Realizing that she had allowed the silence to stretch, Caitlyn hurried to reply. “No, much to my mother‘s disappointment, I have never been to England.”
“Your mother certainly has a charming regard for my homeland.”
“She considers it to be her own homeland.”
“Really? I had thought she was born here.” The man‘s scoffing tone set up Caitlyn’s hackles despite her agreement with his words.
“Well, Canada is a dominion, but we’re still a part of the United Kingdom.”
Mr. Westridge’s shrug didn’t quite match his soothing tones. “But of course, that is the only reason why my father allowed me to try to establish myself here.”
Caitlyn’s lips twitched but she didn‘t want to insult the man. “I would have thought that, with you being the third son, he wouldn’t have been so very invested.”
Westridge put back his head and laughed at her words. “You are not the docile, sweet miss your mother would like to say you are, are you, Miss Doherty?”
“I do apologize, Mr. Westridge.” She almost choked over her words, but she managed to utter them. He cut off the rest of her apology.
“Not at all, Miss Doherty, I was, perhaps, being a trifle insufferable.”
Now it was Caitlyn’s turn to laugh. “Perhaps a trifle.”
“Not being so biddable isn’t necessarily a terrible thing,” Mr. Westridge conceded. “Especially not here in the New World. And even back at home you might be viewed as an Original.”
Caitlyn grinned. Her mother would have a fit if she heard them just now, but at least she hadn‘t deeply offended the man. Perhaps he would see the error of his ways in wishing to court her. Or perhaps he had felt some sort of compulsion from Mrs. Doherty and was only fulfilling his duty anyway. Either way, Caitlyn was almost certain he would no longer be pursuing her. She couldn’t prevent the grin that was stretching her face. Her steps were far jauntier as she continued along beside him making polite chatter. It wouldn’t do to return home too quickly.
~~~
“Why were you meeting with our competition?”
“I beg your pardon?”
Caitlyn’s hands stalled in the process of unpinning her hat as she blinked in confusion at Connor. Connor gritted his teeth. Even when he was angry with her, he couldn’t deny she was still a beautiful young woman. He was thrilled that he now had a justifiable reason for firing her, despite his conversation with Curtis the previous day.
“Why were you in conversation with Rafe Westridge? He works for our biggest competitor. Are you giving out our company secrets? I could probably have you brought up on charges of espionage.”
She blinked again as though she were trying to understand what he was saying. He was just as confused when a large grin stretched her face.
“Are you saying Mr. Westridge works for another company doing the same type of business as you? And as such I ought to avoid contact with him?”
“That is exactly what I’m saying, and I want to know everything that was said between the two of you.”
“Oh Mr. Dalton, that is such wonderful news.”
Connor’s eyes narrowed as he watched her do a little twirl in front of him. It was exactly the sort of thing she would do as a little girl. It would have been charming if he weren't so angry.
“Settle down, Caitlyn, I’m serious here.”
“Connor,” she replied, dropping her usual polite distancing tactic of calling him Mr. Dalton. “You’ve known me since I was a child. You’re best friends with my brother. Surely you know full well I would never give away or sell or whatever you think I might have done anything confidential. And I know you are fully aware of how very much I love my position here at Dalton Industries. I would never violate that in any way.” She paused for a moment before adding, “I’m actually quite cross with you for suggesting otherwise. I don’t know what you, or someone who tattled to you, think you saw, but it was most definitely not espionage.”
“Perhaps you didn’t even realize he was fishing for company information from you. How do you even know him? How did you come to be in his company?”
He could tell she was trying to calm herself down and not be rude in response to him, but it was obvious it was a difficult challenge. Connor wanted to laugh, which was ridiculous since he was angry himself. He should have realized she wasn’t deliberately trying to be dishonest with him. But he wouldn’t put anything past Westridge. Of course, he knew she ran in the same circles as Westridge so it had been a foolish question, but he needed her to explain herself.
