by Jill Sanders
“Sweetie.” Her mother stepped back and brushed a strand of her wet hair away from her face. “If he let you go, then he’s an idiot.”
She chuckled between the tears. “No, I’m the idiot.” She shook her head as her mother led her to the sofa. “I didn’t tell him how I felt.”
“How do you feel?” Her mother patted her knee.
“I love him, Mom,” she admitted and suddenly, her heart felt so much lighter.
More importantly, at that moment, she knew exactly what she had to do.
Tyler had been in a foul mood for weeks. He spent most of his time at work yelling at his brothers or their crew.
The protesters had backed off slightly when Glenn had been discharged from the hospital. Glenn had gone on camera and assured everyone that the accident wasn’t McGowan’s fault and that he was being very well taken care of by the company. Tyler had been even more impressed by Trent’s PR skills since he’d shared with the head of the protesters that they were looking into the safety of all of their sites.
Still, a small group of protesters sat out front of the trailer most days.
When Tyler clocked out of work, he busied himself with his own private plans.
The weekend after Kristen had left, he’d moved out of the apartment above the Wet Spot. Darla had become too much of a nuisance, and he found he didn’t like the noise anymore. So he’d rented a used trailer and moved it out to his land. It had taken two days on the tractor to clear a driveway and a spot to park the damn thing, then three more days to have the water and power hooked up. He’d had to go with digging a well, which had cost more than he’d expected. Hell, he had the equipment to do it himself, but because of permits and codes, went with the local company instead. They had even built a little well house around his new pump and filter.
He’d chosen the spot for his house and had spent one Saturday morning with his brothers clearing the land and setting up the stakes.
He’d looked at house plans but still couldn’t narrow them down to the one he wanted, which meant progress was stalled. Still, if he made a decision soon and then worked his butt off, he could have the place built by next winter.
Staying busy had kept his mind off Kristen and how’d she’d left him without even a good-bye kiss. It had hurt.
It still hurt.
Charles Burnett at JB had made several attempts to reach him. Tyler ignored all the calls, since none of them were from Kristen.
He’d hired a few new staff, including a site foreman, so he could move back into the old brick building in downtown Haven. He now sat in his father’s large office, overlooking the small park across from the city building.
He was getting concerned about McGowan Enterprises’ business with NewField. The invoices had still gone unpaid and when Rea contacted their corporate offices, they claimed they were looking into the issue. As it stood, he’d placed a hold on any future work with them. Trent had taken on the task of figuring out how to work around them for future projects.
He was pretty sure that Dennis had been behind all the gossip that had brought the protesters in the first place, but he couldn’t prove anything. The man had been absent of late. He’d caught a few glimpses of him at the diner, but Dennis made excuses and hightailed it out of there whenever Tyler tried to start a conversation.
Between the business and building, Tyler had been too busy to dwell on the pain and loneliness of Kristen leaving. Or so he thought.
It was almost three weeks after she’d left that he glanced down at his cell phone and did a double take when he saw Kristen’s name on his screen.
He thought about sending it to voice mail but didn’t want to be too obvious.
“McGowan.” He answered as he walked over and shut his office door.
“Hello, Tyler.” Just hearing her voice sent his body into overdrive.
“Hi.” He had to swallow before he could say her name. “Kristen. Did you make it back to the city okay?”
“Yes.” She sounded a little sad. “I’m sorry I left things . . . up in the air.”
He closed his eyes and listened to her breathing.
“I wanted to call you . . . to tell you that I’m heading out there again.”
“We still won’t sell the business,” he said gruffly.
“My visit isn’t really about the business, not this time,” she whispered.
“Why are you coming, then?”
“I can’t go over this on the phone. I should be there tomorrow morning,” she said quickly, and he could hear someone else in the room with her.
“I’ll pick you up myself.”
“Good, I’ll see you then.” She added softly in a sexy tone, “Tyler, we need to talk. I’m looking forward to seeing you.”
“We will,” he promised before hanging up.
He felt like dancing, but instead, fist pumped the air and twirled around in his chair.
When the chair stopped, he realized that his brother Trent had entered his office.
“Playing boss?” Trent joked.
“Kristen’s coming back tomorrow,” he blurted out like a damn school kid.
“That’s good news.” Trent smiled and sat down. “Why is she coming?”
His smile fell away. “She didn’t say.”
“Does JB have another offer we can shoot down?”
“No, actually, she said it wasn’t about business.”
“Then what?” Trent asked.
His smile spread as Trent chuckled.
He couldn’t concentrate the rest of the day and decided to clock off early and get some more work done on his place. He made progress on clearing some big rocks and trees that didn’t want to be knocked down easily.
When he climbed into bed that night, every muscle in his body hurt, but his mind kept running over the excitement of seeing Kristen tomorrow.
He arrived at the airport early and sat in his truck watching the clear sky. The plane was almost half an hour late. Which wasn’t out of the ordinary, but had him concerned nonetheless.
