by Louise Clark
“Cody!” Ava said.
He turned. His eyes were shaded by sunglasses, so Faith couldn’t tell what he was thinking, but after a moment of stillness he strolled toward them.
“Cody, here’s Faith. I realize you two don’t know each other well, which can be a problem when you have to work closely together, so take this opportunity to chat. Talk about the weather, sports, your favorite pastime, anything that interests you—but you must not talk about work!” She smiled at both of them, but the expression didn’t reach her eyes. “That way you can discover something about each other and relate as individuals, rather than employees. I’ll go now and leave you to it.” She waved airily and moved off.
Cody watched Ava walk away. “That woman is quite terrifying.”
Faith grimaced. She was dusting herself off, as if this could somehow get rid of the embarrassment she was feeling now. “She’s not my favorite person at the moment.”
Cody took off his dark glasses and smiled. “Don’t like being dragged around like a reluctant kid?”
Faith finished dusting herself and sighed. “You are so right. She’d never understand, though.”
He laughed. “You’ve got that right. Let’s see, we could Ava-bash for the next fifteen minutes or so, or talk about something else, since we’re supposed to be relating on a deeper level. What do you think?”
Mischievously Faith said, “I heard it was going to rain at five-oh-two. That’s in forty-five minutes. Did you bring your umbrella?”
Cody didn’t bother to glance at the blue sky, which didn’t have a cloud in it. “Well, that’s not a bad gambit to keep the conversational ball rolling without revealing much about yourself. How about something more in-depth?”
Faith’s breath caught and she felt herself blushing. Revealing her personal life to Cody was not in her agenda—no matter what Ava wanted. The problem was, he was a perceptive man. She’d have to be careful as she steered him away from the information she didn’t want him to know. “You don’t believe in small talk about the weather?”
He shook his head and smiled into her eyes.
Unsettled, she resisted the urge to smile back and spill her entire life history to him. “Every conversation I’ve had today began with a comment about the weather.”
His gaze drifted slowly down her body, then back up. “Useless chat isn’t my style.”
Faith blamed the heat burning through her on the afternoon sun, not that visual caress that had her imagining long sensual kisses with a guy she’d decided she had better stay away from. She took a deep breath and opted to meet him head on. Otherwise, they might end up flirting through the rest of the afternoon and—horrors!—connecting on what was definitely a personal level. “Cody, I don’t think this is exactly what Ava had in mind.”
Cody’s shrewd gaze scanned her face. He laughed, not pretending that he didn’t understand where she was coming from.
She liked that about him. Damn it, he was already getting too close and they’d only been talking for three minutes.
“I know it isn’t,” he said, his voice low and filled with—oh, heavens—a sensual amusement. “The thing is, I don’t really care what kind of textbook mixing Ava’s got us down for.”
“Amen to that. Sometimes she creeps me out the way she talks.” Faith considered him seriously. There was a warmth in his eyes that was truly unnerving. She heard herself say hastily, “Now, let’s see. What can we talk about for a few minutes so we look like we’re connecting that isn’t, um, useless chat? How about this—you were jogging during lunch the other day. Do you do it often?”
Behind them the volleyball game was breaking up. Cody began to walk. Faith followed. Part of her wanted to refuse to move. The other part, the curious part, was happy to wander along with him.
Staring ahead, he said, “For the record, I don’t fulfill anyone’s expectations. I choose to do what interests me.” He looked at her, his eyes hooded, his mouth turned up in just the sexiest hint of a smile. “And right now what interests me is talking to you, so I’ll play nice and make small talk…” He paused for the space of a heartbeat, then another. When he resumed his voice was lower and rough with unmistakable promise. “But what I’d prefer to be doing is something else entirely.”
Faith’s skin felt as if it was crackling with heat. She wished she’d worn shorts as Ava had, short shorts with a bikini top that showed off her figure. “Cody…”
He put his sunglasses on again. “I jog every day, but not always during the lunch hour. There are times I don’t remember to take a lunch break and if I get hungry in the middle of working on something I simply eat at my computer.”
“Hence the fridge in your office.”
“Hey, we’re not supposed to be talking about work, remember?”
“Right.” Faith blushed. She was the one who had insisted on doing the Ava-enforced networking. She needed to stick to the program. Before she could figure out another bland topic to discuss, Cody had chosen a new gambit.
“Your mother seems like a nice person.”
Faith could feel herself freezing up. “She is.”
He tilted his head. She couldn’t read his eyes behind the dark glasses, but she sensed he was studying her. “You have a similar bone structure, which probably means that in twenty years you’ll look much as your mother does now. Not a bad way to age, to my way of thinking.”
It was such a stupid thing to say that Faith forgot to be tense and laughed at him. “Excuse me?”
He shrugged and smiled a little ruefully. “It was a compliment.”
“Some compliment. I’ll stick with the present, thank you very much. Don’t try to morph me into the future.”
There was that sexy hint of a reserved smile again. “Struck out there. I’ll have to try again.”
“What kind of books do you read?” Faith asked before he could bring up another, potentially dangerous, topic. “Computer manuals?”
“Tolstoy.” They entered one of the paths, shaded by large trees, and bordered by mature bushes. He took off his sunglasses.
