Professional Boundaries (26 page)

“Well, you know the first step to recovery is admitting you have a problem,” I quipped.

He just shook his head. I knew he wasn’t going to change, but that was ok. I had vindication that afternoon as we met with Matt and he was blown away by my designs. He mentioned that I was the only designer we needed for this project. I tried not to smirk, but it was a little hard. Well, maybe half a smirk erupted on my face.

Sometimes it was so difficult to be professional.

Chapter 21

As the weeks went by, we eased into an uneasy pattern, at least for me. We kept it professional at the office and passionate on the off hours and weekends, but with each passing day, I wanted more and more to be just Kelli. I soon got an up close and personal view on why Ian was so adamant about keeping the two separate, though.

A few weeks after the accident, Ian and I were having lunch together. I reveled in that hour every day where I was just Kelli and he was just Ian, but that particular day he received a phone call from his attorney he had to take. I could tell right away the news wasn’t good. I’m not sure I had ever seen Ian turn so red, and I won’t even talk about the swearing. I was just glad we were at the park and not at a restaurant. He even got up from our blanket and began pacing around while ranting to his attorney on the other end. I just sat there and watched. I knew better than to try and intervene.

After several minutes, he sat down and joined me again. I was afraid to even ask what that was all about, but I wanted to make it better for him. I reached up and placed my hand upon his still reddened cheek. “Ian …”

He reached up and touched my hand with his own and then slid it down my arm. “I didn’t mean to ruin our lunch.”

“Don’t apologize. Just tell me what’s wrong.”

“I don’t want to involve you.”

I dropped my hand. “Why?” I asked angrily.

His features softened, as did his tone. “Number eight and nine on your list.”

I half grinned. “I already know you come with a lot of baggage, buddy.”

“Well that phone call just added to it.”

I took his hand in mine. “If you want us to be a couple, you can’t hold things back from me.”

He took my hand up and kissed it. “Kelli, you know that’s what I want. Why do think I moved to Nashville?”

I winked at him. “I thought you came to run Chandler.”

He pulled me to him and groaned against my ear. “Fine, apparently my ex-wife and Alexa have teamed up in an attempt to take more of my money. Alexa is now claiming we had an affair while she was at IAG and while I was married.”

I pulled back and looked into his troubled eyes.

“Kelli, please tell me you don’t believe that,” he begged.

I ran my fingers through his hair and wickedly grinned. “Well … I know how you like blondes and big boobs.”

He shook his head at me. “You drive me crazy.”

“I know,” I grinned. “And I also know you didn’t have an affair with Ms. Manselle. But even if you did, not that I would be ok with it, what’s the fuss about? Didn’t your ex-wife cheat on you?”

He grabbed my face and pulled me to him and applied gentle pressure with his own lips against mine briefly before responding. “Marissa and I had a prenup in place. It kept our property separate, namely IAG and her family’s wealth. The investment her father’s firm gave me was paid back with interest as agreed upon several years ago, removing any claim he might have on the company. Of course, his venture capital firm that Marissa worked for still got a lot of leverage out of the success of IAG. This was all well and good until IAG outperformed any of our expectations and our marriage went south. My wealth increased as theirs decreased because of bad investments, and things just got out of control from there. She’s lobbed accusation after accusation at me. She’s desperate to get her hands on the money I received from selling IAG. She’s trying to paint me as manipulative and as a liar.”

He was beyond tense. Every muscle in his face was tight. I moved and knelt behind him and rubbed his shoulders and whispered how sorry I was in his ear.

He just kept lamenting. “I already offered her a hefty sum, just so she’ll go away, but I think this has become more of a vendetta for her. I should’ve never married her.”

I just kept rubbing his back and shoulders while he kept ranting. Next on his list was Alexa. I had few choice words for her as well, although I kept them to myself. Ian was doing a good enough job. It was also nice to hear him say what a mistake he made in bringing her here. I couldn’t have agreed more, but I again I kept my mouth shut. There was no sense in making him feel worse.

