Who's the Boss? (16 page)

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Authors: Jill Shalvis

Tags: #Fiction, #Romance, #Contemporary

BOOK: Who's the Boss?
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C
AITLIN COULD ONLY STARE at him. “I’m sorry. I don’t understand.”
Joe leaned a hip against her desk, propping his weight against it. “It’s simple. You’re so busy working the accounts, Darla hired me to...answer phones for you. And...” His gaze searched the room, and she wasn’t so far gone in her own misery that she missed the nerves and tension in his eyes.
“And?” she prompted, uncertain.
He lifted a shoulder. “And whatever else you need.”
“What if I don’t need anything?”
Now he looked desperate, as well as stressed. “I can make coffee,” he added, brightening. “Real good coffee.”
She let out a little disbelieving laugh, but had no idea what to say. Her fingers fiddled on her desk for something to do. Grabbing another pencil, she shoved it into the sharpener.
“Are you going to sharpen all your pencils now?” he asked conversationally. “Because I could do that for you.”
“I don’t need any help from you.”
“I understand.” His gruff voice clearly said the opposite. So did his hungry gaze as it swept over her. “I certainly brushed you off enough times, didn’t I?”
“Is that what this is about?”
“Partly.” He gave her a little smile. “You have no idea how good it is to see you, Caitlin.”
“I’ve...been busy.”
Undeterred, he slid closer, and his gaze was the most soul-shaking, heart-wrenching one she’d ever seen. “You scared me to death, you know,” he said quietly. “I’m not sure whether to throttle you or kiss you silly.”
Unable to sit and calmly talk after all that had transpired between them, she surged to her feet. With lithe grace, he rose, as well, and they ended up toe-to-toe...face-to-face.
“Neither appeals,” she said quickly.
He touched her cheek gently, tenderly. “Why don’t we kiss and make sure.”
It took every ounce of self-control she had not to throw herself at him. “There’s nothing left, Joe.”
“I’m sorry you feel that way.”
“No,” she said, her eyes stinging. He’d not stopped touching her in that way he had, the way that told her how much he cared. “That’s how
you
feel.”
“You’re wrong. There’s our future, for one thing.”
She might have scoffed, except he was looking at her as though willing her to understand. She didn’t. “We have no future, Joe. The things I said—about loving you. I was mistaken.” She met his gaze and wasn’t at all satisfied to see the pain her words had caused. She faltered, and knew if he didn’t leave now, she’d crumple. “Please go.”
The phone rang, and before she could reach for it, Joe smoothly scooped it up. “Ms. Taylor’s desk... No, I’m sorry. She’s unavailable at this time. A problem with your account?” He listened seriously. “I see. Okay. Hold on, I’ll get her.” Without taking his eyes off her, he hung up the phone.
She gaped at him. “Are you crazy? That’s not how to put someone on hold.”
“Oops,” he said mildly. “Sorry. Would you like to talk now?”
She let out a baffled laugh. “Do I have a choice?” She wished he didn’t look so good. Wished she didn’t miss him so much that she was shaking with it
He looked at her bleakly, all cockiness and self-assurance gone. “Where have you been, Caitlin? Have you had a place to stay? Enough money to get by? Dammit, are you even eating?”
“God, don’t.” She made herself busy at the shelving unit against the wall. “Don’t talk to me in that voice. It makes me hurt.”
He followed her, his big body sheltering her with warmth. “I hate it that you hurt. I hate that I caused it.”
“Please,” she begged him, unwilling to break down in front of him. “Please, just go. I can’t handle this—”
“If you’d just listen for a minute—”
“I
have
listened to you! All my life, I’ve been listening to someone, blindly following. Well, I’m through with all that!” She was shouting now and she didn’t care. “I’m listening to myself for a change!”
He held her close when she started to shake with anger, but then her anger was gone and it was grief making her tremble. “I’m listening to myself.”
“The way I should have all along.”
It was the steely quiet in his tone that made her look at him. “What do you mean?”
His hands gentled on her, but he didn’t let go. “I’m sorrier than I can say, Caitlin. You tried to tell me so many things—how you needed more to do on the job, that your father had pretty much deserted you...the way you felt about me. I didn’t listen,” he said with disgust aimed at himself, “because I couldn’t handle how you made me feel.”
“And how did I make you feel?”
“Terrified,” he said without hesitation. “Caitlin, I know next to nothing about letting people close to me. Even less about families and love. I was never close to anyone until your father. I taught myself to hold back, to protect myself, because it was easier. I couldn’t get hurt that way.”
“That’s no way to live,” she told him huskily.
“I
can’t live that way.”
His smile was warm and completely unexpected. “I know. You throw yourself wholeheartedly into absolutely everything you do. You give it your all, one hundred percent of the time, not worrying first about whether you’re going to get hurt or not. It’s one of the things I love most about you.”
Afraid to read too much into his words, she crossed her arms over her chest and backed up a step, out of his reach so he couldn’t touch her. So she couldn’t touch him.
“I cared when I didn’t want to,” he said. “I worried when I swore I wouldn’t. And, dammit,” he said roughly, his voice breaking, “I really need you to break in any time here and tell me you meant it when you told me you loved me.”
Tears filled her eyes as she stared at him mute. Panic filled him. “Wait!” he said quickly, slapping his forehead as he remembered. “Wait a minute. I have to tell you first. God, I really stink at this.” He drew a deep, ragged breath and met her drenched eyes. “I fell in love with you, Caitlin. No matter how many times I told myself I couldn’t, that I wouldn’t, I did.” Lifting her hand to his lips, he kissed her knuckles. “I love you hopelessly. Will you stay with me forever? Be my wife?”
She looked at him for an eternal moment, for once her eyes shuttering her thoughts from him. “I don’t want to go back to work for you,” she said finally.
What did that mean? he wondered wildly. But then, beyond the tears, he saw the teasing light in her expression. Relief, joy and a thousand other surging emotions rushed through him.
“No offense,” she told him teasingly as a tear slipped down her cheek, “but Darla pays better. Much better.”
“I’ll triple your salary,” he said without skipping a beat, cupping her face and swiping another tear away with the pad of his thumb. “Quadruple.”
She tilted her head as she considered. “I get to do your accounting. All of it.”
“Okay, but I’ll make the coffee,” he said quickly, flashing a sudden grin as his heart threatened to burst. “Caitlin. Tell me. Tell me you love me quick, that you forgive me for being such a fool. I’m dying here.”
She smiled, a brilliant radiance spreading across her features. “I forgive you for being a fool. And I love you with all my heart.”
“Thank God,” he murmured, yanking her against him. He kissed her, his mouth open and warm, receiving and giving, full of enough promises to last a lifetime.
Lifting her head, she looked up at him, taking a moment to bask in the joy of their love. “Let’s talk benefits.”
Eyes dancing with love and laughter, he pulled her close. “Anything you want, Mrs. Brownley-to-be. Anything you want.”
“Well, there’s just a couple of little things....” She pulled him close and whispered her heart’s wishes.
He made them all come true.
Epilogue
 
