Craving Shannon (3 page)

The good news, though, was that Shannon started coming out of her shell. Apparently, there really was a personality under the beautiful body, and quite a smart and witty one. And for some reason, the more of herself that came forth, the more it seemed that Chad could keep his hormones under full control.

“I’ll be right back,” Shannon announced, jumping up as lunchtime approached. “Bathroom,” she mumbled to the two men that were looking at her questioningly. She hurried from the room and closed the door tight behind her.

Kyle’s forehead smacked down on the table. He raised his head and looked over at Chad with a pained expression. “She’s so fucking hot!” he blurted out. “Oh, man!”

Chad chuckled and rolled his eyes, the picture of maturity. “She’s a little young, don’t you think?” he replied, knowing that he was a complete hypocrite.

“She’s nineteen,” Kyle said indignantly, shaking his head. “I’m only twenty-five.”

“Yeah, but she seems much younger. She’s innocent, or something,” Chad argued.

“I know! All she needs is a pair of thick, dark-rimmed glasses and I’d be cuming in my pants,” Kyle admitted. “It’s the combination of hot face and body with the
‘I’m such a
virgin
’ routine that makes her so fuckable.”

“Fuckable?” Chad repeated with a sour look on his face, shaking his head.

“Yeah, y’know, how like all guys wanna do the nerdy librarian?” Kyle added.

Chad raised his eyebrows and chuckled, trying his hardest to appear ‘boss-like’, meanwhile, he began to ponder if that was really the reason his body reacted to hers the way it did.

Didn’t really matter, though, whatever the reason. It was still highly inappropriate.

When Shannon returned, Chad announced that they should break for lunch. He threw menus from the local deli at both of them and told them to order whatever they wanted, his treat.

Something in the way Shannon ate her Buffalo chicken wrap caught Chad’s attention. She was dainty and shy eating around others, it seemed, yet she ate in a way that gave him a gut feeling that this girl was incredibly hungry, like she didn’t have enough to eat on a regular basis.

“So, Shannon, where do you live?” Chad asked, rolling up his napkin and throwing it onto the paper plate in front of him. He was eager to know as much about her as possible, suddenly. If she was in some kind of financial trouble, he figured that perhaps he could help her out.

“Ummm, near Yonkers,” she answered hesitantly. She looked over at him but did not meet his eyes.

“Where about?” he pushed, noting her uncomfortable demeanor.

She shrugged. “I don’t really know how to explain it. I’ve only been here ten days and don’t really know any popular places or landmarks there yet.”

The girl was lying through her teeth, that much was obvious, but Chad took pity on her. It was clear that the matter of where she lived was off limits for conversation, for some reason. He would have pushed the issue, but she began biting on her lip and he could feel the tension rolling off her. He couldn’t bear to make her feel any worse. Maybe he should offer to take her to dinner to make sure she was eating enough. Wait…no…that would be a terrible idea, and besides, he was meeting Donna later.

That right there was the one thing his father always scolded him for: for trying to save people. It really wasn’t his concern what her financial situation was. It wasn’t up to him to fix this. But as he looked over at her, his heart fluttered a little. There was an unmistakable sadness behind those beautiful eyes. “So shall we get back to work?” he blurted out, clapping his hands once, trying to lighten the mood.

By the end of the day, they were no further at finding out any worthwhile information about Omagal Inc. as they had been that morning, and they hadn’t even managed to get halfway through the folder.

Chad glared at the folder and scowled. “Ugh, looks like my weekend will be a washout.” He perked up suddenly and looked over at Kyle. “Hey, what are you up to for the weekend?”

“Going upstate to visit my folks, why?” Kyle responded.

Chad’s face dropped. “Never mind! I was going to ask you if you wanted to earn a little over time,” he said, nodding toward the folder.

“Sorry, man.” Kyle shrugged apologetically.

“I can do it, if you want,” Shannon piped in shyly. “I’ll…I’ll help you out over the weekend.”

