Chapter Ten
Grant checked himself over in the mirror. He looked fine. He didn’t really feel like going out, but Antonio had insisted—and had promised that it was fine if he wanted to leave after dinner. He planned to. It seemed Antonio liked the idea of making their Saturday night out a regular event while Grant was in town. It’d be fine by Grant as long as it was a case of eating dinner and catching up. He wasn’t looking to find a girl to take home—not unless it was Chelsea again. Damn. He needed to stop thinking like that.
He let himself out of the room and headed for the elevator, determined not to think about her while he was in there. His determination was no match for the memories that crowded his mind. It never was. He could even smell her perfume as he remembered the way she’d kissed him back so eagerly.
He nodded at the girls behind the reception desk on his way out. They smiled and whispered to each other. He wished Antonio hadn’t shown such an interest in them—they seemed to have the idea that there’d be a double date happening at some point. Grant tried to be friendly but wished he could just spell out for them that he wasn’t interested.
He’d told Antonio he’d meet him at Muse. The walk would do him good. He’d been getting plenty of exercise in the hotel gym, but it wasn’t the same as a stroll in the fresh air. When he got to Muse, the Maître D’ greeted him with a smile and a warm handshake. “Mr. Dawson, it’s good to see you again. Antonio asked me to give you his apologies; he’s running a little late. However, I’ll show you to your table. Mr. Hamilton is already here.”
Grant frowned to himself as he followed the guy outside. Why would Mr. Hamilton be dining with them? He hoped there wasn’t a problem. He hoped even more that he didn’t want some kind of progress report. Grant could give him one, but he wasn’t prepared, and it wasn’t what he’d had in mind for his Saturday night. He let out a chuckle when he saw Cameron sitting at the table. Of course, he was also a Mr. Hamilton.
The Maître D’ smiled. “Here we are, Mr. Dawson.”
Grant smiled back. “Please, call me Grant, and what’s your name?”
“Rodney,” the guy said with a smile.
“Thanks, Rodney. It’s nice to meet you.”
Cameron smiled as Grant took a seat. “Hi. I hope you don’t mind me crashing your dinner. Piper’s away this weekend, and when I called Antonio, he asked me along.”
“Not at all. I’m glad you’re here.” Grant smiled but had a feeling he wasn’t pulling off a genuine smile. He felt bad about that. He had nothing against Cameron. He liked the guy, but he was Chelsea’s brother. What would Cameron think if he knew what Grant had been doing with her this time last week?
“How’s it going at Zosca?”
Grant nodded. “So far, so good.” He smiled. “In some ways, I feel as though I’m working with my hands tied behind my back. I can document changes, but I can’t make any.”
“That’s got to be tough.”
“Yeah. I’m trying to use it as an exercise. I tend to come in all guns blazing and get straight down to the tough stuff. Maybe I’ll learn something by having to wait and observe for so long first.”
Cameron laughed. “Maybe. I tend to think of it as like ripping off a Band-Aid. If you have to do it, you may as well get it over with.”
Grant laughed with him. “It sounds like we’re of the same mind there.”
“Yeah, but Chelsea isn’t. She’d rather take her time, try to figure out which way will be least painful.”
Grant nodded. He didn’t know what to say. He’d hoped Chelsea’s name wouldn’t come up tonight. That was a bit unrealistic, but he’d hoped anyway. “Yeah. In this situation, I’m glad I’m not getting straight down to business. I think she’d hate me if I were doing my usual job here.”
There was an odd gleam in Cameron’s eye. “I don’t think she’d hate you, but she wouldn’t be too pleased. She’d fight you every step of the way.”
“I can imagine.”
“Hey, guys.” They both looked up as Antonio came to join them. “Sorry I’m late. And what am I missing?” He looked at Grant. “Who’d fight you every step of the way? Have you found some feisty little mare?”
Grant pressed his lips together, but Cameron answered for him. “You don’t know? Grant’s working with Chelsea.”
Antonio looked from Cameron to Grant and back again a couple of times before he burst out laughing. “You’re here to rescue Zosca? Seriously?”
