Thalia Lake - Choosey Lovers Read online

  “It sounds like to me someone is fishing for reasons not to like this man. More importantly, what if you’re wrong? What if he’s like you and is just waiting for the right person to come along? And considering the line of work he’s in, don’t you think he has to have a bit of arrogance about him?” Alinna asked with a questioning eyebrow raised. Satra hated it when her friend was right, always being the voice of reason.

  Shaking her head of the thought, Satra said, “Whatever the case may be, I’ll be working with him and his business partner, so things will stay professional between us.”

  Alinna smirked at her friend. “Here you go fighting away any chance of happiness again,” she said as she sat back in her chair observing her friend.

  “Alinna, I don’t even know this man! We just met the other day, and now you have me married off with him? Just because I said his eyes were intense and sexy doesn’t mean he wants anything to do with me. Stop jumping to conclusions all the time.”

  Alinna threw her hands up in the air. “Okay, whatever you say. This man definitely got your panties in a bunch. I can’t wait to see him for myself.”

  Satra squinted at Alinna and shook her head. “You know how to get on a person’s nerves don’t you? You better be glad I love you, or else I’d smack you upside the head right now!”

  Alinna laughed. “I love you too, sweetie. Now let’s toast it up and celebrate!”

  They shared appetizers, and both had filet mignon for dinner with wine and dessert. Every bite of their food was delicious. Eddie had some of the best chefs in New York working at his restaurant. Eventually, Eddie did take a load off and joined them with his own plate and ate dinner with them. They laughed and talked and continued to celebrate. Satra saw the way Eddie and Alinna looked at each other. The longing in their eyes was so obvious.

  I just hope when I find my perfect match, I won’t be so stubborn to deny him, Satra sighed to herself as she watched Eddie and Alinna flirt with one another.

  Chapter Three

  Friday finally came, and Satra was in Grayson’s office on a conference call with Frank Di Amato. She wasn’t sure if Shane was in the office with Mr. Di Amato listening quietly. When she had to excuse herself to take an urgent phone call from another client, during her absence, Grayson informed Mr. Di Amato of his plans of sending Satra to South Carolina to Vandalay’s headquarters for a week to get the ball rolling with the buyout. Mr. Di Amato agreed, but he didn’t agree with Satra going alone.

  “I think Shane should go with her. This is his area of expertise, and I think she could use the backup if things take a turn for the worse. I don’t want Satra having to take on the anger of a bought out company by herself.”

  “I agree,” Grayson chimed in.

  “I’ll inform Shane that he’ll need to join Ms. Sinclair in South Carolina next week,” Mr. Di Amato added.

  Satra joined them again while they were discussing some other issues regarding their new partnership; nothing Satra really needed to hear but she stayed connected to the phone call out of respect for both gentlemen. When the phone call ended, she quickly shot her assistant an email, asking her to make her travel arrangements. She wanted to leave Sunday afternoon to give her time to settle in and prepare herself for long days at the Vandalay offices. She didn’t know what was in store for her, and she was also worried about being treated with hostility. She wasn’t sure if Vandalay was a diverse company, considering they were located in the south, but if they weren’t, they were in for some culture shock when she got there.

  Shane got the news from his boss that he’d have to spend a week in South Carolina with Satra, and he grunted in displeasure. It wasn’t the business trip that bothered him. It was being around temptation named Satra Sinclair. It was bad enough he wasn’t able to stop thinking about her since their business meeting. She intrigued him, and that’s something no woman has done in a very long time. He felt like he could’ve sat in that restaurant ‘till the wee hours of the morning just talking with her. Every topic they discussed, she was very knowledgeable of or had an interesting viewpoint on the subject. The cool, calm and collected demeanor he always had around women was all but out of the window when it came to Satra. However, he was determined to keep things professional as usual, no matter how attractive the person may be, when it came to work. The problem is, Satra wasn’t just attractive. She was stunning, physically and mentally, and she was the type of woman he’d been looking for. He would jump at the chance to get to know her on a much deeper level - if the circumstances were different.

