Chasing Trouble (Texas Trouble) (7 page)

"Yep, and give you a salary that will make your eyes roll
back in your head," he said with a flash of that sexy grin.

"Your dad doesn't respect women, we'll probably clash."

"He's a good old boy, but trust me when I say my dad
loves
women, honey.  Besides, you won't be reporting to him, you'll be working with me.  Safety falls under my umbrella."

"If I worked for you, there couldn't be any of this," she told him firmly and waved her hand between them.

"What, pizza, beer and conversation?" he purposely misunderstood then his grin reached epic proportions.

"You know what I'm talking about," she scolded him and her eyebrows drew together.

"I can't promise that, sugar...you're irresistible...but I can promise at work it will be all business."

"I'm serious, Chase...if I come to work for you there won't be anything other than friendship and a working relationship between us."

Chase studied her intently so long she squirmed a little on the sofa next to him.  There was no sign of his trademark smile, but the intensity in his light blue eyes cut into her and then suddenly he scooted closer to her and pulled her toward him. 

"Then I guess I better take care of this now..."
he rumbled and his eyes latched onto her mouth.  Jenny knew what was coming, because in slow motion she watched his sexy mouth lower toward hers and her lips tingled in anticipation.  Just for a second, his lips hovered over hers and they hummed with electricity, before he gently closed his mouth over hers, tasting and teasing.

Jenny
knew it was wrong, knew she should resist because he was going to be her boss soon, there was no way she could turn down the job he'd offered her, but she was powerless to stop the magnetic pull of his lips against hers. 

With a sigh that slightly resembled a
needy moan, she leaned into the kiss and put her hands against his firmly muscled chest.  A tremor passed through her when his tongue traced the seam of her lips and she opened for him.  He sucked her lower lip into his mouth and nipped it, then his tongue found hers and he deepened the kiss.  Kissing Chase Rhodes was dangerous.  He was like chocolate cheesecake, her favorite dessert, rich, decadent, a guilty pleasure, but not something to be indulged in.  Now though, she was indulging, and it was oh so good. 

Her palms itched to explore his fabulous body, but she resisted by
sliding them up his chest and clasping her arms around his neck.  Chase's hand moved to her waist and he squeezed her there, as if he were containing the urge to explore himself, while his lips worked their magic on her.  He wasn't simply kissing her, he was savoring her now, as if he couldn't get enough. 

When his hand did migrate up her exposed skin toward her breast, the sexual haze
cleared a bit and she pulled back breathing hard, her lips swollen and wanting more. 

"We have to stop," she whispered breathlessly
. 

Chase
put his forehead against hers and moaned, his breathing as erratic as her own.  "I know..." his voice was low, gravelly and full of regret. With a kiss on her cheek, he pushed back from her and sat up. Jenny shivered as he separated from her taking his body's intense heat with him. 

"You need to put your sling back on," she chastised and looked over the back of the sofa to see Chloe laying on top of it on the floor.  Her cat really seemed to like the man, almost as much as Jenny did. 

If she hadn't stopped that kiss when she did, they could very well be in her bedroom right now, extinguishing the fire he'd started inside of her.  The thought sent another tremor through her buzzing body.  Blood thrummed through her veins, settling low in her abdomen.  Although that fire was burning hot, Jenny knew she'd made the right decision. 

Starting a sexual relationship with Chase Rhodes would be a mistake for so many reasons.  He was a player, he was a mama's boy and now he would be her boss.  Pulling back had been the
right thing to do, so why wasn't her body more on board with the decision?

"I'm fine, let's watch the movie," he suggested then crossed his feet and propped them on her coffee table beside the pizza box.

Jenny huffed out a sigh and slid down on the couch.  She was looking at the images on the TV screen, but her mind was replaying the kiss, like she was afraid it would be doing all night long. 

