“No?” she responded with a gurgle of laughter. “I have a nice lime green that might do the trick. I was saving it for a puppy jacket but I’m more than happy to knit it up for you.”
“A puppy jacket,” Keaton said solemnly, then raised a hand as she started to explain. “No, thank you for the offer, but I’ll be fine with my cap. Far be it from me to disadvantage an abandoned puppy.” He tipped the brim of the baseball cap that was crammed over his dark blond hair and turned to Leon. “How far are we going today?”
Leon gestured to a peak that looked awfully far away to Tami’s untrained eye.
“Nathan’s gone on ahead on a quad bike to take our lunch supplies and extra water. We’ll probably hike about an hour and a half before we get there. Maybe two hours, depending on how you’re both feeling. And as to getting lost, it wouldn’t be much of a team builder if we let that happen, would it? You’ll be safe with us.” He smiled reassuringly at Tami.
Tami wasn’t sure she’d be hungry by then after the massive breakfast they’d consumed and an hour-and-a-half-to-two-hour hike seemed like an awfully long time to be traversing the terrain. Still, she was here to do a job and she needed to do it. She adjusted the straps on her day pack and hitched it onto her shoulders.
“Well, I’m as ready as I’ll ever be,” she said as brightly as she could.
The hike wasn’t too arduous and she found it interesting to watch Keaton as he applied himself to every aspect with a quiet, calm intent. He appeared unflappable, even when a family of javelinas crossed their path partway through. For herself, the moment the odd-looking creatures that reminded her of wild boar pictures she’d seen in a National Geographic had appeared on the trail, she’d been ready to climb the nearest tree, but Leon had hastened to reassure her that the beasts were herbivores and were unlikely to eye her up as a potential meal. Keaton had shown interest in the creatures, but barely batted an eyelid at their long, sharp-looking, almost canine teeth that protruded from their jaws. Was he like that with everything? A lake of serenity? Or did those still waters run deep?
By the time they’d stopped and had lunch, then done the loop back to the cabin, she was beginning to wonder what her father had hoped to gain by her being with Keaton Richmond. So far they hadn’t discussed work at all. In fact he appeared to be assiduously avoiding the topic. Maybe it was because Leon was with them and he was being ultracautious, but then maybe he really just wanted to stop and enjoy the scenery, too. Whichever reason, she couldn’t keep bringing up work without it starting to look weird, so she opted for focusing on her breathing as they walked and enjoyed the magnificent scenery around them.
She’d grown very warm during the walk and had ended up wearing only a tank top with her jeans on the way back. A very snug tank top that hugged her body intimately.
Back at the cabin they were told they had free time to enjoy before a candlelight dinner on the enclosed deck at seven o’clock.
“Seems as though all we do here is eat,” Tami remarked with a grin and a pat of her tummy.
She noted Keaton’s gaze follow her movement and focus on her stomach, then lift slowly to her breasts before tracking up to her throat and her face. A prickle of awareness made every cell in her body go to full attention. Unfortunately, that included all the cells that made up her nipples and darned if they didn’t stand to attention as if it wasn’t just Keaton’s gaze that was on her. Her own eyes dropped to his hands. Strong, capable, long-fingered hands. Hands that right now were clenched into tight fists at his sides.
She prayed the fabric of her bra hid her reaction, but a quick glance downward confirmed her prayer had gone unanswered. Wow, like this wasn’t awkward?
Tami shrugged off her day pack, with the intention of pulling out her long sleeve T-shirt and putting it back on to cover the wayward behavior of her body, but the movement made the shoulder strap of the pack catch on the straps of both her tank top and her bra, and tug them off her shoulder completely. Mortification sent heat flooding to her cheeks. Could this get any worse?
“Here, let me help you with that,” Keaton said in a slightly gruff voice.
Damn, she’d annoyed him. She’d be lucky to still have a job if she kept this up, and if he sent her home she’d be out on a limb when it came to her father. Her bare skin tingled when Keaton’s fingers brushed against her shoulder as he lifted the day pack off her and set it down by her feet.
“I’m not normally this clumsy,” she said by way of apology. “Thanks for your help.”
“No problem.”
Keaton was making every effort not to make eye contact with her.
“Well, if you don’t need me for anything, I’ll go grab a shower and knit for a while before we meet for dinner. Okay with you?” she asked.
He gave her a curt nod. As she bent and grabbed her pack, then started up the stairs toward the house, she could feel his eyes burning on her back. She wouldn’t turn around, she told herself firmly. She absolutely wouldn’t. But when she got to the top of the stairs she couldn’t help herself. She turned and looked at him. Keaton was still watching her, his face set into tight lines of disapproval.
She felt her stomach sink to her feet. He was regretting bringing her on this venture, she could tell. Tami gave him a small, pathetic wave, then went inside and up to her room, all the while scolding herself for giving him any opportunity to find fault with her. Under normal circumstances, his displeasure wouldn’t have mattered. She’d have cut her losses and simply moved on. But she had two and a half million very important reasons to get this right and she was determined to ensure that every last dollar Pennington had stolen would be replaced in the Our People, Our Homes coffers. Then, her promise that she would make full restitution for her stupidity would be fulfilled and she could remove herself from her father’s influence again. Hopefully permanently this time.
