by Karen Booth
Tara knocked her head to the side and a lock of her hair fell across her beautiful face. She slowly swept it back. “I don’t know, Grant. We have chemistry. We like to flirt. That’s not the basis for a partnership. At least not the kind you’re talking about.”
“Every relationship starts with chemistry. Plus, you can’t deny that you felt something the one time I kissed you.”
“You promised we would never talk about that. I was engaged to Johnathon at the time.”
Memories of that night flooded his mind. It was the one time he’d thought he might have a chance with her, although he hadn’t taken the time to think out the repercussions. Johnathon never would’ve stood for it. It never could’ve been a long-term thing. “You’d broken up. You were about to call off the wedding.”
Tara drew her lips into a tight and anxious bundle. “But I didn’t call it off. I went through with it.”
Grant didn’t like to think about that day. It still hurt to think about his front-row seat to watching her say those vows to Johnathon. “Yes, you did.”
“Look. It was an amazing kiss, but that doesn’t mean the world. Plus, you wouldn’t last five minutes with me. You’re a nice guy. I don’t do well with nice men. I tend to chew them up and spit them out and then I feel bad about it.”
He’d heard that argument from other women and it made him nuts. He wasn’t a nice guy. He merely refused to be a jerk. She could blame his wholesome midwestern upbringing, and a father who treated his mother like a queen. “You think you know me, but you don’t.”
“Well, it’s not a good idea now anyway. We’re about to be working together. It’s never smart to mix business and pleasure.”
If only Tara knew that as far as he was concerned, she was making a case for her to sell him her shares and let him take her to bed. But he didn’t see tonight working out that way. “Only on a temporary basis?” He wasn’t sure which part of their agreement he was talking about—the work side, or the romantic side, which was admittedly all in his head.
“We’ll call it a trial.”
“This conversation is a trial.”
Tara laughed and it was such a boost to his sense of self, just at the right time, too. He was otherwise feeling a bit beat up. “Why? You’re getting what you want. You’re CEO of Sterling. And you’re going to get to work with me every day, which you know will be fun.”
Grant made a silent prayer for strength. He was about to walk into a less than optimal circumstance—finally CEO of the company he’d been running from behind the scenes for years, while working side by side with the woman he’d never stopped wanting. He imagined he would be both incredibly excited to go to work every day and also filled with dread. “Promise? I could use a little fun.”
“How about I promise to make it interesting?”
He wasn’t happy that she hadn’t taken the bait about having fun. He desperately needed that in his life. “I’ve had my fill of interesting. Let’s focus on making it work.”
“Don’t worry about that. I absolutely will.”
Five
The headquarters of Sterling Enterprises took up the top three floors of one of the newest, most exclusive high-rises in downtown San Diego. Johnathon had moved the company two years ago after overseeing the development of the building. Tara hadn’t been to these new offices since the night of the grand opening reception, when Johnathon and Miranda were engaged to be married and Tara and Grant were engaged in a different way after a few glasses of champagne—burning through some high-octane flirtation.
Tara had actually considered kissing Grant that night. She’d had a full commentary running through her head as she weighed the pros and cons. He’s so hot. It should be criminal for a man to look that good in a suit. He laughs at my jokes. He notices when my drink needs refilling. And then there are those sweet, puppy-dog eyes of his. She ultimately decided that it wasn’t worth the risk. Johnathon would’ve gone ballistic, especially if he’d witnessed it, and Tara knew that she would only break Grant’s heart. That was what she did, apparently, although not to men like Johnathon. Then it was he who did the breaking. Either way, Grant didn’t deserve that. So she’d kept her hands and her lips to herself.
Now she was going to be working with that man who was all kinds of sexy, but all kinds of wrong for her. Luckily, she knew herself well enough to be certain that once she was in the work environment, any stray nonbusiness thoughts would evaporate. She was nothing less than laser focused when it came to any job. Grant would not distract her. She simply wouldn’t let him.
Tara was rarely nervous, but she found herself feeling that way as she rode the elevator up to the offices. She’d never started a job near the top of the chain of command. She’d always worked her way from the bottom up. In real estate, it’d taken years to build her business and her reputation. One satisfied client brought many more. One big sale led to a bigger listing. Each day brought another rung on the ladder to reach for. At Sterling, she was about to start near the top, and that created a whole new level of pressure.
When the elevator doors slid open, she was taken aback by the bustle of the office. It was noisy. And busy. The receptionist juggling the ringing phone, the arrival of visitors, parking validations and questions from employees breezing past her desk in a near-continuous stream back and forth. As Grant had promised, he was waiting for her, standing off to one side. He had his cell pressed to his ear. He caught sight of her and raised a finger to suggest he needed a moment. Tara stood and patiently waited until he finished his call. She tried to ignore how good he looked in his charcoal-gray suit. She needed to keep her eye on the prize—figuring out if working at Sterling Enterprises was going to be the key to her finally having the happiness she’d failed to find all these years.
“Reporting for work, Mr. Singleton,” Tara quipped as soon as he’d hung up.
