by Unknown
He was right, and Shane knew it. Fighting his feelings for Satra would be a losing battle, but he couldn’t go down without a fight. He had to try to keep things professional for both of their sakes for as long as he possibly could.
Shane began to think about his past relationships, and he realized that he never felt so strongly so soon about any of them like he did with Satra. There was something about her, something different that got under his skin right away. It irritated and pleased him at the same time. She was so many wonderful things rolled into one that it would be impossible for anyone not to fall for her.
“Mr. Gordon was right about one thing: women like her come around once in a lifetime,” Shane said to himself.
Meeting Satra couldn’t have come at the worst time. Working together was the biggest obstacle they had. Shane’s cardinal rule was to never date whom you work with. He wasn’t willing to risk either of their careers or reputations, but especially Satra’s. Not now and not in this manner.
But it wouldn’t be an affair; it would be a real relationship, Shane thought to himself. Satra would be his in every sense of the word, not just some bed buddy.
One thing he knew for sure was if he touched her again he wouldn’t have the willpower to stop because he barely had the willpower to stop in the limo.
He felt a little better knowing that he wasn’t the only one affected by what happened in the limo. He saw the desire in her eyes just as he was sure she saw the desire in his. The question is how long can they keep things professional between them?
Turning off the water in the shower, Shane decided to put his gym clothes on and work off the rest of his frustrations in the weight room. After thirty-five minutes of lifting weights, he ran on the treadmill for an hour. He then came back to his room, hopped in the shower again, taking a hot one this time, and went to bed, but not before reaching over for his cell phone on the nightstand and pulling up the picture of him and Satra. His heart skipped a beat like it always did when he looked at that picture. In his subconscious mind, she was his, even if he hasn’t made a move or verbally stated it. Then the wise words of Mr. Gordon came to mind again: “Don’t wait too long before you make your move. A gem like that doesn’t come around often, and it’s just a matter of time before someone else realizes that she’s gem as well.”
Anger instantly rose in Shane’s chest at the mere thought of Satra smiling at another man or some man touching her, or God forbid, sleeping with her. “Over my dead body.” He growled to himself before putting his phone back on the nightstand and turning off the light. Thankfully he was too tired to allow the thought to keep him up. Sleep claimed him the minute his head hit his pillow.
Chapter Six
Shane woke up in a good mood, but that quickly changed when he looked at his agenda for the day. He had to meet with Charlene Walker first thing in the morning. Coffee did little to improve his mood. Satra didn’t sleep well at all. She tossed and turned most of the night trying her best to get sexy Shane Evans out of her head with little success. Satra dragged herself out of bed and ordered a light breakfast while she decided what to wear to the office. She decided on her favorite black dress slacks with a sleeveless red ruffled blouse and black leather three-inch heels with ruffled detailing down the front with peep toes. Instead of curling her hair she parted it down the middle, and flat ironed it straight. Today she decided to just wear a little charcoal gray eye shadow over her lower lid, liquid eyeliner, mascara, and a red lip-gloss. She was finished sooner than she expected, so she called Alinna to see how she was doing.
“About time you called me! I was about to get really salty with you,” Alinna said after answering the phone on the second ring.
“I’m sorry. I am working you know. I’m not down here on vacation Linna.”
“So how are things going?”
“They’re going okay I guess,” Satra sighed.
“That didn’t sound good. What happened? It’s Shane isn’t it?” Alinna asked, her face beaming with a huge smile.
“First of all it’s not about him (liar), and second it’s about these people down here. There’s this one chick in particular…”
Satra went on to tell Alinna about her initial encounter with Charlene Walker.
“No that bitch didn’t!” Alinna yelled. “You should have snatched that tramp by her hair and beat the shit out of her, real talk Satra!”
Satra always got a kick out of Alinna when her hood side came out.
