Now here she was having erotic sex dreams about him. Really vivid ones, no less. Really good ones, too.
With a groan, Kate flopped back on the pillows. What she needed to do was get out Big Bob from the nightstand drawer, slide his thick girth into her wet pussy and finish the job. Instead, she forced herself to think things through rationally. This would never do. She didn’t even know the man’s name for craps sake. Wait a minute, yes she did.
Kate pushed back the covers and scrambled from the bed. Lifting the jeans she’d worn to dinner from the chair, she shoved her hand in the front pocket and pulled out the business card he’d given her.
Adam Belfour, CEO Belfour Advertising Company.
Kate dropped back on the edge of the bed and closed her eyes. She was a dead woman.
Adam Belfour was sort of like the E F Hutton commercials on television. When he spoke, people listened. And if they didn’t, then they took their chances on the rest of their lives. This man made money just by giving his opinion.
Yup, she was a dead woman if he decided to take a dislike to her based on their first meeting. Her bakery, Sinful Sweets, was already teetering on the red ink side of the ledger. One small nudge would put her securely into bankruptcy and that was something Kate didn’t want to have happen.
“Okay, I can handle this. What should I do? I’ll… I’ll… I don’t know what I’ll do.”
She got up and paced back and forth across her bedroom, her bare feet making no sound on the plush carpet.
“Wait, I know.” Kate snapped her fingers. “I’ll bake something for him. Food is the perfect way to soothe the savage beast.”
She smiled broadly and then headed for the kitchen. It might be three o’clock in the morning, but when Kate put her mind to something, she was bound and determined to follow it through. She’d sleep tomorrow. Make that today. Whenever, it didn’t matter right now. Kate was on a mission to make the man forgive her and fall in love with her delectable desserts.
Chapter Two
Kate held the basket of goodies like a shield, to defend her in case of attack. Part of her felt like Little Red Riding Hood about to meet up with the Big Bad Wolf.
She willed her hands not to shake as she pressed the button for the twenty-fifth floor of the Kramer Building. Inside the rich mahogany paneled car, Kate stared at her reflection in the mirrored doors. While the outside view showed a poised, confident woman, it was the inside view that thankfully no one could see. Her stomach was tied up in knots that would rival any Navy ship docked in port. Her palms were sweaty and her knees were just a tad unsteady. But this time Kate vowed to be strong and a lot less clumsy than the night before. The last thing she needed was a repeat performance of her utter klutziness, especially in front of Adam Belfour.
She’d taken the time to dress a little nicer today, instead of wearing her usual uniform of jeans and a white t-shirt and for that Kate was glad. She’d even managed to dig through her box of practically expired cosmetics to put on some mascara and a hint of blush and lipstick as well. Kate shook her head, knowing full well this wasn’t a social occasion, but instead another round of well-deserved apologies.
When the elevator doors opened, Kate took a deep breath and forced herself to walk forward on trembling knees. Exhaustion tore at her every step. Exhaustion thanks to Adam Belfour intruding upon every minute of her night. Whether awake or asleep, she couldn’t get the man off her mind for more than a few seconds. When she closed her eyes, she could see him licking his finger. With her eyes open, she wondered what it would be like to grab his finger and suck the swirls of frosting from his skin. It bordered on insanity.
Kate entered the lobby of Belfour Advertising Corporation and walked up to the reception desk. A young blonde woman smiled up at her.
“May I help you?”
“Yes, I’m Kate Carlisle and I have a nine o’clock appointment with Mr. Belfour,” Kate told her, her hands still clenching the basket of goodies in a death grip.
“One moment please and I’ll let him know you’ve arrived.”
“Thank you.” Kate turned and walked a few steps away.
Kate had barely seated herself before the receptionist stood up and came around the front of the desk. “Ms. Carlise? Mr. Belfour will see you now.”
She preceded Kate to the massive doors at one end of the room.
Kate was ushered through the doors as though royalty, when in reality she knew it had everything to do with the basket of chocolate chip, oatmeal raisin, peanut butter and sugar cookies the receptionist was eyeing. Still warm, the smell of freshly baked cookies wafting through the office was definitely an enticement.