“You’re late.” Grant quirked one eyebrow at her, then waved her down the hall. “Come on. I’ll show you your office.”
Tara glanced at her phone. “It’s five after nine. I couldn’t find a parking space.”
“Remind me and I’ll get you an executive spot in the deck.”
“That would be helpful. Thank you.” Tara hustled up to walk alongside him. On paper, she might be his subordinate, but she still wanted him to see her as an equal. She and Grant could do great things together, but only as a team. “Is it always this busy first thing in the morning?”
“Yes. It’s nonstop.”
That was going to take some getting used to. Although she’d had her fair share of tense meetings and phone calls, Tara’s office had normally been quiet and serene, by design. She liked calm. She got a lot done in an environment like that.
“Here you go,” he said when they arrived at an office. “Will this work?”
Tara surveyed the space. It had a decent view of parts of downtown and the bay, but it was also too masculine. The walls needed a softer color. The furniture would need to be replaced. “I’ve only been here once, but isn’t your office on the opposite end of this floor?”
“Yes.”
“Next to Johnathon’s, right?”
Grant cleared his throat and looked down at his shoes. “I’m in his office now.”
“Oh, of course.” It only made sense. He was CEO now. It was time for the company to move ahead. “So why not put me in your old space? We’re going to be working together. Wouldn’t that be easier?”
“I told you the other night. Morale is low right now. I didn’t want too many big changes at one time.”
Tara wasn’t quite ready to challenge him on the idea of low morale, but the scene she’d walked into when she got off the elevator had seemed nothing short of lively. For now, she wouldn’t make waves. “This will work. Long term, I’ll want to make some changes.”
“Maybe we should get through this three-month trial first.” He stuffed his
hands into his pockets. Everything in his body language said he was unhappy with her presence. He wandered over to the window and glanced outside, then turned back to her. “I’ve been meaning to ask, what have you done about your real estate clients?”
“I’m slowly phasing out. No new listings, no new buyers, and selling off what’s already on the market. Then I’m done.”
“That doesn’t sound like a trial, Tara. That sounds permanent.”
She set her laptop bag down on the desk and wound around to where he was standing. “The good thing about my business is that it’s not hard to put it on pause. And I’d like for this to be permanent. I was not happy when Johnathon suggested I exit Sterling after the first few months. It didn’t feel fair. I hardly got a chance.”
“I know. He talked to me about it several times. Wondered if he was being a jerk about it.”
“He said he didn’t think it was good for our marriage, but I think he was threatened.”
Grant looked at her, first scanning her face, but she couldn’t help but notice the way he stole a gander at the rest of her, as well. From the glimmer in his eyes, he liked what he saw. “I can see that. You can be intimidating.”
So much for thinking that look was one of admiration. Tara disliked being characterized that way. She put herself in front of the world as a confident person because it got her the things she wanted. She never meant to be daunting. “I think he was worried that people would like me more than they liked him. He wanted everyone to worship him, even when he wasn’t being nice.”
“That’s why he loved to make me the bad guy. He needed people to see him as the good one.”
That had always been true of Johnathon. He often hid the unlikable parts of himself in an effort to get people to adore him. It was only the people closest to him who saw the real man. “Can I see what you did with Johnathon’s office?”
Grant glanced at the Tag Heuer watch Johnathon had given him years ago. “I have a meeting in a few minutes. Why don’t you get settled and we can chat later?”
She could see what he was doing and she disliked it greatly. “Grant. My getting settled is going to involve me opening my laptop and you telling me the WiFi password. Don’t tuck me away in a corner and expect me to go away. I want to work. Let’s talk about a project for me.”
“Like?”
Tara already knew from Miranda that what she was about to say would be met with little enthusiasm. It didn’t stop her from marching ahead. “The Seaport Promenade. It’s a travesty that Sterling isn’t in on this bidding process with the city and it isn’t too late for us to make it happen.”
As expected, Grant met her comment with a distinct scowl. “Not a good idea. It’ll end up being nothing but a huge waste of time and resources.”
“Well, gee. Tell me how you really feel.”
“If you can’t deal with my opinions on things, Tara, we’re going to have some serious problems. I’m in charge now.”
Tara had to wonder if perhaps this was Grant flexing his new muscle. She liked seeing him like this, showing some fight and exerting his control. She stepped closer and picked a fleck of lint from his jacket, then smoothed her hand over his lapel. “Of course you are. You’re the boss and I’m here to learn.”
Grant cleared his throat, staring down at her hand. “I know you’re capable and smart, but there’s still a lot you don’t know about this side of real estate.”
“Okay, then. I’m ready to learn. But if we’re going to argue about Seaport Promenade, I think we should do it in your office.” She made her way for the door, but cast a look back at him over her shoulder. “It’s got to be more comfortable than mine.”
* * *
One thing Tara had said was now permanently stuck in Grant’s mind: we should do it in your office. He knew he shouldn’t let his brain go there, but it had already happened, and now the rest of his body was having a field day with the idea. Grant felt as though all blood flow had left his brain for regions south. This was not a good start to his work day.