“Mr. Dalton, surely you will recall my mother’s fascination with anything connected with what she considers the home country. Even though we are of Irish descent like nearly everyone in this city, she is inordinately attached to the British aristocracy. In light of that, Mr. Westridge is of particular interest to my mother. He was our guest for lunch yesterday.”
“But you were seen, just the two of you, on the street.” He watched with disappointment as her cheeks colored, certain he had now found the truth.
She looked highly uncomfortable, as if she were about to confess her sins. Even though he had been told about it and was angry with her, his heart sank. He had thought she was the one person he could count on to be loyal.
“My mother wants me to accept his courtship.”
Connor almost didn’t understand her words, as he was expecting something completely unrelated to come out of her mouth.
“Pardon me?”
Her cheeks got redder and the color spread to the rest of her face. Her discomfort was palpable.
“I didn’t want to do it, at first, and it had nothing to do with business. I didn’t even ask him what he does for work. You know my mother would consider it vulgar to talk about one’s source of income. I actually understood he was caring for his father’s Canadian holdings. That was the extent of our business discussion. But Mother would be thrilled to have a nobleman’s son as her son-in-law, as you can surely imagine. She wishes for me to allow Mr. Westridge to court me. As I have no desire to wed at this time, I wanted to refuse outright, but since I’ve already undertaken extensive battles with my mother lately, I deemed it necessary to appease her to a certain degree. Being polite to Mr. Westridge over lunch and accepting his escort for a stroll around the block were the necessary tasks to ensure I had at least done my part.” She paused for a moment before her irrepressible grin broke out. “The good news is, I don’t think I was as much to his taste as he had thought when he came calling.”
Connor couldn’t help returning her grin. “What did you do?”
She shrugged but her eyes were twinkling as she replied. “I didn’t do anything, but he told me I wasn’t the biddable girl he thought I was. I really don’t know where he got his ideas about me from, except perhaps, my mother might have been using overly glowing terms as she courted his interest. I hadn’t exchanged more than polite greetings with him before yesterday.” She shuffled her feet and smiled. “I’m not likely to do more than that in the future either. But now that you have said he is working for your competitors, I will be able, in all good conscience, to refuse my mother’s requests to see more of him.” She paused before her face fell comically. “Unless you think this will just give my mother more reason to try to persuade my father to deny me permission to continue working. Oh, no, Connor, perhaps I cannot use this as I thought.”
She chewed on her lip as her brow furrowed in distress for a moment before she brought her narrowed gaze back to meet his.
“Wait one moment. I’ve allowed myself to get completely off track. I do believe you owe me an explanation, Connor Dalton. I know I owe you a degree of respect and deference as my employer, but you’ve known me forever. How could you even consider I might have betrayed your trust?”
Connor was surprised and impressed with her ability to keep track of the thread of the conversation despite her various concerns on the matter. He actually felt his own cheeks heat as she glared at him.
; “Well, now, Miss Doherty –“
“No, don’t Miss Doherty me, Mr. Dalton. I respectfully demand an explanation. You ought to have known me better than that.”
“You’re right, Caitlyn, I should have. But Westridge is known for dirty tactics in business.”
“Really?” Her cute, crinkled nose almost distracted him, but he just barely managed to keep his attention focused on their discussion.
“Really. And just yesterday my assistant told me that you have received offers of employment from some of our contacts.”
“And what did that have to do with anything? Shouldn’t that have actually supported my loyalty rather than calling it into question?”
Connor refused to acknowledge the heat that crept up his neck and into his cheeks. “Miss Doherty, I do not actually owe you any explanation. I could fire you right this moment for insubordination.”
“I’m not being insubordinate, I’m defending my good name,” she retorted.
“You don’t sound terribly respectful at the moment,” he returned in a dry tone.
