A Little Christmas Pretense

by Rachel A Andersen

  “You mean Doctor Strange?”

  Cindy conjured an image in her mind before she visually compared the actor’s features to Mr. Fortescue’s. Gillian might be exaggerating the man’s attractiveness a little, but she wasn’t wrong about the hair. The man did have gorgeous dark hair.

  Gillian leaned closer to Cindy. “Yeah. I mean, he’s wearing a three-piece suit instead of a cape, but other than that he’s breathtakingly beautiful to look at.”

  That was exactly what disqualified him from a comparison to Doctor Strange in Cindy’s book, but then, she wasn’t Gillian. “Yeah, I guess he’s attractive.”

  And obnoxious.

  “So, what’s he like?” Gillian asked.

  Cindy shrugged, unwilling to destroy her friend’s fantasy. The man was aloof enough that he would likely interact almost entirely with Margaret. “He spent most of his time looking at a newspaper. I haven’t really talked to him.”

  At this stage of Gillian’s infatuation, it was probably best to let her fantasize. The cold hard facts would start making themselves known soon enough. Any negative statement at this stage in the game would likely be premature.

  Oh, the irony of this stuffed shirt Brit walking into the office and distracting the editors with his presence. Cindy had to admit that she was enjoying that perhaps a little more than she might have if the man hadn’t specifically told her not to distract his assistant.

  Cindy printed off the menu for the New York style deli. “Hey, Gillian, I know how you can get a little facetime with Mr. Fortescue.”

  Gillian’s eyes widened. “Really?”

  Cindy pulled the paper off the printer. “Ask Mr. Fortescue and Mr. Prince for their lunch orders.”

  Gillian stopped in her tracks and looked at Cindy. “Isn’t that something you usually take care of? Are you avoiding Mr. Fortescue and Mr. Prince?”

  Cindy laughed, trying to hide even from herself how her pulse sped up. “It’s nothing. I’ve just been away from my desk for a few hours, and I need to get caught up. Besides, they know me. They’re going to be working with you too after all.”

  Gillian pursed her lips to the side. “Yeah. But do I really want to start off my relationship with them thinking that this is something I’ll do regularly?”

  Cindy tried not to roll her eyes as irritation welled up in her. “Gillian, you seemed to want to get an introduction to Mr. Fortescue. If you don’t, I’ll take care of it.”

  “Oh, I do,” Gillian pulled the menu back from Cindy.

  “Good,” Cindy said with a nod of finality. “Now, tell them that I have to get caught up on some filing and some messages, so you’re just helping me out. It’ll give you a chance to meet them without making it seem like you’re the office gopher.”

  Gillian brightened instantly. “That’s perfect. Oh, Cindy, you know just the right thing to say.”

  Cindy managed a thin smile for her friend as she went through the mail on the desk and sorted it in her usual manner. “That’s why they pay me the big bucks.”

  Gillian shook her head as she rose. “Oh yeah, the big bucks.”

  Cindy couldn’t help but smile as her friend walked over to where Richard and Alastair stood just inside the conference room, the irritation beginning to dissipate a little as the hurt and panic started to wane. Margaret was using her hands to illustrate something, probably the plan she had for the staff meeting and the ideas she’d had for facilitating the individual interviews.

  Cindy turned back to her work which included a mockup of the interview schedule she’d already put together for the staff that she was planning on running past Richard first. Of course the moment she thought of Richard, she accidentally caught a glimpse of where he had stepped out from the circle and accepted the menu from Gillian. He turned an appreciative nod in Cindy’s direction, and she felt the conflicting feelings well up in her again.

  Sure, he was nice. Obviously, he was good-looking, too, but they worked together and he was leaving in three days. This was definitely not the time to indulge in the once-in-a-lifetime whirlwind romance fantasy.

  There was no way that Richard Prince would end up being her one-and-only. That kind of thing only happened in movies and fairy tales. This was real life. No, Richard Prince would walk into her life, maybe sweep her off her feet for a night, and in three days’ time, she’d never see him again.

