“PartnerShip 2019.”
“That’s some dedication to a goal.”
He went to lift a berry to her mouth.
“Don’t make me hurt you, Radcliff.” Her scowl was deep and he laughed.
“Tell me about your family.”
“My parents were both primary school teachers. Education and achievement were high priorities for them, but there was a lot of love, too.”
“They must be very proud of you.”
“They’re proud of my work ethic.”
“Why the partnership or perish attitude?”
“I want to succeed.” She glanced at her watch and back at the road. The rescue vehicle was fast approaching. “Hallelujah.” She struggled to her feet and slipped her heels back on.
“Why is it so important that you need an inked reminder? What if you don’t make it? Do you get the date crossed out and corrected?” His brow creased.
“I don’t expect you to understand.” She smoothed her skirt over her hips.
“Try me.”
“It’s nice of you to care.” She turned her attention to the tall mechanic who had extracted himself from his vehicle. “But, I don’t have to explain myself to you.”
* * *
Tony’s head spun with WTF? He couldn’t be falling for her. He’d never truly fallen for a woman before. Not like this. Not like he’d leapt from the crest of a mammoth big wave and lost his grip entirely. Not like he’d plummeted and smacked his head. She was as prickly as a provoked stingray, but he saw the woman behind the cloud of animosity. He saw her vulnerability. Why did he care? Did he feel guilty on his brother’s behalf? She was a close-out, a rip, a dangerous swell. He was crazy to contemplate a conversation with the woman, let alone a tryst… but her violet grey eyes drew him like a storm brewing over the ocean. She was competent and clever, sassy and smart.
Scarlet turned as if sensing his gaze on her and he winked, loving the flick of barbed tail in her eyes. Yep. She wanted him, but she’d fight him all the way and what was he thinking? It was a path to professional suicide. Geoffrey’s career had taken years to recover from the bombshell she’d pitched his way. Not that he hadn’t deserved it.
Tony savoured the sunshine and the view. Scarlet looked just fine in a business suit. Far from looking corporate and sedate, she looked ravishing and distracting. He would be wise to give her a wide berth. An ocean-wide berth.
There was nothing wrong with looking.
There was nothing wrong with getting to know her. From his brother’s perspective, Scarlet was Eve herself. Their fling had destroyed his family. Never mind that Scarlet had been one of many. The Radcliff boys were players rather than stayers. Hopefully, that trait wasn’t in his genes. Hopefully, the early dementia trait wasn’t either. He chewed on his lip. Life was short. His mum’s death last year from breast cancer had taught him that much. Internalised resentment wasn’t healthy and he didn’t want that for his own wife.
“All done, Radcliff. It’s time to get back to the real world.”
“You didn’t try the chocolate.”
“Tempting.”
Her gaze held his for half a moment and the connection made his heart zing. “And healthy. Dried orange. Dark chocolate.”
“Sounds too good to be true. Okay.” She reached over and took a piece while he packed the debris of their picnic back into the bag. “Mmmm. It’s good.”
He grinned and when she stood up ready to go, he reached for the blanket, gave it a shake and tucked it back into the boot. “Ready when you are.”
“Thanks for lunch. I enjoyed it.” Her smile was soft, but her gaze was guarded.
Thanks, Bro. The one woman who might have interested him and his brother had sullied any chance he might have had. Damn, Geoffrey. Her brow puckered and it seemed even the thought of his brother was enough to provoke her.
“Oh, you’re welcome.” He liked it when she softened. He liked it when the violet in her eyes went from stormy to balmy to a different kind of stormy. The kind of stormy that left his body strung out, craving to touch, to taste, to linger…
“Let’s get back to work,” she said, opening the driver’s side door.
“Yes, Ma’am.” He lowered himself into the passenger seat and tried to keep his attention on the road. In truth, the woman beside him intrigued him. She didn’t talk to fill the silence and he was surprised to find he felt comfortable with her. There was no second-guessing, no need to impress her. He’d probably fail anyway.
“Where do your mum and dad live?” she asked, turning her attention from the road.
