A Lone Star Love Affair / Falling for the Princess: A Lone Star Love Affair / Falling for the Princess

“You’ve had a spectacular career with Morris, with many awards. Congratulations,” Porter said.

“Thank you,” she answered. “Morris gave me opportunities. They opened the new hotel chain just shortly before I started, so from the beginning I got to do the ad campaigns. This is a great department with a talented staff. You’ll find each person brings a particular specialty. The teamwork is amazing.”

“You can tell us about your staff. Why don’t we have a seat. We can sit at the conference table,” Tony said.

She moved to the rectangular table. Effortlessly, Tony was there before her, pulling out a chair for her.

“Thanks,” she said brusquely as he sat to her right. She marveled how he could appear both relaxed and in control at the same time, a puzzling combination. On the table was her own large portfolio, plus a file bearing her name.

Amanda and Porter placed notebooks and papers in front of their seats.

Tony gazed at her with a faint smile. “We’ve studied your portfolio and impressive file that lists your accomplishments and awards.”

“I look forward to working with you,” Amanda added. “Morris is a great company and you’ve contributed to its growth.”

“Why don’t you tell us about the campaign that you feel you contributed to the most and how you worked with your staff,” Tony suggested.

As she talked, she was aware of holding the attention of all three, Amanda asking the most questions, Tony’s dark eyes on her while he listened.

The interview went easily. Isabelle tried to inform them of the talent and abilities of her staff. Even though she intended to move on, she hoped they kept her people.

When they concluded, remarks were brief, thanks exchanged and she left Tony’s office, the office she would forever think of as Mr. Morris’s.

Relieved to have the interview behind her, and curious what they would offer, she went to her office to clean out her desk. It would be a simple matter to pack her things after she turned in her resignation.

She already had a resignation letter written and copies made, but she wanted to wait and see what Tony offered. She expected far less than she had now. He had a reputation for buying companies, gutting them and keeping only skeleton crews that he moved down the corporate ladder. Some stayed and moved back up in a short time. Most left.

She had no intention of working with him. Their night of passion was a shadow hanging over her, something she had not been able to forget. She suspected from his dinner invitation that he wanted to renew the intimacy. She wanted to bury the memory, but there was no way she could wipe it out.

Her phone rang and she was caught up in business the remainder of the morning.

It was after three when Tony’s secretary called to ask her to come to Tony’s office. Relieved they were doing something today, Isabelle hurried along the hall to the large corner office Tony occupied. All she had to do was give two weeks’ notice and she would be elsewhere, far from Tony Ryder.

Three

When she entered his office, Tony stood in front of his desk, motioning her to a chair. His gaze swept briefly over her, a look that from anyone else would have been impersonal, unnoticed, but when Tony studied her, she warmed beneath his gaze.

He still appeared as if ready for a men’s fashion shoot in a navy suit that had no wrinkles and his fresh snow-white dress shirt.

“Please be seated,” he said, the words harmless, the look in his eyes not. His dark eyes smoldered with blatant lust.

Aware of his continued scrutiny as he sat facing her, she sat and crossed her legs.

“You had a good interview and made quite an impression this morning.” He leaned forward, placing his elbows on his knees. “While I suspect you already have one foot out the door, I want you to stay and work for me.”

“I have some very good offers.”

“We’ll top them,” he replied without hesitation. “Here’s what I’m offering.” He stretched his arm to pick up a sheet of paper from his desk to hand to her.

As she swiftly scanned a neatly typed page with spaces filled in by Tony, her breath caught. She glanced up at him in amazement.

She looked again at the title, reading it aloud, “Vice President of Graphic Arts.” She skimmed down the page to the salary that took her breath again. It was higher than any amount she had ever made, higher than what she had been offered by anyone. Shocked, she looked up at him. “You’ll raise my salary this much? You would put me over your people?”

“You’re good at your job. Seymour Morris praised you highly. You have an impressive record. In addition, you had a good interview. I want to keep you and I think to do so will take a bigger salary. My guess is that you are on the verge of accepting one of those offers you’ve received, if you haven’t already done so.”

“You’re right,” she admitted, looking again at the amount, far more than she could hope to make anywhere else. Too much to resign and walk away without consideration. Too much to even have to think long about it. The title in itself was a promotion. How much had his offer been inspired by her work and awards—and how much because of his memory of their night together and wanting to repeat it? She stared at the figures before her and the title, wondering about his motives. This was not in character with what had been rumored about his ruthless reputation when he took over a company.

“Do you want me in your organization or in your bed, Tony?” she asked bluntly, and one corner of his mouth lifted in a slight smile.

He reached across the narrow space between them to take her hand. Distracting, charismatic, sexy, Tony ignited a fire within her while his brown eyes held her gaze.

“You get to the point. I want to see you outside the office. I want you here in my company. Of course, I want you in my bed, Isabelle. I haven’t forgotten that night with you and you haven’t forgotten it, either.”

How she wished she could give him a long, cold stare and convey the impression of that night being insignificant and no longer in her memory. She couldn’t possibly, which he was fully aware of. “I don’t want to rekindle anything. On that front, you’ll be incredibly disappointed if I take this offer.”

“No, I won’t. If you stay, you’ll do a good job. I know that much from your past performance.”

“I don’t socialize, go out with, date, anyone from work. It prevents complications in my life.”

“We’ll see,” he said, running his thumb back and forth on her knuckles. She pulled her hand away.

“If I thought you didn’t like that, I wouldn’t do it, but I can see the look in your eyes. I can feel your racing pulse. You react as much as I do and we will go out together. I’ll hold you in my arms while I kiss you again.”

“Stop that,” she said breathlessly, the command sounding more an invitation than a rejection. “Tony, I’ll have to give it some thought. I never expected this offer. As for socializing, even if we do, which we will not, won’t that cause difficulty with other employees?”

“This is a private company. I own it. I have a good relationship with my employees. They are a happy bunch in a big corporation. I have married couples working for me. They socialize, eat dinners and lunches together. There are couples working here who go out together. I’m allowed to have a life. So are you.”

“It won’t be together.”

“You’re one challenge after another, Isabelle.”

“I don’t intend to be anything to you, not even your employee, although I may have to rethink that one.”

“Let’s have dinner tonight. Not a business dinner. It will be strictly social. Whether you stay or go, I’m going to ask you to go out with me.”

She was tempted to accept his dinner invitation, except she could see her life tangling in a web woven by Tony until he lost interest. Socializing with Tony, an affair with him—not only would complicate her work life, but it would also be a path to heartbreak no matter how it ended. And it would end. When it did, she would be older with no family to show for her affair of the heart.

“Tony, if I accept your job offer, I will keep my private life separate from my professional life. Thank you, but no dinner tonight.”

“Whatever you want,” he said, smiling at her, sounding supremely self-confident. “I still hope you accept my job of fer.”

“It’s flattering, tempting and amazing. I’d like to think it over and get back to you.”

“Of course. Take your time,” he said.

The moment she stood, he came to his feet to walk to the door with her.

At the door he reached out to hold the knob and block her from leaving. When she glanced up, he gazed back quietly. “I want you, Isabelle. We had an amazing night that I’ve never forgotten. You’ll say yes sometime soon because you respond to me. You can’t hide it. We both know you respond, just as I do to you.”