Wrapped In Shadows (24 page)

Damn, the jig was up…he knew.
I could tell by the teasing light in his eyes.

“Uhh…” I jerked my gaze towards the ladies now exchanging their own meaningful glances. I could just imagine what they were thinking. They’d no doubt seen my reaction to him. “No—yes, I mean… I’m glad I
accidentally
ran into you, but Michelle and I have lunch plans. That’s really why I’m here.”

There! I’d saved face.

Just then, Michelle appeared from a corridor. “Kay! What a surprise! I didn’t know you were stopping by.”

I gritted my teeth so hard I thought I heard one crack, but turned with a stiff smile and embraced my friend. I knew I must be beet red.

“We had lunch plans, remember?” I whispered pointedly.

Michelle’s face pinched with confusion as she pulled back, then she looked to Luke, then back to me, who was trying to send SOS signals with my eyes.

“Oh, yes! Right. At that new deli. The one with the great pumpernickel!”

I shot Michelle a warning glance, but could see that my friend had quickly assessed the situation and was trying hard not to laugh out loud. Luke’s lips were twitching slightly when I turned back to him.

I wished for the floor to open and swallow me up. I hadn’t felt this mortified since I was fifteen years old.

“Before you go on your
lunch date
, I’d like to talk to you for a minute.”

“I’ll be in my office,” Michelle said over her shoulder as she walked away, smiling ear to ear.

Luke turned to the redhead. “I’ll need a minute, Maria.”

Maria nodded numbly, but I could feel the women’s stare burn a hole in my back as Luke led me around a corner and down a hall. I tried not to look at him, afraid of the expression I’d find on his face. Maybe I should explain that I really wasn’t a lying psychopath. He was all business as he walked down the hall, nodding now and then to passing employees.

He ushered me into his office and as soon as the door closed, he shocked me by crowding me against the wall, his palms braced flat beside my head. My lips parted just in time for his mouth to crash down on mine. The rush was instantaneous. A hot wave of desire rolled through me, tingling my breasts and igniting my pussy. I circled his waist inside his jacket as our tongues tangled and played, and his mouth ate mine voraciously. Our teeth clinked as he licked and bit, then he tugged my bottom lip between his teeth and savored it like candy.

I was audibly panting when he pulled away to feather kisses down my neck.

“You sure you didn’t come to see me?”

Too wound up to speak, I shook my head in answer.

I sensed him smile against my neck before he sucked the skin.

“No?” He started unbuttoning my coat.

I shook my head again, my breath catching as his lips traveled lower. It felt like someone sprinkled snowflakes on my fiery skin. One by one they landed and sizzled to smoke, ricocheting sensation across my flesh.

“No?” he asked again, calmly, but I could hear mischief in his voice.

“N—no,” I croaked.

His teeth nipped my collar bone, right above the neck line of my sweater at the same time one hand gathered up my skirt. I rolled my head back, my gaze connecting with the ceiling as his warm hand slipped between my thighs.

Oh, God…

Long fingers pulled my thong aside and a finger pad slid slowly along my wet cleft. I groaned low and arched my back when it found my excited clitoris and skated over it in tiny figure eights. Fluttering pleasure beat at my sex and it wept with want. My body started to tremble as the finger moved lower. Finally, exquisitely, it delved deep inside my hot flesh.

“
Yes!
” I gasped, tightening around him.

He held the digit still and his head lifted so I could see his eyes.

“Is that yes you came to see me, or yes you like what I’m doing?”

“Yes—no—yes—I mean…”

I wet my lips and his gaze zoomed to them. How could I think like this? He was killing me. He felt so good. There was humor in the verdant depths of his irises and his dimple winked teasingly.

“Okay…yes. I admit it. I came to see you,” I confessed with an impatient roll of my eyes and a nudge of my hips, hoping to inspire him to move that damn finger.

He smiled widely, showing perfect white teeth.

“Good. I’m glad. I’ve missed you. I can’t get you out of my head.” He started a slow stroke with his finger and I mewled.

“Me too,” I groaned.

His finger stopped again and my eyes widened with censure.

“Me too that you’re glad, me too that you’ve missed me, or me too I’m in your head?”

