by Kate Hardy
‘Exactly.’
Oh, help. She feared she was weakening. ‘But—but a ball’s very public. If I went as your partner, everyone at Blackcorp would be bound to find out.’
‘I’d say that cat’s already out of the bag. The security fellow is bound to talk.’ He shrugged and his jaw squared as he stared out through the windscreen at a rubbish bin that someone had forgotten to take back inside. ‘So what do you think?’
‘I…I don’t know.’ Her mind seemed to have frozen. But one sure thing she couldn’t ignore was that Logan Black needed her help.
Looking down, she saw Hattie’s CD in her hands. There was a picture on the cover of an elegant dark-eyed woman seated at the piano in a slinky silver gown. She was aged about forty and barely recognisable as Logan’s elderly grandmother. Sally stared at the glamorous photograph and, thinking aloud, said, ‘I don’t have anything to wear.’
He chuckled. ‘That’s easily fixed. There’s a woman in Rose Bay with a fabulous dress shop. If I send you to Agathe, she’ll kit you out.’
Rose Bay? The prices in those shops were exorbitant.
‘And I’ll take care of the bill,’ he said.
‘But you can’t. I couldn’t let you.’
‘Don’t waste your breath fighting that one, Sally. It’s payment where payment is due. If you help me to get through this ghastly ball, you’ll be doing me an enormous favour.’
‘It would be much easier to say yes if you hadn’t kissed me tonight.’
Jerking his gaze away down the street again, Logan said, ‘That’s a fair comment, but as a boss speaking to an employee, I give you my word, Sally.’ His hand on the steering wheel clenched tighter. ‘I’m not a louse and I will not expect you to sleep with me as payment for a ticket to the ball.’
Sally’s cheeks grew very hot. ‘Right. I…I didn’t expect that you would.’ She swallowed to relieve the sudden dryness in her throat. ‘But it…it’s helpful to be clear about it.’ She realised she was trembling, but not with fear. She could trust this man; she knew that.
The long conversations at the team-building workshop, the hours they’d spent dancing, the visit to Hattie’s, the dinner, the kiss—never once had Logan shown any reason why she should be afraid of him.
His gaze flicked over her and she saw a small gleam of amusement in his eyes.
‘What’s so funny?’
‘I can’t believe I’m putting such a lovely girl off limits.’
Off limits? Sally was startled by her disappointment. She might not fear this man, but perhaps being in love with him was a worse problem. She longed to tell him that being ‘off limits’ wasn’t what she wanted at all. In fact, his gentlemanly declaration made her utterly miserable. The more she saw of Logan, the more deeply she fell for him. She should never have let her feelings get this far.
‘Is that settled, then?’ he asked her, annoyingly calm. ‘Will you come with me to the ball?’
Sally could feel her resistance giving way. Romantic yearnings aside, she felt a teacherly pride in her pupil. Logan had tried really hard to learn how to waltz and he’d made terrific progress. She would love watching him pull off the dance with Diana Devenish.
‘Take pity on me, Sally.’
‘The last thing you need, Mr Black, is pity.’
‘Think of your own enjoyment, then. You’ll love it.’
She could almost feel Chloe urging her. You came to Sydney for opportunities like this.
‘All right,’ she said finally, ‘I’ll come.’ With her hand on the door handle, she remembered to add her thanks. And then she remembered something else. ‘The ball’s on Friday evening, you’ll have to make arrangements for Hattie’s roses.
Logan smiled warmly. ‘Thanks for the reminder. You’d make a great PA.’
In the kitchen, Sally made herself a cup of tea. She added sugar and milk and took it into the lounge room, where she slipped Hattie’s CD into the player.
Almost immediately, the gorgeous sounds of a piano rippled and soared and rolled around her. The music was beautiful…like moonlight on water, or the first flush of dawn in the bush. It reached inside Sally, touching soul-deep chords.
‘Oh, Hattie,’ she whispered, sinking into an armchair, ‘I had no idea.’
She pictured Hattie, young and talented and beautiful, and she saw Logan as a little boy playing in his grandmother’s garden where white roses bloomed. Deep inside, she felt a bond with them. She thought of Hattie now, old and frail; Logan tall and manly.
