I Remember

by Julie Cannon

  Synopsis

  What happens when you can never forget the first kiss, the first touch, the first taste of lips on skin? When the first sigh of pleasure, first glimpse of soft, smooth skin, the slide of fingers through warm, wet folds burns into your memory? What happens when you know you will remember every single detail of a mysterious woman?

  Emery Barrett is under doctor’s orders to rest while on a three-week cruise. Dana Worthington’s only plan is to improve her tan and have her passport stamped in every port. Adventure, anonymity, and the idea that they will never see each other again propel Emery and Dana into twenty-one days of pleasure. Neither woman has any idea their vacation will be one to remember in more ways than one. But the biggest discovery awaits them when they return home.

  I Remember

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  eBooks from Bold Strokes Books, Inc.

  http://www.boldstrokesbooks.com

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  I Remember

  © 2013 By Julie Cannon. All Rights Reserved.

  ISBN 13: 978-1-60282-905-3

  This Electronic Book is published by

  Bold Strokes Books, Inc.

  P.O. Box 249

  Valley Falls, New York 12185

  First Edition: April 2013

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

  This book, or parts thereof, may not be reproduced in any form without permission.

  Credits

  Editor: Shelley Thrasher

  Production Design: Susan Ramundo

  Cover Design By Sheri (GraphicArtist2020@hotmail.com)

  By the Author

  Come and Get Me

  Heart 2 Heart

  Heartland

  Uncharted Passage

  Just Business

  Power Play

  Descent

  Breaker’s Passion

  Rescue Me

  I Remember

  Dedication

  To Mom

  I will always remember how you loved me

  Chapter One

  She wished they would stop talking about it. Everyone had something to say: a comment, a question, or a request to see pictures. In the two days since she’d returned home she’d alternated between wanting to remember every minute of the last month and praying she’d forget it ever happened. Yeah, right. Like that would ever happen.

  She was late. She hated people who were late to meetings. It was disrespectful. Like their time was more important than that of the other people who made the effort to actually be on time. As the president of Martin Engineering, Emery Barrett set the tone for these types of things. It was well known that she started her meetings on time, was always prepared, and ended promptly.

  This morning, however, she was failing in everything. She had slept through her alarm, driven right by the gas station, and pulled into the parking lot on fumes. Her desk was piled high with things that needed her attention, and she hadn’t even read the résumé of the woman she was interviewing in five minutes. No, check that—five minutes ago.

  “Emery, you look wonderful.”

  “Your tan is fabulous.”

  “I love your new haircut.”

  “I am so jealous. I wish I could take a cruise anywhere, let alone three weeks to the Caribbean.”

  “I don’t think I’ve ever seen you looking so rested and relaxed.”

  The well-meaning yet disconcerting comments from her employees continued as she hurried down the hall. At least they were from those brave enough to talk to her, let alone say something personal. She had been a royal bitch the past few months, and nothing she did pulled her out of her funk.

  The plush carpet muffled any sound of her booted feet moving faster than they had in weeks. Yes, ladies and gentlemen, she thought as she returned their greetings. This is what a woman looks like after she’s had sex, made love, and even fucked half a dozen times every day for exactly nineteen days. Take a good look because you’ll never see it again, she wanted to say. Instead she simply offered polite thank-yous.

  Anything other than that would have been totally out of character for Emery. But why stop now, she thought in that split second before she replied. She’d spent three weeks portraying a character she didn’t even recognize. A different name, different look, no phone, no e-mail, no one needing something from her, wanting a piece of her.

  But she had no choice. Actually she did, but the options were not in her favor. She was thoughtful, logical, and always studied both sides of the equation before making a decision. And the decision to leave her company, even if it was in the exceptionally good hands of her staff, to go on a cruise had been easy. It was the third “episode” that had scared the ever-living holy shit out of her.

  The first she ignored, explaining the dizziness, complete lack of brainpower, and slightly slurred speech as stress and not remembering the last time she ate. That and the deadline she was facing to refinance ten million dollars of debt. She was a specialist in turning around companies on the verge of bankruptcy. Martin Engineering had hired her as their president three years ago to clean up the company’s financial books and deal with a myriad of ethical violations related to securing government contracts. Federal auditors had Martin under the microscope, and Emery was on a tight timeline to turn it around. Any hint of scandal, or if two plus two didn’t equal four every single time, and Martin Engineering would be history. Holy Christ, who wouldn’t be a little frayed around the edges.

  The second episode sent her to the doctor. The third to the emergency room, followed by three days in the cardiac wing of the local hospital hooked up to wires and machines measuring and monitoring everything going in and coming out of her body.

  She was under doctors’ orders to rest, and only because her best friend Julia’s sister owned the cruise line had she managed to get a last-minute berth on the Seafair, a fifteen-passenger deck, twelve-hundred-foot-long, one-hundred-eight-foot-wide, class 1A1 passenger ship. She was one of two thousand passengers on the lesbian cruise and, along with a crew of thirteen hundred, spent twenty-one days cruising the southern Caribbean.

