In Forbidden Territory

by Shawna Delacorte

  The tremor of anxiety assaulted his senses again. “Well…uh, I think it would be best if I leave.” It was the last thing he wanted to do. “I know Mac has been working long hours and I don’t want to disturb his much-needed sleep.” He may have been able to decline her invitation, but he could not stop himself from leaning his face into hers. But just as he was about to press his mouth to her lips, the front door swung open to reveal an irritated Mac dressed only in his pajama bottoms.

  A startled Angie quickly stepped back, putting some distance between herself and the much-anticipated kiss Ty had started to initiate. She finally found her voice. “Mac…I’m sorry. We didn’t mean to wake you.”

  Mac’s gaze darted from Angie to Ty as he pointed to the wall where Ty had his arm and shoulder pressed against the wood siding. Mac’s words held a caustic edge to them. “It was a little difficult to sleep with someone leaning on the doorbell.”

  Ty quickly straightened up, a guilty and embarrassed expression registering on his features. “I didn’t realize it. Sorry about that.” He glanced at Angie, gave her an apologetic smile and turned back to Mac. “I was just leaving. I’ll see you in the morning.”

  Ty waited until Mac went back inside the house, then again turned his attention to Angie. His voice became soft, matching his warm smile. “Thank you for spending the evening with me. I thoroughly enjoyed it. I’ll call you tomorrow.”

  Angie watched as Ty returned to his car, backed out of the driveway and drove down the street. She went inside the house and closed the door.

  She turned a questioning look toward her brother who had not gone back to his bedroom. She noted his nervousness and awkward mannerisms. “What is it, Mac? What’s bothering you?”

  “I’m not trying to pry into your life—”

  “Uh-oh…here comes the but.” Angie cocked her head and leveled a steady gaze at him. She made an unsuccessful attempt to suppress the teasing grin that flirted with the corners of her mouth. “But, what? What is it you want to say that really isn’t prying into my personal life?”

  He ran his fingers through his sandy-brown hair, then shifted his weight from one foot to the other. “It’s…uh…it’s nothing really. I just, well, I just wanted to say a couple of words about Ty.” He cleared his throat, a nervous mannerism she had associated with her brother for as long as she could remember.

  Mac tried again to say what was on his mind. “Ty has a certain reputation where women are concerned.” He glanced away for a moment, as if trying to gather his thoughts. “It’s not that he’s really a womanizer in the true sense of the word. He isn’t a love-’em-and-leave-’em type, but he does seem to always be dating someone new and never settles down. He’s the type of man who has had lots of experience with lots of women.” He managed to hold eye contact with her in spite of his obvious embarrassment over the subject. “He’s the type of man you haven’t had any experience with.”

  He gave her a brotherly hug. “I just want you to be on your toes and not be taken in by his charm and smooth lines.”

  “Are you trying to say that Ty would make improper advances toward me and refuse to take no for an answer?”

  “No, that’s not what I’m saying,” he said, a frown of concern wrinkling his forehead, “not exactly. It’s just that Ty travels in the fast lane. What is commonplace for him is way out of your realm of experience. I’m worried about you being able to handle what might be an…uh…well, an awkward situation.”

  She could see her brother’s discomfort in trying to deal with the topic in a dispassionate way. She also saw his deep and sincere concern. Her spontaneous laugh filled the living room. “Do I need to remind you that I grew up with five brothers and learned how to take care of myself around a bunch of unruly guys?”

  “Okay.” He returned her smile. “Enough said.” He gave her a kiss on the forehead and returned to his bedroom.

  Angie hurried down the hall toward the guest room where she was staying. She didn’t know whether to be amused or annoyed by Mac’s attempt to protect her. She had almost asked him if he really thought she was still a virgin, but decided against it. She didn’t want to totally shock his sensibilities where his kid sister was concerned. However, his words about Ty’s antics with lots of women did not escape her attention.

  Thoughts of Ty flooded her mind, sensual thoughts that seemed to come from nowhere and insisted on lingering in her consciousness. She felt confident she could get him to help her convince Mac that he needed to hire her, but using her feminine wiles to manipulate a man was not part of her nature and certainly not the way she wanted to approach this problem. A quick stab of guilt poked at her, touching on her deeply buried insecurities. She was not a deceptive person, nor was she dishonest.

  So why was this guilty feeling jabbing at her? She was not using Ty. She would never do that type of unethical thing, but if he could help her, why shouldn’t she explore that possibility? She tried to shake away the guilt as she touched her fingertips to her lips, reviving all the heat and passion of the original kiss. A moment later any thought of a job with Mac’s company, trying to get her priorities straight or her true interest in Ty and whether she was trying to use him totally left her head. Logic…thoughts…concerns…none of it mattered. Her entire reality at that precise moment was filled with the remembered sensation of Tyler Farrell’s lips against hers and the heated desire he stirred in her.

  Angie undressed and went to bed, but sleep did not come easily. Her thoughts continued to center around Ty and the heated moment they had shared earlier that evening. She knew she could not allow this sexy man to sidetrack her from her goals.