Could she really keep the promise she’d made? She had to. There was no other choice.
* * *
Despite the directive to keep mobile-phone use to a minimum for the duration of the team-building exercise, Keaton couldn’t resist the downtime available to him to check on the office. Kristin answered his call on the first ring.
“Hello, brother. Missing us already?”
He could hear the teasing smile in her voice.
“Just ensuring everything is okay.”
“And why wouldn’t it be?” When he didn’t answer, she continued. “Everything is running just as smoothly as when you left the office last night, okay? No one else has resigned.”
“Yet.”
He heard her snort of derision. “Yet,” she confirmed. “How’s the new assistant working out? Talk about baptism by fire.”
“What do you mean?”
“Well, you can hardly have gotten to know one another in just one day, although it’s nearly two now, isn’t it?”
“She’s fine,” he said succinctly.
Too damn fine, his inner voice reminded him.
“Pretty?”
“Kristin, that’s unprofessional of you.”
“I agree. But is she?”
Keaton rolled his eyes. His sister might be a whiz kid with financial matters and a more-than-competent joint-CEO, but at times she remained that annoying baby sister she’d always been.
“Pretty enough but not my type.” Liar. “Besides, I’m not going that route again. Once bitten...”
“Keaton, I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have been so asinine.”
“It’s okay. And, like I said, she’s fine. Not what I was expecting, though.”
“In what way.”
“She offered to knit me a beanie.”
“She what? How old is she?”
“Not sure. Although I’m guessing late twenties.”
He heard his sister tapping on her keyboard. “She’s thirty. And she knits beanies?”
“Puppy jackets, too. And don’t say anything about her age and knitting in the same sentence or you’ll be given a dressing-down on ageism.”
His sister’s laughter bubbled down the telephone line and filled his ear with unrepressed humor.
“She did that to you? She sounds amazing—I can’t wait to meet her. You do know that knitting is a very popular pastime, for people of all ages, and that’s not anything new. You could learn a thing or two from Miss Wilson. Now hang up and get back to retreating.”
“It’s not a retreat. It’s a team-building exercise.”
“Whatever, go build your team, then. For what it’s worth, I’m really impressed with the enthusiasm and engagement the staff are showing with the concept. They’re already beginning to discuss what strengths they can bring to the exercise and wondering which departments from DR Construction they’ll be teamed with, not to mention the challenges they might have to face. This was a really good idea.”
“They realize this is not a them and us situation, don’t they? We’re not competing with DR Construction. This is all about creating a stronger corporate bond between both companies.”
“Yes, and I was talking with Lisa about the team building today,” Kristin continued, mentioning their half-sister in Virginia. “All the discussion was very positive. Although apparently her mom thinks the whole thing is a waste of time and has reiterated her advice to her kids to stay well clear of us. I’m so glad Mom hasn’t been like that.”
Keaton grimaced. All along Eleanor Richmond, as she continued to insist on being called despite her marriage to Douglas Richmond having been proven to be void, had been a thorn in their sides. Rather than gracefully accept the truth that had been exposed about her bullying her parent’s housekeeper into signing a permission for her to marry, when Eleanor was still underage, she still maintained that Douglas’s intention all along had been to marry her and as far as she was concerned, that was all that mattered. Her reluctance to form any kind of bond with Douglas Richmond’s other family was not mirrored by her children, thank goodness, and Fletcher, Mathias and Lisa had proven to be both professionally and personally open to the new family dynamic.
After their call ended, Keaton paced the covered deck feeling like a caged mountain cat. Kristin might see this as a good idea, but as far as he was concerned, this was shaping up to be a less-than-stellar one. Spending almost two weeks with a total stranger to build a team? It was irresponsible. He could still can the whole thing. In the face of what Kristin had said, if he pulled the plug now he’d end up doing more damage than ever. Staff were counting on this to work to rebuild the camaraderie they’d enjoyed before they’d felt their world tilt with the sudden death of Keaton’s dad and the subsequent discovery of a mirror family and company on the East Coast. And not just staff, his family was counting on it, too. Which left him with only one option. To keep going.
Which meant dinner, alone with Tami tonight. He already knew their hosts wouldn’t be joining them and a quick peek at the enclosed porch before he’d made his call to Kristin had shown a rather intimate setting of a table for two, together with fine silver and china, as well as flowers and candles. He forced his jaw to relax, the ache in his teeth evidence that he was clenching too tight, then, bit by bit, attempted to relax the other muscles of his body. Trouble was, there was one part of his body that seemed determined not to relax when Tami Wilson was around.
Well, it was something he’d just have to learn to deal with, he told himself. And quickly, because there were many days and nights ahead, and at the end of it, they had to have a strong working relationship because the most important thing right now was keeping Richmond Developments on an even keel.
