“Thank you for bringing me here. It’s beautiful.”
Andrew smiled. “Thank yourself for not quitting. That was a tough climb,” he paused, “I didn’t think we’d make it here. You did a good job.”
His words made her smile. Jennifer slid her hand along his shoulder, the pad of her fingertips touching the skin of his neck. Andrew looked at her hand. He stared. She withdrew her fingers after a moment more and ran them through her hair instead.
Andrew cleared his throat. “I’ve got to ask you something.”
She glanced towards Andrew. “Shoot.”
With a relaxed chuckle, he leaned over the large boulder and said, “I noticed last night you drive a pretty sweet car.”
Jennifer laughed and nodded. “My grandparents gifted me 20 thousand one year. I got it and paid it off in three.” She smirked at herself. “In retrospect it probably wasn’t the wisest way to use that money.”
“Hmmm,” Andrew cleared his throat. “That’d still be one hell of a monthly payment. They run around fifty thousand new, don’t they?” His eyes played with hers.
Reaching for her sandwich, Jennifer took another bite. She was certain she knew exactly what Andrew was really trying to get out of her. “I used to race it,” she said nonchalantly. His eyes widened.
“I knew it!” He stood tall. “How much did you win in bets?”
“Probably about fifteen grand,” she mused. “I only raced small, private tracks. One in South Beloit, Blue Island, tracks like those,” she shrugged. “I make the Indy 500 every year.”
“Oh yeah?”
She chuckled, finding his interest in her love of cars amusing. “Well, I didn’t go this year,” she swallowed, picking at her sandwich absently.
Andrew pondered her words; his arm pushed against the side of her thigh. “Work?” She nodded. After a while, he slyly said, “I sponsor a Nascar driver.”
Jennifer gasped. “Who?”
“Number 53,” he smirked. Jennifer laughed. She looked over Andrew’s face, taking him in entirely.
“It seems we have something in common after all.” He laughed, shrugging lightly. “I like you,” she said finally, surprising herself. She didn’t care how it sounded. Andrew met her eyes but remained silent. She decided to change the topic. “What was the other thing you wanted to do?”
Andrew pushed away from the rock and turned to lean against it with his back. “The Cog Railway to the top of Pikes Peak.”
“What’s that?”
“Just what it sounds like. A train that takes you 14,000 feet to the top of Pike’s Peak.”
“Wow.”
“I know.” He turned around to face Jennifer again. “I’d like to take you there before we leave Colorado.”
Jennifer avoided his eyes. “Why?”
When Andrew didn’t readily answer, she looked up to meet his gaze, but he had started towards the waterfall again.
Chapter Ten
Back to Reality
THE TREK BACK proved to be a lot the second time around, save for the fact that they both needed to relieve themselves on the return trip. Jennifer had unbuttoned her romper, regretting ever choosing to wear the damn thing while Andrew had continued ahead to allow for privacy.
In all, within an hour and a half they had retraced their steps to the Barr Trail. Within another 15 minutes, they were back at the car, mostly damp from the sweat and residual wetness from the waterfall.
As they neared the Charger, Jennifer felt apprehension twisting in her gut. She was sure James would have contacted her by now. It wasn’t like her to have left her phone. She wasn’t quite sure what she had been thinking—probably that James was too busy with Melony to contact her before evening. She still wasn’t sure if he planned to make the meeting with Seogen or not. Accordingly to Andrew’s opinion, he would definitely be there; but, Jennifer hadn’t booked him any plane tickets. He could still arrive on Thursday though.
In the car, Jennifer slid her moist skin against the dark, leather seats. She met Andrew’s eyes and they both chuckled, agreeing without words that the trip back would be most uncomfortable in their wet clothes.
“I brought a change,” Andrew said. He was half leaning into the car. “I take it you didn’t.”
Jennifer shook her head. “You would have made a great SEAL, being so prepared.”
