In the Eye of the Storm / Catering to the CEO

by Samantha Chase

  What the…?

  As if reading her mind, Adam gave her an equally thorough look and smiled a truly sexy smile that had Cassie stammering and wishing him a good night as she walked out the door, telling him she was needed downstairs. Maybe he believed her, maybe he didn’t, but right now all she knew was that this new footing they were on was way more confusing and arousing than their previous working relationship had been.

  With a quick wave to Grace, Cassie raced for the elevator and didn’t breathe with any ease until the doors closed and she was safely on her way to the main floor and headed for the doors that would take her outside. She needed fresh air; she needed to be out of this building and to focus on the job, not the man.

  Easier said than done.

  By the time five o’clock rolled around on Friday evening, Cassie was in full-blown work mode. The room looked stunning, and guests were beginning to arrive. She spotted Adam and Grace by the door greeting everyone as they came in.

  Within fifteen minutes, hors d’oeuvres were being passed butler-style by tuxedoed servers, along with champagne. The bar was serving mixed drinks, and by five thirty, bread and a field greens salad were placed at all one hundred seats. Cassie stood in the kitchen and watched every tray that left for the ballroom to make sure it met her standards. Her staff worked quietly and efficiently, and by the time Adam took the stage at seven thirty, tables were cleared, the kitchen was being cleaned and packed up from dessert, and fresh coffee was making the rounds.

  It was only then that Cassie allowed herself to sit for five minutes to catch her breath. Katie put a plate of food in front of her, but she merely picked at it. She felt the twinge that she had hoped wouldn’t hit tonight and quietly made her way to the storage closet where she’d placed her purse earlier. Knowing her sister well, Katie followed.

  “Are you okay?”

  Cassie took a deep breath. “Hopefully, I will be in a few minutes.” She swallowed a pill with some water and went to the kitchen to try to eat a bit more. The painkiller seemed to work better on a full stomach.

  “Look, we’ve got this under control. I know the breakdown and setup routine as well as you. Go home and rest, please, Cass,” Katie said.

  Shaking her head, she refused to leave. This was an important event and one that she had fought with Adam over, and she was determined to see it through to the end. An hour later, Cassie heard the round of applause and knew that the presentation was over, the music would resume playing, and the guests would mingle and socialize for the next ninety minutes before she could begin to clear them out and start the setup for the breakfast portion of the retreat.

  There was a lot of movement and talking; the kitchen was a hot spot for activity. Cassie didn’t think anyone would notice when she slumped against the wall and fought the wave of pain that hit.

  Strong arms came around her before she could comprehend that she was going down. “Cassandra? Are you all right?”

  “Adam? What are you doing in the kitchen?” Even in her weakened state, she felt panicked at the thought that something was so wrong out in the ballroom that he felt the need to come to the kitchen. “Is everything all right? The food—”

  “Don’t worry about the damn party. What’s going on with you?” By this point, Katie had noticed what was happening and rushed over.

  “Damn it, Cass!”

  “How long has she been feeling like this?” he snapped at Katie.

  “About an hour.” Katie sighed. “I told her to leave, but she refused.”

  “Don’t talk about me as if I’m not here,” Cassie hissed. She looked up at Adam, her eyes ablaze. “You hired me to do a job, and I am here to make sure it gets done to both our satisfaction.”

  “At the risk of your own health?” The sight of her nearly fainting had sent him racing across the room. In truth, he had come to the kitchen, something he never did, to congratulate her on a job well done and to thank her for managing to add some of the items he had requested to the menu. The food had been superb, and the service was top-notch. Overall, he had been very pleased. Now all he felt was concern for Cassie’s health and disgust with himself because he knew it was his fault she was working herself so hard.

  “You know nothing about my health, so please spare me the dramatics, Adam.”

  “Cassie, please,” Katie interrupted, “go home. I’ve got this covered. Take my car…I’ll pick it up when we bring the van to the shop later.”

