Now he was picturing her in a bikini. Not good. He had to divert his mind from any lewd topics. Her job. That might work. What could be sexy about working in a factory? “So what does being a chocolate taster involve? Apart from the obvious.”
“I test the chocolate when it’s made to ensure it’s up to scratch. I also travel to try chocolate from different parts of the country. One day I’d like to go to places where the cocoa beans are grown, like Venezuela, Brazil, and the Ivory Coast, as well as countries notorious for their chocolate, like Belgium. I also come up with different flavors and ideas for new products.” She glowed with enthusiasm.
“If I did that job, I’d be grossly fat.” His gaze skimmed her slender form. “Is it like being a wine connoisseur?”
“Are you asking me if I spit or swallow?” She kept her face carefully blank for about five seconds, then burst into giggles. “Sorry. That one was totally my fault.”
“And you accuse me of flirting?” So much for being safe talking about her job.
“Yeah I know. I won’t do it again, promise. Anyway, in answer to your question, a chocolate taster is only supposed to sample half a dozen pieces of chocolate at a time or it weakens the palate.”
“So it’s a serious business, then? Not just breaking off a chunk and...sucking it?” He couldn’t help it. Everything about this woman made him think of sex.
She’d clearly followed his train of thought, but her challenging gaze conveyed her intention to resist his flirting. “Chocolate contains over fifteen hundred flavor components. The beans themselves have different tastes—coastal Venezuelan beans, for example, have a dairy tang, but other beans from the region can taste of plums or cherries. Mountain-grown beans tend to be nutty. English milk chocolate often has a caramel taste, because of the caramelization of the milk. And that’s before you take into consideration all the added flavors, like coconut, cinnamon, and chilli.”
“Wow.” That genuinely impressed him. “I never realized so much art was involved. I only know the difference between a Twix and a Kit Kat.”
“I have a well-trained tongue.”
And now they were back to sex again.
Although when they’d first sat down she’d tried to distance herself from him, her eyes glowed and the pulse in her throat increased its rate. He wanted to lean forward and nuzzle her ear, press kisses to her neck, touch his tongue to the place where the skin rose and fell so he could feel the thunder of blood through her veins. He wanted to press his lips against hers and see if he could taste chocolate.
He wanted her, period.
The lust that swept through him shocked him with its intensity. How long had it been since he’d desired a woman this much? His groin throbbed with an unaccustomed ache. Just lately, he’d caught himself thinking he might stay celibate until he died. The idea of touching another woman had carved him up inside. But the urge to crush Chloe’s lips beneath his, to make love to her until she welcomed him inside her, burned in his blood.
At that moment, the terminal doors opened and the familiar form of Mat Repia walked in. Relief swept over Garth. He wasn’t ready for this. He shook with desire, burned with lust. He needed to distance himself from Chloe before he dragged her off to a sheltered spot and ravaged her.
Mat spotted him and walked over with a smile. His full name was Matiu, Māori for Matthew. He had dark brown eyes and skin the color of the latte in Garth’s cup. “Hey, Huia said you were over here. Your four o’clock’s arrived.” He glanced at the girl sitting across from Garth, and to Garth’s surprise, his eyebrows rose in recognition. “Chloe, what are you doing here?”
She stood to give him a kiss on the cheek. “Hey Mat. I’ve just jumped out of a plane!”
“You went through with it?”
“Yep. Well, poor Garth had to...talk me into it.” She didn’t look over at him, but a smile hovered on her lips again. She gestured at Mat’s coveralls. “Do you work here?”
“Yeah, I work for him.” He gestured at Garth. “At Sky High.”
Chloe stared at Garth. “Sky High is your company?”
“Yep. Didn’t I tell you?”
“I guess it slipped your mind.”
“Yeah. Well, like I said, you might want me only for my money.” Actually his desire for privacy had stopped him confiding in her, but now he wished he had because some of the light in her eyes died, as if she thought he’d tried to keep a secret from her.
He glanced at Mat. “How do you two know each other?”