Chloe jumped up on the back of the sofa,
and plopped down on the cushions between them then climbed into Chase's lap.  Absently, he moved his hand across her back stroking her and she rubbed her head against his bare abdomen.  Thoughts of doing the exact same thing to him flitted through her mind and had had Jenny holding back a groan. 

Quickly, she
stood up and announced, "I think I'll skip the movie, I'm really tired...I'll get you a cover and pillow, then I'm going to turn in."

CHAPTER SIX

"Chase get in here!" his dad yelled from the conference room separating their offices at Rhodes Drilling and Exploration.  Even the door being closed couldn't mask his booming voice.  Chase glanced through the glass front of his office and saw Sarah his assistant had heard too, and she turned to look back at him.  He shrugged and waved her off then got up from his desk and straightened his suit. 

She was used to it just like he was.  His dad would probably never learn how to use the intercom system on the phone.  Why should he, when he could accomplish the same thing by yelling?

"Chase!" he yelled again and Chase grabbed a notebook and pen then headed in there.  No matter that he'd been reading the outdated safety manual, so he could help Jenny revise it when she came on board in two weeks
, when Jack Rhodes needed them, his employees didn't let grass grow under their feet.

"Keep your shirt on," he mumbled as he opened the door and stepped inside.  Dave Logan
, the private investigator and security man he'd hired to help Jazzie Ramos with her brother's problem, stood up from his chair and Chase walked over to shake his hand. 

The man, as usual, was dressed in camouflage cargo pants, a black t-shirt and black combat boots.  He was ex-military and ex-law enforcement, and it seemed to dictate his fashion choices, as well as his haircut and personality.  He was a nice guy, but pretty serious most of the time.  Truth be told, he kind of scared the hell out of Chase
, but he did a damned good job.

"Your dad and I were talking about the well fires that ya'll have been having..." Dave explained then sat back down.

"Looks like some bastard is setting fire to our wells," his dad informed gruffly.  "We need to brainstorm and come up with ideas to stop it.  I want that bastard's balls in a vice."

"It looks like it's more than one person," Dave added.  "I have guys on three wells right now, and none of them have had incidents,
so I'm going to move them today.  Two of the fires were at remote locations on the same night a hundred miles apart, pretty random locations, so I'm not really sure where to put them.  You guys have a lot of wells."

"Let's look at a map and draw straws, maybe we'll get lucky," Chase said with a chuckle.  They all got up and walked over to the large map of their active wells mounted on the far wall.  Dave pinpointed where the recent fires had happened, and he pulled pushpins from the cork board beside the map and put them on the map.

"Here's where the five fires that you've had so far have occurred..."

They looked over the adjacent wells and triangulated the area, then Chase and his dad pointed out possible wells to cover.  It was all a shot in the dark, but they had to do something, and start somewhere. 

"I'd say give it a week, and if your men don't see anything, move to another location.  If you need help getting them established there, let me know," Chase told him, then they walked back to the table and sat down.

"Any idea on the motivation?" Chase leaned back in his chair and tented his fingers.

"I'm thinking it's something political, or maybe disgruntled employees?  Maybe a combination of both?  From investigating the scene and talking to the fire inspector, it's someone who knows what he's doing.  They're putting charges in just the right place, so when they blow, they achieve the maximum damage.  The charges are small, and if you didn't know what you're looking for, you'd think it was an equipment malfunction that caused the fire."

"Safety equipment?" Chase guessed.

"Yeah, the new overflow valve that diverts gas and fire to the flare," his dad added.

"Papa Jack invented that device didn't he?"  Chase's grandpa was a brilliant developer of safety and efficiency equipment to improve drilling operations.

"Yeah, and it's one of the required mods in that last legislation...one of the main ones," his dad agreed then huffed a frustrated sigh.  "Those damned fires have put five of our rigs out of operation, and almost killed four of our men.  If this is some half-assed attempt by some jackleg driller to keep from doing what they're supposed to do, I'm going to make sure they won't be around long enough to have to worry about paying a damned fine."

