Dance Like Nobody's Watching (Summer Lake 3) Page 9

  “I can't!”

  “You can. You'll still get paid. I talked to Ben last night. You'll still get a week's sick pay.”

  How could that work? She wasn't employed by some corporation. She didn't get any benefits, let alone a week's sick pay.

  “Think about it, Miss. It makes sense. It's better to pay you to take one week off to get better now than it would be to lose you for several weeks, or more, if you keep pushing and make yourself worse.”

  She frowned. What he said made sense, but it didn't make sense that Ben should pay her to stay home and still have to find and pay someone else to do all the work that she wasn't doing. He started the van and pulled out while she was still trying to figure out what to think, say, or do. “Where are we going?”

  “I'm taking you home and you're not going to argue.”

  “You mean you hope I'm not!”

  He laughed. “Nope. I'm telling you you're not. You're going to be a good girl and do as you're told for once. You're going to go home and take a nice little nap while I go get iron pills and groceries.”

  She smiled. “Suitable ones?”

  “Yes, suitable ones.”

  How could she argue with him? “Okay, you win and I do appreciate it, Dan. But seriously, don't you need to get back yourself?”

  He shrugged. “I don't want to.”

  She laughed. “Now you sound like Scotty!”

  He grinned. “Maybe so, but I don't really need to either. Plus, I need to make sure you're not going to go sneaking back to work as soon as I leave.”

  “And how are you going to make sure of it?”

  He shot her a quick look. “I could tie you to the bed.”

  Yep. Her body sure did remember what desire was! “But if you did that, I hope you wouldn't leave?”

  “No, ma'am. No way I'd be leaving.” He reached over and gave her hand a quick squeeze. “See, that's another reason you need to take the whole week off. We can't start misbehaving ’til you're all rested and better.”

  She looked at him. He was looking way too pleased with himself. “Hmm. That could be a persuasive argument.”

  “I could be even more persuasive and say we can't start misbehaving until you've taken five full days at home to rest—and don't think I won't know. If you do decide you're all better and go back to work, you'll be delaying our date. And everything that goes with it.”

  Her stomach fluttered at the thought of everything that might go with their date. “You drive a hard bargain, hero.”

  “I guess I do for a clueless geek, don't I?”

  She laughed. “You're no clueless geek! You're my hero!” She'd call him hero all day every day if she could, just to see the way he smiled when she did. “You win. I'll stay home all week and rest, but you'd better come back and take me out on Friday night.”

  He squeezed her hand again. “It's a date.”

  Chapter Eight

  “Sorry I haven't been over sooner, bud.”

  Missy smiled. “That's okay, you've sent enough minions over with food. You didn't have to do that, you know. I'm not a complete invalid. I can cook for me and Scotty. I feel bad enough that you're paying double to get the cabins cleaned.”

  Ben shrugged. “Just smile and say, thank you, huh?”

  “Thank you. But honestly, you don't need to have every meal sent over here. Make it stop now.”

  “Sorry, Miss. No can do.”

  “Why the hell not? I'm asking you to stop it.”

  “I'm under orders to ignore any requests from you that would mean you do any work of any kind, cooking, cleaning.” He grinned. “Lifting a finger, if it can be helped.”

  Under orders? What did that mean? It dawned on her that there was only one thing it could mean. “Dan?”

  “Yep.”

  She felt the fluttering in her stomach. “He asked you to do this?”

  “No, not asked. I really am under orders. He might seem like a mild mannered nerd on the surface, but I'm telling you, Miss, there's a man of steel under the quiet exterior. And he is most concerned about your well-being. I like him. It's obvious he likes you. A lot!”

  “I like him too, Ben.” Missy wrinkled her nose. “A lot. We're going to go out on a date on Friday.”

  “Only if you keep your word and don't go back to work between now and then.”

  “He told you?”

  “Yep and he asked me to snitch on you if you weren't getting your rest.”

  She smiled. “That was sneaky of him.”

