Temperatures Rising

by Brenda Jackson

  Shock and disbelief tore through her, and she closed her eyes to fight back tears. Why hadn’t anyone told her? Why didn’t she know?

  Turning back to the bed, she studied Terrence’s features as he slept. At that moment, she felt a sense of betrayal. Glancing around, she quickly saw her clothes scattered all about. There was no way she could leave due to the weather, but at least she could go stay in her office until the roads were clear. She continued looking for one of Terrence’s T-shirts and found one that suited her. Slipping it over her naked body, she picked up her clothes and bundled them together and left the room. She fought back the tears as she made it to her office and locked the door. For now she needed to be alone.

  Terrence shifted in bed and found the spot beside him empty. He opened his eyes, remembering Sherri had left the bed to go to the bathroom, but that had been a while ago. Where was she? Had she gone to the studio when he had told her there was no need for her to do so?

  Getting out of bed, he slipped into his jeans and left his office to head down the long hallway. She wasn’t in the studio, and from the look of things, she hadn’t been there. He frowned as he made his way back to his office, thinking she might very well have been in the bathroom.

  He was about to pass her office when he noticed the light on underneath the door. He tried the door and found it locked. He knocked gently. “Sherri, are you in there?”

  “Yes. Go away. I don’t have anything to say to you.”

  Terrence quirked a confused brow. After making love, they had taken a shower, made love in the shower, then gone to bed and made love again. They had fallen asleep in each other’s arms, happy and satisfied. What had happened from that time to now? He had never been one to do stupid things in his sleep, at least not that he was aware of. Hell, he needed to be sure.

  “What happened, Sherri? What’s wrong?”

  “Just leave me alone. I don’t want to talk to you.”

  The hell she wouldn’t talk to him! He went to his office and got the master key to every door at the station, then returned to open Sherri’s door.

  From the look on her face, he had caught her by surprise. She’d swung around from where she’d been standing by the window and he couldn’t help but notice how good she looked in his Miami Dolphins T-shirt that hit her midthigh.

  “I told you I didn’t want to talk to you.”

  Her words grabbed his attention, and he moved his gaze off her legs and to her face. He could tell she’d been crying. “That’s tough,” he said, crossing the room to her. “We’re going to talk, because I want to know what I did to make you leave my bed.”

  “I don’t have anything to say to you, and as soon as the weather clears, I’m leaving.”

  He crossed his arms over his chest. “No, you’re not. Look out that window again, baby. Hurricane Ana hasn’t officially arrived yet, and you see how things look. If you think for one minute I’d let you go out in that storm, then you have another thought coming.”

  Anger flared in her face. “You don’t own me. I was just someone you slept with. You lied to me. Uncle Warrick lied to me. All men are nothing but liars,” she all but screamed.

  Terrence just stared at her. She wasn’t making sense. “What the hell are you talking about?”

  “I’m talking about the fact that I went into your top drawer to look for a T-shirt and found out the truth, Terrence. Uncle Warrick doesn’t own WLCK. You do.”

  Chapter 14

  T errence blew out a breath. “Is that what got you upset?” he asked, clearly not understanding what the problem was even if he did own the station.

  “Well, is it true? Do you own it?” she asked, glaring at him.

  “What does it matter who owns the station?” he asked, throwing up his hands.

  She crossed the room to stand in front of him. “Because whoever owns it is my boss, and I don’t take kindly to the idea of sleeping my way to the top.”

  “So are you saying that if I’m the owner and not Warrick, then you would never have gone out with me? Shared a bed with me?”

  “Of course I would not have!” she snapped. “Just think of the ethics involved. What would people think?”

  He narrowed his gaze. “Frankly, I don’t give a royal damn what people think. And as far as my ownership of WLCK, it’s merely on paper. For all intents and purposes, Warrick is the owner. As a favor to him, I’m holding the mortgage.”

  “And why didn’t someone tell me?” she spat out.

  A deep frown lined Terrence’s face. “Frankly, because it wasn’t any of your business. It was a business deal between me and Warrick. He needed extra cash flow, and this was the way to do it. It didn’t concern you or anyone here at the station.”

  “No wonder you’ve been getting special treatment,” she said as if his explanation meant nothing to her. “It all makes sense now. You report to no one but Uncle Warrick, you make your own hours, you have this plush office. And on top of everything, you’re sleeping with the hired help. Is that how you get your kicks?”

  Her words were like a slap to his face. Terrence stared at her for a moment and then asked, “Is that what you think? Do you think I slept with you because you’re available and all it meant to me was a fun time in bed?”

  When she didn’t say anything, he continued. “That says a lot for what you think of me, Sherri. And to think I fell in love with you the first time we made love.”

  “What?”

  “You heard me. But I guess you wouldn’t believe something like that, either, since I’m such a horrid person.”

  “You can’t love me. Men like you don’t fall in love.”

  “If you truly believe that, then I guess men like me really don’t.” Without saying anything else, Terrence turned and walked away.

