Grandpa Joe’s blue eyes narrowed. “You’d be okay with that?”
“Sure. Why not? No one thinks I work anyway.”
Grandpa Joe conceded that point with a nod of his head. “So, grandson, it seems to me that you have a small problem.”
Did everyone today have to state the obvious? “Tell me something I don’t already know.”
“It’s really simple, actually. If you want to marry Lindy, first you’re going to have to woo her and win her.”
Shane blinked. Woo her? Win her? From what? “Uh, okay, but will you please explain why?”
“For someone who has a way with females, you are pretty clueless. Because Lindy’s female. That means that like all females, she wants to marry for love. Not because she’s pregnant and needs a father for her child. Lindy’s a strong woman and she won’t settle for less than true love. So for her to marry you, she’ll need to fall in love with you.”
“So I’m supposed to make her fall in love with me?”
“She’ll probably need to think that you’re in love with her.”
“But I’m not in love with her,” Shane retorted.
Grandpa Joe didn’t blink. “Pretend.”
Shane started pacing again. Lindy had just given him a huge lecture on love. Pretend? That’s the last thing she’d want. “That sounds underhanded.”
“Perhaps it is. But you have no other choice. I’m not going to fire her, and with a good job she doesn’t need you. And despite your millions, the court system will leave your baby with his mother. Oh, I forgot to tell you. It will be a boy. The first of my great-grandchildren to carry on the Jacobsen name. Sure, you’ll get visitation, but if you really want the baby and his mother, you’ll have to woo Lindy.”
“Wonderful,” Shane said. The idea really didn’t sit well with him. It sounded like a ball and chain around both of their necks. “So, really, I have no other choice?”
“No. Not if you want her to marry you.”
Shane sat and pondered Grandpa Joe’s words. He’d never thought of Lindy in any sort of romantic sense before. But he had made love to her. His body stirred at that recollection, and he tamped down his immediate desire. Sex was not wooing. “I have no idea how to proceed.”
Grandpa Joe smiled. “Of course you don’t. You’ve always had women throw themselves at you. Well, I can give you some advice. After all, I won your grandmother and I did a mighty fine job of it, if I do say so myself.”
“That was over fifty years ago,” Shane interrupted.
“So? Winning with women is a timeless art, boy. In the past, you’ve just enjoyed the chase. Once you got them, you didn’t want them anymore. Well, the chase isn’t what it’s about. That’s lesson number one.”
“And lesson number two?”
Grandpa Joe came and sat down by Shane. “Listen to your elders. Lindy’s coming to work at Jacobsen Enterprises. So are you.”
“But I said—”
Grandpa Joe’s look silenced Shane. “Lesson three. Show her you’re marriage material. Show her you’re responsible. Lesson four. Show her you’ve changed. You can do all of that by coming to work for me.”
A sinking feeling crept into Shane’s stomach as Grandpa Joe continued. “And being family, you’ll get a great spot as a vice president. Almost on a par with Harry. After all, he has worked for Jacobsen longer, so it’s only fair that he’s a smidge higher on the totem pole than you. Regardless, you’ll start tomorrow.”
Shane made one last attempt to hold on to his fast-disappearing freedom. “I don’t like it and I don’t see what this has to do with wooing Lindy.”
“Let’s see. Office co-workers. Office romances. Sure, they get a little sticky sometimes, but there are a lot of really nice single men working for Jacobsen. Lindy might meet someone and…”
A raw jealousy shot through Shane. “That’s not going to happen.”
“So then, make sure it doesn’t happen. Be where she is. It’s your only choice,” Grandpa Joe said. “That is, unless you can think of another one?”
Shane rubbed a hand over his jaw. He’d been had. Signed, sealed, delivered…and had. Grandpa Joe had finally gotten his way and trapped Shane into joining Jacobsen Enterprises. But was it for the best? Shane tried to rally his spirits. After he married Lindy, he could always be a stay-at-home dad. There, that cheered him up. “No, you’re right. I can’t think of another way.”
Grandpa Joe smiled. “Then I’ll see you at headquarters first thing tomorrow.”