The question hung between them while he struggled to sort the myriad of answers he could present to her. In the end, his promise of honesty rang in his ears. “My mum’s not with us anymore and dad lives in our family home in Camberwell.” With a full-time caregiver. “He’s not very well.”
“I’m sorry to hear that.”
He could hear the compassion in her tone and every cell armoured itself against her. He didn’t want her sympathy and his feelings regarding his mother’s death and his father’s deteriorating health confused him. As a child and adolescent, he’d found his father formidable, distant and disagreeable, but at his mother’s funeral, he’d watched the man crumple. For that alone, he loved him. For that alone, he dragged his body to the office and worked harder than he’d ever worked because time was short.
“What about yours?”
“They live in Ballarat now on a small property. They grow their own vegetables and have a few calves they hand rear and sell.”
“How often do you see them?”
“Not as often as I’d like.”
They sat in silence and Tony watched the rural scenery recede and be replaced by industrial buildings and the fringe of the city. He hadn’t expected to like her. He hadn’t expected his body to react to hers the way it had. There are plenty more fish in the sea, old chap. Yep, he knew it. And he wasn’t looking for a relationship. Not now. Not yet. But that image of his children on the beach? It sharpened and for the first time, he could see them clearly. Their blonde hair, their violet-blue eyes, their smiles, so like Scarlet’s.
The phone rang in his pocket and he drew it out. “Hello?”
Think and speak of the devil. “Ant. Your receptionist tells me you’re out of the office. On your first day? I’m in the foyer. There’s been a bit of an emergency with Dad.”
“What happened?”
“He’s had a fall. A nasty one. He’s in surgery. They’re not sure he’s going to make it. How far off are you?”
“About five minutes.”
“Great. I’ll wait for you and we can go together.” He paused, then added. “Who’s we?”
Tony hesitated. “Scarlet O’Connor.”
“You’re kidding me, right? Back away slowly, mate. She’ll slam-dunk you with your own balls.”
Tony glanced at the woman beside him who met his eyes with gravity in hers. “Sorry,” he mouthed. He saw the pull of a smile at the corner of her mouth before she mastered it and turned her gaze back to the road.
“I’ll see you soon.” He hit the end button and tucked the phone back into his suit pocket.
“Geoffrey?”
“Yep.”
“Not too many people know about my secret fetish for sensitive boys’ bits.”
“My dad had a fall and he’s in a bad way.”
“Oh, no. I’m sorry. I only caught the last part of the conversation. My mind was miles away.”
“That’s okay. Mine was wandering, too.” No need for specifics.
“Do you need me to drop you at the hospital?”
“No, Geoffrey’s waiting for me at the office.”
“Okay. We’re almost there. I’ll drop you out the front to save time.”
“Sure.” His thoughts filled with his father and how frail he’d become. His mother’s death had sucked the life from his father and he’d become even more confused and lost. They’d resorted to telling him she’d gone to the shops. I
t helped to ease his suffering for a short time, but it didn’t last. Tony’s heart banged crazy-loud in his ears. All those lost years. He hadn’t appreciated how precious they were. Grief, regret, pain pounded in his forehead. Scarlet drew up in front of the office. She reached over and rested her fingers on his arm. It was a comfort and her quiet care soothed him.
“I hope your dad is okay.”
“Thanks, I appreciate it.”
Their gazes held and he smiled, his heart swelling with sadness.
“Ant.” His brother’s voice interrupted the moment. A hunted look flashed into her eyes before the violet crystallised into hard black. No way had she been the aggressor.
He closed the door and turned his attention to his brother whose face was twisted with rage. “Scarlet.”
“It’s been a long time, Geoffrey,” she said, her voice calm and clean.
“If you’ll excuse us.” Tony pushed his brother in the direction of his Mercedes, which was illegally parked at the front of the building. “We need to go before we get towed away.”
