Amanda Berry - L A Cinderella

Jerkily, she picked up a stack of papers and walked around him.

“I’ll do that,” he said.

She couldn’t look at him or speak. She just continued down the hall to her desk. Her eyes burned with tears, but as long as she didn’t talk or stop, she could hold them back.

As she set down the papers, she felt him behind her. His hands rested on her shoulders. She could feel the walls crumbling all around her. There wasn’t a hole big enough to sink into.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to…” he started.

Her body started to shake.

“No, I did mean to, I just-”

“Stop, please. Just stop.” The first teardrop crashed down on the desk. She felt so stupid for actually thinking a man like him would want her. She couldn’t turn around. She couldn’t see the look on his face. Jerking from his grasp, she went around the desk and grabbed her purse.

Without looking at him, she hurried down the hall. Tears blurred her vision but didn’t fall. He was behind her, but he let her go.

She didn’t stop until she was behind the wheel of her car. She’d been stupid to think someone like him would want someone like her. He’d stopped at the building door and stood there watching her.

She could still feel his lips against hers. Desire clung to her. She’d kissed Chase Booker. It was like going to the sun. She should have known that she’d get burned.

Chase purposely arrived late the following morning. He’d had a long talk with Robert about Martin after Natalie had fled last night. They decided to keep things normal for now, so Martin wouldn’t suspect that they knew anything.

He hoped Natalie had time to get settled before having to see him. He’d acted impulsively last night and moved too fast, but he’d needed to know how she tasted.

It’d been more explosive than he’d imagined. He hadn’t wanted it to end. It shouldn’t have happened in the first place, but he definitely wanted it to happen again.

When he entered Pandora Productions, the receptionist turned to smile at him like she always did, but froze and pretended to pick up a call instead.

Damn it. He’d hoped his foul mood wouldn’t show, but he had no desire to act right now. No desire to force niceties. He only cared how one person was doing today.

When he walked past her desk, she wasn’t there. He stopped in the hallway. Had she stayed home? Had he pushed her too far?

“Don’t forget to get through the audit today. I have to leave early, but I expect it on my desk first thing Monday morning.” Martin’s voice carried into the hallway.

“Yes, Mr. Morrison,” came Natalie’s timid voice. “It shouldn’t be a problem.”

Chase continued down the hall before she came out. She was here. He’d almost expected her to take a sick day or something, but he was glad she hadn’t. Maybe he hadn’t screwed things up for the company and for himself. They needed her to help with this audit. Who was he kidding, he needed her.

As he entered his office, he saw an envelope in the center of his desk.

“What the hell is this?”

Natalie had been prepared for Chase’s reaction, but she’d thought he’d be relieved. She hadn’t expected anger. She straightened the crumpled letter of resignation he’d tossed on her desk.

“I… It’s obvious, isn’t it?” She kept her eyes on the paper.

“No, it’s not.” He paused and his tone softened. “Damn it.”

Her eyes jerked up to his. Anger and frustration poured off him. His usual smiling face seemed tired this morning.

“I don’t have time for this right now. You will have lunch with me today to discuss this letter.” He acted like letter was a four-letter word. Without waiting for her answer, he disappeared down the hall.

Natalie glanced down the other way to see if anyone had witnessed his blowup. No one was around. Relief flowed through her. Well, she knew it would be awkward to see Chase this morning. Whatever she’d expected, it hadn’t been anger. He hadn’t gotten that upset when she’d told him about the fraud.

She folded up the letter, which gave two weeks’ notice, and stuffed it in her purse. She’d just have to give it back to him at lunch. It would be much easier to talk to him in a crowded restaurant than in his office alone or, worse, at her desk where everyone at work could see, and the memory of last night’s kiss lingered in the air.

Tugging a pile of documents closer, she sighed and began adding up the numbers again. She tried to lose herself in her numbers, but her mind kept jumping from the fraud to the kiss. She hadn’t known what to say to Mr. Morrison. Yeah, Mr. Morrison, we found a bunch of expenses that just shouldn’t be there. Don’t worry, though. I’m fairly certain you were the one that put them through.

Every squeak of Mr. Morrison’s chair made her heart skip a beat. Already keyed up by the fact Chase had demanded she have lunch with him, she kept expecting Chase to pop in front of her any moment. Then, what if Mr. Morrison figured out what she’d discovered by sneaking up behind her and seeing what she was working on?

