Real Italian Charm: A BWWM Billionaire Romance
Page 24
Thanks to a romantic gesture on Freddie’s part to prevent Tabitha returning to New York after a misunderstanding in the early days of their relationship, their office romance was common knowledge to most employees. The two did their best to avoid becoming fodder for gossip by refraining from making their affection for one another known in an overly public way.
Tabitha gave Freddie a chaste kiss on the cheek.
“You look stunning,” he whispered in her ear.
“You look jet lagged,” she quipped.
It was true. Adorable as he was, Freddie’s suit was anything, but pristine. His wavy blonde hair was unkempt and had grown out of its normally chic style in the six weeks they’d been separated. His dark blue eyes twinkled with genuine excitement at being reunited with Tabitha, but she correctly guessed he hadn’t slept on the plane.
“Should I have skipped the party and gone straight home to bed?” he said in mock anger.
“Only if you were taking me with you.”
She could feel the eyes of the office staff on her. Tabitha badly wanted to lace her fingers through his and rest her head on his solid chest to listen to his heartbeat. She wanted him to wrap his arms round her and mumble into her ear how desperately he missed her. Realistically she knew that it wasn’t going to happen. The smile across her face was tight. It was a complicated relationship, but she had no doubt in her mind that it was worth it.
“Anyway I couldn’t take a chance on missing the Christmas party.”
“Why’s that?” asked Tabitha.
“Because the way you’re dressed, you’d be fighting the men off. I might be tired, but my mere presence should keep the drooling hounds at bay.”
It hadn’t gone unnoticed by Freddie that he was not alone in his awe at Tabitha’s understated, but much noticed entrance to the venue.
“You came to protect my honor. How very chivalrous of you.”
“I came to protect my chattel,” teased Freddie.
Tabitha was unable to stop herself giving Freddie a shove in the chest.
“We’re not in a costume drama and I am not your possession. I’m a 21st Century girl.”
“You certainly are. And while I jest, truthfully I would like to possess you for a few hours before the jet lag kicks in.”
“Play your cards right, Mr. Ravensdale and I may be willing to oblige your requests.”
“Promises, promises.”
“What promise is that?” interrupted a clipped, upper class female British accent.
Tabitha gritted her teeth to stop from scowling. Samantha Dawson was quite possibly her least favorite person at the fashion label of Hastings-Bass. As head of marketing, Tabitha was required to work in reasonably close proximity of Samantha Dawson, who headed up the Public Relations department. There was no real warmth between the only two female directors of the company. Despite Tabitha’s best efforts to befriend the woman after arriving in the London branch of Hastings-Bass, Samantha had done nothing but undermine her efforts in the office with no attempt to disguise her malice toward Tabitha.
“The promise to not leave her unattended at the party,” said Freddie smoothly, not wanting a scene between the two warring women.
“Is that why you flew all the way back from South Africa? It wasn’t because you’ve closed the deal in Cape Town and are reporting back to – “
“It’s exactly the reason why I flew back,” cut in Freddie tersely.
Freddie’s father was the managing director and one of the major stakeholders of the company. Although he’d done his best to earn his place in the company, Freddie knew there would always be doubters who thought the reason he was Financial Director at such a young age was accountable to his heritage. Samantha knew him better than most and she knew mentioning Daddy would flare his temper.
“I really hope that isn’t the case,” interjected a baritone.
The other directors had arrived and were making a beeline for Freddie for an update on the new flagship store in South Africa.
Blushing, Freddie was uncomfortable knowing his colleagues had basically overheard him stating Tabitha was his sole reason for returning. It wasn’t strictly the case, but if he backtracked now to say the deal had finally completed, then he’d be doing Tabitha a disservice in front Samantha.