He finally had it out of him, and as he reached up and grabbed my hands that were on his shoulders, he pulled me over and onto his lap. He just searched my face. He looked so worried. “Kelli, your name has been brought into it too.”

“What do I have to do with it?”

“They’re going to claim that I have a pattern of having affairs with women that work for me.”

I tugged on Ian’s tie and brought our faces as close as they could get without us actually kissing, which was coming, but first I had something to say. “Well, they just messed with the wrong southern girl.”

Ian chuckled and then closed the small distance between us. He kissed me until I saw stars in the middle of the sun-filled day. As soon as I was out of breath, he kissed his way over to my ear. “Have I mentioned how much I love you lately?” he whispered low.

Oh he had, and I knew he was waiting patiently for me to reciprocate. And someday I would, but not today; at least not in words. I just told him I was here for him any way he needed me. Of course, he wanted to keep me out of it, but that wasn’t an option in my mind. We were a team, and I planned on taking the opposing side down. After I was done, Alexa Manselle wouldn’t even know what hit her.

Ian was already planning to go to Colorado the following week for what he hoped was the final step in the litigation process, but now he wasn’t so sure. I decided I was going with him. He didn’t think it was a good idea in light of the accusations that were being tossed our way, but I was danged if I was going to let someone drag my reputation through the mud and not have a say about it. Besides, Ian had some great contacts in Colorado that we had been talking to. This would give us the opportunity to dazzle them in person, so Ian eventually gave in. Not like I was really giving him a choice in the matter.

I was honestly looking forward to going back to Colorado. I missed it, and there was nothing like late springtime in the Rockies. I was hoping, too, there would be a little time for some romance while we visited the place where it all began for us. I hoped this litigation ridiculousness would be finished as well. Ian was stressed out more than usual, which was saying a lot. He couldn’t stand not being able to predict or control the variables. I think he mentioned it was kind of like being in love with me, but horrible. I took that as a compliment.

We had Delfia set up some appointments for us in Colorado with two large banks. This way, us being gone together looked like it was a business trip, even though I was pretty sure Delfia didn’t believe it, just like she didn’t believe that we weren’t a couple. I never said we weren’t, I just never validated her relentless claims. I knew we weren’t fooling her, but for Ian’s sake, I didn’t advertise it.

Of course my family knew, and so did Boss and Holly. Ian felt he should be on the up and up with Gary about it. I wouldn’t have kept it from them anyway; they were like family to me. In fact, they weren’t surprised at all. I guess I was the only one that was.

Ian made all of the travel arrangements. It was the first time I had ever flown first class, and it was the best flight I’d had to date. I really had missed him. I had forgotten what it felt like to be in a relationship that just made every aspect of my life better, even mundane things like a flight. I missed being able to talk to someone that I felt I could be just me with. The ease and contentment I felt with him, I’d never been able to duplicate with anyone else, and now, almost fourteen years later, he still made me feel that way.

The only downside was Ian was beyond tense. He was worried about this ludicrous lawsuit. It wasn’t the money that was bothering him. No, what worried him was me. He felt this need to protect me, and I think he was just ready to put this chapter of his life behind him. He wanted to get rid of his baggage. He was afraid of how it may affect us. I tried to put his mind at ease that I wasn’t going anywhere; we were a team, and not only that, this part of the duo had a few tricks up her sleeve. The boob twins, as I thought of them, were going to be sorry they messed with me and mine.

Ian let me have the window seat, and I couldn’t help but feel excited, even under the circumstances, when I saw the big, white, peaked rooftop of Denver International Airport. It was the strangest looking airport I had ever seen, but oddly it made me feel, in a sense, that I had come home.  I turned and grinned at Ian. He looked past me out the window and smiled too. It was his first smile the whole flight.

“Have you missed Colorado?” I asked.

“I’ve missed being here with you.”

