Yeah, okay, probably not. No matter what the circumstance, he probably would not have confronted this she-devil. It was becoming abundantly clear that the woman he’d thought he’d met the night of the party did not exist. She must have been a figment of his imagination, because the woman before him showed no signs of similarity with the sexy, passionate, funny, charismatic vixen in the taxi and in his bed.
Her bed.
Whatever. Same difference. The point was—either she’d been on drugs that night which had majorly altered her attitude, or he’d had more to drink than he’d thought and had developed a serious case of drunk goggles.
She heaved a sigh as her lips hitched to the side in another sour expression. “Well, you’re here and you’re on time, so I guess that’s something.”
Yup, definitely drunk goggles. He blinked in incomprehension at her words and her disparaging tone. What the hell had he ever done to deserve this kind of treatment?
He was about to get irritated.
He’d reached that point where he could let his internal dialogue go rogue and he could rant and rave and work himself into a tizzy about how unfair this was. Or he could suck it up.
Just like he wasn’t one to wallow, he also wasn’t one to rush into anger. He hated getting angry, it made him feel queasy and he avoided it at all costs.
He tried to look at Kennedy objectively, taking in the hostile way her arms were crossed. Hostile, or defensive. Sure, she was behaving like a bitch, but she’d clearly been caught off guard as well. Maybe she just didn’t handle surprises well.
He made a mental note to never ever catch this woman unawares ever again.
Besides, Kat liked this woman, and Kat had excellent taste in people, which meant Kennedy couldn’t be all that bad. He tried to imagine how Kat would react to this woman before him.
She’d laugh. Kat was awesome at finding the humor in any given situation. He decided then and there that he’d try to be like Kat. He’d forget all about the other night when she’d tossed him and his shoes into the hallway and he’d give her another shot. He’d do his very best to look at her the way Kat did, with an air of amusement.
She wasn’t crazy and coldhearted, she was funny. A character.
His smile turned slightly more genuine and he watched as she narrowed her eyes at him like he’d just offended her mother.
“Come on, follow me,” she said as she turned her back on him and led the way down a long, narrow hallway.
Caleb bit back a sigh.
Yup, she was laugh riot.
Chapter Seven
This was a nightmare. This whole week had been a disaster. Kennedy frowned at her computer screen, wishing with all her might that the force of her glare might make this new problem go away.
It did not.
The problem du jour came in the form of an email from one of the network’s stars, a Mr. Hermithead. That was not his real name, obviously, but he’d created the character which was the star of a show with the same name—a show that was ludicrous in its simplicity but which was adored by children around the world. He was basically a mime, or maybe some version of a clown? She didn’t know. She didn’t particularly care. All that mattered was that the show had great ratings, and the star was a flakey douche.
She’d just received yet another email that he had fallen off the face of the earth, failing to show up for his scheduled taping. Again.
This should fall on casting, but since they were understaffed, they tended to wash their hands of talent issues the moment the contracts were signed.
Which meant, she picked up the slack. The good news was, the company owned the rights to Mr. Hermithead so this flakey actor could be replaced. But where to find a last minute replacement? And would the network go for it—this guy basically was the whole show. Sure there was a bit of animation thrown in and some irritatingly catchy jingles, but it basically came down to that guy.
She had a feeling her higher ups would fire her immediately if she dared to fire the star. She wanted to gag at that term. God, she hated actors.
There was a knock on her door before it swung open. She bit back a sigh. Speak of an actor and he doth appear. Hovering in her doorway was Caleb, also known as the hottest intern known to man.
“Can I come in?”
Could she say no? She wished she could, but as his supervisor, that was probably out of the question. “Sure.”
She didn’t have to sound happy about it.
Caleb strode into the small office and sat down across from her, stretching his long legs out ahead of him and crossing them at the ankles. He folded his hands neatly in his lap. He looked completely at ease sitting across from her. Happy to be there, even, though she’d been nothing but rude to him from the moment she’d seen him in the reception area earlier this week.
A flicker of guilt flared up in her gut but she suppressed it. This man was a major reason her week had been so hellish. That shocker had been the worst way to start a Monday morning and then it had only gotten worse from there.
Every time she saw him she was reminded of that night—that total mistake of a night when she’d acted like a lunatic. What had come over her? That wasn’t her. She should have known it would come back to bite her in the ass.
Every time she saw him, which was often, she was also reminded of just how hot that night had been.
Oh who was she kidding? Every time she saw Caleb she wanted to jump his bones. The aching need to touch him again was debilitating, which was part of the reason she turned into such a bitch whenever he was around.
She resented the hell out of this effect he had on her.
She also hated that he didn’t seem to feel it too. He was so incredibly calm, cool, and collected. All the time. He seemed amused by her bad behavior, which only made her feel worse about being such a bitch, which then made her act even more like an asshole.
She was stuck in a sick cycle, one she wanted out of. The ridiculous thing—the thing that made her want to reach over and smack that smile off his face, was that she’d figured she’d get over this stupid attraction by now.
