Alluring Promises Box Set (Books 1-3)

by Josie Bordeaux

  “Did the guys call you? How’d you find out?”

  “Kara called me.” She glanced back at me and noticed my questioning look. She gave me a small shrug and added, “It’s a girl thing.”

  Kara? I was surprised she knew her so I asked, “How do you know Kara?”

  “She comes in to Allure all the time. She’s trying to hang around guys in the corporate world and move away from the stripper lifestyle. I’ve tried to hook her up with a couple of classier guys.” I had to chuckle about Kara hanging out at my brother’s bar with a different crowd so she could get into the business world. It just sounded like something Kara would do.

  “So you kept it from Mel all night?”

  “Yep. I didn’t feel like dealing with her ticked off throughout the night,” Izzy scoffed as she shrugged, giving a half smile. “As is, she paced back and forth all night long. She probably scuffed up the hardwood floors.” Izzy looked over at Z sleeping in the dining room chair and nodded her head toward him. “Did he sleep like that all night?”

  “I guess. I wasn’t really paying that much attention.” I gave her a grin as she shook her head. She knew I didn’t babysit them. I wasn’t about to lie to Izzy. She’s a pretty cool sister-in-law and I respect her too much.

  She exhaled a deep breath and walked over to Z, then looked back at me with a teasing smile as she wiggled her eyebrows up and down. I had to watch this because I knew that smile meant she was about to mess with my brother. I watched her quickly straddle Z’s lap and excitedly bounce up and down as she dramatically screamed out, “Oh baby! You’re so hot! Do me again, baby!”

  Z’s eyes flew open as he jumped out of his seat from being woken so abruptly, almost dropping Izzy off his lap. His facial expression made me laugh; it was a mix of shock and worry as if he were afraid he had a stripper on his lap. As soon as he saw Izzy, his facial expression changed immediately to relief and a loving smile for his wife. He wrapped his arms around her and kissed her softly. “You scared the shit out of me, Iz.” Izzy giggled and kissed him back.

  I tried to stop watching, but it was tough. I’m still so happy for my brother and Izzy that they found each other. Izzy grew up with some tough times in her life. She met Z after she left her fucked up ex. Z had his own troubles of crazy exes, too. I was thrilled for both of them when they were finally married. It’s nice to see that some people find love. Of course, I had two couples in front of me proving that theory. I’m glad it works for some people. Unfortunately, not everyone finds that.

  Mel stood up holding Flynn’s hand and pulled him to standing. “Come on, Flynn. Let’s go home,” she said softly with a content smile. I could tell she was relieved this night was over and that her fiancé wasn’t caught cheating or in jail. Flynn nodded, his eyes barely opened, as he yawned and rubbed the back of his neck. He looked over to me and smiled.

  “Thanks, Matt. I had a great time.” I grinned, happy that he’d remember a fun bachelor party instead of just another night playing cards and getting drunk. My reputation is still intact.

  The girls each gave me an appreciative hug that their boys were still safe and not too trashed. When they were finally gone, I turned around and yelled for everyone to get up and get the hell out.

  Mr. Miller finally got dressed and we discussed my discretion of his antics and he agreed to find replacements for all the damaged items. Whatever couldn’t be replaced, I could pay for in cash separately so my company would never see the charges on the bill. Win–win for both of us.

  EIGHT-THIRTY MONDAY morning and it was way too early for me. I hate going into an office and I am so thankful I work outside sales. I make my own appointments and I set them for later in the day. I have plenty of time to work out, then I place several phone calls and make some sales. Although I travel a lot for my job, I’m based out of Atlanta, which is the ideal place for a single young guy. There’s plenty of bars and plenty of single women to chase. It’s perfect.

  I’ve been outside sales for several years now and only come into corporate headquarters when they need me. It’s usually at least once a month or so, but even if I’m in town visiting my family, I still try not to come here. It’s been a couple months since I’ve been here and one of my sales buddies told me they redid the whole office.

