Frog Prince Page 14

  Seriously was this really happening? Could Chase possibly believe that because he was a couple of inches taller...? Okay make that more like four. Still, Chase’s height had nothing to do with it. For his information Sam had also been behaving in a civilized manner and he wasn’t worried about messing up his model looks face. That would be Chase’s department. Sam stared at Chase a moment before shifting his gaze toward Rebe. He was truly speechless.

  “We're together you lost, Sam.” Ignoring Sam, Chase turned to Rebe. “Listen, I understand you're nervous about us, I do. I've made mistakes. But we've invested time in each other. Shouldn’t we give ourselves a chance? We made a commitment to each other. It's not going to work if both of us are not in this 100%. I can't blame Sam for trying to poison your mind against me. He’s your friend and he believes you deserve better than what I've given you in the past. So do I. That’s why I'm doing my best to change. But there is something more, Rebe. I'm a man and I know it's not all about friendship with Sam. A friend doesn't continually put his friend in a compromising position.”

  Sam needed to leave or at the very least he needed to get Rebe and Chase out. He tried not to look at Rebe but he couldn’t help it. She had that stupid, dreamy look, girls tended to get around guys like Chase

  What the hell? He hoped Rebe wouldn't buy that bull. A sudden urge to laugh out loud overtook him at some of the things that had come from Chase’s mouth. For him to even think that it was Sam constantly putting Rebe in a compromising position when it was Chase who wanted her to go with him while he wined and dined the clients. Perhaps Rebe thought it was because Chase was grooming her. Anyone with eyes and ears knew it was because he needed her legal expertise. He'd bought his partnership, now Sam wondered if he didn't buy his law degree. Didn't Rebe see that?”

  “Compromising position,” Sam said with a snort after having finally found his voice. “That would be you, Chase.”

  “Kissing Sam, I mean kissing. A friend would not constantly attempt to kiss his friend, knowing she was with another man.” Chase took Rebe's hand and pulled her to him leaving Sam staring after them. Sam laughed low

  Then Chase's head lowered toward Rebe and he cupped her face. He gazed into her eyes and Sam thought, aw crap, Rebe was falling for it. Before Chase could kiss Rebe, Sam opened the door and pushed them both out.

  Rebe blinked in surprise. She glanced toward the closed door then toward Chase. “That was some declaration you just made.”

  “And that was some reaction from a man who's only supposed to be your friend. Rebe, do you really think it's a good idea to continue your friendship with Sam?”

  “I already told you that my friendship with Sam is non-negotiable. “

  “Why?”

  “He's important to me. He's been there for me when you haven't. And if this commitment with us doesn't pan out, she wanted to add but didn't. It was wrong on so many levels to play this close to the fire. She was playing with Sam's emotions. She wasn’t sure how much of Chase’s emotions were involved, but she knew what she was doing wouldn’t be good for his ego. It wouldn’t be good for any man’s ego. The thought made her wonder if what she was going for was perhaps a bit of payback for all the times Chase had cheated on her.

  Tilting her head Rebe looked up into Chase's eyes wondering why she wasn't worried about his emotions. Something heavy filled her stomach and instant anxiety pushed down like anvils on both shoulders. She wasn't in love with Chase. And he wasn’t in love with her. She knew that now more than ever. She wanted to cry. How the heck had she gotten here? She wrote fantasy, not lived it. “Chase.”

  “I know what you're going to say, Rebe. Don't say it, not yet. We haven’t given us a chance. Don't you think we both owe it to us, to give it a real shot. If you think I can't hack it, or even if you can’t,” he smiled, “we can always end it later. But I'm seriously pulling for us. You're wrong about me, and so is Sam.”

  Rebe thought about it, never once had Chase said he loved her, never once had she said it to him. But still she wondered if they could make a go of it.

  “What's wrong, Rebe?”

  “Nothing. I'm just worried about Sam.”

  “Why worry about Sam? You’re not committed to him, you’re committed to me.”

