Beyond The Boardroom(6)

"We're celebrating." The cork popped, slamming into a cupboard before  bouncing to the floor, and Shane held the bottle over the sink as  champagne frothed and foamed out the neck. As he filled both of the  heavy green glasses to the rim, he looked down at her, winked and  teased, "Ask me what we're celebrating."

A jolt of excitement sizzled inside her. "What're we celebrating?"

"We did it, Rachel," he said, setting the bottle down and handing her  one of the glasses. He picked up his own then clinked it against hers.  "We won the contest.

I'm the new CEO."

That single jolt of excitement burst into a fireworks display of  pleasure that lit up her insides like the Fourth of July. "Shane, that's  great."

It was. It really was. Even though it was now official and Rachel knew  she'd be leaving, she was just so damn happy for him. He'd worked hard  for this and really deserved it. That he was so pleased about it only  went to show how much he'd changed in the last few years.

"I know," he said, taking her elbow and leading her out of the kitchen  into the living room. He steered her onto the couch, said, "I'll be  right back," and went back to the kitchen to retrieve the champagne.

He set the bottle down on the glass-topped coffee table, then sat down  beside Rachel on the sofa. She watched him over the rim of her glass  while she took a huge swallow. Bubbles filled her nose, her mouth and  apparently, her mind.

Watching him, Rachel wanted to reach out and smooth back the lock of  dark hair lying across his forehead. She curled her fingers around the  stem of her glass to keep from doing just that. Instead she settled for  looking at him. Shane had always been a good stare. The man was simply  gorgeous.

Shining moss-green eyes, strong chin, wide smile and broad shoulders. He  was the stuff that dreams were made of. Rachel should know. He filled  her dreams almost nightly.

"You know," he was saying, "when my father broke the news to me a while  ago, all I could think about was that you should have been there to hear  it, too."

She took another gulp of champagne, hoping to ease the sudden dryness in her throat.

"You're the real reason I won, Rachel."

A happy little glow dazzled her insides, but she deliberately squashed it.

"That's not true, Shane. You worked hard for this. You deserve it."

"Maybe," he said nodding, running the tip of his index finger around the  rim of his glass. "But even if it's true, I couldn't have done it  without you."                       
       
           



       

"Oh, absolutely," she agreed smiling.

So much easier to keep this conversation light and teasing, as she always did.

So much better for her equilibrium if she didn't start fantasizing about  Shane throwing himself at her feet, proclaiming his love and begging  her to marry him.

Oh for heaven's sake.

She took another big drink of champagne and didn't complain when Shane  reached for the bottle and topped off her glass and then his own.

"We'll be moving into my father's office at the first of the year."

You will, she thought silently, wishing she could stay. Wishing she  could be a part of his life. But it was just getting too painful.

"I'm guessing you'll want to redecorate," she said wryly.

"Oh, yeah." His grin was devastating. All the more so since he seemed to  be oblivious to the power he wielded. "I can't stand the antique thing,  but the glass and chrome look doesn't seem right for up there, either."

"I guess not," she said, as the music playing shifted from a drum pounding dance rhythm to something slow and sultry.

"This means a big raise," Shane said, leaning back into the sofa cushion. "For both of us."

"Uh-huh." A raise would have been nice.

"And a bonus," he said, "if you can locate our mysterious columnist and convince her to keep writing for The Buzz."

"Shane-"

"I know," he interrupted, "we haven't been able to find her, but she's out there somewhere, Rachel."

"And doesn't want to be found." Oh, she really didn't want to be found.

"Yeah, but I've been thinking," he said, refilling their glasses again.

Rachel looked at the bubbles in her wineglass and told herself to stop  drinking it so quickly. Already, her mind was a little fuzzy and her  vision blurred just a little bit. Should have eaten that ice cream, she  told herself.

She shook her head and told herself to pay attention as Shane kept talking.

"Tess said she's quitting her job. So I'm thinking, what if we just hire her to work for us?"

"She does," Rachel argued and wondered why her tongue suddenly felt a little thick. "She writes a column for The Buzz."

"Yeah, but if we made her a staff writer, she could call her own shots.  Do advice, gossip, whatever." He jumped to his feet as if unable to sit  still beneath the onslaught of too many ideas. "The readers love her,  Rachel. She's funny and smart and that comes across in her column."

She almost said thank you. Catching herself just in time, Rachel frowned  at her champagne and leaned forward to carefully set her glass on the  coffee table. A buzz was good. Drunk was not.

"Why is this so important to you, Shane?"

He turned around to look at her. Taking a long gulp of his wine, he  shook his head. "Not sure. All I know is she's good and I'm not going to  let her slip away."

"I don't think you have much choice."

He smiled at her and something warm and liquid slid through her veins,  leaving a trail of fire that seemed to be burning right through her  skin.

Oh, boy.

"That's where you're wrong. You're my secret weapon, Rachel."

"Me?"

"You've got more contacts in the city than the mayor. You can find out who Tess is and where we can find her."

"Oh, I don't think so."

Setting his glass down on the table, Shane reached for her and pulled  her to her feet. She swayed a little, but he steadied her fast.

"Rachel, you can't quit on me now."

Quit? How'd he know she was going to quit? She stared up at him and, just for a

minute or two, lost herself in the green of his eyes. "Did you know," she whispered, "you have tiny gold flakes in your eyes?"

The smile faded from his face and his hands on her arms gentled, his thumbs rubbing against her silk blouse. "I do?"

"Yes," she said, leaning in even closer, tipping her head back to keep  her gaze locked with his. "I never really noticed before, but … "

"Your eyes are green, too," he said, his voice almost lost under the slow pulse of the music. "Soft green. Like summer grass."

Her pulse quickened, her heartbeat jangled wildly and a swirl of  something hot and needy settled in the pit of her stomach. And Rachel  was loving every minute of it.

His hands slid across her back and dropped to her waist. She felt the  heat of his touch right through the fabric of her blouse and she  wondered absently if his handprints were branded on her skin.

She hoped so.                       
       
           



       

"Rachel," he whispered, his hands moving on her back again in long,  languorous strokes that fanned the fire simmering inside her into hungry  flames. He took a breath, held it as his gaze moved over her face as if  he'd never seen her before. As if she were the most beautiful thing on  the planet. Then he released that pent-up breath and said, "I'd better-"

Go.

He was going to leave.

Already he was releasing her, taking a small step back, putting a small  slice of safety between them. And suddenly Rachel knew she couldn't let  this moment pass.

Let him leave without at least showing him once just how she felt.

"-kiss you," she said, finishing his sentence the way she wanted it to  be. She went up on her toes, slid her arms around his neck and tipped  her head to one side. He watched her, not moving. She felt the tension  in his hands. She was pretty sure time itself stood still for one  amazing moment.

Then she laid her mouth over his and put everything she had into the kiss she'd been daydreaming about for a solid year.





Chapter 4





For a fraction of a second, Shane was too surprised to react.

He caught up quick.

Rachel's lips were warm and soft and the taste of champagne clung to  them, giving him more of a rush than drinking the expensive wine itself  had. He pulled her tighter, closer, wrapping his arms around her and  squeezing as he devoured her mouth.

Random thoughts flashed through his mind like fireflies winking on and off on a hot summer night.

Rachel.

He was kissing Rachel.

And it felt good.

Right.

Her mouth opened under his tender assault and his tongue swept inside to  taste her more deeply. To feel her heat, to claim … something.