  I pulled my rental SUV into a parking space marked “Reserved for.” It didn’t have a name, so I might as well take whatever spot I want since they dragged me in here for the week.

  I walked into the spacious reception area and noticed the updated interior. A new receptionist sat behind a large wooden reception desk. I told her my name, who I was here to see and then she directed me to Perry Buchanan’s new office location.

  Perry used to be the Senior Vice President overseeing inside and outside sales. He was also my boss and mentor when I started out here six years ago as an inside sales representative. After two really successful years inside, I was trained for outside sales and am now their top sales person in the country, handling the southeastern major accounts. Perry was just promoted to Executive Vice President of all Operations for the corporate office. This entire office falls under him now.

  I knocked on his open door as I peered in. Perry is a large boisterous man. He’s the epitome of a genuine Texan good-ole boy, complete with a southern drawl. His pale blue eyes tend to lead people to believe that he’s a really nice guy. Usually, he is. On the other hand, he can also be a rattlesnake, ready to bite at any second if you screw up. I was thankful he took me under his wing to teach me everything he knew about sales and about selling computer hardware and software products. It worked out very well for me and he didn’t bite too often.

  “Hey Perry, how's it going?” I asked as he stood up and came around his desk. I shook his hand and he clapped my back, hard.

  “Great. You?” he asked as he stared at me with those pale blue eyes. They had a hint of excitement in them, but I couldn’t tell if maybe that glint was for something besides how my sales were going. I started to get sweaty palms just from his intense gaze.

  “I can't complain. You've seen my numbers.” I tried to joke. I wasn't sure why I was a little nervous, but I couldn't understand why he called me in here, nor why he was staring at me like that. Like I said, he can be a rattlesnake ready to strike at any moment and it put me on edge instantly.

  “I have seen your numbers. They're great.” I took my seat as he took his. He folded his hands on the table and quirked up one side of his mouth as he continued. “Upper management has seen your numbers too. I’ll cut right to the chase, Matt. They'd like to bring you in-office to train the inside sales reps. They want to see if you can bring up their numbers with your sales experience.”

  Oh shit.

  “Umm, well, that's really great. I really appreciate the offer, but I'm really enjoying outside sales right now.” There is no freaking way I want to be back in an office. My heart started beating faster as dread filled my head at the prospect of being cooped up in an office again.

  “I understand. You're young still, no family. I'm sure you like traveling." Like it? I freaking love it. "Upper management really wants you here though. They’re willing to give you title of Vice President of Inside Sales, complete $200K with a great commission package, depending on sales performance. Full benefits. You'd have your run of the place. You just need to bring inside sales numbers up.”

  "Uh, yeah.” I felt like I was being backed into a corner. Damn rattlesnake. I sat up a bit in my chair and cleared my throat quickly. “Are you telling me I have to take it? Or can I turn it down?"

  Please tell me I can turn it down.

  "Well, we can't force you to take it, but they can probably stick you in a shitty territory. I know you like Atlanta and all..."

  I interrupted him. "Like it? Do you remember the last time you came to visit?" I was hoping to remind him of how I really showed him the city. He had a freaking awesome time and made me swear not to retell our shenanigans from that night. Living there is like a single guy’s d
ream party town.

  He chuckled, "Yeah, actually I do. It was pretty fun." He cleared his throat and then his voice turned to a more serious tone; a tone that I remembered all too well from when I worked with him. "They'll fuck you if you don't take this, son. Just suck it up for one year, turn sales around and you can have your pick of territories."

  I started grinding my teeth just thinking about having to work in an office again. That meant wearing dress clothes every day, being on business time, moving from my party town.

  This was going to suck.

  “I don’t have any management experience, Perry. This just doesn’t make any sense at all,” I told him with a slight worried expression on my face. I knew nothing about being a manager or motivating others.

