Where She Belongs (7 page)

"That
would be lazy," he said. "Besides I need to stretch my
legs."

"A
coffee would be great. One cream―"

"Two
sugars," he finished for her.

She
blinked at him. He wanted to throw it back at her. Yeah, he knew what
she took in her coffee.

"I'll
be a few minutes."

He
didn't dare look at her before he left. God, what the hell had he
been thinking? He hadn't been. Rachel looked at him as he stalked
out, but she didn't say anything. She knew what the look on his face
meant. He managed to contain himself from slamming the door to his
own office.

He
locked the door and sat at his desk. Once he was alone, he let his
thoughts and emotions run loose. He wasn't sure if he should feel
guilty for kissing her. She was twelve years younger than him, and
she was one of his best friends. He had gotten over any other
feelings for her long ago. Hadn't he?

Five
years had passed since he last held her in his arms; since he tasted
her and felt her shiver under his hands. Everything about having her
that close felt right and good. He felt overwhelmed with the desire
to run back to her office and kiss her until she admitted she felt
the same.

He
rubbed his hands over his face, wondering what she was going to say.
She'd certainly participated in the kiss. She'd moaned his name, not
that idiot's.

No
matter what he should feel, he knew what he did feel. His body ached
for her, as he had years ago when he had stopped himself from
touching her. She'd been an eighteen-year-old girl then. She was a
grown woman now. Everything about her inflamed him.

His
thought from the previous night echoed. What if Bryce was correct?
What if she belonged here with him? Growing Whittikar Cabinets into
what Bryce always dreamed it would be? His lasting legacy to the
world.

He
wondered if eleven thirty was too early to start lacing his coffee
with whiskey?

At
any rate, it would probably be better if he spent more time in his
own office. Except that this afternoon, he'd planned to start looking
at e-mails together and start talking about what she would do if she
were in charge.

Change
of plans there. He couldn't spend anymore time too near her. Probing
her intelligence would not help either. Instead, she could type her
answers and e-mail them to him. That would solve the problem and he
would still get her working on more complex things, rather than
reorganizing the filing system.

Man,
was this what Trenton von Snooty had her doing? Filing? That was a
waste of her time. There was so much she could do, if someone led her
in the right direction.

*
* *

The
incident, which she would not think of by actual action, had taken
less than a minute to occur. But the effects would not be stopped.

Shanna
tried to calm the riot of emotions that churned inside her. It had
been hours since Gabe had kissed her in her father's office. Damn if
his kiss hadn't stirred up more in her than a hundred of Trenton's
kisses.

She
left the office at lunchtime. Her reorganization of the filing
cabinet remained unfinished. She'd probably go back in after supper,
when Gabe definitely wouldn't be there.

When
she told him she was leaving, he asked if she wanted to answer some
e-mails. She asked him to forward them, she would do them later, but
she really needed to go see her dad.

And
she did, if only to distract herself. So she sat beside his hospital
bed, watching a baseball game. She had no idea who was playing.

"Gabe
says you are unhappy with my filing system."

"I'm
fixing it. Don't argue about it. You wanted me to work, I'm working.
The new system will be much more efficient." At least filing was
something she was confident doing.

"The
old one was fine."

“
Why
doesn’t Rachel do your filing?”

“
I
got used to doing certain things. Rachel does the things I’m
not great at. Typing my notes, proofing my writing and keeping my
schedule.”

The
same things she did for Trenton. She tapped her fingers on her knee.
"When did you talk to Gabe. anyhow? You are supposed to be
resting, not checking on him."

"I
called before you got here, during his lunch break. Laying here,
doing nothing is not relaxing or restful. It's driving me mad."

"I'll
bring you some books. What do you read?"

"Expense
reports."

"Romance
novels it is." She grinned at him.

"How's
working with Gabe?"

"Fine."
Except when he touched her intimately, gently, like a lover might if
he meant to seduce her. "He's good at his job. He is good at
explaining things to me without talking down to me. He can run the
company." He’s also good at kissing. Phenomenal.

"I
know. But I need to know he's got someone with him that I can trust.
I'd prefer it to be you."

Shanna
closed her eyes. This was distracting her, but not in a good way. She
couldn't upset her dad and say what she really wanted to say. She
wanted to tell him she had a life in Toronto, she loved the city, and
though no one else understood it, she loved Trenton. She would marry
him. In a couple months, she would move to HR department, something
with more responsibility, and soar. She had a five-year plan to see
all her work dreams realized. Then she was going to start a family
with Trenton. They'd sell their future condo and buy a house in the
suburbs and she'd work part-time from home while raising her two boys
and a girl.

Saying
it out loud would upset her dad. He'd always planned that after
business school, she'd come back and work at Whittikar Cabinets. He
hadn't yet accepted her change in plans.

"Shanna,
I know you will be successful at whatever you do. I know you think
I'm being a busybody, a controlling Dad, forcing you into coming back
here and do what I want you to do. I really do want you to be happy
and to choose. I haven't given up that your dreams and my dreams
could be the same."

"Dad,
I'm sorry," she said, tears pressing her eyes.

"I'm
sorry for bringing it all up." His eyes were shining as well.

