Holly blushed, not believing someone had been sitting outside watching all that, especially Derek.
“He stopped coming out, he stopped taking calls. I put two and two together and knew he would end up backing out of our ski trip, and selfishly, I didn’t want that to happen. So I called you. I lied. You did exactly what I knew you’d do.” He sighed. “I didn’t realize how Stephen would react. I didn’t see it coming.”
She was dumbfounded. There was no way to describe which emotion was running higher right now—anger or sadness. She stared from one man to the other as she sat stiff as a board. “Let me get this straight—you decided that I should end things with Stephen without ever talking to him about it?” Derek nodded, unable to look at Holly. “I see. So when Stephen showed up that night and I did what you asked me to do, he had no idea why?” Again, Derek nodded. “Uh-huh,” she mumbled.
Holly stood up, stalked across to where Derek sat, and waited for him to look at her. “So basically because you are a spoiled, selfish bastard, my personal relationship with Stephen is over, my job is essentially lost, and my Thanksgiving was ruined. Did I forget anything?”
Derek stood, determined to reason with her. “Holly, listen…I—”
She never gave him a chance to finish. With every ounce of strength she possessed, she swung and hit him square on the jaw where Stephen had earlier. “Geez!” Derek roared. “What the hell?”
“I’ll tell you what the hell,” Holly began as she jabbed him in the chest with a stiff pointer finger. “How dare you! How dare you play with people’s lives! I never did anything to you that would deserve such horrible treatment. Ever!” She enjoyed the fact that he winced at her words. “And as for Stephen, he’s supposed to be one of your best friends, and yet you care nothing about his happiness! What kind of person does that make you?”
Derek sidestepped Holly and looked to Will for assistance, but noticed that his friend was merely standing by, grinning like a loon. “Holly, I’m sorry. You have no idea how much,” he stammered, hoping that he’d find the right words to calm her down and keep her from inflicting any more pain. “You’re right, I’m spoiled and selfish, but I swear to you that I am through getting involved in other people’s relationships. All I know is that Stephen is a miserable mess right now and needs you. Please, Holly, please go to him.”
His words sounded sincere, and as far as she could tell, he was speaking the truth. His actions, his recent actions, however, were too fresh on her mind, and Holly couldn’t imagine trusting this man yet. She turned to Will, the question in her eyes.
“In all the years that I’ve known him, Holly, I’ve never seen him like this. Will you go to him?” It was asked softly, a plea, and she was torn. How could she fix this situation? Was it possible to go back to the way things were before and trust one another again? Or had Derek ruined everything?
Holly refused to let that creep win. This was her life, and she was going to take control; she was done running. She sat back down and quietly contemplated her course of action. Within minutes, she had her plan. “Can you possibly get him out of the office at lunchtime?” she asked Will, unwilling to solicit Derek’s help.
“He’ll have a million and one excuses why he can’t leave, but tell me where to deliver him, and he’ll be there,” Will said as his grin widened. His friend wasn’t going to have any idea what hit him, but he envied the fact that Stephen had found such a strong woman who was willing to fight for him.
* * *
“Mr. Ballinger?” Judy asked tentatively as she slipped into his office. His back was to her as he sat in his chair behind the desk, staring at the city below. She walked farther into the office and stood beside him before speaking again. “Sir, your meeting this afternoon with the Jordan group has been canceled. I’ve rescheduled it for when you get back from California.”
Stephen nodded. Great, he thought. Now he’d have the whole afternoon free to focus on what Derek had done and whether Holly was ever going to come back to work. Life sucked. He turned his head and saw that Judy was still standing there. “Was there anything else, Judy?”
She took a fortifying breath and then rushed forward. “Sir, I think maybe, since your afternoon is now free, that you should get out of the office for a little while. You’ve been here for days and, well, to be honest, it’s a little weird and I’m worried about you.”
