The Beauty and the CEO

by Carolyn Hector

  Walking farther into the room, Zoe found her old canopy bed still intact. The creamy veils surrounding the bed were open and held back with eggshell-colored ties. The walls were a soft beige; off-white frames holding old family photos hung on the bare wall, along with a corkboard with the framed A+ paper she’d done on the Ravens family.

  Embarrassed, Zoe closed her bedroom door before another rogue tourist strayed upstairs to witness her adolescent obsession. She stood in front of Will, as if her height could actually make a difference. Not a chance. “Don’t look at that.”

  “Why not? I want to learn about my family history.” Will gently moved Zoe to the side and moved closer to the report. Zoe waved her hands in front of his face. “Wait, is this the crystal ball you were talking about that told you you belonged at Ravens Cosmetics?”

  Of all the times to remember something. Zoe groaned inwardly.

  “I must say, I’m quite impressed,” Will continued. “You managed to include my all of my aunts and uncles, including Aunt Octavia. Most people forget about her.”

  “How can they forget?” Zoe gawked “Before social media, she had to have been the scandal of the decade. I mean, the eighties were a breath away from social media. Can you imagine what the rumors would have been like? From what I read, no one could believe someone could walk away like she did and disappear.” As Zoe went on, Will’s lips flattened together. Zoe covered her mouth and shook her head. “I’m sorry. That was probably insensitive of me.”

  “Nah.” Will let her off with an easy smile. “Everyone else in the family seems to have forgotten about the missing heir—she’s been missing for a few decades now. My siblings and my cousins never knew her. We only know her as the abstaining vote.”

  “She still has a stake in the company?” Zoe asked.

  Will nodded. “My grandmother...”

  “Ms. Naomi,” Zoe provided with excitement, pointing to the spot on the Ravens family tree, where an old photograph of his grandmother was pasted.

  “Yes, my grandmother Naomi still believes Octavia will come back one day.”

  In a way, Zoe had always thought the same thing, especially with the way everyone used some form of social media platform. Didn’t Octavia want to see her family? What drove her away? Zoe had a thousand and one questions.

  Will brushed his elbow against her shoulder. “Look here, you got as far as my third great-grandfather.”

  Zoe beamed proudly for a moment. “Well, my great-grandmother swore by the products your family used to come up with and urged everyone to work for your grandmother once her students graduated.” Then Zoe moved away, turning so he didn’t see her blush. How much of a stalker did she seem right now? All her life she’d wanted to be a part of Ravens Cosmetics. “You must think I’m crazy.”

  “We’ve spent the whole week together, practically day in and day out. Why didn’t you tell me about your family’s links with mine?” Will asked. His voice neared her. Chills rolled down her spine. “Can’t you see that’s yet another thing we have in common? From what I learned today, it’s as if our grandmothers aligned us to be together.”

  “Get serious,” Zoe said as she spun around. She came face-to-face with his chest, which she stared at rather than meet his eyes. But it was useless. Will tipped her chin so she’d face him. “Will,” she pleaded. “I heard you this morning on the phone with whomever. You said so yourself, there is no me and you.”

  “That was my sister Dana on the phone,” Will replied softly. “If I gave my family any information about my love life, they’d plan a wedding before we return to Miami.”

  Strong hands brushed against the backs of her arms. Will’s thumbs drew circles on her skin. She shivered and leaned against him.

  “You’re what’s stopping what’s happening between us, Zoe, because of one specific thing,” Will said against her neck. “But you’re overlooking the thousands of things we have in common with each other. You don’t find that too often in two people.”

  Zoe bit her bottom lip and tried to fight her desires. At what point did she let go of her dream of being a part of Ravens Cosmetics? And at what point did she need to realize and give in to the temptations of the man who made her remember she was still a woman with desires? Everything about Will screamed he was the perfect man for her. She’d put all of her dating options on hold. None of the men she’d dated matched her need for success. After listening to Will’s concerns with RC, she knew without a doubt they were perfect together.