“But Lindy…”
“Trust me, I overheard it all. She won’t be coming back to the Shane Jacobsen Foundation. And she doesn’t start with me for a week and a half. You need to be there tomorrow. Get settled in. And out of the goodness of my heart, I’ll even give you a corner office. I’ve been holding it for you for a while now. It was my next enticement.”
Resignation overcame Shane. “You always get your way, don’t you?”
“Yes,” Grandpa Joe said. “But my way is the right way. And Shane, I promise you that everything will turn out just fine in the end. You’ll see.”
“I’ve heard that before. My father says that all the time.”
“Ah, but Blake’s not me. He’s more like Henrietta. You’re more like me. Trust me.”
“I have no other choice.”
Grandpa Joe’s blue eyes twinkled. “No, you don’t. Welcome aboard, grandson. Oh, and this little secret about your employment, we’ll keep that to ourselves for a while. We don’t want Lindy to get word of it. Not yet. Let it be, well, a surprise.”
Chapter Five
“And this is your new home-away-from-home,” the bubbly personnel worker enthused. She stopped outside a nondescript gray cubicle on the nineteenth floor. A small placard on the outside partition displayed Lindy’s name.
“Thanks,” Lindy said. She stepped inside, set her purse down on the smooth laminated surface and glanced around the cubicle. Her new home was not quite nine feet by nine feet, but it contained an L-shaped desk, a rolling desk chair, a computer, a small bookcase, and a circular two-person worktable complete with two burgundy-colored plastic chairs. Definitely a far cry from the more spacious accommodations that she and Shane had shared.
She pushed thoughts of Shane out of her mind. Ever since that fateful morning when she’d walked out, Lindy had been trying to erase Shane from her mind. More often than not, she failed miserably. Little things would remind her of the fun times they’d shared over the three years they’d worked together, and once, in the library, she’d seen a little boy with hair almost the same color as Shane’s. And the memory of that morning, and the way Shane had looked at her…
Attempting to erase the image, she shook her head so forcefully that the personnel assistant asked, “Are you okay?”
Lindy smiled to mask her goof. No matter what, she had to focus on the matter at hand. She was finally at Jacobsen, and after being in introductory and training meetings all morning, she was not going to let the memory of Shane ruin her first afternoon in her new job. “Yes. I’m okay. Just something in my eye.”
“Oh, okay. Well, here, as promised, are the files that you’ll need to get started.” With a well-manicured fingernail, the personnel assistant tapped a stack of folders that sat on the worktop. “Any other questions?”
Lindy glanced at her own hands. As usual, her short nails were bare of polish. “No,” she replied.
“Great. Well, once again, welcome to Jacobsen Enterprises. If you think of any other questions later, don’t hesitate to call me. I’m at extension four-o-five.”
“Thanks,” Lindy said, and with that the assistant departed, and Lindy found herself alone.
She looked around again, taking in the soothing neutral colors. For the first time in a long while, she was finally on her own. No one else in charge of her world but her. Lindy’s knees weakened slightly, so she sat down in the desk chair located by the computer. She adjusted her skirt and took another quick glance around the cubicle. It nee
ded pictures and personalization. She’d do that slowly. She reached for a folder. Time to begin work.
Four hours later Lindy placed the same folder back onto the top of the stack. So much for being alone, not that she’d minded. She hadn’t gotten much accomplished because most of her new co-workers had stopped by to scope her out, offer advice, and generally just welcome her to the job.
Shelby Gantly poked her head inside Lindy’s cubicle. Lindy had immediately liked the young girl, who was fresh out of college. “Hey, a group of us are going to happy hour at the Tap Room. We’d love it if you would join us.”
Although she couldn’t drink any of the Tap Room’s famous ale, Lindy took a moment to consider. It was, after all, an opportunity to make friends and socialize with her new colleagues.
“Whoa,” Shelby said softly. She placed a hand on her collarbone and craned her neck to get a better look down the aisle. “What’s he doing on this floor?”
“Who?” Lindy said. She tried to see exactly what Shelby was looking at, but with her co-worker in the cubicle entrance, Lindy couldn’t see anything.
