Covet (Splendor Book 1)

by Janet Nissenson

  His usually unflappable assistant looked a bit rattled but merely nodded. “Of course, sir. Just let me get Tessa some data she needs for a spreadsheet and I’ll be right back.”

  While Ian awaited the return of his PA – who would definitely have some things to answer for – the image of young Tessa Lockwood refused to erase itself from his mind. For a man who could easily have his pick of beautiful, desirable women around the globe, it was unheard of for him to be rendered virtually speechless by the mere sight of one. And rarer still that he was instantly and almost uncontrollably aroused after less than three minutes in her presence. Ian was as controlled and in command of his sexual needs as he was of every other aspect of his life, so it was more than a little unsettling for him to have this sort of reaction to a woman.

  And Tessa Lockwood was barely a woman. ‘Christ,’ he thought in near-disgust. ‘She looks like a damned teenager.’ But the fact that he was likely almost twice her age did absolutely nothing to diminish the sudden, overwhelming attraction he felt for the breathtakingly beautiful girl who, by some rather unfortunate set of circumstances, was now working for him.

  The red sheath dress she’d worn had skimmed over a tall, slender figure with curves in all the right places. A thin black patent leather belt encircled her slim waist, setting off the fuller curves of her breasts and hips. Ian knew without having to glance at the label that the dress was inexpensive, as were the plain black patent leather pumps on her feet. Ian had grown up among fashionable, well-dressed women – his mother, grandmothers, aunts, cousins – not to mention the countless number of women he’d met over the years in his business and social circles, all of whom dressed in expensive designer apparel. But it didn’t really matter that Tessa’s simple dress had likely been bought at a discount store or off a sale rack, for she had the sort of figure that would look stunning in anything she wore.

  As if the lush curves of her body weren’t attraction enough, she also had a classically beautiful face – high, sculpted cheekbones; big blue eyes framed by long, curly lashes; a full, kissable mouth; and the sort of flawless, porcelain complexion that only the very young or the very rich could boast of. And the cherry on top of the most delicious sundae he’d ever seen was the thick, lustrous fall of golden blonde hair that spilled over her shoulders and halfway down her back.

  Tessa was stunning – young, ripe and sexy – and yet she somehow seemed to be unaware of how tempting she was. She had been shy and uncertain, and more than a little nervous when being introduced to him just a short time ago, behavior that was not in the least bit typical for a female who was supremely confident of her looks and sex appeal. It made him wonder anew just how young she was.

  ‘Too damned young for you, mate,’ he told himself almost angrily. ‘You’re as bad as that bastard Jason, except at least you’re not a married father of three.’

  And that brought up a whole other concern over the presence of young Tessa Lockwood in his office – how to keep not only the lascivious Jason but every other male in this office from panting after her. She was certain to have already caused quite a stir among them, and Ian could only wonder what in bloody hell Andrew had been thinking of to hire her for a position like this. There was no way that the girl was old enough to have much work experience, and no denying that her face and figure were going to prove a mighty distraction for any red-blooded male who came into contact with her. Including, thought Ian with a grimace, himself. The self-control that he prided himself on maintaining no matter what the circumstances was most assuredly going to come under fire if the girl remained here permanently.

  Ian was pacing distractedly back and forth in front of his desk when Andrew returned, and the PA could only blink and stare in disbelief at his boss. Mr. Gregson was always cool and controlled, was never agitated or even the least bit anxious. The only person Andrew had ever known to be in better control of their emotions was his own self. So it was with some amazement that he observed his normally formal, restrained employer so clearly displaying distress.

  Ian glanced up, his mouth tightening as he brusquely motioned Andrew inside. “Close the door. And then you can explain how a teenager came to be working on the executive floor. And on my support team to boot.”

  Andrew suppressed the rather undignified urge to roll his eyes at his boss’s uncharacteristic sarcasm. “Of course, sir. And if you’re speaking of Tessa – which I assume you are – she is certainly young but not that young. She’s twenty-two, Mr. Gregson. More importantly, she’s been working for the company for three years already.”

  Ian frowned. “Straight out of high school?”

