Romantic Acquisition Page 0,18

start working on the problems.

Kate looked at her desk, or, more specifically, the pile of papers and fabric samples that covered it. There were some issues only she could make decisions on and she needed a few days to review them. She wondered if she could stay in here and go through the papers covering her desk. Would Jeff or Peter mind?

She suspected that they wouldn’t, but she didn’t want to challenge Carlo. Kate didn’t think Carlo would appreciate her abandoning him and his team, not even for a short period. She settled for sorting the papers and making neat stacks. Once that was done and she was able to see the top of her desk in some spots, she then took the urgent issues with her back to the conference room to review. She hoped she’d be able to work on some of them before Jeff or Peter needed more information.

The afternoon went by quickly. Jeff and Peter were able to work without her for a few hours so she settled into her office and went through her papers.

She didn’t realize how late it was until she heard the deep voice from her doorway.

“What are you still doing here?” Carlo asked, one shoulder leaning against the doorway, his arms crossed over his chest.

Kate looked up and swallowed. He was so incredibly handsome, she thought. He looked like he should be on the cover of some body building magazine with those bulging muscles that were evident even through his perfectly tailored suit.

“Um…” Had he been that handsome the day before? He was wearing a charcoal grey suit and a red silk tie. Usually she liked men with a little more flair and color to their wardrobe but she had to admit that Carlo could definitely fill out a boring business suit with his muscular physique.

“Are you okay?” he asked, walking into the office to stand right in front of her desk.

Kate cleared her mind of her silly attraction. “Yes. I’m sorry. I just needed to get some work done.” She looked down at her desk, unable to hold his gaze. “Was there something you needed? I think I might have been neglecting Jeff and Peter but I wasn’t trying to. They both said they had what they needed but if they are looking for something, I’ll get it immediately….”

She stopped when she realized she was rambling. The silence was deafening. She let out a deep breath and finally raised her eyes to meet his.

He’d been standing there the whole time, waiting for her to finally look at him. “What’s wrong, Kate?”

“Nothing,” she said, wishing that were true.

He didn’t say anything, just raised his eyebrow as she was getting used to after three weeks. The look spoke volumes.

“You make me nervous,” she said, dropping the papers on her desk and leaning back in her chair, her shoulders sagging in defeat.

“Why?” he asked, leaning over her desk.

“Because I’m afraid you’re going to kiss me again,” she whispered.

“I am.”

David interrupted their quiet conversation. “Katherine, where in the world did you put the latest sheets….” He stopped when he realized she wasn’t alone in her office. “Hello, Carlo. I wasn’t expecting you here. I knew Kate was trying to catch up on things but I thought you’re team had left.”

Carlo stood up and smiled casually at the other man. “I was just leaving.” He turned to face Kate. “I’ll see you in the morning?” he asked. He only waited for her nod before turning to leave.

David handed some letters to Kate. “Can you clear up this issue? It appears that something is missing with the latest delivery,” he said. “How are things going otherwise? I heard there were some problems with the Kerry Jones line that you purchased last season.”

It took Kate a half hour to calm David down and explain how the various fashion lines work. She had already had this discussion with him several times, but he seemed slightly more confrontational tonight for some reason.

It was almost ten o’clock when she left the building. She smiled at the security guard who was walking through the parking lot. She remembered the previous evening when Carlo had driven her home and she shivered, half wishing she could repeat the evening just so she could experience his kiss again.

Kate pushed that thought aside. Wishing for something like that was too dangerous.

Thursday and Friday were a blur. She worked long hours with Jeff and Peter answering their questions, researching issues or finding reports for each of