Risky Negotiations (12 page)

”
No. I’m sorry, I can’t,” she said, frantically shaking her head. She kept pushing against his chest but he was just too big, too strong. Finally, she gave up and stared up at the ceiling. She could feel her face turning red with embarrassment.

He gently touched her cheek with one hand and his tone softened. “Laci, you’re making too bid a deal about tonight. You didn’t do anything wrong,” he said gently, one finger tracing her jaw-line. “This has nothing to do with work or unions or the law.”

That only made things worse. He was dismissing what he’d made her feel, telling her that it wasn’t such a monumental event. But he didn’t know that she’d never felt this way before. No man had ever stirred such passion within her that she’d lost control like she had tonight.

Laci shook her head. “I really need to go,” she said, closing her eyes as one tear escaped despite her best efforts at pushing them back. How could she be such a fool? She knew better. It was always dangerous to socialize with the opposition. And she had been about to have sex with him! How much ground had she lost? Would Jim ever find out? How could she face him tomorrow with Sal on the other side of the table? She didn’t think Sal would use this as leverage against the negotiations, but it would affect everything. She knew it would. Even casual drinks affected negotiations. How could this not?

“
I really need to go home,” she choked out and wished her voice didn’t shake with each word.

Sal sighed deeply, but relented. He sat up and helped her sit up. Laci immediately covered her breasts, searching for her bra and sweater. He found it first and the sight of her lacy bra draped delicately in his long, strong fingers almost made her want to forget all about work and throw herself back into his arms.

She grabbed the scrap of material instead, then turned her back on him as she secured the clasp. Quickly pulling her sweater over her head, she pulled her fingers through her hair in an effort to get the tangles out.

“
It won’t work,” he said, laughing softly. “You still look like a woman who has been made love to.”

Laci twirled back to face him. “But we didn’t…” she started.

“
We would have,” he said and took a step towards her, trapping her against the sofa as he pulled his shirt on over his shoulders and buttoned the small buttons. “And we will.”

Laci started to shake her head. “No I…”

But he put his hand on the back of her head and pulled her close for a hard kiss before stating flatly and emphatically, “We will.”

With that, he grabbed her hand and pulled her behind him. He grabbed his keys off the front entry table and walked out to the garage located beside the kitchen. “Get in,” he said and opened the door to his BMW.

“
I can get a cab,” she said, pulling away. “I know you have a family emergency.”

“
No, you aren’t getting a cab,” he said and moved behind her. “Get in,” he repeated and stood beside the door.

Laci didn’t want to challenge him so she just got in, staying as close to the passenger side door as possible, not wanting to touch him even accidentally. Her body was still throbbing from the passion he’d stirred within her earlier. Even though she was ashamed at how she’d put the negotiations at risk, she didn’t trust her body to not react to any touch of Sal’s right now. The feelings were too raw and she was still to overwhelmed to predict what might happen.

They drove in silence for about ten minutes before pulling up beside another huge house. This one was smaller than Sal’s house, but still considered a mansion by anyone’s standards. Sal came around the car and held her hand as she got out of the car.

“
I don’t want to get in the way,” she started out. “I’ll call a cab.” She couldn’t look at Sal as she got out.

Sal shook his head. “Stop it, Laci. You’re not taking a cab and that’s final,” he said and pulled her along behind him as he walked towards the front of the car. “If you’re that desperate to get away from me, take my car. I’ll take one of Carlo’s cars when they get back. Drive mine to the office tomorrow and I’ll get it from there.”

Laci tried pushing his keys away but he insisted. “If you won’t take my car, that only leads me to believe that you want to be with me for a little while longer. Very well, come on inside,” he said and grabbed her hand as he made his way closer to the front door.

Laci grabbed his keys and went around to the driver’s side. “Fine, but if I crash your car, don’t blame me,” she said, slipping into the soft leather seats and slamming the door closed. But she didn’t miss hearing his deep laugh before she did so.

Sal walked up the sidewalk and knocked on the front door of the beautiful house. She watched the door open up and Antonia smiled to him with Brent behind her. He waived to her as she drove off, wishing she had left several hours ago. She drove home as quickly as possible.

The next morning, she drove the car to his office and parked it in his private parking place. She met Jim upstairs in the conference room, unable to look him in the eye.

“
How was your weekend?” he asked, pulling files out of his briefcase.

“
Fine,” she said shortly, not wanting to go into any detail. How could she explain that she’d spent almost the whole weekend with the president of the company they were fighting against? Not the smartest career move she’d ever made, she thought to herself as she unpacked her briefcase. “How was yours?”

“
Quiet.” He looked across the table at her. “Is something wrong?” he asked, his eyes taking in the dark circles under here eyes.

“
No. Nothing’s wrong.” She sat down, waiting for James. Laci’s pencil tapped nervously against the polished wooden table for a few moments. Suddenly, she jumped up. “I’ll be right back,” and she walked out of the conference room, leaving her stunned partner behind.

“
Where are you going?” he called after her.

“
I’ll be right back,” she repeated, not bothering to answer his question as she left the conference room.

Laci walked as quickly as possible down the hallway, heading towards Sal’s office. She was slightly out of breath when she stood in front of Sal’s secretary. “These are for Sal.” She said, tossing the keys to Sal’s BMW onto her desk, then turning to leave before the secretary could ask her any questions.

Norma took the keys between her fingers, holding them up as if they were some sort of contaminated waste, her mouth slightly open in shock.

