Electric! (21 page)

While it would be much less painful to admit to a future
employer she’d willingly left her position, rather than having been let go, she
needed to be fired in order to get around the terms she’d agreed to when she’d
taken the job.

The knife twisted.

Eventually, McClellan said, “Well. There are other companies
to woo. Epperson-Langley doesn’t sink our ship. By any means.”

He crossed to the double doors and held one open for her.
“I’ve made my decision regarding the vice president position. I’ll announce my
plans at one o’clock this afternoon.”

Cassidy got to her feet, a bit shakily. Her gaze narrowed on
him. “You’re not firing me?”

He actually looked stricken. “Why in the world would I do
that?”

“My meeting with Pryce Shipley…”

With a nod, he said, “An unfortunate incident. Were it just
about anyone other than you who admitted to me what you did, I likely would
fire them. But there are many opportunities for us, Miss Reynolds. And I’m
perfectly aware of all the new interest in our company you’ve generated in such
a short period of time.” He paused, took in her bunched shoulders and otherwise
tense body and expression, then said, “I’m not disappointed in you.” He stared
unwaveringly at her and added, “Don’t think that I am, Cassidy.”

Tears threatened her eyes again and she glanced away to
blink them back. His use of her first name drove home his point. And while it
was clear he didn’t intend to promote her, he still respected her work.

Returning her gaze to him, she mustered a steady voice and
said, “Thank you, sir. I assure you, it won’t happen again.”

He smiled. “You’re diligent, you’re dedicated and you’re one
of this company’s best assets. Everyone’s entitled to a few bumps in the road.
You’re far from your quota.”

With a soft laugh, she said, “I appreciate that.”

“And I appreciate everything you’ve done. Now if you’ll
excuse me, I have a meeting with one of your potential clients.”

“Piper Industries?”

“They were extremely impressed with your presentation and
specifically asked you service the account if they come back to MII.”

“I’ll do my absolute best with them,” she said.

“I know you will.”

Moving past him, she stopped in the doorway and said, “Thank
you again, Mr. McClellan.”

“I’ll see you this afternoon, Miss Reynolds.”

Ah, back to the formality she was much more comfortable with
and which helped her to retain her professionalism, not get mired in touchy
feelings when she was at work.

Yet as she stepped into the elevator and the doors slid
closed, emotion crept up on her again. She wasn’t going to be MII’s Vice
President of Accounts.

Cassidy continued to fight the tears. She wouldn’t cry in
the office. She never had before and would sooner walk right out the door than
cave this time. Regardless of everything that had been at stake that she’d
lost. It tore at her, but she put on a brave front.

At least she still had her job. Sure, she’d be reporting to
Chase now, which would be awkward since she’d broken things off with him. But
he’d be up on the executive floor and she wouldn’t be running into him every
time she left her office. She took solace in that. He’d be rubbing elbows with
the senior management team and she’d return to her routine of devoting all of
her time and energy to keeping her clients satisfied.

And getting back to the gym. Her clothes were tight from all
the gourmet food she’d consumed lately.

The doors opened, she took a deep breath, then headed toward
Meg.

Her assistant leaped to attention and followed Cassidy into
the office. “What happened?” she asked, her tone soft. Not exactly Meg-like,
but it was certainly soothing to Cassidy’s nerves. “Is everything okay? Surely
McClellan knows you’re too valuable to let go.”

“Yes,” Cassidy said with a sigh of relief. “He does realize
that. And I am extremely lucky that I’ve worked my ass off these past five
years for him to know that what happened with E-L is an anomaly for me.
Unfortunately, we won’t be moving to the top floor.”

Meg’s face fell. “He told you he chose Chase?”

“Not in so many words, but he made it clear I’m not the one
for the VP position.”

Not suitable
, to be exact.

Whatever.

Be glad you have a job. Be glad you have a job. Be glad
you have a job…

“Cass, I’m so sorry. I know how much you wanted this.”