Chase glanced at his daddy's red face then pinned Dave with his eyes, before answering his question. 
"The only thing political we're lobbying for right now is higher fines for companies that haven't retro-fitted to comply with the latest safety equipment modification legislation that was passed.  I know that put a crimp in some of the smaller companies budgets, but most have come around.  It's the bigger ones that don't give a shit about the piddly fines attached to the updated requirements who haven't done anything."

"Are the increased fines and penalties substantial enough for someone to bother sabotaging your wells?" Dave inquired.

"Yeah, we kind of went for broke.  Either they spend the money to make things right, or they're out of business.  We gave our lobbyist statistics to prove the new equipment and modifications are making a big difference.  Our lost-time accidents have been reduced by thirty percent, they were low to begin with, but some of the other companies had records that were a lot worse, so the improvements could save a lot of lives."

"What about employees?  You fired anyone lately?" Dave queried.

"There are always worms and roughnecks coming and going, they're probational when we hire them, and some figure out the oil patch isn't for them pretty quickly
, or we figure it out for them.  As for higher ups, the only one I can think of off hand is the toolpusher at well number 51 in Alton.  He was cutting corners and getting people hurt.  He had two accidents in the month before he was fired that were preventable.  We also let the company man go there, because production was way down and he didn't have a good answer when we asked him why.  That was about three months ago, so the timing fits."

"Give me their names and I'll check it out.
  Go ahead and give me a list of the worms and roughnecks too...that'll take longer, but we should check it out."

"Thanks, Dave, I'll fax it to your office in a little while," Chase told him then stood and looked at his dad.  "Dad, I'm going to Henrietta this afternoon, and take that contract to Jenny Anderson.  I'll be
back tomorrow."

"Fine, just get that girl on board quick.  We need to get
moving on overhauling that damned manual.  It's out of date and we don't want our men going off half-cocked with cockamamey bullshit direction.  OSHA will have our ass if they look at what we have now."

"I know dad, that's why we're hiring her...and so she can get the medics hired and up to speed.  That'll help stop workers leaving for headaches or bloody noses.  The
medics can patch up the small stuff and put 'em back to work."

"Yeah, yeah...just get her here," Jack Rhodes told him then waved him off with an impatient hand.  "Good, job by the way
, son," he mumbled.

"Thanks..." Chase said and turned his back so his dad didn't see him smile. 

As gruff as Jack Rhodes tried to be, he was a good man, a fair man.  He knew his business, and what he expected,
demanded
, but he always gave credit where it was due.  Chase had a good example to go by for his similar work ethic.  They didn't always agree on things, but when all was said and done they were always in the same corner.  Chase could always count on his daddy to have his back.

It was late afternoon by the time Chase pulled up into the parking lot of the Henrietta hospital emergency room.  He found a spot up front and parked, then leaned over and picked up the flowers he'd bought for Jenny.  He left the contract and champagne on the seat, then got out and walked toward the entrance.

There was a pretty dark-haired nurse at the desk and he smiled at her.  "Hi, is Jenny
Anderson here?" he asked.

"Dr. Anderson?" A big grin spread across her face and her eyebrow lifted.  After a glance at the flowers in his hand, she shook her head then said, "Sure, let me go get her for you...she might be with a patient," the nurse whose nametag said her name was Terri told him.

"Thanks," he told her then turned to look at the filled waiting room.  Maybe this wasn't a good time to visit, he thought and then started to leave and come back later when she got off.

"Chase?" Jenny said, not really sure her visitor was him.  He sure looked different than he had the last time she'd seen him at her apartment in jeans and a t-shirt, or the time before at the hospital when he'd been shirtless in board shorts. 

This guy was a business man in an expensive suit, highly shined shoes and perfectly combed hair.  Not the guy who'd massaged her feet when she'd been dead on them.  Or the man who'd kissed the stuffing out of her after that.  A man who had been starring in her dreams every night since.

