Every Kiss (10 page)

Oh, God, she looks like she’s going to cry again. She’s
covering her quivering smile with her hand and blinking through the excess
moisture pooling in her eyes. “He’s so sweet.”

“Yeah, I guess he sucked
all
of it from our gene
pool. So, Callie, looks like I’m taking you home. I can be ready to leave in
less than an hour.”

Makenna’s phone rings in her purse, and she lights up when
she reads the screen. “It’s him. Is there somewhere private I can take this?”

“Empty office, right across the hall.” He points as she jogs
out the door. “I’m glad to see she’s got it just as bad as he does. Damn, but
he gets on my nerves.” He catches me staring at him. “What?”

“Who
are
you?”

“What the hell is that supposed to mean?” He scowls at me,
quickly defensive.

I stand up and swish my hand through the air. “All this.
This office. The suit. You’re like a totally different person. I had no idea.”

“Oh, so she doesn’t like guys with culture
or
a job,
I guess.” He grumbles, loosening his tie. “I’m sorry I don’t live up to your
slacker caveman expectations, Callie.”

“Wes.” I fold my arms over my chest. “You know that’s not
what I mean. And I’m not trying to be rude. I’m just surprised, that’s all. A
few weeks ago, you were this young guy that I was making out with after
drinking too much. Today, you’re a stuffy suit in a big ass office. I was
hoping you’d fill in the gaps for me.”

“What’s to tell? I interned here in college and made a name
for myself. They hired me immediately after graduation and as long as I keep
making them money, they give me anything I ask for. I’m good at predicting how
financial decisions will impact us, and I have no trouble increasing our profit
margins because of it.”

“Cocky much?”

He shrugs. “Maybe so, but it’s true. And I don’t love the
whole suit and tie business, but it’s a necessary evil. If I’m being honest,
though, I like the quiet reverence I get from playing that part. I like the
control. The omnipotence of it. You can call it cocky if you want. I have no
problem with it. I work hard enough to earn it.”

With nothing remotely clever to say, I harrumph and shake my
head.

After taking his jacket off and tossing it over on the couch
arm, he finishes removing his tie and unbuttons the collar of his starched
white dress shirt. He slumps into his chair, eyeing me. “I’m sorry for being a
little temperamental. This week has been insane. I found out Monday that I had until
today to get three of our project budgets finalized and ready for the board. I
wasn’t expecting today’s meeting until next week, so needless to say, I haven’t
slept much.”

I cross my legs and tap my foot in the air nervously. “It’s
okay. You probably would’ve been a little less defensive if I’d just said what
I meant.”

“Not likely, but thanks for the vote of confidence.” Wes
clicks his mouse a couple of times before picking up his desk phone. “Excuse me
for a second.” When I start to stand to leave, he holds his hand up. “No, you
can stay. I just need to make a quick call.”

“Sandra, can you get Marshall O’Brian on the line?” He
pauses for her reply. “Good, thanks. Let me know when you have him.”

Within seconds, his phone rings, and he answers coolly, the
mask back in place. He may as well be speaking Greek to the man because I have
no idea what he’s talking about. I can gather, though, that Wes is none too
pleased with the poor unsuspecting soul on the other end of the line. Something
about unapproved expenditures, encumbrances, and reducing gross profit. Or
something like that.

Feeling uncomfortable, I decide to step out to see what’s
taking my friend so long. I hear Makenna’s muted voice on the other side of the
closed door across the wide hall, so I guess that answers that question. I
stroll down the hallway slowly, looking carefully at the framed prints of more
men in suits. They’re older gentlemen, most of them with gray hair and
unnaturally large ears. But after noticing they have their names and job titles
on the bottom, I’m quick to realize that these are the people at the top of the
food chain in this company, whatever the hell its purpose is. When I reach the
end, I see a familiar face. The other side of Wes’ personality . . . the same
one I met today.

He wears a slight, professional smile in the photograph,
which increases the intensity of his intimidating, crystal blue gaze. He
radiates exactly the feeling he wants to convey. Power. Control. Extreme,
unbridled sexiness.

Whether he’s shooting for the last part or not, he’s still
successful.

And Wes’ title is at the bottom of it, too. Wow.