“Would you care for a cup of coffee?”
Kate shook her head. “No, thanks. I’m fine.”
Her steps faltered as the door closed behind her and she stood facing the man in question.
Adam Belfour was seated behind a massive desk, his eyes intent on the computer screen, a phone pressed tightly to his ear. He motioned for Kate to take a seat, never breaking contact with the call or the computer.
Instead of taking her seat, Kate stood, staring out the massive floor-to-ceiling windows of his office. From here she could see half the city. If the view was this pretty in the daylight, she could only begin to imagine how the skyline would light up at night. She let her gaze wander to the credenza, the massive desk and the framed photographs on the far wall.
The office was bigger than three rooms of her apartment combined.
After a second Kate realized Adam was staring at her. He’d finished his call and was now leaning back in his chair, quietly watching her.
“Sorry, I got lost in the view,” Kate said.
“As did I,” Adam said. “Please have a seat. I apologize for keeping you waiting.”
Kate stifled a grin as she watched Adam Belfour stare at the heavily laden basket of goodies. He was probably afraid she’d spill something on him or throw the basket at him should things get ugly. Settling the basket carefully on the edge of his desk, Kate settled herself in one of the two plush chairs placed in front of his desk. Even his office chairs felt like sitting on a cloud, they were so soft. Kate stifled the urge to sigh at the comfort level now cushioning her backside.
“Thank you for coming.”
“It’s the least I could do after…after last night,” Kate finished.
“About last night, we do need to discuss what…” Adam never got the chance to finish his sentence when the office door opened.
“Adam, I wanted to drop off the file you’d asked me about.” A petite blonde breezed into the room waving a red file folder. But it was the rest of her that caught Kate’s attention.
The woman was majorly pregnant. And gorgeous, and dressed to the nines, even in maternity clothes.
Kate’s heart dropped like a stone to the bottom of her stomach. Crap, all the while she’d been fantasizing about the man and here he was married with a child on the way. She should have looked closer at the photographs on the wall.
He kept his private life more heavily guarded than Fort Knox, Kate thought.
“Oh my, is that cookies? I swear I smelled oatmeal raisin. Though nowadays, anything food gets my attention,” the woman finished with a giggle, though her gaze was locked on the basket.
She was so cute hinting at what might be in the basket Kate forgot all about feeling sorry for herself. Sort of.
Kate moved forward and slid the basket in the direction of the woman. “Yes, there are actually four different kinds. There’s chocolate chip, oatmeal raisin, peanut butter and sugar cookies.”
The woman lifted up the red and black tissue paper and peered into the basket. “Oh. My. God. These are from Sinful Sweets. I’d know that tissue paper anywhere. I love their stuff. It’s the best I’ve ever eaten.”
“Thank you. I always like to hear a customer rave about my cooking,” Kate said.
“You’re her. You’re Kate Carlisle. I’m so happy to meet you. I can’t tell you how many people I’ve told about your shop.”
Kate inclined her head. “Thank you again. I really appreciate that. Word of mouth is the best form of advertising I can ask for.”
“Why do I get the feeling this is more about the cookie’s than the file?” Adam asked, leaning forward in his chair, and reaching for the red folder.
The woman stepped neatly out of his range and leaned forward to grab another cookie. She swiveled to face Kate, neatly avoiding answering him.
“How do you two know one another? Adam’s never said a word to me that you were acquainted.”
“We ah…ran into one another last night at Le Bleu,” Adam said.
Literally, Kate thought.
“Really?” The woman’s focus was more on the cookies than his words. Then she looked over at Adam and broke into a huge grin. “I thought you had a business dinner last night. Oh, Adam, you hired Kate for my baby shower, didn’t you?”
“What?” Kate and Adam both blurted out the word at the same time, their gazes locking on one another, then turning back to her.
Her stomach plummeted to her toes as the last thing Kate wanted was to be catering his sister’s baby shower. And from the expression on Adam’s face, he was thinking the same thing. Yet that was still the furthest thing from her mind given the previous night’s dream.