Andrew smiled and glanced into the backseat. Jennifer noticed a laundry bag from the Courtyard in the. “I can let you wear my spare shirt.” Andrew leaned in with an arm over the roof of the car.
Jennifer nodded quickly. “If you don’t mind,” she smiled.
A few seconds later and Andrew had tossed another, soft cotton tee at Jennifer. She chuckled and slid it over her body. It was large. Before it settled over the clammy romper material, she began to unbutton it. She wouldn’t be able to take the entire thing off, but at least her back would be able to breathe.
Andrew changed in the backseat. Jennifer resisted the urge to peak. When he returned to the driver’s side, he was shirtless with a park of dark jeans. Jennifer stared with her mouth ajar.
Only offering a smug smirk, Andrew started the car. “You’re wearing my shirt.”
Jennifer’s phone began to buzz, playing a loud and obnoxious ringtone she had selected specifically for James. She snatched at her purse along the compartment cut into the side door. She reached for her phone within the purse and answered the call in one flicker of movement.
“Jennifer Rhodes.” She held her breath.
“Where the—where have you been?” James was pissed.
Jennifer stuttered and tried to keep herself from glancing towards Andrew. He seemed to be waiting for her. She motioned for him to start driving. He complied.
“I’ve been trying to get a hold of you for the last three hours, Jennifer.”
She tried to lower the volume on her phone, sure that Andrew could more than likely hear every bit of her boss’s irate voice. Apparently, James had tried contacting her at noon and then again an hour later. She and Andrew would have just left the vehicle around noontime. She had been unavailable for over five hours.
He needed a breakfast arrangement for him and another at 9:30 the next day in Fort Collins. Jennifer noted he didn’t disclose the other attendee. He needed a detailed report, one that hadn’t already been compiled for Seogen. Apparently, they wanted more than the company’s past portfolio of clients.
They were most concerned with the raw data from their latest client, Rocket Panda. The cost of their contract, services billed, and every piece of tangible results they could find. Jennifer frowned. That last bit alone was more than six hours’ worth of work. She had already compiled a loose presentation of their past six high paying clients but that wasn’t going to be enough.
“They’re asking for this new information Friday at the evening meeting.”
“Evening?” Jennifer’s frowned as she fumbled through her purse. Their meeting was an afternoon brunch.
“It’s been moved. This is why you need your phone. So I can update you as soon as something changes,” his voice was curt. She hated it when he took that tone with her.
“I’ll send you a brief email with the changes.”
“What time are you flying in tomorrow?” James was silent. “James?” Jennifer pulled the phone from her ear and looked at the screen. The call had ended. She gripped her phone and resisted the urge to throw it at the ground. Squeezing her eyes shut, she forced deep, calming breaths instead.
Sure, James could be a bit selfish and demanding at times. He had to be, right? You didn’t amass his wealth without knowing how to drive those around you to results. Jennifer let out a deep breath. She was still a bit unnerved, but she tried to put herself into James position. He and Katie had been together for the better part of two years and apparently, she had just broken his heart only four days before the biggest client his company had yet to catch an interest with.
There was a lot riding on this and surely, an impromptu trip to Je
rsey wasn’t part of the equation. Jennifer nodded to herself. James was never good at handling himself under emotional stress. High stakes in business were one thing; love was another. She exhaled again, forcing air out even when she couldn’t feel breath passing through her lips.
James was just on edge with the meeting, and she was positive he’d come around once the weekend came, of course if they snagged the contract. She was more than confident that they would. Communications with the company had dragged on for the last three weeks before they finally pulled together a draft of all the work they discussed for a contract.
Jennifer opened her eyes. They were back on the expressway but still within the Colorado Springs city limits. She glanced towards Andrew, certain that he’d been watching her the entire time. He faced the road and said nothing.
Relaxing into the seat, she eyed his bare torso again. “Well, at least you’re driving with your shirt off.”
Andrew snapped his head towards her. “Excuse me?”
Jennifer gasped. “Did I say that out loud?”
