by Nina Singh
She hmmphed. Now she was just getting fanciful. He was just her new boss. And she had to deal with him, that’s all.
The honk of a horn behind her startled her out of her thoughts. She’d stopped at a red light and hadn’t even noticed it had turned. Time to get a grip.
Justin Hammond had already taken way too much of her time, and she had things to do.
That reminder became all too evident when she made her way into her office. Her assistant was already there at the desk, with a file of papers waiting for Carli’s signature or attention. The latest cost-cutting initiative was becoming quite the project—one she’d been given the primary responsibility for. Until Justin was called in, that was.
“Hey, Jocelyn. Sorry I’m late.”
The petite brunette gave her a friendly smile. “Don’t sweat it. You’re not that late.”
“Well, it’s late for me.”
“Please tell me it’s because you had a hot, steamy date last night that turned into a wild night. And that he wouldn’t let you get up out of bed this morning.”
“Last night was a Tuesday.”
Jocelyn gave her a blank look. “What’s your point?”
Why did she bother? “Never mind. Are those the latest data points?”
Her assistant nodded and handed her the thick pile of folders. “I printed them like you requested. The electronic file is in your inbox.”
“Thanks. You know where I’ll be for most of the morning. These numbers are going to take a while to get through. And I’m already behind.” Due to an unexpected project I was just given this morning, she added to herself. A project for the sole purpose of getting Justin Hammond up to speed on the latest business figures.
“Well, you can’t be working on them all morning.”
Carli lifted an eyebrow. “Why’s that?”
“Mr. Hammond just called and asked me to schedule yet one more meeting. We have an unexpected guest coming in.”
Oh, no. Carli could venture to guess who it might be. “Please tell me it’s not Justin Hammond.”
Jocelyn gave her a curious smile. “I could do that. But I’d be lying to you.”
Great. Just great. Was the man sent here just to vex her at every turn? Apparently, she was supposed to jump whenever Justin Hammond needed anything.
Jocelyn studied her, the amused smile still on her face. “Something wrong?”
Carli tried to shake off the frustration. “I just have a lot to do. And he happens to be the reason I’m late to begin with.”
“Aha! So I was right.”
“Right about what?”
“You were indeed late because of a sexy man.”
Jocelyn just didn’t know when to let up. “Only because I had to prepare a report for him at the last minute and then deliver it before I got in today.”
Her assistant waved her hand in dismissal. “Details.”
“Honestly, Jocelyn. I barely met the man for a few scant moments.”
“So tell me. Is he as handsome as he appears in all the photos?”
“I didn’t notice.”
That earned her a disbelieving look. “See. This is why I worry about you. Justin Hammond is one of the most eligible bachelors on the planet. He’s on the celebrity sites weekly. Wealthy, successful and handsome. And you didn’t even notice his looks?”
“Not really, no.” She could fib quite well when she had to.
Jocelyn slammed her hands on her hips. “That’s just disappointing. Most of the female staff around here are breathless with anticipation at his arrival. And you act like it’s an ordinary day. You gotta give me something. Some small detail I can throw to them.”
“That’s just silly. He’s just the other Hammond heir.”
“Right. A mere handsome millionaire who not only has claim to half the largest retail toy company in North America but also made gobs of money on his own.”
She did have a point there. Justin’s life story so far was a bit on the exceptional side. She was about to begrudgingly admit to that when a small commotion outside her door drew both their attention. Looked like Jocelyn was about to find out firsthand what she was so curious about. Justin had arrived. And he was causing quite a stir, no doubt with most of the female staff. Carli heard “can I get you anything, Mr. Hammond” more than once.
Jocelyn jumped to the door. “Ooh, he’s here.” She gasped. “And he’s heading right to your office.”
A strange sensation spread through Carli’s chest. Despite seeing several photos of him throughout the years, she had to admit he wasn’t what she’d been expecting. All the pictures hadn’t really done him justice. They hadn’t captured the soft, tawny hue of his eyes. Or the way his hair fell sloppily over his forehead. She hadn’t realized she’d noticed so much of him during those brief moments in the Hammond foyer earlier.
A quick knock on the door, and then Justin stepped into her office. He blinked in surprise when he saw her. “You?”
What was that supposed to mean? Did he want her out already? Genuine surprise registered on his face. Was he here to lay claim to her office, having expected her to vacate it for him already?
Too stunned to speak, Carli was relieved when Jocelyn stepped up to him. “Mr. Hammond, I’m Jocelyn Sumner. We weren’t expecting you so early. The meeting isn’t until nine thirty.”
He hadn’t taken his eyes off Carli. She resisted the urge to look away from the intense stare.
“I figured I’d get started,” he answered Jocelyn. “I’m looking for the person who put this together.” He held up the file of papers Carli dropped off less than an hour ago. “I was told this is their office.”
Carli finally found her tongue. “It is.”