  “She can’t possibly drive like this!” Adam turned to look at Katie as if she’d lost her mind. “I’ll drive her home.”

  “Just a minute,” Cassie said, suddenly snapping out of her wave of pain long enough to be annoyed with Adam’s tone. “I don’t need you making arrangements for me, and you can’t leave! This is your event!”

  “And as such, I can leave whenever I want. My presentation is done, and if I stay, all I’ll have to deal with is people kissing up to me about my words. Believe me, I can live without the accolades.” With that he had Cassie bundled into her coat and tucked against his side as they exited the kitchen. He’d left Katie in charge of getting a message to Grace about where he was going. Within minutes he had Cassie in his car and they were heading to her apartment.

  He could tell even in the dim light that she was battling between being angry at him for making her leave and true pain from her condition. Whatever she was feeling, however, she was keeping to herself, refusing to look at him.

  In fact, she didn’t utter a single word until he opened the door that led to the stairs to her apartment. “Thank you for getting me home. Good night.” She didn’t have enough strength to fight him when she went to shut the door in his face. He merely stepped around her, locked the door, and helped her up the stairs. Cassie wanted to scream at him to leave, but she knew there was no way she could find the energy to do so.

  Once up the stairs, Cassie kicked off her shoes as Adam took her coat from her and hung it up. Without looking at him, she walked to her bedroom, grabbed a pair of pajamas, and went into the bathroom to change. Adam kept himself busy in her kitchen making Cassie a cup of tea and wondered what the hell he was supposed to do now. He had no idea how to take care of anyone, and really, he didn’t want to know. He had no idea what he could do to help Cassie right now.

  She came out of the bathroom in a pair of pink flannel pajama pants and a white tank top. Maybe she’d hoped that he’d be gone by now, but he wasn’t, and he wasn’t going to leave until he knew she was all right. “I made you some tea,” he said feebly.

  Cassie stopped and looked at him suspiciously. “Why?”

  He shrugged. “It seemed like the thing to do.” When she made no attempt to take the mug he’d indicated, he said, “Is there something I can get you? Something to eat? A painkiller? A heating pad?”

  Cassie sighed wearily as she headed toward her bedroom. “Actually, yes, the heating pad…it’s in the linen closet.” Adam found it and followed her into the bedroom, where she curled up in the fetal position on the bed.

  He wanted to scold her and tell her how foolish she was to stay at work when she was clearly in pain, but he knew that while he’d feel better getting in a rant, it wouldn’t help Cassie any. Finding an outlet, he plugged in the pad, turned it to high, and then left the room to grab the cup of tea he’d made. Adam gently placed the mug on the table next to her bed and heard a faint “thank you.”

  Walking around to the opposite side of the bed, he flicked off the lamp and managed to pull the blankets around her with minimal shifting. Next, he picked up the now-warm heating pad, knelt on the bed, reached over her trim form, and placed the pad over her belly. She purred with relief.

  Cassie took the pad from him to position it better and finally let herself relax. She was home and in her own bed, and with the help of the heating pad, she would be okay. She snuggled in deeper as Adam pulled the blanket over her ever so gently. His c
onsideration brought tears to her eyes that, if anyone asked, she’d say were from the pain; she most certainly didn’t want to cry in front of him.

  And yet she couldn’t stop herself from turning her head to look at him. “I don’t know what to say,” she whispered. “I wanted to be mad at you for taking over and making me leave, but now that I’m here, I know it’s what I needed.” Even with only the light coming through the doorway from the kitchen, she could see that the expression on his face was new.

  It wasn’t full of anger or arrogance, it was compassionate. It was tender. “Rest, Cassandra.”

  “But…” Cassie wasn’t sure what she was going to say, but she watched Adam walk out the door and felt oddly saddened. It wouldn’t be appropriate for him to stay, and yet she knew she didn’t want to be alone.

