Stranded (Night Calls)

by J.C. Valentine

  8

  Two weeks had passed since that stormy night when a dashing man dressed in suit and drenched from head to toe had stumbled through her door needing her help. He had given her so much more that night, Poppy thought to herself as she finished zipping up her dress.

  Life had felt empty before, but after Felix walked out her door, it had become unbearable. The silence she had grown accustomed to was deafening. Even Bo’s company wasn’t cutting it anymore. The time they had spent together reminded her of how good it could be to have someone near, to share your bed and your thoughts with. She hadn’t realized how much she missed simple connection with another human being until then.

  She tried to occupy herself by delving further into her books and baking—her other favorite pastime. But none of it worked, and after two days and nights of restlessness, Poppy decided it was time to get back into the world and start looking for a job.

  Spending each afternoon in the city, walking the streets and filling out applications, she had managed to keep her mind fairly occupied. It was the nights, when the world grew quiet again and she was left to her thoughts that were the problem. When Felix wasn’t dominating every waking thought, he was starring in her dreams. She could still feel his touch on her skin, taste him on her lips.

  And Bo wasn’t fairing much better.

  He never had trusted people, which meant that he never liked anyone either. After Felix, Bo was a different dog. She often found him sitting on the porch watching the road as if he were waiting for something…or someone. And when Poppy settled down with him in the evenings, he sat her feet while she held a book in her hands, and fixed sad eyes on the door, letting out an occasional whine from time to time like a heartbroken child.

  The only change in their lives had been Felix, and so Poppy had to contribute Bo’s behavior to him. It seemed he had worked his way into both their hearts and when he walked out that door; he had taken a piece of them with him. Or maybe that was just wishful thinking on her part. Bo was probably just reacting to her shift in mood. He always had been very perceptive.

  Shaking off her self-imposed depression, Poppy slipped into a pair of sensible black pumps and scooped up the black suit jacket that went with the formfitting casual dress she wore from the foot of the bed and headed downstairs.

  The time for self-pitying was over. Poppy had a job interview with a very important man at a very important business in the heart of downtown. Having been out of the workforce for nearly a year, she was as excited as she was nervous.

  After rummaging through her purse and a few coat pockets, she finally tracked down her car keys and, with a quick hug and a promise to return later for Bo, she was out the door.

  Poppy was flushed by the time she reached office. Traffic had been murder, even at ten in the morning, and she had had to hunt for the always elusive parking spot. After nearly fifteen minutes of circling a four block radius, she caught sight of a car pulling away. Pulling off a few reckless maneuvers and earning a few angry gestures, she managed to dart into the spot without causing an accident or getting a ticket.

  The downside was that the spot was three blocks away from her destination and she’d had to jog the distance—in heels—crossing traffic and dodging pedestrians the whole way. Once she entered the high-rise office building, she found the elevators were being maintenanced and ended up having to take the stairs…to the thirty-fourth floor.

  Winded and damp with perspiration, Poppy approached the receptionist desk with a tired smile.

  “Can I help you?” The woman behind the desk was gorgeous. With wide blue eyes that matched her blouse, perfectly coifed blond hair and brilliant straight white teeth set behind full pink lips, the woman held an air of superiority, and Poppy instantly felt dull with her plain brown hair and simple features.

  Smoothing a stray hair behind her ear, Poppy forced herself to stand up straight. “Um, yes, I’m here for an interview with Mr. Bradshaw.”

  A blond eyebrow arched in response and a smug look stole across the receptionist’s face. “You’re late, and Mr. Bradshaw is a very busy man,” she said sternly.

  Poppy bristled. She didn’t like being talked down to and had to force herself not to bite the woman’s head off. Taking a measured breath, Poppy forced a bright smile. “I apologize for being late. But if you would please tell Mr. Bradshaw that I am here, I am sure he will want to see me.”

  When she had talked to him on the phone, Mr. Bradshaw seemed very eager to meet with her. He had said that she was just what they were looking for. This was a great opportunity and Poppy had been looking forward to meeting the man. She wasn’t about to turn around and leave over a few lost minutes.

