Bachelor CEO (McDaniels #1)

Chapter Four

Chase had never thought of himself as the type of person who would be able to commit murder. But as he stared at Miranda, he wanted nothing more than to wring her pretty little neck until she begged for mercy or at least apologized.

He’d kissed her! He’d flirted with the enemy.

He took a deep breath, calming himself as Cecilia approached. “You okay?”

“Of course,”

Chase replied through gritted teeth. How could he not have seen this? Easy. McDaniel had thousands of employees and there were always jobs open. Never in a million years would Chase have expected his grandfather to create a second vice president position or to bring in an outsider to fill that niche.

His sister touched his cheek, and Chase unclenched his jaw and forced a fake smile to his face.

“That’s better,”

she said. She knew him far too well. “Gotta keep up appearances.”

“Yeah.”

Chase gave a nod of acknowledgment to a passerby. He lifted his glass and saluted another.

After his one beer, he’d been drinking water most of the evening. He hadn’t wanted anything dulling his senses.

“Here they come,”

Cecilia whispered, as Leroy led Miranda through the crowd.

Chase clenched his fists and tried to keep his smile from slipping.

“Chase,”

Leroy said in greeting a few moments later. “I know you met Miranda earlier. There isn’t anyone more competent or more suited to this position than her. She’ll start Tuesday. I expect you to show her the ropes.”

Chase would like to show her a noose. Sure, most people would love to be in his position. As soon as Miranda took over, he’d be free to enjoy a life of leisure. He could collect his salary and, for one year, do whatever he wanted. How awesome was that? Trouble was, he already had six weeks vacation time annually, and hardly ever took any. He loved McDaniel and he loved his job. The last thing he wanted was some upstart replacement coming in and messing with his company—no matter how gorgeous she was.

“I’m sure Miranda and I will get along just fine,”

he said evenly, hoping Leroy wouldn’t notice the frost in his voice.

“I hope that’s the case,”

his grandfather said.

“I’m Cecilia,”

his sister said suddenly, inserting herself into the conversation as a diversion.

“Miranda.”

The two women shook hands. “So you’re a ballerina.”

“That’s right.”

Cecilia steered her a few feet away, to diffuse the tension.

“You could have told me,”

Chase murmured, the moment he and Leroy were as alone as two people at a party could be.

His grandfather stiffened. “What? That the person replacing you was a woman? I didn’t think you were a chauvinist.”

“I’m not. I’m upset that you blindsided me with all of this. The sabbatical. A second vice president. Her. And trust me, I know she’s a woman!”

Leroy’s eyes narrowed. “Don’t tell me you already hit on her.”

“I am not a Casanova!”

Chase protested, but not fast enough.

The older man’s jaw dropped. “Chase. Please tell me you didn’t.”

“Well, how was I supposed to know who she was? We met Friday morning outside McDaniel. That’s why I was late arriving yesterday afternoon. I changed her flat tire. I asked her to lunch. I flirted with her again in the boathouse. Now I look and feel like an idiot.”

And I kissed her.

“I’m sorry. I did what I thought was best. I didn’t want you more stressed than you already are.”

Chase reined in his temper. He and Leroy were a lot alike, and he loved his grandfather dearly. He’d made sure they wanted for nothing growing up.

“It will be fine. All I have to do is train her and then go, right? That’s your plan?”

“Yes, but—”

Leroy began.

Chase straightened. “I am a professional. I will treat her with the utmost respect. I won’t do anything to jeopardize the company or its reputation.”

“That’s not what I meant.”

His grandfather paused. “None of this has ever been about you being incompetent. It’s never been meant as a slap in the face. I just want to give you the opportunity I never had. What you never had. A choice.”

Chase knew that. Still, his pride had been injured, and he’d overreacted. He’d also just kissed the woman taking his job. He reached out and gave his grandfather a quick hug. “I understand. I may not like it, but I understand.”

“Trust me, you’ll be grateful for this year. You just don’t see it now.”

Chase sighed as he let the anger and the blow to his pride go, at least where his grandfather was concerned. As for Miranda, the jury was still out.

