Brooke’s heart sank. The prospect of sitting at a bar booth, eyeing potentially eligible males with her mother, was enough to suck every last breath of wind from her sails. Again, this had happened before. Still, it was her birthday.
Twenty minutes later they sat in the shiny black booth, which looked just as Brooke had imagined it. Her mom’s sculpted legs were artfully draped outside the booth where they could catch the eye of any passing males. “How about you, sweetheart? Are you still spending the weekends holed up in your apartment practicing yoga or do you ever go out into the world?”
All of Brooke’s better judgment told her to keep quiet about RJ. “Actually I’m seeing someone.” Apparently her better judgment had disappeared with her first sip of Frascati.
Her mom’s mouth and eyes widened. “Who? Someone from work?”
Brooke gulped. “Um, yes, actually.”
“Did you finally catch that gorgeous boss of yours?” She leaned in conspiratorially. “I’m always telling you you’re beautiful enough for even the richest man in Charleston, if you’d just shine a light on your assets.” She glanced approvingly at the cleavage revealed by her blouse. “You do have a glow about you, now I’m looking closer.” Her penciled brow lifted. “Well, don’t sit there in silence. Tell me more!”
Brooke took another sip of her wine. “It is my boss.” She said it quietly. “RJ. He’s been through a lot lately and I think I’ve been a shoulder to cry on for him.”
“Oh God, not a crier! I can’t stand them and they usually drink like fish, too.”
Brooke laughed. Her mom had a way of disarming anyone’s inhibitions. “Not literally. He’s just been going through a lot. I’m sure you’ve seen the stories in the papers.”
“About his mom killing his dad.” She grimaced. “Nasty stuff.”
“Mrs. Kincaid didn’t do it, I’m sure of that.”
“Papers said they have evidence that she was at the scene of the crime around the time that it happened. That sounds pretty guilty to me.”
Brooke’s back stiffened. Was her admission to the police that she’d seen Elizabeth Kincaid in the building shortly before the murder the entire reason RJ’s mother had been arrested? She’d yet to hear of anything more concrete.
“She came to bring him his dinner or something. Probably, I mean. I don’t know for sure.” She didn’t want anyone to know she was involved in the investigation. At least not until she’d found a chance to tell RJ. If only she could take back her words and tell the police she hadn’t seen or heard anything. “She’s a really nice lady. Very quiet and sweet.”
Her mom clucked her tongue. “Those quiet ones. There’s always more to them than meets the eye. You don’t work in my business for more than thirty years without learning a thing or two about people.” As a waitress, she claimed to have gained astonishing insight into the human psyche. “She probably smiled her way through decades of marriage, being the good little wife, then when the revelations about his second family came out, she snapped.” She clapped her hands together and Brooke jumped in her seat.
“I’m sure it must have been someone else. But the problem is no one else has a real motive.”
“What about that newly discovered son who inherited a whole lot of money?”
Brooke nodded. “He seems to have gained the most by Reginald’s death. And I hear he’s not very nice, either.” She drew in a breath. “Don’t tell anyone I said that, okay?” Her mom loved to gossip with the customers. “He is part of the family, after all. Or at least sort of.”
“Bitter.” Her mom puckered up her lips and took a sip of her Manhattan without leaving any lipstick on the glass. A skill she was proud of. “I bet you anything it was him that did it. But we seem to have gotten off track here.” Her lips widened back into a smile. “Are you getting serious with Reginald Kincaid, Jr.?”
Brooke laughed. “It’s RJ. No one calls him Reginald.”
“Well, don’t you let him get away. You won’t get many opportunities like that in a lifetime.”
“I don’t know where it will lead, but I really like him.”
“Don’t let him treat you badly because he’s a rich boy. Not that you would. My Brooke has a good head on her shoulders.” Their plate of nachos arrived and her mom took one and crunched it. “I never got my big break. Not yet, anyway.” She winked. “But it sounds like you’ll soon be living in fine style.”
“Mom!” Suddenly Brooke could picture her bragging to her customers about how her little Brooke was dating one of those big-shot Kincaids that were all over the papers. “Will you do me a huge favor and keep it to yourself, at least for a while?”
“And spoil all the fun of bragging about you? Aww.” She pouted. “I’ll do my best. You’d better get engaged quick, though, as I’m not sure I’ll be able to hold my tongue for long.”
“I have no idea if we’ll ever get engaged. We only started dating this week.”
“You could always try telling him you’re pregnant.” Her mom lifted a brow.
Brooke stiffened. “If that had worked for you we’d still be living with my father. As it is, I’ve never even met him.”
Her mom drew in a breath. “You’re right. I forgot. Now why did I ever tell you about that?”
“Because I kept asking until you broke down.” Brooke smiled. “And you knew it was better for me to finally hear the truth rather than all those crazy stories about a traveling salesman who’d be back from the Far East any day now.”
“Well, it sounded more exciting than a balding ex-quarterback who owns a shoe store in Fayetteville. I looked him up on Facebook and let me tell you he’s not aging well. He sure was handsome in his day, though.”