Faith choked back a laugh at his quick answer. “Really?”
“No, but it sounds good. What kind of books do you read?”
“Romance novels.”
“No kidding.” He looked intrigued. “Funny, I would have put you down as more of an erotica type.
His eyes slid down her body again, slowly, with obvious enjoyment. Faith could feel her skin prickling. She raised her eyebrows in surprise. “Why?”
A smile twitched the corners of his lips. “Wishful thinking perhaps?”
Faith’s heart leapt with pleasure. She told herself it was nothing more than a reaction, purely instinctive, to a good-looking male making a blatantly sexual move on her. She also told herself that it was not quite what Ava had had in mind when she put Faith and Cody together and told them to get to know one another. The thing was, did she really care what Ava wanted? “Cody, look, I…”
He held up his hand and smiled rather ruefully at her. “You don’t have to say it. That comment was way out of line. I apologize.”
“No, it’s okay. It’s just…I’m a bit surprised at the way our conversation has been going. I mean, we never do anything but argue.” The bushes and trees that lined their path created an illusion of separation from the rest of the garden, providing an aura of privacy that wasn’t quite real. “I didn’t…well, you know, expect it.” She closed her mouth tightly. She had to stop talking. She’d already made enough of a fool of herself, given that he’d been flirting with her since Ava had made herself scarce.
“We don’t always have to argue. In fact, I was wondering if you would like to go out for dinner with me one evening?”
His invitation was so completely unexpected that Faith could only gape at him. “Like, um, on a date?”
His eyes lit up and he laughed. “Yeah, like a date.”
“Well, I don’t know…”
“Cody, Faith, hi!” Angela, the computer destroyer, bo
unced up, shattering the illusion of privacy. She was followed more sedately by June. “Isn’t this a great party?”
That wasn’t precisely how Faith would describe it, but she supposed it was as good a label as any. “Wonderful,” she said.
Cody didn’t appear to be at all disturbed by the invasion. “As company parties go, it’s okay.”
Angela flashed him a big smile. “Are you always a grouch, Cody?”
Faith’s eyes opened wide and her mouth rounded in a silent exclamation of surprise. Since being given an opportunity to add more innovative elements to her workload, Angela had blossomed. Well, maybe not blossomed. She certainly had become more extroverted, though.
Cody crumpled up the empty paper cup he was holding. “I’m only grumpy when I’m interrupted in the middle of something.”
Angela looked from Cody to Faith, her expression surprised.
June tugged at Angela. “Let’s go. Becky is starting to pack up the refreshments. She needs some help.”
“We interrupted something?” Angela said, ignoring June and sounding absolutely astounded.
“Nothing special,” Faith said easily. “We were just chatting.”
“You were chatting. I was asking you out on a date,” Cody said.
Heat burned Faith’s cheeks in a wash of red. “Cody!”
“It’s true, isn’t it?” he demanded, unrepentant.
“Maybe, but do you really want to broadcast it to the world?”
“Way cool! An office romance!” Angela announced in a loud voice.
“Your secret’s safe with us,” June said. She grabbed Angela’s arm to drag her away.
“Bye!” Angela said over her shoulder. “Have fun!”
“Well?” Cody demanded as June and Angela moved out of range. “How about it?
How about it indeed?
For the sake of her job Faith figured she should say yes. It would be one evening, just a few hours of her time. Maybe she should take a chance and go. She would be fulfilling Ava Taylor’s demand that she get to know Cody. Maybe a better understanding between them really would help their work relationship. So why not say yes to his straightforward, unembellished invitation?
Mainly because those hot looks he kept sending her way were stirring things within her that hadn’t come to life before. Cody Simpson was a computer scientist, a mathematician whose life was dedicated to finding a logical answer to every question. To Cody her Beacon ability would be both irrational and impossible. He wouldn’t see it as a special, magical, gift found in very few people and closely guarded so that it could not be abused by those who might wish to change the past, and in turn, the present and future.
As she pondered his invitation she looked up at him. He raised his brows and smiled. His eyes were the vivid blue of the afternoon sky. His expression said that he really would like her to say yes, but he wasn’t going to pressure her. Faith liked that. She liked the way that sexy little smile played about his lips, how that errant lock of hair fell on his forehead, and the look of the body-hugging t-shirt and jeans.
But she had to remember that his world was not her world. It took a very special man to trust a woman who was a Beacon. A man who was imaginative, flexible, and easy-going. One who was willing to accept all sorts of strange events. Her mother had married a civil engineer, a man whose life was dedicated to taking dreams and giving them an enduring reality. He should have been able to cope with the indefinable that was a Beacon’s life, but he couldn’t, and his family had suffered because of it.
Faith reminded herself that Cody Simpson worked in the applied sciences field, just as her father did. Though Cody made her heart beat harder and had her senses rioting, that wasn’t enough to create a strong or lasting connection between their two worlds. “Cody, look…um, thank you for the invitation, but…you know, I don’t think it’s a good idea to mix, um, private life and, ah, work life. So, you know, right now I’ll say, um, no.”