THE PARTY HAD WOUND DOWN a bit before midnight, give or take a few stragglers not quite ready to call it an evening. Leroy and Walter had left around eleven-thirty. They were both notorious early risers, and had stayed up way later than their norm. Miranda had lingered about twenty minutes longer, but Chase hadn’t approached her. She’d thought about talking to him, and had even headed in his direction, but it was as if he’d sensed her coming. He’d disappeared before she made it through the crowd.

She sighed and rolled over in bed now, staring up at the ceiling.

Even though the mattress was comfortable, she was too keyed up to sleep. She’d been tossing and turning for what felt like hours. She pressed the button on her cell phone, brightening the display. It was a little after one.

She swung her feet to the floor and stood up. The best thing to do in a situation like this was to clear her head. Miranda pulled on yoga pants, traded her nightshirt for a T-shirt and slipped on flip-flops. Then she left the cottage.

She’d lived in the city her whole life, and the stillness of the night seemed foreign yet comforting. Low voltage solar lights provided just enough of a glow that she could see the path, and the moon cast a swath of light over the grassy slope leading down to the lake.

The water itself shimmered, parts of it reflective, while other areas remained dark and mysterious. She looked heavenward, gasping at the number of stars visible. She’d never seen a night sky quite as sharp and clear.

In Chicago the city lights muted the universe’s brilliance. Her aunt hadn’t been rich, so Miranda and her sister had lived far from any Lake Michigan view. Open space hadn’t been grassy meadows, but empty lots filled with rubble and weeds.

She inhaled deeply now, filling her lungs with fresh northern air untainted by car exhaust.

So this was how the other half lived. Miranda had seen those television shows that featured celebrity houses. She hadn’t necessarily wanted something like that, but she’d longed for more than her aunt’s small apartment on the wrong side of the interstate.

She planned to exceed every one of her parents’ expectations, to make a better life for herself and her sister.

Miranda made her way toward the dock. She reached the end, took off her shoes and sat down. Her dangling feet didn’t quite reach the water, but its gentle lapping created a breeze that tickled her toes.

She sighed happily. Here she was, in this wonderful place, ready to embark on something new.

“Guilt keeping you awake?”

Chase’s familiar voice made her jolt, and even though she was seated, she tumbled off balance before righting herself.

He stood only a few feet behind her, which meant he must have crept up.

“Why would I feel guilty, and how long have you been standing there?”

she shot back. He stepped forward and settled next to her. He was still dressed in what he’d worn to the party, putting her at a slight disadvantage in her thin T-shirt with nothing underneath.

“Saw you come down and figured I’d find out why.”

“Don’t worry. I’m not trying to steal anything else that’s precious to you.”

“Testy, I see. Maybe you are guilty.”

She sighed. Somehow Chase always had the upper hand, even when the chips were down.

“I just needed a few moments alone,”

Miranda replied. “I probably should go. I have to drive home tomorrow.”

“Have you ever been out on the water?”

he asked, removing his shoes as if he hadn’t heard a word she’d said.

She shook her head. “I’ve never been on any boat, except for Walter’s anniversary cruise on Lake Michigan.”

“Then you were a deprived child.”

Perhaps it was the way he said it that made her bristle and forget her urge to leave. “Not all of us were as fortunate as you. Not all of us grew up with a silver spoon in our mouths and a job waiting for us.”

“Yeah, a job that you’re determined to take away.”

“I’m only a vice president, and a second one at that. Behind you,”

Miranda reminded him, ignoring the fact that she’d danced giddily around her studio apartment the day she’d officially gotten the job.

Chase didn’t buy her explanation. “Semantics. You know as well as I do that my grandfather doesn’t intend for me to come back. And don’t pretend that it’s not in your plan to make yourself so damn indispensable that even if I do return, the board will back you and not me for his job.”

“That’s not my intention,”

she protested, despite having fantasized about doing just that. What woman didn’t let herself dream, when the possibilities seemed limitless? At least they had on the day Leroy hired her.

