Campaign for Love by Annabelle Stevens, Sorcha MacMurrough Page A

acceptance.
     
     
The date was all set. Now she just had to get cleaning, shopping,
    and
    cooking. Her wise old grandmother had always said that the way to a
    man's heart was through his stomach. This was her chance to really
    shine for all of the important men who had just come into her life.
     
     
But most of all, it was a chance to try to grow closer to Quentin.
    Up
    until now, he had just seen the consummate professional Suzanna. In
    her
    own home, she could start showing him the real woman underneath the
    disguise. And she was certainly looking forward to find out what was
    underneath his clothes as well…
     
     

 
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
     
     
At three o'clock on Friday afternoon, Quentin popped into her
    office.
     
     
"Hey there."
     
     
She grinned up at him. "Hey yourself."
     
     
"Listen, I know you have the dinner party tonight. You haven't asked
    for any time off, but since the dinner is mostly business, I think
    you
    ought to stop whatever you're doing right now and go home. You must
    have plenty to do. I have some work to finish up here, but as soon
    as
    I'm through, I'll hop a cab and come to your place to help you out
    with
    setting up."
     
     
"That's fantastic," she said truthfully. "Thank you. I can use the
    time. The meal preparation isn't much, but it's all the little
    things,
    like setting the table, and especially making the drinks, opening
    the
    wine, that sort of thing, that can eat up a lot of time. Now I can
    leave that for you."
     
     
"Great. Consider yourself with an extra pair of hands as soon as I
    get
    there. You clear out now, and I'll see you in a little while."
     
     
"Thanks very much."
     
     
"I'm only sorry I didn't think of it before.
     
     
"Still, it is very thoughtful, Quentin. I do appreciate it." She
    blew
    him a quick, playful kiss, which earned her a beaming smile.
    Grabbing
    her bag, she was out the door before he could say another word, or
    reach for her to grab a quick kiss in earnest.
     
     
Suzanna knew that the subway would be quicker than a cab this time
    of
    day. She made good time getting home and changed right into a
    T-shirt
    and a well-tailored pair of trousers. She remembered to keep a
    voluminous smock top handy to slip over the tee shirt before Quentin
    arrived. Her ordinary clothes would reveal all if she wasn't
    careful.
     
     
Suzy had shopped for the food the day before. She knew that Imperial
    put out a really good oil and vinegar salad dressing, and so had
    planned a special celeriac and field salad favorite of her German
    grandmother. She patronized a little green-grocer she'd found over
    on
    Second Avenue. It was the only place she knew of that carried
    unusual
    vegetables.
     
     
The celery knobs had been cooked the night before and were
    marinating
    in Imperial dressing in her fridge.
     
     
Her dessert was a refrigerator cake made of Imperial lady fingers,
    chocolate snaps and whipped cream she had made two days before. It,
    too, was ready to serve.
     
     
She continued preparations by chopping a large onion and a quarter
    pound of bacon and putting it in a heavy skillet to cook slowly.
    While
    it cooked, she set the table with her best family heirlooms,
    crystal,
    silver, and linen.
     
     
Suzanna's apartment was unusual for New York in that it had a proper
    separate dining room. It had been her grandmother's, and she had
    owned
    the building and taken the pick of the apartments for herself. When
    the
    old lady had died, everything had been left to Suzanna, a fact that
    was
    known to only her closest friends.
     
     
The apartment itself was large, bright and airy. The sturdy dining
    room
    furniture was oak with burgundy plush seats. There was a huge china
    cabinet. Through the crown glass could be seen priceless egg-shell
    china, majolica, cut glass, crystal, Spode, and Wedgewood. She knew
    they were worth a small fortune.
     
     
But to Suzanna, they were grandma's things. She loved every delicate
    piece, but just as she treasured