  “Regardless, I’m afraid I can’t do that. Mr. Bradshaw is in a very important meeting and cannot be interrupted,” the receptionist informed her.

  “Then I’ll wait for Mr. Bradshaw to finish with his meeting,” Poppy replied and took a seat in one of the comfortable looking leather seats behind her.

  Shrugging, the receptionist went back to the stack of papers she had been working on. “Suit yourself.”

  “Lucky Mac was just finishing his repairs when we came in, huh?” Katherine said beside him as the elevator jolted into motion.

  Felix nodded. “Saved me from having to hike over thirty flights, that’s for sure.”

  Katherine stepped into him, a seductive smile playing on her red painted lips. “Tonight. My place. Eight o’clock?”

  Felix shrugged off the finely boned hand that had been working its way across his chest and under his blazer. One good thing about Katherine: you could always count on her cutting to the chase.

  The redhead’s lips pushed out in a pretty pout, but she took the hint and stepped back.

  “Sorry, Katherine, but I’m busy tonight.” And tomorrow night, and the next night, and the next….Felix hadn’t been with a woman since that night. He had tried, oh, he had tried, but each time when it came down to it, he ended up saying goodnight. Spending the night with random women just wasn’t doing it for him anymore. Once he sat down to a quiet dinner for two and they opened their mouth, he would inevitably find something lacking. Oh, they were nice people, eloquent and educated, but they weren’t Poppy.

  The women seemed mildly disappointed, but considering they’d gotten a free dinner out of it and his complete lack of interest, they seemed perfectly fine with cutting it off early. He didn’t even know why he bothered. It seemed Poppy had gotten into his blood like an infection, and he wouldn’t be any good to anyone until he ridded himself of her.

  The problem was he didn’t know where to begin, and seeing Poppy again was out of the question. The way he saw it, he could do one of two things. Either he could try to burn her out of his system by taking as many women as possible, or he could remove himself from the dating pool all together and throw himself into work so there wouldn’t be time to think of her.

  He liked the latter best.

  The elevator dinged its arrival and Katherine stepped off. As the door slid shut, she turned back to him and said, “Felix, if you change your mind, you know how to get ahold of me,” then she was gone.

  Felix stared at the buttons overhead, a tick starting in his jaw as he watched each one light up and darken as the elevator climbed higher. He had dated probably half the women in the company and had made quite a reputation for himself. Women no longer looked at him as a man, but a conquest. He never thought something like that would bother him, but it did now.

  He studied his reflection in the polished metal doors and realized with startling clarity just how tired he was. He was tired of running around with a new woman every night, tired of the chase, tired of the games. He was just tired. His divorce had shaken his foundation and destroyed his confidence, because as was true with most newlyweds, he had expected it to last forever. But if there was one thing Felix had come to realize over the last couple of weeks, it was that life didn’t deal in absolutes and sometimes love didn’t last. But what really surpris
ed him was that he didn’t want to be alone anymore.

  Playing the role of bachelor and playboy had grown old a long time ago, and until he met Poppy, he had been simply going through the motions. It was time he started thinking about setting down roots again, because life was slipping through his fingers faster and faster each day and he wanted to live what was left of it beside someone special.

  By the time Felix stepped off onto the thirty-fourth floor, he was set on a plan. After work he would stop by the florist and pick up a nice bouquet of…something pretty, and then he would head out of the city to the little house in the country and see about winning over the woman who had taken his heart prisoner.

  “Vera,” Felix said amicably as he approached the round desk centered in the office waiting area. The receptionist’s head snapped up and a plastic smile that he’d bet was responsible for the fall of hundreds of men before him, stared back at him.

  “Mr. Sinclair!” Lifting a hand, Vera smoothed her hair in that way she always did when she was trying to lure a man into her trap. “I was just getting ready to send the reports you asked for—”

  Felix raised a hand to stop her. “No rush. Just drop them on my desk before you leave for the night. Listen, I need you to do me a favor.”

