by Box Set
“Oh. So you’re the new boss,” she said casually. “Wait. My new boss?” she asked, drawing back and pointing her thumb at herself.
“Not directly. I have great plans to grow the company and this will be a good start.” He downplayed his goal to add the tourist services to his portfolio. His website had been groundbreaking in the technology department, so to be able to control more of the sector would be a welcoming and profitable idea. “How long have you worked here?”
“Two years.”
“Nice. Were you in Florida this whole time?”
“You mean after you screwed me and beat Donny almost to death? Yes, I have been. What else you wanna talk about? It’s been unusually hot this time of year. I heard the stocks are down. The mayor’s running for re-election.” She squared her shoulders. “Any other topic you prefer while we’re at it?”
Not here. He glanced around, but no one seemed to pay attention to their conversation. He never expected her to forgive him, but discussing their rocky past in front of his future employees wasn’t an option. In fact, getting her onboard with his idea to remove tour guides and replace them with an automated service would be ideal. If she was in fact a great worker with good contacts, Roxie would be the perfect bridge between the execs and the guides. If it worked on this branch, he would implement it in the others he was about to take over. Soon, the entire company would be much more cost-effective, and profitable. “Roxie, we need to talk.”
She narrowed her eyes at him, arms folded over her chest. Her eyes darkened to a Christmas tree green. “The company may belong to you now, but that doesn’t make what you did right.”
“No, it doesn’t. Listen, let’s talk about this, but not here. After this thing is over, let’s go out for dinner so we can hash things out so what happened back in high school won’t impact our professional relationship,” he said, the words parting from his mouth before he could rationalize.
To have a good professional relationship with her, he had to give her an explanation for his disappearance all those years ago.
She smoothed her hand over her ponytail, and looked away from him, impatient. “Sorry, I can’t go out to dinner. I already have plans.”
“Cancel them.”
She jammed her hands into her pockets, her weight shuffling from one foot to the other. “Because you said so? You must be surrounding yourself with a bunch of spineless brainless folks.”
Why would he think any of this would be easy? She’d always been stubborn, and fearless about voicing her opinion. Sassy. A thrill of excitement surged through him. “I just wanted to quickly clean the slate between us.”
She stared him in the eye. “You’ll have to do a lot of scrubbing before that happens.”
He scratched his skin. “Lunch tomorrow?” He would actually have to cancel his lunch plans with the CEO of a big company, but he’d do it.
“I can’t.” She shrugged, obviously not wanting to concede. “I’ll be working through lunch.”
“Dinner then?” Due to his hectic schedule, most people waited a long time for the opportunity of discussing business ideas with him, but he couldn’t wait long to clear the air with Roxie.
She handed him a business card. “Text me and let me know where. I’ll meet you.”
A wave of relief washed over him. He slid her card into his pocket. “Sounds good.”
“Okay.” She nodded curtly and left. What else did he expect? To reminisce over the good days when he used to walk home with her? When he pretended to be her sidekick, when in fact he silently prayed for her to break up with Donny?
Mr. Luther waved, but Stefano signaled he would be right back and strode out of the conference room. A couple of people passed him on the hallway, and he marched to the staircase. Shit. She was already messing with his head. He should be mingling with his new team, not stepping away for a breather.
A quick breather. His jaw clenched. He needed to tell someone what happened, because telling would make it real. He grabbed his cell phone out his pocket, and called one of the few people he had told about Roxie: his buddy, Ryder.
“Hey man. What’s up?” Ryder asked.
Even though he hadn’t seen him in well over six months, Stefano didn’t have time for bullshit small talk. Calling his friend who he’d known from the time he’d been in Saddle Creek Ranch after his arrest in high school pacified him when he got antsy about the past—even when neither of them talked about it. He swallowed. “I just ran into Roxie.”
“Roxie?”
“I met her before I entered the ranch.”
“Oh that’s right. Of course I remember you talking about her. How did it go?” Ryder asked.
“Strange. I had to keep telling myself that we weren’t the same anymore. But a part of me has a hard time forgetting. And she probably hates me. Do you know what I mean?”
“I know exactly what you mean,” Ryder answered, his voice losing energy at the end.
Stefano cleared his throat. He rubbed his eyes. Timing wasn’t on his side. Not when his friend dealt with a recent conundrum of his own, a scandal involving a married woman. What could he say to an athlete whose career was on the brink of terminating? That thought brought a bitter taste to his mouth. “Hey man… You okay? I’ve been meaning to call. Sorry about what happened. Did you get my text?”
“Yeah. It’ll be okay. I’ve got my PR team working on it.”
“Cool. Any news about John?” he asked about the father figure he had at the most crucial turning point of his life. Somehow he had never prioritized visiting John like he should have.
“Nope.”
The image of the hard contours of John’s face, the wisdom in his icy blue eyes, and the salt-and-pepper hair, usually parted to the right, came to mind. The kindest soul Stefano had ever met, and also the toughest son-of-a bitch. John took crap from no one.
For years, before he saw his biological dad again, John had been the only man Stefano would even link to a father figure. Though he’d only stayed in the Saddle Creek Ranch for about six months… they had been the best months of his life.