Stephen raised an eyebrow as she spoke. It was the first time she had talked to him on a personal level, and he had to give her credit for it. He had been miserable and mean and nasty to her for the better part of a week, and yet she’d never backed down. With a weary sigh, he came to realize that if he couldn’t have Holly back as his assistant, then maybe having Judy wouldn’t be quite so bad.
He gave her a weak smile. “I appreciate your concern, and you’re right, I probably should get out of the office for a little while. Hell, I should probably get out of here for a long while. Maybe I’ll…”
“Hey, buddy,” Will said cheerfully as he strolled into the office. He held his arms up in mock surrender as he advanced into the room. “I come in peace. How about some lunch that doesn’t come from a Styrofoam container?”
Stephen chuckled. “Judy and I were just discussing that, and I think that sounds good.” He stood, straightened his clothes, and walked to his en suite to make sure he looked presentable. He didn’t see the knowing glance between Will and Judy.
“You’ve probably been in those clothes for a couple of days,” Will observed. “We’ll swing by your house so you can get a fresh change of clothes and we’ll go from there. What do you say?”
Stephen hated the thought of going back to his house because it made him think of Holly. Unfortunately, Will was right, and he could no longer put off the inevitable. “Yeah, sure.” The response lacked enthusiasm, but Will pretended not to notice.
“Have a good lunch, Mr. Ballinger,” Judy said as he walked out of his office. “Everything is quiet and under control here, so don’t rush back.”
Her comment struck him as odd as he and Will walked to the elevator, but he decided to let it slide—he was near delirious from lack of sleep and fresh air, so for all he knew her comment was purely innocent.
Without question, Stephen climbed into Will’s car, almost sorry to be out of the fresh, chilled air. They made small talk on the way to the house, and when they pulled up in front, Will told Stephen that he had a call to make and that he’d wait in the car. Again without question, Stephen climbed out and let himself into the home he had not seen in almost two weeks.
And stopped cold.
There was a fire burning in the stone fireplace, and there was the wonderful aroma of food cooking in the kitchen. He turned around in time to see Will’s car speed off down the driveway. “What the hell?”
Cautiously he walked toward the kitchen, and felt like he had been sucker-punched. There stood Holly at the stove, stirring something. She looked over her shoulder at him and smiled, and for the first time in what seemed like forever, Stephen felt all right. Without moving from her spot in front of the stove, she said, “Go on up and have a shower and a shave. Lunch will be ready in thirty minutes.”
He wanted to argue; he wanted to know where she’d been and why she was here, but he was also aware of how he looked and how desperately he needed a shower and a shave. With a curt nod, he strode from the kitchen and took the stairs two at a time to get to his own room.
When he stepped inside, he saw that it had been cleaned; the last he had seen it he had left clothes strewn all over the place and had torn the sheets from the bed. Now, he saw a freshly made bed that had been turned down. There were clean clothes piled on the corner of the bed for him to change into. Glancing around, he noticed the fresh flowers in a crystal vase on his dresser and that every surface was clear of dust and clutter. Upon walking into his bathroom, he saw that fresh towels were waiting for him and that this room, too,
had been cleaned.
It felt good to be home. Stephen showered and changed and was back in the kitchen in twenty-seven minutes. Holly was putting the finishing touches on the table and turned to greet him shyly.
“How was your shower?” she asked as she sat down.
“It felt great, thank you.” His eyes feasted on her, not quite believing she was really here. Briefly he glanced at the table and took note of the food: some sort of soup, crusty French bread, and spinach salad. “Everything looks wonderful.”
She nodded her thanks and began to eat. They sat silently and enjoyed the meal, neither quite sure what to say or where to begin. When it began to feel awkward, Holly spoke. “Will said you were having trouble with the Texas deal and with Gideon. Have you gotten it straightened out?”
The sound of her voice was so soothing that Stephen felt all the tension leave his body. “Everything is fine; it always was, I guess. I panicked. No big deal.” He was going for light and breezy, but Holly looked at him with disbelief.
