Electric!

by Ava McKnight

  Chase Logan loved her.

  The brainiac. The workaholic. The thought-she-was-a-boring-and-clichéd woman.

  Her. Cassidy Reynolds.

  Cass Reynolds.

  Cass.

  Babe.

  She laughed, though it sounded strained to her own ears. Tears prickled her eyes. This time, she didn’t bother blinking them back.

  He said, “I won’t say I’m not thrilled about the promotion. You know that’d be a lie. But I wanted it for you too, Cass. Because you earned it and because I want you to be happy.”

  A few fat drops crested the rims of her eyes and slid down her flushed cheeks. “I wanted it for you too. Because you earned it and because I want you to be happy.”

  Chase let out a low chuckle. “Then don’t spoil my big day by talking about our split. In fact, make it an even better day by reconsidering.”

  Pulling her hands from his, she stood and moved restlessly about her office. She gave very honest consideration to their predicament and came to one resounding and inescapable conclusion. One she’d sort of known all along, but had needed to reach the end of this VP journey in order to see.

  Turning back to Chase, who stood as well, she resisted the overwhelming urge to wring her hands. She took a few deep breaths, then said, “I’m okay with not getting the promotion. I realized when I feared I was going to lose my job that all I wanted was to do what I do best and not let that skill dull in order to sharpen another one.”

  He nodded. “Yeah. I feel the same.”

  “I’m good at what I do, Chase. When I’m left to it and not thrown curveballs to be somebody else. But…” She shook her head. “The truth is, I did feel some exhilaration over having a bit more purpose and pressure, a bit more excitement in my life these past two weeks.”

  He grinned. “The woman likes a little challenge from time to time.”

  Cassidy laughed softly. “Yes, I guess I do.” Her gaze swept over him, taking him in from strategically mussed hair to glowing blue eyes to chiseled facial features to a body that would have made Mother Theresa salivate. Then she made her boldest move yet. “The ultimate challenge would be keeping you hot for me.”

  A low growl escaped his lips. “We definitely need to take this conversation out of the office.”

  Fire flared low in her belly. “Stay focused, Chase. We still have McClellan’s announcement of your promotion to get through this afternoon.”

  He swooped in and grabbed her around the waist. Pulling her tight against him, he said, “Tell me you’re rescinding the whole breakup speech.”

  Her body instantly melded to his and her fingers curled around the material of his dress shirt at his chest.

  “Um…”

  “Just fucking say it.” His cerulean eyes blazed with desire. Cassidy’s nipples tightened and her inner walls clenched. God she wanted him. Bad.

  “Chase.” She could barely breathe. “There’s something I have to tell you first.”

  He groaned. “I just need to hear one thing from you, babe.”

  “I love you.”

  His eyes popped. “No shit?”

  She smiled. “No shit. I knew it Thursday night when you did all that wonderful stuff for me. Maybe I knew it before then.”

  “Cass.” His head dipped and he kissed her. Deeply. Passionately. With the kind of affection and emotion that shot all the way to her toes.

  He crushed her to him and held her tight. She gave into him. Gave herself over to him.

  Because this was exactly how love and lust was supposed to be. Not that mundane staring-up-at-the-ceiling thing, or the lukewarm fuzzies.

  Chase sent her entire being into the stratosphere and she loved every crazy second of it. Even if it did freak her out a bit. Turned out, she liked a little bit of life on the edge.

  And a few unexpected twists and turns, which kept coming her way…

  One o’clock would have felt like high noon at a shootout or some sort of executioner’s hour, except that Cassidy had two aces in her back pocket. One being she’d kept her job, much to Gav’s dismay. He’d sworn a blue streak when she’d called to tell him the news, saying it sucked to high hell that he couldn’t steal her away from MII. That had made her smile.

  The second coup she held close to her heart was knowing Chase Logan, office superhunk and the most amazing, charismatic man she’d ever known, loved her.

  And she loved him.

  So when McClellan and his senior management team stopped into the Accounts division and over fifty people gathered around to hear his announcement of who would replace Tom Doherty as VP of Accounts, she stood close to Chase and smiled up at him, happy for him. Proud of him. And proud of herself for sharing the journey with him and pushing herself beyond her comfort zone.

  “While I am deeply sympathetic to Mr. Doherty’s current situation and I wish him and his wife all the best,” McClellan began, “I am extremely confident in the new direction we’re about to take with our accounts management function. Reporting to Tom in the past are Cassidy Reynolds and Chase Logan. Miss Reynolds has been with the company for five years, Mr. Logan for two. While they share the same title as Director of Accounts, they serve two very different purposes. It was my intention to see if they could each encompass a larger spectrum. I was not the least bit disappointed in the results.”

  His gaze fell on Cassidy. She smiled, though emotion flashed through her. Not over having lost the promotion to Chase, but because she truly did believe that McClellan saw how hard she worked and knew she put her heart and soul into the job.

  Continuing, he said, “I’m pleased to tell you all that the new Vice President of Accounts is Mr. Logan.”