The most painful ones too.
He’d gone in after making two astronomically bad decisions… sleeping with Roxie then beating up her ex-boyfriend. Every boy who joined the ranch had to add a rule to a book of rules John kept. What was his again? Never leave a woman unsatisfied.
Chapter 2
Roxie sucked in a breath. She had pondered over the denim jeans and the silky purple blouse or the knee-length burgundy dress with a black belt. It was a business meeting. Therefore she ended up wearing the dress and a black jacket on top, so it wouldn’t appear so snug on her body. And not as casual as jeans. Jeans screamed informality—fun times and good friends, the last idea she wanted to give Stefano.
She closed the door of her Honda Civic and walked across the garage.
A trail of sweat slid down her back. They were in Miami in June, and she’d chosen to wear a black leather jacket over a dress. A leather jacket says I’m a bad ass. Because I am, right?
By the time she stepped into the Mediterranean restaurant, she’d swiped her forehead twice. “Hi, I’m—
“Ms. Roxie Sullivan?” the hostess asked.
“Yes. How did you—
The tall, platinum blonde hostess flashed her a smile. “Come with me. Mr. Mercado is waiting for you,” she said.
Roxie skimmed the elegant tables and private dining rooms, and bit the inside of her cheek. The apprehension she’d channeled into choosing the outfit now had no other valve of escape. She was about to meet, no, have dinner, with Stefano without anyone around them. God please not the private room.
She exhaled when the hostess took her to a gorgeous outdoor patio, with Moroccan glass lamps hanging from tree branches. The surroundings invited her to relax, but when she arrived at the table where Stefano sat, her stomach contracted.
He stood, and pushed the chair for her. She spared him a quick glance to acknowledge him while the hostess sauntered
out of sight.
“Roxie. I’m glad you made it. I could have given you a ride,” he said with that deep complex Cuban accent that had the power of arousing anyone who heard it. At least I hope I’m not the only one. She didn’t have to peer at him to feel his gaze warming her skin. Studying her.
She closed her jacket and played with the zipper. “Do you say that to all employees?” she asked and allowed herself to stare at him. A snowy white—designer no doubt—shirt outlined his imposing physique. Years ago, he had been lean and chiseled, due to running tracks. Now his shoulders were broader, and his thick biceps filled the fabric well. Ogling him made her wish she’d stuck with those workout video program she’d bought seven months ago, and which remained unopened in her DVD shelf, next to a collection of PAW Patrol.
“Not all employees. Just the ones who used to steal my gum,” he said, bringing up the memories of the times when they walked home from school, and she usually reached for the small outer pocket of his backpack.
“Those days are gone, Stefano,” she said, her voice more bitter than she intended.
His chocolate eyes watched her, and she detected a trace of sadness in them. She swallowed, yet couldn’t break that stare. Why would she? At least during that second, she understood him. Wouldn’t it be great to go back in time, and be able to change things? To just rewind and erase that night when he knocked on her door for a study session and found her crying over another break-up with Donny?
“Yes, they are. I didn’t know you worked at Floridian Tours. The best thing for us will be to move forward—and for that to happen, I need to tell you a couple things.”
The waiter approached them. “Did you have a chance to take a look at the menu?” He pointed at the menu that had been sitting open in front of her.
She blinked.
“I can come back later. I’ll give you two you more time.”
“No,” she said, snapping open the menu and skimming it. “We don’t need more time. I’ll have the risotto, please.”
We don’t need more time. The words echoed in her ear so loud, she could barely hear Stefano ordering the beef tenderloin and some wine. She reached for the glass of water, and drank a generous amount.
“Roxie, mi querida, are you okay? You’re wearing a leather jacket on a ninety-nine degree day.”
She wiped the sweat from her forehead and produced a smile. She’d passed on wearing a bra, since her miracle bra lingered in the bottom of the dirty clothes hemp and there was no way in hell she’d wear her regular bra and risk showing the straps. So a jacket seemed the best alternative to cover her big boobs and betraying nipples. “I’m fine. I’m great. What were you about to say?”
“I did you wrong in the past. I should never have taken advantage of you,” he said, and she imagined he meant the time when she’d yet another fight with Donny. She’d opened up to Stefano for solace, and they ended up drinking some vodka from her mother’s stash. Then Donny had come back to ask for forgiveness—as he often did—and found her semi-naked in the living room floor with Stefano. The boys had gone outside to talk, despite her protests, and started a fight that ended up with Donny being sent to the hospital, and Stefano getting arrested. “I’m sorry.”
“We were friends,” she asked, accusation leaking into her voice.
He drummed his fingers on the linen. “I’m sorry I didn’t apologize to you then. Much easier that way. For some reason Donny didn’t press charges, but my mom and Bruce still wanted me to learn a lesson. So they immediately sent me to Saddle Creek ranch, and after my time there I moved to the west coast for work. I was ashamed of what I’d done, and wanted to move on with my life.”
She knew exactly why Donny hadn’t pressed charges. “That’s the easy way out.”
“I agree. Later I apologized to Donny.”