“Believe me I wanted to Linna. I wanted to real bad, but I couldn’t. I had to rise above her. Besides, Shane shut all that down. After she got all up in his face trying to seduce him, he looked at her like she disgusted him and said, ‘I’m sorry, but it looks like you by passed Ms. Sinclair. I’m sure that was unintentional oversight on your part. Ms. Walker, this is Satra Sinclair….’ Then he went on to rattle off all my titles. Girl, her face went white as snow, and her mouth hit the floor! It was so funny I wanted to DIE laughing!”
“Are you serious? He checked her like that for you….in front of everybody?” Alinna asked in total shock.
“Mmmhmm. He sure did,” Satra replied, smiling as she thought back on the whole scene.
“Girl…do I need to spell it out for you?”
“Spell what out?” Satra asked frowning.
“Satra, no man does something like that for a woman unless he’s digging her. Shane is totally diggin’ you!” Alinna proclaimed.
“No, no, no! Stop it right there. You’re jumping to conclusions again Alinna. How about he’s a gentleman, and he was doing what any gentleman would have done in that situation?” Satra protested.
“Keep living in your world of denial, but when I’m standing up in you and Shane’s WEDDING, you will get a big fat ‘I TOLD YOU SO’ from me as a wedding gift.”
“You know what, I have to get to the office. My limo is waiting for me outside,” Satra said in a sassy tone.
“Well, look at you with the fancy limo rides to the office. Go head girl! Oh, and by the way – Shane is digging you and you are most certainly digging him. Bye!” Alinna spat and quickly hung up before Satra could say anything back.
“UGH, she makes me SICK!” Satra yelled.
Just then she heard a knock on her door.
“I’m coming!” she yelled not so nicely. When she opened the door, she was still frowning.
“Good morning. I’m ready,” Satra grumbled as she walked by Shane and started walking towards the elevator without him.
Eyebrows raised and wondering what just happened, Shane replied, “Good morning to you too.”
When Shane caught up with her at the elevator, he noticed the different way she did her hair, and he liked it. She looked sexy-chic if there was such a thing.
“Is everything okay?” he asked as he faced her.
“Yes. I’m sorry for snapping at you, it wasn’t directed at you. I was on the phone with my friend, and she pissed me off like only a best friend can. Just the way I wanted to start my day,” Satra told him as she continued to face the elevator doors and not face Shane.
Looking him in the eyes wasn’t what she wanted to do at that moment. Not after the conversation she just had with Alinna about him. She’s already starting to look at him in a different way, and it was bugging the hell out of her. Shane noticed how she wouldn’t look him directly in the face, and he didn’t like it. He didn’t like it one bit.
“Could you at least look at me and tell me that you’re okay?” he asked in a slightly demanding voice.
That got Satra’s attention, and not in a good way. “Excuse me?” she asked as she turned to look at him.
“You heard me. Give me the common courtesy of at least looking at me in the face when you’re speaking to me,” Shane said, his tone firm with a hint of annoyance.
“Who in the hell…No, what makes you think you have the right to speak to me that way? I am not your child, and I am most certainly not your wife, and even if I were, you still wouldn’t get away with
speaking to me that way! I told you I was fine, and that should suffice, but if it doesn’t then that is too darn bad!” Satra spat out.
Whoa! Where is all this anger coming from? Did she really just get off the phone with her friend or did she have an argument with her boyfriend? Maybe someone she’s seeing secretly?
Shane’s mind began to race with thoughts that only made him angrier by the minute. But more importantly, did she really just say “darn” instead of damn? Even though he was pissed at the moment, he couldn’t help but chuckle to himself at her proper way of going off on someone.
Instead of responding in anger he just searched her angry eyes with his. The nostrils of her cute little button nose were flared, and her jaws were clenched. Dammit, even when she’s angry she’s sexy! Despite how sexy she looked he knew she was lying. She’s pissed about something all right, and he hoped to God it didn’t involve another man. That’s something he wouldn’t be able to stomach. Maybe she was still bothered by what happened last night in the limo with the massage he gave her?
