Beauty (Fated Encounters) (5 page)

“No.”

“No?” She gasped comically. “What
do you mean, no?”

He shrugged out of his coat and
placed it over the back of one of the black iron chairs, then removed his suit
jacket and placed it over his coat. “No, I’m not leaving.”

“You have to leave. I told you,
this is a quarantined area. I’m—”

“Rambling.”

Tired of arguing with her, he
simply swept her up in his arms and carried her over to the couch. Setting her
down gently, he pushed her back against the pillows when she tried to make a
move to get back up.

“Stay put,” he ordered and sat
down next to her.

“You can’t be here,” she
insisted. “This is a quarantined zone.”

Paying no attention to her, he
picked up a box of medication that was lying on the coffee table next to an
unopened bottle of water. “Have you taken any of this?”

She sighed, giving in. “I was
going to, but I fell asleep before I could.”

“You need to take it.”

“I don’t wanna. It makes me all
loopy and gives me weird dreams.”

Ignoring her protests, he pulled
out a packet and opened it, then held the pills out to her. He waited until she
grudgingly accepted them before picking up the bottle of water and twisted off
the top.

Tessa knew she was acting
petulant, but she couldn’t seem to help it. She felt awful and wanted to go
back to sleep, but how could she with Drake sitting there on her couch? Just
the sight of him had her heart racing. She’d missed him while he was gone.

Way too much.

Good God! Horror rushed through
her as she realized how she must look. It wasn’t as if she could do anything
about it. Her whole body ached, and she could barely lift the water bottle to
her lips after she popped the pills into her mouth. She saw him nod in
satisfaction when she’d taken the pills and suddenly felt unreasonably angry.

“You’re so stubborn. It would
serve you right if you got sick.”

“I never get sick. Several of my
employees are down with this flu, and I haven’t caught it.”

“Of course you haven’t,” she
muttered. “Not even a virus would dare infect you without permission.” She’d
tried to sound bitter, but even she could hear the whiny tone of her voice. A
small smile creased those perfect lips of his. It really wasn’t fair for him to
look so good when she probably looked like a hag.

Gah, this was a nightmare!

“Okay, I took my meds. It was
lovely to see you, but you have to go. Bye now.” She nudged his leg with her
foot, then gasped as he caught it and moved both of her feet onto his lap.

She blinked rapidly. Was she dreaming?

Drake pulled the blanket off the
back of the couch and spread it out over her, tucking the ends around her so
she was cocooned in its warmth. Picking up the remote control from the coffee
table, he turned on the TV. He ignored her for a few seconds while he channel
surfed. Seeing a decent movie on, he stopped and set the remote down. Looking
back at her, he saw a bewildered expression on her face. He knew he’d flustered
her, and he liked the fact she was left feeling as unbalanced as he did for once.

“We’re going to watch this movie,
and you are going to rest.”

She pouted a little, and he
thought she looked absolutely adorable. “You’re very bossy.”

He nodded arrogantly. “Yes, I
am.”

Snuggling against the pillows,
she mumbled, “This is my apartment. You can’t boss me around here. Shouldn’t
you be at work, making more millions?”

“Quiet,” he ordered softly.

“Bossy,” she repeated in a sleepy
murmur.

God, how could he not be crazy
about this woman?

Not even five minutes later,
Tessa was in a deep sleep. Unobserved, Drake took his time studying her. He
could spend hours just looking at her. She was a beautiful woman, both inside
and out. Truthfully, he knew she deserved better than him.

But he wanted her and didn’t
think he could let her go.

He turned down the volume of the
TV, set the remote back down on the table, and slid out from under her feet.
She hadn’t moved, but he was still careful as he picked her up. He liked how
she snuggled against him as he carried her into the bedroom. The room was dark,
although he could see the gray walls and deep purple duvet covering her queen
size platform bed in the light coming in doorway from the living room. He
gently placed her down on the bed and covered her with the blankets. He was
about to leave, but paused as he saw an eReader on her nightstand.

Curiosity got the best of him,
and before he knew it, he’d picked it up and turned it on. He wanted to know
what types of books she read. Or did she use it to play games? When the main
menu lit up the display, he saw she had been reading an anthology of modern-day
fairy tale romances. His little Tessa was a romantic who believed in happily-ever-after.

The thought made him smile.

He turned off the device and
placed it back on her nightstand, then he froze when her home phone rang.
Picking up the receiver from the nightstand, he strode quickly from the
bedroom, cursing as he tried to turn down the volume of the ringer on the
handset. Glancing back, he saw Tessa hadn’t stirred, but he shut the French
doors to mute the ringer of the phone in the living room anyways. He hurried
over to turn the volume down on that unit as well, but paused as her answering
machine clicked on and he heard the sound of Patrick Campbell’s voice.