Shelby’s hand fluttered a little, and she looked both excited and apprehensive. “I don’t believe it. He’s coming this way!”
“Who?”
But Shelby didn’t answer Lindy’s question. Instead she said, “Hello, Mr. Jacobsen.”
Lindy relaxed a little. Now Shelby’s behavior made sense. It was just Grandpa Joe. He’d told her he would check up on her, and Grandpa Joe was known for roaming the company and surprising people. “Hello, Mr. Jacobsen,” Lindy said.
“Hello,” Shane Jacobsen replied.
As the warm, familiar baritone of Shane’s voice washed over her, Lindy bolted upright in her chair. Shelby moved aside as Shane stepped into the small entryway.
“Shane! What are you doing here?”
“Checking up on you.” He eased himself into one of the plastic chairs and slid his legs under the small table.
He smiled then, the million-dollar smile that melted women’s hearts for miles. It was working on Shelby, for she seemed star-struck. “Miss Gantly, would you mind excusing us? Lindy was my PA, and I’d love to have a private word.”
“Oh. Of course.” Shelby backed up, her eyes blinking rapidly as comprehension set in. She glanced back and forth from Lindy’s stomach to Shane’s face. Lindy inwardly groaned. She knew Shelby had just put two and two together, added baby, and come up with five.
This was not exactly the way that Lindy had wanted to start her new job at Jacobsen, being known as Shane Jacobsen’s former PA and, obviously, the one he’d knocked up.
“We’ll be at the Tap Room. Join us if you want. You, too, Mr. Jacobsen,” Shelby added for good measure before retreating.
Shane pinched an imaginary piece of lint off his suit coat sleeve and again turned on that high-watt smile, this time for Lindy’s benefit. “So, tell me, Lindy, how was your day?”
“Fine,” Lindy said. She placed her hands in her lap. Despite herself, she couldn’t help but stare at him and drink in his presence, like a person who finds water in the desert.
Shane looked magnificent.
Of course, he always did, but now, in the suit she knew to be custom Armani, he’d never looked better. He’d had his hair cut in a more fashionable and flattering style, making him look dignified, like one of those guys on the cover of GQ or Forbes. He’d exchanged the traditional white shirt for a designer-blue number, and his tie, Lindy knew, had cost a small fortune.
His blue eyes twinkled. “All you’re going to tell me is that your day was fine?”
“It was fine,” Lindy said.
He gave her a knowing nod. “Ah, I see I’ve rendered you speechless.”
“In your dreams,” Lindy retorted, angry with herself for being affected by his presence in the small space.
His next words didn’t help, and neither did the smug smile crossing his face. “Oh, believe me, you’ve been in my dreams. So how have you been?”
She rallied her defenses. She could not let him waltz right back into her life and under her skin. “I’ve been fine,” Lindy replied.
“Just fine,” Shane mused. “Is that the only word you know? Fine?”
“Yes, fine.” Lindy drew herself up. “Shane, we’ve always cut to the chase. Why are you here?”
“To see how your first day went,” he replied. He made himself even more comfortable, adding to her tension.
“Really. You’re telling me that you got all dressed up and drove down here just to check up on me. I find that hard to believe. You hate this place.”
“Nah,” Shane said with a relaxed shrug of his shoulders. He placed his hands behind his head. “I just thought I did. No Lindy, you’re looking at a reformed man. I’ve even got an office upstairs. You’ll have to come up and see it sometime. Right down the hall from Harry’s and around the corner from my uncle’s.”
Lindy’s jaw dropped open. “April Fool’s Day was over two months ago, Shane. Try again.”
He didn’t look repentant. “Why? It’s the truth. I’m a vice president. Of course, I am a bit lower on the ladder than Harry, but I’m above Megan.”
Lindy’s hands shook in her lap, and she clenched them together more tightly. “No!”
“Yes. I started the day after you walked out. Why not? After all, I never really did work. And you know, real work feels rather good. I hate to admit it, but my grandfather was right. I just finally took him up on his idea.”
“You’re not working here!”
His tone turned serious. He lowered his hands. “Uh, yes I am. After all, it is my family company.”
“You can’t work here.”
“I just explained it to you.”
