Finally she spotted them, standing on a knoll, high enough to take in all the activity in a single shot. Standing slightly behind the camera operator was a squat fellow she’d never met but recognized instantly.
Steven Walker.
Cold sweat covered Shayna’s body. What the hell was he doing here? Was this what Kyle had tried to warn her about? Her hands began to shake so badly she had to grip a waist-high candy cane to keep herself upright.
Why, oh why hadn’t she taken the low road and greedily listened to all the secrets Kyle had been anxious to spill?
Just as quickly as the panic had spread a moment ago, peace now settled over her. She had nothing to fear from this man. Still, it might be best not to confront him until Walker also knew about his loss of negotiating power. No sense airing all that dirty laundry prematurely.
Before she got carried away imagining the stunned look on Walker’s perennially smug face, Shayna brought her attention back to today’s event. Parade time was almost here.
Trucks and tractors fired up, the rattle of diesel engines adding to the roar of excited voices. Recorded Christmas carols blared out over the PA system while the marching band tuned up.
She prepared to jump down and help the little ones line up, but from the corner of her eye she noticed a familiar blond head pushing his way to Walker’s side. Even from this distance, the anger and disappointment on Kyle’s face was clear.
He was obviously seconds away from telling off his biggest client and sabotaging his career. She couldn’t let him do that, not when the misguided man still thought she needed his protection.
She loved him too much to stand aside and watch him throw away a goal he’d worked half a lifetime for. No matter how good his intentions.
As the other parade princesses began climbing aboard the float, Shayna jumped off. She waved at a surprised, fully costumed Danny and started running through the scurrying crowd.
Behind her, Danny shouted her name, but she didn’t slow down, didn’t look back.
Her focus remained pinned on Kyle and Walker. Judging by the hand gestures and the distance the crew had given the two men, things were not going well.
By the time she reached them, Shayna was completely breathless. She had to stand there pulling in deep draws of air before she could alert them to her arrival.
“I haven’t been too impressed with your advice, Anderson, so I made an executive decision.” Walker was puffed up and red in the face.
“Surprising her isn’t the right way to handle this. You should have at least shown her the courtesy of an advance warning.”
“Advance warning?” That shrill voice stole what little breath Shayna had managed to recover. Dressed in white leather pants and an indecently tight red sweater, Patty stepped from behind a long, solid-paneled white van. “Isn’t that what you were giving my baby girl when you slipped inside her cabin this morning? Or maybe you were too busy slipping her something else?”
Her mother’s crude comment drew a loud hiss from Shayna, but Kyle’s “What the hell is
“I’m just here to enjoy the festivities,” Patty replied in a frighteningly normal voice. “And to support my beautiful daughter, of course.”
“Bull!” Shayna thundered her way into the conversation. She’d had enough of her vindictive birth parents and their nonsense. “You’re both here to intimidate me into reconsidering my refusal.”
“What refusal?” Walker shoved Patty aside, turning confused eyes to Kyle. “She responded and you didn’t tell me?”
Kyle nodded, but his attention remained focused on her. This morning’s intimate warmth was nowhere to be seen. “We received a fax yesterday, but I didn’t forward it because Ms. Miller’s response was ill-advised and poorly conceived. I was hoping to convince her to reissue the offer with a more acceptable set of demands.”
Shayna wasn’t sure which hurt more. The fact that the love of her life had just essentially called her an idiot or the ease with which he slipped back into power attorney mode.
Ms. Miller, indeed.
Even though she knew the two of them didn’t have a future together, it still stung to be so soundly reminded.
Knowing a clean break would be best for them both, Shayna called up every ounce of poise and self-control in her body. Back straight and head held high, she turned her back on Kyle and addressed her worthless, conniving parents.
“If you two want to continue to torture each other over a relationship that soured twenty-five years ago, then go right ahead, but I refuse to let either of you drag me into this mess ever again. I won’t take sides, and I won’t absolve either of you for the horrible way you treated me. From here on out, I never want to hear from either of you again.”
Their shocked, blanched expressions were priceless. She wished she had a camera, but then, she imagined the little red light on the huge television camera meant Walker’s own people were capturing this moment much better than her little digital ever could.
Unable to bring herself to look in Kyle’s direction, Shayna started to head back to her float-somehow, she had to rise to her role as parade hostess-but Kyle’s fingers captured her wrist.
“Shayna?”
In that moment, staring into the vivid eyes she loved so much, her heart actually felt broken. How could she have forgotten that she was nothing more than a case, the means of getting that promotion?
Drawing the shards of her pride up from where it had crashed around her ankles, Shayna stiffened her spine and forced the tears from her voice. “Mr. Anderson, my apologies for getting carried away earlier today. As you can see-” she swooped her hands dramatically over her costume “-I’m a Christmas fanatic. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I don’t want to hold up the parade.”
A shadow fell over Kyle’s face. Shayna looked over her shoulder, but the entire parade crowd was blocked by a large red wall. “Shayna, what’s going on here? Are you okay?”
She offered Danny a wobbly smile. “Yeah. Looks like you were right about the extra camera crew. I’ve explained that they’re not wanted here. Hopefully, they’ll clear out soon.”
“What about him?” He indicated Kyle with a head nod.
Swallowing her heartbreak, she strove for a light tone.
“I do believe Mr. Anderson’s business here is finished. I’m sure he’ll be leaving soon, as well.” Quickly, please.
“I’m not going anywhere.”
“Fine. I hope you enjoy the parade.” Afraid the tears would start flowing any second, she headed back to her post. She didn’t hear the actual words spoken, but she knew that behind her, Danny and Kyle had a short standoff. She held her breath, expecting-praying-Kyle would stop her at any second.
When she reached the princess float unscathed, she knew Kyle wouldn’t be coming after her. Not today. Not ever.
It took a lot of fast talking for Kyle to reassure Danny that he had no intention of further upsetting Shayna. At least not until after the parade. The big man made an effective bodyguard, but the spark in his eyes and the smirk on his face gave him away. Danny Robertson was no more a physical threat than Brinks.
Brinks was okay, but Danny had to go. From here on out, Kyle planned to be the man covering Shayna’s back. And her front, but he had to take it one step at a time for now.
As Danny sprinted back to his Santa float, Kyle followed the van’s progress through the thick crowds and blocked roads. His pedestrian status gave him a huge advantage today. Catching up with his fleeing client would be no problem.
Walking westward, he quickly caught up with the white production van at a stoplight. He motioned the driver into an adjacent parking lot and waited for Walker to disembark.
There were some critical issues he needed to straighten out with his client. Before he quit.
This case had shone a bright light on the holes in his childhood dream. Happiness was about a hell of a lot more than money, power and prestige. It was about love and laughter and making a positive impact.