“
Tessa? Where are you, my
girl? I called your office, but you weren’t there, and your cell phone is
turned off. I thought I’d catch you at home. I hope you’re on your way over to
bring your poor father some dinner tonight—
”

 Anger had Drake picking up the
phone before he thought about it. “Patrick? This is Drake Vidal.”

There was a long pause. “Mr.
Vidal? I’m sorry, I—hey, wait a minute. This is my daughter’s number.”

“Yes. I’m at Tessa’s apartment.”

“What the hell are you doing there?”

“She’s sick.”

“What? Damn, I knew she said she
was feeling run down last night, but I—”

“You knew she wasn’t feeling
well, but you were calling to ask her to bring you dinner?” Icy fury made
Drake’s voice sharp, like the crack of a whip. “She has the flu and is very
ill.”

“If my girl is sick, I should go
over there.”

“No, you should not. You’re just
getting over a heart attack and can’t afford to catch this flu. What you should
so is hire a nurse if you need the extra help instead of asking Tessa to cater
to your whims when she’s already too damn busy. I pay you enough, I know you
can afford it.”

Patrick stuttered for a moment
before he snapped, “Tessa wouldn’t be so busy if you weren’t forcing her to do
all that extra work for you!”

“Work that she’s doing because of
the mistake you made,” Drake countered with a harsh growl. “She’s doing this
for you, and your thanks to her is to add more burdens on her time?”

“I just like seeing my girl,”
Tessa’s father muttered. “I want to speak to her.”

Drake sat down on the couch and
took a deep breath to calm himself. “Tessa is sleeping right now. I’m not going
to disturb her.”

“I still don’t understand why
you’re there at my daughter’s apartment.”

“I’m...taking care of her.”

“You’re what? Now, just a minute.
I don’t want you to—”

“She’s a grown woman.” Drake had
to remind himself that he was speaking to Tessa’s father, not just someone who
worked for him. “I don’t owe you any explanation, but I can tell you that she’s
special to me.”

“You may be my boss, but boy, if
you hurt her, I will hunt you down.”

Drake had to grin at the threat.
“Patrick, I think you and I need to talk...”

***

CHAPTER FIVE

A few hours later, Drake was
working on his laptop while he sat on the couch with his feet propped up on the
coffee table. He’d changed out of his suit into comfortable jeans and a black,
cable knit sweater. After speaking to Patrick, Drake had called Gus and asked
him to pick up a few things for him from his apartment. His friend hadn’t been
the least bit surprised when Drake had informed him he’d be staying with Tessa
until she was feeling better.

In fact, Gus had been downright
pleased by Drake’s decision.

Drake could handle most of his
work using his phone and a laptop, and he trusted Mrs. Potts and his vice
president and friend, Carter Soto, to keep things running smoothly at the
office. He liked the way Mrs. Potts seemed so concerned for Tessa when he had
called her to tell her he wouldn’t be in the office tomorrow. Clara Potts was a
woman he admired and respected, and she was as loyal as they came.

Carter Soto was another person
that Drake trusted implicitly. Not many people would have chosen a man in a
wheelchair as their vice president, but Carter’s disability had nothing to do
with his job performance. They had roomed together in college. Drake had always
known he was fascinated by biomedical engineering, loving the creative aspect
of inventing, while Carter had been on another path. He’d been pre-med and had
considered becoming a doctor until he’d lost the ability to use his legs in a
car accident their senior year.

When Drake had started his
company, he insisted Carter come work with him. It was the perfect opportunity
to put Carter’s love of medicine to good use, while also utilizing his natural
charm and affable demeanor. Because Carter used a wheelchair, people always
underestimated him, but he’d learned to use that to his advantage. Very few
people knew that Carter handled most of the day-to-day business at Vidal Labs
and Technology, leaving Drake free to do as he pleased. It was for that very
reason he didn’t hesitate to take time away from his office, despite the fact
he had already been gone for a week.

He’d checked on Tessa few times
over the last few hours, and she was still sleeping, the fatigue and sickness
leaving her drained. Tired himself, Drake decided to call it a night. The land
line rang just as he was closing his laptop, and after several seconds the answering
machine clicked on again and a female voice began speaking.

“
Hey, hon. I’m just calling to
check up on you, but you’re probably sleeping, which is a good thing, because
honestly, you looked like absolute crap today when I saw you at the office.
I’ll take care of everything for the wedding this weekend, and I’ve already
called in some extra help, so you don’t have to worry. I don’t want to see you
anywhere near the office until you’re feeling better. I mean it, you stubborn
bitch. Speaking of bitches, you will never believe who I ran into today at that
stupid luncheon I had to go to. You remember, that lunch my mother insisted I
go to so she could introduce me to all the wealthy women with sons so I’ll
finally settle down?
”

Drake chuckled as Tessa’s partner
ramble on the message. It seemed as if both women shared that little flaw. He
continued to listen, but lost his smile as the recording continued.

