The Billionaire's Second Chance (22 page)

The events of the morning were going to be etched forever in his memory and try as he might he still didn’t know how to deal with all that he’d discovered. All which they were discovering.

Gone was any sense of self-assurance. Nick hadn’t a clue what to say or do next. There was no plan just an ever intensifying jumble of feelings and memories keep
ing
him off
balance
.

Pulling a tray of ingredients from the refrigerator, Nick set about gathering what he’d need for the grilled steak and potatoes dinner he was making for them. He might be uselessly tongue-tied and clueless where Sh
annon was concerned but he did
have a sense of order and grasp on what was needed to at least be able to feed them properly.

No culinary novice, Nick actually enjoyed cooking and got a
special
thrill from anything involving fire so he was pleased
when he discovered
a state-of-the-art stainless steel chef’s grill installed on Shannon’s lovely private patio. Now
this
he could do, Nick
thought
with silent confidence. He’d impress his wounded little bird, who clearly wanted so badly to fly away from him, with his domestic skills and hopefully over a pleasant relaxing meal they could try again to find a way to bring them closer instead of this deafening, silent separation.

As he moved confidently around Shannon’s enormous well-appointed kitchen
,
Nick busied himself with the task at hand while thinking that he may not have an exact plan as of yet but he did have a desired outcome
.  A
t least that was a something to keep in mind.

In the living room
Shannon was restlessly flicking through the unseen pages of some random magazine when Nick appeared from the kitchen area which had been emitting glorious aromas for the past hour making her tummy rumble in eager anticipation.

Without a word he marched up to the sofa where she reclined with her injured foot nestled in a stack of pillows, giving her scant seconds to throw down the useless magazine she’d not really been reading
,
before he calmly picked her up and marched back in the direction of the dining room.

The silence was becoming ridiculous Shannon thought but no matter how she tried, words just wouldn’t form fully enough to find their way out of her mouth. While she worried about her sudden lapse into muteness she had unconsciously been touching his neck again, where her arm was held around his shoulder. Not the first time she’d caught herself all but stroking the area around and under his ear when her fingers had contacted skin. In fact, she seemed to automatically find and connect with skin each time he picked her up or came close in any significant way.

Her mind might be screaming
are you stinking crazy
but her body was most definitely screaming something else. Was it instinct or reflex. When he came near she touched him. Had to. Without thought or pretense. Just because she had to.

She was sending him mixed
signals and she knew that too, and d
idn’t like herself so much either for doing so.
She disliked the games men and women played and by choosing isolation over complication she felt herself above all the mess and drama she saw in the relationships around her. She should just make it clear that she wasn’t interested in exploring a future and have that be it. Signal sent. Over and out. Who was she trying to kid, Shannon sniffed in dismay.

Each time she entertained walking away from this strange opportunity they’d been given, she felt a frantic sense of loss and doom that stopped those thoughts dead in their tracks.

She didn’t know what any of this meant and maybe all that was really happening was a wa
y for them to get real closure;
but she did know that she liked when he picked her up and she even liked the way his gruff take charge attitude grated on her nerves.

By the time they reached the high ceilinged dining room with the subdued lighting coming from beautiful tiffany inspired lights, Shannon had determined to be calm for whatever followed and to try not to over-react to every little thing. Maybe that was a good way to make a fresh start.

He had set the table with her vintage multi-colored dinnerware; it was all casual and soft. No sharp edges for them to get caught on; the perfect metaphor for what they would face across from one another at a dinner table.

Settling her comfortably in one of the wide, sturdy mission style chairs arranged around the wide wood table
situated at
the center of a magnificent room surrounded on two sides by windows, Shannon couldn’t help but express quiet pleasure at his efforts.

“Nick, this is lovely. The table, the lights. S’wonderful.” she croaked out.

Clearing her throat and trying again she added “Something smells delicious.” And she didn’t mean him, although
truth was,
her senses had been overcome with the scent of him.

Reminding himself to just keep breathing and to keep on putting one foot in front of the other, Nick tried for calm even though he was oddly anxious.  He wanted this dinner to be perfect and at the moment he doubted his ability to make that happen. Telling himself he was being foolish, he decided to let things unfold as they were meant to and
tried to
relax a bit.

Inclining his head a fraction to acknowledge her compliment Nick announced with the enthusiasm of a world class chef, “I’ve prepared grilled marinated cowboy steaks with grilled potatoes dressed in rosemary vinaigrette with an au gratin made with grilled vegetables.”

As the words tumbled out of his mouth Nick laughed at the end and added with a deep grin, “Clearly, the theme of this meal is
grilled
! I hadn’t realized until right now that I must have been operating on one track of my mind!”

His deep laughter at the realization of what he’d done was the perfect ice breaker
allowing
Shannon
to
join in with a delighted giggle.
Men
, she thought. They’d grill ice cream if they could!

Clapping her hands like a child at a party Shannon smiled into his laughing gaze
saying,
“Mmmmm…..grilled beast! I’m so excited!” She hoped her reference to a jokey term they’d used for whatever odd animal was turning on a spit over a fire at meal times on the African continent would bring happy memories to the conversation.

Beaming like
a
lucky man after her funny reminder of better times, Nick went into
super
butler mode which made Shannon giggle even more. “May I offer you a beverage, miss?” 
he asked with mock solemnity as he bowed low over his arm.