“I’ll survive. A promotion was never on my mind until Tom unexpectedly
resigned. Besides, I like that I can return my focus to building client
relationships, not flying all over the place to drum up new business.”

“Well, for what it’s worth, I was certainly rooting for you.
I think you’re amazing, Cass. An inspiration, really.”

Her head tilted. “I thought you said I work too damn much.”

“You do. But I can see how much it means to you and I
respect your commitment to the company.”

“Thank you.”

“Now on to the next important subject.”

Cassidy groaned. “Please don’t ask about me and Chase.”

“Have you forgiven him?”

“What’s to forgive? I told you oversleeping is my fault
alone. He did something incredibly sweet for me.
I
screwed up with
Shipley. It has nothing to do with Chase, other than the fact that I clearly
can’t manage work and romance, so I ended it with him.”

Meg gasped. “I know how upset you were on Friday. I was
upset too—for you. But you’re right about Chase. He’d never do anything to hurt
your chances at getting promoted. Or hurt you, in general. I can honestly say
it took a toll on him to be in the office without you. It was like, sometimes
he’d forget you weren’t here, come strolling by and suddenly remember. Then
he’d look sort of devastated and move on. He missed you. By a lot.”

“And I missed him. But… I’ve always wanted this job, Meg.
Since I was a kid and started going to the office with my dad on the weekends.
And then Gav went into accounts management and he just made it sound so
glamorous, you know. The nice dinners with clients, the company parties, the
sports tickets and fundraising galas. I also knew they worked really hard and I
wanted to as well.”

“It isn’t all roses and sunshine,” Meg quipped. “But even
those of us without your office and paycheck enjoy the perks—and the work.”

Raising her hands in the air, Cassidy said, “This is my
life. I accept that now.”

So why’d she feel chilled to the bone with that statement?

The truth was, she really had missed Chase these past two
weeks. In fact, she’d missed him every time he traveled, long before they’d even
gotten together. The only thing that had kept her from being miserable lately
when she couldn’t see him was that she’d been so damn busy she hadn’t had time
to belabor the distance between them.

Now that she was back to her norm at MII, it’d be hell to
keep thoughts of him at bay. To not want to hang out with him in one of their
offices or have lunch with him and the guys. For two years, she’d basked in his
presence. He’d been a staple in her life. A permanent fixture that had somehow
been ripped from the wall.

By her.

She squeezed her eyes shut. Shook her head. “I didn’t lose
my job and Chase is getting a promotion he deserves. I’m happy for him. I’m
happy to be going back to my strength instead of trying to be something I’m
not. I’m happy. And yet… I’m totally miserable.”

Her eyes opened.

Meg gave her a sympathetic look. “Because you broke up with
him.”

“Because I broke up with him when I’m in love with him.”

She’d accepted that reality on Thursday. Then everything had
gone to hell in a handbag and she’d convinced herself there was no way she
could juggle clients and him.

Meg said, “I’m not exactly surprised to hear how you feel
about him. But, as a friend, I’m telling you I think it’s a huge mistake to put
that wall back up between the two of you.”

She groaned. “Little late in the day for that lecture,
because I already did it.”

Meg opened her mouth to speak, but Cassidy held up her hand
to stop her.

“This is how it is, Meg. And it’s probably for the best so
that I don’t hurt us even more down the line.”

She could see her friend wanted to protest. But Meg knew
better than to argue the point when Cassidy had made up her mind. So she left.

Too bad there was no easy resolution for the feelings
Cassidy had for Chase.

Chase snatched the receiver on his desk phone when it
buzzed. “Yes?”

In a conspiratorial tone, Grace said, “Meg just came out of
Cassidy’s office. She’s alone.”

“Thanks.” He hung up, shoved back his chair and stood. He’d
asked Grace to alert him when it appeared Cassidy was available.

He stalked out of his office and into hers, not even heeding
Meg’s warning look as he passed by her. There wasn’t anything worse Cassidy
could say to him than
we’re over
and she’d already done that, hadn’t
she?

