Dante's Fire(2)

She seemed to have no personal life. No family. No close friends. No  pets. She worked long days, nights, and weekends. When there was a  holiday party, she never showed up with a date. On the long Thanksgiving  weekend, he'd come in to grab a few files for Chase and found her holed  up in her office. He expected a long line of men trailing her like  crazed rats following the Pied Piper, but there seemed to be no one in  her life.         

     



 

The one thing they did have in common.

His thoughts were interrupted when she signed off on her call, clicked  her earpiece, and gave him an open smile. "Hey, Dan, how's your day  going?"

Dante Stark - known as Daniel in the company - knew she actually cared  about the answer to her polite question. He'd rarely met an executive so  interested in the other employees, whether it be the mail carrier,  office cleaner, receptionist, or a colleague. She treated them all  exactly the same - with respect.

"I've had better. It's catalogue day again." He motioned toward the huge  stack of glossy magazines in phone book weight. "I already saw the  marketing department whipping out their credit cards. Seems tropical  cruises are forty percent off. Pair that with thirty percent off at The  Bathing Suit outlet and we have a mass exodus."

"I better get in there, then. No one's leaving until we approve the  Tribeca campaign." She grinned with a hint of mischief. "Better make  your PT appointment for later in the week. You'll be out of alignment if  that pile is an indication of what's to come."

"Don't damage the male ego. I'm like a superhero, remember? Anyway, I have a whole team helping."

One perfectly arched brow rose. "Oh, yeah? Pete was in charge of  delivering the catalogues last month, but you took over for him. He  needs to retire, Dan. He's too old for this crap. He should be set up in  a nice retirement home instead of schlepping an overlarge mail cart to  thirty floors."

"Wants to buy his grandchildren lots of presents. He's a stubborn old coot - you talk to him."

"I'd rather deal with Forrester myself than mailroom Pete, thank you  very much." They smiled at each other from across the desk and Dante  felt the same low hum he always did in her presence. Intense. Sexual.  Familiar.

He shook off the disturbing thoughts and focused on business. "How's the Forrester deal coming?"

Her face tightened. Dante hated the way this deal was draining her soul,  but she was intent on making it work. If she led the team and signed  the real estate mogul, she'd cement her place in the firm and prove she  was one of the big players in New York property. Still, he wondered at  what cost. "Slow. He's resisting, and I still haven't figured out why.  Of course, he likes control, so I'm not surprised he'll delay his final  decision to the last moment." She shook her head as if realizing her  mail carrier knew every detail about her latest big deal. "How do you  know all this?" Those gorgeous eyes narrowed with a bit of suspicion.

"You learn a lot delivering mail." It took all his power not to choke on  his own saliva. Holy crap, if she only knew how close she was to the  truth. His palms tingled. "And I could fudge a document, get you a raise  and month's long vacation if you like."

Her face smoothed out and she relaxed back in her chair. "Yeah, sounds  really good. Wonder who I should take with me on that extra long  vacation," she said, her smile soft and subtle, but slightly wicked and  definitely hot.

What was she really thinking? He cocked a hip and smiled. "I might be available"

"Seriously though, how do you know so much?"

"When anyone sees the mailman, they think we're not listening. Kind of  like the custodian. I bet the cleaning crew know more about Inferno than  anyone."

"Perhaps." She uttered the word softly, gazing at him with a bit more  intensity than usual. His gut screamed for him to yank her into his arms  and force them both to acknowledge the brewing attraction.

But he didn't. Just remained silent.

She smiled and changed the subject. "Hey, I saw Metallica is doing a concert. Gonna go?" she asked.

Dante grinned. His preference for wearing heavy metal t-shirts to work  was a constant source of teasing. No thirty-five year-old dressed like  an angry teen, but his job allowed it, and he never apologized for his  taste. One of the benefits of being undercover-no one cared about his  appearance. "Sure. Wanna come with me? Or is the opera in town?"