Chad racked his brain, trying to come up with a good reason to refuse her help quickly, but couldn’t really think of one. Besides, he really did need the help. “You sure?” he asked.

“I don’t really have anything else to do,” she admitted.

He unconsciously blew out a deep breath, ignoring his better judgment that said spending time alone with her was a bad, bad fucking idea. “Okay,” he said, nodding. “Can you be here at twelve?”

“Sure,” she replied.

He watched her slip into a dark-blue parka and fling her bag over her shoulder.

“I’ll walk you out,” Kyle happily offered.  “Night, boss,” he said, putting his hand on the small of Shannon’s back and guiding her toward the door.

“Night, Buddy, thanks for the help,” Chad replied.

“Goodnight, Chad,” she called out over her shoulder. “See you tomorrow.”

“See you tomorrow,” he answered.

Dear God, what the fuck was he getting himself into?

“So, Bertie wants us to visit with him over Thanksgiving weekend. I told him that we’d be happy to, so he suggested we travel up to him on the Friday night or Saturday morning. Which one works better for you?”

Chad was outlining his plate with asparagus, trying to frame what little was left of his steak.

“Are you even listening to me?” Donna yelped.

Chad looked up quickly. “Yes!” he snapped back, which was a complete lie.

“Which one works better?”

“Well…neither, actually,” he replied, feeling his temper flare.

“What do you mean by that?”

“It’s Thanksgiving weekend, Donna. It’s a time for family and friends, not for business associates.”

“This is important to me,” she huffed. “It’s important to my career.”

“I’m sorry, but I’m spending Thanksgiving with my parents,” he answered.

“That’s Thanksgiving
day
,” she reminded him, rolling her eyes. “I’m talking about the rest of the weekend.”

“I already made plans to visit Derek’s family on that Saturday,” he said quietly, inwardly bracing against the coming outburst.

“WHAT!” she screeched. “What the hell do you mean?”

Chad’s temper was reaching a critical point, something that didn’t happen often. “Donna, you know that Alex and I spend Thanksgiving weekend with Derek’s family. We’ve been doing it since college.”

“Yes, but I just thought that now that you and I are together…” she trailed off and shrugged, angrily.

“I’m sorry you thought that, but I don’t know what gave you that impression. Alex and Derek have been my best friends since seventh grade, since I was twelve. They are my family. With all due respect, until I’m officially married, they come first.”

She opened her mouth to respond but nothing came forth. He could feel the anger emanating from her.

“I’m sorry,” he said again, bluntly.

“I can’t fucking believe you would choose them over my career,” she screeched, furious.

“Keep your voice down,” Chad whispered, leaning forward. “We’re in a crowded—

“I don’t give a shit where we are?” she raged.

Chad realized that a temper tantrum was coming on and refused to sit still while she screamed all over the restaurant. He threw his napkin on his plate and pushed away from the table.

“Where are you going?” she questioned, realizing that he was about to leave.

“I’m not taking this, Donna,” he answered quietly. “You knew when you started dating me that Alex and Derek were part of the package.”

She composed herself somewhat and managed to look remorseful. “Sit down, Chad. I’m sorry; it’s just that this Bertie thing is really important. I thought you’d want to support me in this.”

“Yes, I normally would, but not Thanksgiving weekend. Besides, didn’t you think you should check with me first before you made arrangements with people? I’m done with this crap, Donna. I’m done with your attitude regarding my friends.”

She bit her lip and nodded. “Please, just sit down. I’m sorry.”

Chad doubted that she really was. This was not the first time she was sorry for overstepping her boundaries, yet she still did it constantly. Quite frankly, he was getting sick and tired of it.

She batted her eyelashes and smiled seductively. “I have a surprise for you back at my apartment.”

Chad knew this game. She would use sex to get back in his good graces. He sighed and sat down, not necessarily because he wanted sex, but because he hated confrontations.

“Thank you,” she sighed, smiling. “I’m willing to forget this until after I get back from Dubai.”

