“Male, huh? And how did you arrive at that educated conclusion, Dr. Logan?” Ben asked, truly perplexed over her pronouncement.
Regina started the car and sighed, checked the mirrors, and then looked at Ben, shaking her head sadly.
“Hello?” Regina said incredulous at his lack of understanding. “Do you see this long, hard thing in my hand? Everyone knows only boy cars have a stick.”
Ben laughed and swore, embarrassing no one but himself by his colorful words.
Regina laughed and put the car in reverse, swinging them out of her parking lot and off into the night.
Dinner was mediocre, but neither of them cared. They were too absorbed in their conversation to worry over the food. Later, they were even oblivious to the other diners as they argued over which dessert to share. They settled on chocolate mousse with raspberries, and dueled with their spoons over the last bite.
Ben drove on the ride back to her place, with Regina’s hand under his on the gearshift, even when they pulled back into her parking lot.
“You drive well,” Regina told him, approval in her voice. “I might even let you drive Harry sometime.”
Ben looked at her, his gaze on her as sharp as emeralds. “Are you going to invite me up or are we having sex in my car? I’ve already thought of several different ways it could work.”
Smirking, Regina shook her finger at him. “I’m on to you now, Ben Kaiser. You know damn well my body does a little happy dance when you say things like that. I think I’ve even figured out why you’ve had so few women in your life despite the sexy growl and an innate ability for knowing exactly how to give a woman what she wants.”
Regina looked at him seriously, lust in her eyes as well. “Whatever woman was lucky enough to get your full attention in high school and college must have hung on with both hands until you pried yourself loose from their sated bodies. Your wife must have been a hell of a woman to keep you all to herself for twenty-five years. I admire her immensely.”
“Imagine Alexa with blond hair, brown eyes, and the same sparkle,” Ben supplied, giving himself a moment or two to think fondly of Catherine.
“Well, damn. I’m in trouble then. I don’t have any sparkle,” Regina said sadly, staring out the front windshield of the BMW and crossing her arms.
Then she snapped her fingers with an idea. She tugged Ben over to her, holding his hand hard in her lap while she whispered a few things she did have in his ear. Releasing him finally, Regina quickly got out of the car.
She had to walk fast to stay ahead of Ben as she entered her building.
“Hi, Marvin,” Regina said, smiling as she heard Ben pocketing his keys and striding up fast behind her.
“Enjoy your date, Mr. Kaiser?” Marvin asked, noting the glint in the man’s eyes.
“Night’s still young, Marvin. Date’s not over yet. Ask me in the morning,” Ben said, stepping beside Regina as she called the elevator with her key card.
The door hadn’t completely closed before Regina squealed as Ben plastered her hard against the wall. They heard Marvin laughing again just before Ben covered Regina’s mouth with his.
Chapter 9
At work the next morning, Ben was celebrating the day with a second cup of coffee and a smile on his face. Last night had been spectacular. The date had been good too.
Unfortunately, the smile didn’t get to remain long.
Janet, Alfred, and Daniel appeared at his door, and none of them were smiling. He motioned them in and sighed in resignation.
They all brought him different papers. In each were pictures of Regina and him having dinner, sharing dessert, riding in his car. Again, the pictures held truth, but the rest of each report was pure fiction.
For the life of him, Ben couldn’t understand how any newspaper, or even a scandal rag, could possibly print so much fabricated content and stay in business.
“I take it this isn’t the publicity you expected,” Ben said to their quiet, serious faces.
Alfred sat and rubbed a hand over his face. “We’ve had several calls.”
“Don’t say I didn’t warn you about the press,” Ben said, not bothering to soften his sarcastic tone.
“The calls weren’t from the press, Ben,” Alfred said.
Ben felt his heart sink and a ball of lead form in the pit of his stomach. He put his hands on the desk. This was his calm CEO pose, the one he used to hear all the bad news at his company.
“Okay. Tell me about it,” Ben said.
