by Kay Maree
“Is everything okay?” Zane was standing by the table like he knew she’d needed space, and that increased her resolve to get herself back to normal.
“Yes. I’m fine.”
Zane was pulling out her chair by the time she got to the table, and he pushed her in and moved back to his side. When she glanced at him, he was studying her.
“Do I make you nervous?” The playful Zane was gone, leaving the more serious man that she associated with his work in place.
“No.”
He nodded his head, and although she wanted to leave it alone, there just would not be a way that was possible.
“Why do you ask that?” She began to uncover the dishes on the table because, for one, it gave her something to focus on besides this mans and the other because she was hungry. In more ways than one.
He continued to watch her before joining her in uncovering dishes and filling his plate. “I think our working together wasn’t something you were expecting. I don’t think I’ve ever heard of you mixing work with pleasure.”
That made her stop for a second. “Have you been asking around about me?” The thought of him checking up on her made her smile. The man put her off her game mentally, but if she could keep this about the challenge, she’d be able to walk away from this with a solid win for her career. Plus the knowledge that she couldn’t be taken in by one of the most charming men in the city.
“I don’t know if asking around is the right way to put it. Are you telling me you know nothing about me?” He poured them both a glass of Chablis and took a sip of his. “I’m not talking about from your friend, but before that.”
She shrugged as she took a sip. “I may have heard a few things.”
“Okay, since we are here, let’s go through it. Clear the air.” Zane was much more interested in this conversation than his plate. When Tempest lifted the fork from her plate to her mouth and filled it with a symphony of flavors, she wasn’t sure this was the best time to talk.
“You go first.” Tempest was good at multitasking, but she thought she would be better at listening at this point.
He watched her eat for a bit as he enjoyed his wine. “You are a very sensual woman. You touch fabrics, you ask questions, and you take time to fill your senses with whatever you’re doing.”
Taking a second to enjoy that last bite she watched him watch her. “This is something you heard?”
“No. It’s an observation. What I’ve heard is that you are the epitome of professional and are sought after professionally and personally. You have an air about you that commands respect but makes me want to crack your shell and find out more about you.”
She must have raised her eyebrows at that one because he stopped.
“What?”
She wanted to hear more. It was giving her a chance to get to a place where she could eat casually instead of like she’d not eaten in days, so she shook her head and waited for him to continue.
“You don’t get serious about suitors and dismiss them before it gets too heavy, but I’ve never heard a negative word about you from anyone male or female. That’s interesting, and I’m sure you can’t say the same thing about me.”
She wiped her mouth and took a sip of wine. “What is this?”
“What is what?” Zane sat back in his seat and took a sip of wine. The small smile on his face made her think he was enjoying himself.
“Are you trying to make me more comfortable because you think you somehow make me nervous?”
“We are supposed to be working together for the next month. I’m not sure how often you work with a partner, but I thought we could get to know each other a little better, and then maybe our work would blend more seamlessly.”
Tempest took her time assessing his words and the expression he was pinning her with. “Okay, Mr. Calder.”
“I’d like it more if you called me Zane.”
“Zane. I’ve heard that you are a charmer with a smooth tongue and a thick cock. You leave a trail of women who think they can keep you, but you don’t seem to go back to any woman more than twice. Your work ethic is impeccable, and you are the man to please for anything having to do with your brand Calder Built.” Tempest enjoyed watching the fascination Zane had with her description of her. “It’s interesting how different you are with work and play. Such dedication you show to your job. Caring about each detail and figuring out how to get all your pieces to line up correctly.”
“This is you saying that your shocked I’ve not been able to dedicate myself to someone or spent time figuring them out?” Zane cocked his head in a way that he did when he was working out a problem. She’d seen him a lot more than he knew, and although she didn’t want to say that outright, the thought of him had captivated her too.
“I thought about what you said yesterday, and we probably are more alike than we are different, but men are just a different breed than women. There isn’t a time that I don’t tell a man I’m with that I don’t do relationships, but they believe me more than women seem to believe you.” Tempest poured more wine into her glass and waited for him to digest her words.
“When did you know you wanted to be an interior decorator?”
Tempest didn’t know why she was so shocked at the question, but it had just veered off the path of the conversation they’d just been having. “When I received my first dollhouse and couldn’t play with the home that had been so atrociously put together. Not the house, but the furniture and even the rugs that were stickers on the floor bothered me.” The memory of all she’d done to make the house a livable space for her plastic dolls brought a smile to her face.
“Good memory?”
“Yes.” Sitting back with her glass of wine, she was almost mirroring him. “What about you? Have you always wanted to build buildings and fun spaces for charity?”
“I’m a builder of many things, but the pride and excitement I get when seeing something I drew out manifest itself in real life is amazing. I don’t know if I’ve always wanted to create buildings, but I’ve always wanted to create.” He looked at her plate and then back at her. “Are you finished eating?”
