Absolute Zero (26 page)

“Good. I’ll be in your office in a few minutes,” he directed at Rand. “Anne? Stay here and the rest of you can leave,” he stated with authority. Bodies shot up and filed out as Anne watched with a new sense of dread. She met Rand’s eyes as he passed behind McClellan. He mouthed a very distinctive “Sorry” and he truly looked apologetic. She would have nodded or acknowledged in some way but she could feel McClellan’s eyes on her. She immediately looked back to her screen but her gaze lifted as soon as she heard the door close. He was standing next to it. Oddly enough, the room felt even more occupied than it did when it was full of bodies.

He was watching her as he stepped away from the door. She couldn’t help but keep her eyes focused on him as he took a few steps toward the table. He wasn’t saying anything, just studying her. At least his face was passive. In fact, his expression was inscrutable. It didn’t make sense.

“Umm…I didn’t smart off. I was…good,” she stated in a meek voice that surprised her.

That caused his brows to raise and his eyes to crinkle. “Anne, do you think the only reason I would keep you in here is to argue with you?” His strong hands gripped the chair back in front of him.

That was exactly what she thought. She gave a slight shrug.

Of course there was another reason. A reason that caused a familiar fluttering sensation to start in her torso. His expression was back to intense and it only increased her physical reaction to him.

He looked so incredibly sexy, she thought as she took in his dress pants and crisp shirt. He had a bit of stubble darkening his jaw causing her to wonder if he had arrived only this morning.

“I wanted to talk about equipment. You said you made a list?”

She let out a silent breath, her body relaxing instantly.

“Yes.”

He was walking around the table.

“Would you like me to connect to the projector?” she asked as he rounded the corner, causing the fluttering to reappear.

“No, just show me on your screen,” he responded.

She already had the file up and maximized on her laptop by the time she felt her chair jolt slightly. He must have placed his hand on the back rest. She watched as his other hand rested on the table and he leaned over causing his chest to almost brush her cheek. She immediately angled her body in the opposite direction. He stayed in that position for a few awkward moments before he finally spoke.

“Scroll down,” he commanded in a soft voice causing her fingers to rush to the keyboard.

“Can I ask a question?” he didn’t wait for a response before he continued, “Why did
you
do this? Why wouldn’t Jay do this, isn’t this
his
responsibility?”

She swallowed and shifted even more to the left. If he was intent on crowding her space, he was doing a wonderful job…

“Umm…I offered to do it. I like doing this, it…keeps me busy. I don’t mind…” she stated, keeping her eyes focused ahead.

“Hmmm…” was all he responded.
He was so close
.

“You should wear blue more often,” he finally whispered, his warm breath tickling the hair near her ear.

“Ok,” she practically squeaked out. “So, the equipment…” she leaned even further away.

“Why didn’t you answer my last text?” he asked, effectively cutting her off.

“Ah…because…I thought it was a bad idea to, ah…keep corresponding like that, and…” she swallowed nervously when she felt his warm breath near her neck.

“God, I missed you, Anne,” he whispered right before she felt something soft touch the skin below her ear. His lips. Her body jolted immediately.

She pushed her chair to the side, bumping into the chair situated next to her as she sprang up and faced him. Her foot attempted to take a step away only causing her heel to catch on the base of the rolling chair. She would have pitched backward if his arms hadn’t shot out and grabbed her by the waist. Instead of steadying her, he pulled her toward him, bringing their bodies flush against each other.

“Whoa. You alright?” he asked softly. Her hands were splayed on his hard chest. One of his hands traveled from her waist, up her back, forcing her chest closer to his. She let out a shaky breath realizing in that moment that if anyone were to walk in, this would be quite the compromising position. That, coupled with the fact that she could feel a distinct bulge pressed against her stomach caused her to push back with as much strength as her arms allowed. She effectively stepped to the side and his hands disengaged, surprisingly.

She took a few more steps back and eyed him warily.

“Don’t do that. Don’t…” she was shaking her head at him.

His expression was predatory as he took a step toward her.

She took another step back. “What are you going to do, chase me around the table? Seriously,” she chided. That at least made him stop, she noticed.

“That’s not a bad idea.” He looked down to her heels, swept over her exposed legs, continued up her slim fitting skirt to her small waist, focusing a moment on her chest and back to her face. She was scowling. She was even bonnie with a frown on her face, he thought. “Can you run in those things? Let’s find out.” He took another step forward.

“Ian! Just…stop.” She emphasized her command by raising her hand to stay him. He blew out a breath and rolled his eyes in frustration.

“I thought about this…”

“Me too…” he supplied with a suggestive smirk.

“Not
this
. This,” she flicked her wrist back and forth between them. “And I’m telling you right now, it’s not going to happen. I’m very determined…”

“Me too,” he stated again, clearly amused.

“Would you just listen?” Her voice raised in irritation as she started pacing. He stood immobile watching her legs, her arse in that tight skirt…

“This is completely inappropriate and not conducive to a professional relationship. You’re degrading me and my position by this,” her hand waved erratically in front of her, “…whatever this is. What do you expect to come out of this? Huh? Maybe a quickie in your office? Some sexting during work hours? Blow jobs on conference calls? What…?”

“I choose D. All of the above. Especially that conference call thing…” he stated in a clearly amused tone.

Did he just wiggle his eyebrows at her?

“Totally inappropriate. And you expect me to work in this environment? Are you crazy?” she huffed out as she placed her hands on her hips.

Crazy about you
, he thought. She looked so damn appealing. He hadn’t realized how starved he truly was for the sight of her. Now, if she would only
cooperate
.