  Giving in, Zoe turned and found herself in Will’s embrace. He cocked his head to the side and brought his lips close to hers. They’d almost kissed yesterday. The desire for a taste of him still lingered on her lips. Will finally put her out of any misery, satisfying her with a brush of his mouth against hers. A soft kiss greeted her at first, and then another one. In unison their mouths parted and their tongues danced together.

  If heaven had a taste or feeling, this would be it. Will wrapped his arms around Zoe’s waist and held her close as he deepened his kiss. Lost for a moment, Zoe gave in to every urge racing through her body. Her hands followed the deep muscles of his chest and wound around his neck. The tips of her fingers played with the curly hair at the nape of his neck. Will’s hands roamed up and down her back, one bracing her shoulders, the other caressing her backside. Long fingers played with the hem of her shorts. The mere touch liquefied her.

  A mew escaped Zoe’s throat. Any common sense went out the window. The two of them found her bed and the old cushions absorbed their weight. Zoe lay beneath him, the palms of her hands embracing his face.

  Will pulled his face away for a moment. His lips pressed against the curve of her collarbone and trailed along the edge of her collar. Her breasts swelled and ached for his mouth, not just the warmth of his breath.

  “Will,” Zoe moaned.

  “Zoe,” Will replied, trailing kisses back to her neck, jaw and lips.

  “Zoe?” Another voice penetrated the barrier of the door.

  Using all the strength she had, Zoe sat up straight. Will sat on the edge of her bed with a bewildered look on his handsome face. “Dad?” Zoe called out, and Will mouthed the same but with more questions on his face.

  The brass oval door handle turned and creaked. The whole entrance took a mere few seconds, but in Zoe’s mind it took forever for the door to reveal her father standing in the doorway while she struggled to sit up in the bed.

  Because of the nontraditional way Zoe’s parents had lived, with her having no stereotypical mom and dad to come home to every night, her maternal grandparents had been ashamed of their marriage. Zoe never wanted to do anything to cause her father embarrassment. All her life, she’d been the doting daughter. She never got in trouble in school. She went on with college and got her degrees, all without incident.

  “What are you doing in here?” Frank Baldwin asked, his eyes narrowing at the sliver of space between herself and Will. “With a boy, no less?”

  Zoe stood up. A cool breeze brushed against the exposed skin of her stomach. Quickly she tugged the material down. “Daddy, what are you doing here?”

  “I thought I lived here.” Frank folded his arms across his chest. “What are you doing here? Besides the obvious.”

  “Sir,” Will said, bravely stepping forward with an extended hand. “My apologies for what you walked in on. I have nothing but the utmost respect for your daughter.”

  How embarrassing it was to be caught making out with a male by your father. But her father’s inspection of Will’s extended hand took the cake. Zoe grabbed her father’s hand and pushed it at Will. “Daddy, this is Will Ravens.”

  “Ravens?” Frank repeated.

  “Ravens,” Zoe said in a clipped tone, knowing exactly where her father was about to go with this. His thick dark brows rose with curiosity and his black eyes darted between the two of them. �
��The Ravens family?”

  “The same one on the school report.” Will chuckled and pulled at her father’s hand. “We were just discussing the lengthy research she did.”

  “Yes,” Frank said drily, “because that’s exactly what it looked like.”

  “Daddy,” Zoe hissed. “Will is a guest.”

  “He was certainly making himself at home.”

  “I meant no disrespect, sir,” said Will. “I got carried away and took advantage of Zoe’s hospitality.”

  Frank eyed Will skeptically. Zoe waited for what seemed like forever for him to say something. “Zoe,” he finally said, “go downstairs and let me and Mr. Ravens have a little chat.”

  Even though she hadn’t been grounded in years, Zoe knew better than to argue with her father. She cast a pitiful glance back at Will, who winked at her. Funny how he wasn’t nervous at all. The last time Zoe had had a boy in her bedroom, Frank used the kid like a punching bag found downtown at Southpaw Shaw’s Gym.