Tempest nodded and pushed back from the table, while Zane pulled something out of a box that looked like a small refrigerator.
“What was your favorite subject in school?” Zane handed her a warm towel and watched her as she cleaned off her hands.
“Boys.”
Zane threw back his head and laughed at that. “Few women are as free as you seem to be. It’s very attractive.”
“Free?”
“Yes. You take what you want, be it going to town on a plate of food or directing me to get on my knees for you.”
She knew he would go back to that, but she wasn’t sure when it would happen. The fact that he’d liked that wasn’t lost on her. She was always directing, but she liked to be directed too. “If you don’t ask, you won’t know.”
He nodded his head. “That’s true.”
“So, what now? You brought me up to this exclusive restaurant I’m not sure if it was to impress me or if you just like the food here.” To be honest, the man was right. He made her nervous. Not because of anything he did but of the way they seemed to crackle with sexual energy. Zane was not someone you got attached to, and neither was she. Still, their chemistry almost crackled when they were together, and he looked like such a good time.
“Are you impressed?” Zane didn’t answer the question just upped the tension when he moved closer to her.
“If I am, what do I get.”
The man’s smile only tugged to one side, and it made him cute instead of ruggedly handsome. “Oh, I don’t know if you want the answer to that.” He opened the door, and they walked to the elevator.
Should she be upset that he didn’t make a move on her in the private room? Should she be upset that she didn’t? Tempest rarely waited for what she wanted, but she’d have to be honest with herself. She’d wanted him to try somethi
ng in there.
“I’m thinking of a few places for us to consider as a venue for our masterpiece. Let me pick you up tomorrow so I can show you what I’m thinking, and we can brainstorm.” Zane said as they waited for the elevator car to come up.
“Tomorrow is Saturday,” Tempest said, squinting her eyes at him.
“I know, and the day after that is Sunday. Is that a problem?”
The elevator opened, and Zane waved Tempest on before he followed her.
“It’s usually my relaxing day,” she said as he walked beside her.
“Well, if you would rather do this on Sunday, we could make that happen too.” Zane didn’t look as if he really cared, but since this was a special assignment and they had lots to do, she felt bad trying to keep her normal status quo.
“No, tomorrow is okay.” She stopped right before they got to her car, but he took her key fob, opened the door, waited for her to sit down, and then fastened her seat belt. Tempest wasn’t sure if it was the care he put into the task, the gentleness of his touch, or something else but wow. The gasp that escaped her mouth didn’t go unnoticed by Zane. His eyes were on hers as he completed that task, and her noise made his pupils dilate a bit. “That was unnecessary. I could have fastened my own seat belt.”
“You can do everything for yourself. I’m aware of that, but it made me feel good to do, and I find I’ll do almost anything to make your breath catch in your throat.” Zane was in her space but not in her face, and that was a good thing because little niceties like that made her way too appreciative. A little time away from this man would hopefully put all these swirling thoughts into perspective.
“Is that so?”
“Yes. I’ll be thinking of all the ways I can make that happen tomorrow.” Zane said as he backed away from her.
“I know that we have a short time to get a phenomenal space together, but I don’t know how we will cut through all of this and work.” Tempest was nothing if not honest.
“I’m sure we will think of something, but for now, just get ready for tomorrow.”
“What should I wear?”
“Whatever you’re the most comfortable in.” Zane backed away from the car.
“You want me to come naked?” With him moving away a little, she felt she could joke more. If she’d have said that earlier, she was sure they’d have tasted each other’s bodies as dessert.
“Abso-fucking-lutely.”
Tempest pulled out of the driveway and watched him watch her drive off. She was way out of her depth, but she loved a challenge almost as she’d loved sex, but when they were the same thing… Have mercy.
CHAPTER SIX
ZANE
Zane had woken up early that morning and was in a good mood. Just thinking about spending the day with Tempest got him going in so many ways. This wasn’t just about how sexy she was. It was more about working with someone as dedicated to her work as he was and how much fun he was having just getting to know her.
This woman had him planning shit besides just making sure he had enough supplies in case something happened. He was picking up a few things to put in a basket for where he was going to take her for their planning session. He was so at ease he was practically whistling, and that was probably why he’d not felt the thunder cloud behind him.
“Well, well, well. If it isn’t Zane Calder.”
Zane knew that voice, and although half of him was sorry that he’d taken pity on her and shared her bed, the other wondered if he’d be at the same position he was in with Tempest.
“Ava.” Zane found that when he faced a woman who felt scorned, it was best to say as few words to them as possible.
She looked at the contents of his basket before glancing back at him. “I guess you found your next victim.”
