When Tom Holloway was chosen to run the Taka-Hanson hospitality division, the new CFO had no idea single mother Shelly Winston was part of the package. But from the moments she accepted his job offer, Tom knew he was going to have trouble resisting his alluring assistant and her charming little boy.
Not to mention, pleasure?
Shelly knew that falling for her boss was a business don't. Especially when Tom found out about the secret she'd been forced to keep. Someone was out to sabotage the burgeoning Taka-Hanson hotel empire. And it could have disastrous consequences for the future of two powerful dynasties—and her own future with the man she loved….
When Tom Holloway was chosen to run the Taka-Hanson hospitality division, the new CFO had no idea single mother Shelly Winston was part of the package. But from the moments she accepted his job offer, Tom knew he was going to have trouble resisting his alluring assistant and her charming little boy.
Not to mention, pleasure?
Shelly knew that falling for her boss was a business don't. Especially when Tom found out about the secret she'd been forced to keep. Someone was out to sabotage the burgeoning Taka-Hanson hotel empire. And it could have disastrous consequences for the future of two powerful dynasties—and her own future with the man she loved….
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Overview
When Tom Holloway was chosen to run the Taka-Hanson hospitality division, the new CFO had no idea single mother Shelly Winston was part of the package. But from the moments she accepted his job offer, Tom knew he was going to have trouble resisting his alluring assistant and her charming little boy.
Not to mention, pleasure?
Shelly knew that falling for her boss was a business don't. Especially when Tom found out about the secret she'd been forced to keep. Someone was out to sabotage the burgeoning Taka-Hanson hotel empire. And it could have disastrous consequences for the future of two powerful dynasties—and her own future with the man she loved….
Product Details
| ISBN-13: | 9781426819155 |
|---|---|
| Publisher: | Silhouette |
| Publication date: | 07/01/2008 |
| Series: | Back in Business , #1 |
| Sold by: | HARLEQUIN |
| Format: | eBook |
| Pages: | 224 |
| File size: | 183 KB |
About the Author
Read an Excerpt
The present…
In the humid darkness of a warm June night, a long, black limousine eased up to the curb of a modest brick bungalow in the Chicago suburb of Forest Park.
Inside the luxurious car, Shelly Winston turned to the uncle she'd met for the first time that evening. "Would you like to come in? I could—"
"Sorry." Drake Thatcher, handsome as an old-time movie star, with coal-black hair and eyes to match, waved away her offer before she'd finished making it. "Thanks, Shelly. I really can't. I've got a flight to catch. I want to be touching down at Teterboro two hours from now."
Teterboro. Even Shelly, who didn't travel in exclusive circles, had heard of the New Jersey airport where all the rich people kept their private jets. The Kennedys flew in and out of Teterboro. And of course her long-lost uncle did, too. Drake was rich, after all. At dinner, he'd told her about his bicoastal lifestyle. He owned a penthouse on the Upper East Side, a beachfront estate in Miami and a Century City condo in Southern California.
The dinner Shelly had just enjoyed had been the finest she'd ever tasted. The lobster had been flavored with hyacinth vapor, whatever that was. And the licorice cake she'd devoured for dessert had been topped with a special muscovado sugar. The menu had no prices on it, but she had a feeling the tab and tip together would have taken care of her mortgage payment for the month—her mortgage which wasn't overdue yet. But would be. Soon.
"Thank you, then," she said sincerely. "For the wonderful dinner. And even more, for the lead on that job at TAKA-Hanson. It sounds like just the kind of thing I'm looking for." Not to mention what I need. Bad.
Drake pushed a button and the privacy window behind the driver slid up the rest of the way. Then he leaned across the plush seat toward her, bringing with him the smell of expensive aftershave. It was a fine scent, but he'd laid it on a little too heavily.
He pitched his voice to a confidential level. "I mean it, Shelly. You need to get on that tomorrow. Make a move and make it fast. It just so happens you're in luck with this. I got word that the job would be opening up ahead of their HR department. But it'll be snapped up before noon, take my word on it."
"Don't worry. I'll be there waiting when they open the doors."
"Excellent." He patted her shoulder and sat back in his own seat again, taking the heavy cloud of pricey cologne with him.
"Well, I'll let you get going then. I mean it. Thanks so much."
"One more thing.…"
"Sure."
He glanced away, then back to her. "It's not a big deal, just…you might be wiser not to mention my name at TAKA-Hanson."
Shelly frowned. "But I don't see—"
Another wave of his well-manicured hand. "Shelly. I'm sure you know that the business world is a cutthroat one. Unfortunately, in the past, I've found myself going head-to-head with more than one top TAKA executive. No, it probably won't make any difference if you mention that I suggested you apply there. But then again, why take a chance of starting out on the wrong foot with them?" His smile was wide and oh-so-charming.
And Shelly had a powerful suspicion that she was being played.
But for what? Her long-lost uncle had asked nothing of her. All he'd done was to take her out for an expensive dinner and give her a terrific lead when she happened to mention she was looking for a job.