“You slept in the office for a week, Stephen. In all the years I’ve worked with you, you’ve never slept in the office for more than a random night. What’s going on?” She reached across the table and gently laid her hand on top of his, her voice laced with concern.
The simple gesture, the gentle touch of her hand, gave Stephen the courage to say what had been on his mind since she’d sent him away. “Why did you leave like that? Why didn’t you talk to me about Derek’s phone call?” His tone lacked accusation, and for that Holly was grateful.
“I had no idea what to say, Stephen,” she began. “He caught me off guard, and I figured that he knew you better than I did and maybe you just didn’t know how to end things with us.” She looked down at their now-joined hands and then back at him. “You know, you’re not the greatest at breaking up with women, and I should know; you used to leave it to me to clean up after your breakups.” She laughed softly, and it didn’t take long for him to join her.
“Fair enough, but still…you left. No phone call, no explanation…you were gone. I thought if nothing else we still had a decent working relationship, decent enough that you should have been able to come to me and tell me that you were going away for a while and leaving me with Judy.”
“I talked to her several times while I was gone. You didn’t have to take it out on her, you know,” she softly chided. “I know I handled this badly, but I was so hurt. How could I explain to my boss that I’d had to get out of town because the man I was involved with had hurt me? Especially when those two men were one and the same?” She looked up at him as her eyes filled with tears. “I know now that I should have confronted you, but…honestly, I was too hurt.”
“Why? Why were you so upset, Holly?”
Was the man dense, or was he going to punish her by making her say out loud what she didn’t want to? Stephen looked at her expectantly. Holly pulled her hand from his, rose from the table with her plate and glass, and took them over to the sink. She had a strong urge to smash them into a million pieces in the sink because he’d put her in this position. Turning abruptly back to him, she spoke. “Because I love you, Stephen! There. Are you satisfied?”
He rose slowly, walked over to her, and placed his hands on her shoulders to turn her toward him. Stephen studied her face intently before pulling her close and crushing his mouth over hers. It had been too long since he’d held her, since he’d felt her heart beating against his own. His mouth left hers briefly as he looked down at her upturned face. Holly’s eyes slowly opened. “I was devastated when you left, Holly, and not because of any stupid contract or client but because I love you.” His voice was thick with emotion, and he loved the way her eyes went soft at his words. “I wanted to believe that I was upset from a business angle, but the truth is that nothing felt right, nothing worked without you. I missed you.”
He kissed her again, deeply, and then carried her into the living room where he lay down beside her on the sofa. Their bodies aligned, they kissed. Stephen’s hands trailed up and down the length of her as if to reassure himself that she was really there.
“I missed you,” she whispered between kisses. “I’m so sorry for leaving, for not trusting you…”
Stephen held her face in his hands, reveling in the softness of her skin. “I didn’t give you any reason to trust me, did I?” It was more a statement than a question. “You were only responding to what you knew, and I am so sorry for all that happened and for what Derek did. I did get to hit him again, and that made me feel a little bit better.” He kissed her nose, and she giggled.
“So that’s where he got the bruise from,” she said and then confessed, “I hit him, too. Right on the same bruise.”
Stephen couldn’t help it; he let out a hearty laugh. How he loved this woman! “You hit Derek?” Holly nodded and joined in his laughter. “What did he do?”
“He wasn’t happy, I can tell you that!” He pulled her close and sighed as the laughter subsided. Holly snuggled in close and felt content for the first time since…ever.
She lost track of how long they lay there together like that. A part of her wanted to encourage Stephen to take her upstairs, but then she thought of all the nights he had slept on the sofa in his office and knew that, if anything, the man needed sleep. Carefully, she rose from the sofa and held out her hands to him. Wordlessly he rose and followed her up the stairs to his bedroom.
