Tangling with the CEO: A Half Moon Bay Novel (Entangled Bliss)

by Annie Seaton

  “Hmm.” Blake stared into his beer and thought about the coincidence. Ana was connected to the store somehow and she’d let him believe she was on a social call until she’d come clean about being his appointment. Read about me in the paper? He didn’t believe a word of it. There was something fishy about the whole situation and he was going to get to the bottom of it.

  “If you squeeze that glass much harder, it’s going to pop.” Jack was looking at him curiously. “Don’t tell Dad you’ve been seeing one of the staff. You know how he feels about personal relationships and business”

  “Staff?” Blake frowned. “What do you mean?”

  Jack shrugged. “I might be wrong, but Ana had the same shirt on as Sienna.”

  …

  Ana pulled Georgie along behind her as she crept around to the back entry of the store. “You go in first and check that they’re gone.”

  “Why? What on earth are you up to, Ana?” Georgie sighed. “And who’s the hunky guy with your Blake?”

  “I don’t know. It really threw me when I saw Blake in the store. I’d made an appointment with his secretary to see him in the morning,” Ana replied sheepishly. “And he is not my Blake.”

  Georgie grinned. “Could have fooled me. You’re acting like a crazy teenager.”

  She waited outside until Georgie came back and called to her in a melodramatic whisper.

  “Coast’s clear.”

  Sienna was waiting inside the door and held her hands out to Ana. “Are you okay? That was a nasty fall you took.” She reached up and touched her chin lightly. “Why the subterfuge?”

  “I’m fine, just my pride was hurt. And I’m angry.”

  “Because the wheelbarrows fell on you?” Sienna frowned at her. “I told Joe he had them stacked up too high when he bought so many last year.”

  “No, no.” Ana put her hands on her hips. “I’m angry because Blake came sneaking around the store, checking it out.” She stomped off toward the office. “I’m going to tell Joe.”

  Before she could get to the end of the aisle, Sienna caught up with her and grabbed her arm.

  “And what’s that going to achieve? You’re overreacting.” Sienna frowned at her.

  “Don’t go upsetting Joe and Magda. Let’s go grab some lunch, and we’ll work out what needs to be done.”

  Sienna glanced over at Georgie, who was restacking the wheelbarrows into three piles instead of one high one. “Go grab our bags. I’ll check if the street’s clear.”

  As they walked through the store, Ana looked around her, trying to see the place through Blake’s eyes. She’d worked here for ten years and was used to the dark and dusty interior. In fact, she even thought it added to its quaint charm. Blake would see it totally differently—as cluttered and chaotic.

  Georgie caught up to them as they stepped out into the street. The late-morning sun was warm and Ana shrugged off her jacket and brushed the remaining concrete dust off her store T-shirt. The street was busy as tourists meandered down the wide walkway between the old shops. It was a wonder the town wasn’t under a heritage order, but there were no Spanish settlements here in Nebbiton like there were farther down the Cabrillo Highway. This town had been settled in the early twentieth century by Italian immigrants who had planted acres of vegetables to supply the San Francisco market, and it still had a distinctly Italian feel.

  At the end of the street was a bar run by Sienna and Georgie’s Uncle Renzo. Georgie disappeared into the kitchen to order their lunch and Sienna snagged them three stools at the counter.

  “Drinks, girls?” Uncle Renzo called out.

  “Just coffee, thanks. We’re still at work,” Sienna answered.

  Ana propped her chin in one hand and gingerly probed her jaw with the other. She winced as her fingers encountered a tender spot.

  Sienna took a quick breath beside her and Ana glanced up to see what was wrong. Reflected in the mirror behind the bar, she and Sienna were dressed in their dark work shirts with “Whatchamacallits, thingamajigs, and doohickeys for every need” emblazoned across their chests. Ana lifted her gaze higher and drew in a shaky breath before she turned slowly to face Blake, who stood behind her with his arms folded across his broad chest.

  “Hello, Ana.”

  “Hello, Blake.”