  Shane had been accused of being a playboy, gay, conceited and a host of other things because he didn’t return certain business associates’ affections. While Shane was quick to squash a lot of the rubbish, he tried not to let it bother him too much. All he cared about was his reputation and his name. He refused to have it sullied with some scandalous office affair. Nothing good ever came of those. Keeping Sexy Satra Sinclair at arms-length was going to be his biggest challenge yet.

  ****

  Satra spent her weekend packing. Alinna came by Satra’s condo to hang out Saturday night, helping her pick out weather and business appropriate clothing for the trip.

  “Now what if you guys go out to dinner? I know you don’t think you’re going to get away with having room service every night! You need a few nice pieces for dinner too… like this pretty light blue halter and this cute little pink number,” Alinna said as she carefully laid the garments across Satra’s bed.

  “I dunno, Linna. The pink one seems a bit too sexy,” Satra said frowning.

  “The pink one is if it’s just you and Shane,” Alinna said winking at her friend naughtily.

  “No! Absolutely not! The last thing I need is for this man to think I’m trying to seduce him! I will not be like all the other women that I’m sure throw themselves at him. This is a business trip, and we will keep things businesslike and professional if that’s the last thing I do!” Satra said emphatically. “I shudder at the thought of him going back and telling Mr. Di Amato how I wore skimpy clothes around him and the two of them having a good laugh about it.”

  “I swear you need to lighten up sometimes,” Alinna said rolling her eyes.

  “You don’t understand, Alinna. We just partnered up with Di Amato, and this is the first business trip I’m taking with his very trusted business partner. I will not do anything to make them look at me in a different light. Not after all the work I put in to get the man to sign on with us. You have romance on the brain. I have business on the brain, and I need to keep it that way.”

  “You’re right. Stick to your boring sun dresses and what not,” Alinna said hanging the pink dress back in Satra’s closet.

  “Thank you. I’m hungry. Let’s order some pizza,” Satra said as she looked for her phone to place a delivery order.

  A half hour later they sat on her living room floor eating pepperoni pizza and drinking wine while watching old Carol Burnett re-runs, laughing until they had tears rolling down their faces. They could never get enough of watching those funny re-runs. If nothing else, it relaxed Satra and got her mind off of the trip. She was beginning to dread it, not so much because Shane would be joining her, but because of something that Mr. Di Amato said that stuck with her. The possibility of dealing with hostile VP’s and workers worried her. Not to mention the fact that this was the south and Vandalay was not the most diverse company. Their racism was more in your face, versus behind your back like it is up north. The last thing she wanted to do was to go off on some racist corporate redneck, but if push came to shove she would handle her business. One thing she did not stand for was disrespect from anyone regardless of their social status.

  “Please, God, let them act like they have some sense while I’m down there,” she quietly prayed. She couldn’t share her thoughts with Alinna because Alinna was such a militant that she had the NAACP and the local chapter of the Black Panthers on speed dial. She’d even go as far as book a ticket to go with Satra to South Ca
rolina just to make sure no foolishness would take place. Satra chuckled to herself, but it went unnoticed by Alinna. Alinna just thought she was laughing at Carol Burnett like she was.

  By 9:30pm, they had finished off the pizza and a second bottle of wine, so they called it a night.

  “Call me when you get there, okay?” Alinna said as she hugged her friend tightly.

  “I will. Love you,” Satra told her.

  Alinna smiled. “I love you more.”

  Satra’s flight was leaving at 9:00am, which meant she needed to be at the airport at 7. She figured she’d better get in the bed and get to sleep because she had a long week ahead of her.

