Chapter Three #2
“Then why are you here? And how did you know where I worked? Are you some kind of a stalker?”
Anger shone in his eyes, and he stiffened as if he were a coiled spring, ready to snap. “I don’t stalk chicks; they come after me.”
“Well, this chick”—she jabbed a finger hard against her sternum—“is not interested. Leave my office before—”
The door flew open. “Casey, can you help me with this?” Clara stood in the middle of the room, holding a folder, her gaze darting between Casey and Chase Kendrick. “What’re you doing here?” she asked.
Does Clara know him?
“Mom said you’re having car trouble. I came to check it out,” he said, softness replacing the anger in his voice from just a few seconds before. “Are you parked out back?”
Mom? What the hell is going on? Casey pushed up from the desk chair and then it hit her. Clara’s last name is Kendrick. I never put that together.
Clara glanced over at Casey and gave her a small smile. “My car barely made it into the parking lot.” She turned toward him. “This is my brother, Ra—uh… Chase, and”—she glanced over at Casey—“this is my boss, Casey Reese.”
The damn smirk was back, dancing on his lips as he looked over at Casey. “We’ve already met, Clara.”
“It’s nice to meet you, Mr. Kendrick.”
“Same here, Ms. Reese.”
Again with that infuriating smugness. I’d like to slap it off his face. She waved her arm across her desk. “As you can see, I have a mountain of work to do. Go ahead and see if your brother can help you with your car.” She nodded to the folder in Clara’s hand. “Are those the budget sheets?”
“Yes. I was going to go over them with you because they aren’t balancing out.”
“Leave them on my desk. I’ll go through them and figure it out. I have to speak with Jacob about something. Please close the door when you leave.” Casey could feel his eyes on her, but she refused to look or give him any more attention. She hurried out of the office without a backward glance.
Stepping into the cool hallway, she leaned against the wall and breathed deeply several times.
She couldn’t believe that he was Clara’s brother.
Clara was sweet, eager, respectful, and not remotely anything like her infuriating, impossible, and too damn sexy for his own good brother.
I never should’ve filled in for Owen. I’ve been living here for over a year and never bumped into that jerk, and now …
. Her thoughts trailed away. She sighed.
I’ll have to make sure I keep my distance from him.
“Hey, Casey. Everything going all right? You look flustered or something.”
Casey smiled at Jacob. “I’m fine, just overworked and trying to get all the budgets balanced before I start working on the proposal for the grant from the Fuller Creative Arts Foundation.”
“You got too much going on. Turn around.” Jacob placed his hands on her shoulders and lightly massaged them. “You’re so damn stiff. Relax. You take on too much.”
“Story of my life,” she murmured as she closed her eyes. The magic of Jacob’s fingers made the tension she’d felt ever since Chase entered the room slowly slip away. “You’re always there for me,” she said.
“You deserve a real break in your life, Case.” He applied a bit more pressure. “Just relax.”
Casey met Jacob when she was doing an internship at the Denver Center for the Performing Arts.
He was a smart, patient, and knowledgeable mentor.
After she got the job as the project-manager for one of the smaller theatres in the complex, she was thrilled and threw all her energy into it.
Jacob was there for her whenever she had questions or doubts about whether she could do the job.
After a few years, he was pushing her to apply for a prime position at the Boise Contemporary Theatre in Idaho.
She was comfortable where she was, but Jacob told her that at the theatre in Boise she would be a big fish in a small pond.
With Jacob’s encouragement and pep talks, she took the plunge, packed up her meager belongings, and set out for Idaho.
And now she was in Pinewood Springs, another job Jacob had secured for her.
When she left the messy situation with her ex, she knew she wanted to come back to Colorado, but not at a big complex where she’d worked before in Denver.
She needed time for her heart to heal and her confidence to be restored.
She knew Jacob had relocated to Pinewood Springs, so she reached out to him, and he got her the job. He’d always been there saving the day.
“Is this how you take your breaks? I hope Clara isn’t doing this shit.” Chase’s gruff voice crashed through her memories.
Casey’s eyes snapped open. Chase stood in front of her, stone-faced, his strong arms crossed in front of his chest. “Didn’t you leave already?” Vexation tinged her voice.
“If I’m standing here then the answer is obvious.”
“Sir, may I help you?” Jacob asked, his hands now dropped to his sides.
“No, you fuckin’ may not.”
“Casey, do I need to get Toque and Pete?”
“Who the fuck are they? And don’t fuckin’ talk like I’m not here.” Chase took two steps toward Jacob, his hands clenched in fists.
“Stop it! This is ridiculous,” Casey said, moving in front of him to block his pathway to Jacob. She looked over her shoulder. “It’s fine, Jacob. This is Clara’s brother.”
“Clara’s brother?” Surprise laced his voice.
“Yeah, Clara’s brother. You got a problem with that? And by the way, you better not be giving her shoulder rubs while your dick gets hard ’cause I’m not gonna like it one fuckin’ bit. And when I don’t like something, it’s not going to turn out real good, you know?”
