“Yes, we are.”
Her phone rang. It was Doug’s secretary, asking her to meet him and Nate in Doug’s office in an hour. Nate left to check into his hotel and, after making the list he’d requested, Val tried to work on some other projects and ignore her ringing phone, letting her calls go to voicemail since she had nothing to say yet anyway. The clock crept toward the top of the hour and she was finally able to make her way to Doug’s office for the second time that day.
Nate and Doug were both already there. Val moved past Nate to the small table near the windows, setting down her pad and phone before seating herself. Doug and Nate also sat, with Doug at the head of the table and Nate directly across from her. It was less intimate than her office, but not much better for her sanity.
Right in my line of sight with his infuriating, suddenly reasonable, hot self. Awesome.
“First of all, Nate, you need to know the facts. This is such a mess—it could take down the entire hospital if we don’t handle the situation correctly.” Nate glanced at Val with a question in his eyes and Val shrugged. Doug was probably being over-dramatic, but better that than blasé, and if Nate was going to help he needed to take this stuff seriously too. “Our state and federal funding has been cut fifty-six percent in the past two years. We rely on grants and donations to keep our research department going, so something like this is a huge deal and potentially very damaging to the reputation of the hospital.”
“I understand that, and I’ll do everything I can to help you. Now, I spoke to Val briefly and we have a couple of items we want to start with. First, ‘no comment’ is not only ineffective, but oftentimes does more harm than good. If you aren’t trying to hide anything, why won’t you comment? Trust me. You don’t want the press to think you’re hiding something. They’ll come after you like a starving dog to a bone.” Doug nodded. Unreal. In a few sentences Nate had done what Val hadn’t been able to in the hours of meetings yesterday. She’d said the same thing to Doug, but he’d stubbornly stuck to the “no comment” policy. Val’s jaw clenched and Nate continued. “Secondly, we need to start addressing this immediately. It’s already gone more than half a business day with no one crafting the message.”
“Sounds reasonable,” Doug answered.
“Good.” Nate motioned toward Val. “I asked Val to bring a list of all the media inquiries she’s received thus far, so we could prioritize who we’re getting back to. One thing—I shouldn’t be a public face in this. If the press finds out I’m here they’re likely to think this is a much bigger deal than you want them to. You and Val make the most sense as spokespeople for CCC.”
Doug looked thoughtful. “That’s a good point.” He turned toward Val. “Do you have the notes from yesterday’s meeting?”
Val picked up her legal pad. “They’re right here, but I haven’t had a chance to transcribe them into the computer.”
“No problem. Can you just read them over for Nate’s benefit? Then we’ll go through the media requests.” Val read her notes aloud and they got down to business, making plans and prioritizing the contacts from the press. Nate offered to craft a series of press releases while Val got to work on the list.
“Do you have office space that Nate can use while he’s here?” Doug asked. “I’d put him somewhere up here but you guys are going to be working so closely I thought your department might better.”
My department? Near me? Her heart rate sped up and her face grew hot. One corner of Nate’s mouth kicked up and she forced herself to ignore him. Finally she was able to recover enough to mumble, “Um, sure, there’s an empty office a few down from mine.”
Great. I sound like a complete idiot. The thought of having him right down the hall filled Val with a mixture of dread and excitement. It was a toss-up which was winning.
“Great. Oh, and Nate? Don’t forget to give Karen all your tax information.”
Tax information? What exactly was Doug’s plan for the man? Had Nate been trying to lull Val into a false of security when he said he wasn’t after her job? But why would he do that?
Maybe instead of loving it, he’s getting sick of the rat race and wants to find a nice, steady job, preferably with his “old friend”.
Val and Nate left Doug’s office and made their way back to the building that housed the public relations department on the huge, sprawling campus. “I had no idea the hospital was this big.”
“Sixteen buildings, over a million square feet,” she responded from rote.
“Wow, that’s incredible.”
Val made no comment. Nate was probably trying to be friendly, but she wasn’t in the mood to accept his attempts. If Doug was hiring Nate she could kiss her position goodbye. Of course, why would some guy who no doubt earned a boatload from the celebrities he got out of scrapes want to come to Buffalo to work for a non-profit cancer hospital? It didn’t make sense. Even if he was tired of the hamster wheel, surely the man could find another job in New York City. Why would he uproot himself to move nine hours away from his current life? Thoughts whirled in her mind and Val was unable to focus on any one thing besides the possibility this was the end of her dream job.
They arrived on the floor where both public relations and marketing were located. “Well, here we are. It’s not much, as you no doubt noticed before.” Val indicated the empty office. “I’m sure it’s not nearly as grand as what you’re used to…”
“It’s fine. I won’t be around long enough for it to matter.”
Val appraised him. Nate had just given her the perfect opening. Leaning against the door in what she hoped was a casual way, she asked, “How long do you plan to stay?”
Nate glanced up from behind the desk, where he was stowing his laptop bag. “Just a few days, hopefully. Definitely no more than a couple of weeks at the very most. My regular clients expect me to be available to them.” Val couldn’t help the quirk of a smile that crept up on her face. “What?”
