He walked to his office, picked up the notes that he’d left behind and went to the first meeting. Usually he was excited for meetings, hoping for a score and a great win. He lived for the win of it all.
Today though, he didn't have the same excitement as he usually did. Instead of being focused and determined, all Shane’s mind drifted to was Vivica. He wondered what she was doing and what his assistant was doing. What if he asked her out? Would she say yes? Shane shook his head in amazement. Vivica was still bugging him, no matter what he did. Shane didn’t think that it was normal. It didn’t feel that way.
It was so bad that several people noticed, and Shane called it a day, long before he was supposed to. He should have gone long into the night, instead of going to Vivica and asking her at six if she was ready to get out of there. Shane had gotten nothing done but knew that he was useless in the current situation.
Vivica seemed shocked that he was ready to go so early. She said something about how he was usually there longer. She’d expected a longer day, she said, but Shane didn’t want to stay any longer. He couldn’t focus on anything anyway, except Vivica. He was embarrassed that he failed so badly on the control front. Shane was used to keeping his cool, no matter what. With Vivica, he was losing it.
“Do you want to stay longer then?”
“No, I just don’t want you thinking that you have to retire early because of me. I can stay as late as you want.”
“A woman after my own heart I see.”
Vivica grinned and Shane’s heart skipped a beat. Vivica was lovely, birds singing in the distance sort of thing. But when she smiled, that was a different story altogether. To Shane, it was like she was pulling down the very sun from the sky, and he wanted to kiss her, badly in that moment.
His whole body tensed up, ready for the contact and letting the desire roll through him. Shane knew better. She was off limits, but damned if he didn’t want Vivica. He wanted all of her and he turned away. Shane walked out the door abruptly, telling her that he was leaving in five, not giving her much of a choice.
Vivica was quickly behind him, and Shane had a raging hard-on and nowhere to put it. It was going to be a long ride home, even though it really wasn’t far at all.
Chapter 8
Vivica
“So, how was your first day?”
Vivica groaned and Shane looked over at her. She realized that she needed to control her reactions a little bit better, but it was hard to. The question was so ridiculous in her mind. He really had no idea what her days usually looked like. It was a far cry from one of her normal days.
He took her pause as something else. “Was it that bad?”
She scoffed. He really had no idea. “No, it was great. I think that was one of the best days I've had in a long time. Your assistant Devin is really great.”
Shane mumbled something about how he knew that because he was the one that hired him, but he didn't seem to take the compliment very well. Vivica wondered why he looked so disgruntled all of a sudden, but she was already finding out that Shane was pretty up and down when it came to his emotions. One minute he was smiling and making her knees buckle with the motion, and the next he was looking at her suspiciously. Shane was a rollercoaster and the whole time she was waiting for him to do something more. Waiting and wishing.
She had to get her mind off of him though and back to the job that he had so kindly given her.
“I didn't realize that you had so many companies. How do you keep them all straight? I got a list of them today and it was really impressive. Do people know everything you have under wraps here?”
Shane smiled at the question and said that he’d been featured in a couple of magazines that had been attempted to give out all that information but missed the mark. Shane liked the anonymity that came with how he did business.
“You don't like all the attention?”
“Not in the least. I wish that they would just leave it alone. They are far too worried about how many companies and how much money I have. Then they want to do interviews about eligible bachelors. I want to be more of a recluse that doesn't get his picture taken every time he leaves his house.”
Vivica didn't know what to say to that. She never had to worry about being followed around or bothered. She could see how it would be hard to cope with all the time though. Shane seemed bothered by it, and she was glad that she didn’t have to deal with it.
“Most people would like all the attention.”
“Not me.”
“Because you’re different, Shane.”
“Oh, I know. Trust me, I have heard that before.”
“You are different, Shane, but that doesn't have to be a bad thing. Most people would have heard me scream and kept walking, even seeing it all, they would have. I’m glad you’re different, or I might not be here right now. The world needs more people like you.”
Shane actually started to get a little red-faced and she asked him if he was blushing. Vivica could see that's exactly what was going on. This billionaire hunk of a man crumbled with a few compliments.
Nothing about Shane made any sense. She had gone against her better judgment and stayed. And she really had had a great day, not solely because of Devin, but he was a really nice guy. Everything that Vivica had thought was true about the situation turned out to be false.
