Lone Star Millionaire

The limo pulled up to the west side high-rise in the Galleria district of Houston. Sabrina braced herself for the heat, slid across the seat and stepped out onto the sidewalk. She smiled at Martin, Cal’s private driver, then followed her boss into the building that housed the corporate offices of Langtry Oil and Gas.

The business occupied the top three floors. While Cal headed directly for his suite in the southwest corner, Sabrina stopped to collect mail and chat with her secretary, Ada.

“What did you pick?” Ada asked, leaning forward and smiling. The older woman had worked for Langtry Oil and Gas for years. When Sabrina had been hired, she’d taken her time choosing an assistant of her own. Ada had a reputation for being a little grumpy and stubborn about doing things her own way, but she knew everyone in the business and had probably heard every whisper uttered in the company since the 1970s.

Sabrina handed her the Tiffany’s bag. Ada raised her eyebrows. “Tiffany’s for Tiffany? You know the subtlety is going to be lost on the girl.”

“My thoughts exactly, but it was still fun.”

As Ada opened the box and gazed at the bangle, Sabrina flipped through the mail. “What’s the word on the street?” Sabrina asked.

“Number ten should be hitting oil tonight, tomorrow at the latest, even though the engineers say another three to four days of drilling. The only other piece of news is that the clerical supervisor is still having trouble keeping his hands to himself. He cornered another two employees by the copier. They’re filing official complaints right now.”

Sabrina looked up from the mail and frowned. “He’s been warned. Cal doesn’t tolerate that kind of behavior.”

Ada slipped on the bracelet and shrugged. “Apparently he’s bought into Cal’s good ol’boy act and thinks the fact that the boss invited him to lunch once means they’re best friends. I’m not sure. I’m just telling you what’s happening.”

“I appreciate it, Ada, and I’ll tell Cal. He’ll take care of it immediately.”

Ada set the jewelry back in the box and sighed. “You did very well. She’ll love it.”

“That’s the idea. To ease the pain of losing the man. Personally, I’d rather have the cash.”

“Me, too. Tell Cal I’m ready to start our affair anytime he likes. Or we can skip the affair completely and just get right to the parting gift. I want something that can be easily returned. Remember that, Sabrina, when you’re picking it out.”

Sabrina laughed and rose to her feet. “I’ll be sure and tell him, although I don’t think he’ll appreciate the fact that you’re only interested in the gift and not the man himself. Cal considers himself something of a prize where women are concerned.”

“Oh, he is. But we all know I’m old enough to be his mother. You, on the other hand—”

“Stop it, Ada. You know I’m not interested, either.” She headed down the hall. “Talk to you later.”

“You can’t stay immune forever,” Ada called after her.

“Oh, yes I can.”

Sabrina ignored the elevator and climbed the elegant spiral staircase that led to the executive level. She’d offered Ada an office of her own up there, but her assistant claimed she had to stay down with the “little” people in order to hear all the good gossip.

As she climbed, Sabrina finished sorting through the mail. Nothing pressing, nothing she couldn’t handle on her own. She reached her office, collected the messages Ada had left for her, then continued through to Cal’s suite.

Floor-to-ceiling windows filled two walls of his huge office. Aside from the requisite desk big enough to land a Harrier jet on, a conference table and two leather sofa groups to encourage chatty conversations, he also had a big-screen television, every computer game known to man and a temperature-controlled wine “closet” that stored a few dozen of his favorites. There was a full kitchen and dining room beyond, an oversize bathroom complete with shower and Jacuzzi tub and a private elevator that led directly down to the parking garage.

As Sabrina approached the desk, she tried to ignore the view out the windows. Houston was about the flattest place on earth, and if she bothered to look, she could see forever. She’d watched thunderstorms roll in, perfect sunsets and, once, even a tornado dance across the land. In her opinion, Texas had too much weather. She missed Southern California, where the only way to tell the changing of the seasons was by the clothes being sold in the department stores.

Cal finished his call and motioned for her to take a seat across from his desk. She sank down into the leather chair and set Tiffany’s parting gift on the chair next to hers.

Her boss met her gaze then looked away…almost as if he was embarrassed. How odd.

“Anything the matter?” she asked.

“No,” he answered. “Just following up on something. It’s…personal.”

“Oh.” Although she didn’t know everything about Cal’s life, she knew almost everything. And it had been a long time since he’d kept anything “personal” from her. At least she thought it had been.

“It’s nothing important. Any of that for me?” he said, referring to the stack of mail in her hand and deliberately changing the subject. He wasn’t the least bit subtle, she thought, and decided to let it go.

“Nothing I can’t handle,” she told him. “A few invitations.”

He grimaced. “Charity functions.”

“Of course.”

“Just send a check.”

She kept her smile hidden. If Cal wasn’t “involved” with a woman, he got fairly reclusive. Society matrons loathed his dry spells, as he was often the life of their parties. It would take him a couple of months to find someone to replace Tiffany, then his social life would be off and running.

“I’ve heard from the number ten rig,” he said. “The engineers figure another three to four days, but I think they’re going to hit in the next twenty-four hours.”

He never ceased to amaze her. Ada’s contacts had said the same thing. The difference was Cal made his assessment from his downtown office with nothing more than daily reports to guide him. Ada’s source was an old oil man from way back who phoned her when they were getting close.

“What does Ada say?” he asked.

Cal watched as Sabrina tried to hide her annoyance at his question. She didn’t like that he knew about her “source” in the office and would have preferred him to think she figured everything out on her own.

“The same,” she admitted. “Within the day.”

“Anything else I should know about?”

“The clerical supervisor is still having trouble keeping his hands to himself. A couple of staff members are filing official complaints.”

Cal leaned back in his chair and rested his hands on the padded leather arms. “I can’t say that I blame them. I hate it when this happens.”

The coolly spoken words were enough to make Sabrina straighten. She reached for a pad of paper on the edge of his desk and grabbed a pen. “Go ahead.”

“He’s already been warned. Have Human Resources investigate the allegations and prepare the case, then fire him. Oh, I want them to promote from within this time—all the better if it’s a woman so we can regain a little trust in that department—but tell them to be sure it’s the best candidate, someone with a good record of employee interaction.”

“That’s it?”

He gazed at his personal assistant. Her wide blue eyes met his unblinkingly. “What did you expect? That I would call him out at dawn? Pistols at twenty paces?”

“I thought you’d at least threaten to beat him up.”

Cal thought about the self-important young man who had been with the company less than a year. He’d been hired out of college, all cocky and convinced he was the next industry leader. Cal had put him in a supervisory position to season him. Obviously it hadn’t worked.

“I would like nothing more than to show him what it was like to be physically intimidated by someone with the authority to hire and fire, not to mention someone physically stronger. However, letting him go under these circumstances is going to be plenty of punishment. He’ll be left with a black mark on his employment record. So much for a rapid rise to success.”

“Do you want to give him an exit interview?”

Cal grinned. “Let Ada do it.”