  “Not quite.” Andrew pulled some papers out of a dark blue folder, the sort used for employee files. “Apparently she was hired as a part-time employee after completing a year at community college. She transitioned to full-time a year later after earning an office administration certificate from said college.”

  Ian was only mildly appeased to learn the girl wasn’t quite a teenager, and had already been employed by the Gregson Group for a few years. “She still seems a trifle young – and inexperienced – to work at this level, Andrew. I realize I left the matter of Sarah’s replacement in your capable hands, but I have to question your decision on this issue.”

  Andrew adjusted his glasses and cleared his throat. “I can understand your concern, Mr. Gregson. But I assure you there were several very good reasons for placing Tessa in this position. If I may?”

  Ian gave a terse nod before sitting down in his imposing leather desk chair. “By all means. Convince me why that child is qualified to work on the team.”

  “Of course. First, the timing with Sarah’s very abrupt transfer happened to coincide almost exactly with Tessa’s arrival in San Francisco. Placing her in Sarah’s position was quick and seamless. We avoided the need to interview and do security clearance for a new employee, or worry about having to replace an in-house transfer.”

  Ian waved a hand somewhat irritably. “Convenient, yes, but hardly a valid reason for giving her such a high profile job.”

  “She’s got advanced training in Excel, sir. Certificates from continuing education classes, things like that. She’s an expert at the program, able to perform functions that none of the others on the team could even begin to guess at. Even I’m not proficient at some of the more advanced functions that she can do,” admitted Andrew somewhat reluctantly. “And in less than two weeks she’s managed to update every single hotel report with the details you wanted added – the parameterizations, nesting the pivot charts, all of it. And before you ask, sir, yes – I double checked her work and everything is flawless.”

  Ian was rarely if ever shocked, but this was one time he didn’t even bother to hide his reaction. “Impossible,” he declared. “That’s an ungodly amount of work for a person to get done in less than two weeks. Show me.”

  Andrew quickly and efficiently opened up the file sharing system that he, Ian, and the support team all had access to. He located the files in question, and then stepped back as Ian began to carefully inspect them one at a time.

  After looking over the first dozen or so, he gave a brusque nod and closed out the program. He would certainly look each file over in great detail when he had more time, but for the moment he was content that the job had been done to his satisfaction.

  “Obviously she’s quite accomplished with this one function, but what about the rest of her skills?” he asked. Ian realized he was searching for a reason – any reason – not to keep this girl on his team and therefore not in his proximity. She would most definitely be a constant distraction that he simply couldn’t afford to worry about.

  “She passed all of her tests with flying colors,” assured Andrew. “Proficient in word processing, Power Point, databases, even desktop publishing. And she’s an extremely hard worker, Mr. Gregson. Since she’s been working here, Tessa has been the first one of the team to arrive each day, and the last one to leave, plus I know she’s skipped lunch almost ever
y day. I’m sure some of that is because she wanted to get all of your reports updated before you returned, but there’s no denying her dedication. Oh, and one last thing, sir.”

  Andrew drew a neatly typed letter from Tessa’s personnel file. “Also, Tessa comes very highly recommended by her previous manager – a Mrs. Francine Carrington.”

  That name got Ian’s attention and he stared at Andrew in mild shock. Andrew realized he’d seen his normally unflappable boss show more emotion in the past ten minutes than in the entire three years they had worked together.

  A slow smile crossed Ian’s features. “It’s hard to imagine Mrs. C. recommending anyone, much less highly so. Let me see that letter, please.”

  After scanning the sheet of paper, his smile broadened. “Well, I suppose that settles it, then. If Tessa made this sort of impression on Mrs. C. – the toughest boss I ever had – then she must be qualified. There’s just one more thing, then.”

  Andrew raised a brow expectantly, wondering what else his boss could possibly object to. “What’s that, sir?”

  Ian grimaced. “Keeping her as far away from that bastard Jason Baldwin as possible. He must have thought Christmas and his birthday arrived wrapped up in one big shiny package when he met Tessa for the first time. We are not going to have a repeat of the Sarah incident with Tessa. Not to mention the previous two sexual harassment incidences my uncle swept under the rug.”