Closing the door behind him, he crossed the room, taking in
her wary expression. She sat behind her desk, her fingers frozen above her
laptop keyboard, mid-stroke.

“You’re still here, so… McClellan didn’t give you the boot?”

“No,” she said, relief flashing in her eyes. “He gave me a
buy on my extreme fuckup. I’m still incredibly embarrassed by it, though.”

“That’s because you’re conscientious. And despite a crazy
slip last week, you’re still at the top of your game. You’ve got Underwriting
hopping with quote requests.”

“McClellan is meeting with Piper Industries right now too.”

“So all’s well that ends well.” He pinned her with a look.
“Except for
one
loose end, that is.”

“Chase—”

His hand jerked up. “Uh-huh. You had your say on Saturday.
Now it’s my turn.”

“This is hardly the time nor the place.”

“I’ll be brief. I know what happened in Pittsburgh rattled
you. I feel completely responsible, Cass, for loading you up with champagne and
food and a massage. And—”

“Chase, you are absolutely
not
responsible.”

“Technically, I am. When I made all of those arrangements, I
was hoping to give you a little relief from the whole frenzied travel
experience. But I didn’t take into consideration that for two weeks, you had to
operate outside your element in order to meet a challenge presented. And yes, Cass,
I can see where that would require your full attention. I diverted it on
Thursday.”

“But not with ill intent.”

“Of course not.”

She sighed. “I’ll admit that, for a split second, I wondered
if there’d been some sort of ulterior motive.”

His gut clenched. “You know I would never—”

“I know,” she was quick to say. “I said it was a split
second. And I’ve told you I only have myself to blame. So don’t worry about it,
Chase. It’s over.”

He lurched forward, planting the palms of his hands on her
desk and leaning toward her. “But
we’re
not. We can’t be, Cass.”

She got to her feet and turned away, staring out a window.
Chase moved behind her.

“You’re not a complacent person,” he told her in a low tone.
“You’re constantly striving to be better. Look at what you’ve achieved in the
past two weeks, regardless of one blip with E-L. Look at what happened between
us when we were in Flagstaff. When we had dinner together at my house the next
week. We’re all over each other, Cass.” His fingers slid up her bare arm. “But
we still care about business. Our careers. And we work damn well together. We
can do this. We can make this happen.”

He felt the tremor run through her. She sucked in a breath
and held it. Then exhaled slowly. The tension radiated from her in waves. It
made Chase even more determined to break through. Her work crisis had been
averted. They didn’t know the outcome of the VP position, but he was certain
they could operate together at MII
and
succeed at romance as well.

He
had
to believe in that, because he wasn’t willing
to let her go so easily.

At all, really.

“Cassidy,” he said, respecting her office etiquette in hopes
of placating her. Showing her he’d follow her rules if she’d just give a little
more on her side. “Have dinner with me tonight. We need to talk this out. There
are some things I need to say to you. Things like…” His eyes shut for a moment,
then he said, “Like, how much I love you.”

She whirled around, a few stray strands of long hair
whisking about her face and sticking to her lip gloss, so he swept them away.
Her chest rose and fell quickly with her suddenly shallow breathing. Her amber
eyes were wide and wild in the sockets.

“What did you say?” she asked in a breathy voice.

Chase grinned, despite the intense situation. “You heard me
perfectly well.”

She swallowed hard. “Chase…” Her mind clearly reeled. She
couldn’t seem to latch on to a coherent thought. “Chase,” she repeated, then
shook her head. “Shit.”

Pushing past him, she paced alongside her pristine white
sofa. So her style.

“You can’t tell me you’re surprised,” he simply said.

She drew up short. “You’re getting the promotion,” she
blurted. Then clamped her hand over her mouth as her eyes widened even more.
Ripping her hand away, she said, “Oh shit, I can’t believe I just said that.
Chase, I’m so sorry. You should hear the news first from McClellan. It’s just
that… Oh shit.”

