She spent the rest of the journey thinking that she could at least move things forward with the good night kiss. As usual, just before Suzanna slipped inside, Jerry aimed a kiss a half-inch to the right of her mouth.
But this time, when it landed, he found his mouth pressed against two soft, velvety lips.
Suzy had her eyes open watching for a reaction. It was instant shock. She saw his eyes open wide, and he pulled back and waited for the chewing out he figured was coming.
He remained frozen, waiting for her to storm away and slam the door. Instead, her eyes closed seductively, and she melted into his body as if she'd been doing it all her life.
Jerry was a bit slow on the uptake, but not that slow. His arms swept her into a tender embrace as he closed his eyes and lost himself in their first kiss. But although Suzy's lips were slightly parted, he didn't presume to kiss her deeply, certainly not as Quentin had done.
After a brief but pleasant interlude he released her slightly. He asked softly, "When we touched in the taxi, I was the one who pulled away. Did you crowd me deliberately?"
She giggled. "You might say that. I'm not practiced in the art of seduction. It was my way of showing that I'm no longer afraid."
"Do you mean you're completely free of those bad childhood memories?"
"Perhaps not completely, but yes, I think I'm becoming cured."
"Enough so that you'll tell me the whole story some time?"
"Yes. I think that's part of the therapy. If anyone had ever talked to me about it, I'd have been over it long ago."
"Is this sudden thaw just for me, or does it extend to all males?" he asked, his all-American boyish good looks hardening slightly.
She sighed. "I'm not going to lie to you, Jerry, or give you any false hope. I've sensed for years that you could be serious about me. I think you've been too good a friend, almost a brother to me, for too long a time.
"I love you dearly, but I'm not in love with you. If you still want to hang out with me on that basis, I'll be happy. And incidentally," she said with a grin, "I did enjoy being held and kissed by you."
"I'll settle for that, then. At least it's a start. And now I'll say goodnight before I say or do something to change your mind."
He leaned down, and taking her shoulders pulled her to him for another kiss. It was more than brotherly, but a lot less than lover-like. A minute later, he was gone
Suzanna closed her door behind her with a vague feeling of disappointment and uneasiness. She realized she had been conducting an experiment on the poor man, and he had not come up to par compared with Quentin.
She knew it could have been a dangerous game-what if Jerry had got completely carried away and tried to make love to her? Now she was going too far too fast.
Feeling restless, she kicked off her gold sandals and headed to the bathroom. There she ran herself a hot bath and put in her favorite scented oil.
She got undressed, carefully putting the dress away, and sank into the foaming water with a sigh. She soon grew drowsy enough to sleep.
She pulled herself out of the tub, and after hastily toweling herself dry, slipped completely naked between the sheets. Soon she fell into a heavy sleep full of visions of Quentin.
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
When Suzanna arrived at the office on Monday, Quentin was already dictating into his computer, and he gave her a nod and smile though the door.
Once settled behind her desk, she found a memo on the desk for her to call Barry Jarvis at Imperial Foods.
It was Barry's secretary who answered, but upon hearing that Suzanna Sills was calling, put her through immediately.
"Good morning, Ms. Sills," his warm voice with its clipped accent came over the wire. "How are you?"
"Well, thank you," replied Suzy. "And you?"
"Fine, thanks, and really delighted with all your original ideas for Quik-Bix. That's why I'm calling. If your boss can spare you for a few hours this morning, we'd like you to talk to the dieticians and technicians in our test kitchen to make sure your recipes are fool-proof. We'll need exact measurements, and if you can supply them, it will save us a lot of trial and error.
"Afterwards, I'd like to take you to lunch, if that's all right with you."
"Sounds great," answered Suzy. "Let me clear it with Mr. Pierce."
She buzzed through.
"Yes, Ms. Sills, what can I do for you?"
"I have Mr. Jarvis on the line. They'd like me over at Imperial Foods this morning to help them work out the exact recipes for Quik-Bix. I may even be able to get started on the Spudz campaign while I'm there if everything goes well. Is that okay with you?"
"Of course. Sounds like a good idea. Regards to Barry. Cyrus too, if you see him."
Suzanna told Barry that she was free to leave any time.
"Good," he said. "Grab a cab. I'll be waiting for you in the foyer, and will take you straight to the lab kitchens."
"Fine. See you in a bit."
Ten minutes later, Suzy was in a cab going across town, glad that she had dressed nicely in a slimming pearl gray suit much more form fitting than the tents she had been wearing.
Ten minutes later, Barry was paying off the taxi in front of Imperial Foods.
At first, Suzanna was a little in awe of the dieticians, but they proved very co-operative. They had everything she'd need ready, from a pot of stewing chicken to a skillet of hot fat, plus every ingredient in addition to the Quik-Bix she'd use in each recipe. They'd been quite thorough. In less than two hours, they had everything ready for tasting.