“Concerned customers. They called Daniel and me instead of you. They were asking questions about your association with Dr. Logan. A few asked if you were in grief counseling. We danced around all of it as best we could. No one withdrew their business or anything, but it was obvious the publicity about you dating her really bothered them.”
Alfred looked at Daniel when he couldn’t hold Ben’s gaze anymore.
“It was ten customers, Ben.” Daniel looked at Ben with sincere regret. “If it were just one or two, we wouldn’t bother you. We know this is our fault. You might not have asked Dr. Logan out if we hadn’t goaded you into it.”
Ben snorted and ran his hands through his hair.
Ask her out. Right. What an irony that was now. He didn’t just want to date Regina. He wanted the permanent right to be inside her whenever she wanted him to be there. He looked at the men in his office, saw their distress and guilt, and knew he couldn’t tell them yet.
“I guess it doesn’t matter that the articles aren’t true. Regina tried to tell me how bad it could be, but I didn’t take her seriously enough,” Ben said.
Alfred and Daniel looked at each other and grimaced.
Janet just looked at the floor.
“We went to dinner,” Ben said simply. “We got dressed up and went to dinner. We were gone maybe two or three hours tops. I didn’t even see a camera or a reporter the whole night. The pictures had to be taken by regular people who just happened to be where we were. I can’t believe people took pictures with their cell phones and gave them to the press.”
Ben lifted his coffee cup and sent everything else flying off his desk with a single angry sweep of his arm. He rarely got this angry, and never in the office that he could remember.
“No,” he barked when Janet started toward the scattered debris. “Leave it until I calm down.”
Janet looked at Alfred and Daniel, and then mumbled something about answering the phones as she left.
“How much do you like Dr. Logan, Ben?” Daniel asked, after Janet had closed the door.
Ben couldn’t lie, but he didn’t hedge much. “I was planning to see her again, if that’s what you’re asking.”
“What would you tell us to do if it were me or Daniel?” Alfred asked softly.
“I’d tell you to stop seeing her,” Ben said, not even hesitating because he knew it was the truth. As CEO, he would feel obligated to put the interests of the company ahead of his concern for their feelings.
“Well, we’re not saying that yet to you, Ben. Any idiot with eyes can tell from the pictures you two really like each other. All we’re saying is we got some calls and they worried us a little.”
Alfred shifted in his chair, trying to think of something more comforting to say.
Ben nodded, sipping his cold coffee, its flavor now as bitter as he was.
Janet popped her head back into the office. “Sorry. Ben, there’s a Casey Carter here to see you. I forgot to tell you he called yesterday for an appointment. Want me to reschedule?”
“No,” Ben said on a sigh, glad for the distraction. “He’s here to check out our security system.”
“I could show him around,” Alfred offered.
“No. Let me,” Ben told him. “I am not in a good place to answer personal questions from clients this morning. You and Daniel are going to have to field them for me, at least for today.”
“Sure, Ben,” Daniel said. “You know, Dr. Logan sure looked great in that dress.”
“Yes, s
he did,” Ben agreed sadly, heading out the door to meet Casey.
*** *** ***
Ben and Casey walked through the main building before taking the elevator to the bottom floor. Ben noticed Casey didn’t have his cane today, so he immediately planned on the shortest walking route.
On a small dock outside the ground floor, Ben walked up to a man with a walkie-talkie on his belt. “Hey, Jennings. Loan me your radio for a minute.”
The man handed it over to Ben with an easy smile. Ben talked to someone, and a couple minutes later a golf cart rolled up to where he and Casey stood.
“The scenic tour requires a ride,” Ben said, motioning for Casey to climb into the cart.
“You don’t have to do this on my account,” Casey said. “I’m having a good day.”
“Let’s keep it that way,” Ben said smoothly, grinning. “It’s a vacation for me to get out of the office. Besides, I like to drive pretty much anything, even if it’s only a golf cart.”