  “I take it you work at the hardware store?”

  Beside them, Sienna’s head turned from one to the other as they spoke.

  “I do. And I take it you were creeping around spying before you take it over on Friday?” She kept her voice level.

  Blake’s eyes narrowed. “And I take it you’re from the restoration department, and visited me to try to keep your job?”

  If Ana had been royalty, she couldn’t have inclined her head more gracefully than she did in response to his question. Ice-cold anger was building inside her and she fought to keep her temper under control.

  “I was. However, I saw a greater need and filled that.”

  Blake gave a bitter laugh. “Always the do-gooder.”

  “And you are always the capitalist,” she replied, holding his gaze without moving.

  “Hey, you guys, time out.” Sienna waved her hands between their faces, breaking their deadlocked gaze. Georgie came out from the kitchen and Blake stared at her T-shirt.

  “All three of you work in restoration?”

  “Yup.” Sienna leaned in close to his face. “Hurt one, hurt all of us.”

  Ana frowned. “I can handle this, Sienna.”

  The guy who’d been with Blake in the store wandered over from the bar where he had been watching the exchange between Blake and Ana.

  “Can I buy you a drink, ladies?”

  “Are you going to introduce us to your colleague, Blake?” Ana asked.

  “Not a colleague, just a friend out for an afternoon drive.” The guy held his hand out to Ana. “Seeing as my pal here is so lacking in manners, I’m Jack.”

  She took his hand before sliding off the chair and pushing past Blake.

  “I’ll see you tomorrow. We have an appointment.” She glared at Blake as she turned to the twins. “I’ll see you two later.”

  Ana turned on her heel and muttered “nice to meet you” to Jack as she headed to the door.

  Chapter Ten

  Ana crunched through the gears and floored the accelerator of her truck—not that it made one scrap of difference. The old heap was ready for the junkyard and groaned up the last hill to her cottage. Mutt was sitting at the back door waiting for her as she stepped out and pushed open the gate to the cottage garden. She sat next to the big dog and put her arm around his neck. A sloppy, wet lick up the side of her cheek brought the first glimmer of her good humor back to her since she’d left the store.

  “It’s true what they say, boy. Pets lower the blood pressure. Would do Blake a load of good.” She laughed as Mutt put his paw on her knee and tried to burrow his head under her arm. “You’re certainly good for the soul.” She ruffled his ears and stared out over the cliff. A huge bank of fog was sitting above the horizon and a slight breeze was puffing wisps of mist closer to the coast. The movement of the air was stirring the flowers in the garden, and the sweet smell of orange blossom drifted in from the orchard on the hill across the fence.

  Ana pushed herself to her feet, threw her bag on the old wooden bench outside the back door, and walked down to the small garden shed. Slipping on her gloves, she picked up the pruning shears and headed into the orchard. Gardening was food for her soul, and the combination of the view of the ocean and her pretty garden would be guaranteed to bring her temper back to within normal range.

  She even allowed herself a smile. She’d almost clocked Blake when he had called her a do-gooder. He hadn’t changed one bit—he was still more interested in money and profits than people, and that didn’t bode well for their little hardware store. The compassionate, caring Blake she’d seen with the children was only what she’d wanted to see. He was as hard as nails. There was no hope for them.


  Ana wandered around the orchard, clipping off dead branches and gathering a spray of blossoms to put in the kitchen. Holding the white flowers to her chest, she inhaled their sweet fragrance and stood on the cliff top as thoughts flitted in and out of her mind. The bright pink of the pigface plant at the top of the cliff was a riot of color and further brightened her mood.

  Change was coming—as surely as the fog would roll in from the sea this afternoon. There was no doubt about that. It was just a matter of making the right decision and adapting to the change. The soft purr of a vehicle reached her ears and she knew it was Blake before she even looked. Despite everything that had happened, the worry lightened as the memories of their college days drifted back. Their arguments may have been heated, but inevitably one of them would seek the other out and apologize before the day was over.

