“The love of your life is awfully...” Mike had hesitated for a split second, evidently pondering just the right descriptive word that would accurately, yet inoffensively characterize the vice president of Barrington’s New Products division. Finally he supplied “Intense.”
She’d had to agree, but silently she’d admitted to herself that it was Kyle’s intensity that continued to draw her, entice her. There was a power, a depth, a profoundness in the man that she found utterly irresistible.
Cindy had told Mike that she meant to reveal the lie she’d led Kyle to believe. She explained that she would no longer need a conspirator, although she had thanked him for being such a good sport about the whole situation. Luckily Mike turned out to be an easygoing kind of man and he hadn’t been the least put off when she’d relieved him of his “amorous” duties toward her.
On his way out, he’d tossed a final comment over his shoulder. “Hey, if things don’t work out with this guy and you find yourself looking for a date, keep me in mind.”
The lighthearted chuckle that had followed him out the door had held just the right amount of breeziness to let her know he’d been teasing her. Cindy couldn’t help but think that ol’ Mike the mailman had better be careful, or he’d soon be discovering he’d developed a womanizing reputation, something no female would have an easy time dealing with.
Cindy sighed as she opened the drawer to the file cabinet and slid the folder into its appropriate place. The drawer closed with a click.
What she hadn’t been able to figure out for the past several hours had been Kyle’s blatant rudeness toward Mike. As far as she knew, Kyle had never met Mike; yet it was almost as if he had taken an instant dislike to the amiable mailman, and that wasn’t like Kyle at all.
However, her boss was a red-blooded male. Maybe he’d felt confronted by Mike’s appearance at her door. Maybe, just maybe, Kyle had felt...jealous.
Yes, a silent voice snidely commented, and those fascinating salt banks of the Salt River would soon turn to crushed black pepper.
Despite the negative thought, Cindy’s heart raced with hope. If only Kyle’s behavior toward Mike had been caused because he’d come to feel something for her, something wonderfully intimate. She would be the happiest woman alive.
She recalled their slow and sexy afternoon dance, remembered the lazy, almost lewd manner in which he’d stolen a bite of her apple, and her pulse pounded even faster. Could it be? Maybe...maybe...
Her chair squeaked when she eased herself down into it. She felt awful. Guilt fell across her shoulders like a lead coat. If her suspicions regarding Kyle’s budding feelings for her were true... She knew full well there was a really good chance they were not—but if they were, then the lie she’d told Kyle now had him feeling some dark and dangerous emotions.
Mike had referred to Kyle as “the love of her life.” The remark had probably been made in a blasé manner, knowing what little she did about the mailman. However, she had so recently realized just how true and factual the comment really was.
She loved Kyle. Deeply. With a passion that stirred her to her very soul.
With each passing moment the love she felt for him grew, expanding and swelling, until there didn’t seem to be room enough in her heart for the size and strength of her emotions.
However, this only made the lie Kyle believed about Mike all the worse.
It only made the name-calling worse, too. She hadn’t just called her boss a jerk...she’d called the man she loved a jerk.
Her hand seemed to raise of its own volition, swiping across her troubled brow. She had to apologize. Not only that, but she also had to tell Kyle the truth. She was tired of living with this stupid lie.
When Cindy knocked on Kyle’s partially open office door, he bid her immediate entry. She stopped short when she saw that the company president was with her boss.
“Oh.” The tiny exclamation was out of her mouth before she could stop it. “Kyle, I didn’t know you were meeting with Mr. Barrington. I can come back later.”
“I was just leaving.” Mr. Barrington’s eyes twinkled with a gentle smile.
Cindy had always thought of the head of Barrington Corp. as having an almost fatherly disposition when it came to his employees. However, she also knew the man had a fierce business sense, and a fierce competitive nature, and it was this kind of professional acumen that had made this company so very successful.
“We weren’t actually having a formal meeting,” Mr. Barrington continued. “I just stopped down on a whim.”
