started to tumble out in a disordered mess again, her face grew redder and her eyes filled with tears.

  “Hey, hey, hey,” Colin said softly, closing his hand over hers. “Everything turned out great. There’s no reason to get upset.”

  Savannah sniffled and looked at him through a haze of tears, suddenly overcome with fatigue. “After those awful things I accused you of, you still...you saved me.”

  He put his strong arms around her, and she pressed her face to his chest, and all the stress and tension and heartache that she had been holding in for weeks let loose and the tears poured out.

  “I’m sorry,” she sobbed as he kissed the top of her head. “I’m so, so sorry.”

  Colin held her tight until she stopped shaking. Then he pulled back to look into her face. “I’m sorry, too,” he said. “I should have told you the truth about everything. I never should have lied.”

  “It doesn’t matter,” she said. “Let’s just forget all of it. Can we? Can we just start fresh?”

  “Under one condition,” he said.

  “Anything.”

  “You have to promise to stop all the crying because I swear, woman, your tears are going to be the death of me.”

  Savannah laughed with relief and then her gaze fell on Colin’s once-white shirt, now covered with streaks and splotches of makeup.

  “I ruined your shirt,” she said, running her fingers over a mascara stain.

  “It was worth it.” He swiped his thumb under her eyes to wipe away leftover tears and leaned in to kiss her softly.

  Savannah slid her hand around to the back of his neck and deepened the kiss, surprised again at how intense her attraction was. Then, pulling back slightly, she ran her hand along his jaw.

  “There are no more secrets, right?” she asked.

  “None. Ever,” Colin said immediately. With a smile Savannah pulled him to her for another kiss.

  “I do have one question though,” he said as he trailed kisses down her neck to her collarbone.

  “Uh huh,” she murmured, wondering if anyone was left in the building or if she could just tear his clothes off where they stood.

  “What about The Plan?”

  “The plan right now is to keep doing this and maybe a little of this,” she said, trailing her hand down his stomach to the waistband of his pants.

  Chuckling softly, Colin said, “I support that plan. But what about The Plan. The one that has controlled everything since we met.”

  “Ah, right. That Plan,” Savannah said dropping her eyes and studying her silver shoes.

  He put a finger under her chin and lifted her face so he could look into her eyes. “I’m not Jake, you know.”

  “Jake? How do you know—”

  “Rayne told me,” Colin said. “She was worried about you, about us. Don’t be mad at her. It helped me understand better what was going on with you.”

  “Well, I guess I owe her one,” Savannah said with a small smile.

  “So is The Plan still in charge?”

  “I think it’s time the plan got a bit of a rewrite.”

  “I’m listening,” he said with a smile.

  “I was going to start by changing ‘suit-wearing bureaucrat’ to ‘sexy, tattooed restaurant mogul.’”

  “Good call,” he said while leaning in to nuzzle her neck. “What else?”

  Savannah let out a moan, but she tried to keep her thoughts in order for just a moment longer. “I’m deleting the rest because where I live or work doesn’t matter.”

  “Oh yeah? Then what does matter?”

  Savannah put her hands on either side of Colin’s jaw and held his face so she could look into his eyes. “That I have a guy who makes me laugh and feel safe and like I’m the most important person in his life. The type of man I want by my side every day because nothing makes sense without him.”

  Colin rested his forehead against hers while running his hands up and down her back. “Nothing makes sense without you either. God, Savannah, I’m so in love with you.”

  Savannah traced a finger along his lips. “Good. Because I’m in love with you, too.”

  Colin leaned forward and pulled her into a deep, smoldering kiss, and just before she lost control, she shredded The Plan into tiny pieces in her mind and let the wind blow them away.

  Look for The Pursuit,

  Book 2 in the Capitol Love Series

  in Spring 2016:

  Rayne Michael has built her life around stability. After a vagabond upbringing, she has carefully built a predictable and satisfying life between her Washington DC neighborhood of Capitol Hill, and at her job at a small conservation group. But when her organization’s survival is threatened, her only option is to hatch a plan to save it with a charming, sexy, and totally unreliable man that she can’t seem to stay away from.

  Chase Allison is a freelance nature photographer whose work takes him around the world on a moment’s notice, which suits him just fine – especially when he wants to shake loose from a relationship. Which he generally does after a few weeks of fun. Yet, he is strangely captivated by Rayne and the passion that lurks behind her smoky gray eyes, but can his attraction compete with the allure of the open road?

  Can Rayne find a way to balance her need for stability with her need to be with free spirted Chase?

  About the Author:

  Samantha Powers lived in the Washington, D.C., area for several years and worked in various corporate and nonprofit jobs while writing in her spare time. She now lives in Vermont, where she can indulge her passion for walks in the woods, writing full time, and maple-flavored everything. She also loves animals, reality TV, and cupcakes.

  The first book of The Capitol Love Series — The Plan — will be released in December by Possibilities Publishing Company. She is already hard at work on the second book, scheduled for release by summer 2016.

  Her short story “Portrait of a Lover” appears in the “Trick or Treat!” anthology published in October 2015. Click here for more information or to buy a copy.

  Follow her on Twitter: @CapitolLover.
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