Worth the Challenge

by Erickson, Karen

  “Does she have enough experience? Does she understand our vision? Have you smelled anything she’s created? How did you seal the deal so quickly? Don’t you think you should’ve consulted with Hunter and me, at least?” Alex fired off the questions at a rapid pace.

  “She has the experience.” Did she? He needed to Google her more properly. “She has the know-how. I mean, for Christ’s sake, she apprenticed under her father for years. How can she not know what she’s doing?”

  “She’s only twenty-five,” Alex said softly, his expression imploring. “She went to Givaudan when she was nineteen, though.”

  Rhett whistled low. “You know how hard it is to get into that school?” Only the most prestigious perfumer school in the world, they admitted a handful of students each year.

  “You know how easy it would be if your father was the Michel Durand? Think about it, Rhett.” Alex shook his head. “She has no real experience under her belt, only a handful of jobs with mediocre brands. I’m not sure if this is the right move.”

  Anger tightened Rhett’s gut and he steeled his spine, stared straight into his brother’s eyes. “Do you trust me?”

  “Of course I do,” Alex said without hesitation.

  “When it comes to making a decision, have you ever gone with your gut?”

  “Well, yes. Rarely when it comes to Worth, but I’ve done so,” Alex admitted, seemingly reluctant.

  “I feel it with my gut that Gabriella Durand is the answer. She’s going to deliver what we want and put Worth Luxury on the map in regards to women’s fragrances. I believe it with everything inside of me, Alex. Please let me do this.”

  They stared at each other in silence for what felt like a long stretch of time, assessing each other. Rhett refused to break, refused to back down, and finally Alex tore his gaze from Rhett’s with a little shake of his head. “I want the contract terms to be for three months.”

  Rhett scoffed. “Three months? That’s insulting.”

  “She’s untried as a perfumer of this caliber. You’re putting our reputation on the line for an untried girl.” Alex stared at him hard. “You don’t want to sleep with her, do you?”

  “What? No,” Rhett said vehemently. Maybe he was lying again, but he knew he needed to stand by this. He couldn’t fool around with her, not when so much was at stake.

  “Six months, that’s all I’m giving her initially,” Alex relented. “If she’s working out and proves herself, we can renegotiate terms then but no longer than six months as of now.”

  “Fine,” Rhett said through clenched teeth. Damn it, he’d need to call back the legal department and have them change the contract.

  “Don’t let this get out of hand. I expect travel expenses and the like. I read the report you compiled when you first took on the project, I know what you want to do and I approve. But nothing outrageous, Rhett, I mean it.”

  Rhett nodded once and offered Alex a quick salute. “Yes, sir.”

  Alex smiled ruefully. “Cut with the bullshit. You know what I’m referring to, right? No excessive parties, none of that crap.”

  “Are you really going to hang that over my head for the rest of my life?” Rhett was hurt. He knew Alex had much more faith in him than Hunter, but that his brother was still full of doubt in regards to his abilities cut like a knife. “I’m not a kid anymore, Alex. I’m not hell bent on screwing everything up like I used to be.”

  “I know.” Alex turned solemn. “I believe you. I believe in you.” He slapped Rhett on the back. “Prove me right and someday I’ll make you president of Worth Luxury Parfum.”

  Rhett grinned as his brother left the room.

  That was just the carrot that needed to be dangled in front of him.

  Chapter Three

  The room was plush, sleek and elegant with an art deco vibe. Subtle colors, bedside tables with mirrored fronts and crisp white-and-gray bedding that was somehow inviting even in its utter perfection. She couldn’t believe Rhett Worth had put her up in this hotel and didn’t expect her to pay a thing. Surely it was one of the nicest hotels Ella had ever stayed in and that said a lot. She’d traveled with her father ever since she could remember, though that had been a long time ago.