  “I’ll meet you downstairs,” Will assured her.

  “We’ll meet you downstairs,” her father restated.

  * * *

  “I really came into town to finalize things for the reenactment of my summer engagement,” Frank Baldwin said, pacing back and forth in Zoe’s bedroom. “I’m not sure if Zoe ever shared with you, but Magnolia Palace is where I proposed to her mother. We’re still married but these things keep the spark, especially since we don’t live together.”

  Of course Will remembered the story and the place. “Yes, sir.” Will nodded, trying to focus on Zoe’s father.

  “No need to get all official with the ‘sir’ business. Call me Frank. It was kind of refreshing, knowing my daughter is not consumed with work all the time.”

  Never in Will’s life had he ever come face-to-face with a girl’s father. Sure, he’d done the proverbial sneaking out of dorm rooms back in the day. But Frank Baldwin walking in on them almost took the cake. What did take the cake was Frank shaking Will’s hand and thanking him for getting Zoe out of her comfort zone.

  “Excuse me, sir?” Will leaned close to make sure he’d heard correctly. “I mean Frank.”

  Frank Baldwin folded his arms across his chest. “Don’t get me wrong. I didn’t enjoy catching her being pawed all over. But it was refreshing to see Zoe act reckless. My daughter has been insanely career-driven for a while.” Frank fanned his hand toward the family tree. “As you can see for yourself, she’s been a fan of the Ravens.”

  Will held his hands in the air. “I apologize. What you saw was just a momentary lapse in judgment. I truly respect your daughter and I hold her work in high regard.”

  “So you’re hiring her for your company and you’ll be keeping your hands off her?”

  There went the whole hiring matter. Uncomfortable at being faced with Zoe’s father, Will cleared his throat. “I am considering it. The decision isn’t final.”

  “I don’t understand,” said Frank. He crossed the room to the white-and-pink desk.

  “I’ve already spoken with Zoe.” Will explained the situation with the board.

  “You can’t lose if you go with Zoe.”

  Those words resonated with Will as the two of them headed downstairs. Will liked that her father had decorated the upstairs hallway with framed photographs of Zoe’s work. If she hadn’t become a makeup artist, she should have been an artist.

  The rest of the group was outside, but Zoe was seated at the large wooden table in the kitchen. Her eyes darted nervously between Will and Frank. As her lips parted to say something, the sound of a song by the late Prince sounded from Zoe’s cell phone.

  “Hey, Lexi.” Zoe’s concerned look washed away. “Calm down. What? Okay, sure, I can be there in a few minutes.”

  After she hung up, Will stepped forward, Frank close behind. “Is everything okay?”

  “There’s a slight emergency at Lexi’s shop. Dad, is your car here?”

  Frank shook his head. “It’s at the new garage downtown. I took an Uber today.”

  Will’s chest swelled with pride with the chance to save the day. “I drove here. I can take you wherever you need to go.”

  Chapter 7

  Driving through the quaint little neighborhood only reminded Zoe of the life she wanted. Children played on their neatly manicured green lawns. Husbands washed their cars in the late afternoon. Smoke billowed from lit grills in the backyards. A faint smell of hot dogs on coal filled the air.

  With the car’s top down, Zoe heard the unmistakable splash of people in the pools behind the homes, as well. This was so different from what Zoe saw from her condo balcony every day. There were no lawns where she lived, unless you counted the sprinkle of green nestling under the sign with the name of her building. The beaches were always covered in half-naked men and women. Tanned bodies stretched on oversize towels or beach chairs. At every corner there was always a party going on.

  “What’s that smile all about?” Will asked Zoe. Of the four cars at the stop sign, Will appeared to be the only experienced driver. Pimply faced boys on the left and the right of them gunned their engines, and a girl with headgear was directly across from them. All three drivers had older males, whom Zoe assumed were their fathers, seated in the passenger’s seats and pointing at the stop sign. Will, being last at the stop, waited. In Miami, she would have been gone by now.

