No Strings... (Harlequin Blaze)

chapter 2



CHLOE SAT DOWN in one of the plush seats in front of Richard Perry’s large glass-topped desk, and Aiden settled into the chair next to hers, while their boss regarded them both with an unreadable expression.

A nearly tangible tension vibrated in the air between her and Aiden. There was so much at stake, for the both of them, and she reminded herself that confidence, sprinkled with a large dose of fortitude, was the key to getting what she wanted. That way of thinking had served her well for most of her adult life, and certainly during her career as an advertising executive.

If she didn’t count her horrible lapse in judgment with her ex-fiancé, Neil, four years ago that had nearly cost her everything, personally and professionally, and made her realize that she wasn’t so different from her mother after all. That despite the goals she’d set for herself and her vow to never let a man control her life and decisions, she’d failed miserably. Her screwed-up relationship with Neil made it abundantly clear that her judgment when it came to men sucked.

But unlike her mother, she refused to make the same mistake twice. Dropping her guard and allowing herself to get involved with a man on an emotional level was no longer an option for her. Now she put all her time and energy into her career, which fulfilled her in all the ways that mattered—except one. But for those times when she had a sexual itch to scratch, well, that’s where friends with benefits came in handy. It was an arrangement that worked well for all involved, but mostly, for her. No mess, no fuss, and nothing to interfere with her main pursuit of climbing the corporate ladder straight to the top.

And right now, there was only one thing standing in the way of her stepping up another rung and getting the St. Raphael account—Aiden Landry, the man who’d also been called to Perry’s office. But she’d just proven her worth to Perry that morning, and hopefully her ability to completely overhaul a company’s advertising and marketing plan was still fresh in his mind and would provide her an advantage over Aiden.

That was her hope, anyways, but she had to admit it was a bit unsettling to be sitting right next to her biggest competition in the firm, a guy who wanted this account just as badly as she did. Only one of them would get the job, and a quick glance at Aiden told her that he had that confident look about him, too—backed by an impressive amount of determination.

Refusing to be the least bit intimidated, she gathered her composure, crossed her legs, clasped her hands in her lap and waited for their boss, a distinguished-looking man in his early sixties, to address them.

“I’m sure you’re wondering why you’re both here,” Richard Perry said a moment later as he glanced from Aiden, to her, direct and businesslike. “And I’m not going to drag this out any longer than necessary. Bottom line, the partners and I couldn’t decide which one of you deserved the St. Raphael account more. You’re both incredibly innovative and have outstanding success rates with your current accounts. Since there is so much riding on this campaign, in this instance we’ve decided that two creative minds will give the firm a better advantage, than one.”

Chloe was so taken aback by Richard’s announcement that she didn’t know what to say. All the hopes she’d harbored in regards to her career and a big promotion dwindled in that moment.

Aiden didn’t seem thrilled about the new arrangement, either, not when they’d been expecting a solo mission. “So, we’ll be working together on the St. Raphael account?” he asked, a cautious note to his voice.

“No, you’ll be working separately, in lead positions,” Richard clarified as he reclined in his leather chair, looking completely at ease even though he’d just delivered a one-two punch to her and Aiden. “You’ll each be assigned your own marketing team to help you with your campaign, and you’ll each give the client a full presentation, along with a complete advertising and promotional package geared toward developing the resort’s matchmaking brand. They’re open to restructuring their activities at the resort to make the social interaction between couples more appealing, and they’d like to see ways to increase their profit margin, while still giving their targeted consumer a great overall experience.”

Oh, wow. The project was huge and complex, and clearly Perry wanted to see which one of them could better deal with the stress and mental challenge of such an enormous task—the same kind of pressures that would face a senior executive. Chloe was more than capable of handling the assignment, and although the man sitting next to her was equally qualified, she wasn’t going to let that fact mess with her head.

