Chapter One
Shae
I never liked sushi. The very thought of it made me feel a bit ill. Yet there I stood, waiting in the most secretive sushi joint in Las Vegas. A restaurant so exclusive it had a sign in Japanese. Not that this — or the fact it was in a state more than five-hundred miles from the nearest ocean — dissuaded people from showing up in crowds. I was genuinely shocked at how long I was able to hold my breath to not smell the fishy odors.
The things I did for my cousin Aden. He was lucky he was my favorite family member.
Sushi in hand, I stopped in at the best bakery in the west, getting four caramel eclairs. Not for myself, obviously. I had sworn off carbs years ago. These treats were merely a means to an end. Some might call it bribery, but I preferred to think of it as encouragement. Dropping the cargo onto the passenger seat of my car, I made my way downtown to my target.
The security guard at the Sure Thing Graphics building barely looked up as I walked past his desk. There were advantages to being the cousin of the top employee of such a recognizable advertising firm. Only two guards were pulling twelve hours shifts who more or less recognized me on sight. Mainly since I started hanging about so much after I moved back to Vegas, despite my hours at the hospital.
The elevator let out its happy little ding as I stepped off into the small area that was the cubicle farm that made up the tenth floor. I shuddered to think of what might happen in the case of a fire when the elevators were out. Call me grim, but it came with the territory. Working as a nurse, I had seen some pretty serious stuff and was always ready for the worst-case scenario. Drove my friends and family nuts. Thought they were also still all alive at last count, so I called it a win.
“Workin’ hard?” I asked with a smile, sidling up to Camilla’s desk. My new best friend and my cousin were recently engaged. Cammy and I had met as children, but as adults, we had grown extremely close.
“Hardly workin’, it’s my lunch break, thank Odin.” The Sure Thing receptionist flipped her long brown hair over her shoulder and rolled her chair back some.
“The Norse king of gods?” I asked, surprised by the evocation.
“I like to hedge my bets,” Camilla said with a wink. She rubbed her hands over her small, taut baby bump.
“How’s my little second cousin?” I asked, feeling a slight pang of longing. I really wanted a baby of my own.
“Good as far as I can tell, it hasn’t really kicked in yet. No cravings or anything,” Cammy said, gliding her hands up and down.
“So, your request for raw fish in seaweed followed by caramel pastries was just a whim.”
“The sushi is for Aden!” she protested, pointing towards my cousin’s office.
“Relax, hon, I’m just playing,” I said, putting the bags down on her desk and glancing around.
“Looking for Chris?” Camilla asked in a whisper, leaning forward slightly.
“Is he around?” I asked, trying to sound casual.
I was, in fact, there to see Mr. Christopher Stewart, Chris to his friends and lovers, art director for the entire firm. The tall hunk and I had gotten to talking at an office celebration Aden had invited me to that suddenly turned into an engagement party when the bonehead thought that it would be a good time to propose to Camilla. It was hardly romantic. Not that proposing was a bad idea. They were a great pair, and I was starting to love Camilla almost as much as I loved Aden. She was quickly getting to be one of the family.
I couldn’t quite remember who had started the conversation, Chris or me, but it had gone off like gangbusters. We had so much in common, particularly families who didn’t really understand why we chose the careers we had. My family thought I should be content to be a housewife. Chris was the only non-musician. That made us both oddballs, sparking an instant connection.
It also didn’t hurt that the art director was really handsome and quiet. Standing about six-foot with jet black hair, Chris was the embodiment of nerdy hot. From his glasses to his well-tailored clothing. Although I wouldn’t call him charming. He was a bit too awkward for that. Though that was fine with me. I loved an authentic man. I’d fallen for charming before and had the emotional scars to prove it. I could stand a bit of humility. I craved it, honestly.
“The troops have been fed, thanks to me, so Chris should be in his office,” Camilla broke through my thoughts.
“He has an office?”
She snort laughed. “After a sort. It is the biggest cubicle on the end. The one with the name plaque screwed into the wall. He’s between clients right now,” she said, making it clear she was onto my intentions.