“
Anyways, I figured I could
make some connections in case we could get an event or two booked out of the
silly thing, which I did by the way, because I’m awesome, but before it was
over, I realized Adriana the ho was there. That’s right, that bitch you found
your ex in bed with. I overheard a couple of women talking about her who
obviously hate her as much as we do, and apparently she doesn’t know Andrew is cheating
on her now. Can you believe it? The sleaze. I know I’ve said it a million
times, but I’m so glad Andrew Schuller is out of your life. I’ll tell you all
about it when I call you tomorrow. Get some rest. Love you!
”

Drake was frowning when the
message ended.

Sure, he didn’t have the best
track record when it came to dating, but he’d always been upfront with the
women he’d spent time with in the past so there were no misconstrued
expectations. Any man who cheated on a woman was beyond contempt. He was tired,
but sleep could wait. Acting on impulse, he pulled his cell phone out and made
a call to his friend, Brett, who worked for the security firm he employed when
needed.

When the deep male voice
answered, it was clearly annoyed. “It’s late, Vidal. You seriously have to get
a fucking life, buddy.”

Drake winced when he noticed what
time it was. “Sorry, Brett. I can call you at the office if this is a bad time.”

“No problem. I just got back from
the gym, so I guess we’re both losers tonight. What’s up?”

“I need a favor.”

“Oh?” The other man sounded
intrigued. “Need me to take someone out for you?”

“No!” Drake snapped. He wasn’t
sure if his friend was kidding or not. He never did when it came to Brett. The
man was dangerous, far more than just an average security consultant,
regardless of what he told people. “I was hoping you could do a background
check for me.”

“This is more than a background check
on a potential employee.” It was a statement, not a question.

“Yes. This is personal.”

Brett let out an exaggerated
groan. “Damn it. This is about a woman, isn’t it?”

“I didn’t say that—”

 “You didn’t have to. All you
possessive, jealous bastards start doing background checks and other insane
shit when you fall for a woman. This has something to do with that charity gig
you’re throwing, doesn’t it? Don’t deny it, I know it does.”

That had Drake frowning. “How do you
know?”

“That has a female written all
over it. You’re not exactly the hug-a-puppy and raise-money-for-charity type,
Vidal. I’ll be there, by the way. There is no way in hell I’m going to pass up
the opportunity to see how uncomfortable all this shit makes you. I may even
take pictures.”

“Thanks a lot,” Drake said dryly.
“Fucker.”

Brett laughed. “So, you wanna do
a search on your lady? Women can get pretty pissed when you dig into their
backgrounds.”

“I want to know about her ex, a
man named Andrew Schuller.”

“Hmm.” There was a long pause. “He
an asshole?”

“Oh, yeah. A big one.”

Brett’s voice sounded almost
gleeful when he said, “Well, then. This should be fun. Give me a few minutes
and we’ll see what we can find.”

It was over two hours later that
Drake finished looking over the data that Brett had sent him via email. He let
the information he’d learned settle in his mind as he took a quick shower and
got ready for bed. Andrew Schuller was a user, in every sense of the word. The
information Brett had given him made that clear.

Andrew was the type of man who
needed constant adoration, and when Tessa had spent more time building up her
company than she did making time for him, he’d been cruel. After she kicked him
out, Andrew moved in with the woman he’d cheated on Tessa with. They kept their
relationship quiet at their firm, for fear of breaking the McCormick and Hills’
policy against interoffice dating. A month ago, Schuller started wooing a
wealthy man named Edward Philips, thinking he’d have a good chance at making
partner at the firm if he secured the Philips account. But then he’d met Edward’s
daughter, Penelope, and his plans had changed.

Why work for money when you could
marry in to it?

Andrew had been slowly courting
Penelope, even though he still lived with Adriana, and Drake knew he wouldn’t
get rid of her until he’d secured a future as part of the Philips family.

He wasn’t sure how Brett had gotten
such in-depth, private information so quickly, but Drake figured he was better
off not knowing. By the time he was done plotting, he was satisfied with the
plan he had in place. Tessa’s ex would pay for the terrible way he’d treated
her.

But that was for later.

Dressed in a pair of gray
sweatpants and a white t-shirt, Drake made his way back into the living room
and put his stuff back in the bag he’d brought. Looking at the sofa, he knew he
didn’t want to sleep there...not when Tessa was so close. Decision made, he
made a quick stop in the kitchen and took a bottle of Gatorade out of the
fridge, then got another packet of medication out of the box on the coffee
table. He took the items with him when he entered the bedroom.