Richard steepled his fingers in front of him, and continued, “I think it will be interesting to have two separate campaigns for this particular client, one from a female perspective, and one from a male perspective. But you both also need to be aware that there is another ad agency that will be vying for the resort’s account, which makes it all the more important that the two of you come up with some kind of unique marketing twist to your presentations to edge out the rival company. Two separate campaigns from each of you gives our firm twice the advantage, however, only one of you will be awarded the account, based on which, if any, campaign the client chooses.”

So, in essence, she and Aiden were being dealt a double whammy. Not only were they in competition with each other, they also had the added competition of another agency soliciting the account, as well.

Curious to know what Aiden thought of this new twist, Chloe cast him a quick, sidelong glance. The man was good at hiding his emotions. His poker face gave her no indication of how he was feeling about the two of them being directly pitted against one another, and she supposed he was smart not to give her any kind of advantage, just as she had no intention of letting her own frustration show.

“In order to create the best presentation and campaign possible, you’ve both been invited to St. Raphael to experience the resort’s amenities and atmosphere for yourselves,” Richard said as he reached for a butterscotch drop in the crystal bowl on his desk—his favorite type of hard candy he usually grazed on in the afternoon as a sweet treat. He unwrapped the confection and slipped it into his mouth, sucking on the candy for a few seconds before speaking again.

“Fully immersing yourself in the experience will give you a better idea of what works, what doesn’t and what the resort needs to change or elevate in terms of quality, service and overall customer satisfaction.”

Aiden rubbed a hand along his tense jaw. “So, you want us to go through the matchmaking process along with everyone else registered at the resort?” he asked their boss.

“Just go through the motions, Landry,” Perry said with a casual wave of his hand. “You’re not there to find the love of your life, but you can’t create an effective campaign without knowing what you’re up against. In this case, there are millions of dollars on the line. The other firm’s executives will be there, as well, so I trust that you both can handle the situation and what you’re required to do?”

Perry’s request was more of a subtle challenge than a question, and Chloe wasn’t about to voice her own aversion to mingling with other desperate singles and risk being replaced by another hungry ad executive who’d kill to have the opportunity she was being given. This wouldn’t be the first time she’d stepped into the dirty trenches to get the job done, and if she had to endure organized activities, fend off unwanted advances and make small talk with men who’d been deemed compatible for her, well, then, she was willing to suffer for her career.

“Absolutely, Mr. Perry,” she said in a tone as unwavering as her commitment to the firm, and the campaign.

Aiden’s reply was just as resolute. “Yes, sir.”

“Good.” Richard gave a curt nod, pleased to have them both on board. “You’ll be leaving a week from Monday, so make sure you have all your other accounts covered before you go. Good luck to both of you.”

With that, Perry let them go, and she and Aiden walked in silence back toward the outer offices. As soon as they stepped through the double glass doors, Chloe came to a stop and so did Aiden, both of them still processing everything that had just happened back in Richard’s office.

Aiden gave his head a hard shake. “I didn’t see that coming,” he muttered.

“Me, either,” she agreed. She’d anticipated that one of them would have been celebrating right now, preferably her. Instead, there was another firm involved and she and Aiden were now adversaries of sorts, each one of them motivated to do whatever might be necessary to create the winning campaign and outshine the other, while spending a week together at a matchmaking resort.

While they’d always had a great working relationship, they’d never been set against one another, and she hated to think that their drive and ambition to secure this client, and the generous bonus, might ruin their friendly rapport.

She glanced up at Aiden, meeting his vivid gaze, momentarily struck by how mesmerizing those blue orbs could be. “Promise me something?” she blurted out, before she could think better of what she was about to ask. Or why it was so important to her. It just was.

“Sure,” he said, taking her request very seriously.

Exhaling a deep breath, she put her concerns out in the open before she changed her mind. “Promise me when everything is said and done, if one of us ultimately gets the St. Raphael account, it won’t change our working relationship. Or our friendship,” she added, because she definitely considered him that, too.

He tipped his head, a reassuring smile on his lips. “You should know by now that I don’t operate that way, or hold professional grudges.”

