“Liv,” Shaun moaned, threading her fingers through the tousled waves that fell midway down Olivia’s back. Cole could see Olivia’s arm moving, and he imagined what her fingers were doing between Shaun’s thighs. His cock strained against the zipper of his dress pants in response. Dear god, Cole thought, his breath coming in pants as he continued to play voyeur.
“More,” Shaun commanded. “You know what I want.”
Olivia obliged. She bunched Shaun’s skirt around her hips, exposing the lace bands of her black thigh-high stockings, and ducked her head beneath it. Shaun splayed her palms against the wall and turned her face up, eyes closed, in Cole’s direction.
Cole froze, knowing he needed to move but unable to tear his gaze away. If she opened her eyes, would she see him? Would he be able to duck out in time?
Her kiss-swollen mouth froze in ecstasy, and her eyes popped open. She stared up at Cole, gaze seemingly locked with his, but otherwise giving no indication that she could see him, and making no attempt to stop Olivia.
The moment of doubt ended when the file Robert had given Cole took flight, slipping from under his arm, fluttering down and scattering papers behind Olivia, whose head jerked back.
Cole cursed and contemplated retreating out the door next to him, but he couldn’t risk Shaun seeing the contents of the file. Fucking Robert! Cole did the only thing he could and raced down the stairs. By the time he scooped up the evidence of his duplicity, Olivia had risen to her feet. She wiped her mouth with one index finger, glaring at him as if he had just walked into their bedroom uninvited.
“Uh, sorry about that. Slipped from my hand on my way down.”
“What exactly was your hand doing?” Olivia asked, crossing her arms over her chest.
Cole gave a nervous laugh, but Shaun’s expression remained stoic and unreadable. She glanced at the woman standing next to her. “Olivia, this is my new employee, Cole Jacobson.” The blonde’s eyes widened with recognition and then shifted to utter disdain. “Cole, this is my…” Shaun fumbled with the appropriate address, and he witnessed the subsequent hurt in Olivia’s expression, her arms falling to her sides. He almost felt bad for her. “Olivia Stiles.”
Cole smiled and nodded. “Nice to meet you, Olivia.” He moved to shake her hand but then stopped, remembering where it had been only moments ago. “I guess I’ll leave you two alone.” Cole fled through the stairwell door, not waiting to be dismissed.
Once Cole had passed Henry’s vacant desk and reached the sanctuary of his office, he collapsed into his chair with the weight of all that had happened in one measly hour crashing down on him. He couldn’t chase away the vision of Shaun succumbing to the force of her pleasure or the curious way she had almost encouraged him to watch.
Cole’s phone danced in his pants pocket, the caller Jake.
“Hey.”
“Hey yourself. I’m sitting here enjoying my BOBO from BC’s and thought I’d share the experience.”
“Ass!” At home, Cole and Jake frequented BC’s, short for the Sweetwater Bread Company, at least twice a week to catch up on all kinds of bullshit. Cole’s mouth watered for the fresh-baked sourdough roll stuffed with scrambled eggs, seasoned home fries, cheddar, and bacon. There was nothing on earth like it.
“Don’t be bitter because you’re not here to partake of this deliciousness. How’re things going?”
Cole decided to navigate the conversation toward his most recent ordeal in an attempt to make Jake as jealous as he was about the damn breakfast sandwich. “Oh, I’ve been better. However, I did just catch my boss and her girlfriend getting down in the stairwell. Actually, only one was down, if you know what I mean.”
“Fuck me!” Cole laughed, listening to the rustle of Jake cleaning up the mess he had apparently made in reaction to the revelation. He hoped his friend had dropped his sandwich. “Details, you son of a bitch. Details!”
Cole straightened at the sound of a throat being cleared that had not come from the phone. “Got to go.” He hit end, silencing the pleas from Jake blaring through the phone speaker.
He swiveled in his chair and found Shaun leaning against his doorjamb.
“You didn’t have to hang up so soon. The story was just starting to get interesting.”