Now he was just being a devil!

“Me too if you stop again I’m gonna kick your ass. Now, stop torturing me.”

He chuckled then took my palm and placed it on the front of his pants. “Who’s being tortured?”

I gripped his erection through the cloth, molding my hand to the thick shaft.

He groaned and slanted his lips over mine, letting his finger dig deep into my pussy to a spot of pure rapture. He added another digit and pumped in and out of me fast. I puffed short breaths against his mouth and widened my stance, knowing if he kept that up I’d come soon.

Just then the phone on his desk rang.

“Damn,” he whispered.

He didn’t move, but it was clear the intrusion was a reminder of where we were. With an apologetic groan, he removed his fingers and made a lavish show of licking the glistening digits. I scissored my legs, trying to assuage the deep ache. It was going to be a very long two days.

I laced my arms around his neck as he straightened my skirt. I enjoyed the nearness of him, the supreme sense of contentment I found with him. My high heeled boots put me level with his chin and I tucked my nose into his neck and inhaled, loving the aroma of sandalwood. He pulled back and smiled down at me.

“Are you sniffing me?”

“
No!
” I shook my head firmly.
Great! Add weirdo to lying-psychopathic-bunny-burning stalker.

“Can we continue this tonight?”

I gave an enthusiastic nod and smiled slyly, a thought occurring. “Yes…we can role play. You can be the boss, and I can be the sassy secretary.”

He laughed. “I like that, or maybe you can be the boss.”

I had a hard time believing he’d allow that. “Maybe you can be a cowboy, or a flasher, or a dungeon master.”

“Nice to see you have such a vivid imagination.”

I laughed.

“I was just thinking of
Sensations
and its many rooms for role play. That night I saw a wild west room, a room with a flasher, and an S and M room with a master.”

He gave a deep chuckle. “Looks like you got quite an education.”

“No, that was it. I think I was starting to freak out a little bit.”

“Don’t worry.” He winked and waggled his brows devilishly. “I’ll come up with something. I—”

Our heads turned when his office door pushed open and Bruce walked in. He stopped immediately, seeing me in Luke’s arms.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t know you had someone in here.” He looked surprised, but I could tell he was suppressing a smile.

“You remember Katherine Vandercamp?” Luke pushed back from the wall. “She was at Mr. Kotobuki’s party.”

Bruce gave a friendly nod. “Yes. I met you here a few weeks back.” Turning to Luke, he said, “We’ll catch up later.”

I stopped him as he turned to leave. “No, don’t go. I was just leaving.” I looked at Luke. “I have to find Michelle anyway.”

He grinned. “Right. Lunch.” I blushed as he leaned forward and kissed my lips before whispering, “I’ll see you later, Ivanna.”

I waved to Bruce as I left, hoping to keep my composure at least until I got through the door.

*************************

Luke

I walked casually to my desk and dropped into my leather chair, trying to ignore the inquisitive look Bruce tracked me with. Swiping a palm across my chin, I looked up and sighed.

Raising both hands, I made a ‘come here’ motion with my fingers, palms up. “Okay, come on, out with it! I can smell the wood burning from what must be going through that fat head!”

Bruce chuckled and lifted a brow. “Dude, I didn’t say a word. Just that all morning you been smiling dumb like either you got brain damaged, or hit the lotto and wasn’t telling us. Now I see why.”

“
Fuck off!
” I grinned. It was only when we were alone at work that Bruce and I could talk like this.

“Damn, just don't start breaking out singing Barry White and shit!”

“I love Barry White!”

“Me too, but only when
he
sings it.”

When the laughter tapered, I gave Bruce a long look. “Katie’s a great girl.” I shrugged casually. “We’re just gonna see how it goes.”

Bruce gave a skeptical twist of his lips. “Hmmm…she met Livy yet?”

I smiled and nodded, thinking of the two of them having fun baking together. “Livy likes her.”

“Hmmm…”

“What’s with the hmmms, bro?”

“Nothing. And don’t give me this ‘see how it goes’ shit. You’ve got it bad. I can tell.” Bruce chuckled, then his face grew serious. “It’s just that I haven’t seen you like this in a long time. Not since Roslyn.” He paused. “It’s good to see you happy.”