  She had allowed her ex-fiancé to make decisions for her. It had resulted in a disastrous relationship. She had vowed to never again put herself in that position. It was up to her to set her life on a forward moving track and secure her future. That was her goal. She gathered her determination. It was her only goal. She would not be dissuaded from it—certainly not by a handsome playboy whose kiss made her skin tingle, her pulse race and her heart pound.

  She turned over, pounded her pillow into a comfortable shape and closed her eyes. She finally succumbed to a restless sleep filled with images of the very sexy and desirable Tyler Farrell.

  The next morning Angie wandered into the kitchen to make some coffee after taking her shower. She paused when she saw the note stuck to the refrigerator door. She looked at the clock. There was no getting around her brother’s workaholic nature. Not even seven o’clock yet and he was already gone. She shook her head and furrowed her brow as she read the note.

  Angie: Lots to do. Will be buried under a ton of work the next few days. Hope you didn’t mind too much being stuck with Ty yesterday. As soon as I finish this design project I’ll be able to spend time with you, help you get settled into your own apartment and find a job. I think one of our clients has an opening in his company for a receptionist. Come by the office and I’ll try to make some time to have lunch with you.

  Angie scanned the note again with a soft sigh of resignation. Nothing had changed. A receptionist job—it was obvious Mac didn’t have a clue what type of job she wanted, what she was qualified to do and what type of work experience she had. His only thought was to help her find an entry-level office position somewhere. How typical of Mac. He assumed she only wanted a job until she could find a husband rather than wanting to build a career for herself.

  Then she turned her attention to the other part of the note. A little grin tugged at the corners of her mouth. Did she mind being stuck with Ty? He might as well have asked her if she minded if Prince Charming paid a little bit of attention to her. A shiver of trepidation accompanied her thought and was followed by a sudden rush of excitement at the memory of the passionate kiss they had shared. She tried without success to dismiss the heated desire the memory evoked. Maybe it would be better if she found some other way of achieving her goal rather than spending a lot of time with Tyler Farrell in an attempt to elicit his help.

>   And maybe tomorrow Prince Charming would sweep her off her feet and declare his undying love for her.

  Angie felt her eyes widen in shock at the full impact of the errant thought that had invaded her consciousness. She didn’t know where it came from, but she certainly needed to get rid of it as quickly as possible. She renewed her determination. One kiss did not mean anything. It was an enjoyable little interlude and that was it. She would let Ty know her areas of expertise and show him she was qualified for a responsible position with the company. In a few days Mac would be finished with his project and she could talk to him about it, too. Plain and simple. She breathed a sigh of relief. What felt out of control a few moments ago was now reined in and controlled.

  Angie busied herself around the house until mid-morning, then dressed and went to Mac’s office. No sooner had she entered the lobby than someone grabbed her arm and spun her around. She found herself looking into the handsome features and bright hazel eyes of Tyler Farrell. His devilish grin sent little tremors through her body. The place where his hand rested on her arm radiated a sensual warmth.

  “This is quite a coincidence. My lunch meeting just cancelled out on me so I have the next few hours free. I was just about to call to see if I could persuade you to have lunch with me. I already have a reservation at the Space Needle. Perhaps we could do the harbor cruise after lunch.” Ty cocked his head and raised an eyebrow. “So…are you available?”

  He flashed a devastatingly sexy smile and she melted on the spot. “Lunch?” She suddenly felt like a fifteen-year-old, all tongue-tied and flustered in the presence of the captain of the high school football team. She pulled in her rampaging desires and did her best to project a calm, confident persona. “Yes, I’d love it.” She tried to convince herself there was nothing wrong in having lunch with him again. It was nothing personal. After all, she had to eat anyway and Mac had asked Ty to take her sightseeing while he was busy.

  She would keep the conversation turned to business in general and specifically to available or upcoming positions in the company. Ty’s comment the day before about the company’s expansion plans hinging on Mac’s design continued to swirl around in her mind. Expansion meant new jobs, possibly in areas that did not currently exist. It was a perfect time for her to put in her bid for one of those newly created positions.

  But in the meantime there wasn’t anything wrong with an innocent afternoon of fun.

  Ty’s voice cut into her thoughts. “We have a little while before lunch. Has Mac shown you around our facility?”

  “No, I haven’t seen anything beyond the lobby and offices.”

  “Would you like a tour? I could show you around the design room, the lab and the shop where we do the actual boat construction.”

  Her entire manner leaped to rapt attention. “I’d love to have a guided tour.” It was perfect. She would have an opportunity to see how things worked, get more of a technical tour than Mac would ever take the time to give her. She could ask Ty questions she couldn’t ask Mac and certainly get more useful answers than her brother would give her. It would be the perfect setting to start her campaign to win Ty over to her side. She was certain Mac would listen to Ty. After all, Ty was his business partner in addition to being his best friend.

  Ty escorted her through the lobby and down a hallway, pausing a minute at the door to Mac’s office. “I’m going to take Angie on a tour of the facility.”

  Mac looked up from his work, then glanced at his watch. “Yes, a tour would be nice.” He looked at Angie. “I’m sorry I haven’t had any time to spend with you.”