  Taking a deep breath, she walked slowly across the orchard and stood at the gate watching as a sleek gray Mercedes drove up her rutted driveway. With the bouquet grasped in front of her, she waited while Blake parked the car. He stepped out and walked across the lawn.

  Blake looked past her to the ocean. “Nice view.”

  “Suits me fine,” she replied. “Who told you where to find me? Georgie?”

  He nodded.

  Ana sighed and shook her head. “Well then, now you’re here, you’d better come in.”

  She passed him the blossoms and smothered a smile as he stood there holding them while she pulled her gloves off. Taking them back, she turned and led him through the gate into the house garden. Mutt came up and sniffed around the back of the hand Blake offered him, before licking it and flopping back down in the shade.

  “Looks like one of you accepts me.” His face was serious and she found it hard to read his expression. “How about we have that meeting now to save you coming up to the city tomorrow? I guess it’s all about the restoration business? It’s your business?”

  “It’s nothing personal, Blake. It is business we have to discuss. We gave up the personal stuff ten years ago. A one-night stand doesn’t make us friends.” Ana pushed open the back door. “We have nothing in common. And we never did.”

  She knew she was being mean, but she was trying to ignore the happiness filling her. It touched her that Blake had sought her out to apologize. Maybe he had changed? Maybe he’d listen to her?

  She could feel his gaze on her as she walked into the kitchen. Crossing to the sink, she filled a large glass jug with water, put the orange blossoms in it, and carried it over to the table by the window.

  “Sit down.” She gestured to the only chair that wasn’t covered with tools and rolls of wallpaper. “I’m renovating, so I won’t apologize for the mess.”

  She stared at him, daring him to make a comment about the chaos surrounding them. Pressing fingertips to her forehead, she waited for the smart remark, but he surprised her with an apology instead.

  “I’m sorry I was rude to you at lunchtime, especially in front of your friends.” Blake held her gaze. “And I’m sorry we parted on bad terms yesterday.”

  Moving away, Ana bent down and cleared the other chair before replying. “I’m sorry, too. I was out of line…both times.”

  Blake walked across and sat down. He leaned forward and dangled his hands between his knees, looking down at the floor. The sun broke through the clouds and shone into the room, illuminating the dust disturbed when Ana had cleared the chair. She watched him for a while without speaking, drinking in the sight of his broad shoulders, outlined by the snug T-shirt. A happy buzz she didn’t want to feel shimmied through her and she tried to keep her voice steady. “Seeing as we are going to have a business meeting, we could probably do with some coffee. I know I could.”

  “Let me help you.” Blake went to stand and she shook her head.

  “No, stay there.” She shot him a smile. “But thanks for offering.”

  While the coffee brewed, she reached up to the cupboard for two clean coffee mugs but they were all in the dishwasher, which she hadn’t run for a couple of days. She reached to the back of the cupboard and pulled out two fine china cups and saucers. If this was going to be a business meeting, she would act the usual way she entertained her clients. Ana looked across at Blake, the cups rattling as her hands shook. He was watching her with an intense expression on his face. His lips were straight and frown lines creased his forehead. Looking away, she filled the tray and added some of the cookies Thelma had sent home with her on Sunday.

  Placing the tray on the floor between the two chairs, she sat and waited for him to break the silence. When he didn’t speak, she bit her lip and reached down to the tray, ignoring the thudding of her heart. The silence continued as she passed him a black coffee and placed a cookie on the saucer.

  Finally she couldn’t stand it any longer and took a sip of her coffee before blurting out, “So where do we start?”

  Blake put his cup down and folded his arms. “You made the appointments with me, so I’ll listen to what you have to say. I’ll be fair and give you the same consideration you would have had”—his voice was firm—“in your business suit and high heels.”

  Ana took a deep breath and relaxed into the soft sofa, reassured by his apparent willingness to hear her out, but her heart was still pounding heavily.