Plopping down on her couch, she pressed her hands to her
knees. The hem of her skirt skimmed mid-thigh and Chase felt the familiar wave
of desire flood his body.

Goddamn, even when everything was falling apart between
them, totally devastating him, he lusted after her.

He let out a low chuckle at the thought.

Her head snapped up. “What’s so funny?”

“Me. You. This whole situation. You’ve delivered the worst
news—our split—and the best news—my promotion—and yet all I can really think
about is how fucking hot you are and how much I want to make love to you right
here in your office, to hell with trying to be PC for you.”

Heat lit her amber irises. Yeah, she was hot for him too.

“Cass,” he said, his voice gruff. Everything was on the line
for him—and it had absolutely nothing to do with his career at McClellan
Industrial Insurers. Sitting on the edge of her sturdy marble coffee table, he
clasped her hands in his and stared her deep in the eyes. “I know you think you
can’t balance what we do within these walls and what we do outside of them, but
I believe we can. If we really and truly want to.”

Cassidy gazed at him for several suspended seconds.
Everything inside her had gone haywire when he’d said he loved her.

Chase Logan loved
her
.

The brainiac. The workaholic. The
thought-she-was-a-boring-and-clichéd woman.

Her. Cassidy Reynolds.

Cass Reynolds.

Cass.

Babe.

She laughed, though it sounded strained to her own ears.
Tears prickled her eyes. This time, she didn’t bother blinking them back.

He said, “I won’t say I’m not thrilled about the promotion.
You know that’d be a lie. But I wanted it for you too, Cass. Because you earned
it and because I want you to be happy.”

A few fat drops crested the rims of her eyes and slid down
her flushed cheeks. “I wanted it for you too. Because you earned it and because
I want you to be happy.”

Chase let out a low chuckle. “Then don’t spoil my big day by
talking about our split. In fact, make it an even better day by reconsidering.”

Pulling her hands from his, she stood and moved restlessly
about her office. She gave very honest consideration to their predicament and
came to one resounding and inescapable conclusion. One she’d sort of known all
along, but had needed to reach the end of this VP journey in order to see.

Turning back to Chase, who stood as well, she resisted the
overwhelming urge to wring her hands. She took a few deep breaths, then said,
“I’m okay with not getting the promotion. I realized when I feared I was going
to lose my job that all I wanted was to do what I do best and not let that
skill dull in order to sharpen another one.”

He nodded. “Yeah. I feel the same.”

“I’m good at what I do, Chase. When I’m left to it and not
thrown curveballs to be somebody else. But…” She shook her head. “The truth is,
I did feel some exhilaration over having a bit more purpose and pressure, a bit
more excitement in my life these past two weeks.”

He grinned. “The woman likes a little challenge from time to
time.”

Cassidy laughed softly. “Yes, I guess I do.” Her gaze swept
over him, taking him in from strategically mussed hair to glowing blue eyes to
chiseled facial features to a body that would have made Mother Theresa
salivate. Then she made her boldest move yet. “The ultimate challenge would be
keeping you hot for me.”

A low growl escaped his lips. “We definitely need to take
this conversation out of the office.”

Fire flared low in her belly. “Stay focused, Chase. We still
have McClellan’s announcement of your promotion to get through this afternoon.”

He swooped in and grabbed her around the waist. Pulling her
tight against him, he said, “Tell me you’re rescinding the whole breakup
speech.”

Her body instantly melded to his and her fingers curled
around the material of his dress shirt at his chest.

“Um…”

“Just fucking say it.” His cerulean eyes blazed with desire.
Cassidy’s nipples tightened and her inner walls clenched. God she wanted him.
Bad.

“Chase.” She could barely breathe. “There’s something I have
to tell you first.”

He groaned. “I just need to hear one thing from you, babe.”

“I love you.”

His eyes popped. “No shit?”