After the initial shock had abated, reason had kicked in. This Caleb was an actor, which she hated, he was clearly lacking in ambition since he was now her intern, and he lacked all the practicality which she needed in a partner. Not to mention that as an actor, he must be a conceited ass. So, logic dictated that once she spent some time around him, she would not only be immune to his good looks and easy charm, but she’d hate his guts. She’d be filled with disgust at the sight of him.
But now, glaring past the irritating email which was still on her screen, she took in his friendly smile and the warmth in his eyes.
Goddammit, she couldn’t hate him. It wasn’t even easy to dislike him. If anything, her plan had backfired. She’d spent a good deal of time with him this week and somehow, inexplicably… she liked him even more.
God, this week sucked balls.
“What can I do for you?” she asked. Her tone was so curt it was rude even for her. She’d never been one for fake pleasantries, but she wasn’t typically outright rude either. She strove for professionalism in her office, which meant reserved but polite. With Caleb, she’d been anything but polite and the fact that he upset her typical demeanor, at the office no less, made her even more annoyed with him.
Again—sick cycle.
Yet again, he seemed to overlook her bad behavior, his kind smile never faltering as he met her gaze with those disturbingly blue eyes of his. No man should have eyes so pretty, or a jawline so perfect, or a face that handsome.
For the love of all that was holy, no man should be this attractive in real life. And if by some chance they were, they should have the ego to match. Especially if they were an actor!
But clearly Caleb hadn’t gotten the memo. He grinned as if seeing her brightened his day. That was her, Miss Mary Sunshine. The thought made her frown deepen until it actually kind of hurt her cheek muscles.
Taking a deep breath
she forcibly relaxed her face, hoping to achieve a bored but polite air.
“I wanted to see what you have in store for me next week.” His smile grew and he honestly sound enthusiastic.
Ugh.
He was an intern, for God’s sake, even the other eager interns who were all ten years younger than him and insanely wide-eyed and optimistic didn’t display Caleb’s levels of joy with this gig. Not only did he not have the giant ego that she’d expected but he seemed to have no problem doing the grunt work that no one else wanted to do. Needed someone to run out for coffees? Caleb’s your man. Have a storage closet that needs cleaning out? Caleb would be happy to do it. Need some files sorted and some tedious data entry done? Caleb can’t wait to get started!
After she’d given him the requisite tour on Monday and had him fill out the paperwork, she’d dropped him off with the staff in accounting, who’d been way too eager to show him the ropes in their department. It seemed several of the women in that department were fans of his soap opera character and were dazzled senseless at the sight of him.
She’d watched Caleb’s reaction, expecting some sort of strutting peacock action. She’d hoped to catch a sight of that gargantuan ego, but no. He’d ducked his head, graciously and humbly thanking them for their praise, and then he’d started asking them questions about what they did in their department. Sure enough, the topic quickly turned to work and Caleb eagerly dove right in.
A very similar experience happened on Tuesday when she dropped him off in marketing, on Wednesday when he’d spent time with the sound and lights crews, and so on and so on. Now it was Friday and he was… what? Eager to hear what new grunt work she’d cooked up for him the following week?
She didn’t buy it. But then again, he’d given her no reason to doubt his veracity.
She narrowed her eyes at him now, hoping irrationally that he was here to complain about this week’s tasks, though she knew better by now. He seemed to be genuinely happy here. There was no way he was going to quit.
She bit back a sigh. If she was being honest with herself, that was what she’d hoped for at the start of the week. That his pride wouldn’t be able to take this new, lowly role in life after being treated like a star for so many years.
But she supposed it was time to let that dream die. “I don’t know yet,” she said in all honesty. “I’ll let you know on Monday morning.”
The intern program was relatively new and just like her casting issues, the interns had been thrust upon her when the higher ups discovered that their new HR executive was an over-achiever and a workaholic.
She didn’t mind… usually. But after a week like this one she was tempted to push back and remind the executives-that-be that she’d been hired to assist the human resources department, not pick up the slack for everyone who couldn’t pull their weight.
The truth was, the other interns were on a set path that she’d laid out from the start of their semester. But since Caleb started late, his role was more amorphous.
He was one more headache in her life, in so many ways.
“That’s fine,” he said gamely. Of course he did. Of course it was fine by him. He was so goddamn easy to please it was going to kill her.
She waited for him to move. When he didn’t she arched one brow, giving him what she hoped was a politely inquiring look. She tried her damnedest to rid her devious mind of all mental images of this man naked.
The more she tried the more her brain seemed intent on flooding her mind’s eye with the delicious image.
What the fuck was wrong with her? It had been one night. One. And it wasn’t supposed to be anything lasting. It wasn’t like they’d dated or anything, he was just—
“Would you like to go out with me tonight?”
She stared at him in a shock that was so complete, her brain stopped working. “What?”
Maybe she’d heard him wrong. Surely this guy didn’t want to go out with her, not after the way she’d been acting. Hell, she didn’t even like herself after the way she’d been acting.
His grin turned sheepish and for the first time all week he looked a little uncomfortable as he shrugged. “I don’t know if that’s inappropriate or against the rules….”