She knew that to be true, but his words relieved her, anyway. “I don’t, either,” she said, and allowed a sassy grin to surface, as well as her competitive nature. “But I hate to see a grown man cry, and I’m sure you’ll be reduced to tears when I’m awarded the campaign.”

Aiden chuckled, clearly amused with her prediction. “Chloe, Chloe, Chloe,” he chided in a deep voice as smooth as aged whiskey, and just as intoxicating. “Just for the record, I have absolutely no intention of losing, to the other firm, or to you.”

Now this, a direct challenge, she could handle. “We could spend the rest of the night arguing over that, but let’s make this short and simple. May the best woman win.” She extended her hand toward him.

His much larger hand engulfed hers in a sensual warmth that traveled all the way up her arm, and he leaned in close, his eyes dancing with his own brand of wit and daring. “With the emphasis on man, though I’m sure it’ll be a fight to the finish.”

She withdrew her hand from his, doing her best to ignore the heat and awareness his touch had so effortlessly aroused in her. “Oh, yeah, you can count on that.”

Game on.

* * *

“SO, WHAT BRINGS YOU to my neck of the woods?” Sam Landry, Aiden’s younger brother by two years, eyed him curiously across the scarred wooden table where they were seated at McGann’s Pub in downtown Boston. “Don’t you usually spend your Friday evenings at that fancy Executive Bar where you work, schmoozing with colleagues?”

Aiden grinned at Sam’s exaggerated description as he lifted his cold bottle of Guinness to his lips for a drink, enjoying the taste of the dark, rich stout. His brother, a P.I., never missed an opportunity to rib Aiden about his white-collar profession, especially since it was such a departure from the proud family tradition.

Their grandfather had been a decorated cop for the Boston Police Department, then their father, Jack, followed by Sam—until his brother had been shot on the job and the injury had forced him to reevaluate his career and future. Even though Sam no longer worked for BPD, he was still entrenched in the business as a private investigator who often used his past connections with the force to help him in the current cases he worked on.

Everyone had assumed that Aiden would carry the same torch for justice and head off to the police academy once he graduated college. Instead, he’d shocked everyone when he made the decision to major in advertising and marketing over criminal justice his junior year. The big difference between him and Sam was that Aiden loved the creative aspect of his career, while his brother preferred the constant movement of chasing bad guys and the unexpected twists that came with detective work.

While Aiden’s parents had always been supportive about his choice of job and his accomplishments, he knew he’d initially disappointed his father by venturing outside the realm of law enforcement. And being the so-called black sheep who’d strayed from family expectations, it made him an easy target for his brother’s good-natured needling, which he’d grown used to.

Aiden set his bottle of beer back on the table and shot Sam a halfhearted look of irritation. “Do you always have to give me shit because I sometimes prefer a good beer over aged Scotch and want to visit with you?”

“Yeah, I do, because it doesn’t happen often,” his brother answered, his gaze flickering with amusement. “I gotta get my licks in where I can.”

Aiden just shook his head, because despite their differences in personality and profession, and his brother’s penchant for busting his chops, he and Sam had always been close. Aiden, being the firstborn, was far more serious than his carefree, easygoing sibling, but there was no denying that beyond the bond of being brothers, they were also best friends. And now, with their parents retired and living in Florida, he appreciated his relationship with Sam even more.

The truth was, after today’s shake-up at the office, Aiden just wanted to relax and unwind, without the added pressure of smiling and laughing with colleagues when he wasn’t in the mood. He’d even promised Chloe a drink to celebrate her new account with Organic Kitty, but he’d have to make it up to her another time. She was another distraction he didn’t want to deal with tonight, not when he was still trying to process the fact that they’d gone from being coworkers to rivals vying for the same account.

“Whatever is bugging you, get it off your chest already,” Sam said, pulling him out of his thoughts. “That brooding look is going to scare off the women. Oh, wait, your uptight business suit already did that.” He smirked.