“Just hurry up and feed me!” Shannon laughed.

He gave a softly sexy
growl and said, “As you wish, my
lady!”

Shannon stayed as she was, virtually on the edge of her seat as Nick returned to the kitchen. She watched the twinkling lights bounce off the crystal and silver on the table and listened to her heart while she waited for him to return.

The meal that followed was beyond delicious. Better than anything she’d ever had at her table making Shannon smilingly declare, “You are going to make someone a wonderful wife, Nicholas Barrett!”

His answering grin and the shocking slash of color that framed his prominent cheekbones made her heart skip more than just one beat.

“Oh my! This is incredibly delicious Nick.” Shannon cooed after her first
few
bite
s
of food. “Where did you learn to cook like this? It’s fabulous!” she trilled excitedly taking another bite and then another in wide-eyed wonder. “If I remember correctly, you could barely spread peanut butter on bread!” she said laughing while continuing to ooh and ahh over the incredible meal Nick had prepared.

“Actually,” he shrugged, “I took a cooking class. Might have been all thumbs before but now…well, I can pull off an entire six course meal.”

Before she had properly swallowed what was in her mouth, Shannon’s shocked “You took a what?” made Nick all but fall down laughing. He’d well and truly shocked her. Taking up the advantage his unexpected comment had delivered Nick plowed ahead now that he had her undivided attention.

Chuckling as he forked a huge chunk of perfectly grilled steak into his mouth Nick
and
pantomimed his own eye rolling enjoyment which brought another smile of delight from his dinner companion.

Shannon tried to wrap her mind around the concept of Nick taking a class in
anything
, much less something as mundane as cooking, while she delighted in each delectable morsel. “You are a man of many surprises it seems!” she teased.

“However did you find your way to the culinary arts? Seems like an odd choice considering how peanut butter challenged you were!”

“I know, right?” Nick laughed. “It wasn’t planned believe me. Just sort of happened. A couple of years ago I was checking out a high-end retreat and spa that our hotel division had opened. I prefer first-hand information so with a little subterfuge and careful travel planning I took my mother for a lavish get-away to test the quality of the experience our guests would receive.  Staying anonymously so we didn’t get any special consideration, we checked in and then made arrangements to indulge in spa treatments and a whole host of healthy living workshops.  The cooking class was just one of what was on offer.  I also took a wine tasting class and learned the fine art of water color painting! We had a ball. Mom so enjoyed the facility and luxurious amenities that she took her posse of lady friends there for a retreat not too long ago.”

“Well you must have been an excellent student because this is so muc
h more than just cooking, Nick”
Waving her hand in emphasis at the glorious meal spread on the table before them Shannon said, “Anyone can learn the basics, but this…
THIS
is something else altogether. I love the layers of surprising flavor in the side dishes, the textures and the way everything compliments each other. You always were an over-achiever!” she ended with a giggle.

Nodding his head at the compliment Nick felt a surge of immense satisfaction shoot through his body. She babbled on for a bit while he basked in the warmth of her undivided attention. Before long
the
dinner conversation became more serious as Nick encouraged Shannon to say whatever was on her mind.

“Your business is quite diverse. Actually, I have no idea what your companies’ do.” she shrugged.  “I check out the bestseller list every morning and not the business pages so it shouldn’t come as a surprise that I know nothing about global Barrett and what all that means.”

“The company my grandfather built was huge, diverse and involved in a lot of dry, uninteresting stuff that would boggle most minds. I jettisoned the interests which,” and he paused, for a long time before finishing “didn’t fit my view of things”

Shannon noticed how his jaw tensed at the mere mention of this grandfather who loomed large on the distaste meter. The man must have been a nasty piece of work. She’d never known Nick to exhibit anything other than perfect manners and an even disposition. The way his eyes dimmed whenever Randolph Barrett was part of the conversation let her know just how much the old man had impacted the life of his family.

Feeling brave Shannon asked Nick point blank why he hadn’t used his family name when they’d met. This one detail had haunted her thoughts
;
maybe she was expecting some sort of cloak and dagger answer or a wild tale about avoiding his birthright. Instead she was mildly surprised to learn that Temple had simply been his mother’s maiden name.

“There’s nothing nefarious about why I didn’t use the Barrett name, Shannon. Hell, outside of the board room or away from the negotiating table the name holds no particular cachet. It’s not like being a Rockefeller or even a Kennedy … now
that’s
instant name recognition.  It wasn’t like that all.” he admitted.

“From the time I was a little kid, like the first summer I went to camp even, I went by my middle nam
e. Dad insisted. Years later I w
ould
understand
that
this was one of the ways
my father
kept
our little family
far
-a-a-r away from my grandfather’s watchful eye.”

Shannon didn’t say a word; she just sat there and listened. The house seemed
uncommonly
still as the evening fell upon them, so very quiet.  It was just the two of them with no background noise.  There wasn’t a TV left on somewhere in the house or music playing. The ambiance was quiet and reflective; just like their moods. 

“Mum was and is a southern girl at heart. My dad fell fast and hard when they met.  Randolph of course didn’t think a genteel southern family operating a hundred year old general store in the same county
where
they’d lived since the 1800’s were blue blood enough for the new moneyed Barrett’s. To their credit, my parents didn’t give a damn about Randolph and his narrow view of life. When I came along a year and a half after they married, they gave me mom’s maiden name, Temple, probably just to piss the old man off!”