  Satra’s flight was smooth. She was able to sleep through most of it, thanks to the cocktails she had before boarding the plane. She hated flying and was very afraid of heights. She knew the only way she could relax was to have a few cocktails. A limo was waiting for her to take her to the luxurious Hilton Hotel where her suite awaited her near the top floor. It was like heaven. Her feet sunk into the plush cream carpeting and she quickly kicked her sling back heels off to sink her toes into it. She immediately took off her traveling clothes and washed the makeup off of her face. She pulled out her favorite long white flowing skirt and a matching white tank top with silver gladiator sandals. She pulled her hair back into a tight ponytail and put on her big silver hoop earrings. She went out on her balcony with a bottled water to drink up a little sun and relax. It was so beautiful. The sky was so blue without a cloud in sight. There were groves of trees, some she recognized to be pecan trees, off in the distance. The air was filled with fragrant flowers of all kinds that were planted all around the hotel. She looked over her itinerary for Monday and went over the list of names of people that she was supposed to meet with. There were several meetings scheduled, but she hoped she didn’t have to attend all of them.

  This is going to be fun, she thought to herself sarcastically. She wasn’t in the mood for walking around or exploring the city, so she ordered her lunch through room service. A grilled chicken chipotle sandwich with a light pasta salad and a tall glass of ice-cold lemonade hit the spot for her. She turned on the TV and flipped through the channels before falling asleep on the couch. A half hour later, she woke up and realized she forgot to call Alinna to let her know that she had made it safely to South Carolina. They spoke briefly and then Satra crawled into her bed for more sleep. She thought about going to the hotel gym or pool, but at the moment, all she could think about was sleep.

  ****

  Shane took the afternoon flight that got him to South Carolina at 3pm. He was tired and was glad to see his hotel room. He took a shower and then had a quick nap before deciding on what he was going to do for dinner. He decided to try the hotel restaurant at the glowing review of the reservation clerk at the front desk. Shane decided to go casual and donned a pair of blue jeans, a crisp white dress shirt with the sleeves rolled up to his elbows and the first two buttons undone, and Dolce & Gabbana black leather loafers. He looked very refreshed and relaxed. He sat at a table towards the back of the restaurant that gave him a view of the lobby. Despite dining alone, something he was getting tired of doing on such a regular basis, he loved to people watch.

  Since he was in South Carolina, he decided to try some of their southern cuisines. He ordered smothered pork steak with rice and gravy and a side of fried okra.

  Anything smothered in gravy must be good,’ he thought to himself.

  There was a steady flow of people coming in and out of the hotel; families on vacation, while others, like himself, were in town for business. He looked forward to the day when he could be that family on vacation; the wife with two or three kids on a family fun vacation somewhere. He didn’t think about these things until he was alone, eating dinner by himself and staring at the happy families enjoying each other’s company. It made him smile, but it also made him feel all the more lonely.

  Shane hated the dating scene, and he detested going to bars to pick up women. He believed in meeting women the old-fashioned way and old fashioned dating. He has his parents and grandparents to thank for that. They imbedded it in him to be a gentleman, to treat a lady like a lady, and to get to know the person before you go to third base. In his college days, those words of wisdom fell on deaf ears from time to time, but later, when he was in serious relationships, he saw the value of their advice.

  Shane decided he needed some fresh air to clear his head before heading back to his room to rest up for the evening. He paid his bill and walked around the hotel grounds. It was a toasty evening, but there was a cool breeze coming from the west that cooled him off nicely. Admiring the landscaping of the hotel grounds as he was walking, he didn’t see the person walking directly in front of him. As he crashed into the person, he heard a startled “Oh.”

  A soft, womanly body crushed against his hard chest. His hands instinctively went to her bare arms, which were silky to the touch. His intent was to catch and steady her, but the minute he touched her skin, he felt that familiar electric zing. More importantly, he was taken aback by how soft her skin was. He wanted to caress every inch of it.

  “I’m so sorry. I should’ve been paying attention to where I was going,” he said as he looked down at the person. Her head was still down, so he couldn’t see her face right away. Then she spoke.

  “No, no, it’s totally my fault. I’m always…” Satra looked up, and her words trailed off. Her hands were braced on his chest and the papers she held fell to the ground. She felt hard muscles under her fingertips, which made her gasp silently. Their eyes widened at the same time.