Aiden laughed, giving his brother the reaction he’d been angling for. True, he stood out in a place where the dress code was jeans and T-shirt casual, which was all Sam ever wore. “Then it’s a good thing I’m not here to pick up women.”

“Yeah, well, you’re cramping my style,” Sam grumbled, and gazed longingly at two pretty females sitting a few tables away who were giving Sam an equally interested look. Leaning forward in his seat, Aiden braced his arms on the table, figuring it might help to talk to Sam about what had happened today at the office, as he’d suggested. “Actually, I have some news I need to get off my chest. Do you remember me telling you about the big account I was hoping to get?”

Sam thought for a moment, then asked, “The one for that singles, matchmaking resort?”

Aiden nodded. “Yeah, that’s the one.”

“Are we here to celebrate?” Sam asked hopefully, already tipping his beer for a premature toast.

“No, not yet.” Aiden released a heavy sigh. “I found out today that not only is another ad firm vying for the job, but Perry decided to assign Chloe and I to the account. Not to work together, but to come up with separate campaigns for the resort. He wants a male and female perspective. Whoever’s campaign the client chooses will be awarded the account.”

Sam’s eyes widened in surprise. “So you have to compete directly against Chloe for the account?”

“Yep.” His troubled tone echoed the way he felt about the entire situation.

Over the past two years of working at Perry & Associates, Aiden had spoken about Chloe numerous times to Sam, saying how much he respected her as a colleague. His brother had also met and talked to—or rather flirted with—Chloe the one and only time Sam had stopped by the Executive Bar to have a drink with Aiden, so Sam was familiar enough with their working relationship to know just how bothered Aiden was that the two of them were now adversaries. However, Aiden had promised Chloe that he wouldn’t let this campaign ruin their friendship, and he was determined to make sure he held true to their pact.

“I’m sorry, bro.” Sam gave a sympathetic shake of his head. “That plain sucks.”

“Tell me about it.” Aiden finished off his beer, and if he didn’t have to get in a car and drive, he would have ordered a double scotch. He certainly needed one.

They sat in silence for a few minutes, the Friday night crowd in McGann’s growing louder as the bar filled up with patrons. Women walked by in skimpy outfits, giving both him and his brother a lingering glance that made it clear they were more than interested in a good time, but Aiden wasn’t. When he glanced across the table at Sam, there was no mistaking the sly grin on his lips and the mischievous look in his eyes.

Aiden narrowed his gaze, wondering what his brother found so amusing. “What?”

“You’re not going to let a girl win, are you?” Sam asked, an all too familiar taunting note to his voice. It was the same one he’d used to goad Aiden into doing things he shouldn’t, all throughout their childhood.

“Hell, no.” Aiden considered himself a gentleman, but this was a competition between two coworkers, and all bets were off. Girl or no, his kick-ass campaign was going to earn him the St. Raphael account.

“Good.” Despite Sam’s succinct tone, his lips were still twitching with mirth. “I don’t want you to go all soft because your competition is smoking hot and lust is clouding your feeble brain.”

Aiden blinked in shock at his brother. “Excuse me?” What the hell did Sam know about his attraction to Chloe?

“Oh, come on, Aiden,” Sam said with a laugh as he tipped his chair back on its hind legs. “I’m not deaf, dumb or blind. I only saw the two of you together once, at that highbrow bar of yours, and the chemistry between the two of you was pretty damn obvious.”

Aiden shrugged off his brother’s claim. “It’s just a friendly flirtation.”

Sam lifted a dubious brow. “Except for the way you stared at her ass when she walked away from our table. I can guarantee that the thoughts in your head involving that sweet backside of hers were indecent and downright kinky.”

He shrugged and didn’t even try to deny the truth. “She’s got a great ass. So sue me for appreciating all its finer qualities.”

A wide grin curved Sam’s mouth. “Good to know your libido isn’t dead. I was starting to worry.”