Ridiculously, for no reason that she properly understood, she began to cry.
The next evening she telephoned Clifton House and asked if she could speak to Hattie Lane.
‘Hello,’ answered a quavering voice.
‘Hattie?’
‘Yes.’
‘It’s Sally Finch. Logan lent me one of your CDs and I wanted to tell you how much I loved it.’
‘Thank you, Sally. How thoughtful of you to call.’
‘I think your playing is absolutely brilliant. So beautiful. It made me cry. In the nicest possible way.’
‘Well, thank you, dear.’ After a beat, Hattie asked, ‘Did you say that Logan gave you the CD?’
‘Yes.’
‘My, my.’ Hattie sounded amused. ‘And I believe you’re going to the Hospital Ball with him.’
Gosh. Word got around quickly. ‘Yes, I am. Did Logan tell you about it?’
‘His sister, Carissa, rang me earlier this afternoon. When I told her that I’d already met you here at Clifton House, she was agog.’ Hattie laughed. ‘You’ve really set the cat among the pigeons, Sally.’
‘Actually, that would be a Finch, not a cat.’
Hattie laughed harder, but then she said, much more soberly, ‘You will be careful, won’t you, my dear?’
‘I…I’m not sure what you mean.’
‘I see. Then perhaps I’d better leave well alone.’
‘No, please don’t. If there’s something I should know, I’d like you to tell me.’
After a disconcerting silence, Hattie said, ‘My grandson would never hurt you intentionally, Sally. He’s a dear boy and incredibly generous. If it weren’t for his assistance, I wouldn’t be able to stay in this expensive nursing home and his parents wouldn’t be tripping around Australia. But I’m afraid he’s far too focused on his business. He’s intent on making sure he doesn’t commit the same mistakes his father made.’
Sally would have liked to ask what those mistakes were, but that would have been too nosy.
‘It would take someone quite exceptional to steer Logan away from the course he’s set upon,’ Hattie said. ‘But then, I suspect that you are an exceptional girl, Sally.’
If Sally had been better acquainted with Hattie, if she’d been having this conversation face to face rather than over the telephone, she might have pressed the elderly woman for an explanation. What was this course that Logan had embarked on and why should anyone want to steer him from it?
As she hung up, she wondered if Logan’s grandmother assumed that all girls who went out with her grandson heard wedding bells.
‘Not this girl,’ Sally said, replacing the receiver thoughtfully. ‘I might be fanciful but I have both feet firmly on the ground.’
CHAPTER ELEVEN
IT WAS six o’clock and Logan was still working at his desk. Each time he looked up, the waters of Sydney Harbour were a little darker. Now the street lights had come on and headlights glowed in the purpling twilight. Traffic on the bridge looked like bright strings of beads, as cars headed for home.
He should be heading off too, but he wanted to finish this proposal first. He preferred to stay back and get work finished, keeping his home as his refuge, his haven from the battlefield of business.
Another fifteen minutes should do it. Logan turned back to the list of figures on his computer screen.
‘Knock, knock!’
The unexpected voice at his office door startled him. ‘Sally!’ His smile was spontaneous
. These days, he only had to think about Sally and he started smiling. ‘What are you doing here at this late hour?’
‘I was waiting to speak to you.’
‘Really?’ His throat constricted and he had to swallow. ‘I—I’m sorry if I’ve kept you waiting. I had some work to clear up.’ He frowned at her. ‘But you didn’t have to stay back. Maria knows I have an open door policy with my staff. Or you could have telephoned.’
Sally dropped her gaze to something she was holding and he saw that it was a CD. ‘I needed to be certain that no one will overhear our conversation,’ she said.
‘I see.’ A disquieting thought struck. ‘You’re still coming to the ball, aren’t you?’
‘Yes.’ She looked up and her gaze softened. ‘I wouldn’t pull out at this late stage.’ She looked suddenly animated. ‘I’ve got my dress. It’s gorgeous.’
‘I’m glad you like it.’
She waved the CD. ‘I’m afraid this is a business matter.’