  She’d changed into jeans and a T-shirt the moment she arrived, lounging on the bed, flicking through the TV channels, all of the afternoon options boring. Deciding she’d rather have a nap, she turned off the TV and rolled over on her side, staring out the window at the New York City landscape before her.

  Just before she drifted off, there was a knock at her door. A courier stood there with a thick envelope that had her name on it, and she tore into the package the moment the man left, pulling out the contract with Worth Luxury.

  She needed a lawyer. At the very least, she should call her father. But what would he say? It might even make him angry, knowing she’d taken the job originally offered to him. She never could tell, what with his strange moods and reclusive ways. As the years passed, she’d needed to handle him carefully for fear he might erupt.

  Sighing, she glanced at each page, her gaze snagging on particular paragraphs. Her eyes crossed at all the legal terms that meant nothing to her. She’d signed contracts before with the few companies she’d worked for, but none had been so detailed, so long.

  It was almost as if she were signing her life away.

  Deciding she needed to do something before she met Rhett for dinner, she grabbed her cell phone and dialed her father’s number, shocked when he answered on the second ring and promptly asked where she was.

  “I’m in New York, remember?” Ella paused, then went for it. “I met with Rhett Worth earlier today.”

  “You went all the way to the city by yourself?” They lived in Vermont. It had been a simple train ride, yet he spoke to her as if she were a little girl embarking on a worldwide tour.

  She wanted to yell at him. Wanted to remind him that yes, indeed, she’d told him exactly where she was going last night before he went to bed. She’d woken up so early to catch the train and hadn’t wanted to disturb him. He probably hadn’t noticed she was well and truly gone. “I told you about it last night. Remember?”

  “I seem to recall.” He remained silent for a while before he finally decided to ask her a question. “So what did Rhett Worth have to say? That he wishes I would come work for him and his brothers, eh? He has hounded me for months. I tell him I’m interested, but I don’t want to go to New York and everywhere else he claims he wants to take me.” Michel Durand chuckled, sounding infinitely pleased with himself. “Tell him I am too busy with my garden to bother going there. He should come to me. I could show him my gardens, my flowers. They smell far better than anything that can be put into a bottle.”

  He spent most of his time in his garden now, tending to his flowers, coaxing the rarer, exotic ones into bloom in the greenhouse he’d built a few years ago. He claimed to have given up on synthetic scents, wanting only natural fragrances to surround him, to fill his aging nose.

  “I have something to tell you, Father.” Her voice grew small and nerves jumped in her stomach, making it hard for her to get the words out. How would he react? What might he say? Would he be pleased or angry?

  “Well, go on and tell me then. I assume it is much good news, no?”

  “It is, at least to me.” She took a deep breath before blurting, “Worth Luxury has offered me a position.”

  “A position as what? What do they want you to do?” He was, as usual, completely oblivious.

  Or completely self-absorbed. She could take her pick.

  “They want me to work as their in-house perfumer. It’s temporary, you see. They want to ensure I have what it takes to create their new fragrance, and I don’t blame them for the trial basis. But isn’t it wonderful, the opportunity they’re giving me? I’ll start right away. Rhett Worth seemed most eager to have me.” She was babbling, she sounded like a fool, but she couldn’t help it. The opportunity was exciting. The best she’d ever had.

>   Silence greeted her, went on for so long she thought they’d been disconnected. But then she heard the song of a bird in the background, faint and sweet. She could imagine her father standing in the midst of his garden, the sun warming his balding head, the bees swarming around him in search of pollen.

  “They can’t have me so they take you instead, eh?” he finally asked, his voice gruff. He didn’t sound pleased.

  And his words hurt. Disappointment washed over her. No matter how much she’d told herself his opinion didn’t matter…

  It did. Tremendously.

  “Like I mentioned, Rhett Worth seemed excited to hire me.” She hadn’t spoken with any of the other Worth brothers and now that she thought of it, it did seem odd. Shouldn’t they all come together when making such an important decision?