She finished off her coffee. “Mat’s girlfriend Abby is Stella’s sister—we share a house.”
“Oh.” He was surprised he’d never bumped into Chloe before. He spent a lot of time with Mat, but he couldn’t remember him mentioning her.
“Are you going to the party at the Hokianga at the weekend?” Mat asked her.
“I’m not sure. You know I don’t do parties.”
“You two are a pair—you’re as bad as each other.” Mat nodded at Garth. “He’s just as bad. I can never get him to do anything socially. Spends all his time at home with his dog, reading. So dull.”
“I jump out of planes for a living,” Garth said. “I don’t need to be exciting in my spare time.”
“Yadda yadda.” Mat smiled at Chloe. “Think about coming. It’ll be fun. Anyway, I’m off to prepare the next customer.” He nodded at Garth. “See you in a minute.” He walked out.
Garth exchanged a look with her. “Will you go to the party?”
“Probably not.” Her eyes now looked cool as a winter sky.
Disappointment threaded through him. If she’d been interested in him, she’d have said yes. But if she’d made up her mind, he couldn’t do much about it.
She finished her coffee and pushed herself to her feet. “So you’re off to throw yourself out of a plane again? What are you going to do if this one refuses to jump?”
“I’m not going to kiss him.” Garth gestured to the man outside talking to Mat. Surprise registered on her face, along with something else… He decided to give it one last stab and teased, “Were you jealous?”
“Garth, I’m not a thrill seeker. And I could never date a guy who was. I want stability and security in my life. I made a pledge to myself years ago that I wouldn’t turn into my mother, and I haven’t changed my mind.”
His heart sank, but he nodded. “Fair enough. I’m glad you jumped, though.”
“Yeah, me too. Thank you for helping me.”
“You’re welcome. Maybe I’ll see you around.”
“Maybe.” She smiled and then walked away.
She exited the terminal, and he sighed regretfully. Then he squared his shoulders. He shouldn’t dwell on what might have been. He had enough going on in his life right now, what with the business and his plan to bring Nick Stewart down. It wouldn’t be long before he’d be able to put the past behind him and move on, and when he did, he’d find himself a girl who wasn’t too afraid to get out there and enjoy life.
Still, Chloe Jackson was to linger in his mind, especially at night when he closed his eyes and the memory of her lips on his came back to haunt him.
Chapter Five
Over the next few days, Chloe traveled around the North Island visiting confectionary shops and speaking to suppliers of spices and flavorings. The hours flew by, and she hardly had a spare moment to herself.
Even so, she thought about Garth Rowland practically non-stop, which annoyed her because she’d gone home Sunday determined to forget him.
He’s not your type, the angel scolded her.
He kissed you, the devil countered. I bet he’s fantastic in bed.
Unfortunately the devil had a louder voice. Her brain conjured up images of Garth at regular intervals—his hot, hazel eyes as he’d leaned forward to look into hers, his teasing smile, and most frequently, the memory of his lips pressed against hers, warm in spite of the coolness of the plane.
Tuesday evening, though, she pushed him firmly out of her mind. The next day, s
he had an interview at a shop in her hometown of Paihia. Cocoa Heaven, a tiny chocolate boutique, sold expensive hand-made confectionary, and they’d advertised for an assistant manager to help source ingredients and design new products. She loved the shop, although it had sold the same old products for years, and she’d thought for ages it could do with some updating. It would be absolutely perfect, especially because she wouldn’t have to travel very far, and she couldn’t believe her luck that the position had come up.
She’d been jotting down ideas for new products since she heard she had an interview. Although Valentine’s Day was less than two weeks’ away, the first big event the new assistant manager would have to deal with would be Easter. They already produced large, hollow chocolate eggs decorated with colored icing and tied with gold ribbon, smaller cream-filled eggs, and the old favorites like truffles and the shop’s trademark product of macadamia nut bites. But she wanted to come up with something new to wow the owner at the interview.