‘You’d better take a seat, then.’ He wished it wasn’t so hard to be formal and businesslike with Sally. He kept thinking about kissing her.
‘Is it OK if I shut the door?’
‘If you insist.’ Logan’s frown deepened. What on earth was this about?
Sally pulled out a chair and sat. She was wearing a bright blue top and a neat grey skirt. Ordinary, everyday working clothes which shouldn’t have looked incredibly sexy. On her they did. Intensely so, especially when she crossed her legs with an unconscious grace that robbed him of oxygen.
For days he’d been trying to forget how she’d felt in his arms—soft and sensuous and willing. She’d completely wrecked his powers of concentration.
‘So what did you want to discuss?’ His voice was gruffer than he’d intended.
‘This.’ Sally set the CD on the desk. But she didn’t speak immediately. She looked worried, almost embarrassed, and chewed at her lower lip. Her soft, pink, infinitely kissable lower lip. ‘Can you confirm that it’s OK for me to send off the contents of this disk to an outside email? Maria said it was an urgent job for you, but she had a problem with her own computer and I wanted to—’
‘Maria?’ Logan interrupted. ‘Did you say Maria asked you to send emails?’
‘Yes.’
‘Why?’
‘She said she was having trouble with the Internet. She’s been getting me to do odd jobs. The other day she asked me to save a whole stack of files on to my computer.’
‘She what?’
Sally squirmed uncomfortably in her chair. ‘I feel terrible speaking about your PA behind her back. It’s probably fine. She said it was for security. An extra backup.’
No, it wasn’t fine. Logan felt stirrings of alarm. ‘We have good backup procedures. Maria didn’t need to use your computer.’
Sally shrugged unhappily. ‘I knew there was no real harm in saving a few files.’ She shook her head. ‘But I didn’t feel right about sending an email when I hadn’t been told anything about it.’
Uneasily, Logan asked, ‘So what’s on the CD?’
‘I don’t know and I didn’t think it was my business to read the files. That’s why I wanted to check with you. It seemed odd, like agreeing to take a parcel on an international flight without knowing the contents.’
‘Let’s have a look, then.’ Grim-faced, he picked up the CD and slid it into his computer.
A click of the mouse later, the list of files scrolled on to his screen and the bottom dropped from his stomach.
Sally leaned anxiously across the desk. She’d seen the shock in Logan’s eyes and the colour drain from his face and now she felt sick. ‘What is it?’
‘This is full of information that’s come straight from the boardroom. It’s supposed to be locked away on a secure file.’ Logan loosened his tie as if he needed more air and Sally saw, with dismay, that his hand was shaking.
He clicked on another file and a groan escaped him. ‘This is Blackcorp’s strategy for the next three years. It…it’s the heart and soul of my company.’
‘But—’ Sally struggled to take this in. It was so much worse than she’d feared. It sounded disastrous.
Logan lifted his hands to his head and shuddered. ‘You haven’t sent any of this information, have you?’
‘No. Nothing.’ She was so glad she could reassure him.
‘Good girl.’ He let out a heavy sigh. ‘In the wrong hands, this would allow a competitor to second guess the next critical stage in Blackcorp’s development.’ Beckoning to her, he said, ‘Look, come and see for yourself. It lists all our company contacts. Key strategies. Pricing.’
She came around to his side of the desk, saw the lists of figures, saw the haggard fear in Logan’s eyes.
Thank heavens she’d followed her instincts and double-checked with him.
‘Where were you supposed to send this?’ he asked.
‘I have the list of addresses here.’ She pulled the sheet of paper with Maria’s list from her pocket.
Logan took one glance at it and let out a groan, then leapt to his feet and released a strong expletive. ‘I can’t believe Maria did this.’
He could feel panic rising and he began to pace.
‘She would have reduced me to my bottom dollar.’ He reached the far wall, paced back again. Fear. The sickening fear that had dogged him since his teens clawed at his throat.
He slammed a fist into the wall. ‘She must have been a plant all along. She’s probably been planning this for ages. There could have been a takeover of Blackcorp.’ It was his worst nightmare.
He shot Sally a fierce glance, challenging her, needing her to understand. ‘My family’s already been through one bankruptcy. I swore I would never let it happen again in my lifetime.’
