Who's Afraid of the Big Bad Boss?

by Nina Harrington

  Casually pushing the door open, Toni sauntered into the kitchen with as much aplomb as she could muster.

  Scott was sitting on a bar stool with his back against the kitchen wall and an empty plate in front of him.

  He had stripped off his outer coat and hung it from a hook near the back door that Toni had not even noticed before. Um. Maybe he had been here before?

  ‘How was the pizza?’ she asked in a sing-song voice as she took in the heavy grey and blond beard and dark blond hair. ‘If you fancy dessert, why don’t you help yourself to the chocolate willy lollipops? There are several flavours and they are anatomically correct.’

  He scowled at them and coughed. ‘That’s good to know but I’ll pass.’ Then he nodded to the brownie pan. ‘Those look good.’

  Toni clutched the tray and slid it across the worktop out of his reach. ‘My finest recipe. Which my birthday party guests would have enjoyed if the party had not been broken up so early by an unexpected guest. These brownies are staying over here until I have a few more answers.’

  ‘I didn’t ask you to send the girls home. As for unexpected—’ he raised his bandaged right hand in the air ‘—no clue you were going to be here. No apologies. No excuses. And those brownies do smell good.’

  ‘No brownie until I know who you really are,’ she replied with a shake of her head and folded her arms. ‘That’s only one photo. You could be some distant freeloading relative who Freya doesn’t want sleeping in her spare room. Or some ex-boyfriend. Or something.’

  Without saying another word, he lifted a smartphone out of a side pocket on the leg of his cargo trousers, placed it on the breakfast bar and started tapping away. Toni couldn’t help but notice that his body might be on the sinewy side but his fingers were long and slender.

  ‘Hiya. Yes, I got here. How are things? Really? He’s already asking for pen and paper? Unbelievable...yes, I know.’ Then he shot her a glance. ‘By the way, I’ve just met your house-sitter. She gave me pizza and is ready to call the police to get rid of the crazy vagrant who thinks he lives here. Now don’t be like that. Calm down. You’ve had a few other things on your mind these past few days. Take a deep breath. That’s better. Inhale slowly. It’s all under control. Now, why don’t you have a word with your pal while I eat her brownies, okay? Okay.’

  Toni could only watch, stunned, as this tall man in a check shirt turned around on the bar stool and calmly stretched out his hand towards her. ‘It’s for you. My sister would like a word.’

  Five minutes later Toni collapsed down on the bar stool opposite Scott in a complete daze.

  ‘I am so sorry. We had no idea or we would never have organised a birthday party while your dad is in the hospital. Wow. That is so inappropriate I don’t know where to start.’

  She reached into the brownie tin and cut an enormous cube and started nibbling at it to try and calm her nerves.

  ‘We had absolutely no clue. Because I would definitely have cancelled if Freya had let me know. Seriously. I would. This is awful. I feel so embarrassed. Mortified, really. That is all so inappropriate. Please let me apologise again and...’

  Scott held up one hand. ‘I get it. You didn’t know. It’s your birthday. So you organised a party and enjoyed yourself. No problem.’

  ‘Actually, my birthday isn’t until Thursday but my sister Amy is leaving on a gap year trip tomorrow and she wanted to help me celebrate before she left so she arranged this surprise party and all my friends from the company turned up and... I am babbling. Because I am mega embarrassed.’

  ‘That would be true. About the babbling.’

  Toni took another nibble of brownie before daring to glance up at this man who was just sitting there in silence, dominating the space.

  ‘So you are not a male stripper. Sorry about that little confusion. It was a ladies only night so any man had to have a very good reason for being there. And, seeing as none of the girls claimed you...I might have jumped to the wrong conclusion.’

  His mouth opened slightly as though he was about to reply, then he reconsidered and closed it again. A rough-skinned hand rasped over his beard and he glanced quickly over his clothing as his voice rasped low in his throat. ‘You thought that I was a male stripper? What kind of stripper turns up dressed like this?’

