Joe glanced over his shoulder, his gaze angry. What had she done wrong? Had Tony complained about something she’d proposed? She’d turned in some concepts for a house renovation yesterday. Had the client hated her ideas?
“Just come with me.”
Joe continued down the hallway, walking fast. Savannah obediently hurried behind him, ignoring the clenching of her stomach as well as the threatening nausea. Swallowing hard, she inhaled slowly and deeply, trying to stop the nausea. This wasn’t a good time, she told her stomach.
Joe walked into his office and Savannah followed, looking around. She’d never been in this office before. Joe was one of the partners and too high up in the chain of command for someone in her position. But looking around now, she was amazed at the beautiful décor. It was done in tans and gold tones, the curtains highlighting the views and the lighting fixtures adding warmth and a sense of luxury and wealth.
“How can I…?” she stopped, feeling a familiar energy. A power! Something she hadn’t felt in…!
Turning, she scanned the room. There! Gaelen stood by the other window! Savannah gasped and she stared at Gaelen! He looked…magnificent!
“This is Prince Gaelen el Raminar of Izara, Savannah,” Joe explained. “Your Highness, this is the designer you requested for your project.”
Prince? Savannah’s mouth fell open at the introduction. “You’re a prince?” she whispered, her lips feeling numb.
“Hello, my dear,” Gaelen replied, sidestepping her question. “You don’t look as well as you should. Not eating again?”
His words felt like a slap to her face and she paled, stepping backwards. Her fingers curling into fists so that she didn’t reach up and trace that scar as she’d done so often after they’d made love.
“I take it you two know each other?” Joe asked, his voice filled with derision as he looked between them.
“We’re acquainted,” Gaelen replied. “I mentioned that before. Also, I liked her layout in the magazine, which is why I requested her specifically for this project.”
“Project?” Savannah echoed, her head swiveling between Gaelen, the man she’d fallen so madly in love with, and her boss’ boss who held her future in his irritated hands.
Joe sighed, taking off his glasses and pulling out a handkerchief, cleaning the lenses impatiently. “His Highness, Prince el Raminar, has specifically requested your services.” He turned to Savannah with fresh eyes. Was there a tinge of respect in his gaze now?
Savannah couldn’t tell and was too confused to interpret the man’s expression. “But sir, I’m just a junior associate. I’ve worked with Tony on several projects over the past two months, but…”
“You’ll continue to work with Tony. He’ll oversee all of your work.”
“No!” Gaelen snapped.
Savannah knew from the firm press of his lips that he was irritated. “She won’t be supervised by anyone but myself and my nieces. She’ll submit all designs to me for approval. My nieces will give her input as to what they want, but I have final say.”
Savannah was even more confused and turned to Joe, her eyes pleading for clarification. Joe simply nodded, ever careful about pleasing the clients. Especially one this important.
“Very well, Your Highness. Do you have a timetable?”
“I’d like her to start immediately. When will she be free of her other projects?”
Joe crossed his arms over his chest. “I’m sure that Tony can clear up her schedule.” He glanced over at Savannah. “Do you have a passport?”
She stared at her boss for a long moment, then finally shook her head. “Why would I need a passport?” she asked, a feeling of dread hitting her.
“Because your next project is in Izara,” Gaelen explained.
Savannah turned slowly to face the man who had ignored a very significant day. For a long moment, she didn’t understand. But eventually, the determined look in his eyes warned her of his plans.
Straightening her shoulders, she glared right back at him. “No!” she announced, then turned on her heel and stalked out of her boss’ boss’ office.
Walking right back to her cubicle, she looked around, trying to make sense of what had just happened. Then something else occurred to her. Startled, she looked down the hallway. “I just told the head of my firm no!”
Tony stepped into her cubicle, several color palates in hand. “Hey, are you okay?” he asked.
Savannah’s mouth fell open and she turned to look at her boss. “Joe just called me into his office,” she explained, her voice strangled. “I just…told him no! He said I was supposed to work on this guy’s project, but I know the guy and he doesn’t have a project Tony,” she babbled frantically, needing her boss to understand. “He’s just a guy who is trying to manipulate me and…I don’t know why but he’s angry with me, but he doesn’t have any right to be and…!”
“Woah!” Tony said, dropping the color samples. “Wait a minute. What’s going on? Explain it to me again, but slower this time.”
Savannah inhaled slowly and deeply, gripping the back of her desk chair until her knuckles turned white. “I’m sorry, that was a bit rushed.” She took another breath, then looked up at her boss. Unfortunately, Gaelen appeared behind him and her explanation died.
“Get out!” she hissed.
Tony, not realizing that Gaelen was right behind her, pulled back, startled. “Excuse me?”
“She’s talking to me,” Gaelen said, stepping around the man. “I’m her new client and,” he took her arm, pulling her around Tony, “she needs a few lessons on how to speak to clients, I’m thinking,” He towed her into a small conference room, closing the door for privacy. Only then did he turn around to glare at her.
“Just what do you think you’re doing?” she demanded, glancing through the glass doors as both Tony and Joe watched.