“My sex drive is fine, thank you very much.” But Aiden had to admit he hadn’t seen much action lately, by his own choice. His main focus was his job, and ultimately grabbing the brass ring of opening his own ad agency in the near future. And in order to achieve that goal, he had to win the account.

“So how long are you going to resist the attraction between you and Chloe?” Sam asked, as persistent and pushy as ever. “I got the impression if you made a move, she could be easily persuaded.”

For Sam, being with a woman was that simple. Not so much for Aiden. “We’re both professionals, working for the same ad agency, and we’re not going to risk our careers for sex.”

Sam rolled his eyes dramatically. “Jesus, Aiden, who says you have to risk anything? It’s just feel-good sex, not a lifetime commitment. Besides, the risk of getting caught could give the affair an added element of excitement.”

That’s exactly how Sam operated...getting laid was all about having a good time without any strings attached. It hadn’t always been that way, and while Aiden understood his brother’s perspective on sex and women and keeping his emotions out of the equation, Aiden’s views were much different, despite his ex-wife’s betrayal. He’d never been the love ’em and leave ’em type, and that hadn’t changed after his divorce. If anything, he’d become more discriminating when it came to women and relationships. And yeah, sex, too.

“Don’t you ever want something more than just a string of one-night stands?” Aiden asked his brother.

Sam gaped at him, as if he’d spoken blasphemy. “You’re kidding me, right? We both thought we had something more, and look how well that turned out for us.”

Not well at all. “Okay, point taken,” Aiden said. Being burned by a woman had left Sam jaded and uneasy about trusting again. But even though Aiden’s marriage had been less than ideal, he liked to believe that there was a woman out there for him. But he knew that Chloe wasn’t that woman. She was too career-oriented to be anything more than a passing affair. And even that wasn’t an option for him.

“Hey, Sam,” a soft feminine voice called out, pulling Aiden out of his thoughts.

One of the women that had been sitting a few tables away now stood in front of them, gazing down at Sam with a sultry smile on her lips while her fingers lightly touched his shoulder. She was young and pretty, and wore a tight-fitting dress that accentuated all her best assets. She had Sam’s full attention.

“Denise and I were wondering if you and your friend wanted to join us?” She bit her lip seductively as she glanced briefly at Aiden, then back at Sam again. “We can pull up an extra chair or two, if you’d like.”

“I’d love to, Carol,” Sam looked at Aiden, his raised brow silently asking if he was going to accompany them.

This was Sam’s scene, not Aiden’s. He shook his head and tried to appear regretful. “Thanks for the invite, but I need to get going.”

“Okay,” Carol said, not at all disappointed, since clearly it was Sam she wanted. “We’ll save a seat for you, Sam.” She sashayed back to her table, a deliberate sway to her hips—all for Sam’s benefit, which he openly enjoyed.

Aiden chuckled and stood up, along with his brother. “Looks like someone’s getting lucky tonight.”

“Jealous?” Sam grinned.

Pulling out his wallet, Aiden tossed enough cash on the table to cover their drinks and leave a decent tip. “Not at all,” he said, meaning it. “By the way, just so you know, I’ll be leaving next Monday for the Bahamas, where the St. Raphael resort is located.”

“Is Chloe going, too?”

“Yes, we’re both going.” He tucked his wallet back into his pocket, and knowing exactly what his brother was thinking, Aiden attempted to cut him off at the pass. “It’s a business trip, Sam.”

“Which also presents the perfect opportunity for the two of you to take advantage of your attraction, in a place where no one would ever be the wiser.” Sam waggled his brows suggestively.

“Not gonna happen.”

Sam released an exasperated sigh. “You know what your problem is? You’re way too uptight. And you’ve been that way since your divorce.”

“I’m not uptight. I’m careful and discreet.”

“Like I said. You’re uptight.” Sam slapped him on the back in brotherly camaraderie. “Loosen up and live a little, bro. You might be surprised how much fun you can have when you’re not being so damned serious.”

With that bit of advice, his brother walked away, leaving Aiden to ponder the wisdom of Sam’s comments. Or the lack thereof.