  “Rhett Worth has something to prove. I am not as unobservant as I appear, you know. I understand the machinations of Worth Luxury somewhat. I keep up on news in the industry and I remember their father. That youngest Worth brother will do whatever it takes to look as responsible as his big brothers. This opportunity has been handed to him, much like yours has been handed to you.”

  Her heart sunk into her stomach. Were Rhett’s motives pure desperation? Was she fooling herself into thinking this could really happen? The terms for employment were only for a measly six months. She could sink her everything into this project only to have them reject her after one hundred and eighty days.

  But it was a chance she was more than willing to take.

  “I will prove to him I am more than capable of the job,” she said firmly, not about to let her father bring her down. He didn’t mean to, after all. He’d always encouraged her, pushed her into the career that had made him a well-known and respected name in the fashion and beauty industry.

  He was the one who brought on his own fall from grace. If he would only work again, earn back the respect and a little money, then maybe she wouldn’t feel so desperate, so worried all the time…

  “And I am sure you will impress him.” She heard the smile in his voice, the song of the birds again in the background. His moods turned and twisted with the breeze. She could never be sure how he might feel or react from one moment to the next.

  It was a delicate balance, talking to her father, spending time with him, even after all these years. She hadn’t moved out of his home for fear of disappointing him. Plus, he could be scatterbrained. He rarely locked the doors to the house and tended to wander off, only to reappear a few hours later, always seemingly happy, always smiling.

  While she paced the house, worried out of her mind thinking something awful had happened to him.

  Guilt assuaged her. She shouldn’t leave him. He needed her. What if something happened? She’d never forgive herself.

  But she wasn’t a child anymore. She needed to live her own life, branch out and pursue her career. She couldn’t take care of her father forever…

  “I will impress him. I’ll impress everyone at Worth, I promise,” she said firmly.

  He chuckled. “I have no doubt that you will do just that.”

  They spoke of general banalities before they finally hung up, Ella promising she’d call him first thing tomorrow. She carefully set her cell phone on the bedside table, staring at it unseeingly as worry gnawed at her.

  She had no one else to turn to, no one else to count on but her father, which meant he had no one but her. Her mother had died in childbirth and she’d never known her, though she knew she looked like her. She had no siblings, no cousins, nothing. Her father had been the baby in his family and now at the age of seventy-two, his older brother and sister were long dead. He hadn’t stayed close to his nieces or nephews and they were all still in France.

  Her childhood had been isolating. But she’d never minded then. Had simply thought it normal and besides, she’d had her vivid imagination to keep her company. All of the people who’d come in and out of her father’s life had seemed to adore her, including her in their social events. Of course, they hadn’t had a choice. When a company hired Michel Durand, he was a package deal. And Gabriella Durand had always been a part of that package.

  Only in the last few years had she realized just how abnormal her childhood was. Isolated and lonely, she’d never really gone to school, having been tutored during her father’s travels.

  For once, she wanted to do something on her own. Something that belonged only to her.

  Frowning, she tore her gaze from the phone, taking in the stack of papers that sat beside it. Just looking at that contract gave her a headache. And okay, maybe it hurt to think that she didn’t necessarily get this job at Worth on her own merits but by gosh, she was going to prove to them she was capable of being a master perfumer. Perhaps almost as good as her father once was even.

  She lay back down on the comfortable bed, her head cradled by the plush pillow. The sheets were soft, the comforter thick, and she closed her eyes, willing herself to drift off into sleep. A little nap would definitely help and she had time. After traveling and all the excitement the day brought forth, she was exhausted. A little overwhelmed.

  And a lot excited.

  Rhett had gone home and changed before he went to the Warwick Hotel to pick up Gabriella. At first he’d thought it best if he stayed in his suit, wanting to convey that he meant business, even if they were discussing it over dinner.

  But then he feared he might intimidate her and considering she seemed a tad skittish, he decided it best to keep his approach as simple and friendly as possible.

