“Rand said you were coming to the house to watch the game!” Shay yelled out him as he descended the steps.
“Maybe later,” his muffled reply drifted from the bowels of the basement.
Shay turned to Anne with wide eyes. “Oil and vinegar, my ASS…” she whispered then swatted Anne’s arm with the back of her hand.
“What? I didn’t invite him,” Anne whispered back.
“Mmm hmm. He just shows up out of the blue…”
“Shut up,” Anne stated as her eyes narrowed.
“Chicken’s burning,” Shay stated with a nod toward the frying pan.
*****
“So I asked Rand what you were doing in town and he said it was between you and him. Care to elaborate on that one?” Shay asked.
“Nope.”
“Well, how long are you planning on staying?” Shay pressed on.
“As long as it takes,” he answered in a low voice before taking another bite.
“As long as what takes?” Anne heard Shay ask. She refused to look up from her plate. If he was looking at her she would blush for sure.
“How about you shut yer geggy and eat?” he huffed out.
“Did you really tell Rand to have a bake sale to raise funds in the middle of a meeting?”
“Rand has a big mouth. You two are so perfect for each other,” he breathed out causing Anne’s eyes to flick up at him. Apparently he was joking based on the upward curve of his lips.
He looked almost…boyish in his hat. Incredibly…nothing. Don’t go there. She gave a small shake to her head to try and clear it. Incredibly present at her kitchen table – that was better. His kitchen table. Don’t look at him.
“So what do you need funds for?” Shay asked.
“Shay!” his tone was pure exasperation. It was almost comical, Anne thought as she listened to their exchange.
“What? What’s the big deal?”
“The big deal is: it is no big deal. It’s not going to happen so we don’t need to talk about it,” he stated in an arrogantly smug tone causing Anne’s pulse to pound.
“Some people need to look at the big picture,” Anne mumbled before she could stop herself.
“Big picture? I live the big picture. Some people should recognize that maybe there are reasons why some people don’t just throw money at every whim their employees cook up.”
“Maybe some people should be able to tell the difference between a whim and a sound business proposal,” she returned as her eyes shot to his.
“Business proposal? Where was that at? I didn’t catch that,” he responded in a cool tone that grated on her nerves.
“That might have been presented at some point if it weren’t for a certain person yapping about a bake sale and pulling money out of his ass,” Anne shot back.
“Hmm. Some people might have a tendency to respond in a ridiculous manner to ridiculous things.” He leveled his eyes at her.
“Wow. So hey, this is fun,” Shay interjected looking from Anne to Ian as she shifted in her chair.
“Maybe some people could look outside the box they’ve very conveniently settled themselves in.” Anne stated as she leveled the same stare back at him.
“Maybe some people should worry about doing their own job and not everyone else’s,” he replied in a flat voice.
Shay raised her arm and started making cutting motions with her knife in the air in front of her.
“Ah…what are you doing?” Anne asked as she watched the knife.
“Oh, I’m cutting the tension in here. It’s pretty thick,” Shay quipped before placing the knife back on the table with a grin. “You know, I probably need to get going. I’d love to stay and listen to you two go at it but this is AWKWARD.” She placed the last bite of chicken in her mouth before pushing back from the table and grabbing her plate.
Anne and Ian looked toward each other silently as Shay walked to the sink, rinsed her plate and opened the dishwasher to place it in the rack.
“Besides, you can only leave Rand with the kids by himself for so long. He’ll let them eat every damn cookie in the pantry if I’m not there,” she chattered as she walked back to the table. “Anne? Thanks for a wonderful meal. Ian? Are you coming or what?” She cocked her head to side with an almost knowing smirk on her face.
She was completely annoying, he thought as he looked at Shay and then down to his plate. “I’m not done yet. I’ll see you there.”
“Uh huh. If you’re not there in a half hour, I’m sending the cops over here. Try not to kill each other after I leave, OK?” she quipped before ruffling the top of Anne’s head with her hand. She turned and wandered through the living room as Anne’s eyes followed her.
As soon as the door clicked, her nerves returned full force. She felt something feather light on the top of her head before she jerked to the side dislodging McClellan’s fingers from her hair.
“Sorry, love. Your hair was sticking up,” he explained before settling his arm next to his plate. “You’re a bit…jumpy,” he added gently.
“Can you blame me?” she mumbled as she looked down toward her plate. Suddenly the food left on it was completely unappetizing to her. She pushed away from the table before grabbing the plate. She needed to put as much distance between the two of them as possible.
“This is really delicious, Anne,” she could hear as she scraped the small amount of uneaten food into the garbage before straightening up. “Thanks,” she responded lightly as she turned on the faucet. Her fingers were actually shaking as she attempted to rinse the dish she was holding. She dropped it with a clang as soon as she felt his hands snake around her abdomen from behind. His body was pressed against her and his warm breath tickled the skin beneath her ear.
Her eyes fluttered closed when she felt the soft caress of his lips on her neck. His grip tightened when her knees decided to weaken from the sudden flood of sensation racking every last nerve in her body.
“Let me taste you, Anne,” he breathed into her ear, as his hands turned her toward him. Her eyes squeezed shut as her lips did the same.