Cole shuffled the papers around on his desk to hide Robert’s folder from view. “I’m sorry,” he stammered, trying to shake the vision of Olivia between Shaun’s parted thighs from his brain. “Don’t worry. I won’t tell anyone.” He grimaced at his abandoned BlackBerry, proof that his words were a total fib.
“Somehow I find that hard to believe.” Shaun crossed her arms over her chest. However, the motion appeared tentative, as if some of her confidence had been chipped away by recent events and she was attempting to shield that very fact. “I’m curious: what exactly would you say?” A slender brow arched upwards. “That you lurked in the shadows of the stairwell like some pervert and watched your boss get eaten out by her girlfriend? Does that sound about right?” Disgusted and ashamed, Cole opened his mouth, but his words abandoned ship, leaving him to sink alone. “Save it. Lunch meeting today at 12:30. Becco’s. Henry can give you the address.”
“Yes, Ms. Wright.” Shaun turned and left Cole to bang his head against his desk, repeatedly, in private.
CHAPTER 8
What could be worse than getting caught gossiping about your boss’s clandestine stairwell sexcapades? Having to sit across from said boss at a business lunch with one of her very important clients. Cole arrived at Becco’s early, figuring a beer or two might help take the edge off and free his mind a little regarding the trail of fuck-ups he had left in his wake. Thankfully, Henry had reined in his usual asshole attitude long enough to give Cole the address to the restaurant. Someone had made photocopies of Shaun’s notes for his uncle, and he couldn’t help but suspect that the office assistant held dual loyalty. Cole couldn’t think of anyone else having that kind of access. Except maybe Marcos, the mail guy, although he seemed rather content running people over with his cart. Cole wasn’t in a position to judge, but at least his situation had nothing to do with a desire for corporate advancement. He didn’t give a shit about solidifying a permanent position here. On the contrary, he wanted out of Mason, the sooner the better.
Cole mounted one of the empty barstools and ordered his usual Sam Adams. He needed to make a decision on whether to follow through with his uncle’s plan, assuming Shaun overlooked all that had happened in the past week, of course, and succumbed to his unique brand of uncultured, boorish masculinity. She had liked men at one point in her life, but she didn’t seem all too ready to end her relationship with Olivia.
Fuck me, Cole thought as the memory of the stairwell scene turned up the temperature in the restaurant, an inconvenient blaze that he attempted to extinguish with a healthy swallow of his adult beverage.
The door to Becco’s opened for the umpteenth time when Cole had started in on his third beer. Shaun entered, eyes hidden behind a pair of oversized sunglasses. The warm spring air made wearing a jacket unnecessary, but the sun remained undecided about peeking out through the clouds. She removed the sun wear and inserted them into a black case she fished from a large, red leather handbag as she took a long look around the dining room. Business Ms. Wright differed from the Shaun Cole had first met at Cask, but the self-assuredness that commanded the attention of all around her remained a permanent accessory. Cole noticed a few heads pop up to admire the beautiful woman waiting for the hostess to acknowledge her presence. But considering he had caught her in such a compromising situation that morning, he was fairly certain this meeting would rate as a category five tornado of awkward. Cole resolved to keep his mouth shut for once and only speak when spoken to, and even then he would choose his words very carefully. Why hadn’t he stopped at one beer?
Shaun spoke a few words to the hostess, who had directed Cole to the small bar tucked away in the corner of the cozy restaurant. When she scanned the dining room once more, her teeth worrying her lower lip, Cole t
ook his cue and popped up from his parking spot, feeling a sudden rush from the alcohol he’d consumed on a fairly empty stomach.
“Shaun,” he called out a little too loudly. Her head spun around, and he could’ve sworn she gave something between an anxious smile and a grimace when she saw him. Or Sammy Boy was choosing to have a little fun with his brain.
“Good, you’re here,” she said, although her eyes moved quickly to the phone she pulled from her bag. She let the hostess know they were waiting on one, not giving the employee her undivided attention either. “You can seat us,” she instructed.