She leaned in. “You’ve talked to him?” Had Donny told him anything? She clamped her lips to keep from spilling a secret that should be long buried. He’s not the only one ashamed.
“When I started to make money, I wanted to pay him for what his mother had spent on the hospital bill. And more.” He smiled a little. “I’m glad we were able to discuss things, but I don’t want to make this the main subject of every interaction I have with you,” he said, his voice commanding.
“Don’t worry, we had sex once and it was pretty crappy if you ask me. I’ll keep this professional, but since you’re not my direct boss, we won’t run into each other that much.” It’d been painful, fast, and she’d been drunk.
He reached for the sourdough bread the waiter brought him and dipped it into olive oil. His large hands, and long fingers slid the dough on the liquid. Heat coiled low in her belly. Then she blinked out of that silly trance.
“I’m changing the organization around, and since you’re the lead tour guide, I expect you to assist with smoothening the transition.”
She grabbed a piece of the bread. “Why me?”
“We need someone dynamic with real experience and Luther indicated you. You’ll be promoted.”
Promoted. Sounded too good to be true. “What transitions are you talking about?” she said before eating a piece of bread. Hmmm… it tasted different than store-bought brand for sure.
“We’re altering the way Floridian offers its tours. Instead of flesh and bone employees, we’ll offer headsets with a preloaded script that comes in eight different languages. It’ll be more cost-effective, and we’ll appeal to a broader demographic.”
She curled her fingers into a ball, and wished she could hit him with it. “You asked me to come to dinner with you so you can tell me I’m out of a job?”
“No. You’ll be promoted. Didn’t you hear me? You will oversee everything, and we’ll also need to give special training to the bus drivers so they can assist some customers.”
She would be teaching someone else to do her job. None of it made any sense. Frustration cooled her bloodstream. “What about my colleagues?”
“Some of them will be transferred to different positions, but I’ll not lie to you. The ones with the poor customer reviews or less time at the company we’ll let go. We just don’t have enough openings for all of them.”
Did he really forget what it was like to depend on an income? She uncurled her fingers and drummed them on the table. “You mean you won’t have enough jobs once you change everything.”
“Yes. Tour guides are a dying breed. I hope I have your discretion by saying this, but the books aren’t great either. We’re trying to make Floridian profitable again.”
Did he really think she would buy that rehearsed corporate spiel? “You’re such a good Samaritan,” she said, barely able to rein her sarcasm. Buying a company before it goes bankrupt to make it more profitable. A real saint.
“One of my many qualities.” He winked at her. “Listen, this is a good opportunity.”
She shook her head. A little voice inside her urged her to keep her composure, but the anger simmering in her veins shut it down fast. “For who? Do you even have any idea what a tour guide does? It’s not just a machine that yaps at people about sights and places. We answer questions, we help old ladies out of the bus, we help the group connect and ensure everyone’s on time.”
“Our idea isn’t flawless. That’s why we need your help in his project. To test every scenario and make sure we can improve it. Are you in, or are you out?”
***
Stefano cut his steak, and watched Roxie play with her spoon. What was she thinking about? Ever since he’d told her his plans, she had kept mum after her initial protest. Then the food arrived, and he welcomed the distraction. Maybe it would also keep him from pondering about what she’d said.
We only had sex once and it was pretty crappy. That had been his first time—something he’d preferred not to broadcast, especially with their peers assuming he played the field for a seventeen-year-old-boy. Okay, so he helped a little in that department. Or a lot by spreading rumors that he had screwed the entire neighborhood for str
eet cred. What an idiot he’d been.
Why didn’t she have better memories from their time together? Another voice rang in his ears. A much raspier one—Never leave a woman unsatisfied. Ironically, John had taught him that rule after Stefano confided in him and told him about sleeping with a girl he had never called again—or checked on. He’d promised John he would call her, or write, after leaving Saddle Creek. But he’d let business and putting the past behind him override that promise. Sadness welled up his throat. He swallowed. “All I’m asking for is a shot. Give me a chance to show you what changes we plan before shutting the idea down.”
“Okay. But I have one condition.”
The Roxie he remembered never agreed to anything without negotiating first. “Go ahead.”
She stared at him straight in the eye, her irises darkening to a sultry green. “I want to show you how important a tour guide is to the company, too. So you’ll come with me while I take a group places. If I keep my mind open, why can’t you? Please? It’s only fair.”
He cleared his throat, forcing down the lump. No doubt if anyone else asked, he would have denied the offer—dismissed them, even. After all, he was the boss. However, Luther had explained a takeover like this would run smoother if they got the top employee in their corner—particularly because she would be the one to steer the downsized team in the right direction. Besides… Didn’t he owe her that for all he put her through?
He stretched out his hand. “Deal.”
She glanced at his hand for a beat, and then took it in hers. The brief touch shot a thrill up his arm. Her skin felt warm, soft, lovely. “Deal.”
She withdrew her hand from his, and he could swear her discomfort was almost palpable. Frustration poured over him. Had he been that bad a guy… that bad a lover that she just couldn’t stand him? Maybe his stupid ass had been so fascinated by her as a teen that being with her had meant more than it did to her. Shit. Why did her opinion of him matter?