  “I wouldn't say sneaky. He cares that you should rest up and get your strength back. And I'd say he has a vested interest in your being well enough to go out with him on Friday night.”

  He also had a vested in interest in her not being too tired by the time they got home on Friday night, too. Not that she was going to tell Ben that. “Between restaurant deliveries for every meal and the fact that I'm not working, I feel much better already.” She did feel better, less tired than she had at weekend, but she still wasn't anywhere near one hundred percent. “I do feel bad about you paying double to get the cabins cleaned though.”

  Ben shrugged. “Don't worry about it.”

  “No, I can't let you do it. I've been thinking, once I'm back to work you can add an extra one here and there and not pay me for them ’til we're even. And don't go saying no.” She grinned at him. “I've decided, and you know you can never win an argument with me.”

  Ben looked uncomfortable.

  “What?”

  He looked at her, but didn't say anything.

  “Okay. What's the problem?”

  “I can't do it. You don't owe me anything.”

  “Yes, I do.”

  “No, Miss. You don't owe me anything.”

  Oh, no. He wasn't saying.... “Not Dan?”

  Ben nodded. “Yep. He already had it figured out before I even knew what was going on with you. He told me what we were going to do. I didn't have any choice. Not that I would have let you work, had I known.” He gave her a shrewd look. “But if it weren't for Dan, I doubt I would have known at all, would I?”

  Missy frowned. She was filled with conflicting emotions. She took care of her own business. She may struggle sometimes, but she got by. She wasn't one to ask for help from anyone, and she was proud of that. Dan had stepped in without being asked. She wanted to feel angry with him, but she didn't. She felt cared for, and that was a new one for her. She felt like she shouldn't, but she liked it.

  “And, Miss? I wouldn't give him a hard time over it, if I were you.”

  She smiled. “Don't worry. I won't. And don't think I'm turning into a weak and needy damsel in distress, or anything, but I kind of like it.”

  Ben laughed. “I could accuse you of many things, but I would never accuse you of that. You're the strongest woman I know. Seems to me you and Dan bring out each other's hidden qualities. He brings out your soft side. You bring out his strong side. It's kinda cool.”

  “And when did you get so smart about that kind of thing? You never date anyone who's going to be here more than two weeks.” She wanted to deflect the attention back onto Ben. He'd hit the nail on the head about her and Dan and she needed some time to think about it.

  Ben shrugged. “I've seen too many people ruin their lives, standing by a commitment that no longer works for them. I choose to keep my own relationships short and sweet. I watch people all the time get entangled in things that I can tell aren't going to work out, I'd rather not do that.” He smiled. “Seems there's been a run of good luck around here lately though. I don't deny that good relationships happen too and I can spot ’em a mile off. I knew Jack was what Em needed as soon as I saw them together. I knew Pete had met his match when Holly came up here. I believe you and Dan are headed down the same road. You’re good for each other.”

  Missy shook her head. “No. It's not like that. We're just going to date for a while. I really like him, but I'm under no illusions. We're at different places in life. He's like the others—he's a
t the beginning of his life story. He'll find a woman and settle down and have kids, all that good stuff. I'm already half way through my life story. I am settled down, my boy's ready for high school. There's no way I'd ever start back at diapers now.”

  “I'm not going to argue, Miss. I'm just saying I think you're good together.”

  Missy smiled. “I hope so.”

  ***

  Dan hit the snooze button and pulled the covers over his head. He didn't want to be awake. He wanted to get back to his dream. He didn't want to be in his own bed. He wanted to be back in Missy's bed, his hands full of her wonderful, round ass, his face buried in her breasts. He wanted to feel her willing little body beneath him, opening up to him when he finally.... His phone rang. Damn! Without opening his eyes he patted around the nightstand ’til his hand closed around the phone. He brought it under the covers to his ear.

  “Hello?”

  “Good morning, Daniel. What time will you be in the office? I think we need to talk, don't you?”

  Olivia's voice grated on his nerves, but at least it ensured he wouldn't have an uncomfortable boner to deal with. She'd turned his morning wood into morning wouldn't. He bit back a laugh at the thought.