  “We’ll get you training for that and don’t forget, I’m right down the hall from you. Just like sales, I can teach you this shit too.” As if he could see the quandary going on in my head, he continued, “You’ll have an unlimited budget. You can try new sales techniques. Like I said, you’ll have the run of this place. I’m not exaggerating when I say that either, Matt. I got direct clearance from upper. You have one year, try every technique you can think of and then you can go wherever you want. They care about sales going up and they don’t care how it’s done.”

  He was making it sound not too bad actually. Unlimited budget would really help out with a ton of techniques that helped increase my sales. Not to mention I would be near my family and old friends again. Although, everyone was getting married now. Except Clark. He still lives in the townhouse with Mel and Flynn from before they were a couple. He'll probably need to move out of Flynn’s townhouse soon to give them privacy. Maybe this won't be so bad after all. I’ll rent a place with him for a year and then go back to Hotlanta.

  "Alright. I guess I'm against the wall on this. If I stick it out for a year, then I can return to Atlanta and get my territory back?” I asked in a hopeful manner.

  "Well, it's not guaranteed, but I'm sure I'll be able to swing it for you."

  I guess in sales that’s as good of a guarantee as I’ll get. Damn, I’ll hate moving from my perfect condo downtown. It’s right in the heart of everything.

  As if he could see the pain in my eyes from having to move from my great lifestyle, he stood up and his expression softened. “Come on. Let me show you to your new office. You’ll love it,” he said with that damn rattlesnake grin.

  We walked down the hallway and I really liked how the entire office had just been redone with new cubicles and dark blue carpeting. It looked a lot nicer than last time I was here, not too long ago. Perry pointed out the sales cubes and I spotted more than a few people pop their heads up, looking to see who Perry was talking to.

  He led me into an enormous office with a fantastic view of the city. We were up on the twentieth floor so the huge windows really display a nice skyline. A massive wooden desk sat in the middle of the room with two chairs in front of it. Several empty bookcases lined each wall. Off to the left, were two light blue wingback chairs with a small table separating the two and a small dark blue couch. Even with all this furniture, the office was really quite spacious.

  Perry sat down in one of the chairs in front of the desk and gestured toward the huge leather chair behind it. “Have a seat, Matt. Try it out and see what you think.” I smiled, knowing that sales tactic all too well. Try it out and fall in love with it. You’ll buy it immediately. Just like a car. I really don’t have a choice to buy this one though. I sat down feeling the supple leather on the arm rests and had to admit to myself that it actually felt pretty darn good.

  I realized I needed to get my head out of the clouds and that this job was going to be more than something I was used to. “What size sales force am I looking at?” I asked, knowing it was pretty large, but didn’t know the current number.

  “One hundred. We’re hoping to grow to two hundred by next year,” he stated without any feeling in his voice, but I noticed he didn’t look me in the eyes. Holy shit. Double the sales force? Under me. The guy with no management training. This whole idea continued to sound even more ridiculous now. I glanced nervously around the office, staring out the window just behind Perry. The slatted blinds were down, but open so I could see the employees trying to peek in to see what was going on.

  “You’ll have management training classes, Matt,” he stated emphatically, bringing me back to the discussion. I nodded my head slightly, realizing how well Perry remembered my worried facial expressions. “You were always a top performer. Even when you first started out, your numbers were always the highest. You can do this, Matt. I have no doubt in my mind.” His voice was firm and full of conviction. He had total faith in me that I could do this.

  I swallowed and looked around nervously. I placed my hands flat on the desk and tapped my index fingers trying to calm my nerves and think things through. If I could do this, it would look fantastic on my résumé. And if they didn’t give me my old territory back, I could find another job easily. One year. That’s it. Suck it up for one full year.

  I took a deep breath and nodded my head to the rattlesnake. “Alright, I’ll take it,” I said as I let out all the air I just took in. Perry’s mouth turned up in a slow curl, making me feel like I just made a deal with the devil himself.