“Can I get you something, ma’am?” Sandra approaches me with
a professional smile. She looks down at the words under my fingertips. “Mr.
Baxter came here when he was still in college, and the powers that be couldn’t
wait to snatch him up. I don’t think anyone was surprised when he was offered
the CFO position after only a year.”

“What’s a CFO exactly?” The term is familiar, but I know so
little about the business world.

“Chief Financial Officer. To easily sum it up, he’s the one
that makes all the financial decisions for the company.”

“Oh,” I sigh, trying to grasp what it entails. “So what does
this company do?”

She crooks her finger at me, and I follow her around to
another hallway. This one has framed photos of newspaper clippings, articles
from Time magazine, and even marketing style posters. “Mr. Fields and Mr.
Lehman started this company only eight years ago. They developed software that
large companies use to analyze financial data.” She pauses to tap on the
poster. “This is it. Accu-Trak. Within the first year after its release, they
made twenty million dollars. They were struggling with the boom when Mr. Baxter
came along, but after taking more than a few of his suggestions, Fields and
Lehman were sitting pretty. Since then, they’ve created specialized financial
and analytical products for brokerage firms and the bank industry. We’re
growing by leaps and bounds, and last year, we reported earnings more than four
times that of the first year.”

“That’s impressive.” All this talk of obscene amounts of
money has my throat going dry. “Uh, may I have that water now, please?”

“Absolutely, Miss Callie.” Her eyes brighten as she nods,
and then she disappears down another corridor. Nice woman. Definitely nothing
like the bitchy ice queen downstairs. Sandra returns almost immediately with a
chilled bottle of water and a napkin, patting my hand after she hands it to me.
“You just let me know if you need anything else, dear.”

“Sure. Thanks.”

Just as I’m twisting the lid off the top, the elevator doors
open. Shane is carrying a large bouquet of bright pink roses and still holding
the phone to his ear. “I’m here, so I’ll see you in a sec.” His smile is even
sunnier than normal, and I can imagine why.

“Mr. Baxter,” Sandra addresses him. “It’s so nice to see you
again. I believe Makenna is just down the hall. Third office on the left.”

“Thank you.” He pauses to kiss me on the cheek. “Hey, Cal.”

“Hey, lover boy.” I wink. “Go get your girl and get outta
here. I know I’ll get the full report later.”

“Maybe not the
full
report.” His chuckle trails off
as he rushes down the hall.

Within minutes, Shane and Makenna are gone, excited to get
away and do only God knows what. And yes, I’m a little jealous. When the
elevator begins its descent, I look back at Sandra. She’s typing away, the
light click-click-click of the keys under her manicured nails is strangely
soothing. A ghost of a smile is on her lips, and I can’t decide if it’s just
normally plastered there for the sake of professionalism or if she’s affected
by the love in the air.

“Callie.” He’s so close that I can feel his breath in my
hair. “You ready to get out of here?”

“Whenever you are.” I stay rooted in place. Feeling him at
my back is more than intense enough for me.

“Sandra, if O’Brian calls back, tell him we’ll resume our
discussion tomorrow. And I forwarded you a few emails with meeting changes, if
you don’t mind adjusting my schedule accordingly. And—”

“Mr. Baxter,” she laughs, interrupting him. “Relax. Go enjoy
your evening.” Her eyes flash to me for a split second. “We can sit down in the
morning and go over everything.”

He crosses the room and hugs her, something I’d never expect
to see. “Thanks for all your help today.”

“Sure. That’s what I’m here for.” She pats his back. It’s
endearing, motherly.

The entire walk to the parking lot is quiet, strangely so.
Like there’s something that needs to be said, but neither of us knows what’s
right. But right or not, I have something on my mind, and I’ve never been one
to keep it to myself.

“I have to ask you something that’s nagging at me.”

“Shoot.” He holds out his key fob and a new black, four-door
jeep lights up. I swear, he’s an enigma, surprising me at every turn. Even more
so when he goes to the passenger side to open the door for me. Good to know his
mom raised him right.

“Well,” I begin as he gets in, “what is it about me that
makes you treat me differently?”

He unbuttons his dress shirt all the way down, then the
cuffs, removing it and tossing it in the backseat. I catch the familiar scent
of him as it passes between us. “What are you talking about?” He tugs at his
white undershirt until it’s free from his pants.