She’d had discussions with suppliers about a new French way of making a lighter and fluffier ganache mixture, and she had an exciting new idea about a crisper eggshell made from the macadamia nut brittle the shop produced, which would then be piped with the new ganache.
They could add fruit or mint for those people who preferred traditional flavors, but she also had an idea for an “Eggs that Bite” series, flavored with liqueurs, and maybe even a box with a hidden chili-flavored chocolate for a fun Russian Roulette game. That got her to thinking about a whole series of chocolate boxes based around simple games with chocolates as prizes, and that evening she spent ages sketching out ideas until she’d littered the room with paper.
“Wow.” Stella stopped as she walked in. “Did a box of A4 explode in here or something?”
“Ha, ha. It’s the interview tomorrow. I want to have lots of ideas to offer him.”
Stella picked up some of the papers and examined Chloe’s drawings. “Gosh, if the shop made all these, I could comfortably live in it. I’d be fat as a fat pig, though.”
Unbidden, Chloe remembered her teasing phrase to Garth. “Are you asking if I spit or swallow?” Even the thought of her words brought warmth to her cheeks. What had she been thinking? She hardly ever flirted—she was always too self-conscious with men to make flip sexual references. But she hadn’t been able to help it. His gaze had kept returning to her lips, and he’d obviously been thinking about kissing her again. No surprises that she couldn’t stop the memories of how he’d kissed her on the plane. What a shocking, forward thing to do to a customer. He was lucky she hadn’t slapped him or sued him. But she could only think about the way he’d cupped her head and turned it firmly, capturing her lips in a manner both possessive and gentle.
“Earth to Chloe? Jeez. What are you daydreaming about?” Stella looked over her shoulder at the paper on Chloe’s lap. “Who’s Garth?”
“Eh?” Chloe looked down. She’d doodled his name without realizing it. She scrunched up the paper and threw it onto the rubbish pile. “No one.”
“I know a Garth.” Stella perched on the arm of the chair. “Friend of Mat. Gorgeous guy, American, ten feet tall and built like a brick shit house.”
Yep, that was the one. “Never heard of him.”
Stella’s lips curved. “Come on, spill the beans. Where did you meet him?”
Chloe gave in. “He was the jump instructor. He kissed me to get me out of the plane.”
Stella’s eyebrows shot up. “He what?”
“Unprofessional, I know. I should sue him for sexual harassment.”
“You should offer up sacrifices to the gods in thanks, Chloe Jackson. He’s single, gorgeous, and richer than Rockefeller.”
Chloe stared. He’d admitted he owned Sky High, but she’d assumed it was a small, maybe family-run business. “He’s rich?”
“Yeah. Like a multi-billionaire or something. Comes from a wealthy family in the States. What more could you want?”
For a moment she couldn’t think. Then she shook her head. Multi-billionaire or not, the man was a lunatic, and she didn’t do lunatics. “He also falls fourteen thousand feet connected to a flimsy piece of material several times a day. I don’t think I could cope with that sort of worry on a permanent basis.”
“I can see your point.”
Chloe had to ask, though. “What else do you know about him?”
“Very little. He’s a Yank, obviously. I think he’s been here a few years though. Mat met him in Auckland and they’ve been best mates ever since. I’ve only seen him a couple of times. Mat says he’s a bit of a recluse. I got the feeling he has something in his past he’d rather not disclose, but I’ve no idea what.”
Great, a risk-taker and he had a secret life to go with it. Definitely not her type. She determined not to waste any more time thinking about him.
At that moment, the phone rang. Stella got up to answer it, and Chloe turned her attention back to her drawings. She gathered the A4 sheets together, thinking about what folders she had in the cupboard to present them in.
“It’s for you.” Stella handed her the phone. “Nick Stewart—that’s the guy from Cocoa Heaven, isn’t it?”
“Yes.” Chloe took the phone, wondering if he wanted to change the time of her interview. “Hello, Nick, Chloe here.”