  She winced and closed one eye and pretended to duck slightly.

  ‘Scruffy lumberjack. Check shirt. Beard. Very popular with the city girls who like a—’ she coughed quickly ‘—less refined country look.’

  Then she blinked. ‘The oiled chest and man string are a bit old-fashioned these days. The hunky bit of rough...oh, I didn’t mean to say...imply that you’re rough or anything, but...’

  ‘Maybe you ought to stop talking now. I am not the oiled chest type even on a good day and this has not been one of them.’

  ‘Oh. Yes. Right. Good. Or not good, depending on how bad your day has been. If you know what I mean.’

  ‘How bad has it been? Let me see.’

  His dark blond eyebrows squeezed tight together and he pinched his forehead with a thumb and middle finger.

  ‘Almost lost a hand to frostbite. A pig of a snow machine to an air base. Cargo plane from Alaska to Iceland, scheduled flight to Rome, where I had to pay first class to get a seat, four hours at a hospital trying to work out what the hell was happening then a flight back to London. And don’t get me started with how long it took me to get from the airport to the hospital and back again.’

  He lifted his chin and dropped his hand away.

  ‘So, overall, I’m not too happy about being here right now. I think that would sum it up.’

  Toni blew out fast through narrowed lips. ‘Alaska? In February? Frostbite? Well, that explains a lot.’

  Then she slipped off the breakfast bar stool and flicked out both of her hands. ‘Righty. What would you like? Coffee or tea? And I can easily reheat these brownies for you. Oh—you’ve already eaten the last of them. No problem, there are plenty more in the freezer. It will only take twenty minutes tops.’

  He replied by easing his weight off the bar stool and rolling back his shoulders, making his chest pop.

  ‘Thanks for the offer, but it’s late and my body clock is deep-fried. Nice to meet you and thanks for the unexpected entertainment but I’m heading to bed. If you’re here in the morning we might try to have a conversation which isn’t in code. But right now I am way too tired to talk about the why and how.’

  Then he looked up at her and asked, ‘The bedroom with the blue door—I usually keep it locked. Anyone sleeping in there?’

  ‘Oh, no. Still locked. Freya said it was private.’

  And, with a quick nod in her direction, Toni watched him sling the huge duffel bag over one shoulder with a grunt and a wince. The weight of it meant that he had to lean forward from the waist but he shifted the load a few times before striding into the hallway and to the staircase which led to the bedrooms.

  It took a few seconds for her champagne and wine-fuddled brain to connect with what was going on.

  Her commission! Oh, no!

  ‘Wait a minute. One last question. I’m supposed to stay with Freya for another week and work with her father at the Elstrom office. Do I need to reschedule? I mean...when will your father be back in London?’

  His steps slowed and with one movement he lowered the duffel on to the hall carpet. There was something in the way his shoulders were braced tight that made Toni feel the heat of his gaze even before he looked sideways at her.

  Her body locked into a half-in-the-hallway-half-in-the-kitchen position. She simply couldn’t move. It was as if her feet were reluctant to leave the relative safety of the kitchen, just in case.

  ‘News flash. I’m back. Freya’s in Italy. Dad won’t be coming back any time soon. As of today, he has officially retired. Goodbye Elstrom Ma
pping. Hello Italy.’

  Then he gave a twitch. ‘Sorry. But it looks like you’re out of a job.’

  His gaze scanned her scantily clad body from the toes sticking out from the feathery mules to the top of her gold paper crown and lingering at all of the right places on the way up.

  The start of a lazy lopsided smile warmed his mouth. ‘No rush to get packed tonight. Tomorrow will do. Goodnight.’

  * * *

  Goodnight? Out of a job? What?

  Any lingering after-effects of the party had gone in a flash.

  Before Scott could start up the stairs, Toni dashed in front of him and stood on the bottom step so that they were at more or less the same height.

  To his credit, Scott Elstrom didn’t even flinch but braced himself, legs apart, and stared at her as she crossed her arms and stared him out.