“Mr. Barrington would like for the three of us to get together,” Kyle told her, “to talk about my trip. I told him we could see him tomorrow.”
“Of course,” she said, making a mental note to rearrange her and Kyle’s schedules.
Mr. Barrington bid them a good evening, and Cindy found herself alone with Kyle.
She noticed that her boss was staring at the open doorway.
He was thoughtful a moment, and then commented, “You know, a lot of men in his position, after having announced their retirement, would be out on the golf course, not making it their business to continue keeping abreast of all the company happenings like he does.”
“He’s a good man,” Cindy agreed. “A good leader. The company won’t be the same without him.”
Kyle asked, “While I was gone, was there an announcement regarding who will take his place?”
She shook her head. “But Mildred Van Hess did tell us yesterday that there would be news very soon. She hates company gossip and does her best to keep it at bay, but she keeps us as informed as she can without betraying confidences. Mr. Barrington will let everyone know as soon as he’s sure himself.”
Kyle nodded. “I’m going to be a while,” he said, his thoughts evidently focused back on his own workload. “I’m swamped with e-mails and phone messages. Some of them can wait until tomorrow. But there are a few I have to deal with now.”
“I see.” She took a deep breath. She’d hoped to be able to sit down and take her time telling him about her manipulative behavior. The last thing she wanted was to rush. That would only cause her to become flustered and jumble her explanation. Then the only result would be more misunderstanding and confusion between them. Finally she said, “We can talk later.”
Resolving the lie might have to wait, but an apology would only take a moment. “But...if you don’t mind...”
Her tentative tone attracted his full attention.
“I’d like to say I’m sorry.”
He looked at her, his mahogany gaze shadowing. The ever-present tension hummed in the air.
Cindy’s tone softened as she admitted, “I shouldn’t have called you...that name.”
She watched his jaw muscle contract and relax several times.
“You only told the truth,” he finally said. “I made a fool of myself this afternoon. In front of you...and Mike. But don’t worry. I plan to apologize. He was only doing his job. He didn’t deserve the dressing-down I gave him.”
The stiffness between them made her want to scream. Suddenly she blurted, “If you want to retract your dinner invitation...”
His brow furrowed with a deep crease. “You don’t want to go?”
“Oh, it’s not that at all.” Her voice was rushed, one word tumbling over the next. “But after what I said to you...” Embarrassment caused her face to grow hot. “Well, I’d understand if you changed your mind—”
“Nonsense,” he said. He glanced at his wristwatch. “I’ll come by your office in forty-five minutes.”
He turned away from her then, his mind obviously on more imminent business. He didn’t see her vague nod. And he didn’t realize that the time she would spend waiting for him would be as excruciating as if he’d asked her to sleep on a bed of finely honed nails.
Several hours later, Cindy found herself once again ensconced in Kyle’s sporty car. The sigh she expelled was wistful as she sat in the dark watching the Phoenix lights grow more sparse by the
moment. She didn’t know where Kyle was taking her, and it didn’t matter. The way she was feeling, she’d have let him drive her to the ends of the earth.
So far, the evening had been the very definition of romance. The restaurant he had taken her to had been a small, out-of-the-way place that offered them lots of seclusion, and just as much atmosphere. The table setting had been lit by soft candles. The wine had been rich and heady, and she’d probably enjoyed one glass more than she should have. The food had been delicious; however, Kyle had arrested her full attention to the point that, at this moment, she really couldn’t say what she’d ordered or eaten. The music had seemed to call to them, enticing them to dance, and dance they did. She and Kyle had sauntered around and around the small dance floor. There hadn’t been one misstep, not one “Pardon me for stepping on your foot” had needed to be said, they had danced together so perfectly.
