Wronged (The Cuvier Widows Book 1)

by Sylvia McDaniel

  “I’ll keep that in mind,” he said, and walked out the door, holding tight to his self-control.

  The woman was driving him crazy. Those flashing gray eyes and that saucy mouth of hers beckoned to him every time he saw her and he wanted to taste her before he yelled at her. Hell, he wanted to yell at her just because he needed to taste her again and was unable to.

  Chapter Six

  Louis hated losing. Marian’s voice echoed in his head and he thought he could hear her saying, “Checkmate!”

  In his office, he sat morosely staring at the empty room across the hall, the waning light throwing shadows on the wall. Marian had gone home for the evening along with everyone else. Only Louis and Henry remained and Louis knew that Henry would soon be leaving him alone with his pensive thoughts.

  No matter what he did, Marian thwarted his every move or somehow managed to overcome whatever obstacle he threw in her path, and generally frustrated him to no end.

  When he’d seen the other men congratulating her like a conquering war hero, he’d known that no longer would she be looking in from the outside. With her quick reaction in saving their largest account, the men had accepted her, and now even wanted to protect her.

  When had she become a dues-paying member in the office?

  Though Louis had to admit she’d certainly earned her way by digging through the old files, looking through ledgers and finding the original shipping manifests. And he couldn’t deny that her resolution of George Morgan’s problems this afternoon had been a feat that not only would bring in their money quicker, but also let the customer think he was getting a deal.

  But she was still a woman and her place wasn’t here. In any case, he made the decisions, not her, so she could pack up her optimism and take it home to the children. He still intended to sell this business.

  But, what could he do now? He could continue ignoring her, kissing her, and doing everything in his power to send her packing, but what would it gain him besides a raging erection?

  The widow is a beautiful woman, and he respected and admired her, but nevertheless the sale of Cuvier Shipping would come through. Marian Cuvier wasn’t budging and every day she seemed to set down more roots than a willow tree. No matter what he did, she was ensconcing herself in the business more and more. And he damn well didn’t like it

  Henry peered in from the doorway, his eyes widening with surprise at the sight of Louis.

  “Mr. Fournet, you’re still here?”

  Louis scowled at his accountant; as if he never stayed late!

  “I’m thinking, ’’Louis said, his tone as grumpy as he felt.

  “It’s been quite a day. Mrs. Cuvier certainly keeps things interesting around here,” Henry said, with a nod of understanding.

  “Yeah, you could say that” Louis paused, needing someone to confide in. “You know, I’ve done everything I could to get her to go home and give up this foolish idea. But she just doesn’t seem to budge. And now she’s more engrained than ever before in this company.”

  “Mr. Morgan would be upset if she weren’t here to handle his account,” Henry gently reminded Louis. “Maybe you should just agree to let her be the other partner. After all she is Jean’s widow.”

  “She’s one of his widows. And shipping is a man’s business. Men should run it,” Louis said, not bothering to hide his dissatisfaction.

  Henry shrugged. “Jean had heirs and bequests: and he named her in his will as his son’s guardian.”

  Louis glanced up at Henry, surprised by the older man’s defense of Marian. “I would give Marian her share of the profits.”

  “Of course,” Henry said glancing away, his mouth turning down. “A woman’s ‘place is in the home,’ not working in an office full of men.”

  “Damn right it is,” Louis said, determined to prove he was right.

  “You’ve told her you feel this way?” Henry asked.

  “She doesn’t care. I’ve tried to get rid of her but the men are beginning to acknowledge her.”

  Leaning against the doorframe, the accountant leveled his gaze at Louis. “What are you going to do?”

  Louis laughed, his tone more a pathetic whine. His current ploys were not getting him anywhere. After the scene today, the men had most definitely accepted her. Only he and Henry Chatham were resisting the influence of Marian Cuvier. And he wasn’t too certain that Henry wasn’t ready to give in to her persuasive personality.

  Perhaps the time had come to resolve this problem in a different way. Maybe it was time to use Marian’s skills to his advantage. Maybe, just maybe, it was time to let the lady think she was in control, though of course he would never relinquish any of the power.

  She didn’t understand the scope of the business and most clients wouldn’t agree to working with a woman. Yet if he let her believe she was an equal partner in the company, Louis thought, she would be more likely to agree to his future plans for the business. While actually she would be no more than a puppet and he would be the puppet master.

  All the while he would be trying to sell the company and its assets.

  He smiled once again, feeling powerful. The time to solve the problem was upon him and suddenly Louis knew just how to resolve the dilemma of Marian Cuvier to his satisfaction.

  After a lengthy pause, Louis glanced up at Henry. “In answer to your question, I’m going to do the only thing I can do. Accept her. And give her a real taste of what working in this business is all about. Then we’ll see if the lady still wants to be a partner in Cuvier Shipping.”

  ***

  Marian walked into the office the next morning, thinking about her children, who had only two weeks left of school before vacation. For the first time in their lives, she wouldn’t be home with them for the summer. Normally, they traveled to Virginia to see her family, but this time they would be home alone with the servants and visiting with their Aunt Claire, while Marian spent her days at Cuvier Shipping.