T
HE LETTER CAME one week after their wedding. Caitlin stared at her father’s familiar handwriting and her pounding heart landed in her throat.
“What’s the matter?” Joe came up behind her, slipped his arms around her waist. Leaning over her shoulder, he frowned. “That’s Edmund’s writing. How—?” His arms tightened on her in reaction. “Where did that come from?”
“The mail.” She patted his hand, knowing the gruffness in his voice was grief. “My father’s attorney sent it to me.” Quickly, with fingers that shook, Caitlin ripped open the envelope.
As she read, her heart warmed, tightening in her chest until she thought she might burst with love and happiness. She whirled to face Joe, her eyes burning, her throat thick. In his gaze, she saw equal emotion, and knew he’d already read the note. “He loved me,” she whispered.
“Very much,” Joe whispered back, bending to kiss her softly. “So much that he hid away a trust fund for you. He just wanted to be sure you’d be okay without him. Without his money.”
“It says here that he always knew I was smart, tough—” Her voice cracked a little. “But he wanted
me
to know it, too.” She smiled through a haze of tears. “He’d have loved that we found each other. He was so proud of you.”
Joe cupped her face and looked down at her with love swimming in his eyes. “He’d be so proud of you, too.”
Caitlin sighed. “I can’t imagine what we’re going to do with all that money.”
“No?” Joe smiled. “A year ago, you wouldn’t have given it a second thought.”
“I’d have shopped until I dropped.” She smiled. “Joe, how do you feel about setting up a charity for women who’ve been dumped on?”
“You mean divorced?”
“Yeah. Or deserted in any way at all.” She grinned. This was the delicious part. “We could train them to make it on their own. Teach them important skills.” She tucked her tongue firmly in her cheek and gazed up at Joe with adoring affection. “You know, such as respect for their employer, making coffee, or...how to pick the proper business attire.”
He gave a shout of laughter and hugged her close.
Suddenly serious, she leaned back. “I want to do this, Joe. We can train them in bookkeeping.
Anything.
Just so that they don’t feel worthless or helpless. What do you think?”
His breath caught because she could still dazzle him with just a look. “I think I’ve never been more proud, or loved you so much, Caitlin Taylor Brownley.” He bent to give her another kiss, his love, his life.
ISBN : 978-1-4592-5760-3
 
WHO’S THE BOSS?
 
Copyright © 1999 by Jill Shalvis.
 
All rights reserved Except for use in any review, the reproduction or utilization of this work in whole or in part in any form by any electronic, mechanical or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including xerography, photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, is forbidden without the written permission of the publisher, Harlequin Enterprises Limited, 225 Duncan Mill Road, Don Mills, Ontario, Canada M3B 3K9
 
All characters in this book have no existence outside the imagination of the author and have no relation whatsoever to anyone bearing the same name or names They are not even distantly inspired by any individual known or unknown to the author, and all incidents are pure invention.
 
This edition published by arrangement with Harlequin Books S.A.
 
® and TM are trademarks of the publisher Trademarks indicated with ® are registered in the United States Patent and Trademark Office, the Canadian Trade Marks Office and in other countries
 

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