Wronged (The Cuvier Widows Book 1)

by Sylvia McDaniel

  She looked beautiful, with flushed cheeks against the paleness of her complexion. Her dark hair piled high on her head showing off her long and graceful neck. He frowned at the observation. Just what he needed to be noticing on her first day in the office. All the desirable places on her neck to place his lips.

  With a shrug she strolled past him, her black skirt brushing against his legs. “Staying home was not possible. I knew I had to be here.” She glanced around the office. “Where is my husband’s desk?”

  Louis frowned at her. “Jean had his own office, which someone else has since taken over.”

  “Then I suggest you have him removed, so that I may occupy that space,” she said, in such a way that he knew it would be useless to argue with her.

  “You’re definitely going to be popular with the employees,” he remarked, shaking his head reminding himself to let her sink her own boat “Follow me and I’ll show you around and then take you to Jean’s office.”

  She followed Louis through the office area, while he pointed out where different people who worked for the business sat. It was still early enough that most employees had yet to arrive. When they stopped in front of her new office, a man sat at a desk scribbling in a leather- bound ledger.

  “Henry,” Louis called. The man glanced up. “Mrs. Cuvier, this is Henry Chatham, our accountant. Henry, I’d like to introduce you to Mrs. Cuvier, Jean’s wife.” The man jumped up and hurried around the desk. “Nice to meet you, Mrs. Cuvier. My condolences regarding your husband.”

  “Thank you,” Marian replied, glancing at Louis expectantly.

  “Henry, Mrs. Cuvier is going to be taking Jean’s place.” The man’s jaw dropped and Louis couldn’t help but smile. “We’re going to need Jean’s office for her.”

  “But...” he glanced up at Marian, his face reflecting the surprise Louis’s announcement had brought.

  “If you’d be so kind as to vacate his office, then I can move in,” Marian said with a smile.

  The man frowned. “Mrs. Cuvier what...what are you going to do for us?”

  Marian shrugged. “I’m not certain yet. Mr. Fournet is going to teach me the business.”

  There were a lot of things Louis would like to teach her, he thought, none of which had to do with shipping, but rather a different kind of exploration. Marian Cuvier’s curves were definitely an interesting attraction that his eyes were naturally drawn to. The thought caught Louis off guard before he could put a halt to the wayward idea. She hadn’t been here an hour and already he was thinking about things he had no business considering.

  Jean had been his partner and Marian was the dead man’s wife. It wouldn’t do to become involved with the pretty widow, especially considering the brief time she would be here.

  “Henry, if you’d move your work out, then I’ll get Mrs. Cuvier settled in here,” Louis said.

  The man sighed, clearly not happy with this turn of events. “I’ll start packing.”

  Before lunchtime, Louis had Marian ensconced in her own office and given her a tome to read called The Merits of Trade in the New World. The book was large enough to occupy her for quite some time and keep her busy and out of his way, at least until he took care of some pressing issues.

  All morning a steady stream of employees casually strolled by the office, gazing upon the Widow Cuvier. Business would be slack today, because of the constant foot traffic in front of her office. Not to mention the employees that flowed continuously into his office asking questions regarding the widow.

  At first he’d been polite and explained that Mrs. Cuvier would be in the office for a few days. Or at least he hoped that’s all it would take before she’d become discouraged and give up this foolish notion of working in her dead husband’s place.

  “Excuse me, sir. I have some papers that need your signature,” his clerk said, stepping into his office and disrupting his thoughts.

  Louis glanced up and frowned. “Leave them on the comer of the desk and I’ll sign them.”

  Jon peered out the doorway, across the way to where Marian sat reading the book. “What’s she doing here?”

  The frustration that had been building for most of the day engulfed him. “Hasn’t everyone filled you in yet? She’s taking Jean’s place.”

  His voice came out louder than he expected and he saw Marian glance up at him, a quizzical look on her face. Not only did he get to show her around, but their offices were located directly across the hall from one another. Unless their office doors were closed, they could see each other at any time.

  Just what he needed, to look up and see Marian’s smile. The woman could be pure vinegar one moment and then suddenly with just one look, have your nerve endings standing up and taking notice. And he’d already taken more notice of the widow than he considered wise. After all, he still intended to sell the business.

  “Sorry, sir. I’ve been out of the office most of the day.”

  Louis shook his head. Now he was taking out his frustrations on his employees. “No, I’m the one who should apologize. It’s not your fault.”

  “No need, sir.” The young man all but ran from his office.

  Louis bent his head and tried to work once again. If he continued to disregard her, would she take the hint and leave? Yet to overlook a beautiful woman in his direct line of sight was difficult at best. Several days of avoidance should do the trick and Mrs. Cuvier would never darken his door again. Until the sale he hoped for would bring them together one last time to sign the final papers.

  A shadow fell across his desk and the smell of lilacs alerted him that she had walked into his office. He glanced up and felt as if his insides were being squeezed. For a moment he wanted to reach out and touch her skin to see if it were as smooth to the stroke as it appeared. Annoyed for taking notice of her complexion, he gave himself a mental slap. It would be better to avoid sensuous ideas involving the widow.

  She smiled. “I’m finished for the day.”