  “Can you hear me?”

  Unfortunately. “Yes.”

  “So. What time?”

  “Whenever the hell I'm ready. What do you want to talk about?”

  “Us.”

  “Olivia, there is no us. I was serious. We're done.”

  “We'll see about that when you come in.”

  Jesus! Where did the woman get off? He supposed he did at least owe her a conversation. He wasn’t going to let her push him around though. Not anymore. “You can come to my office at eleven thirty. Bye.” He hung up quickly. That would give him plenty of time to shower and take care of some things around the apartment. He wanted to go in and set up remote access to a couple of his programs anyway. He could talk to Olivia while he was there. After that, he wanted to pick up some textbooks for Scot. The kid had taught himself a bunch of programming languages, but he'd picked up some bad habits by learning everything online. He didn't want to point them out. He wanted Scot to own the knowledge. Dan knew he'd devour the textbooks if he left them lying around the RV. He smiled to himself—as long as he made them look used first.

  He went into the kitchen to make himself some coffee. Uh-oh. He'd forgotten he'd used the last of it before he left for Summer Lake. He checked the fridge—empty. Oh, well. He'd pick up coffee and pastries from the coffee shop in the lobby before he showered. He wasn't going to run around like an automaton doing whatever Olivia had programmed him to do anymore. He pulled on some sweatpants and a T-shirt and headed for the elevator.

  ***

  “So. We really need you on board, Danny.”

  He sat at his desk and stared at her. What had he ever seen in this woman? She was good looking. Kind of. Attractive might be a better word. But she was harsh, both her personality and her looks. Even her hair was cut in straight lines. There was nothing soft about her. He bit his lip to try to stop the smile that came at the thought. Nothing soft and round, like beautiful little Missy. Olivia must have thought the smile was for her.

  “So. You agree, then?” Her own smile was smug, not at all appealing.

  “No. I don't. I told you when you first raised the idea. I don't like Systech. I don't respect them. I don't respect their work. And I don't want anything to do with them. Why you chose to pursue it is beyond me. I will not work with them.”

  “You'll have to.” Now the smile was condescending. “When we merge with them, you'll have no choice. We need you to toe the line so it all goes smoothly, Danny.”

  “First of all, stop calling me that. Second, we are not merging with them.”

  “But we are. Had you bothered to come in yesterday, as I asked you, you would have been part of the discussion. But since you chose to hang out with your little friend instead, we went ahead without you. The decision is made.”

  “You have no authority to make any decisions about Prometheus, let alone something like this.” He was stunned by how out of control she'd gotten.”

  “I know that, Danny. But Steven and Corey do and they've agreed to it. With both of them on board, you're outvoted. The merger will go ahead.”

  How the hell had she talked them into it? Actually, he could imagine how. Steven was the weaker twin; he usually ended up doing what Olivia wanted. As for Corey, Dan had suspected for a while that Olivia had been using her 'charms' to win him over. It looked like she had succeeded. He needed to talk to them both—without Olivia around. She smiled at him as if she expected him to meekly accept her hijacking the company he and Steven had built from nothing.

  “I thought we could have dinner tonight. Just the two of us and, you know, celebrate.” She gave him what he supposed what meant to be a sexy look. It left him cold.

  “No, thank you. I told you on the phone. We're done.”

  “Don't sulk, darling. It'll all work out, you'll see.”

  He gave her a grim smile. “Oh, it'll work out alright.” Just not the way she was hoping. Dan stood and headed for the door. “Excuse me.” He left her staring after him and went in search of Steven.

  ***

  “Either you buy me out, or I sell my shares direct to Systech, then.” Dan couldn't believe what was happening. Steven was standing firm that merging with Systech was the right move. His sister apparently had some hold over him, but he was denying it. He had admitted that Olivia had been sleeping with Corey for weeks. The only feeling that aroused in Dan was disgust. While he and Missy had resisted temptation, while he had refused to even kiss a woman he really liked, Olivia had been screwing a guy she had often made fun of, calling him ugly and dorky, just to get the deal she wanted. He almost felt sorry for Corey. Almost. Except Corey was supposed to be his friend, and he had been screwing the woman who was still supposed to be his girlfriend.