“Look, Ava. I’ve tried to be nice to you before, but it will not go on for long. I did nothing to you that you didn’t want, and I never promised it would be more than the one night you agreed to.” Zane watched Ava’s face go from normal to an almost purple. He didn’t do commitments or anything close to it, but he didn’t like this part. Making women feel bad. Not that he felt guilty because he didn’t. Everyone was on board until afterward when they wanted to see them again. He’d just had no desire to do so.
“My friend Tempest will not let you get to her like I did. You better not fuck her around.”
“Tempest and I are working together, and that’s all you need to know.” Zane rolled his cart away before going back to her. “I didn’t fuck you around either. I’m sure if you think back to the conversation we had before, and after the fact, it would come to you.”
He’d finished with his shopping and refused to let Ava and her surprise attack make the excitement of spending the day with Tempest wane.
Packing his goodies into a basket and then making his way to Tempest’s home wasn’t done with whistling, but he was still pleased. Her home looked exactly like he’d expected it too. It was small and neat, with rose bushes on either side of the porch.
He rang the doorbell and waited. There was no welcome sign, no Bless This House, no cutesy mat in front of the door. It looked as if someone serious lived here.
The door opened, and Zane was blown away. Instead of the perfectly manicured Tempest greeting him at the door, there was a disheveled woman who appeared to just have woken up. Looking at her was like a punch to the gut. Sleep tousled hair, flushed face, full lips… From the look of her, she slept like she lived: wild and free. He wanted to see it play out for himself, although he wasn’t one to stay through the night until breakfast.
“I didn’t know you were coming so early.” She folded her hands across her chest and looked at him. “Do you ever sleep?”
Tempest moved back and allowed him to come in. He’d not thought about bringing coffee or Danish, but that was because she hadn’t seemed to like it the day before.
“Sleep is for people who have nothing to do. We have a campaign to win.” He followed her to the kitchen.
“Do you want coffee or tea while you wait?” Tempest looked like she was still half asleep.
Taking her into his arms and nuzzling her cheek wasn’t what he’d planned to do, but she snuggled into him like they’d done this before. “No thanks,” He placed little kisses from her ear to the side of her mouth.
“Wait just a minute until I get dressed.” She pulled away from him and disappeared quickly.
It didn’t take long for him to find his way around her kitchen. It was nicely set up and logical. He’d made two cups of coffee in her coffee maker before sitting down to drink it. He’d wondered if this woman really did have some magic in her DNA because he was acting way out of character. The problem was that he was enjoying it so he’d just let it flow.
Taking his first sip, he appreciated the warmth going down his throat, but he wasn’t sure what was going on in other areas of himself. He didn’t have long to ponder as she came back.
She spotted the coffee on the table and picked it up to drink it. If she’d have drunk a bit at the event yesterday, he’d have known how she liked it today. He watched her as she drank. Professionally dressed up Tempest was a thing he’d understood, but this simply dressed, ponytail wearing beauty blew his mind.
“What?” Tempest asked when she noticed he’d not said anything.
He cleared his throat and stood up before her. “Nothing. I just wasn’t prepared to be blown away with how you look dressed down.”
The expression she had on her face was wary, so he stood up wanting leave no mistake in what he was talking about. Placing his hand on her cheek, he rubbed the soft skin and looked into her deep brown eyes.
“Blown away?” She said slowly like she was trying to make sense of the words.
“I’m used to seeing you in hair buns, red lips, and power suits. When I got here, you looked like a sexy sleepy fairy, and now you look like comfort personified.”
“It’s Saturday.” Was all she said i
n response to his words, and suddenly, he wanted to know what comfort tasted like. He lowered his head slowly to give her time to accept what he wanted to share with her or walk away, but she didn’t look like she was in the mood to stop him. Her soft lips parted under his after the first two touches of his mouth on hers.
She put down her coffee and wound her hands in his hair. Pulling him closer and opening fully under him. This wasn’t a woman who passively sat by and accepted what was given to her. This woman was a taker, and although he wouldn’t have thought that was a turn on, he was finding himself shocked at what he liked when it came to Tempest.
He was just getting ready to settle in and see where this lush woman would take this, but she broke the kiss and took a step back. It would be a lie to say he wasn’t disappointed, but he’d had a plan for the day, and he wanted to follow it.
“I’m ready to go when you are,” Tempest said, taking her coffee cup to the sink.
Well, he’d had some coffee, tasted comfort, and it wasn’t anyone’s fault but his that he would walk around with a quarter chub all day. He rinsed out his cup and followed her out the door.
“Are we taking your car?”
“Is this you thinking I don’t want you to drive me around?” He loved the smirk on her face.
“Look at you all wound up today. I just wanted to know if you wanted to drive separately, or we were taking one car.” Tempest opened the car door and hopped in before he could say another word.
When he got in, she was facing his side of the car. She waited until she was settled in before she reached her arm over him and drew the buckle across his body languidly before clicking the seat belt. He watched her hand as she did that, and she stayed hovered over him until he looked her way.