  He shook his head, the frustration of the day once again rearing like an ugly sea serpent’s head. “Mrs. Cuvier ... may I call you Marian?”

  “Since we’re going to be working together every day, I think that would be a good idea,” she responded, with a smile that left him stunned, but only irritated him more because she was both cheerful and beautiful.

  “Marian, do yourself a favor, stay home tomorrow. There’s no need for you to come in here every day like this. I give you my word that your part of the business will be fine,” he said, his voice sounding sharper than he intended.

  She tilted her head. “But Louis ... I can call you Louis?”

  “Yes.”

  She smiled. “Louis, it’s very necessary that I come in here and work each day. Maybe it’s not my share of the business I’m concerned about, but yours? After all I will be here looking out for mine.”

  “Damn it, woman!” he shouted, jumping up from his desk, staring at her. At the sound of his voice, some women would have run for the door or at least broken down in tears at his outburst. But not Marian, who just took one step back.

  “I have tried to keep my patience with you, but I don’t know how to help you to understand,” said Louis. “You’ve disrupted the office, upset the employees, and totally confounded this whole place. Have some consideration and stay home so that at least a small measure of work will be done! You are not needed here.”

  Her eyes grew wide and dark and furious. And then she turned on him. “Don’t you curse at me! Get accustomed to seeing me at the office, Mr. Fournet. I own part of this business. I’m going to protect my interest. Get used to seeing me every day.”

  She whirled around and walked out of the office, her black skirt swishing angrily as she left, her head held high.

  Louis glanced out and saw everyone watching her as she proceeded toward the door. One steely look sent the employees quickly back to work.

  He slammed his fist against his desk. “Damn!”

  A more stubborn female he’d never met!


  ***

  Marian had spent the whole week at Cuvier Shipping. She couldn’t say she’d really worked; instead, her time had been spent reading a large book on shipping that had just about put her to sleep. She had cleaned her desk three times. Her knowledge regarding the shipping business was about the same as when she’d walked in the door.

  They were paying no heed to her, hoping to push her out before she even got started. Since his temper tantrum that first day, Louis had hardly spoken to her. And while his ignoring her somehow stung, she was determined not to give up. It would take more than a lack of attention to drive her out.

  Today would be different. Sometimes taking matters into one’s own hands was called for and this could be one of those times.

  She walked out of her office and down the hall to where Henry Chatham, the accountant, sat working on the books. If no one would teach her the business, then she would work her way backwards through the ledgers. She would use the files and whatever else she could to teach herself. Just because the men in the office were united against her, she would not let them stop her.

  “Excuse me,” she said clearing her throat to draw Henry’s attention.

  He glanced up at her as if she had two heads and six arms. “I’m looking for the general ledger.”

  “Uh,” he glanced around nervously. “I know it’s around here somewhere, but I don’t see it right now. How about if I bring it to you?”

  “That’s fine. I’ll expect it on my desk in ten minutes,” she said, before turning and walking away.

  She suspected the leather bound book that kept all the financial records for the company was not really missing. Henry refused to share the information.

  Ten minutes passed and when Marian looked up from the newspaper she sat reading, Louis stood in her doorway, filling it completely. He wore a dark suit with a white shirt that contrasted with his bronzed skin. His dark blue eyes gazed at her, warm and intense, causing a shiver to trail along her spine.

  “Handsome” wasn’t the word to describe him. His looks were rugged, with broad shoulders and muscled forearms, though his lazy, confident gaze drew her to him. He was the first man in years whose appearance she’d taken notice of, and Louis’s certain smile told her he knew she’d observed him.

  “Yes, Mr. Fournet?” she asked trying to ignore his self-assured grin.

  “Louis,” he replied.

  “What can I do for you, Louis?” she asked, her honey- sweet voice emphasizing his name.

  He smiled. “I hear you’re looking for the general ledger.”

  “Yes,” she replied.

  “Why?” he asked, his brow raised.

  “Because I am part owner of this company and I intend to find out what’s going on,” she said sweetly. “Now, you can tell Henry he has an additional ten minutes before I fire him.”

  Louis laughed. “Behind that innocent face and all that black silk is quite a spitfire I’d say.”

  She shook her head. “No, just a determined woman who, no matter how much you push her, is not going away.”

  “Not yet anyway,” he replied smiling congenially.

  “Not ever,” she returned sweetly, wishing she could take her eyes off his full lips, wondering what they would feel like to kiss.

  Jon barged into the room. “Louis, Priscilla Morgan is here to see you.”

  Louis glanced at Jon and then again at Marian. “I’ll tell Henry to bring you the ledger. Excuse me; I have more pleasant matters awaiting me.”

  He turned and walked away and she couldn’t help but watch the way he strode across the room with a determined step. Yet when she spoke with him, he seemed more playful than serious. Which was Louis Fournet, the serious businessman or the playful bachelor? Or some randy combination of both?

  A few minutes later, the balding accountant strode into her office, a big ledger in his hand. “Mr. Fournet said to bring this to you.”

  Marian smiled at the accountant and took the ledger from his hands. “Thank you, Henry. I appreciate your promptness. And I know that you realize if you ever question my authority again, it will be your last day with Cuvier Shipping.”