  Vera brightened at his words. “Sure, Mr. Sinclair. Anything you need.”

  He smiled indulgently. “Thanks, Vera. As you know, Mr. Bradshaw had a very important meeting to get to, but he had scheduled an interview with someone equally important, and he asked me to fill in for him.” He checked his watch. “They should be here any moment. So when they get here, send them to my office.”

  “Oh, sure, Mr. Sinclair,” Vera agreed. “But Mr. Bradshaw’s interview is already here.”

  “Oh?”

  “Yes, sir. She arrived just a few minutes ago. There she is.”

  Felix turned in the direction Vera pointed, and felt his heart skitter in his chest. “Poppy?”

  Lifting her eyes to his, Poppy froze. “Felix?”

  9

  “What are you doing here?” Poppy asked nervously.

  She had just come from the bathroom. Being hot and tired from her morning jog up more than thirty flights of stairs, she wanted to take a minute to clean up and make herself presentable before sitting down to her interview with the Big Man.

  Now, standing in front of Felix, who looked mouthwateringly handsome in his black designer suit and green silk tie, and the voluptuous receptionist beside him, she felt completely out of place.

  Breaking away from the desk, Felix approached her, his expression guarded. “I work here,” he told her, watching her closely for a reaction.

  Poppy fought to keep her jaw from dropping. Of course Felix worked here. It was a publishing company, and didn’t he say he worked for one? But this one? Could fate be any crueler, Poppy thought irritably.

  “Well…” Poppy shifted her gaze to the floor and around the room, scouring her brain for something else to say. “It’s good to see you again,” she said lamely.

  The receptionist, who had been sitting forward in her seat, raised her eyebrows at Poppy’s words.

  The corners of Felix’s eyes crinkled as he smiled in a way that made Poppy’s belly do nervous flips. “It’s good to see you too, Poppy. You look great, by the way.”

  A fierce blush rose up to heat her cheeks. “Thanks,” she muttered.

  “So, I hear you have an interview,” Felix stated bluntly.

  “Well, yes.” Poppy glanced around, wishing that Mr. Bradshaw would finally show and rescue her from this awkward situation.

  Felix must have noticed her preoccupation. “If you’re looking for Mr. Bradshaw, he won’t be making it today.”

  Poppy’s hopes plummeted and she felt some of the air deflate from her lungs. She had to admit, this job was her dream job and despite the dozens of applications she had put in around the city, this was the one she had put at the top of the list.

  “However,” Felix continued on. “As his associate, I have been asked to stand in for him.”

  Poppy’s eyes widened and she had to remind herself to breathe. “You mean you will be interviewing me?” Fate, you cruel bitch! That was the last thing she wanted or needed. It was bad enough that she happened to run into the one person she was trying to forget. It was even worse that, assuming she landed the job, she would be working with him. But it was a downright nightmare to think that Felix would be the one to decide if she got the job or not.

  “The one and only.” Felix grinned. “Come on. I have everything set up in my office.” Then, taking her by the elbow, he steered her past the receptionist, who gawked openmouthed at them, and down a short hallway.

  He escorted her into a large office decorated with rich, masculine furniture. Poppy’s eyes skated right past the furnishings to the wall of floor to ceiling windows. Natural light spilled into the room, cutting swaths of soft golden light across every surface.

  Felix held out a hand and gestured to a small seating area in the corner. “Have a seat.”

  She complied, though her attention remained glued on the blue skies and towering skyscrapers dotting the landscape just a few feet away.

  “Would you like anything to drink?” Felix asked, wrestling her attention back.

  Poppy blinked then focused on him. “Um, what do you have?”

  Felix strode over to a wet bar built into a paneled wall. “Let’s see. I have vodka, rum, whiskey, and red and white wine. If those are too strong for you, I also have bottled water, juice and iced tea.”

  “I’ll just have water,” Poppy told him.