  “I’m not sure. But for some reason I am worried about him, not that he’ll do anything crazy. I mean, Sam is sensible and solid. But he was laughing at both of us and there was this something in his eyes.”

  “We’re not going to worry about Sam. By the way I have a lunch meeting so I won’t be able to have lunch with you. I’ll see you later tonight though.”

  When Chase walked away Rebe stared after him until a feeling made her glance backwards towards Sam’s door. Thank God the door was closed. Too bad she hadn’t accepted Sam’s invitation. She’d wanted to talk to him anyway. Now it was too late to accept, the macho display by her boyfriend, her committed boyfriend had definitely put a nail in that idea.

  “What an idiot,” Sam laughed to himself. After that little stunt of Chase’s there was no way in hell he would leave Rebe to him. So she was looking for a hero, a man to rescue her., hmm actually she'd said the exact opposite. She wanted a man who looked like a hero. He wondered what Rebe would do when she saw her hero with a slightly different look. Grabbing a brush he dabbed it in a bit of oil paint from his easel and laughed the entire time he was putting the finishing touches on his mural. It was time for him to stop dragging this out.

  Pulling out his cell he texted Rebe. Let the senior partner know that day after tomorrow I will unveil the mural. I want my check cut and ready for me. He pushed send then immediately turned his phone off. He didn’t want any possible word from Rebe to change a single thing about the way he’d depicted any of the partners. With a glance at the mural he suddenly remembered the lessons of right and wrong and karma. Painting furiously Sam cleared his mind of doubts. He had to hurry and finished before an attack of conscience made him change his mind.

  The day of the unveiling and Rebe was as anxious as a mother hen. Every bone in her body warned that Chase was not going to fare well in Sam’s painting. It would probably have been better if they’d both been a bit nicer to Sam.

  While she didn't want to choose a side she knew she should show a united front and side with Chase. That was what commitment was all about right? Then she ran into Sam and the look he gave her, made her shiver. Heat yeah, but there was downright challenge in his gaze. Oh crap, she knew what was coming. If she could run home and hide under the covers she would. Thank God Sam wasn't doing her portrait. For now all Rebe could do was watch.

  Taking a look around the space that had once only been a long, wide hallway; she marveled at Sam’s use of space and marveled even more that he had a table laden with food and drinks. When had he done all of this and who in the world was fitting the bill? As soon as she thought it she remembered a clause Sam had had her insert in his contract. The company was footing the bill. She hoped Sam milked this for all it was worth because she didn’t see how her bosses would ever employ him again. Sam walked over to her and handed her a cup. She took a sip and brought her gaze up to meet his. “Champagne?”

  “Only for the two of us.”

  At that moment all of the senior partners gathered in Sam’s domain. “No champagne for the partners?” Rebe asked.

  “None of this. This is special, just for the two of us. And I bought it. The rest…well the rest the company is paying for.”

  With a flourish Sam grinned at the assembled body and yanked the cover away from the wall as though he were a magician. For a few seconds all eyes were on the mural and they were stunned. Rebe took a look and saw the beauty. What struck her was the realism. The painting looked as though Sam had snapped a picture of all the partners with a very expensive camera that took in every line and crevice. Something that could be done with a high definition camera. She had to admit she was happy for Sam and very proud of him. She wanted to say to everyone there, Sam’s my friend. My fr
iend painted that masterpiece.

  Then details started emerging, Mr. Newton sitting at his desk with cigarette smoke coming from his drawer as he used his hand to fan it away. The law stated you couldn’t smoke in office buildings, besides that Mr. Newton claimed to have given up smoking. The partners had been caught in moments when they'd not expected, each one humorous, showing some tiny human flaw and then as Rebe looked from the wall where the mural resided to find Chase frowning, turning back to the mural she studied it more closely and she saw it, the reason for the frown that was on Chase’s face. There was nothing that could have prevented her from laughing.