* * * *
Adam stared at his sister. How the hell was he going to get out of this one? Then a thought struck. This might be the perfect way to settle the events of last night with Kate Carlisle. He didn’t need her money, but he was most certainly in need of a caterer and she fit the bill. Especially after the warm and glowing words of praise his sister had lavished on her. And if Tessa already knew the product, then it was the perfect solution.
“Actually, that’s exactly what I did,” Adam said.
“I don’t think that’s a good…” Kate interjected.
The look on her face was one of surprise.
“Kate Carlisle, meet my sister, Tessa Randolph. Tessa’s apparently one of your biggest fans, so how could I not hire you to do the baby shower?”
Tessa gave a squeal of excitement and flung herself into Adam’s arms, her exuberance nearly knocking the chair back against the credenza. “You are the best big brother ever. I take back every mean thing I’ve said about you in the past twenty-four hours. And trust me, after yesterday there were plenty of things said.”
Adam winced as he recalled the shouting match which had ensued after Tessa’s baker dropped the ball on the shower at the last minute. How she had accused him of being cold and unfeeling about a celebration for his unborn niece or nephew.
Apparently baby showers were a bigger deal than Adam ever knew. Tessa had quickly corrected him.
Tessa turned to Kate and gave her a quick hug. “You have no idea how thrilled I am to know you’re doing the dessert. This is absolutely amazing. I will be the envy of all my friends to have you doing the dessert. I have to go call Richard and tell him the good news.”
Without a backward glance, Tessa fairly flew from the office, the file still clutched tightly in one hand and the basket of cookies in the other. She called out the words, “Eating for two, you know,” over her shoulder as she pulled the office door shut behind her.
As Adam suspected, the file had nothing to do with it. Her nosiness was the main objective in finding out who was in his office and what they were doing there, especially if it were a female. The cookies were only an added bonus.
His matchmaking, though well-meaning, little sister had taken it upon herself to make sure he would someday be as happily settled down with marriage and a baby on the way as she was. While he envied Tessa the happiness she’d found with Richard, at the same time he couldn’t imagine settling down with just one woman for the next fifty years or so. It took the spice and variety out of life.
The last thing Adam wanted was to be tied down. He liked his life just as it was. To come and go as he pleased, do what he pleased, when he pleased. If that meant jetting off to Cozumel for the weekend, taking along only his latest female companion and a toothbrush, then so be it.
Somehow, he and Tessa had yet to get on the same page in that regard. And she wasted no time in letting him know that every chance she got.
Adam looked at Kate, who seemed overwhelmed by the goings on in his office. She sat quietly in the chair, staring down at her hands, her teeth worrying her bottom lip.
“I’m sure it would have been better to discuss this with you ahead of time.”
“That would have been nice,” Kate replied quietly, still not meeting his stare.
“If it’s a problem, I can make other arrangements. I’m sure Tessa will understand.” Adam knew he was on slippery ground. Kate didn’t owe him anything more than a dry cleaning bill for his suit coat, if even that. She certainly didn’t have to take on the job of catering the baby shower by means of apology.
But Adam hoped she would since it would earn him brownie points with his sister.
Kate lifted her head and stared at him. “If you think I’m going to break your sister’s heart over a cupcake-covered coat, think again, Mr. Belfour. If her heart is set on desserts from Sinful Sweets, then that’s what she’ll get. I will need a little more information in order to prepare for the upcoming baby shower.”
Adam watched as Kate dug in her purse and pulled out a notepad and pen from her purse.
“Such as?” he asked, leaning back in the chair.
“Date? Number of guests? Color of the decorations? Location? Theme? Any food allergies?”
Kate stopped talking and looked up at him.
Adam didn’t have a clue on some of the answers other than the location. Theme? Food Allergies? What had he gotten himself into?
“The shower is being held at Ballywick Country Club. Saturday, November 17th. Time is one o’clock to five o’clock. I have no idea as to the rest, but I’ll get you the information by the end of today.”
She rose from the chair. “Thank you. After that, we’ll call it even.”
She stuck out her hand and waited for him to shake it. Adam pushed himself to his feet and grasped her small hand firmly in his, feeling the heat of her skin sear his, sending spirals of fire up his arm. A live wire couldn’t have felt any hotter, Adam thought.