“Nothing.” He pinned her with a look, and she had to consciously stop herself from squirming under his scrutiny. It was obvious he wasn’t used to being the butt of jokes. Biting her lip, she cleared her throat. “It’s just…the way you said that made it sound like you were running an escort service.”
Nate threw his head back and laughed.
My God, he’s gorgeous. I hate him. I want him. I hate that I want him. He is so not my type. This won’t end well if I let it begin. Which I won’t. Waste of time. Bigger priorities.
Val’s heart raced and heat pooled in her belly. Nate abruptly stopped laughing and his gaze followed her hand, as she pressed it to her stomach, before rising to her breasts. Her body temperature kicked up yet one more notch. Finally he made it back to her face. Male interest glinted in his heated stare.
“I can assure you, I’m not running an escort service. I can also say with conviction that I’m not trying to take your job. I’m helping an old friend, that’s it. So you can stop worrying.”
“I wasn’t—”
Nate raised an eyebrow. Damn the man and his perceptiveness. Of course, even though she loved it, she could see how a man like Nate would be bored out of his skull by her job. He was used to the frenetic pace of New York City and living the high life. Slogging away his days at a nonprofit cancer hospital in Upstate New York probably wasn’t his idea of a good time.
“Yes, you were. It’s only natural. I’d feel threatened if I was in your position. But Val, I have no intention of trying to snatch your position from you. I’m doing what I can to help someone who’s helped me in the past. That’s it.” A brief shadow fell over his face before he smoothed out his expression.
She stood, silently regarding him.
“Have dinner with me.” Where did that come from? Is he asking me out on a date?
She realized she was gaping at him and snapped her mouth shut, her brain whirling, trying to come up with an appropriate response. At a loss, she finally asked, “Dinner? Why?”
“Just as colleagues. You need to eat, rig
ht? And I don’t know my way around here at all.” He smiled at her. “Take pity on the poor, helpless man.”
Val barely suppressed a snort.
Pity? You’re not likely to need anybody’s pity. You don’t even live in the same universe as helpless.
She knew she shouldn’t mix business with pleasure, and particularly not with a man like Nate. He was way out of her league. No doubt he normally dated women well outside her social class, and probably had a different one on his arm every night. Hearth and home were undoubtedly not concepts Nate understood at all. It wasn’t as if she was searching for a baby daddy constantly, but Val was on an admittedly limited timeframe to settle down and start a family. At thirty-six, she wasn’t getting any younger. Even though her rational brain knew all this, she found herself agreeing anyway.
“Great. I’ll come pick you up at your office at six.”
“Uh-huh.” Val backed away and immediately grabbed a bottle of water from the department fridge. Downing half of it right there in the kitchen, she fanned herself.
I can’t believe I just fell for his charm like a desperate woman. This is ridiculous. Nate was not the first handsome man she’d ever seen, and yet she’d let her baser side make a bad decision. She wouldn’t go back on dinner, though. Some insane need to see what Nate was all about prevented her from exercising her better judgment. With a grunt at her own stupid weakness she made her way back to her office and sat down to start making phone calls.
Chapter Three
“Can I ask you a question?” Val inquired as she and Nate headed to the parking garage later that day.
“Of course.”
“Why are you doing this? This is seriously small potatoes for you. Actually, beyond small potatoes.”
Nate turned away for a moment, debating on how much to tell her. “Doug’s been a good friend to me. We met in college and he was there for me when I was going through some stuff with my parents.”
He looked back and caught her cocked eyebrow. “Most people would send a fruitcake at Christmas, not spend several days away from their own business.”
“Doug is someone I’d drop everything for. Can we just leave it at that? Really, it’s no big deal, as long as this doesn’t interfere with my work with my clients.”
“How could it not?”
“I’m actually in a bit of a lull, so the timing, as far as that goes, was good. My business isn’t exactly steady.”
“Huh.”
Nate figured it was safer not to ask Val to elaborate, so he remained silent. They reached his Porsche and he paused. “Shall we take my car? I can bring you back here later. I have to come back anyway since I’m staying at the hotel onsite.”
“This is your car?” She regarded his 1963 Porsche 356C series with more than casual interest. A woman who knows cars. Nate was practically drooling.
“Yeah. Do you like it?” He found himself highly anticipating her answer, never having met a woman who thought his car was anything more than complicated than “pretty”.
Val ran her hand lovingly over the back quarter panel and an unexpected twinge of jealousy surged through Nate. He shook his head, knowing how stupid it was to be envious of an inanimate object. When he and Val had met earlier, he’d experienced a rush of lust like he hadn’t in years. Lately he’d been simply scratching an itch where it came to women. He hadn’t met one who interested him on any level, other than physical, in God knew how long. But Val was different from the models and actresses he normally dated. For one thing, she was real. She hadn’t had plastic surgery; she didn’t flatter him constantly. He’d come to hate the simpering of the women in his social circle.
She glanced up at him and he was mesmerized by the cat-like quality of her eyes. They were such a vivid green he would’ve sworn she wore colored contacts, but knew in his gut Val would never bother with anything that vain. Her black, straight hair was piled on top of her head in a messy bun she hadn’t been sporting earlier, and her full lips had been freshly lacquered with some sort of shiny red gloss that made him want to run his tongue over it to see what it tasted like.