It wasn’t. She knew the rules on colleagues dating better than anyone. When she’d started here she’d been asked to review and update the policy. While it might be frowned upon, it wasn’t against policy.
He flashed her a grin that made her panties melt. For the first time in her life she understood that phrase.
“I’m meeting up with Kat and a few other friends after work and wondered if you might like to join us. We’re celebrating my first week as an intern.”
Oh. Her stomach fell but she refused to admit that it was disappointment. It wasn’t like she wanted to go on a date with him. Policy or not, there was no way in hell she would ever date this guy. One, he was an actor. She hated actors. Two, he was clearly not practical or ambitious, the two qualities she most respected and sought out in a relationship. And last but not least, she had Patrick.
Feeling slightly more in control of her brain and her stomach, she shook her head. “I don’t think so.” Belatedly she added, “But thank you for the invite.”
Again, she expected him to leave, or to at least make some move in that direction.
Yet again, he stayed put. “Why not?”
She stared at him, at that easy smile. Was he really challenging her on this? Oddly, she liked that. Most people were afraid of her, especially people who worked under her. No one challenged her. Ever.
Before she could come up with an answer, he continued, shifting in his seat so he was leaning forward, presenting his case. “Kat will be there, so you’ll at least know one other person aside from me.”
Ah yes, because this was a group hang. Not a date.
And that was not disappointment making her chest tight and uncomfortable.
“Look,” he said with a sigh. “Kat likes you… a lot. And I’m one of her best friends so I think it’s safe to say she likes me too. And I’m pretty sure we both like Kat so maybe, just maybe, if we got to know one another, we might like each other too.”
She blinked at him. His logic wasn’t hard to follow but it brought up questions for her… questions she didn’t want to know the answers to. Did that mean he didn’t like her now? Was he saying he wanted to get to know her so he could possibly like her?
She gave herself a mental eye roll. Of course that’s what he was saying. And why would he like her, she’d given him no reason to.
Her mind flashed back to that night. Except that night he’d liked her…
She was so caught up in her own weird anxieties and super hot memories that she stopped paying attention to him.
Another sigh caught her attention and when she looked up this time his smile seemed… sad. Heartfelt and a little desperate. “Kennedy, I know we got off on the wrong foot, so to speak.”
She felt her lips twitched up in a grin at his sheepish expression. It was an awkward, nervous smile because she knew what he was referring to. The elephant in the room. That night.
He shifted in his seat and glanced down at the floor before looking up again and meeting her gaze.
Good lord, those eyes were shocking. They looked almost transparent, like she could see into him and he could see into her soul or something. The effect was hypnotizing. No wonder he was so compelling on the screen.
Not that she’d know, but people had mentioned it.
“I’m sorry.” His gaze wouldn’t let her look away. His brow furrowed in earnest sincerity. “Clearly I did something wrong… that night. And whatever it was, I’m truly sorry. I never meant to take advantage or offend you in any way—”
“You didn’t,” she said quickly. Holy shit, was that what he’d thought? Ugh. Guilt and shame were impossible to avoid as they slammed into her with all the force of a semi. She’d been such an unfailing bitch this week. Hell, she’d been a bitch that next morning too. And he ha
dn’t done anything to deserve it.
It had been her. The mistakes were hers and if she was any sort of grown ass woman, she needed to own them.
That night shouldn’t have happened. She’d been weak and stupid—but she was also a grown woman who was allowed to sleep with men and not feel guilty about it. She’d just never really let herself address the fact that she had been feeling guilty.
It wasn’t like Patrick expected her to be true to him. They’d outright said they would be free to pursue other relationships while he was gone. But even though she’d said that, she hadn’t planned on doing so. And she certainly hadn’t planned on sleeping with some random stranger who shared a taxi with her.
So yeah, she’d been feeling guilty and dirty and wrong—whether it was warranted or not. But either way, she shouldn’t have taken it out on him. She cleared her throat. Oh crap, this wasn’t going to be easy. “I’m the one who should be apologizing,” she said.
His shock was so exaggerated it was almost funny.
“I—I’ve behaved badly ever since… that night,” she said, clearing her throat to get the words out. “I’m sorry.”
She could have gone on. She probably should have given some sort of explanation but that would have meant opening up to him, and she was definitely not willing to do that.
After a moment of stunned silence, he spoke up. “So then, will you come out for drinks with us?”
She let out a little surprised laugh. “What? Why?”
He shrugged and then reached out his hand to shake hers. “Because it’s time we got to know each other. We should be friends for Kat’s sake, if nothing else.”
She shook his hand, hating the way her entire body responded. “Friends?”
Shit. That had come out sounding wary and rude, like she highly doubted that they could be friends. Which she did, but she shouldn’t have made it so obvious.
He grinned in response and some of her tension eased. “Yeah, friends. Or friendly acquaintances, if you’d prefer?” His voice was teasing and the last of the tension melted with that tone.
Desire for Days (Sexy in Spades Book 3) Page 5