  “Good morning, Mrs. Cuvier,” one of the employees said as she walked through the main office.

  Startled, she stuttered, “G—good morning.”

  For the first time, she had been greeted pleasantly. Up to now she was met with little more than snickers or glowering glances.

  Jon smiled at her, waved and called, “I put some mail on your desk.”

  “Thank you,” she said, stunned at his friendliness.

  As she walked through the room, greetings were called out to her, along with smiles and nods of hello. She did her best to return them though she felt astonished at the responses.

  “Good morning, Mrs. Cuvier,” a slightly balding man said, blocking her path. “I have to tell you that you handled Mr. Morgan very well yesterday. I was impressed.”

  “Thank you,” she said. “All I did was help our customer.”

  “Some customers are easier than others. Mr. Morgan has always been difficult. You did a good job,” he said, and walked away.

  Before she could make it to her office, she was stopped twice more by employees telling her how well she handled Mr. Morgan.

  Her co-workers this morning were warm and accepting and she almost wondered if she had come to the right office. Did this mean they had now recognized her as an employee?

  She put her satchel down on her desk and took off her hat, carefully hanging it up on the coat rack she had brought from home. Little by little, she had been bringing things from the house on Josephine Street to make her office more livable.

  An envelope with her name scrawled across the front lay on her desk. She picked up the missive and glanced at the handwriting, not recognizing the penmanship. It was written on the finest quality paper and she wondered who it could be from. The envelope’s square size looked more like a card than an actual letter and obviously had been hand delivered.

  Picking up her letter opener she sliced open the envelope with quick curiosity. She pulled out a handwritten card with the initials GM engraved on the front. Quickly she scanned the card and dropped it o
n her desk.

  She went to the window and glanced outside at the people hurrying by on the sidewalk, her mind on the dinner invitation she had just received from George Morgan.

  The tone of the letter seemed casual, though she feared the invitation was more personal than related to business. George Morgan’s heart may well be free, but a very thick gold band around the fourth finger on his left hand proclaimed him married.

  No doubt Mr. Morgan thought that the Widow Cuvier would be in desperate need of company. She feared he thought because of Jean, she would be a loose woman, which she found amusing. Accused of being stiff and rigid by Jean, their marriage had never been warm.

  A rapid knock on the door silenced her thoughts and she turned to see Louis standing in the doorway. A gracious smile lit his face and she couldn’t help but be cautious. Always wary of the charming turn of his lips, Marian watched him guardedly, unable to ignore the way his white shirt and dark trousers accentuated the blue of his eyes.

  “Good morning,” he said.

  “Good morning,” she replied, her response not as enthusiastic as his because she remembered his irrational anger of yesterday. Could she expect more today?

  She moved away from the window to sit behind her desk and glanced at him expectantly.

  He sat down across from her, settling in like he intended to stay a while. A smile played on his lips. What was there about this man that drew her? Yet she couldn’t trust him.

  “Yes?”

  “I heard from Capitan Mike last night that the Ithaca is loaded and ready to leave. We’re a week behind on the shipment for The United Fruit Company, but we could make up that time with good weather.”

  She raised her brows. What reasoning prompted him to volunteer this information?

  “All right,” she said.

  “Also one of our steamships is being repaired. Seems the good Captain Marshal hit a sandbar,” he said. “It should be out of commission for probably three or four weeks. This is his third accident in six months and I told him one more time and he was gone.”

  “Why would he be having so many accidents? Does he have trouble seeing?” she asked. “Or is it possible the man drinks alcohol?”

  “Hmm,” Louis said. “I never considered there was a reason behind his accidents, just that suddenly he’d become prone to disaster. I thought he was being careless, but maybe something else is awry.”

  “Might be worth asking the hands if they’ve noticed any changes in the last six months,” she said, responding to Louis, still wondering what he was doing in her office and telling her this information.

  She took a deep breath to relieve the tension she felt in her shoulder blades and breathed in the tempting aroma of sandalwood. The spicy smell of his soap was delicious and she felt her pulse quicken as she listened to him continue about their customers.

  “I also negotiated a contract with that new broker, Jim Florin, and we should get some business from him soon,” Louis said.

  Louis never just came into her office and sat and talked with her about customers or employees like this. What brought about this change? Imparting this type of information he was treating her like a real owner, one that he accepted.

  Could the incident yesterday with Mr. Morgan have gained his respect? Certainly the confrontation changed the way the employees in the front of the office viewed her. Louis must have also been affected.

  “Why are you telling me this?” she finally asked, staring at him, unable to keep from inquiring another moment

  He shrugged. “What do you mean? I thought you would like to know what’s going on.”

  “I would, but you’ve never been forthcoming before,” she said, gazing at him. “So why is it different now?”

  She watched him squirm uncomfortably in the chair across from her. For a moment she believed he really felt awkward. But then when he looked up and stared into her eyes, she saw the mischief dancing in his gaze and couldn’t help but be on guard. There was something in that gaze she never could trust.

  “I’m giving up,” he said.

  “What do you mean you’re ‘giving up’?”