He pulled at his tie to loosen it and unconsciously undid his top button. Tabitha glimpsed a touch of gold on Freddie’s normally pale complexion. Clearly the heat of South Africa agreed with him. He appeared older and more masculine with a light tan. Wanting to give him a hug to alleviate his discomfort, Tabitha knew there was nothing further she could do other than grin stupidly as if the scenario with Samantha didn’t faze her in the slightest.
“I saw a waitress with a tray of glasses of champagne somewhere. Why don’t we track her down and get you a drink if you’re going to fill everyone in on your overseas antics?” offered Tabitha, as though she found the entire conversation amusing.
“I could definitely do with a drink,” winked Freddie, “but hey, everyone, it’s the Christmas party. Let’s mingle and enjoy ourselves and talk shop another time.”
Shrugging his shoulders and gesturing in a “what can I do” manner, he slid an arm around Tabitha’s waist and guided her away from the gathering directors.
When they finally spotted the waitress, Tabitha downed a glass of champagne on the spot and took a second glass to sip.
“You really are going for it,” laughed Freddie, following her lead.
“That woman drives me nuts. It’s like she can’t bear seeing us together and has to wedge between us on the rare occasions she’s exposed to us as a couple. It mightn’t be best office practice, but it’s been a few months now. You’d think she’d accept it and move on. There are times when I think she’s borderline obsessive about our relationship.”
Freddie consumed the entirety of the second glass of champagne in a massive gulp. The first glass had been amusing, but watching him swig back the second was somewhat concerning to Tabitha.
“Are you okay, Freddie?”
“Yeah, of course. I’m tired and stressed. Maybe try and cut Samantha a bit of a slack.”
“What?”
The question flew aggressively out of her mouth before Tabitha could stop it.
“Christmas is a terrible time of the year to be alone and, well, Samantha’s alone. It might be hard for her seeing couples in love around her if she’s single. This kind of weather and atmosphere lends itself to snuggling in front of a fire and drinking mulled wine. If Sam’s going home to an empty flat, it’s not inexplicable that she may inadvertently be resentful of others or not be aware that she’s imposing on people.”
“On us.”
“Yes okay. She was imposing on us.”
“I don’t know whether you’re a big softie or a complete fool with regard to that woman,” muttered Tabitha.
She’d never heard Freddie refer to Samantha as Sam before. Abbreviating the name hinted that he held a degree of affection for her. Fighting in Samantha’s corner and being diplomatic in regard to the intrusion was either Freddie being very magnanimous or a sign that he knew more about Samantha’s circumstances than he’d led Tabitha to believe. Essentially though, Freddie was a good man and his colleagues found him to be firm but fair – even Tabitha had experienced that side of him in the office. Pushing her nagging paranoia aside, she finished her second glass of champagne quickly.
“Think we’ll be seated together for lunch?” Tabitha was keen to avoid any awkwardness developing between them.
“Absolutely not. I heard on the grapevine that Samantha coordinated the seating plan,” stated Freddie dryly.
Chapter 13
This has backfired catastrophically, thought Freddie.
Seated at his table was Samantha Dawson, his father and a few bodies from the office he was vaguely familiar with. The whole purpose of rushing back from Cape Town to attend the Christmas party was to spend time with Tabitha. Instead he was seated at a table b
eing forced to engage in merry banter with a handful of random people and two people he knew far too well.
His eyes continually darted over to Tabitha, who looked as miserable as Freddie felt. He was finding it difficult to find an excuse as to why Samantha would’ve placed Tabitha at a table with no directors or no one from her department. The ecstatic smile on her face was false and he guessed her cheek bones hurt from keeping it on for so long. Finally her coffee brown eyes flickered Freddie’s way. When their gaze met he was able to mouth the words “I’m sorry” to her. She grinned back genuinely.
Freddie straightened up in his seat. Tabitha was still his girl and his admiration for her patience and understanding overwhelmed him.
“I think it might be a good idea if everyone switch places for dessert,” he announced.
“Oooh, Freddie, I think it might disrupt the plan. Everybody’s settled now,” bleated Samantha.
