Jackson rose, closing his laptop. He muttered something about having work to do as he headed for the suite door.
Tuck didn’t react to him leaving. His attention remained focused on Amber. “They did everything possible to keep me at arm’s length.”
She found that hard to believe.
“You think I’m lying,” he stated.
“I know you had an office. You had keys to the building. Dixon invited you to meetings.”
“Meetings where my father took great pleasure in setting me up for failure.”
“How?”
“By cornering me with arcane questions to prove I didn’t know anything.”
“Did you know anything?”
He glared at her and she regretted the question.
“I mean,” she said, attempting to backtrack, “you could have studied up, surprised him, turned the tables on him.”
“That seemed like a lot of work to impress a guy who only wanted me gone.”
“Why would he want you gone?” Tuck might be a bit of a rebel, but what father wouldn’t be proud to have him as a son?
“Because he liked Dixon better. Parents aren’t all perfect, Amber. They don’t automatically love their children.”
“Your father loves you.”
Even as she uttered the statement, Amber realized she had no idea how Jamison felt about Tuck. She was under no illusions about automatic parental love.
She shook her head, regretting her words. “I’m sorry. I don’t know that. I don’t know anything about it.”
Tuck blew out a breath. “It’s okay.”
She gave a little laugh. “I don’t even know whether my own mother loved me.”
His gaze turned sympathetic.
Uncomfortable, Amber sat up a bit straighter, attempting to explain. “I’m not sure my mother knew how to love anyone. She said she loved us. I even think she wanted to love us. But she was so incredibly self-absorbed, she couldn’t see past her own needs and desires.”
“And your father?”
“Long gone before I had any memory of him.”
“Did he support you at all? Financially?”
Amber couldn’t help but cough out a laugh. “I’d be surprised if he stayed out of jail. My mother had extraordinarily bad taste in men.”
“Where is she now?”
“She died. It happened while Jade and I were still teenagers.”
Deeper sympathy came up in Tuck’s eyes, softening his expression, making him look approachable, sexy. This was not good.
“How are we talking about me?” she asked.
They needed to get back to arguing.
“You helped raise your sister?”
“She was sixteen when it happened. I was eighteen. There wasn’t much raising left to do.” And by that time there hadn’t been much of an opportunity to change any of Jade’s habits.
“That’s when she dropped out of school?” he asked.
“She took off after a few months. I didn’t hear from her for a while.”
Tuck rose and helped himself to a bottle of water, holding one out for her.
She nodded and accepted it.
He sat down at the opposite end of the sofa. “What did you do?”
“I graduated from high school and got a job.” She twisted the cap and broke the seal. “With Dixon. He took a chance on me.”
“That’s surprising,” said Tuck.
“I worked hard. I promised him I would, and I did.”
“I believe you.” Tuck stretched one arm along the back of the sofa. “No wonder you have no patience for me.”
“I wouldn’t say—”
“It’s way too late to protest now. From where you’re sitting, I had it all, every advantage, every privilege. My education was paid for, and I walked straight into a VP job in Daddy’s company.”
“I’ve never complained about my employment.” She’d been grateful for it. “Well, up until you fired me anyway.”
“You’re back.”
“I am.”
He seemed to ponder for a moment. “You think I squandered my birthright.”
“Those are your words, not mine.”
“Then, give me your words.”
She took a minute to come up with an answer. “I think you’ve always had a lot of options. And most of them were very pleasant options. It’s not hard to understand why you’d choose the easiest path.”
“Ouch.”
“Who wouldn’t?”
“Apparently not you.”
“That’s because I never had any easy options.” The memories of her teenage years brought a knot to Amber’s stomach. “I could work my butt off and only just get by, or I could give up and spiral down like my mother.”
She took a drink, letting the cool water bathe her throat.
“Some might say spiraling down would be the easy path,” said Tuck.
“To a point. But after a while, it gets a whole lot harder.” The thought of living like her mother—the drinking, the smoking, crappy housing, used clothes, the carousel of shabby men—made her physically ill. She took another sip.
“What would you do?” he asked. “If you were me? If you had what I have?”
“I’m not trying to tell you that I’m morally superior.”
“What would you do?”
Her instinct was to continue arguing the point. But instead, she considered the theoretical question. “Then or now?”
“Then. No, hindsight is too easy. Now. What would you do now?”
“If I were you,” she said. “I’d go home. I’d leave Dixon alone, and I’d go home, work hard and prove to my father that he was dead wrong.”
“Because that’s the hardest path?”
“Because that’s the most satisfying path.”
Tuck stared into her eyes for a long time.
She grew uncomfortable, worrying she’d made him angry.
“Will you help me?” he asked.
The question surprised her. But there was only one possible answer. And she meant it sincerely. “I will.”
“Will you like me?” As soon as he’d uttered the words, he looked away. But he wasn’t fast enough to hide the uncertainty in his eyes.