  “I assume this means lunch is out?”

  A sheepish expression crossed his face. “I’ll try to be home for dinner.”

  “No need to worry about Angie being alone for dinner. I’ll take her out to grab something to eat.”

  She glanced questioningly at Ty for a moment. He hadn’t mentioned anything about dinner. She returned her attention to her brother. “He’s right. There’s no reason for you to pull yourself away from your design project before you’re ready. You stay and work as late as you need to and don’t worry about me.” She glanced at Ty. “I’ll be in good hands.”

  An involuntary glance toward Mac told Ty what he didn’t want to know. Mac’s expression was neither gracious nor distracted. Unlike many occasions when Mac’s thoughts had him so preoccupied he didn’t notice what was going on around him, this time there was no mistaking the fact that he was fully aware of his surroundings. It was obvious to Ty that Angie’s comment about being in good hands had caught Mac’s undivided attention.

  Ty turned toward Angie. “Are you ready for the VIP tour?”

  “Ready and willing.” A little shiver of something, she wasn’t sure what, told her she might be ready and willing for a lot more than a tour of the building and a business lunch.

  They left Mac’s office and Ty spent an hour showing her what they did and how they did it. Each step started with Mac’s initial design, computer testing of the design, a miniature model, tank testing of the miniature, then the finished product custom-built for the client. She was very pleased with the way Ty assumed she’d understand what he was talking about and didn’t reduce everything to the level of a ten-year-old.

  The phase of the process she found most interesting was the design of the interior areas such as cabins and galleys so that they made maximum functional use of the space available yet were still attractive. They had a computer program that allowed the customer to see what the interior would look like with different fabrics, colors, woods and fixtures rather than simply picking something from a catalogue without being able to see it as part of the whole.

  After the tour Ty and Angie took the ferry across to Seattle. They enjoyed a leisurely lunch in the revolving restaurant at the top of the Space Needle. The bright sunny day provided views of the Olympic mountains to the west and the Cascades to the east with Mt. Rainier looming large on the horizon to the southeast. The mountain views served as a spectacular backdrop to the water and greenery of Puget Sound and the expanse of the Seattle metropolitan area.

  Conversation was casual, but far more superficial than she wanted it to be. She made several attempts during lunch to turn it to business matters while pursuing her goal. And each time he managed to deftly switch to a different topic.

  Angie toyed with the stem of her wineglass as she made another attempt to procure information about the company. “Did I hear you correctly yesterday when you said something to Mac about the outcome of his design project having an impact on expansion plans for the business?”

  Ty took a sip from his wineglass before answering her, as if he was determining how much to say. Or perhaps it was her guilty conscience that made it seem that way.

  “The company is at a crossroads at the moment. Either we undertake a costly expansion which will include physically moving the location of the business to much larger facilities in order to meet our potential, or we scale back so that we continue to maintain what we have. It’s the results of Mac’s design project that will pretty much make that decision for us. If the design he’s working on is successful, then we can move into the arena of the design and construction of larger sailboats in the luxury yacht category. We already have some of the ancillary support systems in place such as the computerized interior design enhancement I showed you this morning.”

  This bit of information leaped out at Angie. Everything about the interior design system had fascinated her. Perhaps that was the area where she should concentrate her efforts, something that would fit nicely with her education and work experience in industrial design. Her excitement over this new facet filled her with questions.

  “Would this interior design work be done primarily outside the company or is it something you plan to keep in-house as a department of the newly expanded operation?”

  “It’s too soon to say. We’re taking it one step at a time, and right now the step we’re handling is the completion of the design Mac is working o
n. I’ve already done my preliminary work. I’ve talked to clients and business associates and have determined that the potential business is available. Our bankers have assured me they’re interested in providing the needed capital for the expansion. But until Mac finishes the design and we successfully test it, everything else is only speculation.”

  “What clients do you have who would be interested in purchasing a custom-designed luxury sailboat? You said you’d need to move the facility to another location. Would you still remain in the Seattle area? Do you think—” She saw the look of caution dart across his features. Had she gone too far? Was she pushing too much? The look of caution slowly turned to a stern gaze, tempered slightly by the wry twinkle in his eyes.

  “If I didn’t know better I would swear you were an industrial spy trying to pump me for information about our development projects and the names of our clients.”

  She felt the heat of embarrassment sear across her cheeks. His accusation shocked her. Well, it wasn’t really an accusation as such, but more of a half serious, half teasing observation. But it was serious enough that it made her realize she had pushed him too hard in her zeal to gather information.

  “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to sound like that. It’s just that I’m interested and Mac always talks in such general terms. He probably thinks I wouldn’t understand what he was talking about even though I keep reminding him that I have a degree in business and industrial design plus three years of practical work experience at an industrial design firm.” She offered a confident smile, hoping it would help sidetrack Ty’s sudden concerns. “Maybe I should wear a sign around my neck stating that I’m an adult and don’t need to be patronized.”

  Ty’s response was a measured but easy laugh. “I don’t think a sign will be necessary.” His smile slowly faded as their gazes locked in a heated moment of desire. “You certainly look all grown up to me.”