Tessa stirred as he sat down on
the bed next to her. “Drake?”

“Yeah, baby. It’s me. How do you
feel?”

“Like crap.” There was a
momentary pause before she whispered, “I think I lost my shoe.”

He chuckled softly. “I’ll find it
for you. It’s time for your pills. Here, sit up a little and take these with
some of this Gatorade.”

“I don’t have any Gatorade.”

“You do now.”

 Drake held her while she took
the pills, then she flopped back down on the bed. He recapped the bottle before
sliding under the covers next to her. Surprise had him stilling as she rolled
over and wrapped her arms around him, her head resting on his chest. She was
all soft and warm from sleep, and she fit perfectly in his arms...as if she was
meant to be there. Liking the feeling, he wrapped his arms around her and
pulled her closer.

“Drake?”

“Go to sleep, sweetheart.”

“I can’t sleep like this,” she
grumbled. “I don’t like wearing clothes when I sleep.”

Oh, hell. His body tightened with
need as the image of her naked popped into his head. This was going to be a
really long night. “Too damn bad,” he growled out. “You’re keeping your clothes
on...this time.”

Tessa let out a sigh as she
snuggled against him, and he stroked a hand over her dark hair. Another few
seconds passed before she whispered his name again.

“Hmm?”

“You forgot to wake me with a
kiss.”

He pressed his lips to her
forehead. “There now. I’ll give you a proper one when you’re feeling better.”

“Next time, do it right,” she
muttered, but was fast asleep in the next heartbeat. 

Drake smiled in the dark as he
whispered, “I can do that.”

****

Tessa was running late as she
made the dash to the front entrance of her office building. It had been a very
interesting week since the last time she and Drake had scheduled the tasting at
Devine’s, and thinking back over the past several days never failed to make her
blush.

Most of last Friday and Saturday
was a blur. She remembered odd moments of Drake shoving medication and fluids
down her, but everything else was sort of hazy. Fevered dreams had haunted
her...and most of them had been about him. She’d imagined them in her bed,
their bodies tangled together in passion. That’s why it had been so mortifying
when she’d come out of her medicated stupor on Sunday to find that he really was
sleeping in bed next to her.

They had been fully clothed, but that
didn’t make the situation any less awkward. Thinking about him taking care of
her while she’d been out of it had made her contemplate smothering herself with
a pillow just to end her humiliation. She’d struggled to find some way to
apologize to him and thank him for watching over her, but it hadn’t taken long
for her to see that anything she had to say would have to wait.

And she’d discovered he was human
after all.

Despite Drake’s obstinate claims
of never getting sick, he’d been oh so wrong. He’d bitched at her when she’d
helped him stumble to the bathroom, even though he’d carried her on several
occasions over the last few days. He’d also snarled at her when she’d forced
him to take medication. It was small of her, but she had to admit there was
some satisfaction in it since he had done the same to her.

When he was once again sleeping,
she’d made the call to Mrs. Potts to let her know about Drake’s condition. His
admin told her she would send Gus to pick him up and take him back to his own
condo, but Tessa found herself refusing and offering to care for him herself
since she had already been sick. She wasn’t surprised when Gus arrived at her
door with more provisions and some clothes for Drake. To his amusement, she
hadn’t allowed him to enter her apartment, but she made sure to thank him
before shutting the door in his face.

For two more days, she and Drake
remained safely hidden away in her apartment while he recovered. He was
probably the worst patient ever in the history of the world, but for some
reason it amused her. She did some work on her computer and on the phone, but
mostly she spent her time watching over Drake.

When he’d been restless, she had
combed her hand through his dark hair, pleased when he seemed to like her
gentle touch. She’d stroked his face, felt the rasp of his stubble against her
skin, but only when he’d been in a deep sleep. He was surly and combative, but
when she confronted him about it and he’d muttered that he didn’t know how to
deal with her because no one had ever taken care of him before, it left her
heartsick.

There was an intimacy that had
been created between the two of them in that quiet time, and she’d felt bereft
when he’d been well enough to return to his own home. After he was gone, Tessa
knew she could no longer deny it. She’d fallen in love with Drake. It was
stupid, but inevitable. It was difficult to imagine any woman spending time
with him like she had and not falling for him.

Now, it wasn’t a question of if
he would break her heart...

It was just a matter of when.

They’d both been busy catching up
on the work they’d missed while sick, but now that things were back on track,
they’d rescheduled the tasting at Devine’s. Tessa’s heart began to race in
anticipation at the thought of seeing Drake again. Talking to him over the phone
just wasn’t the same as being near him.