Beguiling the Boss

by Joan Hohl

  She came to a dead stop when she found him waiting for her in the living room.

  Eyeing him warily, she arched one brow.

  “First, I am not looking for a ‘me Tarzan, you Jane’ relationship.” He took a step closer to her and stared down at her. She felt her face flush against her will. “What I’m looking for—”

  Jen knew she couldn’t let him finish that sentence.

  Dropping the cleaning products where she stood, she headed for the stairs.

  “Where are you going?” he asked, sounding genuinely confused.

  “Out,” she called back, taking the stairs two at a time to get away from Marsh Grainger and his too-tempting proposition as fast as she could.

  Five

  “The hell with it,” Marsh muttered as he strode through the house, seeking refuge in his office.

  Dammit, the woman was driving him crazy. Was she coming back for dinner? Was she coming back at all? For an instant Marsh felt his stomach tighten at the idea of her leaving for good.

  She was great at her job—all her jobs. He couldn’t afford to lose her.

  What had he done?

  He sighed. He had spooked her by jumping the gun with his “test kiss” business. Well, in all honesty, he had startled himself, as well. He had never been the impulsive type. But ever since she’d walked into his life, he’d been doing nothing but acting on impulse. The idea of the two of them getting together on a permanent basis had been brewing at the back of his mind for days—and getting stronger with every touch, every conversation.

  Why not? he had asked himself. She obviously wasn’t involved with any other man, seeing as how she never mentioned anyone and hadn’t left the house except to go shopping since she had started working for him.

  Still, he probably should have given the idea more thought, given her more time to get to know him, which was his reason for inviting her to ride with him that morning in the first place.

  And why was he beating himself up like this? It was so…so not like him.

  Facing the bare truth, Marsh admitted he was burning to be with her, to make love to her. He had been observing her from the very beginning. Along with a growing respect for her, along with the feelings he experienced listening to her sing softly while she was working… He had entered the house from the stable one very warm Saturday afternoon and stopped in his tracks as he passed through the dining room. Hot and sweaty, he had stood there, transfixed by the sight of Jen getting out of the pool, water sluicing the length of her slender body barely covered by a string bikini.

  In that instant he was not only hot and sweaty, he was rock hard and hurting. He wanted her so badly his back teeth ached…along with the rest of him.

  It was during the days following that encounter that Marsh began thinking about bargaining with Jen, offering her his name, his home, his bed in exchange for a child. Finally, he had decided to take a chance—and for him to take a chance with a woman, even a woman such as Jen, was a huge step for him.

  Had he botched his chances with his abrupt actions and suggestions? A “test kiss”? Another “test” to see if they would be good together in bed? He grimaced. Not the most romantic approach. But he had never had any trouble romancing a woman before.

  Of course, Jen wasn’t just any woman. She was different, special.

  Dammit.

  He couldn’t blame her if she had left for good.

  Had she taken all her things? She had had ample time as she hadn’t brought very many with her. Hell, she wouldn’t need to take anything but herself—she could send for her belongings, or have someone else come for them.

  He’d really made a mess of things.

  Sighing, he picked up the phone and made a few work calls. Then he sat in front of his computer, watching the cursor blink, as if impatient for him to decide what he was going to do. He put it to sleep.

  Just then, the phone on his desk rang. He slid a glance at the caller ID, and eased back into his chair.

  “Yes, Jen?” Marsh was pleased at the casual note he had managed.

  “Can you handle dinner on your own?”

  “Why?” he asked, heaving a put-upon sigh.

  “I’m going to run into San Antonio and have dinner there, along the River Walk,” she explained.

  “Why don’t I join you for dinner?” Marsh said. “I think maybe I need to explain a few things to you.” He actually held his breath while waiting for her answer—that had never before happened to him with any woman.

  “Well…”

  Before she had a chance to say no he rushed on. “We could have dinner and then stroll along the River Walk or take a boat ride.” The moments crawled by. He was holding his breath again.

  “Okay,” she said. “What time should I meet you?”

  “Would six-thirty or seven work?”

  “Seven would be fine. I’ll see you then.” Her voice came over the line hurried, a bit rough. “Bye.”

  Marsh’s breathing slowly returned to normal. Could their having dinner together away from the house be considered a date? Marsh thought about it for a moment. He supposed it definitely could—if he hadn’t just scared her out of the house with his proposition.

  Hell, he mused, what was he getting all worked up about? He knew how to go about charming a woman—he had charmed his share, maybe more than his share. So why sweat it? He could begin over dinner, and probably have Jen eating from his hand by…

  No. He couldn’t, wouldn’t approach Jen as if she were any other woman. She wasn’t.

  So no seduction, unless it happened completely naturally, he told himself. This date was simply a way for him to back up and make amends to the employee he was so desperate to hold on to.

  Of course it was.

  * * *

  Jen slipped the cell phone into the side pocket of her shoulder bag as she walked out into the golden sunlight from the cool, soothing interior of the Mission Alamo.