“Hi Chloe.” Nick had a pleasant, soft Kiwi lilt to his voice. She’d only met him once. Although she’d been to Cocoa Heaven loads of times, when she found out about the position she’d popped in and happened to bump into him in the shop. Slender, and only an inch or two taller than her, he had blond, unruly hair and a quiet disposition she rather liked. She could totally see the two of them working together.
“Everything okay for tomorrow?” she asked brightly.
“Actually, that’s what I’m calling about.” He hesitated. “I’m afraid I’m going to have to cancel the interview.”
Her mouth fell open in disappointment. “Oh, that’s a shame. May I ask why?”
“Yes, of course, I owe you an explanation. I’m afraid the business isn’t doing well, Chloe. I’d hoped that by hiring a new assistant manager, I’d be able to bring a new lease of life to the shop, but I had a meeting with my accountant and the bank today, and they’ve forced me to accept it’s not going to happen. I’m going to have to close the shop.”
FUCK! yelled the devil in her ear.
“Oh dear,” she said mildly, “that’s terrible.” Disappointed swept over her, and not just because of her interview. The little shop with its polished kauri wood floors had a real old-fashioned, classy boutique feel to it. And she adored the chocolate they sold there, even though it needed someone to haul it into the twenty-first century. Damn it. She’d been so excited at the thought of bringing some new ideas to the place.
“I know,” he said sadly. “I’m absolutely gutted. My grandfather opened the shop back in the sixties. Then my mum ran it for ages. It was her pride and joy. She died a couple of years ago, and I promised her I’d continue to make it a success. I’ve failed her.” He went quiet.
She suppressed her disappointment. This meant more to him than a job opportunity. “Nick, I’m so sorry. I’m sure she’d understand. The current economic climate has forced so many small businesses to fold.”
“I don’t know. She was sharp when it came to the money. I don’t have a head for figures. I rely on my accountant, but it needs someone behind it who knows what they’re doing. I love the place. I’d do anything to keep it, but sometimes you have to admit defeat, you know? I can’t believe it’s going to close.” Defeat filled his voice.
“Couldn’t you find a buyer?”
“I doubt there’ll be anybody willing to take on a failing business like this. As you said, the current economic climate isn’t the best time to be self-employed.”
“No, I suppose not,” she said slowly.
“I’m sorry, Chloe.” He sounded sincere. “You were the favorite for the job. I wanted you to know that.”
“Thank y
ou. That means a lot to me.”
“You’re welcome. Anyway, I’ll see you around, eh?”
“Sure. Bye Nick.” She hung up.
Stella had been listening. “Crap.”
“Yeah. Uber-crap.” Chloe dropped the phone on the table and collapsed back onto the sofa. “I can’t believe it. I so wanted that job.”
“Oh, I know. What happened?”
She told her what Nick had said and finished with, “So the shop’s going to close.”
“You never know, maybe a buyer will come in last minute.” Stella grinned as she stood and collected the cups on the coffee table. “Perhaps you should buy it. You probably know more about making chocolate than anyone in New Zealand.” Laughing, she walked out into the kitchen.
Chloe stared at the ceiling. Her heart raced. She only tasted chocolate. She didn’t know the first thing about running a business.
But that wasn’t strictly true. Before she’d taken the job at the factory in Whangarei, she’d worked as an assistant to the manager in a large restaurant. She’d helped with a lot of the aspects of the business, so she had a good idea of what went on behind the scenes.
She couldn’t.
Could she?
Cocoa Heaven needed someone to care about it, someone prepared to put time and effort into it, and it also needed an injection of cash. Maybe she could fulfill the first two criteria, but she didn’t have any money, not since Ethan had spent all her savings. Pain hit her in the stomach like heartburn, but she refused to think about that now.
What about a business loan? She sat up, her mind buzzing with new ideas. Could she buy into the business as a partner, or would she have to buy him out completely? How much money would it take? Was it even feasible?
Finding a new pad of paper, she started to make notes, her heart continuing to pound. It wouldn’t be an easy option. She’d never had a bank loan in her life. She’d always saved up if she wanted to buy something. She hated borrowing money.
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