“Nonsense,” objected Freddie. “It’s Christmas. I’d like the chance to go and chat to everyone in the company and with free alcohol I suspect by the time dinner’s finished everyone will be too plastered to speak coherently.”
“Frederick has a point,” agreed his father.
Smiling at Samantha smugly, Freddie knew she wouldn’t argue her case any further. His father had devoted his life to Hastings-Bass, which possibly contributed to the demise of his marriage to Freddie’s mother. He knew the importance of happy staff in the workplace and concurred that however transparent Freddie’s motives were for requesting the change in seating arrangements his reasoning was valid.
Samantha opened her mouth.
“It does seem an oversight we have three directors at this table and yet Tabitha is seated by herself across the other side of the room,” remarked Mr. Hastings.
The comment was aimed to subtly draw Samantha’s attention to the fact that Mr. Hastings was aware she’d carefully maneuvered the current set of circumstances. Blushing, she batted her eyelashes at Freddie’s father.
“The plan was approved by the committee. I’ve no idea how it was overlooked.”
Nodding gratefully at his father, Freddie stood and bid his table a quick goodbye. The second that Freddie stood to move toward Tabitha’s table, the entire company automatically rearranged itself into the natural cliques that had formed over the years.
He saw Tabitha’s faithful PA, Yvonne, racing toward her.
“Hi Yvonne,” he greeted.
“Hi Freddie.”
She swallowed hard. Freddie was a dreamboat and in Yvonne’s eyes, he and Tabitha made the perfect couple. Yvonne had total faith in the relationship. She’d been bold enough to refuse to pass Tabitha’s resignation to Human Resources and instead present it to Freddie to allow him to reconsider whether his pride was worth sacrificing personal happiness for.
Closed and reserved, Freddie hadn’t t forgotten the young girl’s brave move and was grateful she’d stepped in – even if she had broken office protocol in doing so.
“You look lovely, Yvonne.”
“Thank you,” she stammered. “You guys haven’t seen each other in a while so I’ll let you have some time together.”
“Oh no you won’t,” contradicted Tabitha, quickly grabbing her PA’s wrist. “You’ll sit right here and fill us in on every bit of juicy news you’ve been privy to over lunch.”
Freddie rolled his eyes.
“Women. Nothing bonds you like a good old gossip.”
“Don’t be chauvinistic,” chastised Tabitha.
“Besides, you drew up a chair quick enough when Tabitha suggested it,” jibed Yvonne.
“The cheek of you youngsters!”
Yvonne sobered immediately; worried she’d overstepped the mark.
“He’s playing with you,” assured Tabitha.
Relaxed, Yvonne divulged what she’d discovered, knowing Tabitha to be a trustworthy confidant. Pretending to be bored, Freddie enjoyed the chatter between the two women. He liked knowing what was happening in the office, trivial as it was.
With dessert finished, the venue staff began clearing and rearranging the tables to create space on the dance floor. As Tabitha predicted, it didn’t take long for one of the men in the office to approach Yvonne for a dance. Taking his hand, Yvonne gave her boss a wink as she was directed toward the bar.
“Alone at last.”
“Alone together at last,” corrected Tabitha. “I was completely alone for the first two courses. I’d no idea where the mail room was located or that the IT department is stuck in the basement day in and day out. I didn’t know the building manager was a sixty year old man with a poky office behind the main reception, either. It was quite an eye opener in learning the organization’s hierarchy.”
“Samantha seated you with all the high flyers then?”
“Don’t be wicked. They were nice, I enjoyed talking to them. A little on the shy side perhaps, but I guess that’s why they work behind the scenes at Hastings-Bass.”
“How’d the loud American fit in?”
“I couldn’t bear the silence. I dragged them unwillingly into conversation, but I was being serious when I said they were sweet.”
“You always see the best in people,” said Freddie, daring to stroke her cheek.
“Not always,” mumbled Tabitha, her eyes straying to attain a fix on Samantha’s whereabouts.