  “You’re my new partner,” he said, not looking at her directly, but patting his leg with a nervous hand. He glanced up, gazing at her as if he was surprised that she would inquire about his actions. “I had wished you would just let me buy you out, but you obviously want to hold onto the business. So, I’m accepting your position within the company. You’re my new partner, for now.”

  For a moment, Marian sat back astounded, feeling a little distrustful. “What changed your mind?”

  “Yesterday. The employees were all talking about what a great job you did handling Mr. Morgan and it’s obvious you saved the account”

  “But last night when I left, you seemed angry with me.”

  Louis nodded. “You’re right. That was last night. Today I’m not angry.”

  “What’s changed your attitude?”

  He shrugged. “Last night I wasn’t ready to accept you. I thought about it some more and I guess I just grew accustomed to the idea.”

  She raised her brows at him and slowly smiled. “So does this mean that we’re going to work together for the good of Cuvier Shipping?”

  He smiled, but his eyes didn’t change. “Yes.”

  Marian could hardly contain her happiness. Finally they were going to quit fighting each other and get down to real business.

  She wanted to throw her arms around his neck, but feared how he would take her spontaneity. So instead she sighed with relief. While she knew there may still be difficult moments, at least they were making progress. “Thank you. I’ll try to do a good job.”

  Louis shrugged one shoulder, his face impassive. “That’s up to you. It’s your company, too.”

  Marian felt as if someone had released the chain that had been tied around her ankle, releasing her from a heavy burden. Hopefully they would get along better now that they were working together, rather than against one another.

  “I realize that I know very little about this business and you’ve been doing this for years.” She paused and gazed deeply into his eyes wishing she could see his thoughts. Would he take her seriously or would he scoff at what she wanted to ask? “Would you teach me everything you know about how this company operates?”

  For a moment he sat there and returned her stare as if he were unable to move. Then he slowly smiled and reached out and patted her on the arm. “Of course, Marian, I’ll teach you everything I can about Cuvier Shipping.”

  “Thank you!” she said, and breathed a big sigh of relief. Things were going to be fine. “I’m so happy we’re going to be working together.”

  “Yes, me too,” he said, but his gaze didn’t meet hers and his tone seemed cool.

  She picked up the envelope and handed it to Louis. “I received this invitation this morning. I think it would be wise if we both attended the dinner.”

  Louis quickly scanned the card, frowning.

  “Since his account is our largest, I think we should go together,” she said. “You could guide me in handling this man. He is quite forward and I still have so much to learn about this business.”

  Louis laid the card back on Marian’s desk. “It probably would be a good idea for me to go with you. This way we’ll be seen together.”

  She smiled. “Thank you, Louis. I’m sure I’ll learn so much from you.”

  “I’m certain you will,” he said, the comers of his mouth lifted in a smile.

  Marian felt like she had won a small victory, yet she still had her doubts about which side Louis was on. Sometimes a certain glance left her uneasy. Something about him wasn’t quite trustworthy, at least not yet.

  ***

  On Monday of the next week, Louis walked into Marian’s office early that morning and announced, “Gather what you need. We’re going on a learning excursion.”

  “A what?” she asked, annoyed that he just bounded into her office and expected her to drop everyth
ing.

  “I’m taking you down to the docks to see how Cuvier Shipping operates,” he explained. “To understand this business you need to see it from start to finish.”

  “Oh,” she said looking bewildered. “But the docks. Do I need to go see men loading our boats? I’ve been down there before.”

  “If you want to understand how the business works you’ll come with me. After all, this is what we’re all about.”

  She gazed at him, a frown furrowing her forehead. “It’s not that I don’t want to learn, it’s just not a place I feel safe.”

  He smiled. “Don’t worry. You’ll be safe with me.”

  “Somehow your reassurances don’t make me feel any better.” She sighed. “Give me five minutes and I’ll meet you up front.”

  “Jon is bringing the carriage around, so hurry.” Marian cleared her desk and closed with a snap the journal she was working on. She picked up her hat and pinned the bonnet in her hair and then grabbed her reticule, heading out the door.

  She met Louis at the front door and watched as his eyes roamed over her and then returned to the top of her head, where her favorite bonnet sat perched. “Are you going to wear that thing?”

  “What’s wrong with my hat?” she asked him.

  “It has feathers in it. We’re not going for a stroll, mind you.”

  She raised her eyes heavenward, trying to see the pointed brim of the mauve hat that sat at an angle on her head.

  “I rather like this hat.”

  “Suit yourself. Reminds me of a pink chicken.”

  “Never seen one myself. Do you get these visions often or just when you’ve imbibed too much?” she asked.

  He turned and gazed at her, a coy smile of mischief on his face. “Oh, I do think I’m going to enjoy spending some time on the docks with you.”

  She smiled. “Is the buggy here?”

  “Yes,” he said, the word clipped short.

  “Then let’s go.”

  “Yes, Ma’am,” he said holding the door open for her as she strolled out into the warm sunshine.

  When they reached the buggy, he helped her into the vehicle, climbed in after her, and took the reins from Jon.