Laci walked quickly went back to the conference room were discussions were already under way between Matt and Jim. She sat down in her chair and tried to follow the discussion. Unfortunately, her mind was not on her work. She kept waiting for Sal to enter and ask about their progress. But the morning wore on and he never appeared. He never even acknowledged receiving the keys.

They broke for the day about four o’clock and Laci was grateful for the reprieve and the ability to escape from the unrelenting tension. Each time someone passed by the door, she jumped, expecting Sal to come in. But he never showed up, never even sent a message.

The next two days were the same. Laci barely slept and each day, she became more and more jumpy. During the nights, she’d remember laying in Sal’s arms, reliving each touch, each kiss, each caress and she agonized over the feelings just the memories stirred within her body. During the day, she jumped each time someone passed by the conference room door, assuming it was Sal who was going to stop in and request an update or just sit in on the discussion. By Wednesday, Jim was looking at her strangely and Laci didn’t blame him. She was acting strangely and her appearance was drawn. She knew she looked exhausted. During a break in the middle of Wednesday, Jim handed her a cup of coffee. “What’s going on?” he asked bluntly.

She took a long sip of the hot brew before answering. She couldn’t look him in the eye, sure he would be able to read the truth. “I’m not sure. Why?” She wondered if Jim would accept her evasiveness. Laci doubted it. Jim was not the type to accept half answers to anything.

“
Let’s see,” he said, raising his hand to count off the issues he’d noticed lately, “you’ve yet to give in on even the most benign issues over the past three days, you’re jumping at every sound and what’s worse, you look awful.”

Laci laughed at his no-holds-barred assessment of the situation. Leave it to Jim to cut right to the chase. “Well, thank you. I’m glad you appreciate my assets.”

Jim rolled his eyes. “You’re assets were never in question,” he said with a leer. Then he became serious. “What gives?’ I’ve never seen you this messed up. Usually, you’re on top of your game, ready to jump at the slightest sign of weakness. But the past few days, you seem obsessed about not showing any weakness yourself, plowing through the negotiations as if this were some sort of interrogation.”

Laci thought about how she should answer her friend and co-worker. She knew the truth was out of the question. But she had to give him some sort of reassurance on her physical and mental well-being. And she had to get a grip on the situation instead of just waiting for Sal to make the first move after their almost night of making love. Straightening her shoulders, she put down her coffee cup and turned towards the conference room doors. “You’re right, Jim. There’s something I need to finish,” Laci said softly but with determination in her tone. “If you’ll excuse me, I need to discuss something with Sal,”

Jim shook his head. “Feel free. And get Matt to give in on some of those health care issues. He’s being…”

Laci couldn’t hear him anymore as she walked quickly down the hallway.

She stepped into Sal’s office lobby and smiled to the stern faced Norma. “Is Sal in today?” she asked.

Norma shook her head but looked up from her computer. “I’m sorry, Mr. Attracelli is unavailable.”

Undaunted by her dismissal, Laci persisted, “Is he out of town?”

Norma pursed her lips, obviously not used to someone ignoring her not so subtle hints. “I’m sorry,” she said, turning to face Laci with a stern expression. “I’m not at liberty to give out information on Mr. Attracelli’s whereabouts. If you’d like to make an appointment, I’ll be happy to consult with his calendar.”

Laci wanted to roll her eyes at the woman’s militant expression but resisted the urge. She spotted a courtesy phone by the set of chairs. “May I use that phone for a moment?”

“
Of course. Just dial 9 to get an outside line,” she said and immediately turned back to her computer.

Laci dialed Victoria’s number. “Hi Vic. I’m trying to locate Sal. Have you or Thomas heard from him lately?” Laci ignored Norma’s outraged expression. She turned to look out the window as she listened to Victoria talk to her husband, obviously right next to her. She heard Norma’s cushioned soles leave the area and was grateful. Laci suspected that Norma was a dream assistant, but she was getting in Laci’s way and she needed to resolve this thing between her and Sal so she could stop being frightened that Sal was going to jump out and finish what they had started three days ago.

Victoria came back on the line. “Thomas said he left Antonia’s house but no one has heard from him.”

Laci hadn’t been concerned until that moment. “Is he traveling on business?”

“
No, Thomas would have known about it if he was. He knows his housekeeper is on vacation though.”

Laci noticed the keys sitting on Sal’s desk through the open door to his office. “I’m going to run over to his house. I’ll call you from there,” she said and hung up on her sister before some extremely pertinent questions were asked. Questions Laci didn’t have the answers to yet.

Laci didn’t even look around for Norma. She determinedly walked into Sal’s office, grabbed the keys she’d dropped off earlier in the week and left. She went back to the conference room and packed up her files, thankful that Jim had apparently already headed back to the office without her after their frustrating morning negotiating session.

Driving out to Sal’s house, Laci refused to acknowledge the issue of why she was so worried. Thankfully, she didn’t have to figure out the elaborate security system at the house since the front gate opened as soon as she pulled into the short driveway in front of the house. Obviously there was some sort of monitor in the car that automatically opened the gates and allowed her entry.

She pulled up to the front door and knocked, wondering what other sort of security system she’d have to get through. After a few more knocks, she bit her lip, genuinely worried now and not sure how to get inside to make sure Sal was okay. She knocked one more time as loud as she could, then stepped back and considered her options.

Looking at the car, she assumed she’d probably be able to park it in the garage easily. And maybe there was an open doorway from the garage to the house, she wondered.