“Will you stop staring at me like that?” Satra snapped, interrupting Shane’s thoughts. Her anger was still rising by the minute.
Deciding to take a different approach Shane smiled slowly, revealing his perfect white teeth and dimples and said, “I can’t help it. You’re beautiful, and I like your hair like that.”
He knew he was asking for trouble, but he had to calm her down some kind of way. The last thing he wanted was to start his day off with an argument with Satra. Besides, he meant what he said. She is beautiful, and he did like her hair that way. Hell he would like her hair any way she styled it.
Satra looked at him in total disbelief but was flattered and surprised at his words.
“Really? You talk to me like I’m some 3-year-old child, and now you think you can make everything better by complimenting me? Don’t talk to me anymore, Shane.” Satra walked onto the elevator that finally came to their floor. Shane walked in behind her and put his briefcase down on the elevator floor and tried to turn Satra around to face him but she snatched away from him.
“Don’t touch me,” she snapped.
‘Now who is being childish?’ she thought to herself
Shane laughed.
“Oh, that’s funny to you?” Satra asked with one hand on her hip.
“No, it’s not funny. You’re funny. And you’re cute when you’re mad. You remind me of my little niece when she doesn’t get her way.” His tone softened to the point of sounding seductive.
Ignoring his sexy voice, Satra forged on with her attempt to remain angry with him.
“Are you really trying to get back on my good side? If so, you’re doing a horrible job.”
“Ok look, I’m sorry for speaking to you that way. I’m not in the best of moods myself, and we both took out our crappy moods on each other. Can we please be friends again?”
Feeling victorious, Satra took the opportunity to search his face and eyes. He was sincere, and all the teasing was gone from his eyes. It was those eyes that made her knees weak, and she hated it.
“Apology accepted,” Satra said begrudgingly, looking away still slightly pouting.
“You know you really know how to tick a girl off. I don’t have a potty mouth, but I was ready to say some very un-lady like things to you, Shane Evans.”
Shane chuckled. “You would never have a potty mouth because you’re too much of a lady to speak that way, I don’t care how angry you get.”
“And just how do you know that?” Satra asked as she turned to look at him.
“I just do. And I meant it when I said you look beautiful.”
There goes that sexy, seductive tone again. It struck her to her core this time because he was being serious, and she knew he meant what he said. Her body betrayed her in the worst way as waves of delicious tingles went through her, especially between her legs.
They stared at each other for a long time. A lump in Satra’s throat prevented her from responding right away, but after a few swallows she managed to say “Thank you” before shyly turning away. The elevator reached the lobby, and they walked off to their limo waiting outside. When they were seated inside, and the driver pulled off from the curb, Shane had a serious look on his face.
“I do have a pet peeve about people not looking me in the face when they speak to me. I know it may sound arrogant, but it’s how I know whether I’m being told the truth or being lied to. Being in this line of work people lie to me on a daily basis. That’s why I like to look in a person’s eyes when they speak to me, even in my personal life.”
Well, that kind of explains why he always looks so intense and serious all the time. He’s trying to read your face and is dissecting every facial expression you make.
“You do realize that some people are very shy, and it’s hard for them to make eye contact? That doesn’t automatically mean they are lying or hiding something from you. It’s even a sign of disrespect in some cultures to look a person directly in the eyes.”
Shane nodded his head in agreement. “I do know this. Maybe I just want more from certain people.”
Satra caught his meaning and began to feel uncomfortable. Trying to lighten the mood, she said, “If only the rest of the world thought like you, Mr. Evans.”
Ignoring her obvious sarcasm, Shane replied, “So you agree that the world would be a much better place if everyone thought like me?”
Satra looked at him and shook her head. Her cell phone rang in her purse, and she took it out. It was her mom. Slight panic went through her body. Her mother never called her cell phone, and she never would call this early in the morning if it weren’t important.