Against his better judgment, he gave in to her suggestion. “Come on. I’ll postpone my meeting so we can talk this out.”
He and Tara started down the hall to his office. Grant had no idea how he was going to live through this. Being around Tara was already an excruciating exercise in holding back and it had only been fifteen minutes. He’d spent the last decade not getting what he wanted. And now he couldn’t have her, either. It would make everything too messy if they became involved, especially for the company.
Sterling was already on unsteady ground. He was truly torn about how best to handle Tara in the scope of the business—give her what she wanted in order to create less friction? Or fight her on it all and ultimately convince her that this trial of hers wasn’t going to work? It was a conundrum for sure. He wanted to be with her. He’d wanted her for a decade. And this business idea of hers was ruining any chance of that.
They arrived at his office, on the exact opposite end of the building. He’d purposely put Tara as far away as possible. He hoped that she’d be less of a distraction. Perhaps things could ultimately play out that way, but for today, his strategy had failed. “Here you go.” With a flourish of his hand, he welcomed her inside. “It still doesn’t feel like mine. I have a feeling my job is going to be like that for a while, too.” He didn’t want to be vulnerable, but he knew he could be honest with Tara. If he wasn’t, she’d probably figure it out anyway.
“But you’ve wanted this for a long time, right?”
Funny, but he’d always been sure that being in charge would make things better. Now that he was in this role he’d longed for, it wasn’t yet feeling like everything he’d waited for. “What I’ve most wanted is the chance to run things the way I see fit. Johnathon and I butted heads a lot and he always managed to win. That got to be tiresome.” It was no exaggeration. Johnathon came out on top with everything.
“So what are you wanting to tackle first?” Tara asked. “Anything in particular that you and Johnathon had been fighting over that wasn’t going the way you wanted it to?”
“Well, since you put it that way, I have to tell you that my first priority was to put an end to any talk of pursuing the Seaport Promenade project. Johnathon really wanted to put in a bid with the city, but he wasn’t the one who had to deal with the red tape.”
The Seaport Promenade was a strip of property along the bay which was owned by the city. The current facilities included an aging park, some open space, and a small shopping center set to be knocked down. In its place would eventually be more ecologically friendly buildings, along with amenities to draw families to downtown. It was a big municipal contract, although there were certainly hoops to jump through. No city gave out a job like this without making sure they were getting everything they wanted.
“It’s not my habit to agree with Johnathon, but I think it’s a smart idea. I think we should go for it. It’s such a high-profile project and it would be amazing publicity if we landed the contract.”
“Your ex-husband pissed off a lot of people with the city. You have no idea the headache this would be.”
“He was your best friend, too, you know. And he’s not here to make people mad anymore. Let me try with the city. Let me see if we can throw our hat in the ring.”
Grant pinched the bridge of his nose. A terrible headache was brewing. “It’s not what we do. We do large private projects. Office buildings. Like this one. Big paydays. The margins are so thin with a government contract. I don’t see the point.”
Tara gestured to a chair opposite Grant’s desk. “May I?”
“Be my guest.”
She perched on the very edge of the seat and crossed her legs. He tried to ignore how amazingly sexy they were in her sky-high heels. “Look. You need to know how Sterling is seen in this town.”
Grant stepped closer, unsure of where she was going
with this. “I know our reputation. Smart. Nimble. Timely.”
“You’re also known as a bad neighbor. You only go after massive projects, the big kill. Greed and profits at all costs is not a good look.”
He could see some people viewing Sterling in that light. It still didn’t make it easy to hear. “You keep saying you. You need to turn that into a we. We’re in this together now. Working together, remember?”
“And you put me on the other end of the building. That’s not togetherness. You’re assuming I’m going to be a pain in your butt. It’s fair.”
If only Tara knew that the pain she was putting him through was of a different variety. It was probably time to go with his first idea—give in and take away the friction. “Okay. Fine. We can talk about Seaport Promenade. Why don’t you call down to the city today and see where they are with the application process? I’ve been doing nothing but stalling this whole time, hoping Johnathon would get distracted by something else. For all I know, we’ve missed several key deadlines.”
Just then, there was a knock on the door frame to Grant’s office. It was Sandy, Johnathon’s assistant. “Mr. Singleton, I’m sorry to bother you, but I don’t know what I’m supposed to be doing today.”
Grant sighed. He’d told Sandy to take last week off, but he’d forgotten to get back in touch with her about new responsibilities moving forward. Sandy was inexperienced, but she was an excellent employee—a self-starter who always arrived early and stayed late. “Yes, Sandy. I’m sorry. Come on in.” Grant gestured for her to have a seat. “I want you to meet Tara Sterling. I’ll be working with her over the next several months, keeping our heads above water as we move forward without Mr. Sterling.”
Sandy offered her hand to shake Tara’s. “I know who you are, Ms. Sterling. I’ve seen your Realtor ads on the bus benches.”