Andrew looked towards her again, looking at her face. “Are you serious?”
“Watch the road!”
He turned back to the steering wheel just in time to avoid the fast approaching bumper of a small Ford Contour. In the next lane, someone sped past, laying into their horn as Andrew tried to switch lanes. He swerved back into the left lane and slammed on the breaks, slowing the car from 70 mph to 30 mph in a matter of seconds. Jennifer braced herself with her hands on the glove compartment.
After a moment, the Charger settled behind the Contour. They had come close. Too close. Jennifer turned in her seat. No one was behind them. After a moment, she turned to Andrew. He avoided her eyes and cautiously switched lanes using the proper turn signal. When their eyes connected, they both smiled, and then giggled before they were in full blown laughs.
He turned to the road and reached for the stereo. Jennifer stopped him.
“Leave it off.” She ran her hands over her hair, grouping the silk strands together. “I like the silence. It’s nice.” She twisted her hair to lay just over her shoulder.
Andrew’s hand recoiled. After a moment, he spoke. “Is he mad?”
“Pissed. Couldn’t you hear?”
“Yes, actually. Your phone’s volume is incredible.”
Jennifer smirked. “He’s not always like that.” Andrew glanced towards her but said nothing. Jennifer fidgeted at his silence. “If Katie hadn’t broken up with him everything would be going as planned and he wouldn’t be in Jersey right now.” Jennifer bit her lip. She shouldn’t have said that.
“Katie Heuser?”
“Yeah,” Jennifer started, perplexed. “You know her?”
“Not personally,” he chuckled. “Heard a lot about her though.”
Jennifer moved, feeling her wet skin snag on the leather. She didn’t feel like talking about Katie anymore. With another deep sigh, she looked out the window. “I’ve got my work cut out for me tomorrow,” she said absently.
“I could help.”
Jennifer turned towards Andrew. He still faced the road but at length, he looked towards her, holding the eye contact for a moment more before turning his attention back to the road. He meant every word of it. Jennifer fell silent.
Chapter Eleven
Professional Persuasion
THEY STOPPED AT Wendy’s near Castle Rock before heading straight to the Courtyard. After a rushed goodbye with Andrew as he covered himself with the spare shirt Jennifer relinquished, she was in her room hard at work within 30 minutes.
She checked her email and made the necessary appointment as directed by James. She had just begun pulling the information for the required report when her phone rang. With impressive speed, she answered.
“Jennifer.”
“It’s me.”
She rolled her eyes. Of course, James would think to introduce himself like that.
“What are you doing?” James’s voice was a lot calmer than earlier. He didn’t seem as rushed as before either.
With a loud sigh, Jennifer glanced at the time. 7:30pm. “Working on that outrageous report. That’s a lot of information to compile.”
“I know, but they asked.” Jennifer sighed heavily into the phone, saying nothing more. “You’re still my angel,” James cooed.
His words stilled her for a moment. She liked it when he called her that, but now, it didn’t even seem to matter. At this rate, she would likely be up all night.
“How soon do you need this? I might need to pull an all-nighter.”
“Before the presentation. You’ll have tomorrow. Friday should be spent going over it to make sure it’s as smooth as ice.”
She took a deep breath. “Sure thing. Anything else?”
“Yeah. How’s Andrew?”
Jennifer shrugged, squinting her eyes at her screen as she searched her computer’s files for the previous client’s records. “He’s okay,” she realized she was smiling at the thought of him. “He’s fine.”
“Did you see him today? Why couldn’t I get ahold of you?”
Jennifer pulled her eyes from the bright computer screen. It wasn’t like James to pester with so many questions. “I was with Andrew earlier and I left my phone in the car.”
“What do you think about him?”
She wished he were grilling her in front of him, perhaps then she could understand the reason behind all his questions. “I think he’s very competent and sure of what he’s doing.” After a moment, she added, “He seems particularly excited to be partnering with you.” She thought to fish for more information. “He said you guys knew each other well.”