Now, he’s looking more like the Wes I remember.

“From the minute we first met, you’ve been different with
me. Makenna talked about how sweet you always are. Shane says you’re more of a
best friend to him than a brother, and even now, with your secretary. You
hugged her. With me, you’re hot and cold, sometimes all at once.
Moody.
I feel like we’re constantly butting heads, and we don’t even have a reason to.
And while I’m on a roll, I have to mention the weekend of your birthday party.”

“Oh, come on, Callie . . .”

“No, I talk. You listen. You went from being an ass to
ignoring me, then you were protective and kissing me. Then after taking care of
me when I wasn’t feeling well, you disappeared. Not a word in three weeks. I
know we talked about being friends and all, and I’m totally cool with that, but
something seems a little off. I thought for sure I’d hear from you at some
point. What gives? If I get on your nerves or whatever, that’s fine. I just
prefer you tell me that upfront instead of acting as if you like me one minute
and then like you can’t stand me the next. As it stands right now, I don’t know
which mood I’m going to get from you. ”

He drums his fingers on the steering wheel and blows out a
deep breath. “Am I allowed to speak now?”

I nod.

“Callie, we
are
friends.” He shifts in his seat to
face me and runs his fingers through the top of his hair, causing it to fall
over his forehead. “I’ve had a lot going on the last few weeks, and I did ask
Shane if he knew how you were feeling the day after I left my parents’ house.
The road runs both ways . . . you could’ve called me, too. I programmed my
number into your phone while you slept, but even if you didn’t notice, you
could’ve gotten it from Makenna or Shane. As far as me treating you
differently, I don’t know what to tell you. I know I’ve been hot and cold, but
cold is safer for me right now. I’m trying to stay the hell away from hot as
much as possible with you, and it’s damn hard.”

“But why? That’s what I don’t understand.”

His eyes cut right through me, right to the very core. His
penetrating gaze floods into me and touches a certain place within that I
didn’t even know existed, almost like a raw, exposed nerve. It’s pleasure. But
also pain.

“I wasn’t in the best frame of mind when I got to my
parents’ house that day.” His voice softens slightly. “You know why. But I liked
you from that first second when you thought I broke into my own house. Little
by little, and with a lot of alcohol, I pushed the bullshit with my mother from
my mind, or at least I tried to. It kept creeping back up on me. But for some
damn reason, you
also
kept creeping up on me. If I didn’t see you, I was
thinking about you, still reeling from the way you didn’t take my shit.
Honestly . . .” He closes his eyes and shakes his head. “It turned me on.”

At this point, I feel like a few of my questions have been
answered, but with that revelation, I feel hundreds more building. Since I have
him talking, though, I think I’ll keep them to myself for a while.

“I already felt like an ass for kissing you after making out
with Allison earlier that night, so when I carried you up to your bed, I
decided to give it a few days before I tried anything again. Then, when I woke
up the next morning and saw you undressing to get in the shower, it was the
hardest thing I’ve ever done to stay in that bed. Still, though, I refrained. I
kept repeating to myself to give it some time. But right after that, you talked
about how you just cut your ex loose for using you for sex. That’s all I’m good
for, Callie. I decided I couldn’t do the same thing to you. Not you . . . you
don’t deserve it. So, distance. That was my answer.”

“Distance? But you kissed me that morning. You took care of
me when I was sick.”

“Yeah, so you can now understand why I haven’t been around
you since then. It’s hard for me to keep that distance when you’re anywhere
near. I catch a whiff of your hair, and I remember smelling it when I was
kissing you in the hot tub. I can’t even think about that bathroom now without
seeing you naked in it. You don’t want me to use you, and I don’t want to make
you feel used. So forgive me if I’m an ass around you. I don’t mean anything by
it, and it’s the only way to keep the necessary space between us.”

I’m not easily stunned by blunt honesty, but coming from a
man? Well, that’s something. I’m used to them avoiding the issue, but he didn’t
even flinch. “Okay then. I guess that answers everything. I get it. Maybe it’s
best we’re
not
friends. I’m not interested in the benefits part of it,
and to be honest, I don’t even like you all that much. And you really suck at
this.”