  The man frowned, but nodded. “Yes, ma’am.” Marian watched him as he hurried out the door. She sighed and turned her attention to the ledger. Taking a sheet of paper, she made some notes as she flipped through the ledger to see who Cuvier Shipping was doing business with.

  Ten minutes later, Marian heard the soft trill of a woman’s voice and glanced up from the accountant’s book to see a woman with a full figure, who had tumbling blonde curls, and a soft angelic face. Priscilla Morgan was everything that men adored in a woman.

  She watched Louis laughing and talking with the pretty woman, participating in a flirtatious ritual that amused Marian, yet made her sad. He leaned toward the woman telling her something for her ears only and Marian couldn’t help but wonder what it would be like to have a man’s attention. So many years had passed without even a flirtatious smile from her husband. Had they ever been this enamored with one another?

  The woman smiled coyly at Louis and Marian watched him respond to her banter with his own teasing response, just as Jean once reacted to her so many years ago.

  Louis responded like her dead husband. They had been business associates and friends who had much in common. And the very fact they seemed alike should be enough to keep Marian’s thoughts off the dark-haired man with the bewitching blue eyes, perhaps too much like Jean Cuvier.

  Marian returned her attention to the ledger and tried to concentrate on the names and figures before her eyes. Each time she heard the woman’s laughter, the words seemed to blur on the page as her concentration shifted to the people across the hall.

  Why couldn’t she just block their laughter from her mind? Why did the woman’s voice seem more like a purr that made Marian’s heart ache? With a sigh she returned to the ledger page, more determined than ever to learn all she could about Cuvier Shipping. Her focus had to remain on the company and her children, not her Don Juan of a business partner.

  ***

  Louis sat staring across the hall feeling morose as he stared at Marian Cuvier. Silk-wrapped and smelling of lilacs, the woman with her stubborn will of iron had entrenched herself in Jean’s office these last weeks. Nothing seemed to bother her enough to send her running home and losing this battle between them was maddening.

  He hated losing any battle.

  Worse, little-by-little Marian seemed to be charming and winning over the men who ran Cuvier Shipping. Slowly she had managed to break down their resistance and he could see subtle changes in their attitudes and even in their language. He hadn’t heard a swear word ring out in the office in over a week.

  At first he scoffed at her attempts to bribe the men with fresh baked goods each morning. They were smarter than to let their stomachs lead their minds. Now he was considering donning an apron and bringing in a full-course meal, just to show them they were being bought off.

  But then this morning as he walked in, he’d overheard a conversation between Marian and Henry. She’d been talking to him about his wife and children. She’d called his wife by name. Until that moment, Louis hadn’t even known his accountant was married!

  And that wouldn’t have been so surprising, but he’d overheard her do the same thing with the new man, Sean. Maybe it was coincidence that she knew Henry’s wife’s name, but with Sean the only way she could have known anything about his family was if she’d asked.

  She was getting to know the employees, finding out about their personal lives, even going so far as to bring a baby gift to Joe, a new father in the office.

  Hell, he didn’t know half the employees’ first names, let alone who their wives and children were. Like a politician running for office, her campaign to undermine him and make him look bad was working!

  Then there had been her frequent diggings through the files, doing research, or so she claimed. He had nothing to hide, just the same her investigations were
driving him crazy. What could she be looking for?

  For the thirtieth time that day he caught himself staring across the way at her. Past five o’clock on a Thursday afternoon, only a few employees remained. Marian sat sifting through some papers.

  Sitting across from her, staring at all that dark hair twisted up off her graceful long neck, imagining what she looked like beneath the black gown that encased her body, and wanting to dispel the sadness he sometimes saw reflected in her gray eyes, was making him uneasy. How could he work with her for the next few months, until he sold the business?

  Maybe he could scare her away. What would a woman like Marian be afraid of? Somehow he had to convince her to stay home or he would take advantage of that cherry red mouth. The realization caused him to smile at how easy the answer seemed. There was one thing he’d wanted to do almost since the day he first met her, and it would certainly send her running. Suddenly he stood, unable to wait any longer.

  Louis strode across the hallway, his steps sure and even, until he found himself standing in front of her desk.”You’re still here. Why?” he asked.

  She glanced up at him, her face an innocent mask. “I was just trying to finish up the last of the ledgers I’ve been going through. Very interesting what our customers transport on our boats.”

  He shrugged and then leaned across the desk. “Marian, I need to talk to you.”

  “Can it wait until tomorrow?”

  “No. It must be now,” he demanded.

  “Okay, let me just finish this ledger and put it back.”

  He reached across the desk and shut it for her. “Now!”

  She gazed up at him, her eyes widening at his urgency. “What’s wrong?” she asked.

  Louis placed his hands on her desk, gripping it and leaned in closer to her. “You are a gorgeous woman working in a man’s business. For the last three weeks, I’ve sat across from you and tried my damnedest not to show that I notice how beautiful you are. How your lips beckon me every time you flick your tongue across them. I’ve tried to deny how I feel, but I can’t do it anymore.” Her eyes widened and she leaned back away from him.