  The kitchen went black, and she heard the lock on her door catch. The first tear fell without warning, and Cassie curled a little tighter around the heating pad. Normally she didn’t mind being alone when she was in pain like this, but tonight…tonight it would have been nice to have someone stay with her until she fell asleep.

  The mattress dipped, and before she could turn, she felt Adam’s full length behind her. “What are you…?”

  “Shh…rest, Cassandra. Try to sleep. If you need anything, I’ll be right here.” He placed a strong hand on top of the heating pad and held it close to her so she could relax her own tired grip on it and get more comfortable.

  His body was warm against her back as much as the heating pad was against her front. Cassie wiggled slightly and aligned their bodies better until she found she could barely hold her eyes open any longer. She felt secure for the first time in what seemed like forever. “Thank you…”

  Her words were barely a whisper, but Adam found that they packed a powerful punch.

  Chapter 5

  Cassie slept deeply through the night and only awoke to remove the heating pad that was getting uncomfortable. As soon as the pad was gone, Adam’s hand returned to take its place. The illuminated clock next to the bed told her it was nearing five thirty. Adam was stirring behind her, moving carefully.

  Wanting to turn around and thank him once again, she blinked but heard Adam leave the room and go into the bathroom. Maybe it would be better to let this be. It was an awkward situation to be sure, and the more Cassie thought about it, the more she realized she needed to let it settle in her mind before talking to Adam about it, even if that talk would only be to say thank you again.

  Adam splashed some cold water on his face to wake himself up. He was due back at the office at nine for breakfast and to start the next session of his corporate retreat. Cassie was due to cater both breakfast and lunch, and he was unsure whether to wake her up or let her sleep. Stepping out of the bathroom, he looked into her room and saw she hadn’t moved. Surely her staff could handle the breakfast. He had great confidence that Cassie’d return for the lunch service; he grabbed his shoes and coat and walked quietly to the door.

  There was an almost inexplicable pull to return to the bedroom, but Adam thought better of it. This could be the situation he needed to end this working relationship and reclaim his peace. There was a very real possibility that Cassie was going to be embarrassed that he’d stayed the night. If she was uncomfortable enough, maybe she’d want to end their working relationship, and Adam could go about finding a new event planner and caterer who didn’t argue with him or speak to him in a way that, even now, had his temper flaring.

  Out of the corner of his eye, he saw movement on the bed, and the temper faded. Cassie hadn’t done anything that bad; Adam did not appreciate people speaking their minds to him and disobeying his wishes, that’s all. If he were completely honest with himself, he’d agree that the event had gone perfectly the night before without all his changes and that Cassie had done the job to his needs and expectations. How could he stay angry about that?

  Opening the door quietly, he slipped out and walked down the stairs, realizing that he had no answers, and at the bottom nearly collided with Katie.

  “Adam! What are you doing here?”

  “Your sister was, um…in pretty bad shape. I fell asleep on the couch, you know, in case she needed anything.” This was worse than coming in past curfew and getting caught by your parents.

  “How is she this morning?”

  Adam wished he’d gotten the hell out of here last night. It was bad enough he’d spent the night; he didn’t feel like getting the third degree from anyone, especially not a twenty-year-old! “She’s still sleeping. I didn’t want to wake her.” Making his excuses about needing to get home and get ready for this morning’s session, Adam got in his car and pulled away from the shop as if his life depended on it.

  Last night he was supposed to go home and tweak his speech for today and get a good night’s sleep. Instead, he’d slept in a strange bed, fully clothed, while holding a very stiff and miserable Cassie. He’d have to avoid her today, that’s all. Blow her off and pretend he hadn’t shared her bed.

  A quick shower and shave had Adam feeling refreshed. He’d rehearsed his speech during the whole process and was confident in the day to come. The point of this retreat was to energize his staff for the upcoming year. The plan was to branch out into several more countries, and to do that, his staff had to be as excited about the company’s new products and services as he was. They needed to understand how he created the systems and how to use them. He planned on doubling his fortune.