I’d missed it too. The more I was with him, the more I realized how much I truly missed him, missed us. He was like the harmony to my melody, and together we created a more complete and richer sound. I felt, too, the more we were together, the more in tune we would become. At least I hoped. I was still having a hard time separating out our personal and professional lives. I hoped this week away, even if we weren’t dealing with the most pleasant of things, we could mostly just be Ian and Kelli. Two kids (ok we weren’t close to kids anymore) that were just crazy for each other.

Even though we weren’t kids anymore, I kind of felt like one at baggage claim when Ian’s parents came and surprised me.

“Tony, Sheila, what in the world are you doing here?” I practically ran to them.

They both hugged me simultaneously, but Sheila answered. “Ian told us you were coming to town with him, and it has been so long, too long since we’ve seen you.”

I don’t know why, but my eyes began to water. “Yes, it’s been far too long,” I replied as I hugged them back.

They looked almost the same as they had almost fourteen years ago, maybe a little more weathered and worn, but they were perfect in my mind. Tony was just an older, grayer, jollier version of Ian, and Sheila reminded me of Jamie Lee Curtis, with her short, gray, spiky hair. She and Noelle shared the same mischievous gleam in their eyes as well as in their nature. Boy, had I missed them.

Ian quickly took up the spot next to me as soon as his parents stood back. They just looked at us together, and they seemed to radiate happiness.

“It’s about time,” Tony said.

Ian, in response, put his arm around me and smiled at me serenely. “I would say it’s long overdue.”

I think I just sighed, but what I really wanted to do was grab his face and kiss him senseless. This didn’t seem like the appropriate venue, but hopefully later. Ian did lean down and peck me chastely on the lips, just once, in response. It would have to tie me over.

“Well, let’s get out of here so we can catch up,” his mom said.

Ian let go of me and took my luggage, and Tony grabbed Ian’s as we made our way to the rental car. As the men loaded our luggage, Sheila hugged me one more time. She didn’t say anything, but I could feel the joy she felt, because I felt it too.

It was decided that we would meet at the hotel restaurant for lunch. Ian had almost booked us at separate hotels, but I said that was insane. I didn’t care what the boob twins thought. Believe me, I knew it was hard to believe that we didn’t have that type of relationship, but Ian and I knew the truth, and that’s all that mattered. He did book us five floors apart, though, like that was going to make a difference if we really wanted to do something. Ok … I think we both really wanted to, but Ian knew how I felt about it, and he respected my position and me. He told me I was more than worth the wait. Yeah, I kind of liked him … a lot.

As soon as his parents left for their truck, Ian took no time in doing what I wanted to do all morning. He kissed me hard, but briefly.

I took a moment to stare into those troubled chocolate eyes as the kiss ended. I was determined to see those eyes alight before we went back to Nashville. “Thanks for inviting your parents down.”

“They didn’t even wait for an invitation when I told them you were coming.”

I smiled.

He groaned. “I guess we better not keep them waiting.”

I hated that he was so melancholy. I knew part of him was happy to see his parents and to have us together, but when there was a problem to be solved, Ian had a hard time on focusing on anything else. I kept trying to tell him it would be ok, and no matter the outcome, we would weather it together, but Ian was Ian.

It was amazing how fourteen years could be erased in the course of lunch. There was no awkwardness or lulls in the conversation. It reminded me of the nights we had spent at their table during Thanksgiving, talking and playing games until the early morning hours. I remembered wishing then that it would be the first of many holidays I would share with them. I also remembered wondering how such carefree individuals ever raised such an uptight person like their son. As I looked between the three of them, I still wondered how it was possible.

Poor Ian was beyond uptight. He was meeting with his attorney after lunch.

I offered to go with him, but he was being stubborn and wanted me to stay out of it. “I can help, I was raised by a lawyer after all and I have some ideas.” I tried to get him to see it was a good idea for me to be involved, but he wouldn’t listen.

“I have it under control. You don’t need to worry about it.”

“I don’t appreciate being handled with kid gloves and I’m going to worry either way. Don’t you get how much you mean to me? How could I not be worried?” I said to him as I walked him out to the car. His parents were staying to keep me company, and they were waiting for me back in the hotel.