“Right this way, then.” The pony-tailed girl grabbed three menus and started for the dining area, which was decorated in a palette of rich sea blues and deep forest greens. Many of the round tables draped in navy tablecloths were occupied by an array of suits, but each was spaced out enough to discourage feelings of crowdedness. This was definitely the kind of restaurant that attracted upper corporate patronage, and judging by the fragrant dishes parading from the kitchen, Cole could understand why. The hostess stopped at a table on the border of all the action and set the menus down. “Paul will be right over to take your drink order.”
“Allow me.” Cole caught up in time to pull out a chair for Shaun like the gentleman his mother had raised him to be.
“Thank you,” she replied, and he helped inch her toward the table before finding his seat opposite her.
An older man wearing a long navy-striped apron approached seconds later. “Welcome to Becco’s. My name is Paul, and I will be your server this afternoon. Can I start you off with something to drink?” he asked.
“A Pellegrino with lime, please,” Shaun replied.
Cole tapped his beer. “I’m all set, thanks.” Shaun started to remove a few files from her handbag, resting them on the chair beside her. Cole looked on and did the one thing he excelled at when nervous and buzzed – he rambled. “I would’ve taken you for a mid-day martini kind of woman.”
Shaun flipped open her menu, still not making eye contact, which made him wonder how she really felt about him seeing her in the stairwell. From what little he knew of Shaun, she wasn’t one to avoid awkward situations, but if so, why wouldn’t she look him in the eye?
“I don’t drink during business meetings.”
Cole grimaced at his beer, although she wouldn’t know what number he was on. “Is that a company rule?”
“No, personal.”
He breathed an inward sigh of relief and started to peruse the menu as well.
Paul soon returned with Shaun’s Pellegrino. “How about an appetizer while you wait for the third member of your party?”
Cole quickly scanned the options, most of them in Italian, and not the kind you’d find on a menu in Sweetwater. Luckily his mom had dragged him to Olive Garden every time she’d visited him at RCIT, so he recognized a few of the dishes. His eyes wandered over to the prices – all two-digit numbers except for a tomato and mozzarella salad; lunch portion, of course. Definitely not Olive Garden.
“Do you like calamari?” Shaun asked him.
“Calawhatsit?” he replied, furrowing his brow and feigning confusion. “Sounds like something we’d use as bait back home.”
Shaun stared at him, looking baffled and a teensy bit mortified. He’d known he’d be able to get her to make eye contact at some point in the meal. She tore her gaze away and shook her head at Paul. “Please give us a few minutes.”
“Yes, of course, ma’am.”
Once the server moved out of earshot, Cole released a hearty chuckle, the beer having done a good job of loosening him up. “I know what calamari is. I honestly just wanted to see your reaction when I acted like the country hick you seem to think I am. Priceless.”
Shaun answered with a one-finger salute, disguising the gesture behind her open menu. He could see the corners of her mouth twitch with amusement.
Cole scooped up his beer and took another irresponsible swig. “How would Olivia feel about you sharing that finger?” Too late to reel his inappropriate comment back, Cole cursed to himself and again made the decision to lay off the sauce until he had eaten something. The joke had sounded much better in his head. “I’m sor–”
“Instead of saying sorry all the time, how about you just try not to act like an asshole to begin with?” Before he could attempt another apology, she silenced him with her hand. “Let’s just get through this meeting, okay?” Cole gave a small nod and returned his attention to the menu. Shaun glanced down at her vibrating phone and lifted the device to her ear. Cole half-listened, looking for something familiar to order and trying to devise a fool-proof plan to keep his fucking foot out of his mouth.
“Thank you, Raymond.” Shaun sank back in her chair and dropped her phone to the table with a sigh. She hailed the server and ordered a martini with Hendrick’s. She even outclassed him in her choice of alcohol, Cole reflected.
“Something wrong?” he asked, daring to open his mouth.
“Looks like it’s just you and me for lunch.” After a couple of silent minutes, Paul set a martini in front of Shaun. She swirled the glass, allowing the cucumber slices at the bottom to swim a few laps, and took a long drink.