Grant nodded. “I told you I couldn’t tell you who my client was.” He looked at Cameron, but Cameron just grinned at him.
“It’s good to know that you’re serious about confidentiality, but sorry, I couldn’t resist.”
Antonio grinned at them as he sat down. “Damn, you’re in for a rough ride. Is she giving you a hard time? What kind of start have the two of you made? Chelsea’s a sweetie, but damn, if you get on the wrong side of her …”
Grant shrugged. He didn’t want to explain the details—of what was going on at Zosca or what had gone on between him and Chelsea.
Cameron laughed. “I think they got off to the best start.”
Grant swung around to look at him. Did he know? By the look on his face, he did. Was that what all those snide smiles had been about earlier?
“But the whole working together thing could be getting in the way.”
Antonio looked confused. “In the way of what? I thought that’s what you’re supposed to be … wait, what?” He turned to look at Grant. “What kind of start did the two of you get off to?”
Really? Antonio wanted him to spell it out? In front of her brother? Cameron seemed to know already, but still, Grant didn’t think any guy would ever want to hear I slept with your sister spoken out loud.
Antonio’s eyes grew wide. He, too, turned to look at Cameron. “What are you saying?”
Cameron laughed. “Don’t look at me like that. I’m not the Sicilian here. I’m not going to come after anyone. What Chelsea does is up to her.”
Antonio looked at Grant. “So, you and Chelsea? You …? When …? How …?”
Grant blew out a big sigh. “Yes. I didn’t know who she was. She didn’t know who I was.”
“Obviously,” said Cameron with a smirk.
“When?” asked Antonio. “It doesn’t make sense.”
“Last weekend. After you left here.”
Antonio laughed. “You mean, I walked out, and my cousin walked in and you and her, you …?”
“Yep.” Grant was getting more uncomfortable by the minute, though the others seemed to find it amusing. He supposed that was better than them not being amused at all.
“How could you not know who she was?” asked Antonio. He looked genuinely puzzled.
Grant squirmed in his seat. Was he really supposed to admit in front of Cameron that since they were just hooking up, they thought it better to leave last names and personal details out of it?
To Grant’s surprise, Cameron came to his rescue. “Come on, Antonio. You left here before Chelsea arrived last week. I’m guessing you didn’t leave alone?”
Antonio grinned. “No.”
“What was her name?” Cameron turned and winked at Grant.
“Err.” Antonio rubbed his chin. “Umm. Carrie?”
“And her last name?” asked Cameron.
Antonio shrugged. “I don’t know! I … Oh.”
Grant nodded. He wanted to explain to Cameron that he wasn’t like Antonio. He didn’t go home with a different woman every weekend and not even want to know their names. He wanted to explain, but he knew anything he said would only make it sound worse.
Antonio gave him a dark look. “She’s my little cousin.”
Cameron laughed out loud. “And she’s a strong independent woman who can go home with a guy if she so chooses. I’m not playing the big brother card because she’d hate it, and you know it.”
Antonio nodded grudgingly. “Sorry,” he muttered, but he still wasn’t happy about it.
“It wasn’t just a hook-up situation. I liked her, she liked me. We agreed on no names and no details because neither of us was …” Hmm, how could he finish that sentence? They’d agreed because neither of them was looking for more than one night, so it really was just a hook-up, but it was more than that, even then.
Cameron gave him a sympathetic look. “You don’t need to explain a damned thing. He does it all the time. I used to.”
“But I don’t,” insisted Grant. “Well, not much.”
Cameron laughed. “This wasn’t supposed to be an inquisition about how the two of you met; it was more curiosity about where you go from here.”
Grant eyed him warily. “Nowhere. We’re working together. That’s it.”
“That’s all you want it to be?”
“That’s all it can be. We’re working together, and she just wants to pretend like it never happened.”
“Thank God!” said Antonio.
Cameron held Grant’s gaze for a moment. It seemed he was a little more perceptive than Antonio, but to Grant’s relief, he didn’t push it.