  “Three, sir. There were actually three incidences on his record prior to this most recent one with Sarah,” pointed out Andrew. “But in regards to Tessa, I doubt that Mr. Baldwin will bother her under the circumstances.”

  Ian frowned. “What circumstances would those be?”

  “Tessa is married, sir. Hopefully that knowledge will keep all the males in this office at bay – whether they happen to be married themselves or not.”

  Ian thought he’d received all the shocks a person could handle in one day, but the knowledge that the beautiful, golden girl – the one who had captured his attention like no other woman ever had before - belonged to another man was almost enough to knock him on his arse. “Married?” he repeated hoarsely. “How is that possible? I mean – she’s too damned young to be married.”

  “I happen to agree, sir, but the fact of the matter is that she’s a married woman. Married to a Peter Lockwood. He’s evidently a journalist.”

  “Children?”

  Andrew glanced up from Tessa’s personnel file in surprise at the almost desperate tone of his boss’s voice. “No, sir. At least none that she listed as covered dependents for her medical insurance. And I’ve spent a good deal of time showing her the ropes these past two weeks so the topic of any children would certainly have come up. An unplanned pregnancy is most likely not the reason she got married so young.”

  ‘No,’ thought Ian with a sense of near-despair. ‘Her husband is probably as young and attractive as she is, and the boy wisely snatched her up before someone else could. Lucky little bastard.’

  Andrew left his office moments later, leaving Ian to mull over everything they had just discussed. Almost without being aware of his actions, he pulled up the employee directory for the Tucson resort on his computer, and dialed in directly to the woman who’d once put the fear of God into his nineteen-year-old heart.

  “I was wondering when I might hear from you, young Ian,” greeted the austere, no-nonsense voice of Francine Carrington. “I assume from this long overdue call to your former manager that you’ve met Tessa.”

  Ian couldn’t help chuckling, recalling as though it were yesterday the first time he’d met the very intimidating and extremely daunting Mrs. Carrington. She had been in charge of the entire administrative staff at the company’s worldwide headquarters in London, and Ian had been assigned to work under her direction during his summer break from Oxford. He and his brothers had been required since the time they entered their teens to learn the family business from the ground up. That meant spending school breaks working at one of the hundreds of worldwide properties owned by the Gregson Group, and most assuredly not at a cushy, executive level position. Ian and his siblings – Hugh and Colin – had all worked a wide variety of jobs – bellhop, front desk clerk, gardener, housekeeping, janitor, hotel laundry, and busboy. As they grew older and graduated from university, they had moved on to desk jobs and began the long, gradual climb up the managerial and executive ladders until each had achieved the position of Regional Director.

  Ian had learned a great deal from his formative years working in a variety of entry level and clerical jobs, but never as much as he had the one summer he’d spent under Mrs. C’s stern eye. She cared not a whit that he was the company founder’s grandson, and gave him zero leeway or tolerance. Like all of the employees under her direction, he’d been terrified of her and had done his utmost to abide by her strict rules of conduct and live up to her lofty expectations. But her Draconian-like rules had had the desired affect his father and uncle had hoped for – Ian and his siblings had emerged from their summers under Mrs. C’s direction as capable, steadfast employees, ready to take on any task.

  He’d kept in touch with Mrs. C. over the years, visiting with her from time to time at the corporate offices in London. He recalled now that she had requested a transfer to the Tucson resort several years ago since her husband suffered from some type of pulmonary disease and would benefit from the drier climate of Arizona.

  “Yes, I’ve met your dear Tessa,” agreed Ian. “For a few moments I found it hard to believe that the Mrs. C. I knew could ever write such a glowing recommendation for anyone. So initially I had to assume that either the letter was forged or that you’d gone soft.”

  “Pah!” exclaimed Francine in mild disgust. “You know me better than that, boy. If anything I’ve become crankier and even harder to please in my old age. As for forging a letter, Tessa is the very last person who would think of doing something so unethical. The girl is the most timid little thing I’ve ever met, afraid of her own shadow half the time.”