They found everything to be delicious, as Suzy knew they would. Once the Quik-Bix recipes had been standardized, Suzanna introduced her French, German and Irish recipes using Spudz. They were most enthusiastic over the idea. With those three as a start, they could find other ethnic dishes that called for mashed potatoes, and substitute Spudz instead.
Barry Jarvis had left Suzanna and gone back to his office once he had supplied her with a lab coat and introduced her around. He had promised to be back to take her to lunch at twelve, and he was there on the dot.
Suzanna found out later that he had called Quentin to say that Imperial Foods wanted Suzanna and Quentin to work as a team on their accounts. No one else was to be involved.
"That's fine with me," she said, "but you'll have to get management's approval."
"I'll get on it right away," Barry replied. "Ready?"
"Yes, I think so, " she replied. "We've finished the Quik-Bix and got a start on all the Spudz. I don't think you'll need me here again."
"Too bad," said Barry gallantly. "You add a touch of class."
"Thank you," said Suzanna. "That was very kind."
"And true as well. But let's go. I'm starved. I've made reservations at my club for twelve-fifteen."
"I'm hungry, too. I saved my appetite by not taking very big samples."
"That's good. Sometimes they ask us in to taste the experimental recipes. If it's something really good, we all pig out. It's handy, too, because if we get busy and we're too pressed for time to get out to lunch, we can always find a quick snack in the kitchen."
"That reminds me of something that happened at a kitchen one time when I was working on a dairy products account. The lab where they found uses for by-products was near the diet kitchen where we made up recipes.
"Late one afternoon a lab technician came in with a batch of samples in eight ounce containers. Since the dieticians were ready to leave, he suggested they each take one home and try it. The next day he came in and asked, 'Did you try it?' All of them said yes.
'Well, what did you think of it?'
All of them said it was good. One claimed it was the smoothest cottage cheese she'd ever eaten, while another stated that she preferred larger curd, but they all really liked it.
The technician stood there thunderstruck. 'You mean you ate it?' he asked. 'Omigod! It wasn't food. It was a new facial mask!'"
Barry howled with laughter. "Did anyone get sick?"
By this time they had arrived at his mid-town club, having caught a cab right outside the Imperial Foods Building.
The club was quiet and dignified, very masculine, in subdued mahogany and leather. The dining room had snowy linens and crystal lamps on each table, and a whole array of silver and glassware.
The headwaiter greeted Barry by name, and soon an unobtrusive waiter took their order. The service was excellent, as was the filet mignon and the red wine. The atmosphere was one of opulent elegance.
Barry Jarvis was good company. He couldn't have been more charming if she had been her natural self instead of in her working disguise, complete with fake glasses. She couldn't believe she was getting all this adulation on her merit and talent alone, but she was starting to get used to it, and it was most gratifying.
She began to recall what it had been like as a child, never being sure if she had been wanted for herself, or for her looks, talent, or the money she had been brought up with thanks to her grandmother, who had made some excellent investments over the years. Now it was her looks versus her talents, but her talents seemed to be winning after all.
"What's so funny?" asked Barry with a tentative smile, ready to share her joke.
"I've just been patting myself on the back for finally competing on an equal footing with men in a man's field, when I suddenly realized that all I've done all day is something that most home-makers do, bustle around in a kitchen."
Barry joined in the laughter. "There is a difference, though," he said. "What you were doing was creative. I'm sure you'll do equally well with products that take you out of the kitchen."
They had just finished dessert, a refreshing raspberry sorbet. Now he said, "I think we have just time for a liqueur before I deliver you to back to Quentin. What would you like?"
"A crème de cacao with cream, thank you."
"That sounds good. I haven't had it for a long time. I'll have one too."
The waiter brought the cordials, and as they started to sip, Barry remarked, "This drink always reminds me of growing up. We would be allowed to have it as a special treat. This or a very short beer."
"Me too, in my family. Dark beer."
"That's right, bock beer, maybe. Dark, with a good head on it."
She laughed at the shared memory. "When it's in season, there is nothing better. I prefer it to light, to wash down a good sauerbraten or German pot- roast. It comes from a German heritage on my father's side."
"Do you know a lot about German cookery?" he asked.
She nodded. "A fair bit. I know a lot of my grandmother's old favorites, which is where I got some of my ideas from for the campaign."
"What are my chances of being invited up for a home-cooked meal some time?"
Normally she might have taken this as a pass, but in this case she decided to go with the suggestion. After all, what harm could it do? "It's the least I can do after you've treated me so royally. I'll make it a small dinner party."
"Do I have to wait for Bock beer season?"