“Excuse me for a moment,” Satra said to Shane before answering.
Shane quietly watched Satra the entire time and saw the momentary look of worry on her face when she looked at her cell phone to see who was calling.
“Hello…ma? How are you?” Satra asked in a low yet concerned voice.
“Satra, where are you?” came her mother’s shaky voice.
“I’m in South Carolina. Remember I told you I had to come here for a week on business? What’s wrong?” Satra asked, getting more worried by the second.
“You need to come home. It’s your father. He had a stroke.”
“What?!” Satra barely got out. “Oh no! When did it happen?”
Her hands were shaking, and she wanted to cry. Panic started to take over her, but she knew she needed to hold things together for her mother’s sake. Her mother’s voice was trembling, and she knew she was crying. Shane leaned forward in his seat as he heard Satra’s voice crack and saw her hands shaking.
“It happened at 5am this morning when we got up. He was in the bathroom like normal. I thought he was shaving or something so I didn’t think anything of how long he was taking. After a while, I started calling out to him, and he didn’t answer. I banged on the door; still no answer. Finally, I barged in and found him on the floor.”
Satra couldn’t believe her ears. Then images of her father lying lifeless on her parent’s bathroom floor started running through her mind.
“I’m at St. Luke’s hospital now. Your brothers are all here. Get here as soon as you can okay?” her mom said through a sob.
“I’m on my way now mom. Everything is going to be fine. I love you,” Satra said as she shakily hung up the phone.
Now she was in shock. Her mind was racing, and the tears she was fighting back were now stinging her eyes. Thoughts of death and funerals kept crossing her mind even though she tried her best not to think that way. She didn’t hear Shane calling her name, asking her what happened. It wasn’t until he crossed over to sit next to her and turned her around to face him to ask one last time. Firmly shaking her, hoping it would make her focus, he replied again louder and more firmly, “Satra, what is going on? What happened?”
“I…I have to go home. My… my dad had a stroke, and he’s in the hospital. I have to go home, Shane. I have to go home right now,” S
atra told him softly while hot tears fell down her face. Shane’s heart broke for her. His need to protect and comfort her took over as he immediately pulled her into his arms and held her close while she cried, her body trembling like a leaf in the wind. He absently planted small kisses on the top of her forehead and on her temple. Satra clung to Shane tightly, her face buried in his chest. Shane handed her tissues to wipe her eyes and then knocked on the window to the limo driver.
“Take us back to the hotel. From there we need to get to the airport as fast as you can get us there.”
The driver nodded and raised his window back up, turning the limo around at the next corner. Shane’s arms were so comforting and protective and warm, and as much as she would have loved to stay in them Satra had to pull herself together. She gently pushed against his chest and scooted back, putting some space between them. Shane resisted at first because he didn’t feel like she was okay yet, and also because he liked the way she felt in his arms. She felt so right, so natural as if she belonged there and no one else. He reluctantly let her go, his eyes never leaving her face and his big warm hand now covering hers.
“I need to make some phone calls,” Satra said as she tried to hold back another sob. She was trying her best to get her emotions under control.
“If they’re to Grayson or anyone else at work, I’ll let them know what’s going on. You just worry about packing and getting to the airport, okay?” Shane gently commanded.
“Shane, no…” Satra tried to protest.
Shane reached out and wiped away a tear from her cheek with his thumb and softly replied, “I’ll take care of it, Satra. You need to get home and be with your family. Don’t worry about work.”
He was right. She knew the minute she talked to Grayson on the phone she’d break down in tears all over again, and she didn’t want to do that. They were back at the hotel in no time and the minute they were out of the limo Shane put a protective arm around Satra as they quickly walked inside. If it weren’t for his arm holding her up she wasn’t sure how she’d be able to walk. Satra felt like the life was sucked out of her with the blink of an eye when she received that devastating phone call from her mother.