She bristled and then subsided, finally speaking in a lower, calmer tone. “You’re right, Mr. Dalton. I wasn’t feeling at all respectful either. I apologize. I was just hurt and offended that someone would jump to such a conclusion about me and then run to you with their tales. And that you would actually believe them was a shock to my system. But I shouldn’t have allowed my hurt feelings to enter into the business realm. I suppose this shouldn’t be considered a personal matter at all.”
She cleared her voice, and Connor was appalled to see that tears had gathered in her eyes. “I suppose I should just acknowledge that yes, I was speaking with Mr. Westridge yesterday, but it was perfectly innocuous. I had no idea he was associated in any way with one of your competitors in business, as business did not even come up in our conversation. I hope this is sufficient as I have no way of proving my statement. I will be deeply disappointed if you still feel the need to terminate my employment with Dalton Industries.”
Connor watched her pull herself together right before his eyes, and he filled with pride over her composure. To his relief, he watched as she blinked away the moisture that had threatened to spill over her eyelashes. A moment later she offered him a tight but polite smile.
“But your assistant was quite correct. I have received a few gratifying offers of employment elsewhere. I doubt if my parents would be happy about it, but if you feel you need to terminate my position, I could probably find employment with another company.” She paused and blinked away the obvious disappointment shining on her face. “In fact, I could look at it as a further adventure. Being accused of espionage, while not the most pleasant, isn’t something that happens to everyone every day. And then, going to another office, with new people to meet, might be interesting, too.”
Connor sighed. “I’m not going to terminate you.”
“So, you believe me?”
Connor rubbed his eyes and sighed again. “Yes, for the most part. I can certainly envision your mother finding an Englishman she would like to court you. In fact, I knew she had set her eyes on Westridge. But it seems like a stretch of coincidence that Westridge would take you out and not fish for company secrets.”
“Really, Mr. Dalton? You find it hard to believe that a gentleman didn’t think I might know anything about my employer? I can assure you, that was nothing out of the ordinary. If Mr. Westridge was even aware of the fact that I’m working for you, I am certain he wouldn’t expect me to know anything that would be of any use to him.” Her bitter tone gave way to a small chuckle. “And, to be honest, I don’t think I do know anything that would be of use to a competitor. Not for lack of my ability to understand, but just because no one has told me anything of any consequence.”
Connor stared at her for a moment and then had to laugh. “I guess you’re right. You sound professional and knowledgeable when you’re answering the phone, but no one really goes into much detail with you.”
Her steady gaze made him grow uncomfortable. He raised his eyebrows in question at her.
“Was there an apology in there somewhere?”
Connor’s anger with her returned. Shouldn’t she be just the least bit more respectful of his position as her employer?
“As your boss, I don’t really owe you an explanation or an apology.”
Her steady gaze didn’t falter, but he could see color fill her cheeks and hurt fill her eyes. “You’re probably right, Mr. Dalton.” She paused and took a deep breath. “I’d like to thank you for the opportunity you granted me by hiring me here at Dalton Industries. It was an exciting experience, and I will always be grateful.” She finally broke eye contact and reached for the hat she had just removed.
“What are you doing? Are you quitting? I just told you that I believed you.”
Caitlyn nodded. “You believe me because you recognize that a nobleman’s son isn’t going to discuss business with a young lady of his acquaintance, especially not one he might be considering courting. But that’s a far cry from trusting me.”
“Caitlyn, wait, this is a place of business. Emotions aren’t supposed to be part of our dealings.” Connor sighed in exasperation. “This is why women shouldn’t be in the workplace.”
Dismay filled her face, but she didn’t lower her gaze in deference. “I will admit that my feelings are hurt, Mr. Dalton, which could be argued as bringing emotions into the matter. But I would think trust would be a required aspect of any business dealings, whether that is an emotional issue or not. When you sign a contract with someone, don’t you need to trust that they will pay you for the work you will be performing for them?”