All his years of hard work, all his self-denial and disciplined planning would have come to nothing. Nothing!
‘But everything’s OK, isn’t it?’ Sally asked quietly. ‘I didn’t send the emails. Nobody got this information.’
‘You’re right.’ Logan shot her a shaky smile. ‘You’ve pulled us back from the brink of disaster.’ He felt a blast of euphoria. Sweet, piercing relief. But it quickly evaporated as the full implications of Maria’s treachery struck home.
‘Maria was setting you up, Sally.’ It was a terrible possibility, but it had to be true. ‘She wanted the emails to come from you. Then, if the leaks were discovered, they would have been traced to your desk.’
Sally pouted. ‘Why did she pick on me?’
‘She would have been confident that you didn’t have a hope of defending yourself. It’s so much easier to cast suspicion on the newest employee.’
‘And then it would have been my word against the word of the boss’s trusted PA.’
‘Exactly.’
This time it was Sally who swore. Colourfully. And then she quickly blushed. ‘Sorry. Having four brothers expands a girl’s vocabulary. But how dare she use me like that?’
Tears shone in her eyes and the sight of them undid Logan. Closing the gap between them, he took her hands. ‘Maria’s a poor judge of character. No doubt she thought of you as nothing more than the new girl—a little nobody on the front desk—too terrified to question her.’
Sally rolled her eyes and the action sent her tears spilling down her cheeks. Logan wiped them gently with his thumbs. He said softly, ‘Sally saves the day.’ It was supposed to make her smile. Her smiles were precious. Pure gold. ‘I mean it, Sally. You’ve saved my company, you’ve saved me.’
She rewarded him with a tiny tilt of her mouth. Her lovely, soft, inviting mouth. Which he should not be looking at with shameless desire.
But desire for Sally had become his constant companion lately and now it was heightened by all the other emotions swirling through him—shock, horror, gratitude, elation. ‘How can I ever thank you?’ he whispered and then, to cover the deeper feelings he hadn’t meant to reveal, he tried to lighten the moment. ‘I’m great with flowers and dinners, but what else
can I offer you, Sally?’
For ages she stood there, staring at his computer, but when she looked up there was a playful twinkle in her eyes. ‘I think the least you could do is kiss me again.’
Wrong answer. He was supposed to be keeping his distance from this woman. He was her boss and he’d as good as promised that he wouldn’t lay a finger on her.
Sally seemed to have forgotten. And, the truth was, Sally had earned twenty years’ worth of kisses, and it was only fitting that he should be the man who gave them to her. Slowly. Lovingly. Over every inch of her soft, silky skin.
Whoa, there. Straighten your thinking, man.
Logan shifted his focus from Sally’s tempting mouth to the bank of windows. The world outside was pitch-black now. It was time to get her home before he forgot his good intentions. Time to…
He looked into Sally’s eyes again. Major mistake. He felt as if he were drowning, feared he was losing the fight. He was a mere male and how could he resist this tempting saviour? Why should he resist her when she was so clearly inviting him to kiss her?
Lifting his hands, Logan framed her face, knew he had no chance in this lifetime of keeping his distance.
Nevertheless…it was supposed to be a restrained kiss. That was the plan. Cradling her face with gentle hands, he lowered his lips slowly, brushed them softly against her mouth.
And his plan turned to dust as Sally gave a small whimpering cry, wound her arms around his neck and arched into him. Her lips were sweet and eager. She nipped him lightly on his lower lip and made soft sounds of wanting that sent his best intentions scattering into the night.
His kiss turned hard and deep. His hands slid down her arms and cupped her bottom. Oh, God. Her kisses were way beyond sexy. She tasted divine, sent him wild.
He’d never been stirred to this feverish point where physical need and tender emotions were fused in one overwhelming torrent of longing. He had to have this woman. He was on the edge of losing control completely.
No. Hell, no. He couldn’t do that.
Somehow Logan found the strength to break the kiss. Sally’s cheeks were flushed and her eyes were dark and roused. Touching a finger to her lips, he whispered, ‘We shouldn’t be doing this. I gave you my word.’