Electric! (16 page)

Cassidy dug into her dinner and her account portfolios in
preparation of spending the next day shoring up any loose ends with clients
that couldn’t be put off for two weeks. Then she’d hit the ground running with
her strategic tactic of strengthening her business-development skills.

She had
every
intention of winning this game.

* * * * *

Wednesday night came before she knew it, and Cassidy stood
on the threshold of Chase’s home, trying to catch her breath.

It really would have been wiser to avoid him until McClellan
made his decision on the VP position. But there was no denying the
magnet-and-steel effect between them and so here she was, keeping their date.

She had, however, insisted they get a little work done,
since neither of them could afford to slack off for even one night.

Chase opened the door and she handed over a bottle of her
favorite meritage with just the right blend of cab and merlot.

Eyeing the laptop bag slung over her shoulder, he said, “Oh
you were serious about working tonight?”

She laughed. “You know I am.”

“Damn. I was hoping you’d packed up the whip and satin sash
and brought them over.”

“Who says I haven’t?” she teased.

He groaned. Then planted a sexy kiss on her lips.

She sighed. “Well, this sucks. You’re going to be
disappointed to know I was only kidding about the whip and sash.”

With a chuckle, he said, “Hey, I told you vanilla between us
would be just as hot.”

Cassidy’s stomach fluttered. Two seconds into the evening
and they were already talking about sex. And her body already thrummed with
anticipation.

Chill, Cass.

Really. They were having dinner and then going over some
agreed-upon strategic options that would benefit the company as a whole, but
which would also help them individually as they shot the moon at MII.

Granted, there was something nerve-racking about
fraternizing with the enemy, so to speak. But she’d had a partnership with
Chase in the Accounts division since he’d joined the company, so it was also
natural to partner with him in this endeavor.

Was that a hazardous notion?

She’d considered that prospect at least a dozen times since
their conversation in his office on Monday. But the flipside was that their
efforts were a two-way street. She was helping Chase with his customer-service
skills and he was helping her with acquisitions. Cassidy hadn’t yet told him
about the big fish that was E-L she wanted to land, but when she reached the
point where she felt comfortable with her business-development plan, she would.

Chase had steaks marinating and baked potatoes already on
the grill. He said, “Just about to toss the salad and sauté the ’shrooms.”

“Let me help.” She set aside her bag while he uncorked the
wine and poured them each a glass.

Standing on one side of the island, she dove into the
veggies he’d laid out on a bamboo cutting board next to the glass bowl of mixed
greens. On the other side, Chase set out another board and sliced mushrooms,
then chopped fresh parsley.

The kitchen was spacious and equipped with high-end
stainless-steel appliances. It was also softly lit and Michael Bublé flowed
from hidden speakers.

Cassidy smiled. “Nice music.”

“He’s one smooth cat.”

She laughed. “Did you really just say that?”

Chase sipped his wine, his beautiful blue irises glowing
warmly. “I can respect another man’s coolness and not be threatened by it.”

“Because
you
are all alpha,” she said. “I can attest
to that.”

“I did mark my territory when I came to MII,” he admitted.

“And those roses reaffirmed it. No one would think twice
about asking me out while they sit on my desk.”

One corner of his mouth dipped. “You get asked out at the
office?”

“I was sort of speaking hypothetically. I
used
to get
asked out. But after the first six months or so of saying no, no one ventured
that direction afterward.”

She’d shared the nitty-gritty of her “love” life when they
were in Flagstaff and it had actually been a full accounting. There was nothing
she’d held back. No secret flings or brief encounters following the realization
a few years ago that she was a dating disaster. What had been the point of
continually repeating history? Rejection stung, yes. But her lack of engagement
with other men was what had led to multiple rejections, so she’d given up on
trying to connect with someone.

Funny that he’d been under her nose the entire time at MII.

Cassidy took a drink from her wineglass and then asked, “Why
have you been so persistent with me?”

He shrugged and simply said, “I go after what I want.”