“Jacob, go. I’ll stop by your office later.” Casey put her hands on Chase’s chest to stop him. “And you get your ass in my office.”
“You sure you’re okay?” Jacob asked, as he stood at a distance.
“I’m fine.” Casey pointed toward the office. “Go!” she said to Chase.
He turned without a word and started down the hallway toward her office.
His walk was pure swagger: shoulders rolling, boots striking the linoleum floor with deliberate weight, the tight stretch of his jeans drawing her unwilling gaze.
She followed him from a slight distance, furious at herself for noticing the muscles in his back shift beneath his T-shirt as he pushed open the office door like he owned the damn place.
Casey followed him in, trying to stay professional and detached even as her pulsed raced. He leaned against her desk, arms folded, that aggravating half-smile on his face.
“Shut the door,” he said.
Glaring, she crossed her arms across her chest. “Don’t tell me what to do. What’s your problem?”
“Why the hell are you letting that pansy-ass give you a massage while he gets his rocks off?”
“Why the fuck do you care about any of this?” The heat in her cheeks and the sweat forming around her hairline pissed the hell out of her. So much for professionalism and detachment. He makes me so mad!
He pushed off the desk and took a slow step closer, his tone low and raspy. “I’m looking out for Clara. I don’t want her around some perverted, wimpy-ass leech.” He rocked back on his heels. “That’s all.”
“Jacob and I have been friends for a long time. I knew him before I came to town. He’s respectful of all the staff, especially the women. How dare you make unfounded accusations and assumptions, you fucking prick.”
A low laugh rumbled from his chest. “You’re even more beautiful when you’re angry. Those dark brown eyes flash like the glint of a dark blade. You got fire in you, baby.”
She clapped her hands. “Congratulations, you’ve just become a stereotype of all the other assholes who think they are something with the swagger, the damn smirk, the ‘I’m so cool’ attitude, and, of course, the cheesy lines with the addition of ‘baby’ at the end.”
He stood there, his gaze sliding downward, slowly and seductively. He began walking toward the door, and looking over his shoulder, he said, “You know you love every fuckin’ swagger, smirk, and cheesy line. I’ll see you around, baby.”
Chase walked out of the office, and Casey was convinced he was exaggerating his badass walk. She rushed to the door and yelled out to him, “If you come around for Clara in the future, skip my office.”
He kept walking, and her eyes lingered on his tight butt in his jeans that rode low on his hips. There was a tingling in the pit of her stomach, and she turned away quickly and slammed the door, angry at how her body betrayed her.
A soft knock on the door had Casey gritting her teeth. “Go away. Enough is enough.”
“I wanted to know if you were able to balance the budget sheets.” Clara’s voice filtered under the door.
“Come in, Clara.”
The pretty young woman stepped into the office, her eyes downcast. “I’m sorry about my brother. He comes off pretty strong sometimes, especially around women.”
“Don’t worry about it. He didn’t bother me.” I just want to smash his face against the wall a few times.
“Are you sure? He can be a bit too much, you know? And you’re pretty, so….” Her words faded.
“Don’t be embarrassed. You aren’t responsible for your brother’s behavior. Did he fix your car?”
A wide smile broke over Clara’s face. “Yeah. He’s a genius with cars, landscaping, fixing things around the house, even remodeling stuff like kitchens and basements.”
Casey could see the love Clara had for her jerk brother. There must be something redeeming about him if he gets the admiration and love from this sweet girl. “It’s nice to have a big brother.”
“It is, although it can be annoying like when he’s overprotective and has to know about the guys I go out with. My parents want to act like they’re treating me like an adult, but they sic my brother on me to do the dirty work.” She sighed.
“Count yourself lucky that you have a family who loves and cares about you. Now let’s go over these budgets.”
Three hours later, Casey was home, on the couch, sipping a large glass of Chardonnay.
It had been a great day until Chase Kendrick had shown up.
The guy was a jerk, so why did she feel attracted to him?
Because you always go for the jerks. She looked out the picture window and smiled.
Sunset was her favorite time of the day.
The sun dipped low behind the jagged mountain peaks, its light spilling across the sky in streaks of gold and crimson blending into smokey violet, while the edges of the clouds glowed like embers in a dying fire.
Loneliness tugged at her, replacing the peace she usually felt when she watched the sun’s descent at the end of the day. She hadn’t felt lonely in quite a while. Then Chase popped into her mind, and she groaned.
“You cannot get involved with him. You know he’s an asshole and would break your heart. I’m not ready for any relationship, let alone one with someone like him,” she said aloud.
No, she would have to be sure to keep the office door locked, have Scott wait on Chase if he came to the nursery during her shift, and keep a low profile until he got bored and moved on to the next prey. She couldn’t sacrifice her heart again. One time was enough; it shattered her.
Pouring more wine into her glass, Casey leaned back, took several deep gulps, and watched the sun sink into the rugged silhouette of the mountains.