  ‘Oh, no, you don’t. I signed a contract with Freya Elstrom to paint a portrait of the CEO of Elstrom Mapping. She was the one who got in contact with me. Begging me to do the work. I’ve dropped everything to be here.’

  There was a deep low sigh from the man standing only inches in front of her and he shifted his gaze from her face to the wall for a few seconds.

  ‘What was your surname again?’

  ‘Baldoni. Ah, I can see that you recognise it. The Baldoni family have painted the last four generations of Elstrom chairmen. Freya called me just after Christmas to set it up for her father. Apparently he had been thinking about it for a while and finally just decided to go ahead with his portrait. This is the earliest I could do it, which makes me feel sick.’

  ‘Christmas. Right. So she asked you to paint his portrait after the holidays. No wonder she wanted me there.’

  ‘Actually, she was more concerned that it was a Baldoni than which member of my family it was. Apparently your father is a stickler for tradition.’

  ‘You might say that,’ he murmured and ran his hand back through his dirty blond, very scraggy hair. ‘He would want the same artist if he could do it.’

  ‘Tricky, since my grandfather is long gone. But if Mr Elstrom is ill,’ she murmured to herself, and then realised that Scott was still listening, ‘of course I can reschedule the sitting. That’s not a problem. When your father is better, Freya can let me know. I have some photos that she sent me and I’m sure I can come up with something he will be pleased with... Why are you shaking your head? Is there something else?’

  ‘My father is retired, Miss Baldoni. As of this afternoon, I am the new head of Elstrom Mapping.’

  His eyebrows squeezed closer together but his gaze focused laser-sharp on her face.

  ‘And the last thing I need is my portrait painted.’

  * * *

  Scott stood back and watched the fiery brunette with the lovely brown eyes stomp past him up the staircase towards the guest bedroom before picking up his over-heavy duffel.

  Toni Baldoni probably had no idea how much he enjoyed following her up the stairs. One slow step at a time.

  The last time he had shared this house with girls wearing nothing but lingerie had been on Freya’s university graduation party, when he had dared to turn up an hour early and walked in on way too many over-excited girls high on champagne and life, all fighting for the hair straighteners and his attention. They had even taken over his en suite bathroom to cope with the party preparations.

  Strange. He hadn’t thought about that in a long time.

  An unexpected quiver of a laugh surprised him as this brunette stomped in her ridiculous shoes down the landing and her light gown wafted up, giving him a delightful flash of creamy thigh.

  Eyes flashing, she instantly flung a glance at him over one shoulder and tugged down her gown, shot into the guest room and shut the door very firmly behind her.

  Shaking his head and blinking to stay awake, Scott found the key, turned it in the lock and stepped inside the same bedroom that he had claimed the very first day he had arrived with Freya and his mother. This clean and uncluttered modern town house had seemed like another world from the dark, creaky old Victorian stone villa that was the family home they had shared with their father.

  Sheer force of habit made him drop his duffel bag next to the bed and unlock and fling open the double windows to let some air into the overheated and stuffy room.

  He didn’t need the heat.

  He just wanted sleep and quiet to process the events of the day.

  Freya had known that he wasn’t planning to come back any time soon and not that much had changed in the two years since he had last slept here.

  It looked like the same bed, wardrobe and furnishings that he remembered.

  But there was something new. Perched on the window ledge was a silver-framed photograph of a stunningly pretty slim blonde in a flimsy summer dress with legs that went on for ever.

  Alexa.

  Scott picked up the frame and glanced at it for a second before stashing it in the drawer of the bedside cabinet.

  He had taken the photograph that first summer holiday they spent together walking in Switzerland. They were both single, in their twenties and had the whole world ahead of them.

  In his eyes Alexa was the perfect woman for him. As a teenager he had watched his very different parents drift apart over the years and lead separate lives until the only thing they had in common was Freya and himself.

  He wouldn’t make that mistake.