  “I’ll begin with what I was going to say to you before Jeannie and the children arrived the other day.” She met his steady gaze. “And then I’ll show you the business plan. You won’t follow it unless I give you some background. This town is very special. Half Moon Bay is the commercial center where businesses like Home and Hardware should go. Nebbiton is for tourists and people, mainly local farmers, who retire here for a slower—more old-fashioned, I suppose you could say—lifestyle.”

  She looked down and that ever-present shiver when he was around trickled down her back. She rubbed her arms to dispel the goose bumps.

  “The renovation department, that is, Georgie, Sienna, and me, run a business with two main goals. First, we provide an affordable service to help the retirees keep their homes maintained, to keep them warm and dry. We live in a community that is not wealthy and Joe Hickey knows that. Second, we’ve combined our skills to restore the old homes once a new owner comes in and wants to bring the buildings back to their original glory.” She jumped out of the chair as a thought struck her. “Finish your coffee. We’re going for a drive so I can show you some of the houses we’ve done. I can show you much better than I can tell you.”

  Blake shook his head and her spirits plummeted.

  “I’m sure the work you do is great. But there’s a bottom line. I need to see how much money it brings to the store.”

  Ana couldn’t stop herself from glancing at the shoe boxes full of invoices. If the appointment had been tomorrow, she would have had them done. The goose bumps disappeared as heat crept up her neck. She dropped her head and her hair fell over her face as she attempted to hide the telltale red flush she knew would be staining her fair skin. All was quiet for a moment and she fought to regain her composure. Lifting her head, she dug deep for the resolve that she knew could convince him.

  “You could give us the courtesy of looking at our work. You obviously don’t think women are capable of doing it. Then if—”

  “Whoa. Stop right there.” Blake came over and crouched in front of her. “Where did you get that idea from?”

  Ana crossed to the window. When he was near her, she couldn’t think straight and her whole future—and that of her friends—hung in the balance.

  “Ana, look at me.” She lifted her gaze to meet his and, to her distress, a single tear spilled over on to her cheek. Blake followed her and he lifted one hand and wiped it away with the pad of his thumb. “What makes you think I’m such a sexist? Surely not that silly argument we had back in college?”

  “No…well, yes. I suppose that was part of it. And then you made that comment about a guy sending me on Friday to plead his case. You automatically assumed it would have been a man.”

>   Blake’s voice was patient. “No, Ana. My secretary told me a guy was coming for the appointment. There was obviously a mix-up, because I’d make no such assumption.”

  “Coming to see you was going to be our—or rather my—final attempt to save our jobs. Joe had already told the staff which departments would be going and who would probably be out of work. I thought I’d appeal to you—and maybe your commitment to the community. I knew how important your family home was to you and I thought you might understand.”

  “Business doesn’t run on kindness—or friendships—at national corporations.” Blake smiled and ran his fingers down the side of her face. “You always were a softy. But I can see why you settled in a small town where the community seems close.”

  “But Blake, why does it have to be like that? Business can improve by looking at community relationships.” She walked over to the kitchen and picked up the folder with their proposal. “We’ve managed here this way for a long time. You’ve seen the store now, and you’ve seen our little town. You have to see that it isn’t the type of place that a big shiny store will fit in. Take this and read it and think about it. Don’t rush into a decision. Okay?”

  Blake looked down at her with a smile as he reached for the folder. “If you had asked me the same question on Friday at my place, I wouldn’t have understood. Now that I’ve been to Nebbiton and seen the store, I do get more of a sense of where you are coming from.”

  He looked at her intently and she swallowed, desperately trying to keep her gaze from his lips. She tried to pull away from him, but he gripped her hands tightly.

  “Look, I can’t promise anything, but I’ll read this and have a look at the numbers from your department. I don’t remember seeing them in the spreadsheets Mike sent me.”

  She shook her head. “No, I have to finish them tonight,” she said slowly. “Magda is just waiting for me to get last month’s figures to her.”

  “Are they on your computer? We could have a quick look at them now.” He patted his shirt pocket and pulled out a flash drive. “I can take them with me and add them in with the others.”