  A round of applause ensued. Meg, standing on the other side of Cassidy outside her office, gently squeezed her arm in silent commiseration.

  Chase wore a mixed expression on his devastatingly handsome face. A combination of appreciation and remorse. Cassidy knew the latter related to her. So she clapped a bit louder for him.

  When the din died down, McClellan said, “With the global expansion we’re undertaking, and because I know Mr. Logan is strongly poised to focus on acquisitions, I’ll be modifying his title slightly to include new business development.”

  Cassidy leaned toward him and whispered, “Congrats.”

  He looked a little blown away. “Thanks.”

  “Also in light of our expansion plans,” McClellan continued, “and because we truly do need additional strength in customer service, I’ve created a Vice President of Accounts Management position with the Board’s blessing. Miss Reynolds, I feel you would be exceptional in this capacity.”

  Emotion slammed into her again. This time taking her completely by surprise. A hard rush of air blew from her lungs. Shock and excitement rocketed through her.

  “Oh my God, Cass!” Meg squealed from beside her. “You’re a VP!”

  The applause that ensued rivaled what Chase had received…perhaps even hitching a bit higher in enthusiasm. There were several women in attendance, after all.

  She beamed up at Chase and said, “I guess this makes us partners.”

  “Indeed,” McClellan said. “Both overseeing the division with equal responsibility, equal accountability, equal say and…equal pay.”

  Cassidy’s heart nearly stopped. Her gaze fell on McClellan.

  He said, “You’ve certainly earned it, my dear.”

  She didn’t bother fighting back the few tears that formed in her eyes. This was one of the best days of her life, after all. Who could begrudge her an emotional moment?

  Chase’s head bent to hers and he asked, “Didn’t I tell you that we’re good together?”

  “Un-fucking-believable,” was all she could murmur in return.

  McClellan said, “The issue I can’t fully reconcile is that there’s only one office available on the executive floor. I’ll let you two decide who gets it, but know that we’ll blow out the wall between your two current offices on this floor to create one VP
office, providing even more space than what’s upstairs.” He stepped toward Cassidy and Chase and shook both their hands. “Congratulations. And please know that the Board and I have every confidence in you.”

  Then he and his team were gone. The Accounts personnel swooped in to offer their pats on the back. It was sort of like the mayhem on the football field after a state championship victory. Something Cassidy had never been a part of…until now.

  McClellan’s executive assistant left champagne and over a glass in her office, Cassidy told Chase, “This must be how every prom queen feels.”

  He chuckled. “All she gets is a fake tiara and one spotlight dance. You get a fat paycheck and a vice presidency.”

  “So true.” She sipped, then asked, “So what do we do about the office?”

  He kissed her on the cheek and said, “Whatever you want.”

  Cassidy gave this some thought, then mused, “Extra space wouldn’t hurt since I’m always meeting with clients and you’re always out and about.”

  With a nod, he said, “Yeah, that’s true.” He finished his champagne, then added, “Thing is, since I’m not here as much as you are, it doesn’t really make sense for me to take the executive wing office.”

  Her heart skipped a beat.

  “I’m kinda thinking,” he said with a glint in his bright-blue eyes, “it’d be wasted space. If you weren’t in it.”

  Her entire spirit soared. “Really, Chase?”

  “Yeah, really.”

  She threw her arms around his neck. He’d known all along how much the prestige of that office meant to her. No question about it. Because he knew her that well.

  “I love you,” she said as more tears filled her eyes.

  “Only took two years and two weeks to get you to realize it.”

  Choking on a sob as she tried to laugh around her tears, she said, “Remind me to always agree with you. Because you are always right.”

  “Oh the ego I’m getting.”

  Then he kissed her and Cassidy realized that maybe she was a bit like her mother, after all.

  Because she’d just gotten everything she wanted.

  Epilogue

  As far as celebratory dinners went, Cassidy would contend that hers and Chase’s took the cake.

  Her father and brother flew in from Connecticut. As did her aunts and uncles. Chase’s parents came in from Florida. Meg and Grace were invited to join them. Meg was beside herself over the move to the top floor of MII. Grace appeared a bit envious, but offered sincere congratulations to both Cassidy and Meg.

  Lively champagne toasts ensued and they all indulged in steaks at breathtaking Talavera at the Four Seasons.

  Both Cassidy and Chase had put their relatives up at the resort in scenic Troon North, so when they returned to Chase’s house, they had plenty of privacy.

  He swept her into his arms as the door slammed shut behind them. He held her against him and kissed her.

  Then he said, “Two weeks without you is two weeks too long.”

  She groaned. “I know. But we’re going to have to deal with it, because you travel and I don’t.”

  “We’ll have directors to take over some of that. You and I will be busy strategizing with the senior management team and the Board over how to increase our global reach. That’ll be exciting.”

  “Very exciting.”

  “Maybe a trip or two overseas will be in our future.”

  “Paris would be nice.”

  “Yeah. It would.”

  He kissed her again. Then he muttered against her lips, “I’m not sure we’re going to make it to the bedroom.”