It had seemed a lifetime since they’d last been in this room together. Holly came to stand in front of him and silently lifted his shirt above his head. Gently she pushed him down on the mattress and went about getting him undressed. If Stephen noticed that she was doing this without the slightest hint of seduction, he chose to say nothing. When he was down to his briefs, Holly pulled the blankets up to cover him. “Sleep, Stephen,” she whispered. “You need to get some sleep in your own bed.” She leaned over and switched off the small bedside lamp.
Stephen reached out and touched Holly’s arm. “Stay with me.” That had been her plan, but it pleased her to hear him ask. With a smile, she walked over to his dresser, tugged open a drawer, and pulled out a T-shirt before heading into the bathroom with a promise to be right back. “Spoilsport,” he mumbled as he settled comfortably into the bed he’d abandoned for so long.
Holly had been gone no longer than three minutes, and yet when she approached the bed, she found Stephen sound asleep. She ran a hand gently through his hair and kissed his cheek before walking around to the other side of the bed and crawling in beside him. She hadn’t slept well either since she had sent him away that night. Even back home in the bed she’d had her entire life, she’d been unable to get a good night’s sleep.
Pulling the blankets up over herself, Holly snuggled in next to Stephen and was quietly thrilled when he reached for her and pulled her close. Sighing with deep relaxation, Holly didn’t take long to join Stephen in sleep.
Chapter 13
It was the nuzzling that caused Holly to smile and open her eyes. Stephen was placing whisper-soft kisses on her cheek and neck. The room was pitch-black as she turned toward him and wrapped herself around him, pulling him close. “I missed you,” he murmured between kisses.
“Show me,” Holly replied and then gloried in the wonder of it all as he did just that.
The next time Holly opened her eyes, the room was sunlit. A quick glance at the bedside clock showed it to be seven fifteen. If things were on the original Ballinger’s schedule, Stephen would need to get his files and paperwork in order so he could fly out tomorrow. She had no idea how much he had changed his plans, and so with business in mind, she quietly called his name and shook his shoulder to wake him up.
“Do you need to get into the office and prep for the trip tomorrow?” she asked when he finally opened his eyes.
Stephen stretched and pulled himself up into a semi-sitting position before he answered. “I postponed the trip until Fr
iday.” He scrubbed a hand over his face, still fighting for alertness. “I couldn’t seem to work up the enthusiasm to go and do the job. That puts me behind getting to Gideon as well, but…” His voice trailed off.
Needing to get up and stretch, Holly kicked away the blankets and rose from the bed. “Okay, so that only puts you a couple of days behind. Last I checked everything was ready to go. Why don’t you take a few days to get caught up on some sleep, and by the time you leave on Friday, I’ll have had time to go over everything with Judy and take care of things here.”
The blank expression on his face sent a wave of panic through her. True, they never did discuss their working relationship last night; Holly assumed that Stephen would want her back as his assistant. The only sound she heard other that the beating of her heart was that of the antique bedside clock.
Uneasy with the silence, Holly began to ramble. “I mean, I know that you’re probably still mad about my taking off like I did, and I’m sure that Judy has done fine…if you want her to stay on as your assistant, I’d completely understand. I’d be disappointed, but I’d understand.”
Why wouldn’t he say anything?
Holly stared at Stephen expectantly and hoped that he couldn’t see her tremble. This was it. It was go time, all or nothing. As if he had all the time in the world, Stephen rose from the bed and walked over to her. Wrapping his arms around her, he pulled Holly close and gently rocked back and forth for a moment before pulling back to look at her.
“So you’re telling me that you want your job back, the same job that you abandoned without notice.”
Holly swallowed the lump in her throat and nodded. “Yes, please.”
Stephen released her, walked to the bathroom, and shut the door. Holly wasn’t sure what his response would be, but she certainly didn’t expect him to walk away! When he stepped back out, he walked over to the bed and sat back down, seeming to enjoy her nervousness.
In the Eye of the Storm / Catering to the CEO Page 15