  “This is Holy Terror and I am providing you with the most current weather update that just came in. Hurricane Ana is still a Category One, and if you were hoping that overnight she would have changed her mind and shifted positions, I’m sorry to say that didn’t happen. Although I’m sure you won’t be putting out the welcome mat, you can expect her late tonight. WLCK is committed to bringing you periodic updates. And we want you to stay off the roads as much as possible. We’re getting heavy winds and rain with zero visibility. We’ll take a few calls after a couple of announcements from our sponsors.”

  Terrence clicked off the mike, took off his headset and leaned back in his chair. It was close to noon, and he had yet to see Sherri. She was holed up in her office. Thank God she had more sense than to go out in this weather, no matter how angry she was with him. An anger he considered unjustified.

  He felt his cell phone vibrate in his pocket and stood to pull it out. It was Lucas. “Hey, man, how are things going?”

  “Fine. I’m just hoping the weather improves and the airport reopens. I’m expecting Emma to arrive when things clear.”

  Terrence rolled his eyes. “And you’re really expecting her this time?”

  “I know you and Stephen think she isn’t serious about coming and—”

  “After a number of no-shows, do you blame us?” Terrence paused, then said, “You’re building that house for her, and she hasn’t been to see it, not once. I don’t want you to get your hopes up and be disappointed.”

  Lucas gave a dry chuckle. “It won’t be the first time with Emma.” After a brief moment, he said, “I know you’re stuck at the station, so when the weather clears how about dropping by for breakfast?”

  “Thanks, I’d like that.”

  “Good. How are things going with you and Miss WLCK?”

  “Don’t ask.”

  Lucas laughed. “You’re losing your touch, man.”

  “Possibly, but she’s not like the others. I’ve fallen in love, and I’ve fallen hard.”

  “You?”

  “Yes, me. The only thing is that she doesn’t believe it.”

  “Why not? You’re certainly not someone who’d claim to love a woman when he doesn’t.”

>   “Evidently she doesn’t think so,” Terrence said, tossing a pencil on the table.

  “Well, I guess you’re going to have to work on her some more.”

  “That’s not going to happen. If she doesn’t take my word for it then that’s too bad.”

  “Sounds like the both of you are stubborn. That’s not good,” Lucas said. “Well, I guess I’ll call and check on Stephen. I’ll talk to you again later.”

  “Okay.”

  Terrence clicked off the phone and put it back into his pocket. He glanced at the monitor and slid his headset back on and clicked on the mike.

  “Welcome back, folks. This is the Holy Terror, and I’m ready to take call number one. You’re up, Cheryl. What’s on your mind?”

  Sherri leaned back in her chair and listened to Cheryl as she recounted how bad things were in her neighborhood.

  Like some others, Cheryl had not evacuated, deciding to ride out the storm and remain in her home. Now she wished she had left. All the streets around her were flooded, and one of her neighbor’s trees had fallen on her husband’s toolshed. But Cheryl was thankful no one had gotten hurt.

  Sherri had to grudgingly admit that Terrence had a way with people. He had a personality that made anyone feel comfortable in talking to him. He had taken several calls this morning, more than he had taken yesterday. Some had been sad and some amusing, and in the midst of a killer storm he was doing his best to keep things upbeat, especially with all those crazy calls regarding the now-famous Domino.

  Sherri went to the window and lifted the storm shutter so she could look out. She hadn’t realized it had gotten so late. Other than going to the snack machine and grabbing a couple of sodas and snack food, she had remained in her office, hoping she didn’t run into Terrence.

  She moved her neck around, trying to get the kinks out. She had slept the rest of the night in her chair and awakened with her body feeling abused. It was around four in the afternoon and already it was getting dark. Terrence was still encouraging the listeners to stay inside, and she hoped they did what he asked.

  She turned when her cell phone rang and quickly walked back over to her desk to pick it up. “Hello.”

  “It’s Kim, just checking in. The hospital is a zoo. We’ve been pretty busy all night. This is the first time I’ve taken a break. How are you and Holy Terror handling things?”

  “Professionally, fine. We’re keeping everyone informed how the weather is doing.”

  “And personally?”

  Sherri took a deep breath, and she dropped down in her chair. “I think I screwed up.”

  “How?”

  “I found out that Terrence holds the mortgage on the radio station.”

  “And?”

  Sherri rolled her eyes. “And no one told me. If he’s the owner, then technically he’s my boss. I’ve slept with him. Ben was sleeping with one of his employees and—”

  “Will you forget about Ben? The man betrayed you. Get over it, Sherri. Are you going to mess up something that can possibly lead to something good because your ex-fiancé couldn’t be trusted? And I don’t care who he chose as his bed partner when he screwed around on you. It doesn’t matter. As far as I’m concerned, good riddance. You’ve said so yourself.”

  Yes, she had. “I love him, you know.”

  “Who? Ben?”

  “No, not Ben. Not anymore. I’m beginning to wonder if I ever did love him. I love Terrence. I didn’t want to fall in love with him. I fought it like hell, but it happened anyway.”

  She paused a moment and then said, “And last night he told me he loved me, too. And that was after I said some mean things to him.”

  “Let me get this straight. The Holy Terror, Terrence Jefferies, actually said that he loved you?”

  “Yes.”

  “Dang. Do you believe him?”