When he spotted the plane coming in, he climbed out of the truck and made his way across the field. He couldn’t explain his nerves. He tried to hide it, but the second she stepped out of the aircraft, he felt his hands shake with wanting to touch her again.
She was back in one of those sexy outfits she’d brought with her the first time. The cream-colored skirt was pencil thin with a slit that started at her knee and went up a few inches. The heels matched and looked expensive. He wondered how she could walk in such high spikes, let alone move with a sway that made his mouth water.
She wore a tailored jacket and blouse, with gold at her ears and around her neck and wrists. She looked like she belonged in the city, far away from here. But then he remembered how appealing she was in a flannel shirt, worn jeans, and mud boots.
His eyes narrowed when he noticed who was with her. The man guided her with a hand at the small of her back as they walked toward him.
Instantly, Tyler’s guard went up. By the time they reached him, he had control of himself. Charles Burnett reached his hand out for a handshake.
Since Tyler couldn’t think of any reasons not to, he took the man’s hand.
“We didn’t think you’d be out here again, Mr. Burnett,” he said.
“Well, sometimes the situation calls for a more . . . diplomatic stance.”
“Oh?” Tyler’s eyes moved to Kristen’s.
Then he noticed how pale she was. Her green eyes stood out even more now that her skin was almost as white as freshly fallen snow.
Reaching down, he took her bag from her and started walking toward the car, thankful he decided against bringing the truck with its back seat full of tools.
When he’d tossed her bag into the trunk, he stood back so Mr. Burnett could put his small case in. Then they all climbed into the car, Kristen sitting in the front with him.
“Why don’t you tell me what this is all about?” he said, before turning on the engine. His eyes met Mr.
Burnett’s in the rearview mirror.
“I think this is something we should discuss in front of every member of McGowan Enterprises.”
Tyler’s eyebrows shot up in question. When he glanced over at Kristen, she avoided his eyes but dipped her chin in a slight nod.
“Fine, I’ll have my brothers meet us at the office.”
“Tyler?” It was the first time Kristen had spoken since getting off the plane. “You might call your mother and have her come down as well.”
“My . . .” He could see he wasn’t going to get any more information from her. Instead of arguing, he nodded and punched his office number so he could have Rea call everyone into the downtown office. Then he backed out of the dirt lot at the airport and drove into town.
They rode in silence aside from the few quiet sighs Kristen let out as she looked out the window.
When they reached the outskirts of town, she finally spoke again. “Everything is so green now.”
He nodded in agreement. Of course, the change had been so gradual over the past few weeks that he hadn’t really noticed. Now, however, he glanced around and realized spring was in full bloom. Sure, they would probably get one or two more snow days, but even the flowers were beginning to peek out.
When he parked at the old building downtown his father and uncle had originally purchased to run their business, Kristen glanced over at him.
“You’re not in the trailer anymore?”
“No, I hired an onsite rig manager last week.” He raced around to open her door, but her boss had already opened it for her.
They walked into the building just as his mother drove up.
“Kristen.” His mother embraced her in a warm welcome hug, the kind his mother gave to all her closest friends. “We’ve missed you.” His mother took Kristen’s arm and started walking past the large waiting area and back toward his conference room, chatting with her the entire way, leaving him and Mr. Burnett to follow them.
“Nice place you’ve got here,” Mr. Burnett said as they passed through the old building.
Tyler’s father had remodeled the place shortly after buying it, restoring it to its historic beauty. Everything from its ornamented high plaster ceilings down to the original hardwood flooring. One wall, which ran the length of the entire building, was the original brick, giving a unique texture and warmth.
He’d always loved the place. It was one of Haven’s true beauties, besides the city building, which sat directly across from the park.
His brothers were already waiting for them in the conference room. When they noticed Mr. Burnett, their smiles for Kristen slightly fell away.
By the time everyone sat down at the large table, the tension in the room had built to enormous proportions.
When he took his seat, at the head of the table, Mr. Burnett cleared his throat and nodded to Kristen to proceed.
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
Kristen stood slowly, her eyes moving around the beautiful conference room. She hadn’t seen these offices when she’d been in Haven the first time. She’d driven by the building, but since Tyler had been working out of the trailer, she’d never actually gone inside.
She was more than impressed with the building. It was stunning. On the inside and out.
Mr. Burnett cleared his throat again and she focused on the task at hand. Her stomach had been uneasy since the short flight from Billings to Haven, and when she saw Tyler again she knew it would be a while before it settled.
“On behalf of JB Holding . . .” She swallowed deep and locked eyes with Tyler. “A subsidiary of DW Petroleum Industries, we would like to . . .”
“No.” Tyler’s eyes narrowed at Mr. Burnett, then he turned to Kristen and she felt her heart kick in her chest and her stomach roll.
“. . . to license your proprietary drilling technology intellectual property for use by our companies and subsidiaries.” She finished as if she was in a trance. She’d practiced the words so many times on the trip out here. She wanted to convey the information Tyler and his family needed without tipping her boss off.