* * *
Scarlet seethed and cussed and accelerated just a little too fast as she turned the corner and headed back towards the carpark. The wheels squealed in protest, echoing the sensation in every cell of her body. She’d relaxed her guard… with a Radcliff. And his older brother hadn’t changed a bit. He was as arrogant as ever. But he’d aged and not well. She couldn’t remember why she’d found him attractive. Her skin smarted with the raw pain she’d seen in the clear blue of Tony’s eyes. His father was hurt. She collected her things from the back of the car and eyed her watch. She’d missed the mediation, but she was back in time for her three o’clock hearing. She made herself take the lift and it left more of a sweat on her brow than if she’d taken the eighteen flights of stairs. She strode into her office and got back to work. She didn’t think of Tony for the next four hours. Well, it was almost true. By the time she walked into the tearoom to refresh her water bottle, the office was quiet. She preferred the office after five o’clock. The busy hum quietened and she could focus on her work without interruptions.
She was deep in the contents of a file, reading through the case and taking notes, when there was a knock on her door.
She looked up and saw Tony. He was dishevelled and his hair was mussed as if he’d raked his hands through it. His eyes were flat, tired and red-rimmed… the cold grey of Hobsons Bay on a dismal day. “How’s your dad?”
“He didn’t make it.”
“Oh, no.” Scarlet felt the force of it like a medicine ball to the chest. “I’m so sorry. That’s so sad.”
“It’s a blessing in disguise. My dad was increasingly lost in time and he couldn’t understand why my mum wasn’t around. He was devastated by her death, but confused. He thought she’d left him. God knows he gave her reason enough.”
“Dementia?” She didn’t want to feel anything for Tony Radcliff, but he looked so shattered and forlorn that she didn’t have the heart to reject him the way she’d vowed she would on the way back to the office. She nodded to the seat in front of her desk. “Do you want to come in.”
“Sure.” He collapsed into the seat opposite. “Thanks. It’s been a tough day.”
“I put the box of wine in your office.”
“Great. This morning seems like a lifetime ago. I thought you would have left by now. It’s past nine-thirty.”
“I needed to get this sorted for tomorrow’s mention.”
“There’s so much pressure in this business. Partnership is the holy grail and equity partnership is holier than the holy grail, but what of the cost? What of the pound of flesh that has to be sacrificed? Don’t you question it? Don’t you ever get angry?”
“No, I want it. Badly.” Her mother’s warning echoed in her head and she felt the urge to cover her ears. There was plenty of time for a family after she’d achieved what she’d set out to achieve. She should thank Geoffrey Radcliff. He’d hardened her resolve, like red-hot metal thrust into water.
“I see that.” He raked his hand through his hair and his bicep bulged under the sateen cotton of his shirt.
She shouldn’t have noticed. She shouldn’t have heated in response. She shouldn’t have invited him into her office in the first place, but it seemed she had a thing for wounded wolves in one hundred percent fine wool. He’s a Radcliff, her heart cried.
“Have you eaten?” she asked and a part of her threw its hands up in despair, but it wasn’t like she cared.
“No.” His body seemed to inflate marginally and he straightened in his chair. “You?”
She shook her head. “But, I have some emergency Tim Tams if you’re interested.”
“Chocolate biscuits?”
She pulled them out of her drawer. There was a post-it note on the packet with the use-by date, which she pulled off and threw into the bin. “Here.”
“Thanks. I’ll make some tea to go with them. Do you want one?”
“Sure. I’d love a green tea.” No, she scolded. No, thank you. I’m working. Her words weren’t cooperating. Her body wasn’t cooperating. She turned her attention back to the file, but she’d lost her flow and instead of her mind feeling focused, it was infused with syrupy warmth. It had been so long since she’d felt anything but cold determination, she found it surprising and addictive. You’re nearly done. Push through. Another ten minutes. She’d just finished when Tony lowered a mug of tea onto her desk. A mug. Clearly, tea etiquette hadn’t rated highly in his expensive private school education.
“Sorry about the mug. The cups were in the dishwasher.”