  Good riddance.

  CHAPTER FIVE

  The excitement and curiosity was palpable in the conference room as the staff squeezed in for the quick meeting in which Mr. Fortescue would be introduced and his plan unfolded.

  Cindy closed the door as she slipped in. In meetings like this, she was typically one of the last to enter because she was usually the person who gave last minute reminders and dealt with any emergencies which arose during the meeting.

  “There you are.” Richard’s voice tickled the tiny hairs on Cindy’s ear as he came up behind her.

  She turned slightly to see his wink as a grin lit up his face. “Now we can begin.”

  Any pleasure she found in the situation died as she felt Mr. Fortescue’s eyes on her. She dropped the smile at the look of disapproval. She wanted to tell him that it wasn’t her fault that Richard kept being charming. Shouldn’t he have this discussion with Richard if he was so concerned?

  Maybe he’d had it so many times with no response that he’d switched tactics and started harassing the women to whom Richard turned his attentions.

  The idea of Richard flirting with more women than just her made her heart sink with the beginnings of dread which did more to upset her than Fortescue’s glance.

  Mr. Humphrey took center stage and cleared his throat. “Hello again. It’s good to be back with you. I wanted to introduce you to the man of the hour, Mr. Alastair Fortescue III.”

  Alastair gave a quick nod as there was an enthusiastic clap of greeting that echoed throughout the room.

  “Mr. Fortescue, would you like to share your vision of the next three days with the staff?” Mr. Humphrey prompted when it became clear that Mr. Fortescue was not planning on stepping forward.

  The man tensed for a moment before he walked the half-dozen steps to the spot Mr. Humphrey had just vacated.

  “I want to thank you for the warm welcome,” he said, though his face did not give the slightest hint that he was happy to be there.

  He gestured to his assistant who waved warmly at the eyes which found him from around the room. “Richard and I will be conducting interviews with the staff over the next few days to see how we wish to proceed in leading Fortescue Publishing into the future.”

  Everyone waited for more information, but he stepped back into the shadows without another word. A hesitant smattering of applause brought Mr. Humphrey back to the front of the room.

  “Thank you, Mr. Fortescue. Before we let you get back to your individual tasks, I wanted to make sure to publicly thank Margaret Stone for her diligent leadership in Al Fortescue’s absence.”

  He turned slightly and offered Margaret a sincere smile. “He’s been quite grateful for your willingness to help keep the company running smoothly.”

  Margaret flashed an attempt at a modest smile though Cindy could see the pride shining in her eyes.

  Margaret let her gaze fall naturally on Alastair and Richard. “If there’s anything I can do to help Mr. Fortescue or Mr. Prince with their interviews, please let me know.”

  Alastair just nodded once in acknowledgment of her pledge.

  “Thank you, Ms. Stone.” Mr. Humphrey turned his attention back to the rest of the group. “Are there any questions we can answer before I return you to your work?”

  “What kind of questions are there going to be in these interviews?” Marlene, from accounting, asked without even waiting to be called on.

  “Mr. Fortescue and I were talking about them.” Richard turned to her without missing a beat. “They won’t be anything too personal. We’re just getting to know you, what you like about working at Fortescue
Publishing, that sort of thing.”

  “How long are these interviews going to be?”

  Cindy looked up, trying to find the face of the man who had spoken. Christian in Marketing, maybe? The question had come so quickly on the heels of Richard’s answer that she hadn’t had time to look.

  “No more than about fifteen or twenty minutes. The interviews will be scheduled every thirty minutes in case something comes up or if you have questions. We want to make sure that we’re respectful of your time.”

  Cindy looked from Richard to Mr. Fortescue. He seemed oddly relaxed to be letting his personal assistant answer these questions. She looked over at Margaret. Her boss wouldn’t stand for her to answer questions which had been directed at her, even if she was more qualified to answer them.

  Various splinter conversations started growing louder throughout the room.