Casey laughed, climbing in next to Ben. “I hear you.”
There was a tenseness about Ben today that wasn’t there when Casey had met him. He looked at Ben’s tight mouth and unsmiling eyes. The man was going to blow if he didn’t release some of the pressure he was holding inside.
“You ever see Regina drive? I swear the woman could race Formula One cars. She knows how to work a gearshift,” Casey said, admiration in his voice.
The golf cart rolled to a halt as Ben remembered Regina’s hand under his on the drive back to her place.
“Actually, I let her drive my car last night,” Ben said, easing the cart back into a smooth motion. “I suppose you saw the pictures.”
“What pictures? No. Alex and I never look at that shi—I mean crap.” Casey caught himself before swearing completely. He was getting better at catching most of it.
“It wasn’t even reporters this time, Casey. It was just regular people taking cell phone pictures of us while we were having dinner.”
Ben carefully maneuvered the cart into the warehouse bay where the last break-in attempt had occurred.
Casey let out a whistle. “That has to suck,” Casey said. “Even Alexa doesn’t get that much attention.”
“You know, I really don’t care about the pictures or even the fictional stories. I only care that we had business clients calling to ask about my dating life, and to find out whether I was serious or not about the infamous Dr. Logan. It’s none of their damn business, but I can’t let the company lose clients over it.” Ben said.
“Anything I can do to help?” Casey asked.
Ben looked at Casey. If he knew what kind of help he needed, he would ask. Right now, he didn’t have a clue.
“Help about me and Regina? No. Thanks for asking though. I’ve no idea what to do yet,” Ben told him.
They stopped in the middle of a large, mostly empty building. Ben put a hand on Casey’s shoulder and pointed up. “Here’s what you can help with me today. See that window near the sky light. Tell me why someone would repel through it to steal a little bit of drywall, nails, and caulk. This building is for storing leftovers. We have the real stock delivered on each site only as needed. How are we supposed to deal with repelling thieves who risk life and limb for a few hundred bucks of stuff?”
Casey looked at the window and tried to imagine a person repelling down to the floor to rip off building materials. You’re not going to get rich re-selling the stuff. It had to be a competitor or a nut.
“Looks like all the doors have alarms, even though they’re not activated presently.” Casey continued to scan, turning himself on the seat to make sure he saw the whole place.
“How do you know for sure?” Ben asked. “I was told the alarms were undetectable.”
“Buy me lunch and I’ll tell you my secrets,” Casey told him, wiggling his eyebrows up and down.
“Are you sure you want to go out in public with me? I think I’m notorious now. We might end up in the papers tomorrow,” Ben warned, relieved he could joke about it with someone.
“Lucky for you, I’m into notorious,” Casey told Ben on a laugh.
*** *** ***
Across town, Regina sat in her office. She was between clients, staring at the papers her staff had brought to her. She no longer haunted the newsstands checking for the latest dirt. Now she had a whole staff of eager volunteers who did it on her behalf.
Damn it.
She wondered what Ben was going to think when he saw these. Their first public date had been news in four scandal sheets and a local paper. The pictures were as truthful as ever, but the stories again were pure fiction. At least the picture in the local paper didn’t come with much text.
Following Ben’s example, Regina cut the pictures out and then threw the rest of each paper in the trash. Without the words, the pictures told a nice story and had captured one of the best nights of her life.
Regina hung the pictures on the bulletin board in her office. Touching each picture once more, she left the room to see the next patient.
Chapter 10
Ben took a taxi to Regina’s that night. He was dressed in all black again, wearing sunglasses and a ball cap pulled low over his eyes.
“Hey, Marvin,” he said, “Is she home yet?”
“About an hour ago, Mr. Kaiser. You want me to let Dr. Logan know you’re here?” Marvin asked.
“She’s expecting me,” Ben said, pulling off his glasses. “We made every paper in town today.”
“Then there shouldn’t be a problem with you going on up,” Marvin told him, already heading to the elevator.