  She had spoken with Dee Walker the first evening on the ship. On the second day they met for brunch and several games of billiards, and ended up after dinner in her stateroom. They never got out of bed on the third or the fourth day, and the remaining two weeks was much the same, with an occasional trip off the ship to sightsee or shop. For Emery it was by far the most exquisite sexual experience of her life.

  She stopped just before the door to the conference room. She had to pull it together and get her head back in the game. She ran a multi-billion-dollar company, and she couldn’t spend hours reminiscing about a beautiful, sleek woman with golden hair lying in her bed. She had a company to run, and the first thing on her agenda was to interview for the open strategy position on her staff.

  The door was slightly ajar and she heard voices as she quickly read the top two lines on the thick paper.

  DANA WORTHINGTON

  CANDIDATE FOR VICE PRESIDENT CORPORATE STRATEGY

  The headhunter Emery had hired had highly recommended Dana, and she had passed the rigorous set of interviews with the other members of the selection committee. Her qualifications were not in question, because if Ms. Worthington was seeing her now, the people Emery trusted completely had vetted her. Emery’s role at this point was to see if she liked her, if they had chemistry and thought the same
way about things, if she had the right fit and finish, and all of the other buzz phrases that determined if she was right to be included on Emery’s tight-knit team.

  She was particular about the makeup of her staff. She had handpicked all of them because the synergy among the members of her leadership team was critical. They were as fine-tuned as the jet engines Martin Engineering designed. She didn’t want to upset that applecart, and this would be the topic of the first of several discussions she would have with Ms. Worthington.

  Emery rapped on the door and pushed it open. Conversation stopped and three people stood as she entered the room.

  “I apologize for being late. I have no excuse other than time just got away from me,” she said to the two men and one woman politely standing around the mahogany table.

  “No problem, Emery. I’m sure it’s hard to get back into the swing of things,” Jack Beecher, her vice president of human resources, stated to no one in particular. Phil Johnson, her CFO, nodded in agreement. Emery saw Jack turn to the woman and add, “Emery just got back from three weeks on a cruise. Dana, this is our president Emery Barrett. Emery, this is…”

  Emery’s world stopped. Her heart didn’t beat, she didn’t breathe. She couldn’t move. This couldn’t be happening. It was a cruel joke and she was the bad punch line. Never in a million years could she ever envision this scene. What had Humphrey Bogart said in Casablanca? “Of all the gin joints in all the towns in all the world, she walks into mine.” Well, this just tops it off, she thought. Of all the open jobs in all the companies in the world, she walks into mine.

  Dee Walker was Dana Worthington.

  Chapter Two

  This wasn’t real. It couldn’t be. EJ Connor was Emery Barrett? That was absurd. They had been together for three weeks, she’d said her name was EJ, and she’d never mentioned she was the president of the largest independent jet-engine-design company in the world.

  Dana suddenly realized she was the one who was absurd. They had talked about everything from anarchists to the best zoo in the world but had somehow never shared what they did for a living. EJ/Emery had never asked and she hadn’t volunteered. She too had given a false name when she first met EJ/Emery so that kettle can’t call the pot black.

  Dana recovered and extended her hand. “Ms. Barrett.” Dana used the new name that went with the face that had hovered over hers so many times. She pushed the thought aside. “Dana Worthington. Thank you for meeting with me.”

  Emery hesitated for a second before stepping forward and acknowledging the greeting. A familiar jolt of electricity and desire surged through Dana’s body when their hands touched. An identical look that Dana would never forget flashed in Emery’s eyes, though she quickly masked it with professionalism.

  “Likewise, and please call me Emery,” said the voice that had whispered to her in the dark. “Everyone sit down. Again, I apologize for being late.”

  Dana had no idea what she said for the next ninety minutes. She forced herself to not look at Emery unless she directly asked her a question, and then she addressed her answer to the two men across the table from her as much as she could without being rude. She wasn’t the least bit timid or shy and always looked people in the eyes when talking to them, but every time she glanced at Emery, a flashback of a minute or an hour or a night they had spent together clouded her brain.

  She must have responded appropriately, because when the interview was over the men were shaking her hand so excitedly she thought they’d pull it right off. It was Dana’s turn to hesitate when Emery extended her hand, preparing herself for the voltage she knew would come when their flesh met again. She wasn’t wrong and could have sworn she heard Emery’s quick intake of breath. Emery mumbled a polite good-bye before one of the men escorted her to the elevator.

  Emery watched Dana walk away. This was by far the most surreal interview of her life. She had sat across the table from a woman she knew intimately and listened to her provide sharp, insightful answers to every question and scenario they threw at her. Emery had barely been able to concentrate as her eyes kept straying to the smooth neck she had nibbled on, the full, red lips she had feasted on, and the swell of the breasts she had caressed. When Dana had used her hands to accentuate a point, Emery had completely lost track of the conversation, remembering the first time those strong fingers slipped into her.

  “Emery?”