“Would you believe me if I told you that I’m not the filterless dick I always appear to be around you?” Cole redirected his eyes to his beer bottle, searching for the courage to continue somewhere on the label. “I just get real … nervous sometimes. And the more nervous I get, the more of an asshole I become.” He took a deep breath, unable to believe what he planned to say next. “Especially with you.”
Shaun placed her martini back on the table. “Me? Why?”
He risked a look up. She returned his gaze, her expression neither friendly nor venomous. “I don’t know. I guess I’m just not used to women like you.”
“Women like me?” She narrowed her eyes, absently running her fingertip along the rim of her martini glass.
“Beautiful. Smart. Intimidating as all hell.” She smiled down at her martini, and a long lock of dark brown corn silk rested on her left cheek. “So tell me, how does so smart a woman become business partners with my dickwad of an uncle?”
Shaun laughed, her mask of suspicion falling slightly askew. “Let’s order some food first. I’m starving.”
Shaun explained that Becco’s served its menu family style and suggested they share a few of her favorites. They decided on the calamari dredged in lemon-pepper panko and accompanied by a spicy marinara for the appetizer and handmade penne tossed in a vine-ripened tomato-basil sauce for an entree.
When Paul set the monster dish of calamari between them, Shaun ordered a second martini. “My twenty-third birthday present from my father was making me partner of Jacobson Contracting. It turned out a few of his golfing buddies were worried about their investment in a company that had originally seemed like a promising start-up.” Shaun selected one of the rings of squid, which was fried to delicate perfection, with her fingers. “He bought out their shares and in turn gained the control to perform such a ballsy move.”
“Was that something you wanted?” Cole asked, grabbing some calamari for himself.
“Honestly, no. I mean, I had been groomed for corporate administration since birth, expected to follow in the footsteps of my father. But I always found myself eclipsed by his shadow, you know? I really wanted to make my own way. Open my own doors. Whispers around the building my first week gave me a month tops, and I was determined to prove them wrong.” She shrugged her shoulders. “I can’t complain, though. I’ve experienced so much, so young. I did what was expected and made the best of it.”
Paul returned with the bowl of pasta, and Shaun reached a hand across the table. “Give me your plate.” Cole did as told, and Shaun scooped a good portion of penne onto his plate. She gave his dish back and then served herself. “I do find what I do inspiring sometimes. Especially now.” She smiled at him and then started in on her pasta.
Cole stared on in admiration. Across from hi
m sat a woman who was determined to succeed even though her heart was not in it. She, much like him, had been forced into a situation she did not want, and yet she somehow managed to stay on top. Cole remained silent and found himself embarrassed to be in such a presence, when all this time he’d been acting like a big baby about everything, including his attraction to her. However, the more time they spent alone together, the more he became convinced that the attraction wasn’t so one-sided, despite the scene in the stairwell earlier.
“What do you mean, ‘especially now’?” he asked, careful to keep his tone casual. He let his gaze drift to the pasta stuck to his fork.
His question caught her by surprise, it seemed, as she audibly fumbled for the right response. “I guess … to work with someone who doesn’t rely on a computer all the time and shares my design sensibilities.” Her attention darted back to her food when Cole glanced up, but she only pushed the penne on her plate around.
Cole feared that he had knocked the conversation back out of bounds, but he knew this once that the fault was not his. She had offered up the compliment, and he had only asked for a clarification. And yet she appeared too uncomfortable to face him. Not wanting to lose ground on their progress toward a civil business relationship at least, he steered the conversation toward banal comparisons between Becco’s and their vision for Ciao Belleza.
Paul returned and cleared their empty plates away. “Would you like to see the dessert selection?”
Shaun declined, sitting back in her chair enough to give Cole a pleasant view of her hand rubbing her flat tummy.
“I’m not ready to let you off the hook yet,” he told her, giving the server a nod.
Shaun chewed at the edge of her thumbnail and considered his words before glancing down at her phone, which had lit up with another notification. “We should be getting back to the office. You have a proposal to work on. Besides, what else is there to talk about?” Her tone was more playful than stern. “I’ve already told you way too much.” She frowned at the half-empty martini glass in front of her, the second she’d had during the course of their business lunch.
Drawn Through You Page 6