Ben said thanks and stepped inside.
After the doors closed behind him, Marvin crossed his arms and swore. He didn’t know which of them looked worse, Dr. Logan or the man who loved her.
Those damn scandal rags, Marvin thought. Even the lobby of this building was full of them.
*** *** ***
Outside Regina’s door, Ben took a deep breath and rang the bell. Regina opened the door a crack, saw him, and closed it to release the safety chain. He stepped inside, taking off his cap and glasses.
Regina was crying and looked like she’d been at it for a while. Ben took her into his arms and hugged her tight. She pounded his chest lightly with a fistful of tissues and cried harder.
“I’m sorry, Ben. I’m so sorry,” Regina said on a wail.
“Why are you sorry? This is not your fault. It may be our problem, but it’s not your fault or mine,” Ben told her adamantly.
Regina shook her head and pulled out of his arms. Ben only thought that because he didn’t get it yet, she knew.
“No, it is my fault, Ben.” Regina sniffed and walked away to find more dry tissues. “I dare to speak about things that embarrass most people, and everyone I care about pays the price for my choice.”
“I don’t care what your job is, Regina. No one should have to disguise themselves to go out to dinner,” Ben said, angry at the world. “I can understand someone wanting your autograph, but no one has the right to write that lying shit about you—it’s not fair.”
“No, it’s not fair,” Regina said sadly. “But it happens all the time.”
She pulled out of his arms and away from the comfort he offered. He had no idea how much it hurt her to see him suffer.
“We’ll call the papers and threaten to sue them for libel or slander. We can discourage them from printing fiction about us at least,” Ben declared. “I don’t fucking care how many pictures they take.”
“Don’t you think I’ve done such things over the years? Some will turn your phone call into a story and it will be worse because they will call it a first hand interview,” Regina warned.
Regina walked away from Ben to stare out the window behind her couch.
Ben put his hands in his pockets. “There must be something we can do, some action we can take to discourage the negative publicity.”
“If there is, I’ve never found the secret. I’ve been dealing with this for a lon
g time. There are only two ways to constrain some of the damage,” Regina said quietly.
“Fine. Let’s hear them. I’ve got nothing, except the urge to beat the hell out of someone for hurting you,” Ben said, walking to where she stood and running a comforting hand down her hair.
Regina closed her eyes and prayed she’d find words to make him understand.
“You won’t like this—but, it would help if I dated other men,” she said flatly, eyes streaming even more as his hand dropped away. “Ben, wait. Hear me out before you go ballistic. It’s only about appearances. I need to be seen dating men my reputation can’t harm. The press will be distracted and they’ll leave you and your family alone.”
“You can’t be serious,” Ben said bitterly. “It’s just a lie to cover a lie.”
“It sounds bad, but I’ve done it before. It’s the only thing I know that works,” Regina said.
Ben stepped away from her, afraid he would shake her if he touched her again. He’d never been so angry with a woman in his life. He’d certainly never wanted to strangle one before. Just the idea of some other guy touching Regina drove him insane. The reality would be unbearable.
“Do you expect me to date as well?” he asked bitterly.
Ben’s gaze was hard, his jaw set with a stubbornness Regina had suspected he had, but had never seen until now.
Of all the times Ben had to be a textbook alpha male, Regina thought, why did it have to be about this? She sighed and turned away to keep from bursting into tears again. Her heart was hammering so hard she thought her chest would explode.
“No, I don’t want you to date other women,” she said through gritted teeth. “If you found someone normal you liked, I’d have to kill you both. It would be messy and I have no idea of how to dispose of dead bodies.”
“Then how can you even ask me to tolerate you dating other men?” Ben demanded, not mollified by her teasing.
“Because I have men friends, and that’s all they are. If I tell them I need to create a distraction for the press, they’ll do it for me. It’s how famous people deal with unwanted publicity,” she explained. “I’m just going to give them something else to talk about so they’ll leave you alone.”
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