  “Are there any other questions?” Mr. Humphrey asked.

  There was no direct answer from anyone in the group.

  People arose and walked out the door without waiting to be formally dismissed. “Thank you for your time.”

  Cindy’s heart went out to the attorney. The audience had been anxious to get back to work, to clear their calendars of the thirty minutes or so that they would be needed for these interviews. Still, Mr. Humphrey had not deserved the indifference he’d won. Even if very little had been shared with them beyond what had already been stated.

  Cindy turned her gaze toward Mr. Fortescue. He’d been very quiet for leading a staff meeting. She wondered if he was shy, and if that was why he had originally come off as somewhat off-putting. When one was trying to budget one’s words, they weren’t always willing or able to judge their impact.

  Richard caught up to her as the room cleared of clusters of professionals at a time. “Do you mind if we get started on the schedule for the interviews? I’d really like to be able to start with them first thing tomorrow morning.”

  Cindy pulled her thoughts back to the work as she caught Margaret’s saunter up to Mr. Fortescue. Undoubtedly the woman would manage to steal him away for some reason or another so that she could make it seem like she was the best woman for the job. “I’ve already got a draft for you to preview.”

  “You do?” Richard’s eyebrows nearly hit the top of his hairline. “Humphrey only told you that we were coming yesterday.”

  She smirked. It felt quite satisfying to impress him. “I work quickly.”

  “Someday, when I’m a high-powered CEO and businessman, I am going to hire a personal assistant as awesome as you.”

  Richard’s eyes twinkled as Cindy caught an accidental glance toward them. “Heck, maybe I’ll even steal you away from Margaret someday.”

  Cindy turned her eyes down to her computer. The words stung. Even Charlotte had seen something more in her than mere potential to support another professional. “Is that all you think I’m good for? To be your personal assistant?”

  His eyebrows raised toward her. “Never said that. Just admitting a little professional admiration. That’s all.”

  She rolled her eyes though a smile tugged at her lips. “Uh huh.”

  She sat down at the computer, and he rested his hips against the side of the desk. “And what exactly would your boss do if he knew you were showing me a little professional admiration?”

  Darn her traitorous heart. There it went, racing with the anxiety of the question.

  The frivolity dropped from Richard’s face instantly. “My boss?”

  Cindy dropped the casual tone, and looked up at him. “Yes, your boss.”

  She motioned toward where Margaret and Mr. Fortescue had headed after the staff meeting. “The one who’s been giving me grief about not distracting you?”

  His brow furrowed as he looked up at the ceiling in recollection. Recognition dawned in his eyes, and he sighed. “Cindy, that’s not what you think.”

  “You mean, you don’t make a habit of flirting with every female you come in contact with on your apparently many business trips?”

  He opened his mouth to speak, but she shook her head and effectively silenced him. “No, you know what? I don’t even want to know.”

  She turned her fingers to the keyboard and typed quickly into the search bar for her documents. “You’re leaving in three days, and I have no intention of getting another glare from Mr. Fortescue before you leave.”

  She inhaled as she clicked on a document. Immediately, she pressed the print button. “There.”

  She motioned to the paper which was quietly being cycled through the printer. “You can take that into the conference center and let me know if you think we need to make any changes.”

  Richard looked at her, his lips pursed in thought, before he quietly took the papers. He reached for one of the promotional pens on her desk and took a step toward the conference center. “I guess I’ll see you on the flipside.”

  CHAPTER SIX

  Cindy stood in the ladies’ room, splashing water on her face. Her face had flushed almost the moment Richard had stepped into the conference room to review her interview schedule draft.

  That had been over an hour ago.

  Mr. Fortescue was right in some ways. Someone was being distracted by the tension she felt between Richard and her, but it didn’t seem to be Richard.

  It was neither against the law nor socially unacceptable to be an indiscriminate flirt.

  All it did was make her life more complicated than she had any desire for it to be right now. If he could even be called an indiscriminate flirt. She hadn’t really seen any evidence of any attempts to get close to anyone on the staff the way he had tried to get to her.