  He was prepared for the leeches to come out of the woodwork when that happened. Like his father had all those years ago. Adam looked in the mirror and straightened his tie as he frowned at the thought of the man who had deserted him and his mother and then showed up when Adam had first made a name for himself in the business world. The old man had walked away from his wife and ten-year-old son in the hopes of climbing the corporate ladder unhindered. It must have worked because for years, William Lawrence had led a very good, very pampered existence. Unfortunately, like most corporate stooges, he had gotten greedy, made some bad investments, and lost it all. When Adam was twenty-five and made his first million with the LSS 3.0 security system, his father had come calling.

  And begging. The man had groveled and begged to have his family back, claiming he’d been a shell of a man without them and that he’d made a terrible mistake. When both Adam and Bev had hesitated in opening their hearts to him, he’d turned bitter and flat-out asked for money. Adam had kicked him out and made it abundantly clear that he was never to contact them again. Bev had been devastated; Adam had learned that love didn’t exist. It was all about the money. Well, he had money—lots of it. He didn’t need love.

  Sure, his mother loved him, and that relationship was never in doubt, but other than Bev, he didn’t have anyone else in his life, and Adam doubted that real love existed out there. Even knowing that Bev was claiming to be in love with Stephen Jacobs, he had his doubts. Maybe they were both lonely and looking for companionship. At least have the guts to call it what it was! As long as Stephen didn’t come to him for any loans or investments, Adam approved of the situation.

  Wiping the Jacobs family from his mind, Adam strode into the ballroom, which was now set up to serve breakfast. Most of last night’s decorations were still set up around the room, but the tables were clear of flowers and candles and now held information packets for the day’s seminars.

  Spotting Grace, Adam called her over to their table next to the stage and went over last-minute details. Within minutes, employees began to file in. The smell of coffee and pastries filled the air, and although breakfast was going to be done buffet-style, there were still a handful of servers walking around assisting Adam’s staff. A quick glance at his watch showed that it was eight forty-five, and he was about to stand and get a plate of food for himself when he saw her.

  Cassie.

  She was smiling and talking to two of his sales staff, and both men seem
ed to be enthralled with whatever she was saying. Adam had to stop himself from going over to them, demanding they find their seats, and telling Cassie he wasn’t paying her to talk to his people. Even in his head that sounded unreasonable and over the top.

  Adam frowned. He never minded thinking himself to be forceful with his people; it was how he had achieved the level of success he had. Somehow, acting like that in front of Cassie seemed mean. His mother’s words from their ride home came to him. “I can’t imagine you being so hard on anyone, especially a woman.” Apparently, his mother didn’t know the real Adam.

  Waiting until Cassie finished her conversation with her two admirers and walked into the kitchen, Adam quickly made it across the room to grab himself something to eat before he had to begin this morning’s session. Back at the table, Grace was already eating.

  “I know Cassie doesn’t do all the baked goods herself, but she chose a fabulous assortment, don’t you think?”

  Adam merely grumbled a reply and didn’t notice the smug look on his assistant’s face. “Everyone is still talking about how wonderful everything was.”

  Adam still wasn’t taking the bait as he finished his cinnamon Danish. “I think it’s time to get started.” He drank his coffee and headed to the stage. Straightening his folder of paperwork, Adam looked into the crowd and saw her again. Dammit. Why the sight of her flustered him, he wasn’t sure. All he knew was that right now he wanted to skip his introduction to his staff and ask how Cassie was feeling.

  Not exactly the actions of a man trying to get rid of a woman.

  Shaking his head as if to clear it, Adam began, “Good morning. I want to tell you all about my plans for LSS’s expansion in the next three years…”

  Cassie listened to the man speak and smiled to herself. Here, in this environment, Adam Lawrence was a man in charge. Last night, however, while dealing with a woman in pain, he’d looked anything but confident. She still couldn’t believe Adam had actually left his conference and stayed the night to take care of her. That was a side of him she wasn’t sure what to do with. The more she saw it, the more attracted she became.