Or maybe she was wrong. “That’s okay.” She expected scalding, but he’d put a dash of cold water in just how she liked it. “Thanks.” Thoughtful. In the middle of his distress, he’d been thoughtful. It threw her. The same way he’d been throwing her all day. And he’d lost his father. Grief was there in the slump of his shoulders and her heart refused to stay frozen. His father. She couldn’t bear the thought of losing her own. She couldn’t imagine how her body would keep functioning. It would be like having her heart ripped from her chest.
“I should have made it for you. I’m so sorry for your loss.” I’m so sorry for your loss. The formality of the words echoed in her head and she swallowed them along with a sip of her tea. She was rusty at the friend-thing. She kept people at a safe distance, but Tony wouldn’t stay put. He didn’t fit the lawyer mould. He didn’t fit the Radcliff mould. He threw her and that’s what had her in a tail-spin.
“It’s funny. I miss him and it really hurts, but in truth, it was only when my mum died last year that I connected with him. He wasn’t an affectionate man. I realise now, he showed his love differently. He showed it by pushing himself to be better. By working hard to succeed. By providing for his family. I didn’t get it.” He reached for a Tim Tam and dunked it into his tea.
Her father did that with Tim Tams, too. They were his favourite and her go-to comfort food.
“There are lots of different kinds of love...” She took a biscuit and carefully dunked it into her tea. She savoured the hot sweetness and when she caught Tony’s eye, she smiled. “…I guess some kinds are harder to recognise than others.”
“Yes.” Tears welled in his eyes and pain flashed across his face.
Oh, hell. She was making it worse. “I’m sorry. I’m sure he was proud of you.”
“I don’t know. He never said. That wasn’t his way.”
“What about your mum?” She dunked the other end of her biscuit into her tea. She didn’t like floating biscuit crumbs so two dunks per biscuit was her limit.
“She, too, struggled to live up to dad’s expectations. He was demanding and critical and hard to live with, but he loved her. I guess she loved him back or she wouldn’t have put up with him for all those years.”
“When’s the funeral?”
“Within the week. My brother will want to organise it. It doesn’t matter how old I am, I’ll always be the baby of the family and in
his eyes, less competent.”
“Is that why you want the senior associate position?”
“It’s an important step, but partnership is the only thing that will earn his respect.”
“And his respect is important to you?”
“No, my own respect is important to me.”
“I get it.” She watched him finish his biscuit and take a gulp of his tea. His face was strained, his eyes cloudy and distant, as if his thoughts were far away.
“Are you nearly done here?” he asked, his voice quiet.
“Yes.” She sipped her tea, grateful for the warm comfort of it.
“I’m going for a ride down to Torquay. Want to join me?” His words were casual, but his gaze burrowed deep inside her.
“Now?”
“Yes. I’m feeling the need to get rid of some cobwebs. I want to stand in the ocean and watch the moon and the stars over the water.”
“I’m tired. It’s been a long day.” Go, a small voice inside her whispered. Are you crazy, she whispered back. “Ride? What are we talking?”
“A Suzuki GSX R 1300. I thought you’d like the power of it. Another time.” He took another gulp of his tea.
“I’m not dressed for it, Radcliff.”
“You can wear my one-piece and I’ll wear my leathers. They’re in my locker downstairs. I’ve got a spare helmet.”
The sadness in his gaze pulled at her. Damn. Where was denial when she needed it? Go home, Scarlet. The thought of her bed beckoned and she stifled a yawn.
“You’re tired. You’ve had a long day.”
“Your day was worse.”
“Yep.” He drained his mug and stood. “I’ll see you tomorrow. After eight-thirty.” He grinned and the dimmed power of it punched her in the midriff. Her resistance crumbled like a Tim Tam in hot tea.
“Radcliff?”
He turned from the doorway and magic seemed to shimmy between them. “Fine, I could do with some fresh air.”
“Really?” His face lit up and his eyes glowed.
Hell. She’d live to regret this, but she couldn’t bear the defeat that sat on his shoulders like a grey fog. “Give me ten minutes. I’ll meet you downstairs.”
Seduction in a Suit: An Office Romance Collection Page 116