Every Kiss by Tasha Ivey

financial decisions for the company.”
    “Oh,” I sigh, trying to grasp what it entails. “So what does
this company do?”
    She crooks her finger at me, and I follow her around to
another hallway. This one has framed photos of newspaper clippings, articles
from Time magazine, and even marketing style posters. “Mr. Fields and Mr.
Lehman started this company only eight years ago. They developed software that
large companies use to analyze financial data.” She pauses to tap on the
poster. “This is it. Accu-Trak. Within the first year after its release, they
made twenty million dollars. They were struggling with the boom when Mr. Baxter
came along, but after taking more than a few of his suggestions, Fields and
Lehman were sitting pretty. Since then, they’ve created specialized financial
and analytical products for brokerage firms and the bank industry. We’re
growing by leaps and bounds, and last year, we reported earnings more than four
times that of the first year.”
    “That’s impressive.” All this talk of obscene amounts of
money has my throat going dry. “Uh, may I have that water now, please?”
    “Absolutely, Miss Callie.” Her eyes brighten as she nods,
and then she disappears down another corridor. Nice woman. Definitely nothing
like the bitchy ice queen downstairs. Sandra returns almost immediately with a
chilled bottle of water and a napkin, patting my hand after she hands it to me.
“You just let me know if you need anything else, dear.”
    “Sure. Thanks.”
    Just as I’m twisting the lid off the top, the elevator doors
open. Shane is carrying a large bouquet of bright pink roses and still holding
the phone to his ear. “I’m here, so I’ll see you in a sec.” His smile is even
sunnier than normal, and I can imagine why.
    “Mr. Baxter,” Sandra addresses him. “It’s so nice to see you
again. I believe Makenna is just down the hall. Third office on the left.”
    “Thank you.” He pauses to kiss me on the cheek. “Hey, Cal.”
    “Hey, lover boy.” I wink. “Go get your girl and get outta
here. I know I’ll get the full report later.”
    “Maybe not the full report.” His chuckle trails off
as he rushes down the hall.
    Within minutes, Shane and Makenna are gone, excited to get
away and do only God knows what. And yes, I’m a little jealous. When the
elevator begins its descent, I look back at Sandra. She’s typing away, the
light click-click-click of the keys under her manicured nails is strangely
soothing. A ghost of a smile is on her lips, and I can’t decide if it’s just
normally plastered there for the sake of professionalism or if she’s affected
by the love in the air.
    “Callie.” He’s so close that I can feel his breath in my
hair. “You ready to get out of here?”
    “Whenever you are.” I stay rooted in place. Feeling him at
my back is more than intense enough for me.
    “Sandra, if O’Brian calls back, tell him we’ll resume our
discussion tomorrow. And I forwarded you a few emails with meeting changes, if
you don’t mind adjusting my schedule accordingly. And—”
    “Mr. Baxter,” she laughs, interrupting him. “Relax. Go enjoy
your evening.” Her eyes flash to me for a split second. “We can sit down in the
morning and go over everything.”
    He crosses the room and hugs her, something I’d never expect
to see. “Thanks for all your help today.”
    “Sure. That’s what I’m here for.” She pats his back. It’s
endearing, motherly.
    The entire walk to the parking lot is quiet, strangely so.
Like there’s something that needs to be said, but neither of us knows what’s
right. But right or not, I have something on my mind, and I’ve never been one
to keep it to myself.
    “I have to ask you something that’s nagging at me.”
    “Shoot.” He holds out his key fob and a new black, four-door
jeep lights up. I swear, he’s an enigma, surprising me at every turn. Even more
so when he goes to the passenger side to open the door for me.