And as Kyle had requested early this afternoon, their conversation had avoided the topic of work. Instead, they talked about themselves, their likes and dislikes in everything ranging from food and drink, to music and even reading material. She’d discovered he was an avid news buff, devouring the newspaper from cover to cover each morning. She unabashedly confessed that she enjoyed watching the news, greedily lapping up CNN and Court TV, and that her reading time was spent “escaping” from life with the latest murder mystery. Other men might have judged her harshly for this divulgence, but Kyle hadn’t, and somehow, she’d known he wouldn’t.
As she drove through the city, with her head fuzzy from the warm spirits and the absolutely delicious company of the man at her side, her whole body feeling relaxed, and her thoughts as well, Cindy wanted the evening to go on and on.
As if on cue, Kyle said, “I hope you don’t mind, but there’s someplace I’d like to take you.”
“Oh.” Cindy chuckled softly. “I’d love to go.” Anywhere you want, a silent voice added.
“I was just sitting here wishing the night didn’t have to end,” she said.
Kyle’s smile seemed to warm the dark interior of the car by several degrees.
“Me, too,” was all he said.
South Mountain was the largest municipal park in the whole world. The vast mountain range had, at one time, been a Native American hunting ground. Now it served the residents and tourists of Phoenix with its miles and miles of hiking and riding trails. And although Cindy had never explored them herself, the park’s steep canyons were known to reveal ancient Native American petroglyphs.
Kyle drove along the continuously elevating road to Dobbins Lookout. At twenty-three hundred feet above the desert floor, the spot offered a spectacular view of the city below.
“Oh, my,” Cindy whispered, and she was out of the car almost before Kyle had been able to come to a complete stop.
Soon he’d cut the engine and was at her side.
“You’ve never been here before?”
Surprise was evident in his question.
“Only a few times,” she told him. “But never at night. The view is breathtaking.”
“It is.”
Phoenix glowed like tiny diamonds that had been scattered across a black velvet scarf, and Cindy had the thought that she could stare at the dazzling panoramic scene for hours and hours without becoming the least bit bored.
An involuntary shiver shook through her, and Kyle noticed.
“Come here,” he said. He stepped behind her, pulling her back against his chest, wrapping his arms around her and clasping his hands intimately beneath her breasts. The temperature in the city’s center had been at least ten degrees warmer than it was up here on the mountain. Kyle made a warm coat and she didn’t hesitate to snuggle back against his hard, yet yielding body.
Cindy didn’t understand exactly what was happening between them, couldn’t fathom what it was that had caused this change in Kyle, in their relationship. However, she wasn’t plagued by any anxiety to discover the reasons behind his sudden gentle and loving treatment of her. She only knew she liked it.
The lie, a guilty voice whispered across her brain. Tell him about the lie. Set him straight so whatever is happening between the two of you won’t be totally ruined.
The spectacular view of the city was blocked out when she slowly lowered her eyelids. This wasn’t the first time tonight that she’d been censured by the reproachful voice inside her. But so far, Cindy hadn’t been able to find the correct opening line, or the right time to bring up the awful subject.
“I have something I want to tell you.”
Cindy was startled by Kyle’s words. They were-the exact ones she’d been about to utter herself.
Curiosity got the best of her, and she let her need to confess her sins slide away to the back of her mind as she wondered what it was he wanted to say. But even her interest in his impending disclosure wasn’t enough to contain the overwhelming happiness that swelled inside her chest.
Isn’t this what she’d longed for all along? A relationship with Kyle in which they could freely talk to one another? A closer, more personal connection in which he felt able to reveal his private thoughts and feelings with her?
Yes! she thought. This was exactly what she’d been looking for. This was really a dream come true.
“I haven’t,” Kyle began, softly whispering the words against her ear, but his words quickly petered out. After a short moment, he tried again. “I haven’t always been as...trusting and open with you as I’d have liked.”
He sighed, his breath blowing the strands of her hair and tickling the sensitive skin behind her ear. But Cindy stood stock-still, sensing that what he was about to say was going to be immensely significant to her. To them both.