  His hands roamed her body as his mouth crashed down on hers again. Liquid fire rushed through her veins. Her nipples tightened. Her clit tingled.

  Tearing her mouth from his, she said, “Fuck me, Chase.”

  With a grunt, he popped open the buttons on her blouse. “I’ll buy you a new one,” he mumbled as his head dipped and his tongue swiped her nipple through her lacy bra. Then suckled it.

  Exhilaration zinged through her. “Damn, you are so sexy.”

  He cupped her breasts, massaging them a bit roughly and urgently, belying his lust and desire for her.

  Cassidy’s fingers threaded through the silky strands of his hair that were messy in that really edgy way that hitched her excitement.

  Tucking both of the lacy cups under her breasts, he lavished the taut peaks with quick flicks of his tongue. Then the pads of his thumbs swept over her hard nipples as he kissed her deeply.

  Cassidy felt the inferno rage within her. Chase broke their kiss and nipped at her neck as he worked the fastening of his belt and then his dress pants. While ecstasy roared through her over his teasing love bites, he jerked his zipper down and rustled around for his wallet. Then he shoved her skirt up, clasped her waist and set her on the edge of the foyer table. He ripped open a condom with his teeth and seconds later, he was buried deep inside her. To the hilt. Filling and stretching her.

  “Oh God,” she moaned. “Chase.” Her hands gripped his shoulders. He stared into her eyes, fire lighting his eyes. He thrust into her and she cried out.

  He hammered into her, seemingly knowing how desperately she needed him. Her arms wound around his neck and she pulled him close to her as his cock pumped inside her.

  “You feel incredible,” he said in a strained voice. “Seriously, I can’t get enough of you.”

  He fucked her harder. Cassidy’s legs wrapped around his hips. She squeezed him tight and he let out a low growl.

  “I love it when you’re inside me,” she told him.

  Chase kissed her wildly again, then playfully bit the corner of her mouth, her bottom lip. Making her even hotter.

  “I’m going to come,” she said, breathless.

  “Yes,” he whispered in her ear. “Come for me. Come all over my cock.”

  He worked her a bit faster and everything inside of Cassidy sizzled and ballooned into fiery sensations that pushed the breaking point and then exploded.

  “Chase!” she cried out again. “Oh God!”

  She came on a hard rush of air and the most intensely erotic sensations. Her orgasm roared through her and she clenched Chase’s thick shaft, milking him.

  “Just like that, babe,” he said in a gruff tone. “Make me come.”

  Her inner walls squeezed and released, and he thrust harder into her. “Fuck, yes,” he said. And then his body tensed. A heartbeat later, tremors shot through him as he erupted inside her.

  Cassidy held on tight. Chase called out her name. And they both savored every second of the searing pleasure.

  She kept him in a tight embrace as his ragged breathing filled the entryway of his house. They hadn’t made it any farther than a couple of steps past the front door and that made her laugh.

  With his head nuzzling the crook of her neck, he whispered against her skin, “What’s so funny?”

  “Not funny. Unexpected and…exciting.” She giggled again. “We are so good together.”

  “Give me ten minutes and I’ll show you how phenomenal we are together.”

  “I didn’t bring the goody bag.”

  “Babe, we don’t need the goody bag.”

  She kissed the top of his head and said, “Chase, sometimes I want the goody bag.”

  He groaned and it was tinged with excitement. “Look at you, all into wicked, kinky fetishes.”

  A thrill raced down her spine. “With you.”

  His head lifted and he grinned devilishly at her, sending her pulse through the roof. “Whatever you want, I’m more than happy to give you. I want something in return, though.”

  Her eyes narrowed on him. “What?”

  “Move in with me, Cassidy. Live with me.”

  Her heart nearly burst wide open. It took several moments for her to find her voice. “Are you sure?”

  “You know I am. And I’m asking you to handle it, not freak. Just…deal with it right now. Gut reaction.”

  She bli
nked.

  “Gut. Reaction,” he reiterated.

  Where was her voice again? She stared at Chase. He stared back. Unwaveringly. He had absolutely no doubts about this. Why should she?

  “Yes.” She smiled at him. “I will move in with you, Chase. Because I love you.” She kissed him. “And you love me.” She whisked away a lock of hair from his face. “And we make one hell of a team.”

  “The best.”

  She kissed him again. And didn’t think twice about the decision she’d made. Good girl Cass had landed bad boy Chase—and the job of her dreams.

  Definitely all that she wanted…

  About Ava McKnight

  Multi-published and award-winning author Ava McKnight's love of romantic fiction began as a teenager. She holds degrees in General Studies and Communications and has worked on newspapers as an editor and reporter. Most recently, she worked in PR, writing speeches and Congressional testimonies.

  Ava is a member of Romance Writers of America and one of its Phoenix chapters, Desert Rose. She has served as a Board member, Newsletter Director, National Contest Chairperson, and Arbitration Co-Chair. She is also published in romantic fiction as Calista Fox.

  Ava welcomes comments from readers. You can find her website and email addresses on her author bio page at www.ellorascave.com.

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