Chase grabbed the cutting board and turned to the gas stove.
He drizzled olive oil in a pan and then added a little butter and garlic. When
the mixture heated, he threw in a splash of white wine. Cassidy watched him as
he dumped the mushrooms in and sautéed them, eventually tossing in the parsley.

All the while, she considered his words. She went after what
she wanted as well. But only in a professional capacity. Yet she didn’t pursue
romantic relationships, marriage. In fact, marriage had always been the
furthest thing from her mind. She honestly didn’t think herself capable of the
juggling act.

She couldn’t deny, however, that spending the evening with
Chase was a nice break from her obsessive career aspirations. Although they’d
agreed to work later on, a couple hours enjoying some wine and his company and
cooking together was a lovely change of pace.

A revelation worth tucking away so she didn’t fully lose
sight of it.

“Mind taking over?” Chase asked, interrupting her
rumination. “I’ll put the steaks on the grill.”

“Sure.” She tended to the ’shrooms while he bustled about.

Later, they had dinner on the patio, all lit up with twinkle
lights and candles. Chase really was a romantic at heart. They sipped wine and
listened to the water fountain flowing over rocks in the far corner of the
pool. The backyard faced the mountain preserve and that offered a stunning
view. And an intimate setting. It felt as though they were a million miles away
from Scottsdale.

Chase cleared the table when they were done and she polished
off her second glass of wine. Then he returned to the patio and took her hand,
pulling her from her chair.

Michael Bublé had segued into Daughtry. Chase wrapped an arm
around her waist and drew her in close. Cassidy’s body responded instantly,
that now-familiar tickle along her clit returning with his nearness and the way
he grinned down at her in that devilish way of his.

His fingers twined with hers and he rested their clasped
hands against his chest. She felt his heat through the material of his silver
sage-colored dress shirt. He’d removed his tie and cufflinks after he’d left
the office, and had unbuttoned the collar enough to give her a glimpse of the
impressive pecs that she suddenly itched to touch.

They swayed to
Feels Like Tonight
, Chase occasionally
twirling her under his arm, then bringing her in close again. She gazed up at
him, finding this tender and playful side of him as exciting as the macho alpha
one.

He moved gracefully, stealthily. Never missed a beat. One
thing Cassidy had always enjoyed as an extracurricular activity was dancing.
She’d forgotten that. Until now.

One song morphed into another and then another. Finally,
when a faster tune dropped, she eased away.

“We’ll be at this all night if we don’t stop now,” she said.

“Yeah, and you’d have to see how uncoordinated I am when not
slow dancing.”

With a soft laugh, she said, “Somehow, I doubt that’s true.
You’re good at everything you do.”

His head dipped and he said, “I really am just getting
started, babe.”

Her insides ignited. “Chase…” Much as she wanted him to
scoop her up and take her to his bedroom, she said, “We still have business to
focus on this evening.”

Painful and disappointing as it was to point out that fact,
Cassidy couldn’t overlook it.

Chase groaned. “I suppose a compromise is in order.”

She collected her laptop bag and followed him into his
office. The room was large, with high ceilings, the walls covered with framed
movie posters.
The Godfather
, the original
King Kong
,
Reservoir
Dogs
,
Pulp Fiction
,
The Wolf of Wall Street
,
Indiana Jones
and so on. Her instant favorite was a vertical frame in sepia tones of Han Solo
encased in carbonite.

“Now that is awesome,” she said. “I’d pay good money for the
actual artwork they used to hang on Jabba the Hutt’s wall.”

Chase chuckled. “You’re a
Star Wars
fan?”

“Ridiculously so,” she confessed. “And I’ve always
considered Han Solo the ultimate hero. Strong, sexy, reluctant to save the
world over saving his own ass, but in the end… He knows the right thing to do.”

With a grin, Chase mused, “Bit of a crush there?”

“Not a
bit
,” she said. “If I could bring any movie
character to life, it’d be him.”

One sandy brow dipped. “Should I be jealous?”