  I spent a couple hours and a lunch meeting with Perry, going over sales figures, his ideas on why sales were declining and trying to put together a plan on how to proceed. I was given two weeks to move up here. Right after Flynn and Mel’s wedding, I would be back here. Two weeks didn’t seem like a long time at all and I knew it would fly by.

  Perry asked me to be back here by nine tomorrow to introduce me to the sales force and go over action items for my current position. I was asked to continue contact with my clients until they had someone to transition my accounts to for the rest of the year.

  I CALLED CLARK, knowing I needed to get drunk tonight. I just wish I were meeting up with Kara tonight instead of tomorrow. I tried calling that Sarah girl from the other night, but she was out of town on business.

  Clark and I sat at a table in front of the window at a sports bar near my hotel. I took a sip from my beer and stared out the window, shaking my head in frustration.

  “It won’t be so bad, Matt. It’s actually pretty cool.” Clark was leaning forward trying to reason with me. The guy wore fake glasses half the time and coupled that with his tall, fit physique, he really resembled Clark Kent from Superman. Not to mention, he had the best opener to pick up women. “Think of all the partying we can do. Now that Z and Flynn are off getting married, they suck. Pussy whipped jerks.” He sat back and put his hands behind his head and smiled. “This is actually going to be great, Matt. We’ll get a place near all the cool bars. We can walk to Allure too. Free drinks all the time. Suck it up and smile, Matt. This is actually awesome.”

  Allure is owned by my little brother, Z. Hanging out there is always a great time, not to mention a lot of women hang out there. Clark was a bouncer there, but realized he could get more action partying at the bar. He made sure to become great friends with the new bouncer and gave him thorough instructions on the types of women that were to be let in first. The thought of hanging out with Clark as my wingman was appealing, but at the same time, I have my own friends in Atlanta that I’ve really enjoyed hanging out with. The thought of leaving my life behind filled me with dread.

  “Clark, how many times did you come visit and party with me in Atlanta? Atlanta is ten times the size of this city. That’s ten times as many bars. This is going to be a huge change for me,” I stressed as much as possible how different my life would change. Having a roommate again was going to be different too. At least I’d have a permanent wingman when I needed one.

  One year. One year. I kept repeating that in my head, hoping it would seem like less time until I could get back to my life in Atlanta.

  My phone rang and I glanced down at the caller ID. Alex. My best friend in Atlanta. I picked up knowing he just
got around to reading the text I sent him just after lunch. “Guess whose ass I’ve got my hand on right now, Matt.”

  I chuckled, knowing he was at our favorite bar and his hand was on my favorite waitress’ ass. Cassie. She’s another one of my favorites I call whenever I want. Crap, I’m going to miss her. “Get your hands off her, Alex. She’s a good girl. She won’t want you,” I joked.

  “Yeah, well now that you have to move, Cassie said she’ll be with me.” I heard her yell in the background, “I did NOT say that, asshole.” I groaned out loud. I’m really going to miss her.

  She must have grabbed the phone from Alex because the next thing I knew, her sweet southern voice filled my ear as she asked me, “It’s not really true, is it Matt? Are you moving away?”

  “Just a year, babe, just a year. I’ll be back down there.” I was pretty sure I was trying to convince both of us that I would be back down there.

  “But I’m gonna miss you,” she whined. Most girls are annoying when they whine. Not Cassie. Her whining is pure sweetness that sounds more like begging, especially with her southern drawl. Man, this sucks so badly.

  “I know. I’ll miss you too. I’ll be back this weekend to pack up my stuff. You can come over and help me.”

  She moaned into the phone, “Mmm, I’d love that. But you won’t get much packin’ done if I come over. You know that.”

  One year. Just one year. I replayed my new mantra in my head as I pictured Cassie naked on my bed.

  “I’m counting on that Cassie. I’ll fly in Friday afternoon around three. Meet me back at my place,” I ordered.

  “I can’t wait. I’ll see ya then,” She said with that husky bedroom voice I love so much. She handed the phone back to Alex.