  Sam had portrayed Chase with him admiring himself it appeared in a golden ornate mirror that looked so real it begged to be touch. Chase had a container, an economy size container no less, of hair gel, and was pictured putting a handful into his hair. But it was the image in the mirror that looked back at Chase that made Rebe laugh. It was a frog and he was wearing a crown.

  Rebe laughed until tears ran down her cheeks and as she continued to do so, every single person assembled there with the exception of course of Chase laughed. Chase glared at Sam and at her.

  “I'm suing you,” Chase said to Sam.” You're going to change that.”

  “I don't think so,” Sam answered.

  “You're changing it.”

  Mr. Newton was laughing so hard Rebe noticed he also had tears running down his face. He wiped them away with the back of his hand but didn’t stop laughing as he tried to bring peace. “Oh come on, Chase, it's all in fun and I like it.”

  Chase turned his glare on the senior partner. “He didn't have a right to paint any darn thing he wanted. This was intended to be a serious painting. Sam, I'm not kidding. You get rid of that.”

  “Check with my lawyer.” Sam laughed and turned toward Rebe. “The painting stays as is.”

  Chase moved toward a paint brush but Sam was quicker. In disbelief Rebe watched Sam twist Chase’s arm behind his back. “You. Do. Not. Mess. With. My. Art.” He said each word slowly and deliberately. “The painting stands.”

  Rebe stopped laughing when she saw things were getting serious between Sam and Chase. Sam’s eyes were blazing a greenish brown fire. It wasn't so funny anymore. Sam could be arrested for assault if he didn't cool it. “Sam, let go of Chase and come with me,” she ordered.

  “Sure, Rebe. Just as soon as everyone has finished admiring the painting and I have a chance to reset the lock.”

  She walked closer to Sam and whispered in his ear. “Please let Chase go.”

  “Only because you asked,” Sam replied and dropped Chase’s arm, not even bothering to move away from him but instead standing toe to toe with him, until Chase moved away from him. Sam tilted his head in acknowledgement and then smiled at something one of the senior partners was saying about how much he loved the painting. Then he turned back to her. “Anything else, Rebe?”

  She so wanted to scold Sam. But for the moment it would be unwise to continue looking at him because the look he was giving her was making her laugh. “Enjoy your unveiling, Sam. you deserve it. I’ll talk to you later when this is over.”

  For over an hour the door to Sam’s space remained open and people came, admired the mural, and partook of the refreshments. The senior partners were extremely pleased with the mural. That was obvious from the smiles on their faces and the comments Rebe heard. When Mr. Black shook Sam’s hand and asked if Sam would consider doing his family’s portrait if he had the time she’d been stunned... When Sam had replied he rarely did that type of painting thus turning the offer down she was dumbfounded. What the heck was Sam thinking? What was in that champagne the two of them were sipping?

  When she was finally able to drag Sam away she headed for Chase’s empty office knowing he’d left to meet with a client and shouldn’t be back for some time. She stood before Sam trying to frown at him.

  “Okay, Sam, you shouldn't have done that to Chase.”

  “Twisting his arm?”

  “I meant the painting. You shouldn’t have painted him as a frog. But you also shouldn’t have twisted his arm and especially not in front of the entire office.

  “He was attempting to destroy my work. What would you do if someone did that to one of your manuscripts?”

  Rebe thought about it and shrugged. “I probably would have done the same thing.”

  “Thank you.”

  “I know you painted all the partners with flaws, but why did you paint Chase as a frog?”

  “I painted him as I see him. You see him one way, I see him another.”

  “But, Sam, you do realize that you're portraying the wrong thing. The frog always turns into a prince and gets the girl. You should have painted the frog and put Chase's face in the mirror.”

  Shrugging Sam just stared at her. Then he asked, “Is that always the case? You told me that it never happens that way except in fantasy.”

  “I stand corrected, but what was your message?”

  “That I saw his inner being and he's a frog. He will not turn into a prince, or a hero. He's not heroic, Rebe. He's the least heroic man I know.”

  “And what you did kinda puts you in that same category. Your actions were very unheoric.”