She was small in stature, but he had a feeling she could be a pit bull when she wanted to be. For some reason, it gave him an irresistible urge to rile her up. Despite what she probably thought of him, from what he’d seen so far he was really impressed with Val. She worked hard and obviously cared about the hospital a great deal. Nate respected people who were good at their jobs, so it was natural for him to find her interesting on that level.
But with Val, it was more. He wanted to know her, to understand why she was who she was. And that was a pretty strange feeling, considering most of the women he knew either worked with him, and his feelings for them were purely professional, or served as a stress reliever when he needed sex. He never treated a woman badly, but he wasn’t used to a woman who he both respected on a professional level and also wanted to have a deeper understanding of.
Of course, it didn’t hurt that she was drop-dead gorgeous. He was a man, after all. Today she’d worn a tight black skirt with black, knee-length boots and a silver sweater with little metallic strands woven through it. She looked like a Christmas present, and he suddenly loved the holidays. He could admit he wanted Val on a visceral level. But that wasn’t all he wanted. It wasn’t like he was picking out engagement rings, but this was different. She felt different. Nate couldn’t treat her like he did the women he worked with or like the women he dated, and found himself sometimes caught off guard, not knowing how to respond to her. It was a new feeling, to be sure.
“Is there something on my face?”
Bringing himself back to the present, he muttered, “No.” And now I’ve been caught staring. Did I leave my cool entirely in New York City? Clearing his throat, he continued. “So do you want to take my car?”
“Can I drive?” She gave him an impish grin and he raised a brow back.
“Can you drive a stick?”
She chuckled. “Of course. And I can probably tell you more about this car than you know about it. Classic Porsches are my guilty pleasure.”
“You own one?”
“Oh God, no. You think I make enough money to afford a car like this? No, but it’s on my bucket list. And this one’s a beauty. I hope you take good care of her.”
Nate nodded. “I do. I hate flying so she gets driven a lot, but I don’t think she minds.” He patted the car. “Tell you what. I don’t let just anybody drive my baby, but if you’re a good girl tonight I’ll let you drive back here.”
She turned to him, planting a hand on one slim hip. “A good girl? Did you just say if I was ‘a good girl’ you’d let me drive your car? Seriously? That sounds like something a lecherous professor would say to a student he wanted to bone.”
Nate could think of quite a few lessons he’d like to teach her. An image of her bent over a desk flashed into his mind and a surge of lust nearly knocked him off his feet.
Forcing his brain back to the conversation, he shrugged. “I take my cars very seriously. As a fellow car buff you should be able to appreciate that.” Even as he said the words, though, he couldn’t keep a hint of a smile from forming. He hadn’t had this much fun bantering with a woman in months. “And about this ‘knowing more about my car than I do’ thing?”
“What about it?”
“Prove it.” He pointed to the car. “Tell me about her.”
Without hesitation, Val said, “It’s a 1963 356 series. Series C, to be exact.” Nate’s eyebrows were about to push into the hair on top of his head and his lower torso region was rapidly heating as he listened to her smooth voice. “Pushrod engine, less than twenty thousand made. The flat-faced hubcaps distinguish them from the original 356 series, as does the larger coupe light.”
“I’m impressed.” That’s the sexiest thing a woman has ever said to me. Smart, beautiful, and she knows classic cars. A lethal combination, at least for him, so it would seem. He leaned over her, pressing into her personal space just a little.
She didn’t back down and his groin stirred further. Val might be a very dangerous distraction. Fortunately he was an adrenaline junkie. Nate pulled the passenger door open. “Get in.” His voice came out rough and husky and he could swear he saw those amazing eyes darken for a moment.
Then the spell was broken, and she threw him a sardonic look before gracefully sliding inside. Nate laughed. He couldn’t wait for dinner so he could learn more about her, and then also the possibility of what might happen after dinner. With a woman like Val, a man could have his cake and eat it too. Whistling, he jogged around to the other side and folded his tall frame into the driver’s seat, loving the way the supple leather seemed to form right to his body.
“Do you ever take your suit jacket off? Or loosen your tie?”
He glanced over at her. “Why do you ask?”
“You seem very…buttoned up.”
“I like to look the part in a professional setting.”
“Is this a professional setting?”
“God, I hope not,” he murmured.
“What?”
“Nothing. No, it’s not.”
“Then lose the jacket and at least loosen the tie.”
He glanced at her. “What do you care?”
She shrugged, a hint of a smile playing over her lacquered lips. He had an insane urge to kiss her. The thought of running his hands through her hair to dislodge that little bun while he plundered the depths of her luscious mouth had him tightening further, and he had a feeling he was going to regret not having the jacket on to conceal his “interest”. Nonetheless he removed it, folding it and twisting around to set it on the tiny back seat. Reaching for his tie, he loosened it and then unbuttoned the top button of his dress shirt. The process felt strangely intimate, and she gazed at him when he was finished. He looked down and saw her pulse point hammering in her throat.
Hmm. It appears the attraction isn’t one-sided…
Seducing Chase Page 2