“Mmm mmm,” she grunted through clamped lips. His hand gripped the back of her head gently as his lips touched hers. He trailed them over to the side of her mouth, planting the softest kiss there before letting out a small groan of frustration. His forehead touched hers. “Open your mouth, Anne,” he commanded as his fingers lightly massaged the back of her neck. The feeling was divine but not enough to cause her to lose her mind. Not quite yet, at least.
“Mmm mmm.” She shook her head to emphasize her words.
“This works so much better if you actually nip me back, you know.” His thumb swept across her bottom lip leaving a tingling trail. She sucked her bottom lip in and held it in place with her teeth.
“Not going to let me kiss you, hmm?” he whispered against her lips.
“Mmm mmm.”
“Such a wee defiant thing you are, darling,” he stated before planting another kiss to her clamped mouth. He straightened up and looked down at her face. Her eyes were squeezed shut. A small snort escaped him at her scrunched up features.
“Open your eyes, love. You look like you just ate something hoora mingin.”
Her eyes popped open as soon as she felt his body move away from hers. He had flipped his hat strategically around at some point causing him to look even younger and unfortunately even hotter.
Hoora…what? What the hell did that mean?
He continued before she could ask. “I get it. I do,” he started after a loud sigh. “The thing is; I can’t help it. I find you extremely attractive and I want you. Is that so bad?”
“YES,” she hissed out. “I work for you, and if that wasn’t awkward enough…” she trailed off. The information she gleaned earlier from Shay was still fresh in her mind. Her eyes searched the man standing in front of her looking for something, anything to give her clue about him but there was nothing. Nothing but a concentrated blue eyed stare that unnerved her.
�
��You should go,” she finally finished.
“I don’t want to.”
“You have to. You have a game to watch,” she supplied in a controlled voice.
“I’d rather go to first base with you than watch someone else do it on the telly,” he teased in a soft voice.
“You’re not even gonna make it to the batter’s box, buddy,” she stated before stepping around him. She turned and gripped his forearm and gave a slight tug. “Come on.”
He followed reluctantly.
They stopped at the front door.
“Last chance to change your mind and have your way with me,” he quipped with a devious grin.
“I’ll pass, but thanks for the offer,” she answered back with feigned sweetness.
“Hmm. Alright, listen Anne,” he leveled a serious look at her. “I have a meeting in Delaware tomorrow night but Wednesday…I was thinking of taking you to dinner,” his finger immediately rose to her lips and touched them lightly as her intake of breath heralded the ‘No’ he knew was forthcoming.
“Shut it, let me finish,” he stated sternly as his finger traced lightly from her lips to her chin before his arm dropped to his side. “There’s this restaurant in Philadelphia on a boat, supposed to be phenomenal food, from what I hear. I’ll pick you up at six.”
“No.”
“We’ll take it slow. Just dinner. No expectations. I want to get to know you better. That’s all…”
“No.”
“Stop saying no. You’re not cooperating, ya feisty brat. I’m not above showing up and stuffing you in a car.”
“I’m not above jumping from a moving vehicle,” she shot back immediately.
“See?” He threw his hands up before letting them fall and slap against his thighs. “You say stuff like that and it makes me want you more. It’s your fault.” His arm shot out lightening quick; grabbing her around the waist and dragging her to him before she could take a breath.
“You make me dafty,” he stated before smacking a kiss on her stunned mouth. He pushed her away just as quickly, steadying her body for a brief moment before turning. “You test every gram of my restraint,” he shot over his shoulder.
“Restraint is sexy,” she called out after him as he walked down the front steps. “Desperation is not,” she added as she watched him continue across her lawn. He grabbed his chest in mock pain as he kept walking. “Aw, you wound me, Anne!” he yelled back without looking at her. “Six o’clock Wednesday!” he shouted before disappearing around the corner of the house.
“I won’t be here!” she shouted back before she crossed her arms over her chest and leaned her weight against the door jamb. Her head thumped against the door frame as a loud frustrated sigh burst from her throat.
Truth was, there was nothing she wanted more than to take him up on his offer. Her rational, logical mind said no, but her body hummed at the thought of being with him.
*****
Restraint is sexy. Desperation is not.
He let out a rather loud snort accompanied by a shake of his head as he watched the scenery pass in a blur from the back seat of the car the next day. His cell decided to ring, wrenching his attention from the window to the small object in his hand.
“Yes?” he answered without looking at the display.
“Ian? It’s Lach, listen I have some news…”
“Yes?” he asked in an impatient tone.
“The building in Perth. They won’t budge on the price,” he heard through the phone.
“Right,” he stated absently before a small spark of anger seeped into his brain. “Tell them we’re not interested then,” he stated in a calm tone.
“What?! But…”
“Lach,” Ian interrupted him, “that building was designed for and built to accommodate only two types of business. Food service or pharmaceuticals. It has sat vacant for three years on the market and no one has shown the slightest bit of interest in it until now. They’re playing a game with you and we’re going to play it right back,” he stated resolutely.