Everyone in the room was silent as she counted every heartbeat pounding in her head.
She knew this modified offer was JB’s last-ditch effort. They were resorting to a Hail Mary. Mr. Burnett was determined to get his hands on the McGowans’ technology. Something had changed in the office since the day he’d flown out to Montana. But since he wasn’t talking to her, she had no idea what it was. All she knew was that there was a renewed drive to sink their teeth into McGowan. And she had a feeling that licensing their technology was only the first step.
“Our father’s drilling technology is not for sale or lease,” Tyler said as he stood.
“Mr. McGowan.” Mr. Burnett rose as well. “I think you’ll find the license agreement to be more than lucrative.”
“I don’t care if it includes the queen’s crown, we’re not selling anything.”
Kristen glanced down at her hands so she could hide the smile from her boss. Of course, she’d known it was impossible. There was no way they would agree to the deal. Especially after she’d found out who she’d really been working for all these years. That had taken some digging.
DW Petroleum Industries had gone to great lengths to hide their stake in not only JB Holding but several other holding companies around the world. Oh sure, if you had access to tax documents you’d be able to get all the information in minutes, but it had taken her several trips to the clerk’s office and hours and hours of research to track it down.
She doubted that even Mr. Burnett had known about DW Petroleum’s controlling interest in JB Holding until she’d mentioned it. The surprised look on his face when she’d told him had been genuine.
The way she figured it, DW Petroleum had gone the easy route by offering to purchase McGowan Enterprises first, and when that didn’t work, they had regrouped around the strategy to offer to license Tyler’s father’s drilling technology. She guessed that it all must have been for the technology.
All three of the sons had mentioned it. Not to mention Rea, John, and several other people she’d talked to who worked for McGowan. Kristen just hadn’t been open to seeing what was right in front of her.
She desperately wished for a moment alone with the family but knew that her boss was watching her like a hawk. Especially since he’d heard a rumor about her relationship with Tyler—she suspected that’s why he brought her back here in the first place, to push Tyler’s buttons.
After almost half an hour of Mr. Burnett’s persuasion techniques falling on deaf ears, he conceded a temporary defeat. He gathered up his papers and ushered her out of the building with Tyler trailing behind.
He drove them to the hotel, and she avoided meeting his eyes, staring out the window instead.
“We’ll meet for lunch in an hour and walk over to the diner,” Mr. Burnett said after they’d checked in. He hadn’t waited for her to agree or reply. Instead, he walked into his room—the room she’d stayed in a few long weeks ago—and shut the door behind him.
Her room was four doors down. She was happy to see that it was a much larger room this time. It was on the very end and had a full bath/shower combo instead of the small shower of the room before.
She wondered if she could convince her boss that she wanted to fend for herself for dinner and somehow get over to see Tyler. No sooner had she shut her door than someone banged on it.
When she opened her door, Tyler stepped around her and into the room. Her eyes locked with his and she realized that he looked very angry.
“Did you know?” he asked.
“No,” she answered, knowing what he was asking. “I found out a few days ago.”
“Why didn’t you call me sooner?” he asked.
“I . . .” The truth was, she’d been afraid, avoiding her feelings. How could she tell him that just hearing his voice would have been too painful for her? Feeling defensive, she shot back, “Why didn’t you call me?”
“You left witho
ut saying good-bye, Kristen.” He sighed. “What were we doing?” he asked, moving closer to her. “What did it mean?” He was close enough that she could see the rich depths of his brown eyes. She felt his breath on her face and for a moment, she wished she had the words to tell him everything she was feeling.
Both of them jumped when a firm knock sounded on her door. She wanted to ignore it, but the knock came again and this time it sounded more urgent. She took the few steps to the door and opened it just enough to see who it was.
Mr. Burnett stood on the other side, pinning her with an assessing gaze. After a moment, he pushed the door open the rest of the way and strode into the room. “Is this what it looks like?”
“What does it look like?” Tyler said, crossing his arms over his chest and adding a smirk to his lips.
Kristen closed her eyes and prayed that she still had a job. At least until she could figure out her next move.
“It looks like one of my employees has been compromised.”
Tyler laughed, actually laughed out loud. “We can finish this conversation later, Kristen.” His eyes met hers.
She swallowed the hurt and nodded, wanting to get them both out of her room as quickly as possible. She needed to think.
Tyler moved to the door and turned back toward her and she saw a flash of something else behind his eyes. Something she hadn’t seen yet from him. Hurt.
He wasn’t surprised when he drove up to his place and saw his brothers’ trucks parked out front. Since he’d decided to work on his land, both Trent and Trey had devoted most of their free time to helping.
The work day had gone downhill since the morning meeting and the incomplete conversation with Kristen at the hotel. He’d finally received the official report about the incident that had ruined the company’s safety record and left Glenn with a shattered tibia.
The official ruling was sabotage. He spent part of the afternoon filing the necessary police and insurance claims. Then he’d ordered new security cameras for all the sites, figuring he and his brothers could install them as soon as they arrived.