Cassidy moved in and kissed him. Naturally, Chase took over
and turned the gesture to all-new heat levels, edging out Han by a long shot.

When they came up for air, she said, “You have nothing to
worry about.”

“Good.”

They remained wrapped up in each other for several minutes.
Then Cassidy detangled herself and said, “We’re never going to get any work
done this way.”

They settled at Chase’s desk, him on one side, Cassidy on
the other.

“So,” he said as he whipped out a spreadsheet of his
clients, pertinent data on them and current insurance products they held. “I
took your advice and cataloged where my accounts stand to date and some of the
details regarding their lines of business and policies.”

“From there,” she told him, “you should research their
industry and conceptualize what other resources and products would offer a
safety net, extra protection, etcetera. The key is finding value adds they
might not have considered, or which they’ve possibly contemplated but didn’t
deem beneficial because of cost, policy limitations, whatever. Then you work up
a few possible scenarios that would be advantageous to them—based on
their
needs, not predicated on what
you
can up-sell for a heftier premium—and
present it.”

“Cost is typically the key factor in insureds purchasing
baseline policies that don’t include the up-sell.”

“Yes.”

He pushed back his chair and went to the wet bar in the
corner, uncorking a bottle of sangiovese. After pouring two glasses, he
returned to his chair. “What’s the tickler to get them thinking of a bigger
picture than baseline policies?”

Cassidy sipped, then said, “They’ll want the cheapest,
bargain-basement policy that offers the right coverage at the right price.
Sometimes, we get clients who are more proactive in risk management and they
want all the bells and whistles right off the bat. The two critical elements
here are that if you push bells and whistles they don’t
really
need,
they eventually discover that and feel cheated we talked them into something we
can’t fully justify and made a hefty profit because of it.”

He scowled. “I did that with Piper Industries, the first
account I landed with MII.”

Cassidy smiled over the rim of her wineglass. “Yeah, I did
it too. Cost-Smart restaurant industry food services. But the more I learned
about the company and their insurance needs—and some of the risks inherent to
their business and distribution centers—I was able to suggest shifts in balance
so that their policies were much more in line with their enterprise. They
appreciated that I was constantly evaluating their needs and their evolving
business model—and the fact that I found ways to help offset some of the previous
policy costs as we melded into a more comfortable fit.”

“Hmm.” Chase set aside his glass and studied his
spreadsheet. Then he pinned her with a look. “You really are good at this.”

She smiled again. “We’re doing a SWOT analysis, Chase.
Breaking down our strengths, weaknesses, opportunities for improvement and
threats. I bring one thing to the table. You bring something different. Wait
until we get to my horrendous sales pitch. It’s a wonder I ever landed an
account, and a Godsend that the vast majority of the business I’ve brought in
has been based on referrals.”

He eyed her a moment, then said, “Sometimes you sell
yourself short, babe.”

Her heart constricted. He was such an amazing man. Why the
hell where they suddenly competing for the same job? It was so unfair and
downright painful.

Conversely, Cassidy had to admit that it was a catalyst that
forced them to work more closely together on honing their skills. Such a
bizarre turn of events.

“Chase,” she said, “I’m perfectly aware of my flaws. Yes,
sometimes I fixate on them. But the bottom line is that I haven’t taken the
step past
fixation
to
resolution
. Mr. McClellan didn’t have to
give us backstory on our professional shortcomings—we’re both acutely aware of
them and he knows that. So he simply mentioned the issues, knowing we’d pick up
on the problems we face and scramble to lessen our individual faults.”

He nodded. “Sadly, the self-improvement is long overdue for
both of us.”

“Not necessarily,” she pointed out. “Cultivating those
skills that are the cornerstone of our strengths takes time. That’s what we’ve
both concentrated on. It’s what Tom and McClellan have allowed and encouraged
us to do. We’re both good in various capacities. So now, I can see, it’s time
to shift to the deficiencies and beef them up so that we’re both more
well-rounded and able to manage this division, regardless of who ends up
running it.”