He studied her for a few moments. Faith squirmed under his intense glance, shuffling her feet like an inexperienced teenager.
After a minute he smiled. “Timing,” he said, “is everything and mine stinks. Clearly I need to reassess.”
Disappointment washed over Faith. It wasn’t until she was in her car heading home that she realized that Cody hadn’t taken no for an answer. Like all good scientists, when he’d reached a roadblock he’d just stepped back to take a hard look at it before he tried another method of dismantling it. Cody didn’t see her refusal as an ending, but as a temporary barrier that could be swept away.
The thought that Cody might ask her out again sent a pleasurable tingle racing through Faith’s body. While her mind might tell her that dating Cody Simpson was not a good idea, her body was urging her to go for it.
Chapter 9
“The picnic was fun, wasn’t it?” June was handing Faith a printout of the staffing schedule for the summer vacation period. She cocked her head, listening intently. “Is that my phone?” She poked the upper half of her body out Faith’s door. “No, it’s okay. It’s not mine. Did you enjoy it?”
“What? Oh, the picnic.” Faith was scanning the printout, not really paying attention to June’s small talk. “Sure, it was okay.”
June laughed. “Don’t let Ava hear you say that. She’s been asking everyone if it was the greatest picnic they’ve ever gone to. She’s not really into lukewarm praise.”
That caught Faith’s attention. “I can see where Ava is coming from. She and the executive secretaries did a terrific job. While the rest of us were having a good time they were working hard to put the whole thing together and keep it going smoothly.” She tapped the paper. “This is excellent, June. Can you photocopy it for me, keep a copy at your desk and also post it in the staff room?” She handed the paper back to June, expecting that she would take it and go back to her workstation.
Instead, June lingered. “I was a little surprised by some people.”
Faith sat back in her chair. Evidently June wanted to unburden herself of something and she wasn’t about to do it quickly. “That’s the purpose of the picnic and the Christmas party. We’re supposed to discover each other in a non-work setting. That way we’ll become closer and work more effectively as a team.” She stopped, grinned and added, “At least that’s the theory.”
June looked at the staffing schedule. “It’s an interesting idea. Do you buy into it?”
Good question. Faith wasn’t sure she did, but then again, sometimes it worked. She’d seen a different side of Cody Simpson on Saturday, and she’d liked what she’d seen. Did that mean they would be able to work together more effectively? She doubted it. “I discovered that some of our staff members are interesting people who I like very much.”
“Like Cody Simpson?”
Faith hesitated, then said carefully, “I suppose.”
“He’s really good looking, isn’t he?” June said, a rather dreamy expression on her face.
“I suppose,” Faith said again, deliberately noncommittal.
“If he asked me to go out with him, I would,” June said.
Faith suppressed a petty desire to snap, forcing herself to smile instead. “And I’d wish you good luck and a good time.” Cody Simpson was not her property. If June wanted to make a play for him, that was her business. Standing up, she escorted June to the open door of her office. “I didn’t accept Cody’s invitation, June, so if you are interested in him, go for it.”
June muttered something incoherent that sounded like, “No, I wasn’t…I just…” before Faith firmly shut the door behind her.
Inside her office, Faith leaned against the closed door. She shut her eyes and breathed deeply. June had been digging for information because Cody had made his request for a date very public. She was curious and in her way had been complimenting Faith on her good luck in attracting a great looking guy. That was all.
Okay, she admitted it. She’d overreacted. But why?
Probably because June had touched a s
ensitive spot.
With a small sigh, Faith straightened. Stupid, stupid, stupid! She was the one who had refused his invitation. She made the decision to stand apart and she had to live with it. She drew a shaky breath, blew it out, then inhaled again, more deeply this time, before she walked to her desk. It took a long time for her to get back to work, but she did.
She almost made it through the day without a computer glitch. It was three-thirty when one of the clerks—not Angela, this time—asked for help. Faith checked out the problem and discovered it wasn’t a simple one based on operator error. Nor was it one she had an easy answer for. She would have to phone Cody.
She went back to her office, her mood suddenly light and playful. Although she was not willing to start a relationship with Cody she wanted to see him again. Maybe Ava was right—getting to know a person would make working together easier. As she dialed Cody’s number she imagined the sound of his voice as he answered the phone, visualized him tucking the receiver between his shoulder and his cheek so he could continue to work on his keyboard, thought about what she’d say to him.
The phone rang. Once, twice, a third time. At the fourth ring his voicemail activated. “This is Cody Simpson. I’m not at my desk right now. Please leave a message…”
Completely deflated, and absurdly disappointed, she gave her name and stated the problem. She hung up with a distinct click. What did she expect? The man never answered his phone.
After sending him a follow-up e-mail with more details, she went back to work, but when the office cleared at 4:30 and she’d had no response from Cody she decided she would take a stab at fixing the problem. She didn’t want to start the next day with a non-working computer. She was still there at five o’clock when Ava wandered by, her purse over her shoulder and a coat hung over one arm.
“Faith, what are you doing?” Ava said, her expression as disapproving as her tone.
“Trying to fix this computer before I go home,” Faith said. She silently cursed her bad luck. Ava wasn’t going to let this one go, not so soon after the picnic.