“Relax, Anne. I promise I won’t accost you in the office, alright? Does that make you feel better?”

“Or anywhere else,” she demanded.

“That, I
cannot
promise. Besides, I wouldn’t even be encouraged if you didn’t kiss me back, but you did,” he stated. “What’s a lad to think? Your words and your responses don’t mix, darling. Don’t blame me for this. You have a wee bit to do with it too.” He added as his face portrayed a serious expression.

They stared at each other for an indeterminate amount of time before she finally broke the silence.

“What
are
you doing here, anyway?” she asked in a low tone.

“That’s between me and Rand,” he answered cryptically. “Nothing to concern you,” he stated. The words were somewhat condescending but the expression on his face was softened.

She wouldn’t press that particular issue, based on his response. “What about the equipment?” she asked instead, nodding her head toward the laptop.

“Hmm,” he let his eyes drift over to the opened screen, “You’ll probably need to convince me a bit…more,” he stated absently.

“Ugh,” she grunted. He watched as she stomped toward the door. “You’re an ass,” she muttered before opening the door and walking through it.

His eyes followed her, well, actually…his eyes were firmly attached to her bum as she walked or more like marched through the office before disappearing around a corner. 

“That’s not what I meant,” he mumbled before he shook his head and looked down at her computer with a grin. He thought briefly about waiting around for her to come retrieve it, quickly deciding against it. Besides, he needed to have a rather unpleasant conversation with Rand…

*****

“Could you do me at least one favor? Could you stop antagonizing Ms. Bennett?” Rand stared at the man across the desk from him. “She’s actually proven to be extremely helpful; I’d hate to lose her,” Rand stated as he stared at Ian.

“No, you can’t lose her. Then you wouldn’t get anything done in this place,” Ian responded as he studied his fingertips before his eyes snapped up to Rand. His words were dripping with sarcasm, but his facial expression held no hint of amusement.

“I don’t want to talk about her. I want to talk about why I’m here,” he stated.

His words caused Rand to lean forward, propping his elbows on his desk. “I’m all ears,” he responded.

He didn’t waste a second. “I’m thinking about selling the American facility.” He waited for the expected response but was surprised when Rand only relaxed back in his seat.

“I had a feeling you were going to say that. I heard a rumor at the CPSA conference, but I didn’t think anything of it. It wouldn’t be the first time I’ve heard something like that,” he shrugged. “But you said you were
thinking
about it. What does that mean?” He tried to keep his voice free of emotion when in reality; a large knot of tension was coiling in his stomach.

“It means I haven’t pursued anything. A couple of potential buyers contacted
me
. At first, I disregarded them, but then I started to think about it. It may not be a bad move…”

“Not a bad move for whom? You? Have you thought about the people that work here? What happens to them?”

“Well, if they’re any good, there’s a chance they would be kept on, you know that. Although, from what I’ve seen lately? Not so sure on that one…” he added dryly.

Rand’s hands squeezed the arm rests of his chair. He took a calming breath and blew it out, trying to coax some form of evenness to his tone when he spoke.

“Give us a chance. We’re trying to be more innovative…”

“You mean Ms. Bennett’s project? Did you hear what she said? Point of admin? Do you know what that means?” Ian asked as he switched his crossed legs and leaned forward in his chair. He didn’t wait for Rand to answer.

“We don’t
do
injected medicines. That’s not our forte. Oral medication – that’s what we’re known for, that’s what we do in America. I am not handing over that kind of money on speculation. Even if you develop it, there’s a chance I won’t even be able to market it. Why throw funding at something so risky?”

“Because if it’s successful, we’ll open up a whole other realm of possibilities,” Rand answered quickly.

“And if it fails, you make it even harder for me to sell this place,” Ian countered. “It’s different here, you know that. Pharma gets way more media attention in America than anywhere else. You screw up, and the vultures will pick you apart. You lose credibility and you’re done in this business. Think about that,” he stated before resting back in the chair.

“We’ll take our time. We’ll test and test again. I’ll make sure this is successful…”

“You don’t
have
time. I have other things going on and I don’t have the patience to babysit you or this facility,” he stated and watched as Rand’s eyes narrowed before he quickly masked it.

“Does this have anything to do with the expansion in Scotland?” he asked cautiously.

“Maybe. I don’t know yet,” Ian stated with a casual shrug. “To be honest, I have the capital to buy or build without selling this facility, so I don’t really
need
to, but I think I
want
to.” he answered. “You’re not losing money, but the return I get isn’t enough to keep operating, not without some major changes.”

“So let’s make major changes,” Rand stated then quickly wished he hadn’t. What if one of those ‘major changes’ was him?

“Funding, Rand. If we start moving in a different direction, you’ll need new equipment, new people. You’ve already seen that today. I realize that a hundred thousand dollars isn’t much in the grand scheme of things, but when you’re funding a major expansion, every pence counts. I’m not willing to part with it. Not now,” he stated. “If I choose to keep this facility, that’s different. I’m just not convinced I want to,” Ian stated in a somewhat softer voice before adding, “My heart’s just not in it.”

Rand sat and contemplated the man before him. When Ian purchased the company seven years ago, he was a fixture in the facility. The employees were extremely leery of the new owner, but at least at that time, he had made an effort to assimilate into the group. Now, it was as if he had already written them off and it wasn’t fair. They had nothing to do with the events that caused him to distance himself from the facility.

“Just think about this, please? I think you’re making a mistake,” Rand stated in a tone that matched Ian’s.