Jackie Braun - After the Party

The door closed behind him with a thud. Elliot stared at it, frowning. When he glanced back at Ella, he seemed perplexed.

“Why are you here again?”

“Your party,” she said slowly.

Elliot continued to frown. About the time she became uncomfortable, he grinned and his expression turned impish.

“Wake, you mean. Let’s call it what it is.”

* * *

Muffled laughter, both masculine and feminine, greeted Chase when he stepped off the elevator.

The sounds emanated from his uncle’s office. Elliot’s laugh brought a smile to Chase’s lips. No one—whether child or adult—was proof against the man’s booming guffaw. The feminine laugh, however, had a different effect on Chase since he had a pretty good idea to whom it belonged.

Ella Sanborn.

She’d been on his mind a lot the past few days. She’d starred in one very explicit dream over the weekend, although that wasn’t the reason he’d nearly called her. He needed to speak to her about a matter that had nothing to do with thigh-high black silk stockings and a lace-edged push-up bra.

With the board’s official vote looming, the party his uncle had her planning had the potential to blow up in all of their faces. In the meantime, Ella was privy to some information that Chase would prefer she didn’t share with anyone...especially the media.

As he approached his uncle’s door, it opened and both occupants stepped out.

“I can’t wait to see the changes to the invitation,” his uncle said before turning to his secretary. “Marlene, did you finish that guest list I asked you to compile?”

“Yes.” The ever-efficient secretary pulled out a large envelope and handed it to him. “Here is a hard copy, and I’ve already sent the file to Ms. Sanborn’s email address.”

“Excellent. Thank you. Reward yourself with some chocolate drops.”

Candy-coated chocolate drops were a staple at the Trumbull Toys headquarters, and Elliot was liberal in doling them out for jobs well done. Marlene, however, remained sober-faced. Chase knew his presence, rather than any concerns over her diet, was the reason. He was a wet blanket, his appearance in a room all that was necessary to dampen the occupants’ enjoyment.

His gaze skimmed Ella then. She looked fresh, lovely...fun. Not exactly professional in those sexy high heels, but definitely approachable. She turned then and caught sight of him. Her smile was reserved but nonetheless lethal, and caused a knot to form in his stomach.

“Hello, Chase.”

When his tongue threatened to tie into a knot similar to the one in his gut, he frowned.

“Is something wrong?” she asked.

“No.”

“Excuse me a moment,” Elliot said to Ella. “Apparently my signature is needed on some papers. I told Marlene she could forge it, but she’s a stickler for rules.”

Thank God, Chase thought, and his frown deepened.

“Do you ever smile?”

Ella’s question caught him off guard. “What?”

“I just realized that in the short time I’ve known you, I haven’t seen you smile. Not once.”

“And you find that odd?”

“Well, yes. I do find that odd. I doubt an hour goes by that I don’t smile or bust out laughing.”

“Because laughter is the best medicine?”

Mismatched eyes narrowed. “You’re mocking me, but yes. Laughter is the best medicine, and it beats the alternative, which is crying.”

“So, I should be grinning like a loon and laughing all the time lest I start bawling like a baby?”

“No, but you work at a toy company. You should be...happy!”

“Wow. Now you’ve determined that I’m unhappy. Are you always so quick with your judgments?”

“No.” She frowned. “At least, I try not to be.”

“But you’ve made an exception in my case.”

“Ooh. I’ve stepped in it good, haven’t I?”

“Yes.” He waited for her apology.

But Ella said with maddening directness, “Am I wrong? Are you happy?”

Who asked such bold questions? Certainly no one else in his uncle’s employ.

“Some of us take our responsibilities seriously. We have to,” he added, thinking of his uncle’s flighty temperament and just how much was at stake. That brought Chase back to his concerns. Some unscrupulous journalists would pay Ella handsomely for insider tidbits about Elliot. God help them if one already had. “Which reminds me, I’d like to have a word with you in private.”

“Right now?”

“If you and my uncle are finished, yes.”

“Ella and I are done,” Elliot replied, coming around the reception desk. “But I thought that you and I had plans.” He scratched his head. “Or did I get that wrong? Don’t tell me I wore this damned monkey suit and canceled my morning walk in the park for nothing.” He smiled at Ella. “I walk rain or shine. It’s good for circulation. Owen bought me a treadmill for Christmas so I wouldn’t have to leave the building to go for a walk, but you can’t feed the pigeons on a treadmill.”

“You’re right, Uncle. We do have plans.” Chase had scheduled a brunch meeting with Sumner Thurgood, one of the few board members who at least seemed hesitant to throw Elliot under the bus. He turned to Ella. “I guess our talk will have to wait.”

“I’ll look forward to it.” Her wry smile made it clear that she was lying.

Momentarily lost in those teasing, mismatched eyes, he replied honestly, “So will I.”

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