  Steven was blinking at him through his thick glasses. “No! We do this together, Dan, like always.” He looked horrified.

  Dan shook his head sadly. “No. Not this. I don't know how Olivia is controlling you, or why you're letting her, but she's not controlling me. Not anymore. We always said we wouldn't merge with anyone. Not unless we both agreed. Now Corey and Olivia both have a say, but I didn't think that mattered, that it'd always be the two of us making the big decisions together. But this? Systech? You have to be kidding me? No way. If you're really committed to this then it's the end of the road. I'm done.”

  “You don't understand, Dan.”

  “Damned straight, I don't! And you're not going to tell me, are you?”

  “I can't.”

  Dan sat down opposite his old friend. “Steven, you can. Whatever she's got on you, you can tell me. We can work this out if we stick together, you and me, like we've always done.”

  “I wish we could Dan. But she's my sister, and our parents support her in this.”

  “In what? Will you at least tell me what this is all about?”

  “I can't.”

  “So you're telling me you're going to go ahead and merge with Systech?”

  Steven nodded.

  “Even though it will mean the end of our partnership?”

  He nodded again.

  “Okay, then. I'm out. Do you want to buy me out, go into the merger stronger? Or should I just sell to them?”

  “I'll have to ask Olivia.”

  “Jesus, Steven! Really? I'm done. We can handle this through attorneys.” Dan stood up. “And I'll be using Leanne.”

  “Leanne is the company attorney. Prometheus' attorney, not yours.”

  “We'll let her decide that, shall we? And I'll be keeping the name too. You won't need the Prometheus identity once you're taken over by Systech.” He didn't point out that Steven was losing his own identity as his sister took him over. Dan had been in danger of succumbing to that fate himself.

  ***

  Dan handed his keys to the valet.
It still amused him that the guys in the parking garage took it in turns to have a chance at driving his car. It was the one thing he was grateful to Olivia for. Without her encouragement, he would never in a million years have paid more for a car than many people paid for a house. The black Lamborghini had been his dream car as a kid. He'd had a poster of one on his side of the bedroom. Jack's side had been covered with football players, cheerleaders and city skylines, but Dan just had the Lamborghini. He'd told Olivia about it once, in an attempt to talk about himself and his childhood. All she'd been interested in was the fact that he liked an expensive, fast car. She'd insisted that he owed it to himself, to his image and to the company, to indulge his childhood dream. So he had. He still felt a little self-conscious about it, but he wouldn't deny he loved it.

  “You're home early, Mr. Dan.” The valet grinned as he took the keys.

  Dan returned the grin. “Yeah, it's time to shake things up a bit, Billy.”

  When he emerged from the elevator in the lobby, the concierge greeted him. “Afternoon, Mr. Dan, how's things?”

  “Changing for the better, I think, Herb. How about you?”

  “Doing great, son. It's good to see you smiling. I'd say a smile like that has something to do with a lady?” Herb raised an eyebrow.

  “Two ladies, Herb. Getting rid of one and hoping to get to know another.”

  “Well, damn, son! Good for you. Sorry to say it, but I never could warm to that Olivia.”

  Dan smiled. “I know. It took me way too long, but I finally understand why. I'm done with her. I'm free. I think it's going to cost me my business, but you know what? Even that may turn out to be a good thing.”

  “Cost you your business?”

  “Yeah, but that's okay. I can build another, or do something different.”

  Herb shook his head in wonder. “You're not like the rest of ’em, are you?”

  “I hope not, but I think for a while there, I was starting to be.” Dan noticed one of his neighbors enter the lobby. “Looks like you're about to get busy.”

  The lady was bustling toward the desk with a list in her hand. Herb rolled his eyes. “Wish me luck?”