She realized he’d made himself uncharacteristically vulnerable with the question. She knew she had to be honest. “I already like you.”
His posture seemed to relax. “You’re one in a million, Amber.”
He couldn’t be more wrong about that.
“I’m incredibly average,” she said. “Thing is, in your world, you don’t often come across incredibly average.”
A knowing smile came across his face. “Stand up.”
The request was abrupt and she wondered what she’d done wrong. Did he want her to leave? He didn’t look angry. But then, it was getting late.
She stood.
“Put on your shoes.”
She slipped her feet into the delicate high heels. But as she made to head for the door, he gently grasped her shoulders, turning her away, propelling her in the opposite direction.
“What are you doing?”
Before he answered, they were through a set of open double doors and into the bedroom.
“Look,” he said, turning her toward a full-length mirror.
“What?”
There was nothing to see. The dress still looked great and it still went with the shoes. But her hair was coming loose and her makeup had faded. Her cheeks were rosy from the earlier wine and maybe from debating with Tuck. Her eyes were slightly shadowed with exhaustion. She really did need to get some sleep.
He brushed his fingertips across her shoulder, his tone going deep. “Is there anything ab
out you that is remotely average?”
His words sent a tingle down her spine.
“You’re amazing, Amber. You’re flat-out amazing. You’re gorgeous and smart as a whip. You’re insightful and funny.” He brushed her hair from the side of her neck. “And I can’t get you out of my mind.”
He eased slowly forward until his lips connected with the crook of her neck. They were soft and hot as she gazed at his image in the mirror. He kissed her again, lips wider this time, leaving a circle of moisture behind.
He planted a chain of kisses along her shoulder while his palms slipped down her bare arms. She watched his dark head, felt the air cool the moisture on her skin, let desire and arousal throb to life inside her. Then his hands came to rest on her waist, his blunt fingers splayed on her stomach, dark in relief against the glittery blue of the dress.
She leaned back against him. He was solid, a tower of muscle and strength. Their gazes met in the reflection, midnight blue and pewter gray. She let him in, not flinching, absorbing his obvious passion and returning it with her own.
He reached for the zipper at the back of her dress, watching her reaction closely as he drew it down. The air brushed her back and she quivered with the mix of sensations. He brushed aside the fabric and kissed her shoulder. His fingers delved into her hair, tugging at the clip and releasing thick waves.
She gasped in a breath and her hands curled into fists. It was the point of no return. No, it wasn’t. She’d already passed no return when she’d met his eyes in the mirror. Her and Tuck, for now, at least for this small moment, were inevitable.
She shrugged her shoulders and the dress slipped down, the fabric cascading over her breasts, past her hips, pooling on the thick carpet.
His eyes darkened, his gaze pausing on her pink satin bra. It swept over her navel to the tiny matching panties, down the length of her legs to the sparkling shoes.
“One in a million,” he whispered in her ear.
His hand closed over her breast and he kissed that first spot on her neck.
She knew she should look away, close her eyes and safely drown in the sensations of his touch. But she watched while he unhooked her bra. He set her breasts tumbling free. Then he let his fingertips roam from the curve of her hip, to the indentation of her naval, to the mound of her breast and her pearled nipples.
He touched and fondled while her temperature rose and her lungs dragged in air. When his hand dipped under her panties, urgency overwhelmed her. She turned in his arms, meeting his lips, tangling her limbs around him while his hand drove her to heights of passion.
“You are incredible,” he rasped between kisses, peeling off the flimsy panties.
She pushed off his jacket, then struggled with his tie.
He tore off the new shirt and they came together, skin on skin, finally. He embraced her, held her tight, strong arms wrapped firmly around her as he explored every nuance of her mouth.
Then he lifted her and carried her to the big bed, yanking back the covers to deposit her on the crisp sheets. She lay on her back, watching as he stripped off his clothes.
When he was naked, he gazed down. He took in her disheveled hair, his eyes moving over her breasts to the shadow of her thighs, down the length of her legs. Then he smiled.
She realized she still wore her shoes.
She couldn’t help but grin sheepishly in return.
“One of the things I love best about you,” he said, coming to lie next to her on the mattress.
He renewed his exploration of her body, and she returned the favor, reveling in the taut muscles of his shoulders and arms, his washboard stomach and the strength of his hips and thighs. She kissed her way over his salty skin while he found her sensitive and erotic spots, the crook of her knee, the inside of her thigh, the tips of her nipples.
Then he rolled on top, his solid weight pinning her satisfyingly to the mattress. He took a second with a condom, then stared straight in her eyes.
She flexed her hips upward and felt him sliding inside. Her head tipped back and her eyes fluttered closed. Her world contracted to the cloud of sensation that was Tuck. His scent surrounded her. His heat enveloped her. His fingertips were magic and his lips were delicious.