"Maybe
I should let you get some sleep."

He
reached out and put his hand on her forearm. "Sit and watch the
game for a little longer. Just 'til your mom comes back. And I'm
serious, sneak me in some expense reports, something work related.
It's killing me."

"It
might if I were to give in. Watch the game and stop thinking about
it."

And
she stopped thinking about Gabe's lips rubbing against hers. Or the
way she'd opened her mouth to his. The way she'd enjoyed the
attention.

She
was past all that nonsense. Right?

Fuck.

*
* *

"What
did your father think of the proposal?" Shanna asked Trenton as
she lay on her bed. She had her laptop on her stomach as she read one
of Gabe's e-mails she was supposed to answer. How the hell did she
know what to tell these people?

It
was like suddenly corresponding with people was foreign to her. She
was adept at it in her own office. Why was she so scared now?

"Really
good. I think your changes really nailed it. He said he would send it
to the client as is in the morning. He wants me to start working on a
presentation for it. With Taylor and Madsen."

"Are
you excited about it?"

"Mostly.
It's nerve-racking, going to work with the big guys. Did you get a
chance to look at that information from that start-up?"

"A
little bit. I spent the morning in the office here, then the
afternoon with Dad. Totally made me cry, the bastard. Started talking
about how he wants me to be happy, but he hopes that I could be happy
fulfilling his dreams."

"God,
parental pressure is the worst. Father called me today, he told me
good job, but he told me all the things I needed to fix next time,
even though he said he was sending it to the client." This was
the part of Trenton no one else saw. The vulnerable boy.

"Your
father always sends mixed messages to you. I can never tell if he's
happy with your work or not. As if he cannot keep himself from making
critical comments. I wonder if he's like that with all his
employees."

"No,
only his children and wives." Trenton’s childhood pained
Shanna. It had left him needy on the inside, but the outside was very
hard. He was very careful with people. It made him seem standoffish.

"I
forgot to say it might be best to text or e-mail tomorrow. I was
leaving at lunchtime and a couple people I used to go to school with
caught me as I went by. They asked if I'd go to the bar with them,
for old times and catch up."

"That
sounds like an excellent idea. I haven't really gone out since you
left. I should head out and blow off some steam." His idea of
blowing off steam was going to a wine bar and sipping upscale wines
and criticizing them for being 'too bold' or 'not robust enough.' "I
think I'll call the usual suspects and see who wants to grab
something to eat at Sucre then Vino's for some drinks."

Yeah,
she was so not surprised― at his pick of places to go, nor that
he hadn’t commented on her plans, merely changed subject to
himself.

And
there were parts of him that made her want to scream.

"I’ll
e-mail. I don’t think we need to talk on the phone for hours
everyday. We aren’t teenagers.”

No,
but kissing former love interests and keeping secrets was not
healthy. Gabe kissed me. Gabe kissed me. She couldn't bring herself
to say the words. She would end up lying to save her own ass. She
should tell him Gabe tried to kiss her, but she shoved him away.

Lies,
lies. She grabbed Gabe full force. And given half a chance, she
wasn't sure she wouldn't make the same choice again.

No,
no, it was a one-time thing. She wasn't still attracted to Gabriel.
She certainly wasn't in love with him anymore. So she'd keep this one
little secret to herself. Everyone had secrets in relationships.

"You're
right, but I'll miss you terribly. As I do now." She stared at
her hands, half convinced she had crossed her fingers in a childish
attempt to protect herself for her own lies. She missed him a little.
She took a breath, ready to blurt out the truth.

"I
miss you, too. I have to go sweetie, I'm falling asleep. And I have
an early day tomorrow." There, she had to let him get his rest,
he needed sleep. She relaxed as the pressure disappeared.

"Alright.
Goodnight. I'll text you tomorrow."

"Great.
I'll try to text back. Goodnight."

"Night,
Trenton. I love you. Sweet dreams."

"Sweet
dreams of me."

She
had kissed Gabe and the entire time she had thought nothing for the
man she loved and planned to marry. She traced her fingers over her
lips and her jaw where Gabe's lips left an impression. What she felt
for Gabe was merely the remainders of her schoolgirl crush on him.
Those old feelings bubbled up now that she was back in her childhood
home in her childhood room. Gabe certainly never wanted her. He had
let her know that clearly many years ago. If he had wanted her, he
would have taken her to bed when she offered.

She'd
been pretty close to offering herself again yesterday.

Shanna
rolled off the bed and stripped her clothes away. Thankfully, they
had only gone as far as kissing yesterday, no wandering hands and no
rubbing body parts. She wrapped her robe around herself and went
across the hall to the bathroom, where she started running water for
a very hot shower.

Her
mother said Gabe had stopped dating in the past year. Perhaps he'd
been through the available women in town. Over the years, from his
own mouth, she knew the women he'd dated. There had been a fair
number, but none of them was ever up to Gabe's standards. There was
always something he couldn't live with. She accused him of being a
perfectionist and he agreed she was right.

He
once let it slip that he had let his perfect woman go some years
before, and he was waiting for someone who matched her. He’d
never said who the perfect woman was. Maybe someone from his college
days. She never recalled him being particularly attached to any
woman.