“And maybe he did us both a favor by letting you go.” Her mom had tearfully admitted that he’d left town—for good—the day after she’d happily told him about her surprise pregnancy.
“We’d been dating for six months. I thought it was a sure thing.” She shrugged her slim shoulders inside her silky dress. “But you never know what people are made of until their feet are to the fire.”
“Well, RJ’s feet are in several different fires right now, and I’m doing my best to be the water that cools them.”
“Just make sure you don’t get left to run down the drain when the fire’s been put out. And you don’t want to lose your job over him, either. One thing I’ve always prided myself on is keeping my job. Men come and go, but work will put food on the table if they’re there or not, and don’t you forget it.”
“Don’t worry.” Brooke picked up a nacho and nibbled it thoughtfully. “I won’t.”
Six
“You took Brooke to the cabin?” RJ’s brother Matt stared at him. They were alone in RJ’s office with the door closed. “Things aren’t so desperate that you need to work on weekends. I did score the new Larrimore Industries account after all, and that should start bringing in revenue as early as—”
“Matt! I didn’t bring her there to type my memos.”
He watched while understanding dawned in his brother’s green eyes. “You and Brooke… Oh, RJ, are you sure that was a good idea? She’s such a key member of the company and you know how you are with women.”
RJ bristled. “Exactly how am I with women?”
“Enthusiastic.”
“So now I’m enthusiastic about Brooke. She’s beautiful, intelligent, kind and she gives great hugs.” He couldn’t stop a smile creeping across his mouth. Even thinking about Brooke gave him a warm glow. “There’s quite a different side to her than the one we see at the office.”
“I bet she’s saying the same thing about you.” Matt raised an eyebrow. “Are you going to be kissing in meetings and sneaking off for afternoon trysts?”
RJ fought a grin. “Appealing as that sounds
, I think we’ll both have enough self-control to maintain a semblance of professional decorum.”
“And what happens when you get tired of her?”
“Unimaginable.”
“Maybe I have a more vivid imagination than you. I know what it’s like when a relationship starts to sour. You do realize she could sue you for sexual harassment and win?”
RJ frowned. “Brooke would never do that.”
“Let’s hope not. We can’t afford another scandal right now. I guess you’ll just have to marry her.” There was not the slightest glimmer of humor in his brother’s steady gaze.
RJ’s stomach tightened. “Let’s not get too carried away. We haven’t even been dating for a full week, yet.”
“See? That’s the RJ I know. You’re crazy about them for a while, then something better comes along.”
“These days I never know what’s going to happen next, so I’m going to seize the moment. Did you guys visit Mom over the weekend?”
“Both days, just like we promised. She says she’s doing fine but she’s looking rather thin and drawn. We’ve got to get her out of there.”
“I’ve been on the phone to the D.A.’s office every day. Three times today already. If they have evidence they need to produce it. You can’t keep someone behind bars without a trial in this country. It’s not like she’s accused of an act of terrorism.” He felt his hackles rising again. “The assistant D.A. said something about a witness at the scene, but then she clammed up. I know there wasn’t an eyewitness to the murder or we’d have heard about it. If there was, we’d know what the hell happened and Mom would be home where she belongs. The private detective I hired is trying to break down the blue wall of silence that is our local police department right now, but no luck so far.”
“Lily’s going to visit her again this afternoon.”
“I’m going, too, after the meeting. I bought some of her favorite chocolates.” He shook his head. “Though I’m sure even Ghirardelli doesn’t taste all that great when you’re locked up in a tiny cell sleeping next to a toilet. It makes me sick.”
“I know, RJ. Honestly, I understand about the Brooke thing. This nightmare is hard on all of us and I can see the temptation to fall into the nearest pair of soft arms.” He clapped RJ on the shoulder. “Let me know if you hear anything new from the police or the D.A.’s office, okay?”
“Will do.”
Brooke darted away from RJ’s office door and back to her desk, heart pounding, before Matthew emerged.
He looked right at her and smiled, and she managed to stammer a greeting, sure her face was red as fire. She’d been unable to resist listening in on RJ’s conversation with Matt—horribly unprofessional, not to mention totally uncool, but she couldn’t help herself. She’d pretended to rearrange some files in the tall cabinet next to his door, but every nerve in her brain and body was fine-tuned to pick up all sound from inside.
Her heart had soared as RJ said such sweet things about her, then crashed when Matt muttered about lawsuits and accused him of falling into the nearest pair of soft arms. That rang painfully true. None of them knew where this was going, and it could be heading to a lot of very dark places.
The door was now wide open, and she glanced inside to see RJ, head bent over some papers on his desk. He looked up. “Are you going to sue me for sexual harassment?”
“Never.” She said it too fast and too loud. Did he know she’d been listening?
“Never say never.” RJ raised a brow. “You could, you know.”
She walked into his office and closed the door gently behind her. “What happened between us was entirely mutual.” She kept her voice composed and professional, though her heart was hammering. How typical of RJ to come right out and say what anyone else would want to brush under the carpet. Right now she adored him more than ever. “I don’t regret it.”
Though maybe I will one day.
