Page 11 of Just A Little Chase

He cleared his throat and found his voice. “You didn’t give me much of a choice, did you?” he said, injecting a bit of humor in his tone.

Despite everything he’d put her through, Lauren’s eyes held a mischievous little sparkle. “You still could have said no, or made some excuse not to do it, but you didn’t. You’d better be careful, or else I’m going to think you’re actually a really nice guy beneath that grumpy façade of yours.”

With that sassy retort, she turned around and walked out of his office, leaving him with the tantalizing view of her hips swaying and her firm ass outlined in her fitted black pants… making him wonder what the hell he’d gotten himself into.

Chapter Four

“So, I think this is the last of the items left from the charity event,” Lauren said the following week, when Billie came by the Meridian to collect a box filled with Future Fast Track signs, posters, and other unused paper goods. “I could have had it couriered over to your office, instead of you coming by to pick it up.”

Billie grinned unabashedly. “I know, but if I’m being completely honest… I’m nosey and wanted to know what’s going on with you and Chase.”

Lauren paused for a moment. She wasn’t sure what Billie knew about any of her interactions with Chase and didn’t want to assume anything. “What do you mean?”

She chewed on her lower lip, her eyes glimmering with a hint of worry behind her black framed glasses. “Has he been in touch about how you’ll spend your weekend together?”

Throwing Chase under the bus by telling his half-sister that he’d initially tried to buy her off with an all-expense-paid weekend without him wouldn’t serve any purpose other than to disappoint Billie. Clearly, she adored her brother, despite his uptight personality, and all that mattered to Lauren was that he’d agreed to be her date to her sister’s wedding.

“So, you haven’t talked to him since the charity event?” Lauren asked instead.

Billie shook her head and absently ran her fingers along the edge of the cardboard box holding the nonprofit’s things. “I definitely thought about asking him, but I know my closed-off brother and knew I’d get a straighter answer from you, most likely. I mean, he made it pretty obvious up on that stage that being auctioned off was equivalent to having a root canal, and I’m just hoping that he didn’t totally turn you off with his brusque attitude.”

“Oh, he tried,” she admitted, and found herself grinning as she recalled her initial interaction with Chase at his office, and his unsuccessful attempts to dissuade her. “But we came to an understanding.”

“Yeah, I know he can be a little gruff,” Billie said with a wince. “Do you mind me asking… why did you bid on Chase, anyway?”

“Because I need a date to my sister’s wedding next month in Massachusetts and he was my last resort. Literally,” she added wryly. “I was expecting to bid on Neil Pierson.”

Billie’s eyes grew wide with shock. “Wow, he actually agreed to accompany you to a wedding for an entire weekend?”

Lauren laughed at the disbelief she heard in the other woman’s voice. “It took some convincing, but yes.”

“I’m glad you gave him a chance,” Billie said, her tone heartfelt, showing just how much she cared for her brother. “I know Chase has this whole standoffish vibe going on, but underneath that cantankerous demeanor, he’s really a solid, decent guy.”

“I know,” Lauren said, realizing she meant it. Because despite Chase’s initial reluctance, he had responded to how open—and yes, even vulnerable—she’d been with him about her situation, when a man without a heart would have still refused to fulfill his obligation. She’d also seen that soft spot he had for Billie, which spoke volumes, too.

“I’m actually glad you won him,” Billie admitted softly.

Lauren blinked at the other woman. “You are?”

She nodded and smiled. “I think you’ll be good for Chase.”

“In what way?” Lauren couldn’t help but be skeptical.

Billie absently tucked a strand of pink hair behind her ear and shrugged. “You’re not like the other shallow, superficial women he dates, which I know he does on purpose. It makes it easier for him to suppress his emotions and keep his distance.”

“Why?” Lauren asked, intrigued by this deeper insight to Chase.

“It’s… complicated.” Billie paused for a moment, as if trying to decide what to reveal. “I think he harbors a lot of anger over what our mother, Darlene, did to his father, and how she left Chase when he was just a young boy,” Billie said, her tone tinged with sadness. “And there’s definitely lingering resentment toward his dad, who kept things from Chase until his father was literally on his deathbed a few years ago, like the fact that I even existed.”

Lauren’s heart clenched in her chest. She couldn’t imagine how painful that revelation had been for Chase, not to mention being abandoned by his own mother.

“Anyway, the things he’d had to deal with…” Billie’s voice trailed off and she shook her head, as if realizing how much she’d divulged. “I’m just letting you know that Chase has valid reasons for his walls, for not letting people in or getting too close, and I would love to see him loosen up and enjoy life beyond work. I just want him to be happy. Really happy, you know? And you’ve got such a great attitude in general, you’re so upbeat and positive, how can he not respond to that?”

Clearly, this man had many layers, and while she appreciated the insight to his psyche, which explained a lot of his behavior, the last thing she wanted was for Billie to pin her hopes on Lauren, thinking she could magically cure Chase of a life that had clearly been filled with pain and disappointments.

“I’m not looking to fix him,” she said, though a part of her wished she had the ability to do so.

“I’m sorry,” Billie immediately apologized. “I didn’t mean it that way. I know that nobody is responsible for fixing Chase and his suppressed issues and emotions except Chase himself.” Then, she smiled as she picked up the box of things Lauren had packed up for her. “But I can’t deny the thought of you shaking up his nice, orderly world doesn’t give me a bit of hope that maybe, hopefully, he’ll walk away from this experience a better man who smiles more and frowns a whole lot less.”

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