Entangled To The CEO

Tasha’s [POV]

There is no neat way to eat barbecue, even when wearing an expensive silk blouse.

I hesitated at first, waiting until everyone else at the community center got a plate, but then it seemed odd and snobbish for me not to eat too.

Plus, the food smelled so good I was practically drooling.

Luckily, Rainer was eating his heaping plate near the food table while talking to Mr. Reynolds.

I watched him lick the thick, tangy sauce off his fingers until he caught my glance and smiled.

“Too spicy?” the woman next to me asked.

“The barbecue? No, it’s delicious,” I said. She turned to look at Rainer.

“Yeah, he is too,” she said. I recognized her as the front desk secretary of the community center.

“He’s my co-worker.”

“So was my husband, once. My name is Deanna Reynolds,” the woman said.

“You two still work together?” I hid my avid interest behind another bite of barbecue. Deanna smiled.

“We may only be a few yards from each other, but our work is different. That helps.”

For a moment, I imagined a day when I was only separated from Rainer by a few yards. Would it always be as easy and fun as today?

“You’ve got a little sauce on your chin,” Rainer said. He plucked the napkin from my lap and dabbed my face.

I was sure my cheeks were as red as the barbecue sauce by the time his gentle attentions were over.

“Luckily, this isn’t a date,” I said.

“Luckily?” Rainer asked. My cheeks burned.

“No. I mean, wolfing down barbecue is not the best way to impress other people.” His eyes sparkled, not letting me off the sharp hook of my embarrassment.

“Who are you trying to impress? Me, I’m impressed with a lady who’s not afraid to eat.”

“I’ll be impressed if we make it back to the office at all today,” I said.

It was meant to change the subject and steer it back toward work, but it made Deanna laugh. Rainer’s eyes widened, but he kept his smile cautious.

“Well, the preschoolers staked out the garden with popsicle sticks and yarn. The plans are coming together on GroGreen.

And everyone’s had at least two plates of barbecue. If you want to head back to the office, now’s as good a time as any.”

“You ready?” Mr. Reynolds called Rainer.

“I offered to help set up the hall for tonight’s event. It’ll only take a few minutes,” Rainer said.

I nodded and watched, speechless, as he rushed off to help the small community crew set up tables. His smile was different, wider, and easy.

Rainer joked with the men as they hauled the large tables into place. He had the amazing ability to charm anyone, but today it didn’t seem as smooth.

Rainer’s stylish suit coat was flung over a chair, his sleeves were rolled up, and his collar hanging open. More than that, his every movement seemed looser, more relaxed.

“This has been a nice break from your office, hasn’t it?” Deanna asked.

“He certainly seems to be enjoying himself. Or is he always like that?”

“He’s like that,” I said, “except a little more buttoned-up, a little more, I don’t know, corporate.

Our job is highly competitive, and his charm gives him an edge.” Deanna nodded.

“That’s why Alan left his office job. He didn’t like spending all his time jockeying for position. It always distracted him from the projects. Here he can accomplish something from start to finish and see it firsthand. Some men need that.”

I looked at Rainer again and thought Deanna had a good point. At Hyperion, the projects had a way of overlapping and blending.

It all amounted to lines of data in the end. That’s why a lot of the junior executives treated their jobs as a game.

They couldn’t see the results as concrete, or real, and so made a joke out of the whole thing.

I thought Rainer was the king of that, the leader of the good times, but now I wondered.

What if all Rainer needed was a project like this? Maybe it would curtail his playboy ways.

“From the looks of your plate, I’m going to say that’s a food coma,” Barbie said. She heaved herself onto the picnic bench next to me.

“Though, on second thought, I see what have you so distracted. Who’s that?”

“Barbie? What are you doing here?” I asked, blinking owlishly.

“You told me to stop by. You knew I couldn’t resist food.” My sister turned to Deanna.

“I ate lunch an hour ago, but that doesn’t seem to matter anymore. I’m starving.”

Deanna grinned at my sister’s rounded belly.

“I remember waking up in the middle of the night and having to raid the refrigerator when I was pregnant.” Barbie smiled.

“So, how long has she been staring at him? Are we going to have to get his number for her?” I swatted my sister’s arm.

“That’s Rainer Maxwell. My co-worker.” Deanna saw my sister’s slack-jawed reaction and stood up.

“How about I get you a plate? I’ll be back in a minute.”

“Rainer?” My sister asked and then let her jaw fall open again.

“As in, holiday party hunk, Rainer?”

“I never said that. I never called him that,” I hissed.

Barbie gave Rainer another long look.

“I can see why you fell for him. Wow. I thought you said he transferred or something.”

I shoved my plate away from me, dropped my elbows on the table, and laid my head in my hands.

“I said he wasn’t who I thought he was.” Barbie pried my hands away from my face.

“So, who is he?”

“The office playboy. The kind of guy who whispers all sorts of romance in your ear one night and then doesn’t remember your name the next day. He’s also the junior executive who horned his way onto my team just in time to catch the big bonus.”

“Gorgeous, rich, and a total scoundrel,” Barbie said.

“I better go introduce myself.” My sister was fast despite her pregnant belly, and I had to scramble to catch her arm.

“Why? You don’t need to meet him. Just enjoy your second lunch.” Barbie narrowed her eyes at me and twisted her arm free in one easy move.

“You might be all cool and professional, but I remember what you were like that Christmas. You glowed brighter than our Christmas tree. If he’s the one who sparked that in you and then snuffed it out, I’m going to give him a piece of my mind.”

