In The Enemy's Embrace

“Ah, driven even as a young man.”

“Thanks,” he said dryly. “I needed to feel ancient today.”

She laughed. “Really, Nick. You should play more. Not take life so seriously.” They were headed toward the huge ice rink in the mall. Music vied with crying children, giggling shrieks of teens and the noisy hum of shoppers. “Hey, why don’t we go ice skating?”

“I thought you needed shoes.”

“I do. But as long as we’re playing hooky from work, we might as well go whole hog. Chicken?”

“Get real. I could skate circles around you. After all, I’ve had years more practice than you.”

“Poked at your ego, did I? Thirty-three is still a young man, Nick. Funny how twelve years ago, the eight-year age difference between us was unacceptable.” She plucked a green shirt off a sale rack outside a boutique and held it to her chest. “Now it’s not an issue. Why’s that?”

“Experience.” He shook his head, took the shirt out of her hand and replaced it on the rack. “And until you’re eighteen, you’re considered jailbait.”

“Oh, like my father actually would’ve had you arrested if you’d kissed me.” She hadn’t meant to bring up this issue. It had just slipped out. The best thing, she decided, was to simply act sophisticated, as though it was no big deal.

He urged her forward with a hand at her back. “I imagine he would have. And it could have split up the business, as well. Which is why we’re not going to continue this conversation.”

“Just like that? You say so and it’s law?”

“Let’s don’t go there, Red.” He glanced at his watch. “And as much as I’d like to show you up on the ice, I think we’d better tackle those shoes. I need to make a conference call later this afternoon.”

“Ever the businessman.” She sighed and steered them around the corner, away from the ice rink. “Anything I should know about?”

He hesitated and the look she gave him dared him to put her off again. In the two months she’d been at Coleman-Grayson headquarters she’d never once complained when he’d given her little more responsibility than an office clerk. Instead, she’d taken the opportunity to learn how all the departments ran, from payroll to accounts receivable. She’d worked the switchboard and sat in on planning and investment strategy meetings.

She’d listened and learned—with very little help from Nick Grayson. She was tired of getting the runaround.

He must have read her determined expression.

“It’s a software company I’ve been looking at. According to the projections, it looks like a solid twenty percent return over the next two years.”

“Software seems so risky right now. Especially competing with the major companies. A lot of start-ups have bitten the dust.”

“This isn’t a start-up company. Lusklow’s been in business for thirty years with a great track record. The software is a virus-prevention program. They already have a handshake agreement with the Pentagon and a couple of other big players in the industry.”

“You’ve verified that?”

He glanced down at her as though surprised she’d even ask such a thing. “Yes. That’s part of what the conference call’s about.”

“Then I guess we better get cracking on shoes so you can get back in time.”

He looked so relieved that their shopping expedition had an end in sight that she laughed. “I’d like to listen in on the call, if you don’t mind.”

He shrugged. “Sure. If you want. Coming in on the tail end this way, you probably won’t understand some of the technicalities.”

One minute he made her laugh and the next he made her want to slug him. Her mood went from simmer to boil in less than a second. “Sometimes you make me so mad I could spit.”

“Jess…I didn’t mean that the way it sounded.”

“Oh, I think you did. One of these days you’re going to have to face the fact that I’m not a kid anymore, that I have a brain in my head and a summa cum laude degree to prove it. You’re just like every other guy—worse, actually, because you’re so darn stuffy about it. You see a big pair of boobs and you think that’s all there is to a woman.”

He opened his mouth to speak, but she held up her hand and shook her head. Thank God his gaze hadn’t wavered from hers. If he’d looked at her chest, she’d have lost it. Big time.

“I’m not in the mood to talk to you right now. You’d be wise to go find a bench somewhere and leave me be while I find some shoes.”

Without waiting for him to agree or disagree, she made a beeline for the nearest shoe store, hardly able to see where she was going for the haze of anger that blanked her vision. Jerk.

She stewed and fumed and before she knew it, she’d bought ten pairs of shoes and was feeling somewhat better. Nothing like new shoes to set a woman’s head on straight.

She’d been handling Nick Grayson all wrong. There were going to be some changes—and soon—or the fur was going to fly. He was bossy, domineering and irritating. She hadn’t put up with that kind of behavior from her three macho cousins, and she wouldn’t tolerate it with Nick Grayson, either.

As she stood contemplating a pair of sexy little red sandals in a boutique window, a masculine hand holding an ice-cream cone reached around her.

Her heart lurched, then settled. Despite the nasty words she’d just been calling him in her mind, she smiled, let go of the bags in one hand and plucked the cone out of his. One of the reasons she got along so well with people was that she rarely stayed mad longer than it took to express the emotion.

“Are you bribing me with chocolate, Grayson?”

“Trying to. Is it working?”

She licked the creamy chocolate. “I’ll let you know in a minute.”

“Jess…” He put a hand on her shoulder, turned her to face him. He held an ice-cream cone in his hand as well—vanilla. “I apologize.”

His words and his expression were sincere. Both banished her temper faster than any frozen treat or ten pairs of shoes could.

She took a breath, let it out in a sigh. “Why the heck didn’t you say that sooner? Do you know how much money I just spent trying to cool off?”

“I would have said it sooner, but I was afraid you’d inflict harm on my person. I’ll never again doubt the cliché about a redhead’s temper.”

She narrowed her eyes. “Better quit while you’re ahead, pal.”

“Truce?” he asked.

She laughed. “How long did the other one last?”

“Let’s see. It was about two o’clock this morning.” He checked his watch. “That’d make it about twelve hours.”

“Practically a record. Wanna make yourself useful and grab a few of these bags?”

“Are we done yet?”

“Yeah, we’re done.”

“Good. I retrieved the rest of your bags at the hold desk and took them to the car. Any more, and I’ll have to rent a truck.”

“You’re such a sport. Next time, I’ll buy the ice cream.”