His rhythm was slow and steady. First her bones melted to nothing. Then her limbs began to buzz. His pace increased and she couldn’t contain her moans. Wave after wave of passion washed over and through her.
She couldn’t move. She couldn’t breathe. Her mind had gone into a free fall. And then the world burst open, and she cried out his name, hanging on tight, never wanting to let go.
Nine
Tuck knew that making love couldn’t have been an easy decision for Amber. But for him it had been the easiest path, and definitely the most pleasurable path.
He eased onto his side, taking his weight from her and gathering her close. “I’m sorry,” he whispered.
“For?” she whispered back. “Was that not your best work?”
He wanted to laugh, but he was afraid it would be the wrong reaction. “I know you weren’t sure.”
She turned her head and looked questioningly up at him.
“About making love,” he elaborated.
“Did I not seem sure?”
“I guess you did.”
“Should I have made you wait?”
“That might have killed me. I’ve been desperate for you since day one.”
She smoothed her hand across his chest. “I’ve been resisting you for a while now.”
He let his ego absorb the compliment.
She curled herself into a sitting position.
“What are you doing?” He wanted her to stay exactly where she was.
She moved to the edge of the bed. “Now that we’ve got that out of our system.”
“Whoa, what?” His system was just getting started.
She rose and crossed the bedroom. “I realize it was inevitable. It might be nothing but chemistry, but it’s still pretty powerful stuff.”
Nothing but chemistry?
Okay, sure, he remembered saying that. Problem was he couldn’t remember why.
She slipped into her panties, turning to face him while she dressed.
For some reason, he’d expected her to be shy. He wasn’t sure why, maybe because of the clothes she usually wore.
He sat up, draping his legs over the edge of the bed. “You don’t have to leave.”
She stopped in the midst of fastening her bra, looking surprised. “We need to get to sleep. I assume we’ll be leaving first thing in the morning.”
“There’s no rush.”
They were flying in a Tucker jet. They could leave any old time they wanted. It didn’t even have to be tomorrow.
“We’ve got a ton of work to do,” she said. “I said I’d help, and I will. I’ll do as much as I can. But you’ve got to do your part, Tuck. Dixon could be back soon. You might not have much time and you need to start proving yourself.”
Wait a minute. “We want Dixon back.”
“Sure we do. But not right away, not if you want to show your father you’ve got what it takes to run the company.”
Tuck came to his feet. “I don’t have what it takes to run the company.”
Amber dropped the dress over her head, pushing her arms through the flimsy cap sleeves. “Maybe not yet.”
“I don’t know what you think I can do.”
“You can start by hiring some new executives. Lucas needs help.” She turned and presented him with the zipper.
He didn’t want to zip her up. He wanted to strip her down again. He wanted her naked again, in his bed, in his arms, making love until neither of them could move and then sleeping until noon.
“I can’t hire new executives.”
&nbs
p; “Zip me up. Yes, you can.”
“That’s a permanent decision. I’m temporary.”
“You’re a Tucker and you’re in charge. Make a decision.”
This was the first time Amber had struck him as being cavalier. She was normally careful and methodical.
“Is there something wrong with my zipper?” she asked.
“You don’t have to go yet.”
She reached back and zipped herself, making it most of the way up. Then she turned and gave him a quick kiss. “I’m exhausted.”
“Sleep here.”
She stilled, a stricken expression crossing her face. Just as quickly, it disappeared. “That’s not going to happen.”
“Why not?”
“This was a bad idea. I mean, it was a good idea, because it had to happen. But at its foundation, it was a terrible idea. We need to forget about it and move on.”
“Move on to what?”
He didn’t want to forget about what had just happened between them. It was the greatest sex of his life.
“Haven’t you been paying attention?” she asked. “You’re going to run Tucker Transportation. It goes without saying, but I’m saying it anyway, absolutely no good can come from a fling between us. It’ll compromise your credibility and it’ll destroy my career. You’ve fired me once. I’m not about to give you or Dixon or your father a reason to fire me again.”
“Nobody’s going to fire you.”
She shook her head. “That’s the only sure thing that happens when assistants get involved with their bosses.”
“You can’t know that.”
She took a deep breath, squaring her shoulders. “Do you want to do this?”
He didn’t dare hope she meant make love again. “Do what?”
“Do you want to try? Or do you want to spend the rest of your life as a self-indulgent playboy and a vice president in name only?”
“Those are my only two choices?”
“Yes.”
“Then, I’m willing to try.”
At least he could still spend time with her. And maybe he could manage to impress her. And maybe, if he was very lucky, their chemistry would rear its head again and she’d come back into his arms.
* * *
In the breezeway outside Tuck’s hotel suite, Amber sagged against the wall. It had taken everything she had to pull off the act, to pretend that making love with Tuck hadn’t thrown her for an absolute emotional loop.
A Bargain with the Boss Page 13