Suzanna laughed and shook her head. "No, I think we can find a reasonable facsimile."
They were leaving the club when Barry asked, "Do you mind if I call you Suzanna? We're going to be seeing a lot of one another, since our account is exclusively in the hands of you and Quentin, and first names are so much more relaxed."
"Of course I don't mind. I like it."
"Good. And I hope you'll call me Barry."
"Now that that's settled, Barry, what's all this about the Imperial Foods account being in our hands-Quentin's and mine?"
He grinned. "We've requested you both to work for us, and the client is always right."
She tried not to display her surprise or concern. Working so closely with Quentin might be too close for comfort after what they had shared together. But it was also too good a chance to miss. "Thank you. I'm flattered at your trust in me."
"You needn't be. You're very good. I can't believe any company was foolish enough to let you get away, but I'm glad they did. Their loss is our gain."
The taxi pulled up in front of Elder and Rubin and Suzanna said, "Don't bother to get out, Barry. You've given me enough time in your busy day. Keep the cab and get back to the office. I'll go on up and tell Quentin how much we've accomplished."
"Okay, Suzanna, if you're sure you don't mind?"
"Not at all." She offered her hand. "Goodbye, Barry, and thanks for the lovely lunch." Then she skipped out of the taxi nimbly.
"Goodbye, Suzanna. The pleasure was all mine," Barry called after her before she waved and then closed the door.
The taxi nosed out into the traffic as Suzanna entered the building. She stepped into the elevator and was soon back in her own office.
Quentin wasn't at his desk, so apparently she hadn't been missed. She hurriedly logged on and type up her notes on what had happened that morning, and follow up with a list of action steps.
She had just started to work on a new layout when Quentin returned from lunch.
"Hi!" he called in to her. "How was your date with Barry?"
"It wasn't a date, but it was a super lunch," she replied as he approached her. "Barry is really a charming man."
"Oh? So we're on a first name basis already, are we?" he retorted, unable to keep a twinge of sarcasm out of his voice.
She blinked up at him. "He suggested it. We had a very comfortable luncheon. He made me feel as if I'd known him forever."
"He called to tell me he was taking you to lunch. He also asked that we handle the Imperial Foods account exclusively. When I told him it had to be cleared with management, he got right on it. Elder and Rubin both approved, so it's official. We're in this together all the way from now on. I told you we'd make a great team."
"Barry told me a little about his plans over lunch. He shares your opinion."
"I hope we do as well on the Femme Fatale cosmetic account."
"So do I. What has the reaction been so far?"
"They liked your idea of using one model for the whole campaign and using her as a sort of trademark, Femme Fatale personified. She will have to be dark and sultry looking, I think, but not too exotic, so that women can identify with her.
"I had a look at the photos you picked out from the modeling books, and have to say that any one of them would do. We'll find out more soon enough, and will get to meet the girls and choose. We have an appointment with the president of the company and his assistant first thing Wednesday morning."
She smiled. "That sounds exciting. One more thing about Barry Jarvis, though. He sort of wangled an invitation to my place for some of my German cooking. I told him I'd make it a small dinner party. Are you free this Friday?"
He knitted his brows together, but nodded. "Yes, I am. Who else were you planning on inviting?"
"Well, since I'm planning on serving 'Himmel und Erte,' which calls for his Spudz, I thought I'd ask Cyrus Reed and his wife. It won't seem like currying favor, since we already have the account, will it?"
"No, I think Cyrus would like that. Is that it, five people?"
Suzanna looked thoughtful. "As a matter of fact, I thought I might ask a friend as the sixth."
"It's a great idea, but you'd better call Cyrus and Barry right away to make sure they have no other plans."
She nodded. "I'll get on it immediately. I just wanted to clear it with you first."
She did so, and the men accepted with alacrity. Suzanna also called Elsa at her office and received another enthusiastic acceptance.
The date was all set. Now she just had to get cleaning, shopping, and cooking. Her wise old grandmother had always said that the way to a man's heart was through his stomach. This was her chance to really shine for all of the important men who had just come into her life.
But most of all, it was a chance to try to grow closer to Quentin. Up until now, he had just seen the consummate professional Suzanna. In her own
home, she could start showing him the real woman underneath the disguise. And she was certainly looking forward to find out what was underneath his clothes as well…
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
At three o'clock on Friday afternoon, Quentin popped into her office.
"Hey there."
She grinned up at him. "Hey yourself."
"Listen, I know you have the dinner party tonight. You haven't asked for any time off, but since the dinner is mostly business, I think you ought to stop whatever you're doing right now and go home. You must have plenty to do. I have some work to finish up here, but as soon as I'm through, I'll hop a cab and come to your place to help you out with setting up."
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