He blinked at her. “Can you tell me where to find him now?”
Him. “You have,” she answered, deliberately omitting further clarification. Let him hang in the wind a bit.
He lifted an eyebrow.
“I’m the one who put it together. I was dropping it off this morning when we...met.” She added some emphasis on the last word.
Justin’s eyes grew wide as understanding clearly dawned. Jocelyn stood between them, her gaze switching back and forth as if she were watching an exciting tennis game.
Justin cleared his throat. “You did this?” he asked, indicating the file in his hand. “It’s, uh, very thorough. Very impressive.”
Carli tried not to bristle at his surprised tone. How very insulting. This man didn’t know a thing about her. But he’d made his initial judgment already. She wasn’t surprised. Men like Justin always came to the most obvious conclusion when it came to her.
How disappointing that he was so typical.
CHAPTER TWO
GREAT, JUSTIN THOUGHT as the woman across the room shot daggers at him. He hadn’t realized this morning that she worked for the company. He’d managed to offend one of Hammond’s employees on his first day back in town. No, make that his first hour back.
She crossed her arms in front of her chest. “Well, you needn’t look so surprised. I’m a project manager at Hammond. I can put together a business report.”
“That’s not what I meant.” But what was she doing coming down from his father’s suite at that hour? He couldn’t be blamed for having jumped to the most obvious conclusion. And he still wasn’t sure he was totally wrong. But clearly there was more to the circumstances. “I’m just surprised to see you here, that’s all.”
“This is my office. Of course, I’m here.”
“Not here, in this room. Here at the company.”
She merely quirked an eyebrow. A gesture that seemed to add a haughty quality to her features. Her almond-shaped eyes were a deep chocolate brown. Several tendrils of hair escaped her tight bun and framed an olive-shaped face.
&
nbsp; Not classically beautiful, but she was striking in an unusual and rare way.
And her figure—he didn’t even want to go there.
“Never mind,” she declared, and stepped around her desk. “My name is Carli Tynan. I’m regional project manager for Hammond Retail. James hired me, but I work more closely with Jackson.”
He reached his hand out to shake hers just as she said, “You, of course, need no introduction.”
Her tone suggested she didn’t mean that in a complimentary way. “Nice to meet you.”
She pointed to the file he still held. “Is there anything you’d like to go over?” This woman was all business. Regardless of what she’d been doing at the mansion earlier, he had no doubt she was an efficient employee who clearly had things under control.
“I made a few notes, things that I wouldn’t mind some further clarification on.”
She indicated the chair in front of her desk. “Have a seat. We have some time before the meeting.”
Justin hesitated. He wasn’t used to being ordered around; the feeling made him uncomfortable. As did the incessant echo of Christmas music playing in the lobby.
“Would you mind if we closed the door?” he asked her, already walking to it.
“Any particular reason?”
“I can’t focus with the cursed Christmas tunes playing in the background.”
He shut the door and turned back to find her studying him with curious eyes. “You have something against Christmas music?”
“Christmas is one day. But for some reason the whole world is burdened with listening to those blasted tunes for weeks on end. That doesn’t happen with any other holiday, now does it?”
“Christmas is hardly like any other holiday.”
“Only because the whole world insists on dragging it out. It’s one day, yet we insist on calling it the holiday season.”
“Some would argue it’s at least twelve days,” she countered.
Clever, she’d referenced another Christmas carol. “Don’t tell me you’re one of those types. The ones who make their shopping list in October. You pull out the tree and decorations as soon as the Thanksgiving turkey is consumed. Am I close?”
“And what would be so wrong about it if I was?”
He shrugged. He wasn’t going to try to explain it. Christmastime around his house as a young boy had usually meant the start of weeks of arguments followed by loud, drunken fights. With his father working long hours and his mother growing more and more resentful at his absence. Of course, there were problems throughout the year, but the holiday season seemed to bring out the worst in his parents. An excuse to purge their anger and throw everything in the open. By the time Christmas morning rolled around, he and his brother were more than ready to have it all over with. Even the toys weren’t enough to make up for the turmoil and chaos.
How had they even gotten into this conversation anyway? Justin wondered. All he’d asked was to shut the door so he didn’t have to hear the music from the lobby. He didn’t need to explain himself to a woman he’d just met.
Carli was still staring at him expectedly. She’d asked him a question that he’d left hanging. “Nothing. Never mind. Forget I said anything.”
“Okay. But I feel I have to say just one more thing.”
Why was he not surprised? “Go ahead.”
“That you have to realize how—” she paused and glanced at the ceiling, as if scrambling for the correct word “—curious your perspective about Christmas is. Given who you are.”
Of course he realized that. He was heir to one of the most successful retail toy operations in the Northern Hemisphere. A business that earned most of its profits in the weeks between Thanksgiving and Christmas Eve. Sure, it was true that as an adult he’d made his own way and had become a successful businessman in his own right. But he’d been granted worldly advantages at birth that most people could only dream of. He should be thanking his lucky stars for the gift of Christmas and the commercialism that surrounded it.