  “At first, no, but now that I’ve had time to think about it, yes, I believe him. And he was right. What was between him and Uncle Warrick was a business deal that doesn’t concern me. No one else at the station knows about it, and evidently they wanted to keep it that way.”

  “And how did you find out?” Kim asked.

  “Last night, I got cold and went through his drawer looking for a T-shirt, saw the paper and read it.”

  “He could have said something to you about invading his privacy,” Kim pointed out.

  “Yes, he could have, but he didn’t. I guess he was too upset to think about it at the time.”

  “Well,” Kim said, “my break is over and I need to get back to work. Seems like you have a lot to clean up with Terrence. Good luck. When all this is over, you and I need to sit down and talk.”

  “All right, and if things work out with me and Terrence, I’ll introduce you to his brother one day. I’ve seen a picture of him. He’s a hunk.”

  Kim laughed. “Trying to play matchmaker?”

  “Yeah, but I need to take care of my own business first. Like you said, clean things up. I don’t know how Terrence feels about me now.”

  “There’s only one way to find out,” Kim said teasingly. “Some people think the way to a man’s heart is through his stomach. I personally think the area is a tad lower than that.”

  “Hey folks, this is Holy Terror, and it’s time for your weather update. Hurricane Ana is kicking butt, and the Keys are taking a beating. The authorities think the worst is yet to come and are asking everyone to stay inside and do whatever you need to stay safe. I hope you’ve stocked up on water and propane gas, because you’re going to need it. And I understand some of you don’t have power and are listening to me on battery-powered radios. Be careful with those candles.”

  He looked at the monitor. “We’re going to take a commercial break, after which we’ll take a few calls. Hang tight.”

  Terrence turned off the mike, removed his headset and pushed away from the table. He suddenly picked up Sherri’s scent regardless of the fact he didn’t see her anywhere. He glanced at the door, expecting her. It didn’t take too long for her to appear. It was almost six in the evening and the first time he’d seen her all day.

  She looked good. Refreshed. Sexy.

  She was wearing another pair of jeans, a darker denim than yesterday, and her polo shirt today was black instead of blue. She met his gaze the moment she walked through the door and stood in the middle of the room for a second. He watched as she took a deep breath before strolling over to where he sat.

  “Terrence.”

  “Sherri.”

  “Can we talk?”

  He glanced at the monitor. “Not now. I’m about to take a few calls.”

  She glanced at the monitor. “I’ll wait.”

  “Suit yourself.” Whatever she had to say, he wasn’t going to make it easy on her. Trust was important in any relationship, and her actions earlier proved that although they had spent time together, slept together, she still didn’t trust him.

  Instead of taking the chair, she began pacing, and although he tried not to focus on her, he did so anyway. He noticed how good she looked in her jeans. How curvy her backside was in them. He then remembered that backside that he branded his last night and memories of how he had done so sent trembles through his body, made him hard.

  Fighting the feeling, he turned his attention to the monitor. He had three calls holding.

  “Hey, folks, this is Holy Terror, and I’m ready to take those calls. First up is Ray. What’s on your mind?”

  “Hey there, Holy Terror. Enjoying the music. Me and my old lady took your advice and checked into a hotel. Nice. I just wanted to let the listeners know that I saw Domino, and he had a lady friend. If anyone is missing a female Black Lab, then it might be too late.”

  Terrence couldn’t help but smile. “Hey, Ray, thanks for letting us know.” He disconnected the line. “Next caller, you’re up. What’s on your mind?”

  Sherri stopped pacing and glanced over at Terrence. He was deliberately not looking at her, and that was okay for now, but she refused to let him
ignore her once he had finished taking those calls. She’d admit that she had been wrong to get into his business, and she would apologize and hope he would forgive her. But then she and Terrence needed to do something they hadn’t really done. Talk about their feelings for each other. She hadn’t known he had fallen in love with her, just like he didn’t know she had fallen in love with him.

  She wanted to continue to build a relationship if that’s what he wanted, and she hoped that it was. But what if it wasn’t? What if he wasn’t willing to forgive her? With those uncertainties, she began pacing again.

  When Terrence finished with the last call, he glanced over at Sherri. Their eyes met, and he was consumed with memories of all the pleasure they had shared last night. But then, that pleasure had been tossed aside by her harsh words.

  He pushed back in his chair. “You want to talk, go ahead.”

  He watched her inhale deeply before she came closer to the table where he sat. “I need to explain why I went off the way I did. It has to do with Ben.”

  When he didn’t say anything, but continued to look at her, she continued. “I told you that Ben broke our engagement because of another woman. What I didn’t tell you was that the other woman was someone who worked for him, wanted to bang her way to the top. I detested her for it, and I loathed Ben as an employer for letting her do it. In my mind a person who would do such a thing was unethical, undeserving. And last night, I became that sort of woman when I found out you’re the boss and I was sleeping with you.”

  “I am not the boss,” he said in an angry tone. “Let’s get that straight right now, Sherri. And like I said, this is a business deal between me and Warrick and doesn’t concern you or anyone else who works at this station. Now that things have worked out with Warrick and that station in Memphis, he’ll have the financial package he needs to get back control of things.”