  Jack spoke beside her. “I’m sorry, Jack. What did you say?”

  “Are you okay? You seem a little distracted.”

  That is the understatement of the universe, she thought. “No, I’m fine. I mean, yes, I’m fine.” She corrected herself and stared at Jack. “What was your question again?”

  “I asked what you thought of Dana?”

  Holy crap, she thought. Just how am I supposed to answer that? Let’s see, I can say that I think Miss Worthington is smart, intelligent, and quick-witted. I can also tell you that the Dana I know as Dee is witty, charming, funny, tender-hearted, intense, daring, passionate. She also eats like a horse, treats the wait staff with respect, and can be an absolute maniac in bed.

  “Emery?” Jack’s voice sounded more than a little concerned.

  She pulled herself together. She was never anything other than in complete control in the office. Her thoughts never wandered and she focused intently on the here and now. However, in the two days since she left Dee/Dana at the dock in Ft. Lauderdale, she was constantly drawn back to the there and then.

  “I think she’s excellent. The selection committee did a good job finding her.”

  “Do you want to see her again?”

  Do I ever. “Yes, make it lunch this time.”

  “Do you want it to be just the two of you, or do you want Phil and me along?”

  Absolutely no one except me and Dee. “No, just the two of us will be fine. Sometime in the next week or so, if she can make it.” Emery knew Jack would work out all the details.

  She had to stop thinking of Dana as Dee. If Dana came to work here, and after this meeting it was a very big if, she would have to make sure she never called her Dee. That was another notch on the very weird post. Whoever would have thought this would happen? It was like something on the Lifetime Movie Network, except that it featured two women who had used aliases and kept their private lives private, yet had become extremely intimate. You couldn’t make this shit up.

  Chapter Three

  “It was who?”

  “EJ, the woman I told you about on the ship. Her real name is Emery Barrett and she could be my next boss!” Dana kicked off her shoes and juggled her cell phone, briefcase, and suit jacket before tossing the jacket onto the back of the chair.

  “Holy shit.”

  Lauren, Dana’s best friend for her entire adult life, never minced words. They had met at Ogilvie and Mann when they were both summer interns, Lauren in the law department and Dana in marketing, and immediately hit it off. They had shared an apartment, hundreds of lunches, an occasional hangover, and talked at least twice a week. And they were still best friends ten years later.

  “You took the words right out of my mouth,” Dana replied, unzipping her skirt and kicking it into the basket to go to the laundry.

  “Didn’t you do any research on the company before the interview?”

  Dana put the phone on speaker and unbuttoned her cuffs. “Of course I did. I know everything about Martin Engineering there is to know, and their president. There were several pictures of Emery Barrett, but she looked nothing like the woman I met on the boat. In the photo she had long dark hair and serious brown eyes. EJ had short, spiky hair with highlights through it, sparkling brown eyes, and the most radiant smile I’ve ever seen.” And it was that smile that took her breath away every time.

  Her blouse followed her skirt, and she covered her almost-naked body with a pair of old shorts and an Arizona Diamondbacks T-shirt. “I had absolutely no idea. It was the shock of my life.”

  “What did she do?”

  “When she rec
ognized me she had that same what-the-fuck look on her face. I stood there with my mouth hanging open for what felt like ten minutes.”

  “I can’t even imagine what that was like.”

  “No shit,” Dana replied, tugging on the refrigerator door. It squeaked open and she scanned the contents. She hadn’t had a chance to restock after her three weeks away so the selection was pretty slim. Actually, she wanted a beer, but seeing it was only eleven thirty, even she thought it a bit too early. She settled for a can of Cherry Coke Zero. She popped the tab and took a long drink, hoping it would cool her off.

  “We told you, you should have taken someone with you,” Lauren said, referring to the conversation Dana had had with her friends the night before the cruise, over pizza and beer at their favorite Italian restaurant.

  “There’s no one I’m interested in enough to spend the weekend with,” Dana had said, dipping the last chip in the salsa. “Let alone be trapped with in a tiny little room on a ship for three weeks. Besides, I’m sure I won’t be the only single woman on board.” She wasn’t afraid of being bored. Her days were scheduled with both land and sea adventures in each port. She might be going alone but she would not be lonely.

  “What about Tracey?” Sharon asked, referencing the woman Dana had taken to several of the group’s date nights.

  “She’s too negative.”

  “Paula?” Dana had dated her earlier the year before.

  “I could only take her in short time frames.”

  “Debbie?”

  “She doesn’t know when no means no,” Dana said, remembering a very unpleasant ending to an otherwise pleasant evening.

  “And before you name anybody else, I am perfectly capable of and actually prefer going on this trip alone.” She held her hands up to stop Lauren from saying something. “I know you think I’m too particular and live in a dream world when it comes to finding the right woman, but I refuse to settle for anyone other than what I’m looking for.” She wanted to become stupid, breathless, giddy, high-school tongue-tied, couldn’t keep her hands off, completely and totally consumed by her desire for the woman she decided to share the rest of her life with.