  “Good choice. Personally, I think drinking alcohol before noon is a pretty good indicator of what kind of person I’m dealing with.”

  “Why do I get the feeling I just passed some sort of test?” Poppy asked amusedly.

  “Probably because you did.” Felix laughed lightly, bending down to open a small refrigerator nestled below the counter.

  Her breath caught in her throat, because the way his pants hugged his rear end and accentuated his powerful thighs should be a crime. Poppy’s mind took a detour down memory lane, recalling how that butt looked out of pants, and she felt a spark of heat begin to pool in her belly and work its way south. Looking away quickly, Poppy tried to focus on other things, like the airliner streaking across the sky in the distance.

  “That’s an incredible view,” she said, then blushed furiously when she realized what she had said and how it must have sounded.

  Felix rose to his full height and flashed a cocky smile. He gaze swept over her in a slow, sensual perusal that left Poppy feeling hot, needy and exposed. She shifted, feeling incredibly uncomfortable under Felix’s scrutiny. How did one handle a former lover turned possible boss?

  “I agree. Incredible.” Crossing the room, Felix handed her the bottle then took the seat across from her. “I have to admit, I was surprised to see you here today.”

  That was an understatement, Poppy thought ruefully, and nodded her agreement as she cracked open the bottle of water and drank deeply.

  “But I’m glad. It saves me a trip.”

  Lowering the water, Poppy swallowed the liquid in a loud gulp and eyed him warily. “What do you mean exactly?”

  Felix sat forward in his seat and met her eyes. “To be honest, Poppy, I was planning to come out to your place tonight.”

  “Whatever for?” she asked in horror.

  Reaching out, Felix covered her hand with his. “I never got to tell you thank you.”

  Poppy stared at him, dumbfounded. And if she was being perfectly honest with herself, she was a little disappointed too. “Is that all,” she said waspishly. “Thanks for the sex? It was fun?” Yanking her hand back, she put as much distance between them as she could, which wasn’t much, considering the limited space, and turned away, refusing to look at him.

  Slipping off the chair, Felix knelt before her and lifted a hand to her face, forcing her to meet his eyes. It took everything in Poppy to re
sist rubbing her cheek into his palm, and Felix’s dark eyes flashed with knowing.

  “You didn’t let me finish.” His thumb stroked over her skin as he spoke, and Poppy closed her eyes as she soaked in his gentle caress. “Thank you for that night, for showing me kindness, and for reminding me how good it feels to share myself with someone.”

  Poppy’s eyes slid open slowly and she peered back at him. “I’m not sure I’m following you,” she said, too afraid to hope.

  Splitting her thighs, Felix repositioned himself between her legs and locked his arms around her waist, tugging her closer. “I’m saying that I have wasted a lot of time avoiding relationships, but I’m done running.” Tucking a stubborn strand of hair behind her ear, Felix leaned in and pressed a soft kiss to her lips.

  Poppy’s heart went crazy as his words washed over her. “I’m still not sure what you’re getting at,” she told him, wanting to hear him say the words she so desperately desired. “I think you’re going to have to be a little clearer.”

  Felix smirked and tipped his head closer so his mouth hovered over hers, his warm breath mingling with hers. “You did something to me that day, Poppy,” he said, his voice gone low and gravely. “I haven’t been the same since. From the time I wake up to the time I go to bed at night, you’re all I think about. I want you, Poppy. I need you.”

  Like a flock of doves set free from their cage, Poppy’s heart soared. Everything he said rang with truth and touched her someplace deep, filling her with a sense of happiness and hope that threatened to overwhelm her.

  “Say something,” Felix said, his expression strained with worry.

  But there was nothing she could say to express what she was feeling. Poppy was beside herself with joy. Instead of trying to find the words to describe the emotions running through her, she threw herself into him, wrapping her arms around his neck and crushing her mouth against his. Felix answered with equal force, pushing her back into the chair as he seized her mouth with his. His tongue plunged inside, mating with hers.