  “Everyone laughed,”

  “That still doesn't make it right.”

  “You laughed.”

  “And that's going to cost me. “Sam, you know Chase and I are trying to see if we can have a committed relationship. Why did you paint him like that?”

  “I already answered that question.”

  “I wish you’d given me a sneak peek so I wouldn’t have laughed right in Chase’s face.”

  “Are you saying it's my fault that you can't see Chase anymore as your hero, that you can't be in a serious relationship with him.”

  “I didn’t say that.” Sam was giving Rebe one of those; I want to kiss you looks. And she was afraid she might be giving him a, ‘please kiss me’ look in response. It was time to change the conversation. “I talked to my parents. I promised them I'd fly out to see them for my father’s birthday. That’s in three weeks. Will you go with me? I'll pay for your expenses.” Sam was giving her such a strange look, one she couldn't decipher. “What's wrong?”

  “You're in a committed relation with Chase. Why don't you ask him to go with you?”

  Rebe didn’t answer. She didn't want Chase to go with her, not to meet her parents and most certainly not to talk about her brother.

  “Rebe, are you afraid Chase won't go?” Sam asked.

  She hadn't thought of that. She only knew she didn't want him with her.

  “If you're in a committed relationship you should want him to do this with you. And he should want to be with you, to go and meet your parents. Come on, all the time you’ve been together, he should have met them already. Why don't you ask him?”

  “But you promised.”

  “That was before.”

  “Sam.”

  “Yes.”

  “Are we back to being enemies?” Rebe studied him, her gaze lingering on his lips. Again the image of him standing in his boxers in front of his fridge came to her. She moaned softly. She definitely didn’t want to go back to being enemies with Sam. What did she want? A few more kisses, she thought and bent her head.

  “Rebe do both of us a favor. You're playing with fire, and if you're not very careful you will get burned. I'm not a yo yo, and I'm not going to continue playing kissing games with you. You want the handsome heroic type, and you want the friend to remain at your beck and call. It's not happening. Besides, a typical alpha male would not allow you to run roughshod over him.”

  “How would you know that?”

  “I do more than paint. I'll talk to you later I have to check with the partners. By the way do you have that last installment?”

  “Yes…but to be honest I don't know if you deserve to be paid. I know what you painted isn't what anyone expected.”

  “There's only one person complaining, and him I
don't care about. Now, may I have my check please?”

  Rebe looked on Chase’s desk where she’d dropped the file containing Sam’s check. She retrieved the envelope and handed it over to him. “Sam, I think Chase is serious about suing you.”

  “And?”

  “And he'll lose. The contract is iron clad.”

  “Then, Rebe, what’s the problem?”

  She knew what the problem was. She wanted to keep talking to Sam. She was wishing she’d not agree to try a committed relationship with Chase. And she wanted Sam to kiss her. Again. But she couldn’t very well admit that now could she? She went into safety mode and talked about things that might keep him there a few minutes longer.

  “I just don’t want you to lose work because of this feud you have with Chase. He can’t win and that won’t even be the point. But he can still sue and make your life miserable by tying you and me up in court. And even though the partners won’t like it, and it would look very bad for two lawyers from the same firm to be on opposing sides, I do believe his ego is injured to the point where he might ignore all the reasons why he shouldn’t take action. Perhaps if you’d agree to change it just a bit.”

  The knocking on the office door followed by the handle jiggling made Rebe stare at Sam. She'd not locked the door. “Sam, what are you trying to do?” she asked as she heard Chase's voice calling her and glanced at Sam who had been in the process of leaving but was now deciding to take a seat. Throwing up her hands in the air she opened the door for Chase.

  “There you are,” Chase said coming in and looking at Sam and glaring. “I was looking for you. I’m sorry about what happened before. Sam, I want to be reasonable. I'll pay you to change that painting.”

  “How much?” Sam asked.

  “How much do you want?”

  “Ten thousand.”

  “Are you crazy, Sam? You’re not worth that much.”