  No matter how many times she visited San Antonio, the first thing she did was head for the old mission. Although traffic was busy on the broad street so close to the complex, inside it was always quiet, and on the hottest days, it seemed cool. There was a sense of peace and calm inside the Alamo Jen had never experienced anywhere else. And she had always thought how lovely it would be to be married inside that quiet and serene old shrine.

  It could happen if she agreed to Marsh’s proposal.

  Jen shook her head. The thought of wearing his ring, sharing his bed, bearing his child—it was so very tempting. But she couldn’t stand the idea of living with him knowing he didn’t love her, and not knowing if she could love him.

  It was absurd to even be thinking about Marsh in that way.

  Wasn’t it?

  Waiting for the light to change so she could cross the street, she glanced down, frowning slightly at the tremor in her hands. Speaking to Marsh, agreeing to meet him for dinner had shaken that inner peace, ruffled her sense of calm.

  Why had she called him in the first place?

  Wait a minute, she thought, trying to get control of her thoughts. Why in the world should I feel nervous about having agreed to meet Marsh for dinner? We not only have dinner but every meal together in the house—his house—three times a day, every day.

  But this wasn’t the house, she mused. And there was the small matter of the fact that he had proposed to her.

  This was a date. A Saturday-night date. And on this particular Saturday he had kissed her, and asked her to go to his bed…and have his child!

  All of it gave Jen pause. A date with Marsh? A marriage with him? A life with him? She’d barely let herself want him, or imagine a future beyond right now. Was a long-term relationship something she wanted?

  Maybe.

  She couldn’t suppress the thrill of anticipation that skidded the length of her spine just thinking about the possibilities.

  Oh, yes, he was what she wanted, she finally conceded, and he wanted her. The thought lodged in her mind as she crossed the br
idge to the River Walk.

  He had admitted as much, she thought, ambling along, unconscious of the throngs of people around her. Well, he didn’t actually say he wanted her. He said he wanted a child—an heir, maybe two.

  Not quite the words a woman wants to hear when receiving a marriage proposal. Hell, she mused, she had once received a fervent proposal from a young man who had actually dropped onto one knee to pledge his undying love for her.

  Marsh’s proposal was a far cry from that.

  Jen strolled into the Rivercenter Mall and headed straight for Victoria’s Secret without even realizing what she was doing. She was looking through the sales tables when she glanced up, her gaze caught by a mannequin. The nightgown was barely there and what was there was flame-red.

  On the spot, Jen motioned to a nearby smiling sales clerk and bought the sinful-looking gown.

  She wouldn’t admit that she was thinking about Marsh as she did so.

  Jen left the mall and made her way to the restaurant. She started when a hand touched hers, taking her bag from her.

  “Hey—” she began, turning to glare at the person.

  “You’re late,” Marsh drawled.

  Jen somehow managed to keep from rolling her eyes. “I was shopping and lost sight of the time.”

  “Obviously,” he said.

  “Oh, lighten up,” Jen retorted.

  While imperiously arching a brow he gave way to a smile. He shot a cuff to look at his watch. “We’re five minutes late.”

  “How very sophisticated of us,” she murmured. “I hope they are duly impressed.”

  “Nah,” Marsh said, shaking his head. “They probably expect us to be late.”

  Surprised and amused by his casual tone, Jen gave a soft laugh. “What if we aren’t late enough and we have to wait for a table?”

  Marsh slanted a positively wicked look at her. “It ain’t gonna happen, kid. The name’s Grainger, remember?” He opened the door for her. “Besides, I know the owner and chef.”

  The place was medium-size, the décor blending with the River Walk theme. The food was superb, the service outstanding.

  Jen barely noticed.

  It occurred to her that it was strikingly different being out with Marsh than sitting opposite him at his kitchen table. Here, tonight, Marsh captivated her. He was…everything she had ever thought a man should be.

  Handsome, urbane, but most importantly, intelligent. His intelligence shone from his silvery eyes, along with a keen sense of humor she had never heard mentioned about him before. Had most people missed it? Jen didn’t see how it was possible for anyone to miss what was right there in front of them. At times, his eyes fairly danced with the light of devilish humor.

  Why did he have to turn out to be a womanizer? Or was he? If the gossipmongers had missed Marsh’s sense of humor, had they misread other things about him, as well?

  Beware of wishful thinking, she told herself.

  “What are you thinking?” he asked.

  Marsh was sitting with his forearms on the table, cradling his after-dinner brandy. His hands moved slowly, warming the potent liquid. She wondered if this was the moment when he was going to explain himself to her.

  “About you,” she admitted.

  One dark eyebrow arched. “What about me?”

  He lowered his head. His lips parted to sip the brandy. Jen felt she could actually taste his lips, the tang of the brandy on them.

  “Oh,” she said with a delicate shrug, “I’m just wondering exactly what it is you wanted to talk about tonight.”

  He chuckled and the sound seemed to go right through her.

  He took another sip, keeping his eyes on her. “I feel I might have offended you with my…business proposal.”

  Jen nearly spit out her wine. “Is that what that was?”

  He nodded. “It was. I’m a businessman, Jen. When I see something that looks like a good, smart opportunity, I take it.”