“But, there’s a risk…”
“It’s a risk I’m willing to take. Tell them we’re looking at other options,” he grated out before his voice lowered. “Trust me on this,” he added as his eyes wandered back toward the passing scenery.
“If you’re sure…”
“I’m sure. Get to it,” he cut off the call and dropped the phone to his lap.
Too bad personal dilemmas didn’t follow the same course as professional ones, he mused as his brow furrowed.
Suddenly, he sat up straighter in the seat and his eyes widened before a smile formed on his lips.
It would kill him. But it would work.
Anne Bennett was worth the risk, after all.
*****
“This is such a freaking pain in the ASS,” Em stated hotly as she walked into the office from the lab. Anne knew exactly what she was talking about. Sharing equipment seriously sucked.
“I know. I’m waiting too,” she supplied before she continued tapping on the keyboard.
“Did you at least get to present the list you made?”
“I did, but I think it fell on deaf ears. I’m not sure. Rand has some ideas about shifting funding from other projects but McClellan pretty much put the kibosh on that idea. I think we’re stuck,” she admitted as she continued to type.
“Rand can convince him, although I hear McClellan was a jerk in the meeting, so maybe Rand’s losing his touch,” she heard over the clicking of the keys.
“I don’t know…” she breathed out before stilling her fingers. “If I could just get him to look at the report, I’m sure he’ll come around, it’s just…he’s just so…”
“Prickish?” Em supplied.
“Stubborn,” Anne stated.
*****
Anne ate her meal in total silence at her otherwise empty kitchen table later that night. All day, she had expected a text or an instant message, something from him but there was nothing. Of course, he had said he was going to Delaware, so he was probably busy. Still. It was a bit surprising considering his words and actions the night before.
Her body warmed at the thought of his touch. Her fingers traced her lips lightly before her hand dropped back to the table.
He looked so damn good in a baseball cap. He should wear a hat more often. And those jeans. He had a seriously toned body and she could only imagine what he would look like naked.
She cradled her chin in her hand as she moved the food around on her plate in haphazard circles. Her eyes shifted to the cell phone on the table.
*****
Could we please schedule some time
to discuss the equipment list?
“NO,” he mouthed silently to the screen on his phone as he looked at her text from the night before. He sat at his desk the next morning, his eyes sweeping from the phone to the schedule Mrs. Craigh sent him. A full day as always and that was a good thing.
He wouldn’t respond to her text. If she wanted him, let her seek him out. If his sister Lena knew about this, she’d make a comment on his lack of maturity or sanity, or both.
She didn’t know Anne.
Sometimes desperate times called for desperate measures. He read that somewhere.
Desperation is not sexy, according to Anne.
Let’s see how you like the chase, Ms. Bennett, he thought with a huge grin.
*****
“So, if you’re free for lunch, we could discuss this proposal further.”
“I don’t usually do that, besides I have a sandwich coming and a one o’ clock conference call,” he stated to the woman seated in front of him.
She was bonnie for sure, but her long, dark hair was too long, her tall body wasn’t short enough and she was too agreeable. Oh! And she was sporting at least a two carot diamond ring on her left hand.
“That’s too bad…you’re hard to catch up with and really, I feel like I’ve only scraped the surface of this proposal,” she stated.
; His eyes scanned the small red folder in front of him. Distribution, marketing plans…She was right, one hour was really not enough but it was all he could give her this week.
“Mr. McClellan?” Rand’s assistant Andrea’s voice caused him to shift his attention to his desk phone.
“Yes?” he asked after pressing a button on the keypad.
“Ms. Bennett is here to see you and I have your sandwich.”
“I’m in a meeting. Is that normal protocol to disrupt a meeting just because someone decides to pop in unscheduled?” He wished he could see her face at that moment. Hopefully she was on speaker phone and she and Anne were staring at each other with shocked expressions.
“I’d be more than happy to go to lunch with you,” he stated to the woman seated in front of him. “In fact, let’s go now.” He stood up immediately and walked past her to the door, waiting for her briefly before opening the door to find exactly what he had hoped.
Anne stood with her arms crossed in front of Andrea’s desk. She was wearing a blue wrap dress and heels that accentuated her shapely legs. He wondered briefly if she chose that particular color for him; then dismissed the thought.
“I’m going to lunch, I’ll be back for my one o’clock,” he spoke to Andrea, purposely keeping his eyes from sweeping over Anne once again. She was staring at him, he could actually feel it.
“Umm, Ok…but I have your sandwich,” she held up the small paper-wrapped object and the expression on her face was pure confusion.
“Give it to Anne. I owe her a lunch anyway,” he stated dismissively as he ushered the woman toward the front lobby.
Anne’s mouth opened to say something, anything to halt him but nothing came out. The woman that walked next to him was exquisite with her pronounced cheekbones, tall trim figure and gorgeous shiny dark hair. It cascaded down her back almost to the point where McClellan’s hand rested as he guided her around a corner cubicle and vanished from her line of vision.
Her eyes shifted back to Andrea and the outstretched parcel in her hand. “Pastrami,” Andrea stated causing an even more pronounced look of confusion to etch Anne’s features.
“The sandwich?” Andrea wiggled it a bit. “Here,” she encouraged.
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