Chad bit his lip, fighting the urge to jump back up and storm out. He hated the fucking games this woman played. It would be better just to remain calm, though. He’d have almost four weeks to decide what to do with her after tonight.

Chad stared out the left window of the cab on the way back to her apartment, not really in the mood to make small talk. He was still pretty angry and wondered why he was even going home with her. After the way she behaved, he’d rather have a tooth drilled than sleep with her, yet here he was, driving straight to her home—always the fucking diplomat.

Once inside, Donna raced to her bedroom like a kid on Christmas morning while Chad went to the fridge and grabbed a bottle of Michelob. He leaned up against the kitchen table and took several swigs, wondering, once again, what he was doing there.

Then, Donna stood in front of him, dressed in a black and red teddy complete with suspenders and six inched heels. She leaned up against the doorframe, reaching her arm up toward the top and smiled smugly.

Chad felt nothing!

Donna was an attractive woman. Her straight blonde hair sat on her shoulders and framed a slender face with high cheekbones and clear blue eyes. She had a decent figure, although a little on the skinny side. She embodied that stereotypical, upper-class wasp look to a tee.

But at that particular moment, it was not an attractive woman Chad saw. He was actually pissed off that she was playing this game, and the smug look on her face did nothing to soften his mood.

“You like it?” she probed when she received no reaction.

Chad shrugged and only half nodded.

“What’s the matter?” she asked sincerely, walking toward him.

“I’m just tired,” he lied, not wanting to hurt her feelings no matter how much she may deserve it.

“Let me see what I can do about that,” she said, angling her way in behind him. She put both hands on his shoulders and began to massage them, which he had to admit actually felt pretty good.

He felt her lips on his neck, slightly under his ear. He stiffened momentarily then relaxed into the sensation, but still not fully committed to the moment.

She moaned softly, running her tongue up his neck to his ear then nibbled on his earlobe.

Out of the clear blue, Shannon flashed into his mind and he unwillingly imagined that it was her gorgeous young mouth on his ear. His cock sprang to action.

He shook his head a little, trying to dispel the nasty thought—or was he actually trying to hold on to it?

Before he could stop it, a deep moan escaped his lips. Then, he ran his hand down her thigh, eager to taste her pale flesh. He turned to take her full, red lips with his, to invade her lovely mouth. He kissed her deeply, moaning into her. He forced his tongue inside her, feeling the heat in his body rising.  His left hand reached for her breast. He cupped it in his hand and moaned deeper, the need to take her roughly searing through him suddenly. He reached for her head and grabbed a handful of her thick, dark hair…

He opened his eyes and looked into Donna’s face, noting the handful of straight blonde hair wrapped around his fingers.

He pulled away abruptly.

He placed his palm on his forehead and sighed.

Donna wore a satisfied smirk. “Don’t stop,” she teased. “That was the most passionate you’ve been in ages.”

“I can’t do this,” he said bluntly, rubbing his forehead. A sudden feeling of disgust coursed through him. He couldn’t possibly want to fuck Shannon that badly. He couldn’t possibly want to ravish that sweet innocent girl. Yet, despite the self-revulsion, he knew it was obvious that he did.

What do you mean
‘you can’t do this’
” Donna asked, a dejected look on her face.

“I’m sorry, D,” he said sincerely. “I have a terrible headache. I’d just like…I…I need to go home.”

Her nostrils flared. A dumbfounded look graced her face. “Look at me!” she screeched. “I bought this for you!”

“I’m so sorry, D, but I have to go,” he stammered. He picked up his jacket and headed for the door, trying to ignore her ranting. “I’ll see you when you get back. Have a nice trip,” he called out over his shoulder as he hurried from her apartment.

Outside on the street, Chad breathed in the cold air, letting it help settled his corrupt thoughts.

One thing had to be for sure. No matter how hard Shannon made him, no matter how desperately he wanted her, he would never, ever act on it.