When her desk phone rang, a small scream escaped her throat. Maybe she should have just stayed home. Picking up the phone and glancing around to make sure no one had heard her scream, she said, “This is Natalie. How may I help you?”

“Hi, Natalie. This is Jared Anderson from Element Magazine. I hear you’re new at Pandora and was wondering if we could meet for lunch sometime.”

A reporter? Calling her? “Um, I don’t think that’s a good idea.”

The man’s voice remained cajoling. “Look, we could have a mutually beneficial relationship. But I don’t want to discuss it over the phone. They can’t be paying you that much.”

“I’m sorry, but I don’t think so.” A flash of movement in front of her desk captured her attention. She looked up into Chase’s eyes. Her lips parted. The spark of desire flared to life. Her whole being shook with the force of his gaze.

Jared’s voice continued in her ear. “We’re always looking for someone to help us find the good stories. We’re not asking you to rat out your boss or anything. Just a bit of an inside scoop on how Chase runs things down there.”

“I can’t. Really. I don’t know anything about…” Her gaze dropped from Chase’s quizzical expression. What if he thought she’d called the magazine? “…that and don’t really want to talk to anyone at your…” She glanced up at Chase. “…business.”

“Why don’t you write down my number? Just in case you change your mind-”

“I won’t. Thank you for calling.” She set the phone back on the cradle. The papers in front of her could be straighter and were a lot easier to look at than Chase at the moment.

“Let’s go, Natalie.”

Her heart leapt in her throat. She nodded slightly, still not making eye contact. Picking up her purse, she moved to follow him out of the office. She kept her head down, not wanting to meet anyone’s gaze. Her pulse jumped as she brushed against him when he held open the door for her.

Her resolve to hand in her resignation increased. She couldn’t be expected to work with this man and not want him. Maybe every other woman in the office wanted him and just coped daily with it, but she wasn’t like those women. Maybe he’d kissed every one of them, too. Hell, he could have slept with all of them.

Her chest crushed in on her heart. Though she wasn’t a part of the gossip mill at Pandora Productions, she was certain someone would have mentioned that particular trait of Chase’s. Or Rachel would have told her, since that kind of behavior wouldn’t have escaped the attention of people like Jared Anderson. Why would a reporter call her?

Chase’s hand lightly brushed the small of her back, guiding her to his car. Her breath caught, and she stumbled a little. He gripped her elbow to steady her.

He stopped them. After a moment, she looked up at his chin.

“Are you okay?”

No. “I’m fine.” She pressed her glasses back up her nose and examined the concrete beneath her feet.

When he didn’t continue to the car after a few moments, she dared a peek up at him. The wind tousled his blond hair, giving him that just-rolled-out-of-bed look. Her hair whipped loose from its clip and slapped her across the face.

“Do you ever say how you really feel?” His hand smoothed her loose hair behind her ear. His touch sent tingles coursing through her body. He glanced over her shoulder and frowned.

She followed his gaze and saw Mr. Morrison standing next to the door, cigarette in hand. He lifted his hand and waved. Chase’s lips tightened, but he didn’t say anything, just steered her toward the car again.

Chase remained silent while they were shown to a private corner booth. They’d come in the back entrance and hadn’t drawn any attention.

Sliding into the seat, Natalie knocked over an empty glass. Chase caught it before it rolled to the floor. Her skin flushed pink as he slid in after her.

The table was small, but she tucked herself as far away from him as possible. He didn’t know whether to be frustrated or to laugh. What he really wanted to do was pull her back into his arms and keep her there for several hours. But he knew they’d both be better off if they repaired their working relationship and forgot about the tantalizing prospect of that kiss. At least until this mess with Martin was over.

She picked at the napkin and stared at the menu.

The sweet, clean smell of her lingered in his nose. His fingertips itched to turn her face up to his. He cleared his throat. Her gaze leapt up to his, her eyes wide and wary.

“Do you know what you want?” He smiled, trying to reassure her and calm her down.

Her eyes widened further, and she leaned away from him. She looked like she was ready to bolt.

“To eat, Natalie. What do you want to eat?” He picked up his menu. “I typically get shrimp scampi, but everything here is really good.”