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She felt the crampingof her belly at that. She’d spent two nights agonizing over thepossible consequences.
“No.”
“Oh, Christ.”
“I’vealready beaten myself up.”
“I wasn’tgoing to add to it.” He rubbed his thumbs over the wetness onher cheeks. “We’ll cross that bridge when we get there.”He bolstered a smile. “Are you feeling better?”
“After thatcrying fit? I feel wonderful.”
He laughed softly.“How about that beer? I think you should crash here for thenight.”
“If I’mgoing to be drinking, I think that’s a good idea.”
“Let’s gointo the kitchen. I have those drafts that I want you to read. Whattime do you have to be at the restaurant tomorrow?”
“Aroundten. I want to start the decorators setting up for the masked party.”She followed him into the kitchen. “You’ll be there,right?”
“I wouldn’tmiss it for the world.” Setting her down on one of the stools,he went to get the case of beer from the fridge. “I have somecashew nuts that I picked up from the supermarket.”
“Good.”
She watched as hepoured the cashews into a bowl for them to share and then went to getthe rough draft he’d been working on. Before long, she realizedshe was feeling a whole lot better.
Caleb was relievedshe looked a lot less stressed than when she’d arrived. Hewanted to find the guy and bash his skull in. The bastard had pursuedher and taken what he wanted and then gone about his business. Hehoped to God that he was here when he came back from wherever thehell he’d gone to.
Chapter 8
It was good that therestaurant kept her so busy. Unlike her former job, the hours werelong and unpredictable. With the Thanksgiving deal coming up, she wasswept off her feet and required to deal with a number of things.
She got together withthe decorating team and met with the kitchen staff a number of timesto see the menu. Then there was the special treat for the children. Atrick-or-treat theme, complete with a scary 'haunted house' she’dcome up with.
The dazzling whitegazebo had been transformed to look like something out of a horrorfilm. She’d been specific about what she wanted the place tolook like, and the decorators had come through. Kelly had brought herson along with several of the other wives and their children.
It was done earlyenough so the children could enjoy the games and other items lined upfor them. The chef had prepared several goodies for them to eat aswell. It was a Halloween and Thanksgiving theme rolled into one, andit was a success.
Now it was time forthe party, or rather, the masked ball. It’d been three dayssince Kenji had left, and she was telling herself that she was overhim. She might still be in love with him, but she was putting itbehind her.
Kane hadn’tmentioned him or her indiscretion again. The fact he hadn’tfired her was somewhat of a blessing. She’d made a mistake andprayed there wouldn't be any consequences. She wasn’t the firstwoman to fall under a handsome rich man's spell and wouldn’t bethe last.
She was strong enoughto shake it off and continue with her life. It was done. There was nogoing back to change anything, and frankly, she wasn’t sure shewould want to. The lovemaking was something she could think about,pull out of her memory box and examine whenever she wanted.
It had beenexplosive, the passion searing, and she didn’t want to forgethow he’d made her feel. Unless he’d been faking it, he’denjoyed it as well.
"Quite a party."Caleb took her hand and led her over to the table overflowing withfinger foods and selected a plate.
"Thanks."
"You look likeyou need something to eat." He grinned at her, blue eyessearching her face.
"I’mfine," she assured him.
"Good to know."He wanted to ask her if she’d heard anything of the guy butdidn’t want to spoil the mood. Besides, if she had, he wouldhave been the first to know. "What color is the dress?"
She glanced down atthe clingy wool she was wearing and smiled slightly. "One of thethemes for the party is fall colors. I believe this is russet."
"Looks more likeburnt orange to me." He handed her a plate. "You’vebeen making the rounds, doing the hostess thing, and haven’ttouched anything remotely called food. Eat."