“But there’s a reason for that,” he continued. “A reason that I’d like to explain to you.”
Gently reclining her head back against his shoulder, she looked up into his face. “I’d like to hear.” She knew her gaze conveyed the deep sincerity she felt in her heart. “I’d very much like to hear.”
And then, thinking that the telling would be easier for him if she wasn’t staring him in the face, she raised her head and fixed her gaze on the sparkling city down below.
Kyle’s second sigh wasn’t quite as deep, nor as formidable as the first. She guessed he was still feeling distressed about what he wanted to say, but Cindy felt her encouraging assurance regarding her interest had helped to alleviate some of his anxiety.
“The story starts out quite a few years ago,” he said. “Right after college, I got together with a buddy of mine. We started an advertising agency. We were partners, Don and I, as well as best friends, and we were successful at what we did.
“We used to hang out at a busy diner. We’d have lunch at Jude’s Place. And with our late hours we’d often have dinner there, too.”
His voice tightened as he said, “Monica worked at the diner. Doing the accounting. She was...smart. And pretty. We became a couple, she and I. I talked Don into hiring her at our agency. And for months, things worked out just great. My relationship with Monica seemed on the fast track, if you know what I mean. We moved into an apartment. Lived together for nearly a year.”
Cindy felt his throat convulse with a swallow, and she used his pause to take a deep inhalation, not realizing until that moment that she’d been breathing so shallowly. She hadn’t wanted to miss a word he said.
“Monica was hungry to learn the business inside and out,” he continued. “And I was happy to teach her everything she wanted to know. She started bringing in clients. She was a real asset. So when she asked me to make her a partner, I didn’t hesitate.”
He shrugged. “Hell, I was happy to. I’d thought we were in love. I’d thought we were headed for a future together. Marriage. Kids. A house in the suburbs. The whole bit.”
Again he sighed, this one evincing a deep and distinct sadness. He whispered, “I was so wrong. I lost my head over that woman. And my heart.”
Quite a few moments passed in total silence. The mountain a
ir was chilly, but Cindy was warm enough with Kyle’s arms firmly about her shoulders.
“It wasn’t until I asked her to marry me that I caught on that something was wrong,” he said. “She just stared at me in total disbelief. Then she turned me down. Flat out declined my offer, she did. She asked me why I wanted to go and mess up our perfect arrangement, ‘our mutually beneficial arrangement.’ That’s exactly what she called what we had together, what we’d been living.”
His body seemed to stiffen behind her, as though his memories made him grow cold.
“It was then,” he went on, “that I realized I’d been taken for a ride. Lied to. Used. Manipulated. Monica didn’t love me. She had never loved me. She’d only wanted what I could provide her—an exciting and successful career in a successful business. And she’d been willing to sleep with me to get it. She’d even been willing to continue sleeping with me to keep it. I was sick. Just sick.”
Absently he unclasped his hands, slipping one inside the facings of her coat and settling it on her tummy, shifting the other so that he could curl his fingers into her palm. It was so obvious to Cindy that he needed some support, and she gave him what she could, gently and empathetically squeezing his fingers with hers.
“By this time Monica had wiggled her way into every aspect of the firm. She was an important part of the company. Don had come to rely on her keen business sense as much as I had. So I stepped out of the picture.”
Remembering what he’d told her in her apartment about leaving his business, she asked, “That’s when you came to work for Barrington Corp.?”
She felt him nod. “I’ve been working for Mr. Barrington ever since.”
Cindy felt impelled to ask, “What happened to the ad agency?”
“As far as I know,” he told her, “they’re still going strong.” As an afterthought, he added, “Don and Monica still send me a Christmas card every year.”
Releasing her, and gently planting his hands on her hips, he turned her around to face him. They looked at one another for several long silent moments.
“I don’t know what to say,” she finally breathed. “It’s awful. What Monica did to you.”
The Boss and the Beauty Page 11