Chase scoffed. “Yeah, I believe that as much as I believe you just forgot to tell me about your job. We may have encountered each other by accident, but your actions once we met were calculated and deliberate.”

“Really, they weren’t,”

Miranda said. She had to work with Chase. They needed to get off on the right foot if he was going to be responsible for her training. “Perhaps we should start over,”

she suggested. “Give ourselves until Tuesday to calm down and put this behind us.”

“And you really believe in that drivel? That we can pretend nothing happened?”

“People do it all the time.”

She jutted out her chin. “I want this job. This is a dream opportunity for me. You leave permanently or come back after a year, I don’t care. My aunt never thought I’d get this far. I made something of my life and that’s all that matters.”

He stared at her a little more intently now, as if trying to figure out what she wasn’t telling him. But she refused to elaborate. “So whatever grudge you have, I’m here to do a job. Nothing more,”

she finished.

“I wish I could believe that.”

She squared her shoulders. “It doesn’t matter what you believe. It’s the truth.”

“Truth is relative. Often meaningless. I kissed you today. That’s the truth. But I guess it was meaningless. Just…”

“An awkward mistake,”

she interjected quickly. Thinking about Chase’s mouth on hers had her temperature skyrocketing.

“Another mistake to be forgotten on Tuesday, as well, I gather.”

He sounded disappointed, which was funny considering he’d reacted so coldly in the boathouse.

“So we start over, as if we’d never met?” he asked.

“Fresh start on Tuesday,”

she agreed, aware that the air above the dock had become charged.

“So today is meaningless,”

he said. “I forgive you and you forgive me.”

Aware that somehow she’d started down a slippery slope, but not sure where it was leading her, she nodded. “Exactly.”

“Seems I need something for which to be forgiven,”

Chase replied.

“This is the best way to proceed for both of us…”

Miranda suddenly realized he wasn’t listening. Instead, all of his attention was focused on her mouth. He reached forward and tugged her to him.

The man can kiss was the last recognizable thought Miranda managed before she started whimpering in response to the delightful plunder of her lips. Then she was kissing him once again, overcome with the desperate need to get as close to him as possible.

One of his hands slid up to her neck, the other moved to cup her breast, covered only by the thin T-shirt fabric. Her breath caught and her body twitched as his fingers found pleasure points and sent heat pooled between her legs. Then coolness suddenly descended as Chase pulled away and got to his feet.

Miranda covered her breasts with her arms, realizing she could have easily made love to him right here on the dock, out in the open under the stars.

“See you Tuesday,”

he said, the slight rasp in his voice the only hint that she’d had any physical effect on him at all. He then strode off the dock and up the hill, leaving his shoes behind.

She stared at the loafers, resisting the urge to toss them in the lake and watch them sink to the murky bottom. He’d switched passion on and off once again, the jerk! Worse, she’d let him.

She trembled as she stood, determined to get off the dock before he reached his room and could see her from the window.

Grabbing her own shoes, she fled barefoot toward the cabin.

CHASE STOOD IN THE shadows by the lodge and watched her escape. He needed to go back for his shoes. He also planned to jump into the cold lake. Kissing her had made him hard as a rock. He’d wanted nothing more than to lay her back and sink himself deep inside her.

He grimaced. Miranda Craig’s idea of forgiving and forgetting was ridiculous.

Hearing her cabin door click shut, he walked down to the lake. Never had he been this affected by a woman. Sure, he loved having sex. But kissing Miranda had felt different, and not because she was forbidden fruit, or he had some Neanderthal idea of proving to her who was boss.

Maybe it was his need for dominance that had led to the kiss, but once his lips had touched hers he’d forgotten all about control. He’d forgotten his anger and suspicion. He’d forgotten, once again, that she was the enemy.

He’d never experienced such overwhelming, mindless passion before. Too bad the circumstances around her arrival in his life were so terribly wrong.

He reached the dock, stripped down to his boxers and dived in, letting the cold water soothe his soul.

Unfortunately, he knew that instead of finding closure by kissing Miranda, he’d simply opened a whole new can of worms.