Connor couldn’t argue with her logic. And when he searched his heart, he had to admit that he did trust her. He should have realized she would never betray him. She was a decent person. He had known her since she was a little girl. That long knowledge should have made him more loyal to her. Not only the length of the relationship but also the depth of his understanding of her.
“You’re right, Caitlyn, I apologize. Profoundly. I did you a disservice, and I’m very sorry. Would you please reconsider and remain employed with my company?”
She gave him a hard stare. The phone jingling behind him broke her concentration, and her gaze flickered toward it. Caitlyn’s gaze returned and collided with his own. Finally, with a huff of frustration and without removing her hat, she hurried over and lifted the receiver. But she didn’t even sound winded when she answered.
“Dalton Industries, how may I help you?”
Connor smiled. She was a consummate professional. He should never have accused her.
Returning to his office, his mind was filled with the tale Curtis had poured into his ear the moment he had arrived.
“You know Rafe Westridge, right? You young, rich folks all seem to know each other.”
Connor had laughed over Curtis’ wording but had nodded.
“Did you know he’s the one behind that company trying to weasel into our hydro market?”
“I did not,” Connor had begun, surprised to hear it. But Curtis had interrupted before he could say more.
“And did you know Miss Doherty has been meeting with him?”
“What do you mean by meeting with him? Miss Doherty is a respectable young woman.” Again, he was cut off. He would have taken exception to Curtis’ rudeness except that it was obviously motivated by the young man’s devotion to Dalton Industries.
“Yes, yes, she’s lovely, I’m sure, but I saw them with my own eyes. Just yesterday. After she was working here as happy as a lark. I should have listened to you when you were saying you wanted to sack her. I can’t believe I defended the wench.”
“Curtis,” Connor had felt obliged to rebuke the man. “You will not speak in such a manner.”
He watched while his clerk took a deep breath and struggled to regain his composure.
“Apologies, Dalton, but the information I have is sound. I thought you knew about Westridge’s com
pany, that’s why I didn’t mention him earlier. But I saw them together with my own eyes, so it’s not hearsay.”
“It could be innocent.” At his assistant’s derisive glance Connor felt his face heat. “I suppose you’re right. It isn’t likely to be innocent.” As he thought about it, his anger soared. He had nursed a viper. He had invited her into his company, and she had violated his trust in the cruelest way possible.
But then it turned out that she hadn’t. Connor felt as though his head was in a vise. He was making a fool of himself in the worst possible way.
Chapter Four
Dear Lovelorn:
My mother wants me to accept the attentions of a socially acceptable gentleman of our family’s acquaintance. I find myself attracted to someone else entirely. But I would actually prefer to remain single for a little longer.
Ought I to follow my mother’s edict, should I allow my heart to guide me to the less acceptable man, or should I follow my mind’s impulse and reject both options?
Torn in Toronto
Dear Torn in Toronto:
You left many details out of your letter, but I am left wondering if you might perhaps be able to get your mind and heart to align? After remaining unwed for a while, perhaps the gentleman you’re attracted to might be interested in pursuing you in return?
Yours truly,
The Lovelorn
Caitlyn sighed. She had been reading the paper daily ever since she started working for Dalton Industries. She wanted to learn as much as possible. Her finishing school education had done nothing to prepare her for the world of business. She could sew and sing, paint and patch. She could plan a successful dinner party with barely any thought. She could even speak a few languages. But aside from the languages, she didn’t find anything practical in the training she had received. She had been raised to be someone’s wife, not a woman of business, or even someone’s employee. But reading the paper was going to change all of that. Or so Caitlyn hoped.
But some of it was very dry reading, indeed. The highlight of her newspaper reading was the Dear Lovelorn piece each day. She could barely believe it when her letter was printed. Her mother would never forgive her if she found out what Caitlyn had done, but she was fairly certain her secret was safe. Mrs. Doherty would never read the newspaper, and Caitlyn’s father would never realize it was she from the letter, even if he didn’t skip that portion of the paper.
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