  Alexa was clever, stunningly pretty and, best of all, a total sports fanatic like himself. They used to talk for hours about the things they both loved, laughing over tall tales from all of the exotic places that they had visited. They had been inseparable.

  Heady with the mountain air, they had fallen in love. Over the next twelve months, they were so caught up in their engagement and the whirlwind of a top London wedding that he didn’t have time to stop and consider what married life was going to be like.

  It was hard to believe that it could have ended so badly.

  If Freya thought that being reminded of happier times with Alexa would help him to get over his cheating ex-wife then she didn’t understand.

  There were some things a sunny disposition couldn’t fix.

  Sometimes betrayal went too deep, like a bullet to the chest which lay too close to vital organs to be removed. Always there. Always catching you out when you least expected it.

  A flash of memory surged through his brain, hot and wild. He could almost see Alexa reclining on this same bed, with a look of love in her eyes, beckoning him to join her. Her long straight blonde hair that he used to adore spread out across the pillow, warm, soft and inviting.

  The frostbite in his fingers was nothing compared to this type of deep-seated pain.

  Scott’s fingers tightened around the edge of the window frame as he looked out into the night sky, which in London was never going to be truly dark or clear.

  Closing his eyes for a second, he gave way to the surge of anger and disappointment that he had buried deep inside himself since the moment he had walked into that hospital room in Rome.

  It had been one of the most humbling experiences of his life. It was astonishing to see his father looking so low and depressed. Lars Elstrom had given up. Stopped trying. Beaten down by the events of the past few years to the point where he didn’t even see any point in keeping the company as a viable concern.

  His speech was slurred slightly and he was going to have problems with the left side of his body for a long while, but his mind was still alive and sharp.

  Suddenly the real reason why Freya had pleaded with him to come home for Christmas was only too apparent.

  Elstrom Mapping was finished. Over. After two hundred years of creating maps and sea charts, the company was dead in the water.

  A dinosaur.

  That was the exact word that h
is father had managed to say to describe the family business that he had devoted his life to. An extinct creature which no longer had a place in the modern world.

  His father had given up in every way possible.

  How could this have happened so quickly? Two years ago, the business was not only healthy but thriving and he had almost managed to convince his father that modern technology was the best way forward. There had been plans. A budget. They had actually laughed that Elstrom would last another two hundred years.

  But, of course, that was before he’d walked out on the company, leaving his stepbrother in charge.

  Travis had taken over and destroyed Elstrom Mapping from the inside out. And his father had let it happen without a fight rather than admit that he had made a horrible mistake.

  Now he wanted Scott to finish the job that he had started. Would he do it? Would he take over the company and be the final Elstrom at the helm? Even if it was for a short time, it would please him to think that Elstrom Mapping was still in the family.

  What choice did he have? Of course he had to say yes.

  He loved his sister and admired her more than he could say but there was only one thing that photograph screamed out to him and it had nothing to do with happy memories.

  It was failure.

  He had failed. Their marriage had failed and Alexa had betrayed him in the worst way possible. The last thing he needed today was a reminder of his past.

  Just the opposite. He was going to need every scrap of positive energy he possessed if he had any hope of making good on the promise he had made to his father that afternoon. And a whole lot more.

  Nothing was going to stand in his way.

  He was going to have to pick up the pieces and prove that he could do what Travis couldn’t. Save Elstrom from going to the wall.

  Elstrom Mapping was his. And it was not going to fail.

  THREE

  ‘So come on. Spill. What happened last night with you and the scruffy rich lumberjack?’

  ‘Nothing happened,’ Toni replied with a light casual lilt.

  There was a roar of boos and hisses from around the chaos of the breakfast table in the tiny apartment Lucy shared with her flatmates and, for the last few days, her pal Amy Baldoni. Usually it was clean and organised. But this morning there were three girls crammed into the small kitchen diner with all of the kit they needed for their six months gap year expedition parked in the hallway. And they were eating as though it was the last decent breakfast they would have for ages. This was probably not far from the truth.