She smiled. “No shit. I knew it Thursday night when you did
all that wonderful stuff for me. Maybe I knew it before then.”

“Cass.” His head dipped and he kissed her. Deeply.
Passionately. With the kind of affection and emotion that shot all the way to
her toes.

He crushed her to him and held her tight. She gave into him.
Gave herself over to him.

Because this was exactly how love and lust was supposed to
be. Not that mundane staring-up-at-the-ceiling thing, or the lukewarm fuzzies.

Chase sent her entire being into the stratosphere and she
loved every crazy second of it. Even if it did freak her out a bit. Turned out,
she liked a little bit of life on the edge.

And a few unexpected twists and turns, which kept coming her
way…

One o’clock would have felt like high noon at a shootout or
some sort of executioner’s hour, except that Cassidy had two aces in her back
pocket. One being she’d kept her job, much to Gav’s dismay. He’d sworn a blue
streak when she’d called to tell him the news, saying it sucked to high hell
that he couldn’t steal her away from MII. That had made her smile.

The second coup she held close to her heart was knowing
Chase Logan, office superhunk and the most amazing, charismatic man she’d ever
known, loved her.

And she loved him.

So when McClellan and his senior management team stopped
into the Accounts division and over fifty people gathered around to hear his
announcement of who would replace Tom Doherty as VP of Accounts, she stood
close to Chase and smiled up at him, happy for him. Proud of him. And proud of
herself for sharing the journey with him and pushing herself beyond her comfort
zone.

“While I am deeply sympathetic to Mr. Doherty’s current
situation and I wish him and his wife all the best,” McClellan began, “I am
extremely confident in the new direction we’re about to take with our accounts
management function. Reporting to Tom in the past are Cassidy Reynolds and
Chase Logan. Miss Reynolds has been with the company for five years, Mr. Logan
for two. While they share the same title as Director of Accounts, they serve
two very different purposes. It was my intention to see if they could each
encompass a larger spectrum. I was not the least bit disappointed in the
results.”

His gaze fell on Cassidy. She smiled, though emotion flashed
through her. Not over having lost the promotion to Chase, but because she truly
did believe that McClellan saw how hard she worked and knew she put her heart
and soul into the job.

Continuing, he said, “I’m pleased to tell you all that the
new Vice President of Accounts is Mr. Logan.”

A round of applause ensued. Meg, standing on the other side
of Cassidy outside her office, gently squeezed her arm in silent commiseration.

Chase wore a mixed expression on his devastatingly handsome
face. A combination of appreciation and remorse. Cassidy knew the latter
related to her. So she clapped a bit louder for him.

When the din died down, McClellan said, “With the global
expansion we’re undertaking, and because I know Mr. Logan is strongly poised to
focus on acquisitions, I’ll be modifying his title slightly to include new
business development.”

Cassidy leaned toward him and whispered, “Congrats.”

He looked a little blown away. “Thanks.”

“Also in light of our expansion plans,” McClellan continued,
“and because we truly do need additional strength in customer service, I’ve
created a Vice President of Accounts Management position with the Board’s
blessing. Miss Reynolds, I feel you would be exceptional in this capacity.”

Emotion slammed into her again. This time taking her
completely by surprise. A hard rush of air blew from her lungs. Shock and
excitement rocketed through her.

“Oh my God, Cass!” Meg squealed from beside her. “You’re a
VP!”

The applause that ensued rivaled what Chase had
received…perhaps even hitching a bit higher in enthusiasm. There were several
women in attendance, after all.

She beamed up at Chase and said, “I guess this makes us
partners.”

“Indeed,” McClellan said. “Both overseeing the division with
equal responsibility, equal accountability, equal say and…equal pay.”

Cassidy’s heart nearly stopped. Her gaze fell on McClellan.

He said, “You’ve certainly earned it, my dear.”

She didn’t bother fighting back the few tears that formed in
her eyes. This was one of the best days of her life, after all. Who could
begrudge her an emotional moment?