He was grateful when the waiter arrived to take their order. By the time he’d gone, the subject of Chelsea had been left behind. Not completely, the conversation turned to what he was doing at Zosca, but at least the matter of what he’d done with Chelsea had been shelved.
“Are you going to be able to turn it around?” asked Antonio.
“That’ll depend on whether she wants it turning,” said Grant with a smile.
“What do you mean?”
“I mean she’s running it very well; it’s just that she’s heading in a different direction.”
Antonio nodded thoughtfully. “If she were running a little boutique style winery, I’d agree with you.”
“I think that’s exactly what she’s going to end up doing,” said Cameron.
Antonio looked puzzled. “And Uncle Cole’s good with that?”
Cameron laughed. “He’s going to have to be, one way or another.”
They stopped talking as a woman approached the table. Antonio got to his feet with a smile and excused himself. It seemed he wanted to get to her before she got to them.
Cameron shook his head. “I won’t be surprised if that’s the last we see of him tonight.”
“Me neither.” Grant wouldn’t mind at all if Antonio disappeared with the brunette.
He came back to the table with a smile. “Would you guys mind if I …?”
“Not at all. Have fun.”
Grant met Cameron’s gaze. Now it was just the two of them, he wondered if Cameron was going to have anything more to say about Chelsea.
“Don’t worry. I meant what I said. Chelsea’s a strong, independent woman. What she does is her business, and what you do is yours.”
“Thanks.”
Cameron gave him that weird smile again. “And since it’s going to be just the two of us for dinner, I’d much rather talk business, business. What do you think? Can I pick your brains about a couple of things?”
“Yes. I’d much rather go down that path, too. What are you thinking about?”
~ ~ ~
Chelsea wandered into the break room for more coffee. It was almost seven, and she’d been here for two hours already. She liked to come in early on Monday morning and get a handle on the week ahead.
“Good morning.”
She started at the sound of Grant’s voice. She hadn’t seen him sitting there on one of the sofas.
“Sorry. I didn’t mean to startle you.”
“No problem. I was in my own little world. Good morning.” She deliberately stood with her back to him while she poured herself a mug of coffee. She didn’t want to look at him. He was too damned swoon-worthy! He shouldn’t be allowed to look like that this early on a Monday morning. The first few days he’d been here, he’d stuck with his sharp suits, which she hadn’t minded a bit. Toward the end of last week, he’d gone more business casual, which had held its own appeal. Now he’d taken it a step further and had adopted the unofficial Zosca uniform of blue jeans with a white shirt. She sucked in a deep breath and blew it out slowly before she turned around. She didn’t want to come off as hostile. “What are your plans for the week?” she asked brightly.
“I’m lined up to spend the day in the sales office today, and with distribution tomorrow.”
“Great.”
“And can I come in with you on Wednesday?”
She pursed her lips. There was no reason to say no. At least, no good, valid, logical reason.
“I can wait if you prefer?”
She shook her head. “No. There’s no point delaying the inevitable. We may as well get it over with.”
He gave her a sad smile. “I’ll try to make it as painless as possible.”
She shrugged. How could she tell him that it wasn’t his scrutiny of her operation that she was worried about? She was so much more concerned about being stuck in her office with him all day. She’d have to leave the door wide open. “Thanks.” She checked her watch. “I should get back to it. I need to finish up a few things before the morning meeting.”
He nodded and raised his coffee cup to her. “See you later.”
For a moment, she looked into his eyes. She felt like a rabbit being mesmerized by a snake. His eyes made her want to agree, that yes, she would see him later—after work, for a drink, and after a drink for another night in his bed. She nodded briskly and turned away. She couldn’t blame him for that. It’d all come into her own head. She had to stay away from him! Right from the beginning, she hadn’t been able to control her body around him—couldn’t stop it from reacting to his nearness. Now, she couldn’t control her mind either; it was coming up with all sorts of deliciously naughty thoughts and images. She had to stop it. She hurried back to her office.