Four
Later that evening, Keaton adjusted the collar on his suit and the knot on his tie as he checked himself one more time in the mirror. Quite a change from the outdoor gear they’d been wearing all day. Even his wind-ruffled hair was slicked back into submission and he’d trimmed his light beard to a controlled stubble. He’d wondered about the necessity to dress for dinners, but this entire exercise was about getting to understand people in all types of situations. A formal dinner party, even if it was for only two people, was a situation, after all.
He went downstairs and let himself out onto the porch. Tami had beaten him to the porch and as she turned to face him, he felt all the air leave his lungs in a giant whoosh. Dressed in a killer gown in an iridescent amethyst purple and with her hair drawn up into an updo that exposed the slender lines of her neck, she was nothing like the imp he’d caught spinning around on her office chair whom he’d met yesterday. Nor was she anything like the determined hiker who’d gamely trailed along behind him and Leon for the better part of the afternoon even when he’d sensed she was tiring. No, this vision of loveliness was another person entirely and every cell in his body responded with appreciation.
“Is something wrong?” she asked, looking hesitant. “Is this too much?”
A sackcloth and ashes would be too much.
“You look stunning.”
A hint of color stained her cheeks. “I wasn’t sure if it would be over-the-top, but the list you gave me did say formal dress for some meals and this is the most formal dress that I own.”
“It’s perfect.”
Too perfect, he thought as he noted the way the fabric dipped between her breasts and skimmed the rest of her body like a second skin before elegantly flaring softly from her hips to drape at her feet. Feet that were in glittering silver sandals that added a good three inches to her height. Realizing he was staring, Keaton forced himself to walk toward the sideboard that was set up on the wall against the house. He reached for the bottle of wine that was chilling in the ice bucket. Next to it, warmed silver chafing dishes exuded delicious aromas.
“Wine?” he asked, lifting the bottle from the ice.
“Thank you, that would be nice.”
Glad for something to do, he opened the wine and poured them each a small serving of the wheat-colored liquid. He passed her one of the glasses and held his up in a toast.
“To good working relationships,” he said.
Inwardly, he shuddered. Man, he sounded so darn pompous. But wasn’t that what this was all about? Building stronger work-based relationships?
“To working relationships,” Tami murmured, then took a sip of her wine. “Mmm, that’s nice. I don’t usually drink chardonnay but this one is very good.”
He looked at her with a little surprise. She could have seen the label and known what variety of wine it was, but he’d met few people who could tell from one sip what type they were drinking, as she’d just done.
“You know a lot about wine?”
“It was one of the few things my parents tried to educate me on that actually stuck.”
“You were clearly a good student.”
She snorted inelegantly, the sound in total contrast to the polished appearance of the mesmerizing creature that stood in front of him.
“I was anything but a good student.” Then, as if she realized that might reflect badly on her ability to do her job, she added, “But I am very good at plenty of other things. I found, at an early age, I need to be hands-on to learn best. Theory was never one of my strong points.”
Keaton found himself laughing at her self-deprecating tone. “I’m sure you have plenty of strong points to balance out your lack of application to theory.”
“I like to think so. So, how about you? A good student? No, let me guess.” She leaned back and studied him carefully before giving a sharp nod. “I’d say straight A’s, class valedictorian and a highly competitive athlete as well. Cross-country champion—am I right?”
He nodded in amazement. “You can tell that just by looking at me?”
“Oh, I can tell a lot by looking at you,” she said. “Shall we sit down?”
They sat at the small round dining table and he
watched as Tami picked at her salad before she set down her fork and lifted her wineglass again.
“Well, won’t you look at that. My glass is empty. Can I top you up, too?”
“Sure, but let’s not go wild. Leon left me a message to say we’re under our own steam for a lot of tomorrow. Some orienteering, I believe, and then an additional activity tacked on toward the end of the day. He’ll meet us at that one.”
She looked startled. “He’s letting us out there on our own? I mean, I love the outdoors and stuff, but navigating the wild with only a map and compass sounds like it’s out of my comfort zone.”
“You can always wear your pink beanie in case we get lost,” he teased.
“Yes, there is that,” she answered with a quick smile that eased the worried line that had appeared between her brows. “Ah, well, we’ll just take it all as it comes. Right?”
“Is that how you approach everything in life? Take it as it comes and see how it turns out?”
“Mostly,” she acknowledged with a graceful dip of her head. “But I can make plans when absolutely necessary, too. And you? I’d wager a guess that you plan everything down to the minutest detail, and that you don’t like surprises—for you, it’s about the preparation and the execution, not the destination.”
Again, she had him thoroughly pegged. What was she? Some kind of mind reader? Feeling a little uncomfortable at how accurate her summation of his character was, he turned his attention to the silver chafing dishes set out on the buffet against the wall. He rose from the table and went over to check what was on offer for their meal.
“You hungry?” he asked as he lifted the lid off the first one.
“I’m starving. That walk back here this afternoon burned off every last morsel we had for breakfast and lunch.” She rose to join him. “Are those baby potatoes in butter and parsley sauce? My taste buds are going to think they’ve died and gone to heaven. What’s in the next dish?”
Scandalizing the CEO--A Workplace Romance Page 4