“He didn’t snuff anything out, Barbie, please. Rainer’s just like all the other junior executives. Charming and cutthroat. Lazy until it comes time to take credit. You’ve heard me talk about work. Seriously. Do you think it’s a good idea for me to fall for anyone at my office?”

Barbie studied my face and then looked back at Rainer. She frowned. “I want him to be different. He seems different.” Rainer caught us looking at him and waved. He shook hands with the crew and then strode towards us.

“You must be Tasha’s sister,” Rainer said.

“Nice to meet you.” Barbie reached out to shake his hand, but I looped my arms around her shoulders and turned her away.

“My sister was just picking up something to eat on her way home. I’m going to walk her to her car.” Rainer looked hurt but erased the evidence with another bright smile.

Now, he looked more like the man I knew from the office. He even pulled on his suit coat and buttoned up his white shirt.

“Guess I better get back to work then.” Barbie glanced from him to me and back again.

“I hear you’ll be working over here in the East Bay for a while,” she said.

“Tasha will have to bring you by our house one of these days. We could have dinner.”

“Thank you. I’d like that,” Rainer said. “Let’s not make any plans yet,” I said.

“We’re not just here to have fun.” Rainer’s smile cooled.

“Speaking of work, Mr. Reynolds is ready for the final pitch. I’m going to walk him through the garden.”

“The garden?” I scoffed.

“It’s a lumpy patch of weeds.”

“Don’t worry, Ms. Nichols,” Rainer said, glancing at my high heels.

“I can handle it.” He smoothed down his shirt and buttoned up his suit coat.

Barbie and I watched him get out his phone as he met up with Mr. Reynolds in the parking lot.

It was enough of a transformation that even Barbie looked confused.

“See?” I asked. “He’s sweeping in to take all the credit. I’m the one who found this location and convinced them to let us come in the first place. And I did all the work on the app, which is the whole point of this whole thing.”

“So, what are you going to do?” Barbie asked. She too looked at my high heels. I kicked them off.

“I’m going along for the final pitch. I’m going to record him trying to take all the credit so I can play it for Stan.” “You’re going to tell on him?” Barbie asked.

“No. I’m just not going to let him get away with business as usual,” I said. Barbie watched me scoop up my high heels.

“I’d say this is anything but business as usual.” Across the parking lot, Rainer was giving me an inscrutable look.

I waved for him to wait for me, but all he did was throw his hands up in a gesture of irritation.

“See? What was all that about?” I asked Barbie. She sighed. “Maybe he was trying to be nice.” I gave her a quick kiss on the cheek.

“And that’s why I love you. You’re always trying to see the good in everyone.”

“He can’t have any good in him?” Barbie asked. It was my turn to sigh.Ccontent © exclusive by Nô/vel(D)ra/ma.Org.

“You don’t know the corporate world. It’s all smiles and backstabbing.” My sister looked skeptical, but she wished me luck anyway.

I waited while she waddled off to find Deanna and the rest of the barbecue, then I spun on my bare feet and marched over to the garden patch.

Both Rainer and Mr. Reynolds looked at my bare feet but then continued their conversation.

“I guarantee that your garden will have a personal touch because that is exactly what Hyperion needs. We need to prove that GroGreen is best used outside, in the garden. So, this is right where we’ll be.” Mr. Reynolds turned to me.

“I know publicity stunts always sound like a good idea, but are you sure?” I winced at the rough ground but covered it with a bright smile. Inside my suit pocket, I pressed record on my phone, certain Rainer would still try to take the credit.

“My team did not design GroGreen to be nothing but a game. We want to show what GroGreen makes possible.” Rainer caught my arm as I stepped on another sharp rock.

“Tasha here has the real vision. She’s been with GroGreen from the brainstorming stage. With her in the lead, you can be sure we’ll see all the possibilities her amazing application makes possible.”

I wrenched my arm free from Rainer. Did he know I was recording him or was he giving me the credit? Mr. Reynolds scratched his chin.

“Well, you’ve convinced me. I’m excited to see what you can do with this little patch of land, and I’ll make sure the whole community knows.”

I let Rainer do the rest of the hand-shaking and back-slapping as I carefully picked my way out of the rough dirt.

He caught up to me at my car as I opened the passenger side door and sat down to rub the soles of my scuffed feet. Rainer knelt in front of me.

“Good work out there. This is going to be something.”

“Glad I could be part of it,” I snapped. He grabbed my high heels out of my hands and held them out of my reach.

“I was trying to be chivalrous. No one expected you to traipse through the garden in these.” I tried to refuse, but Rainer insisted on slipping my shoes back on my feet.

All I could do was ignore his remark about chivalry and keep my eyes off his wide shoulders.

Rainer’s strong hands were gentle as he cupped my ankle and tucked my toes into one high heel.

“Let me guess: you’re just being nice because you’re about to jet off early. Some party over in the city?”

Rainer paused my second shoe still in his hands. He knelt on the ground and shook his head at me.

“Not at all. I thought we still had enough time to check out this native plant nursery one of the crew guys mentioned. It might look good if we sourced plants from local businesses.” I let him slip on my other shoe without a fight.

“The nursery’s in my neighborhood.”

“Good,” Rainer said.

“I’ll follow you to your place.”

“My place?” I asked sharply. I stood up, still only reaching his chin despite my high heels. Rainer’s eyes swept down me and back up before he smiled.

“Just thought you might want to change your shoes.” I could have lost him in the curves and dead-end streets of my hilly neighborhood, but Rainer’s new sports car was too fast.

He popped out on the street in front of my condo and stood with his hands on his hips.

“I can see the Golden Gate Bridge,” he called.