I couldn’t help my wide smile. Katie did make me happy…and hopeful that maybe we could have a future together.

“Thanks, bud.”

I scratched my chin and my brows pulled together. I could see there was something else on his mind.

“Spill it.”

“Wasn’t she engaged to Josh Wilkinson? I remember at Kotobuki’s party he almost took my head off just for talking to her.”

My body tensed with just the mention of Josh.

“That’s old news. There’re not together anymore.”
Bruce nodded. “Did you say her last name was Vandercamp? Of
the
Vandercamps?”

“Yeah, but lets just keep this on the DL for now, okay?”

“Sure, whatever you want. I have to say that no one around here misses Josh.”

“He was a hot head.”

Bruce laughed. “Well, no one except Maria perhaps, but the company is better off without him. Do you think Tom Grummel will change his mind?”

I braced my chin on my fists and thought of the ailing man. “No. Glen is going to take over ACE.”

“Glen? You think he’s got what it takes?”

I shrugged. “Maybe, maybe not, but I can’t worry about that now.”

“We still have all their financials and employee files.”

“We can shred pretty much everything. They were copies. Delete all the electronic files. Glen wants to pick up the personnel files next week.”

Bruce nodded. “You heard anything from Mason?”

I shook my head. Jack had said he’d be in touch after the holiday, but so far there’d been no word. I hadn’t told anyone about Katie coming forward, not even my family. Steven and Bruce knew there was a chance the charges might be dropped, and they, like me, were waiting for word.

“Let me know as soon as you hear anything,” Bruce said, rising from his seat.

“I will.” I waved as he walked out.

The only person I had spoken to was Carlos, the private investigator I’d hired. Carlos was looking into a few leads and interviewing people from the club, but so far nothing had panned out. Jack had managed to procure the video surveillance from
Sensations
, but even that hadn’t proved helpful. From what Jack told me, the only footage on the video showed people entering the club. It didn’t show what they did or where they went after they gained admittance. And it was only trained on the main entrance, not all the doors. There was also a camera in the parking lot that showed I left
Sensations
after Ms. Carmen’s murder, which didn’t help my case, but as evidence it was still circumstantial.

Carlos also asked my permission to access archived information about Roslyn’s murder four years ago. It surprised me that the investigator was researching the cold case, and resurrected long buried pain and emotion. Carlos explained that since the murders were similar, it would help if he reviewed the events surrounding that murder.

I shuffled papers on my desk, trying to scatter my current thoughts and focus instead on my business. My gaze landed on a new messages on my desk. It was from a prominent client, someone I’d done work for since I’d started my company. I sighed, hoping it wasn’t to say he was pulling out of his campaign. I knew the true fallout wouldn’t be noticeable for months. With another deep sigh, I picked up the phone to return the call. I tried to stay hopeful.
Hopeful
. Katie was showing me what that looked like.

*************************

Katie

I stifled another yawn and put my head down on my desk for a minute. Just a minute. That’s all I needed. My lids felt like three-pound weights, and my shoulders bowed like someone was standing on them. Luke had kept me up most of the night with his marathon lovemaking. I smiled. Even though I was dead tired, I’d do it all again in a heartbeat. He found a way to wring every drop of rapture from my body, and just when I thought I was empty, he’d fill me with more pleasure. The things he did to my body were amazing, but I had to admit that it was what he did to my heart that had me sweetly daydreaming. I couldn’t remember ever feeling this way about anyone. Not even Josh in our best moments.

Luke had made dinner for us last night at my apartment. He’d been the master chef and I’d been his assistant—roles that had translated quite nicely later that night in the bedroom.
He was the only chef I knew who ate more than he cooked
.
And he seemed to really enjoy his meal.
I couldn’t help giggling at my very dirty thought.

We’d shared a bottle of wine, talked, and laughed—mostly laughed—for hours. I’d told him a bit about my childhood and growing up in Scarsdale, and he’d shared more crazy stories of his family. He also divulged some details of his business and talked about the current upheaval. It was a shame the acquisition hadn’t worked out and that he was going through such a tough time. He’d worked hard to become established and develop his reputation. I wished there was something I could do to help him.