And to anyone on the outside, he probably sounded like an ungrateful, cranky Scrooge who didn’t appreciate all the blessings he’d been granted.
Judging by Carli’s expression, that’s exactly what she was thinking.
* * *
Carli watched as Justin walked out of her office half an hour later, relieved to finally have some time to herself. What a strange morning it had been. It had taken all she had to remain cool and professional once he’d walked in here. She’d pulled it off, but barely. The whole while she was speaking with Justin regarding the business, her insides had felt like jelly. Thank heavens she hadn’t eaten anything this morning. It probably wouldn’t have stayed down.
The problem was, she wasn’t sure what was causing all the turmoil. Sure, it had been upsetting when he’d so casually dismissed her as she was trying to introduce herself. And she’d known he was judging her by her appearance. But none of that was anything new for her.
People always underestimated her at first. She just made sure to prove herself, had been doing so her whole life. Not to mention, she’d had to find ways to somehow differentiate herself from her four siblings. Right smack in the middle, she was oh-so-easy to overlook. Tammy was the wise oldest sister, happily married with a lovely little boy. Janie, the beautiful one. People in their town actually called her JB, short for Janie Beautiful. Janie had the sort of looks that made men stammer when they spoke to her. While Carli was curvy and voluptuous, her next older sister was gorgeous in an angelic and soft way that Carli could never compete with. She certainly hadn’t been able to last year...
Don’t even start with that.
And the twins...well, they were twins. That fact alone made them stand out.
Carli was just the middle sister. Nothing special there. Barely noticeable in the crowd. So she made sure to work harder than any of them. Years of study and long hours, first at business school and then at the office, she hadn’t taken anything for granted.
And now the arrival of the other Hammond son might be threatening all of that. No wonder she felt so out of sorts when Justin was near. She had to do something to fix that, but what exactly?
Jocelyn tapped lightly on her door before she could answer her own question.
“Come in.”
“Hey, how did it go? Were you even able to focus?”
Carli shrugged as she opened her email inbox. “Of course,” she said, though it was a fib. “Why in the world wouldn’t I?”
“I’m sure I wouldn’t have been able to. Not with those deep dreamy eyes focused on me.”
Carli resisted the urge to grunt. “Not this again.” No way was she going to admit, not even to herself, that there might be a kernel of truth to Jocelyn’s words, that in fact it had been pretty distracting every time she’d looked up and found herself under the intense focus of Justin’s gaze.
“Jocelyn, you need a date.”
Her assistant groaned with frustration. “Don’t I know it.”
“Are you bringing anyone to the party tonight?”
She answered with a sad shake of her head. “I’m really looking forward to it, still. You’re very sweet to host one every year.”
Being sweet really had nothing to do with it. Carli loved throwing that regular yearly party. She’d been planning and shopping for it since October.
“Well, in any case, you need to stop focusing on Justin Hammond’s looks or his appeal,” she admonished the younger woman, though part of her was addressing herself. “For all intents and purposes, the man is our boss.”
Jocelyn pulled out the chair across from Carli’s desk and plopped into it. “I know, I know. I’m just admiring him from afar. I wouldn’t dream of going after the man who owns part of the company I work for.”
“Good, I’m glad to hear it.”
Carli didn’t like where she was going with this. “I want no part in where you’re trying to take this conversation.”
Jocelyn leaned forward in the chair, gave her a smile that could only be described as wicked. “Oh, come on! You had to notice.”
“Notice what?”
“The way he was looking at you. Or more accurately, how he couldn’t look away.”
“All I noticed was how to make sure I gave him all the information he needed to get himself situated. He just needed more info about how the company operates.”
Jocelyn looked skeptical. “Right. Just admit it.”
“I don’t see the point.” The last thing she wanted to talk about, in her office no less, was the way men looked at her. The way Justin had looked at her. Recalling the way his eyes had roamed over her sent a shiver down her spine even now.
“Does there have to be a point to everything?”
Carli couldn’t help but smile. Had she ever been that lighthearted? She couldn’t remember a time. Not even as a child. There was always too much to do. Always a mess to clean up or a sibling to look after.
“I’d just like to figure out why he’s really here. After all these years,” she said, trying to change the subject back to business.
Jocelyn shrugged slightly. “I thought it was just because James is going to be away for a while. And that Mr. Hammond, as both their father and CEO, decided it would be a good time to bring him on board with his older brother otherwise occupied.”
Carli knew that’s how things looked on the surface. But it still didn’t explain Justin’s sudden appearance. She was more than capable of holding down the fort while James Hammond was away. That wasn’t self-aggrandizing or conceit. The eldest Mr. Hammond had expressed the notion in countless ways over the years.