  “Ms. Sinclair?” Shane asked surprised. Her hair was pulled back into a tight, neat ponytail. She had on a white tank top and a long flowing white skirt with silver thong sandals. Her toenails were polished hot pink. With one sweep of the eyes, Shane noticed every detail about her; like how beautiful she looked with no makeup on. She had a glow about her that took his breath away. He felt she looked even more beautiful and youthful now than she did when they first met.

  “Mr. Evans?” Satra finally said, finding her voice again. She noticed his beautiful lips turn up in one corner into a sexy, amused smile. Her insides melted. She also noticed his crisp white dress shirt with the first two buttons undone, showing off his tanned, muscled skin and dark curly chest hair.

  “Are you staying here too?” Satra managed to say with lips that were suddenly parched.

  His hands had grown very comfortable on her soft arms. He had to will himself not to caress them with his thumbs. It didn’t dawn on Shane until now how close they were standing to one another. He politely took a step back but kept his hold on her arms.

  “Yes, I am” he finally replied. “Are you okay? Did I hurt you?” Shane asked more concerned with her wellbeing. His eyes were searching hers, and Satra could see his concern.

  Giving a nervous chuckle, Satra said, “I’m fine. I was reading while walking… It’s a bad habit I have. I’m sorry. I should’ve been paying attention to where I was going.”

  Realizing that she had dropped her papers, Satra started to bend down to pick them up, but Shane beat her to it, gathered her papers and handed them to her.

  “Thank you,” she said softly.

  He stood there staring at her as she refused to meet his eyes again. Instead, she stared blindly at her papers, too scared to look into his eyes. In his eyes, she saw danger, excitement, warmth, tenderness... and lots of sexiness. Satra willed herself not to get curious. She refused to get sucked into the sexy world of Shane Evans. Shane, however, wanted her to look at him, to meet his gentle gaze. He wanted to get a close-up view of those beautiful eyes of hers. Finally, she shyly met his eyes, and they were warm and smiling at her. The flip-flops in her stomach became more intense, and she felt as if the temperature went up about twenty degrees.

  She began to fan herself with her papers. “So… when did you arrive?”

  “This afternoon. And you?” he asked casually in that sexy deep voice of h
is. It was insanely hot and humid outside, but Shane couldn’t help but wonder if he was the reason why she was so nervously fanning herself. He also felt as though the temperature rose a few notches since bumping into her.

  “Late morning. I couldn’t sleep, so I decided to take a walk. It’s hot, but a beautiful night,” she said as she looked around her.

  “It certainly is,” Shane said, his eyes never leaving her.

  She tried to ignore the extra meaning behind his words, but they definitely made her fan herself again with her papers as she met his gaze. He looked amused, and Satra wasn’t sure if she wanted to know what he found to be so amusing.

  “Well, I don’t want to hold you up, Mr. Evans…” Satra started, but Shane cut her off.

  “You’re not keeping me from anything, I was just taking an after dinner stroll. And please, call me Shane.”

  Let her go, let her go, let her go, is what Shane’s mind chanted to him over and over, but there was something in him that couldn’t let her go. He wanted to be around her a little longer. Then it came out. “Care to join me, Ms. Sinclair?” His tone was so alluring, and his smile melted what little resolve Satra had left.

  Good Lord, who could say no to that smile? Satra wondered.

  “Please, call me Satra, and yes, I’d like to join you... Shane.” Satra’s quick response surprised her. It was something about this man that drew her to him like a magnet. I bet all women feel this way about him. How couldn’t they not? Look at him; he’s gorgeous, charming, and sexy as hell! she thought to herself. She needed all the willpower she could muster to prevent from melting at this man’s feet.

  They both smiled and began a slow walk up a path that led to a magical looking garden area that had lights illuminating the path. Walking eased her nervousness a bit, and she stopped fanning herself. She began to feel stupid doing so anyway.