  Hence the jeans and simple button-up shirt, understated and casual. He’d made reservations at a favorite restaurant that wasn’t too trendy or expensive. He wasn’t necessarily trying to impress her and this definitely wasn’t a date.

  It was strictly business. And that was exactly how he wanted to approach it.

  Frowning, he stood in front of her hotel room door, unsure how to greet her. If this really was a date, he’d lay on the charm and flirt his way into her panties by the end of the night.

  There would be no flirting and no getting into her panties this evening—or ever.

  Rhett frowned. What a disappointing realization.

  Knocking on the door, he shoved his hands into his front pockets, waiting patiently for her to arrive. The door swung open in seconds and Gabriella stood there, wearing a different dress, this one navy blue yet cut similarly to the one she’d worn earlier. Her damp hair hung around her makeup-less face, the scent of fresh soap clinging to her skin, and he wondered since when did the scent of a clean-smelling woman become such an aphrodisiac to him.

  “Hello.” She had the slightest French accent, one most people probably wouldn’t notice if they weren’t aware of her background. It was sexy as hell. “You’re early. And you said we would meet in the lobby.”

  She sounded downright accusatory and he shuffled his feet. “Sorry. Want me to come back in—” He checked his watch before meeting her gaze. “Ten minutes?”

  Slowly she shook her head, leaning against the edge of the door. “I’m not quite ready, but it seems foolish to send you away.”

  “Then don’t.” He smiled and nodded toward her. “I could come in. Just for a minute while you finish getting ready?” Wasn’t he presumptuous as hell?

  “I suppose.” She warily opened the door wider, an invitation inside and he took it, slipping through the doorway, watching as she headed toward the bathroom. “Sit and wait, if you don’t mind. I’ll be right out.”

  He sat at the round table that was close to the door, admiring the arrangement of fresh white flowers that sat in a mercury vase in the center. A low humming sound came from beyond the closed door and he realized she was drying her hair.

  All right, this was odd. He didn’t sit around and wait for women drying their hair in the bathroom when he went out with them, not that he really went out with anyone. He was as bad as his brothers used to be, even worse. Steady girlfriends weren’t his style. He rarely saw the same woman twi
ce. Any time they came even close to doing something as simple and intimate as spend time together outside of a bar, restaurant or bed, he was outta there.

  So here he sat, waiting for a woman he didn’t know in her hotel room while she prepped for their dinner meeting. Uncomfortable and awkward, sitting at a table and not knowing exactly what to say once she exited the bathroom.

  He felt like a damn fool. The woman set him on edge and he wasn’t even sure if it was her or the circumstance. Easier to blame the circumstance and everything hinged upon it. Like his career.

  Did Gabriella Durand realize how much his future depended on her? Probably not.

  And he doubted he should tell her either.

  Within minutes, she was exiting the bathroom, her face flushed from the heat, her silken hair spilling down her back in natural waves. She slipped a hoop earring into one ear as she searched about the room, her gaze locked on the floor. “So sorry to keep you waiting. I’m almost ready.”

  He stood because he thought he should, clasping his hands behind his back as she approached the table. “No need to apologize.”

  “Good, because I am feeling a bit scattered at the moment. I guess I’m more like my father than I—oh! There they are.” She extended her leg, offering him a glimpse of her knee and slender calf as she slipped first one shoe on, then the other. The same simple flat sandals she’d worn to the Worth offices. She must’ve kicked them off when she arrived at the hotel and they’d landed under the table. “I’m ready to go,” she said primly once she had the shoes on.

  It was rather intimate, watching a woman get ready to go out. Padding around barefoot, her skin flushed and damp, a little harried, a lot sexy.

  A lot sexy…

  “You have everything?” he asked.

  She grabbed her purse, which was slung over one of the chairs. “I do.”

  His gaze flickered to the contract that sat on the bedside table. “Were you able to spend some time reading over the contract?”

  Nibbling on her lower lip, she followed his gaze, a little frown marring her expression. “I tried.”