  She wiped her face with a paper towel to try and hide the evidence of her attempts to regulate her flaming shame.

  She looked at the mirror and sighed. “What are you doing, Cindy? Whatever you think is going on with your heart isn’t going on. You’re just emotional because of the holidays and...”

  Her thoughts turned to her father, and the sentence died on her lips.

  Just...drop it, the weary voice in her brain begged.

  I wish I could, she responded almost on impulse.

  She inhaled, hoping beyond hope that she’d get enough courage to walk back out the door.

  Three deep breaths later, she finally opened the door to the women’s restroom.

  “There you are.”

  “Lord, give me strength,” she pleaded as Margaret Stone walked down the hallway toward her.

  “Mr. Fortescue and I are going to dinner tonight.” Margaret’s tone brooked no argument. “I need you to go and get his suitcase and put it in my car so that I can drop him off at the hotel afterward.”

  Cindy bobbed her head once, the beginnings of a migraine starting to work right behind her right eyeball.

  “Since it is nearly five o’clock and I’m leaving with Mr. Fortescue in only a matter of minutes, I suppose you’d better take Mr. Prince to the hotel so he can check in and make his plans for the evening.”

  Then, as an afterthought, she added, “Whatever they are.”

  “I’m not feeling my best.”

  Cindy pinched the bridge of her nose and closed her eyes. It wasn’t a lie. She had a headache brewing that she would love to ease away with a nice soak in her bathtub. “Maybe it would be best if Mr. Prince took a cab.”

  Margaret’s eyes narrowed. “Mr. Prince take a cab?”

  “He’s the one who suggested that we should have just hired a car service so we didn’t waste anyone’s time waiting for them at the airport,” she explained, as she attempted to keep her temper under control.

  She couldn’t let Margaret bait her.

  “Here at Fortescue Publishing, we always offer the personal touch.” Margaret’s eyes glinted with restrained anger. “For our authors, our leadership, for everyone.”

  She pursed her lips in displeasure. “You will do whatever is necessary to help Mr. Fortescue or Mr. Prince for the duration of their visit.”

&n
bsp; Cindy blinked at her employer. “Whatever is necessary? What does that mean?”

  “It means that I will bury you if you don’t play ball.” Margaret’s voice was thin with irritation.

  Cindy leaned in, her own gaze narrowed. “And what exactly are you going to do that you haven’t done already?”

  Over Margaret’s shoulder, she saw Richard Prince. His expression was concerned, and she had a feeling he had heard far more of their exchange than Margaret would want.

  She hated to admit it, but she felt a tiny thrill of excitement shoot up her spine at the idea of someone outside of her usual workmates seeing Margaret for who she really was.

  Margaret caught her gaze and turned to look at Richard with a bright smile as if she hadn’t been more threatening than a butterfly. “Mr. Prince, we were just discussing your ride. Cindy was so looking forward to taking you back to your hotel.”

  Margaret turned a pointed look to Cindy. “She even suggested that maybe she take you to dinner to welcome you to the city.”

  Margaret contorted her face into a look of awe as she turned back to Richard. “I offered her the company credit card, but she refused.”

  She winked at Richard. “I think someone has a little crush on you.”

  Her voice sang the words as if she was positively delighted.

  Cindy closed her eyes. Someday, she’d make sure Margaret paid for the little tortures she thought up. How? Well, she wasn’t quite sure yet.

  Richard didn’t react to her fake sense of camaraderie. “I was kind of looking for a quiet night myself. If that’s okay with you, Ms. Ash?”

  She could have kissed him. Though he’d made life more difficult today, she got the impression that he’d started to catch an idea of how he could help her out.

  He looked past Margaret and toward Cindy. “In fact, I was just going to call a taxi. I need to grab my bag from your car, if that’s okay.”

  Cindy waved off his concern. “I can take you.”

  “You’re sure it’s not a problem?” He studied her closely.