Realizing that she was making a spectacle, she tried to pull herself together. “I’m sorry, Ga…” she paused, reminded of the title Joe had used several minutes ago. She looked up at him, tears of confusion, anger, and fear formed. She straightened, folding her hands in front of her, fighting to keep herself together. “I apologize for my rudeness, Your Highness,” she started again with as much dignity as she could muster under the circumstances. “That was inexpressibly rude of me.” She bowed her head, blinking furiously to stop the tears. When she looked up again, she was somewhat back under control. “So…you’re a prince. That’s nice. And you have a project that you’d like our firm to handle? What sort of project?” She asked, remembering the way Tony had spoken to clients over the past two months, trying to emulate him.
“You aren’t eating enough,” he growled, not moving from his spot in front of the door.
“I’m sorry?”
His eyes moved down over her figure and she ran a hand self-consciously over her dress. She’d donned a black sheath dress that she’d found in a consignment shop last weekend, adding some clunky jewelry so she looked a bit more edgy and creative. She’d also found a fabulous pair of red shoes that had barely been used. After fixing a few minor issues with the dress and the shoes, Savannah had thought that her outfit looked nice!
“You’ve lost weight. And you were too skinny before. You’re not eating enough.”
She started to step back as her anger kicked in, but she held her tongue. “Yes, well, that’s probably true but,” she forced a smile, painfully aware of Tony and Joe watching her performance with what was possibly the most important client they’d ever had. A prince? A freaking prince?! How dare he be a prince! Brushing off the thoughts, she focused back on the present. “I’m fairly certain that my eating habits aren’t an issue in designing a beautiful room that fits your needs.” There! That was a good line! She shouldn’t have invited him to her graduation ceremony. She’d believed that their relationship was more significant than it had been and she’d been wrong.
“I’m fairly certain that your eating habits are an issue,” he snapped.
Restraining herself from snapping back, she inhaled slowly, then let it out. “Right.” She straightened again, pulling her shoulders back. “I apologize for my previous outburst. You have a project?”
His eyes narrowed on her and she stared back with as much interest as she could feign. Why had she fallen so hard for this man? Why had he promised to attend her graduation and not shown up? Why had she believed that she mattered to him?!
Gaelen wanted to throw something. Or crush something. He kept reminding himself that this was Savannah’s place of work, that he couldn’t ruin things for her. He was also trying hard to remember not to walk across the room and take her into his arms and demand to know why she hadn’t accepted his gifts. What had changed her mind?
After dealing with the crisis back in Izara, he’d been informed by his messenger that she’d rejected his graduation gift. He knew that it wasn’t because she’d thought the gift too extravagant because she hadn’t even looked at it. Hadn’t opened the box or read his note.
Damn her, what was she playing at?
“My nieces,” he began slowly. “Remember me saying they were struggling to deal with the death of their parents?” There! He saw the emotion flicker in her beautiful brown eyes and knew that he’d caught her attention now.
She lifted her chin and folded her hands in front of her. He didn’t like it! He wanted the old Savannah back! He wanted the woman who would run to him as soon as he stepped into the room, the woman who…damn it! He wanted Savannah so badly that he ached.
“Yes. Are they okay? Has something else happened?”
“No, they are fine. They’re thriving, actually. But I’m hiring you to redecorate their bedrooms and schoolrooms. The school area is still set up as a nursery area. I’m hiring you to change all of that and make it into a room that is more age appropriate. The girls are now six years old, but the room that they are in was designed for babies. My sister didn’t bother to redecorate when she came home for brief visits prior to her…passing.”
As he explained, Gaelen saw the light enter her eyes. It wasn’t the same light that he’d seen months ago. But it was something other than the cold, formally polite demeanor that she’d pulled around herself when they’d first walked into this conference room.
“I see,” she nodded. “Okay, so do the girls have a preference on style or color?” she asked, moving over to the bureau set against one wall. He watched her pull out some paper and what looked to be charcoal pencils but he wasn’t sure. There was also a color wheel and something that had fabric samples dangling from a metal ring.
His smile changed to triumphant and he sensed her tension before he said, “I don’t know. That’s why I asked if you had a passport. So that you could ask them yourself.”
Savannah stopped arranging things on the conference room table and looked up at him. “Ask them myself?”
“Yes. You will travel to Izara and ask my nieces, Elsa and Ellora, what they want their rooms and school area to look like. They are sweet girls who have gone through a huge trauma. We, meaning my brothers and Talia, my sister, want those girls to know that they have control over their world. And this is a perfect example of giving them that control.”
What he said made sense regarding his nieces. But he wanted her to travel to Izara? “I don’t think…” she looked through the glass doors of the conference room, but Tony and Joe had disappeared. She must have been doing the right things since they’d left her to work on this issue with “His Highness” alone.
“I can’t travel to Izara,” she replied firmly. “I thought I’d made that clear earlier.”
His arrogant smile increased. “Well, I think you should reconsider your rejection.” He moved closer, leaning his hands against the conference table. “I’m a very important client, Savannah. And I want you on this project.”
Her hands moved to her stomach that was rebelling again. “I won’t do it,” she told him forcefully.