When he turned toward her with a broad smile, her heart did a little dance in her chest, and her mouth dried up.  It was him, just a
buttoned-up version.  The man had many sides she was coming to find out.  This one was spectacularly easy on the eyes, but a little intimidating.

"Hey, sugar," he said then leaned down and kissed her cheek.  When he stood back up, he handed her the pretty yellow daisies he had in his hand.  "You're a sight for sore eyes," he told her and grinned, his beautiful blue eyes crinkling at the corner
s.  "I'm sorry to bother you, but I have the contract and wanted to see if you'd have dinner with me to go over it."

"Um, I don't get off until six," she glanced at her watch and saw it was just now
four o'clock.

"I'll just wait," he told her.

"Oh, god, I don't want to make you wait two hours..." she looked around at the faces in the packed waiting room and knew she wasn't going to be able to get off even fifteen minutes early, much less an hour.

"I don't mind.  I've got some calls to make, I'll just wait out in the truck for you.  I'm right out front."
  He tossed his thumb over his shoulder in the direction of the parking lot and smiled again.

"Let me get the keys to my apartment, you can just wait there..." she said then turned and ran to the nurse's station to get them from her purse. 
Walking quickly back to him, she handed him the keys and warned.  "Be careful not to let Chloe out."

"Chloe and I are friends, we'll just hang out until you get there."

"I should be there by six fifteen...sooner if I can get off early," she said and then turned when someone called her.  "Um, I've got to--"

"Go," he said then tossed the keys up in the air and leaned down and kissed her once more.  "No worries, darlin'.  You take care of the masses, and I'll see you in a little while."

She could definitely get used to being around Chase Rhodes, she thought as he turned and walked off through the waiting room to the front entrance.  Terri walked up beside her and nudged her with her elbow. 

"Prince Charming own a flower shop or something?" she asked her with a grin.

"Shut up, Terri," Jenny said and shoved the flowers at Terri, before heading down the hall to see who was calling her a minute ago.  Terri's laughter trailed behind her.

***

Chase shifted the grocery bags in his arms and stuck the key into the front door of Jenny's apartment. 
He twisted the knob and extended his foot to stop Chloe from escaping. 

"Back up, sweetheart..." he said gently and nudged her out of the way then opened the door wider.  Once he was inside and shut the door, the cat twined around his ankles
.  Mindful not to step on her tail, Chase carefully walked to the breakfast bar and sat the bags down, then slid his suit jacket off and laid it over a barstool. 

After rolling up his sleeves and loosening his tie, he unloaded the fixings for dinner from the bags and organized them, then went to work.  It took a bit for him to find where everything was in the cabinets.  Jenny must not be much of a cook, because she didn't even have an egg whisk to make the egg wash for the fried pork
chops he was going to make.  He made do with a fork, and then put the thick chops in the batter before sliding them through the seasoned breadcrumbs and dropping them into the skillet he'd heated with oil on the stove.

Chloe rubbed
against his legs and meowed and he looked down at her.  "What's wrong baby, you jealous I'm cookin' for your mama?" he cooed then leaned down and scratched her head.  "I'll see if she has some cat food somewhere, but I doubt it.  Her refrigerator is empty except for takeout containers."  Chase quickly flipped through the cabinets until he found the one where she hid the cat food.  He took a can down and opened it, then plopped it onto a saucer before putting it down for Chloe.  

Of course the cat sniffed it then turned her nose up at it. 
It was that healthy, no additive, organic shit.  She rubbed up against him again and it dawned on him the egg and milk mixture he'd used for the wash must smell like heaven to her.  He grinned and said, "Okay, you can have milk...just don't tell your mama.  One second," he told her then pulled down a shallow dish and filled it from the milk jug on the counter.  She meowed and was purring like a hot rod engine before he even set it down so she could drink from it.