He'd spotted the tickets on her desk. Two. Sally from marketing said  she'd gone with some blonde Swedish guy but he hadn't made it to date  number two. Inferno was the water cooler of gossip, innuendo, and  reality property television shows all rolled into one. Still, he used  the information to keep abreast of who Selina dated. His satisfaction  she rarely dated a man more than a few times bothered Dante, but there  wasn't much he could do. She'd already gotten under his skin like some  bellowing Frank Sinatra ballad.

Her husky laugh stroked his ears and tightened his jeans. "Don't be a music snob. La Boheme at the Met was beautiful."         

     



 

He rolled his eyes. "Who died at the end?"

She shook her head. "Someone always dies in great operas. It correlates  the tragedy and beauty of life, reminding us of our mortality."

"It's called depressing. A bunch of string instruments putting you to  sleep, listening to a foreign language while you take bets on who's  gonna die? That's beautiful?"

Her brow arched. "And heavy metal assaulting your ears while screaming about sex, drugs and rock and roll is better?"

God, he loved their discussions. Her sharp intellect and wicked humor  always shined through. No wonder she was flying toward partnership. She  was able to argue with the best, yet make the person feel valued for his  opinion. His lips curved in a half smile of admiration. "Hell, yes.  It's kind of like boxing. You have a bad day, listen to some metal, and  all your angst disappears."

"A good cry is just as important."

"But less fun."

She laughed again. "Maybe. I guess we agree on one thing. Music--in any form--is important. It instills passion."

His gaze darkened. "As do other pleasurable things."

Her jeweled eyes flared, and he grit his teeth as the surge of sexual  energy crested once again. Crap. He shouldn't have spoken to her like  that. They bantered, flirted lightly, but rarely uttered any sexual  challenge, knowing the lines could not be crossed. She'd never date a  mailroom guy. She wore designer suites, attended the opera and feasted  at five star restaurants. She was going for full partnership at Inferno  Enterprises. The entire office would laugh at her if she'd dare be seen  with the likes of him. Still, the flash of hunger on her face told him  she felt the same kick of energy between them.

Dante wished he were the man to bring her that type of passion. He  wondered if she was sexually satisfied. Wondered if she pleasured  herself late at night to some fantasy of the perfect male figure in her  life. Wondered if he got the chance to take her to bed if he'd ever be  able to let her go.

He caught her quick indrawn breath. It was too much today. He couldn't  trust himself. Left to his own devices, he'd go after what he wanted.  Sometimes he lingered when she invited him to join her for a quick cup  of coffee. Most times, he beat a quick retreat. No need to torture  himself for too long in her presence, or delve further into the strange  vibrations between them. They were casual friends, yet a galaxy apart.  Economically. Physically. Emotionally.

At least on the surface.

Unfortunately, Dante knew that the surface was all that mattered.

She opened that lush mouth to speak, but he backed up with a wave and  turned on the heel of his sneakers. "Better get back. See ya, boss. Good  luck with Forrester."

"Thanks, Dan." She paused. "See ya."

The door clicked behind him. He never hesitated, just pushed his mail cart to the next office without a glance back.







Selina Rogers stared at the closed door and shook off the idea that Dan was more than a mailman.

She enjoyed Dan's daily visits, and looked forward to the break in her  day. He was witty, intelligent, and always seemed to sense what she  needed. It struck her as odd he knew things about her that no one else  did. As if he had the ability to look deep into her whole being. One  time she was feeling under the weather but pushing through, and he came  with chicken soup from the cafeteria, forcing her to eat. He knew when  she had sleepless nights and needed the coffee strong. Knew when she  neared deadline she craved cupcakes from Magnolia bakery. She found out  Dan fed her personal assistant updated information so she'd be taken  care of. Who did that? A friend. A concerned co-worker? Or a man  wanting...more?

For the first time, he'd finally gazed at her with a raw hunger she'd never seen.

And she'd liked it.