“No!” Lindy was almost shouting. Her world was crumbling. Shane couldn’t. He wouldn’t. But he had. “You can’t. I came here to get away from you.”
Shane shrugged and gave her a bittersweet look as if he understood and sympathized with her pain, but wasn’t about to change. Not until he got what he wanted. “I’m sorry, Lindy, but you’re carrying my baby. I’m not letting you get away. I’m not going to let that happen.”
“It has to happen,” Lindy whispered. Unresolved fear churned in her stomach. Didn’t he understand? He would never love her. She couldn’t live the rest of her life with him, and not be loved. She tried again to reason with him. “I understand what you’re saying, but it won’t work between us. It has to be this way, Shane.”
He shifted his posture, now pure business. “No, it doesn’t. We need to work together, Lindy, for the sake of the baby. I’m here, and since you won’t marry me, I’m going to watch over you. I care about you enough to do that. You know me, so I know you understand that I have to do at least that much.”
Lindy’s chin jutted forward stubbornly. “I can take care of myself.”
Shane reached forward, covering her hands with his own. A raw and immediate longing burned through her, but even as she tried to pull away he simply held on tighter, as if he knew he could weaken her resolve. Those baby blues of his blinked only once as they gazed into her eyes.
“I know you can take care of yourself, Lindy,” he said. “That’s always been one of the things that I’ve admired about you. You’re so strong. You’re a survivor. But you’re no longer alone. You have me.”
But she really didn’t have him, and that was the problem. Shane had grabbed onto her like a new toy, or like a line to salvation. He’d found in Lindy’s pregnancy a purpose, perhaps even a reason to reform. But deep down, she knew he hadn’t changed. He was, and ever would be, a playboy. She pictured him hanging out late at night at the country-club bar with all the rest of the disillusioned husbands—men who would never cheat on their wives, but would never truly love them enough to be partners in every sense of the word.
She didn’t want that. She had to hold out for love. No matter what, she was not going to settle for second best.
“I have to go home now,” she said.
“No happy hour?” Shane asked with a lift of his blond eyebrow.
“No.”
“So can I interest you in dinner, instead?”
Lindy shook her head. “I don’t think so.”
To her surprise, Shane didn’t protest. He simply removed his hands from hers, and instantly she missed their warmth.
“Maybe another time,” he said. “After all, we’re working together again.”
“That we are,” Lindy replied. She stood up, placed her hands on her lower back and stretched. Although she wasn’t showing at all, she was beginning to experience the aches and pains of adding extra pounds to her five-foot-seven-inch figure.
Shane watched her like a hawk. Lindy appreciated that he didn’t ask her any more questions she didn’t want to, or couldn’t, answer. He stepped out into the now-empty corridor between the many cubicles. “I’ll see you around,” Lindy said.
“Plan on it,” Shane answered.
“SO HOW DID IT GO?”
Shane whirled around. His grandfather seemed able to pop up everywhere. Shane knew Grandpa Joe hadn’t been standing in the empty corridor by Lindy’s cubicle for very long, just long enough to let Lindy leave by herself.
“I guess it went fine,” Shane replied.
Grandpa Joe’s white eyebrow arched. “Fine?”
Frustration built up inside Shane. “She didn’t look to happy to see me, that’s for sure. She told me it would be better if we didn’t see each other.”
“Par for the course,” Grandpa Joe said.
“Par for the course?” Shane repeated as his frustration mounted. “Your plan didn’t work. I even asked her to dinner. She resisted everything.”
Grandpa Joe grinned. “Of course she did. She’s not like your other bimbos. She’s got integrity. That’s why you like her. Heck, that’s why I like her. Unlike your other featherweights, she’s not a pushover. You’ll just have to keep working on her.”
“There’s that work word again.”
“Exactly. Work. I know it’s still a bit of a foreign word in your vocabulary, but you’re learning. Remember those steps I told you about. Lesson two, listen to your elders. Lesson four, show her you’ve changed. Did you think it would be overnight? Women are like fine wine. They take a bit of time to mellow. Anyway, I need to speak with you about the Jonnsburger project. Do you have a moment?”
About Last Night... Page 8