  Ian drummed his long fingers on his desk. “So everything you detailed in your letter is true, then?”

  “Every word. She’s a good girl, Tessa is. Hardest worker I’ve ever seen, never slacks off, doesn’t gossip – which you know I detest – no excuses, never late. She dragged herself in once sick as a dog and wouldn’t leave until she’d finished some reports.” Francine’s voice quieted as she added, “You know how difficult it is to earn my respect, Ian, and Tessa has it in spades. She’ll make an excellent addition to your staff. You’re lucky to have her. Meanwhile, I’m left to deal with the nitwit who was hired to replace her. Useless, annoying girl – I give her two months tops before I have to fire her or she runs out of here crying.”

  Ian couldn’t suppress a chuckle. “Go easy on her, Mrs. C. It sounds like your Tessa is going to be a hard act to follow.”

  “She’s your Tessa now, my boy. And you’d better treat her well. She’s -” Francine hesitated. “Well, let’s just say she’s had a rough time of it in her young life. I admire her all the more for how she’s overcome her misfortune.”

  “What sort of misfortune?”

  “I can’t discuss that with you, Ian, as I’m certain you know,” admonished Francine. “Not to mention I’m not sure that even I know all of it. Tessa is a very private person, not one to broadcast her life’s story around the office. Another admirable trait that I value. Just – go easy on the girl, Ian. Trust me, it won’t take you long at all to realize her value. Not to mention,” she added slyly, “she’s quite easy on the eye, isn’t she?”

  Ian chose his next words carefully before replying. “She’s a lovely girl, yes. But is it really true that she’s already married at such a young age?”

  Francine sighed. “Yes, it’s true. It’s – complicated, Ian. That’s all I can say on the matter. Tessa rarely discusses her husband but he definitely exists. Nice enough boy and she dotes on him, but there’s something a bit odd there.”

  He decided not
to question her further about Tessa’s marital status, not wanting to betray even the slightest indication to the extremely perceptive Mrs. C. that he was attracted to the girl.

  “I am a bit worried about how Jason is going to act around her,” confessed Ian. He knew that Francine had met his smarmy cousin-in-law on more than one occasion, and that she had an extremely low opinion of him. “Tessa’s predecessor requested a transfer because of some difficulty with him.”

  Francine’s voice was as biting as a whip crack. “Ian, promise me right now that you’ll keep that randy bastard Jason away from Tessa. If I learn that he’s so much as blinked at her the wrong way, I swear I’ll pack Oliver into the car along with my brand new shotgun and drive up there to deal with the little weasel myself. And I’m quite a good shot these days after my weekly sessions at the firing range.”

  Ian smiled in spite of himself at the ferocity of Francine’s words. “You’re quite the protective mama bear about this girl, aren’t you?”

  “She needs looking out for, Ian. More so than anyone I’ve ever met. So, please, do me the greatest favor and keep an eye on her, would you? Discreetly, of course, she can be quite stubborn when it comes to asking for help.”

  “I promise,” he assured his former mentor gently. “And – thank you for sending her my way. If she managed to make this sort of impression on you, then I know she must be an excellent employee.”

  They exchanged pleasantries for a few more minutes before bidding each other good-bye. Ian replaced his phone receiver then shut his eyes, massaging the beginnings of a headache he felt welling up near his temples.

  ‘Good Lord, what a disaster,’ he muttered under his breath. ‘How in the world are you going to cope with this one, mate?’

  Against his will, the tempting image of Tessa invaded his thoughts once again. He longed to spread all of that glorious golden hair out over his pillow; to gently remove that discreetly sexy red dress and bare her lush, curvy body to his eager gaze; to wrap those long, shapely legs around his waist. Ian grew hard instantly as he imagined having her – nothing as crude as a quick, hard fuck - for Tessa was worth so much more than that. Instead, he would linger over her for hours, kissing, caressing, arousing, and making love to her over and over until he was finally sated. For a while, anyway, for he feared that Tessa was the sort of woman he could never truly have his fill of. Even her name was perfect – soft, feminine, classy – just as she was.