It was ten-thirty when Gene popped his head around her door. “Are you busy?”
She looked up with a smile. “I’m never too busy for you, Gene. Come on in.”
He came in and took a seat with a smile. “How are you doing?”
She laughed. “Shouldn’t it be me asking you that question? You’re looking well, but how are you feeling?”
“Great. At least, physically I am.”
“It must be so tough for you. How long do you think it’ll be before you know if you can fly again?”
He shrugged. “I’m trying not to think about it. Even if I get my license reinstated, if I can fly again, it won’t be the same.”
“I want to say positive things, but I don’t know enough, Gene. Will you ever come back to work?”
He shook his head sadly. “Even if I can pass a medical exam, I’d only ever get authorized to fly passengers in a two-pilot scenario. I’d have to have or be a co-pilot.”
“Oh.” Chelsea’s heart sank. She didn’t know much about flying and all the regulations that surrounded it, but one thing she did know was that Gene had always flown solo. The Hamilton-Groves plane wasn’t the biggest or the fastest corporate jet, and that was simply because it was one that could be flown by a single pilot. The bigger ones needed two people in the cockpit. She looked up hopefully. “You and Piper get along. Could the two of you fly together?”
He smiled. “We could, but that’s not the point, Chelsea, and you know it as well as I do. I like Piper well enough, but she wouldn’t want to spend half her career in the right seat any more than I would. And besides, there’s no need for the company to pay two pilots when the aircraft only needs one.”
“But that’s not the point!”
He chuckled and held up a hand. “You need to think with your head more and leave your heart out of it. I know you’re only trying to think of what’s best for me, and I love you for it, but I’m fine. It’s that kind of thinking that’s gotten you in trouble with Zosca, isn’t it?”
“Zosca’s not in trouble.”
He gave her a stern look. “I didn’t say it was. You’re the one who’s in trouble.”
She shrugged. “Not really. I’m just not seeing eye to eye with Dad. That’s all.”
“And so, your dad brought in this Grant guy. I have to admit, I like him. He’s not what I expected.”
“Me neither. He’s not the ogre I wanted him to be.”
“Then why don’t you let him help you?”
She frowned. “I am. I’m not stopping him from doing what he’s here to do. He’s going through everything, and he’ll make his recommendations when he’s done.”
“I know, but why don’t you want to listen to his recommendations now? Put them into effect?”
“Because he’ll want to put profits above everything else, and that’s not what I’m about.”
Gene shook his head.
“What?”
“Nothing. It’s just from what I’ve seen, he might have some ideas that could help you now.”
“I don’t want his kind of help. I just want to get through this, and then when he’s gone, I’ll take over and go my own way.”
Gene chuckled. “You’ve always gone your own way.”
“Yep, and I don’t intend to change direction now. Anyway, did you really come in here to talk about that?”
“No. I wanted to ask if you want to come for dinner on Saturday? I think Rita’s sick of having me home all the time and wants some company other than mine. She’s inviting a few people over for a bit of a get-together, and we’d like you to come.”
“Of course. I’d love to. What can I bring?”
“Just yourself. We’re going to grill out. It won’t be anything fancy.”
“That sounds great. How many people will there be?”
He shrugged. “I dunno yet.”
“Well, then I’ll make a huge dessert, enough for lots of people, and plenty to satisfy your sweet tooth for a while if it’s only a few people.”
“Thanks.” He got to his feet. “I’m going to be up in the offices with Cameron and Mary Ellen this week, so if I don’t see you before, I’ll see you Saturday, about six.”
“I’ll look forward to it.”
He stopped when he got to the door and turned back. “Think about what I said. Maybe Grant could help you now if you let him. You might want to listen to what he has to say.”
She nodded. “Okay. I’ll listen.”
Once Gene had gone she stared out the window for a few moments. Was she really being too stubborn? She was trying to sideline Grant and just endure the time till he was gone. Maybe she should heed Gene’s advice. Perhaps Grant would have some suggestions that she could use in her own way. She blew out a sigh. Or perhaps not.