She sensed an impending interruption and wondered if it would be attributed to Samantha. Her instinct was right regarding the disturbance, but the she wasn’t the culprit.
“Frederick, a word if you please.”
The couple stared upward to see Freddie’s father.
“Sure. No problem.”
Freddie’s hand dropped from Tabitha’s face.
“Somewhere private would be best.”
To Tabitha, it sounded more of an order than a suggestion from Mr. Hastings. Freddie was a closed book at the best of times, but he’d confided in Tabitha that he had a rocky relationship with his father. He’d never disclosed the reason for their disagreement. She did know that when Frederick was a teen, the fallout had been bad enough to warrant Freddie taking his mother’s maiden name as his surname and making it official via deed poll.
They appeared to work together harmoniously, but there was always an air of trouble when the two men were one on one. She watched as they walked off toward one of the booths in the darkness of the outskirts of the club’s interior. Tabitha was surprised to experience the urge to cry. She wasn’t the weepy type, but she’d been hurt that Mr. Hastings hadn’t bothered to acknowledge her presence or even apologize for disrupting their intimate conversation.
“I wasn’t expecting a Ho Ho Ho and a Merry Christmas, but an acknowledgment that I’ve made headway for this company since my arrival wouldn’t go amiss,” she thought.
The longer Tabitha sat at the table by herself, the higher the levels of her annoyance raged. It was humiliating. Everyone knew she and Freddie were an item. She’d been sitting alone for over an hour now. It was as if she’d been stood up and the entire company bore witness to it.
Standing, she decided it was time to make a move. If she stayed, her only option was to sit by herself and get drunk. The drunken, jilted girlfriend was not a role she was keen to play. Heading to the cloakroom, she presented her ticket.
“Tabitha?”
She spun round and tried to stop her face from dropping when she saw Yvonne.
Yvonne could see her boss’s disappointment. She wasn’t offended; she felt incredibly sorry for Tabitha’s disillusionment at what should have been a memorable Christmas party.
“You want me to come with you? We could go for a drink or something. Get wasted while we wait for Freddie to return.”
The suggestion was too kind. Tabitha thought she might burst into tears on the spot.
“Not sure Freddie is going to return.”
“Of course he is. Why would he travel straight from the airport to meet you here and then disappear? It doesn’t make sense.”
“You’re right,” consented Tabitha calmly. “I feel like a fool, though now I’ve retrieved my coat and handbag.”
“Then put them back in the cloakroom and join me inside or let me grab mine and I’ll keep you company outside.”
“You, Yvonne Bonney, are a great friend and I am the luckiest boss in the world to have you on my side. I don’t want to spoil the Christmas party for us both. Enjoy yourself and be secure in the fact that I won’t be crying on the subway for the duration of the journey home. In hindsight I was over-reacting, but I am being a bit of a Grinch today so it’s probably best if I don’t take the sparkle off the entire event. Go and enjoy yourself.”
Yvonne gave her boss an impulsive hug.
“You sure you’ll be okay?”
Tabitha nodded sincerely.
“Forget the tube, or subway as you insist on calling it,” said Yvonne, drawing attention to Tabitha’s ongoing struggles with British colloquialisms. “Take a black cab and keep the receipt. The company likes to make sure everyone gets home safely from these kind of do’s. It’s an important risk assessment to take into consideration when the employees are gifted unlimited free alcohol,” joked Yvonne.
“I suppose it saves on lawsuits if someone gets drunk at a function and then tries to sue the company,” mused Tabitha seriously.
“My goodness, have you forgotten you’ve crossed the Atlantic? We aren’t a nation that likes to sue, but we do love a drink.”
“I know. I’ve seen those wild reality shows.”
Realizing she was actually feeling better and more lighthearted, Tabitha returned Yvonne’s hug with a huge degree of affection.
“I better have some juicy gossip about your crazy antics on Monday morning.”