“Oh, you will,” he countered.
But without saying another word, he left the conference room and the building.
Savannah stared after him, not sure what had just happened. Had Gaelen threatened her? She reviewed his words in her head and dismissed them. No, he wasn’t like that. He wouldn’t threaten her.
Then again, she’d thought he was excited to attend her graduation ceremony. So, perhaps she didn’t know him well enough.
Gaelen ducked into the back of the limousine. “Did you find out where she lives?” he demanded of his head of security.
The man twisted around in the seat. “Yes, Your Highness. We have her new address.”
“Good. Send someone over there to watch her.”
“Already on it,” the man said. “I have someone watching her office and her house, plus we have people who will follow her in the subway system.”
“I don’t want her riding the subway any more. It’s too dangerous. Especially now that my interest is known. Someone might reveal that information to the wrong person. Have a driver and car in place to take her wherever she needs to go.”
The guard frowned, concerned, and Gaelen understood. “I know,” he sighed, frustrated. “Just…tell her that the vehicle was hired by her employer because of me. She’ll believe that. I’ll have my assistant tell her employer that she’s required to use the car service. She’ll do it if that ass she works for tells her to.”
He both resented the fact that she wouldn’t use a car service for him, but was also proud of her independent nature. If there was one thing he was absolutely sure of about Savannah, it was that she wasn’t interested in him for his money, power, or position. Hell, she hadn’t even known who he really was until today.
That been an absolute mess!
He should have warned that patronizing ass that she worked for not to use his title. Damn it!
Everything about the past month had been insane! Nothing had gone right, until the previous week when things had finally cleared up. And why the hell hadn’t Savannah accepted his deliveries? If she’d just…damn it!
He was used to being in control and with Savannah, the way she made him feel, he wasn’t in control. Hell, she controlled him in ways that he hated. And loved! He wanted her in his life because…because she was the woman he wanted. And she loved him! He knew that she did! She never would have given herself so completely to him if she didn’t love him with her whole heart.
And damn it, he loved her! If she’d just accepted that box and his note on her graduation day, they wouldn’t be going through any of this now! They could be back in Izara, in his bed and he’d…hell, as soon as he got her back into his bed, he was going to tie her there and torture her with so much damn pleasure, she’d be sobbing! Begging him to stop. Not that he would.
Sighing, he rubbed his forehead. He wasn’t going to do anything like that. He just wanted to hold her. And make love to her! But hold her. He wanted to feel her body press against his, to feel her soft curves and breathe in the sweet scent of her. He wanted to watch her eyes sparkle with mischief and talk to her about what was going on in her day.
Chapter 16
Savannah blinked at her boss, not sure she’d heard him correctly. “A what?”
“A car service,” he explained sharply. “You’re working with the crown prince of Izara, Savannah. Until this project is over, he requires it of you.”
“But…I take the subway. It’s just…it’s so much faster.”
Joe shrugged. “Savannah, we’re a customer service oriented business. If a client wants something, we give it to them. Sometimes, it doesn’t make a whole lot of sense.” He smiled slightly. “One time, a client wanted this enormous statue of penguins in his living room. The statue was about ten feet high and four feet wide. The room had ceilings that were barely eleven feet high and the stupid room was only about ten by ten. But you know what I did?”
“Raised the ceiling?” she offered weakly.
He laughed, shaking his head. “Actually, that would have been a good idea. I knoc
ked down a few walls, moved the ridiculous penguin statue in, then created a freaking ice room for the guy. White sofas, white tables, and crystal lamps. And in the center of it all was the ridiculous penguin statue.” He paused, letting his words sink in. “So, if all your client wants is for you to ride in a car service, then be glad and ride in the damn car.”
He didn’t yell, but his tone told her that he wouldn’t allow any sort of defiance, especially about something so simple as riding in a luxurious car to and from work each day.
“Fine. I’ll use the car. But…”
“No buts. Just do it. Oh, and your passport request has been expedited,” he announced, shuffling through some papers on his desk. “You fly out to Izara tomorrow. From what I understand, the passport agency is delivering your passport to your apartment tonight. Make sure you’re home.”
“Tonight?”
He looked up at her, his eyes boring into her. “Is there a problem? We always travel to our clients’ homes. It’s what we do. It isn’t very easy to design a room for a client when we haven’t been in the room.”
She knew that. Obviously, since they decorated clients’ homes, they had to visit their homes. But, she didn’t want to fly across the world for this assignment! She’d thought to just decorate the space via pictures! She’d even thought about video calling Gaelen’s nieces in order to talk to them about what they wanted their rooms to look like.
But she should have known that wouldn’t work. Nope, Gaelen wanted to trap her into a situation that he could control.
Bastard!
Lifting her chin, she nodded sharply. “Right. I’ll make sure I’m packed and ready to go.”
“Good. And enjoy the car service, Savannah.”
She turned and walked out of the office, fists clenched at her sides. She was so furious, she wanted to scream! He didn’t want her, but didn’t want her to move on? What game was he playing?!
Damn it, this didn’t make any sense!
Entangled with the Prince Page 12