  Her heart skittered a little at the idea of being “taken” by Marsh. By the glint in his eye, she could tell that was exactly what he wanted her to be thinking.

  “But like I said, I’m sorry if I offended you.”

  Jen couldn’t help but wonder, as she sat there looking at the gorgeous Marsh Grainger, how many other women he had presented with his “business” proposal. But then, how many women could a man possibly meet if he spent all his time at home, in his house?

  “Why do you hide out in your home instead of working in your office in Dallas?”

  For a moment—a long moment—she was certain he had no intention of answering her. In fact, she was steeling herself for a rebuke.

  “I get more done that way.”

  Jen was a little startled at his blunt admittance. A tiny frown tugging her brows together, she asked, “You can get more work done alone than you can surrounded by people to assist you?”

  He nodded, tipping the glass to finish off his drink. “I do have people—too many people—around me to assist. I prefer the quiet of my office at the house. On the other hand—”

  He was interrupted by their server asking if he could get something else for them.

  “No, thank you, just the check,” Marsh said, his gaze steady on Jen’s face. “Are you going to finish your wine?”

  “No.” Jen shook her head, a small smile playing on her lips. “I’m driving.”

  Turning from her, he took care of the check. Then he circled the table to hold her chair for her.

  “You were saying,” Jen prompted him as soon as they were back outside. As they walked, the crowds had to go around them—it didn’t hurt that Marsh was such an imposing, intimidating man.

  “On the other hand,” he said, strolling beside her, unaware of the impatient looks of some of the people having to skirt around them. “There are times I have to go into Dallas or Houston for important meetings.”

  “As you did the weekend I started working for you,” she recalled aloud.

  He hesitated, a half smile shadowing his lips for an instant. “Yes,” he said, his tone wry.

  Now, what was that all about? The man was certainly an enigma. If she thought about everything that had happened between them in one day, it practically made her head spin. First a kiss, then…a proposal.

  A proposal was serious business. Was she seriously considering it?

  “Hello, Jennifer.” Marsh’s softened voice drew her from introspection. “We’re here.”

  Here? Where? Blinking herself back from the realm of Marsh’s hot kiss and the proposal to the present, Jen was startled to find herself standing next to her car. Now, how in the world had he known where she had parked?

  “How did you…”

  “I looked.”

  “You looked?” She stared at him in amazement. “All the places to park around here, and you not only looked for my car, you spotted it?”

  Marsh shrugged. “It’s pretty hard to miss an old, dusty white Caddy, even at dusk.”

  Although Jen took offense at his description of the vehicle she loved, she let it slide for the moment. “Okay, so where did you park?”

  “Back there a few blocks. You wait here while I go get it and I’ll follow you home.”

  “I know the way home, Marsh,” she said.

  “I know you do,” he replied. “But I’m still following you back to the ranch, so you wait here. That’s an order, Jennifer. I can’t have you disappearing on me—we’re not quite done talking yet. And we need some privacy to do it.”

  And with that, he just turned and walked away.

  Six

  Jen was fuming. Certain smoke was rising from her ears, she stared after Marsh. Who the hell did he think he was?

  Well, yeah, he was her boss—he was boss to a lot of people, she reluctantly conceded—but that didn’t give him the right to issue orders to her on a date. Sighing, she nevertheless slid behind the wheel of the Caddy like a good and obedient employee.

  Anger seared through her.

  Her day
had been a whirlwind, starting with their ride. There was the kiss, and the perplexing and—if she was being totally honest with herself—rather flattering proposal. She had enjoyed their ride to the stream. She had enjoyed the horses. She had even enjoyed Marsh’s kiss.

  Who was she kidding? She hadn’t just enjoyed his kiss, she had melted into it, and wanted more when it was over…only to hear him tell her it had been a test.

  A test! As if that were not bad enough, he proceeded to ask her to have sex with him to make certain they would be good together in bed. And if it so happened they were compatible as lovers, he then would marry her, simply because he considered her good wife and mother material, mother being the most important role as he needed an heir to inherit his vast wealth and would prefer two children. Like royalty, she supposed—an heir and a spare.

  She’d been thinking about that proposal all day. But damned if now, after their first date, she wasn’t quite sure how she felt.

  Especially since he’d just ordered her around.

  Jen didn’t realize she was gritting her teeth until she heard the sound of a horn and glanced at the side mirror to see Marsh pulled up alongside the car parked behind her. Starting the engine, she eased out onto the street and drove ahead of him.

  He stayed on her tail, as if their bumpers were locked, all the way back to the ranch. Jen had the whole drive to work up a full head of angry steam at the way he had again managed to confuse, excite and befuddle her all in one day.

  She tried to untangle the emotions in her head. How did she feel about Marsh? She had enjoyed having dinner with him—he had been good company. The conversation they had engaged in had been amusing.

  So, what was she really fuming about?

  Jen knew full well what she was really fuming about—her growing attraction to a man who wanted to give her a compatibility test. But it was so much easier to tell herself she was annoyed by his arrogant demand that she wait for him to follow her back to the ranch.