“Oh, he said that?”
“Yes. You do know him, don’t you?” Jennifer was confused.
“Yeah, yes, of course. He’s been to a few of the same luncheons, getaways. We’re in a club together,” Jennifer heard him take a deep breath.
“Just say what’s on your mind, James,” she said, still confused.
“I’m just trying to get a read on him. That’s all. I approached him three years ago to partner with me. He didn’t want to. Said he was working on building his portfolio in other areas that would limit his ability to focus full-time on my venture.”
Jennifer nodded. She had taken her fingers from the board and considered James’s words thoughtfully.
“Are you glad he wants to be here now?”
“Absolutely. With his buy in I’ll really be able to push towards billionaire worth with this company, with or without the Seogen contract.”
“Do you think we can get it?”
James sucked in air, the sound rattling her ears through the headset.
“Absolutely. And when we do, I’ve got a surprise for you, Angel.”
Jennifer grinned. Her stomach clenched. For James to get her a surprise meant he was thinking about her while he was with Melony. That was a good thing. She thought of Andrew suddenly. Was it a surprise just for her? Or did it involve him too? That last question wasn’t likely. She wondered about the surprise. Was it work related? Melone didn’t normally do surprises, so what exactly did that mean? Jennifer pushed the thoughts away.
“When will you get here?”
“Surprise, Angel. I have to go now. See you later.”
She lowered the cell phone, heart still questioning the fondness in James’s voice when he spoke to her. This was the man she had come to love. The last couple of days were just a fluke. Sure, he dropped a lot on her at the last minute and had really been a jerk about it—but he always came around.
Jennifer wondered if his surprise would be an apology. That wouldn’t be very exciting at all. Several years ago, that might have been a joke between them, but they had grown close. They made a great team together, an effective team. The surprise had to be more than an apology, Jennifer decided.
It was possible it could be work related, but with Katie out the picture, the surprise could actually mean something more. Only now, Jennifer wasn’t
so sure how she really felt about something more.
Returning to work took a mental shift, but she was able to manage. She put thoughts of James outside her mind and began to pull the exact details from Rocket Panda, starting with their particular contract. She looked at their billed services and began to list the information in a word document. From there, she focused on the end results, the final figures from their work with the company.
They had been able to cut certain marketing costs, but they had also helped Rocket Panda reach a ceiling of sales revenue they had yet to be able to achieve prior to their contract with Melone Group. With lowered marketing costs and an increase in revenue, the CEO of that particular firm had been quite impressed indeed—and those were just a few of their accomplishments.
Jennifer continued to weed meticulously through the old reports, pulling out important highlights of the last month and a half. She barely heard the knock at the door, a soft rapping. Absently, she left her station situated at the bed and went to the door to open it. Andrew stood staring back at her. In a quick assessment, she saw him look her over. He glanced inside of her room.
“Are you ready for dinner?” Andrew asked, returning his eyes to Jennifer. She stuttered for a moment at the interruption.
“What dinner?”
“I made reservations at Eddie Merlot’s in Englewood. It’s about 30 minutes away so we should get leaving in about ten minutes.”
“Andrew, I have work to do.” Jennifer motioned to the inside of her room. “You heard James on the phone.”
Andrew nodded. “I did hear him,” he responded. “What are you having for dinner then?”
Jennifer chuckled, a bit exasperated. She ran a hand through her hair. “I haven’t thought about that yet.”
“So why not let me take you to dinner?” He rolled his eyes playfully as if the answer didn’t need more consideration. “I already made reservations. I’ll drive.”
“This report is huge,” Jennifer’s voice was flat. She shook her head.
“Let me help you.”
Jennifer studied Andrew. He was relaxed, and his words were a smoothing comfort to the strings of tension rattling throughout her body.
Millionaire Romance: In Love With My Boss - A Contemporary Romance (Millionaire Romance, Contemporary Romance, Comedy Romance Book 1) Page 8