  Watching the fathers with their children reminded her of her father. Zoe glanced back at Will. “Care to tell me what you and my dad were talking about?”

  Will inhaled deeply, contemplating her question, and then let out his breath. “I can’t. Does that negate whether or not you’ll tell me what’s on your mind?”

  “Have you ever thought about looking for Octavia?”

  “You’re seriously thinking about Ravens?”

  Zoe shrugged her shoulders. “When am I not?”

  “I appreciate your dedication to the family,” Will said. “But for the record, my grandmother looked for Octavia for years after she disappeared.”

  “Does anyone know why she left?”

  Will shook his head. “Not to my knowledge.”

  “So no one even knows if she’s dead or alive.”

  Will blew out a long breath. “No. I wish for my grandmother’s sake that she would make contact with someone from the family.”

  “I bet anyone in the family would be interested in hearing from her,” Zoe commented.

  “What do you mean?”

  “Well, you said there’s a divide between you and your cousins, whether or not to close the company doors. Her vote could help.”

  “Or hurt,” Will said with a nod. “So was my family really what brought that beautiful smile to your face? If so, I might need to consider keeping you around more.”

  “You need to keep me around because I’m what’s best for Ravens Cosmetics.”

  “There you go. Now, why don’t you tell me what else was on your mind. Are you worried about what your father said to me?”

  Knowing how persuasive Frank Baldwin could be, Zoe shrugged her shoulders. “I was thinking about home.”

  “Miami home or here in Southwood?” asked Will.

  “No,” Zoe answered. “I was thinking about my place in Miami.”

  “Yes, your Miami address,” Will nodded. “I am going to need to know that information.”

  It was on her résumé, but Zoe decided not to bring her future at RC up right now. They’d crossed the threshold of any work relationship they might have again just then when Will reached over and squeezed her thigh. She bit her lip to fight back the excitement. Where would things have gone between them had they not been interrupted in her bedroom? One thing was for sure, Zoe’s insides were awakened and she couldn’t wait to have another chance of seeing where things would lead
. “I live at the Cozier Condominiums.”

  Will let out a long whistle and began driving again. “Swanky.”

  After all the teasing she’d given him about growing up privileged. “Be quiet. I am leasing it from a former client.”

  “Someone famous?”

  Zoe shook her head again and glanced at the view. The condo was leased to her by the Ruiz family. Natalia Ruiz was a famous reality star who grew up in the limelight. When she and her family were in Miami, she always contracted Zoe. On several occasions Natalia flew Zoe out on location for special events. But after Natalia got married, she’d shied away from the cameras. Zoe knew where Natalia lived, but she’d never betray Natalia’s trust. “You must know I’m not at liberty to say.”

  “Perhaps you will tell me over dinner Monday night.”

  “Monday?” Zoe repeated.

  “I figured by the time we returned Sunday after the pageant, it might be too late. Although I could try to use my, what is it you say? My influence?”

  “Affluence,” Zoe corrected him.

  “Yeah, that’s it. I can call in a few favors and see about getting Trudy’s to open.”

  Zoe turned in her seat and placed her hands on her hips. “What do you know about Trudy’s?”

  “What?” Will’s mouth gaped open. “It’s only the best place to get roti in Miami.”

  As much as Zoe loved her Southern food with its savory greens, crispy fried chicken and thick, sweet tea, she missed the taste of the Caribbean. “I might just let you take me there.”

  “When we return home, you are coming with me, or I will pick it up and we’ll eat at my place or yours.”

  A chill of desire ran down her spine. “You’re lucky their gulab jamun is my kryptonite.”

  The reference to a superhero didn’t fall on deaf ears. Will winked and shook his head. “You should try the pudding made up with sweet dough,” he said. “If you’re good, I’ll make it for you.”