RJ rose and came around the desk. In his dark suit he looked imposing and elegant. Different from the rugged charm of the RJ she’d enjoyed all weekend, but every bit as irresistible. He wrapped his arms gently around her waist and pulled her close for a kiss. Her insides bubbled with pleasure and she let her hands slide under his suit jacket and caress his back through his cotton shirt.
“This is fun.” RJ’s breath heated her neck.
“It feels naughty.”
“It is naughty.” He squeezed her backside gently. “And I could think of even naughtier things we could do.”
She giggled. “Don’t you have a ten o’clock?”
“I’m the executive vice president. I can cancel it.” His deadly serious expression only made her want to laugh harder.
“It’s with a potential new client.” She ran a finger along his shirt buttons. “A large manufacturing company with factories in China.”
“Hmm. You’re making this all very confusing and difficult for me.”
“Then as your personal assistant I’ll have to insist that you go to the meeting.”
“Can you do that?”
“Apparently I just did.” She kissed his dimple. “Though only time will tell if you listen.” She could hardly believe she was being so bold. The chemistry between them must be affecting her brain.
“I’ll only go if you’ll come, too.” Humor sparkled in his eyes. She would have been at this meeting anyway.
“If you put it that way, how can I refuse?” Her lips tingled as he feathered one last kiss over them. She pulled herself away, slightly breathless, opened the door and went to get her laptop.
Everyone on the floor must know something by now. Or they’d figure it out from her burning cheeks. Or the loopy expression on her face.
And RJ had come right out and told Matthew! Did he plan to tell the entire family they were seeing each other? Surely the others would also worry about lawsuits. It hadn’t occurred to her that she’d have a case against him, but her friend Evie had told her about a woman at her company who sued her boss when he dumped her. She’d won, even though it was consensual, because he was her direct boss and should not have embarked on a relationship with her.
It was easy to forget about all the pitfalls when she was in RJ’s arms, or even gazing at his handsome face. The moment she moved away she felt exposed again to the chill winds of reality.
Brooke sat next to RJ during the meeting, which was normal since she sometimes needed to show him correspondence or data on her laptop. Opposite her, a tall blonde with a very large mouth was representing the Xingha Corporation, a manufacturer of children’s toys that did a lot of business with U.S. supermarkets. Three non-English-speaking Chinese men in gray suits sat further along the table, and occasionally she turned to repeat something to them in Chinese.
“Oh, RJ, you must come to Beijing again soon. You’ll love what they’ve done with your favorite hotel. Hot tubs in every room.” Her dark eyes clashed with her blond hair, and gave her face a sense of drama that really annoyed Brooke. Already she found herself anxiously casting her mind back to RJ’s trips to Beijing—had he even been to Beijing?—and wondering and worrying how intimate he’d been with Ms. Claudia Daring.
“I’m sure I’ll be in Beijing sometime soon, but right now we have a lot happening here.”
“I’ve heard.” She leaned forward, and reached out to clasp his hands. “It’s terrible. If there’s anything I can do…anything at all.”
Brooke barely managed not to roll her eyes, but inside her stomach was churning. RJ and this woman had obviously had an affair.
She tried to glance sideways at RJ without moving her head. Were his eyes lighting up at the sight of Claudia’s smile? He leaned back in his chair so she couldn’t get a good look at him.
Matt sat farther down the table. What was he thinking about right now? Was he laughing a
t RJ being confronted with his own woman-loving ways at the first meeting of the day? She wished she could slide under the table and hide.
She was just the latest in a long line of Kincaid conquests. She knew that. You didn’t work for RJ for five years and not realize that he enjoyed the company of women every bit as much as James Bond.
“You’ll recall that we moved our account to Danmar Shipping in 2009 over pricing issues.” Claudia lifted her rather pointy chin. “We understand you might be in a position to offer a more competitive price.” One slender brow lifted slightly.
“Yes.” Matthew chimed in from far down the table, although Claudia had addressed RJ. “We’d like to bring the Xingha Corporation back to The Kincaid Group, and we can provide some strong incentives. We understand that some of your new products are temperature sensitive and we can provide climate controlled…”
He continued speaking but Brooke no longer heard a word he said. She was staring directly at Claudia, who never took her eyes off RJ. Her breath caught as Claudia’s tongue sneaked out and flicked over her upper lip. Probably supposed to look sensual, but it made Brooke think of a lizard.
Her eyes flew to RJ’s face, and horror crept over her as she saw his familiar dimples deepen.
“Excuse me.” She rose from her chair and hurried for the door, unable to contain herself for a single second longer. Once outside the meeting she walked quickly to the ladies’ room. RJ was flirting with that woman, in front of everyone, when he’d slept with Brooke only yesterday!
And despite the fact that his brother knew about their affair and had taunted RJ for his womanizing ways not half an hour earlier.
Her breathing was rushed and unsteady and she wasn’t surprised to see her face looking pale, except for a nasty flush spreading across her neck. That only happened when she was really embarrassed. How could she survive this meeting? If RJ had coolly rebuffed Ms. Daring, and perhaps said, “I’d love to come to Beijing, with my fiancée, Brooke Nichols,” and gestured proudly toward her, she’d feel quite different.
Behind Boardroom Doors Page 9