She kept it light. "Honestly, Uncle Drake. What could the TAKA-Hanson people possibly have against a wonderful guy like you?"
Drake shrugged. And backed off the point. "Listen. If you feel more comfortable telling the clerks in HR that your uncle suggested you should apply there, go for it." He glanced at his Rolex. "And I've got to get rolling."
"Thanks again."
"Don't mention it. I'm glad we got together. Call me. Soon. I want to hear all about how much you love your new job."
Inside the house, Shelly turned on the air-condition-ing. The day had been hotter than usual for early June and the house was stuffy. She'd been doing without air-conditioning over the last couple of unseasonably warm days. It cost money to keep the place cool—even a small house like hers.
But she could afford to splurge on a little cool air tonight. Because tomorrow she was getting that job. It was exactly the kind of top executive assistant position she'd been looking for.
She flopped to the sofa and grabbed a throw pillow to hug. "TAKA-Hanson, here I come!" The cheer in her voice sounded more than a little forced.
But why wouldn't it? All she had was a tip, after all. There were no guarantees. Maybe someone else had an inside track on the position, too. Maybe her uncle had been wrong and there was no position, after all.
The house seemed so empty. She missed Max. A lot.
Shelly tossed the pillow aside and reached for the phone, auto-dialing her mom's number.
"Hello. Winston residence. This is Norma." Norma Winston had been a librarian for over thirty years. She'd retired five years before, but she still answered the phone in a formal tone.
"Hey, Mom."
"Honey. Hi."
"I know he's asleep, huh?"
"That child." A world full of love was in those two simple words.
"Keeping you busy, is he?"
"I love every minute of it." Six-year-old Max stayed with his grandparents for a month every summer. Shelly's mom and her dad, Doug, loved having him there. And Max loved the time he spent with them. Shelly missed her son. A lot. But she enjoyed the break from single parenthood, too. Especially this year, when she'd been out of work for three months and was starting to get seriously stressed about it.
"Give him a big kiss for me, huh? Tell him I'll call tomorrow."
"You know he'd rather call you."
"No kidding." It was Max's latest thing. Memorizing important phone numbers, making the calls himself. "Okay. Have him call about six. I'll be home by then."
"Home by then?" her mother echoed hopefully. "Something come up on the job front?"
"Oh, Mom. Cross your fingers for me and say a little prayer."
"Honey, you know I will."
"I heard about this great job opening up. Just tonight, as a matter of fact. You'll never guess who I heard it from.…"
"Someone I know?"
"Uncle Drake."
"Drake…Thatcher?" Her mom sounded as surprised to hear her half brother's name as Shelly had been when she'd picked up the phone and heard his deep, smooth voice on the other end. Norma Winston and Drake moved in completely different circles. They exchanged Christmas cards, but that was about the extent of their keeping in touch.
"He called this afternoon. He was in town, he said, just for the day. He wanted to meet me. He said it was about time."
"Well. I guess so.…" Her mother's voice trailed off. Shelly knew she was wondering what could possibly have inspired her half brother suddenly to take an interest in Shelly, when up until now he'd behaved as if she didn't exist.
"It is kind of strange, huh?" Shelly voiced her doubts. "I mean, him calling up out of the blue like that?"
"No. No, of course it isn't. I think it's…nice. It's never too late to get to know your family."
Shelly smiled again. Her mother was such a sweetie. Norma's father, Bart Thatcher, had divorced Shelly's grandmother and married "up" into a wealthy New York family, leaving his original family behind. Drake was the first child of Bart's second marriage. He'd grown up rich as they come, while Norma had started out with so little. But Shelly's mom had made a good life for herself and held no grudge.
"He took me to dinner," Shelly said. "And when I told him I was looking for a job, he said there was something coming available at TAKA-Hanson. You've heard of Hanson North America, right?"
"Oh, yes." Norma Winston prided herself on staying informed. She took three newspapers: the Mt. Vernon Register-News, the Tribune and the New York Times. She read all three, too.
"Uncle Drake says Hanson Media merged with a giant Japanese company called TAKA Corporation some years back, becoming Hanson North America here in the States. Since then, under the name TAKA-Hanson, the merged company branched out into other things, beyond the media business. Including this way upscale, exclusive hotel chain. I guess Uncle Drake's got an ‘in' there or something, though he was pretty vague about how he knew the job would be open."
"But you're excited?"
"Yeah. I am. I have a feeling this is it."
"Well. I know it is."
"Mom. That's what I love about you and Dad. You're always so sure good things will happen."
"Because they will," her mother said. And then she laughed. "Nothing but good news ahead."
"I hope you're right."
"Of course I'm right."
Shelly was ready and waiting at the TAKA-Hanson building the next day when the human resources office opened. She turned in her résumé and made it through two tiers of interviews. When asked what brought her to apply at TAKA-Hanson, she played it safe and left her uncle Drake out of it.
"I like what I've heard about the company," she said. It was true. She'd spent two hours on the Internet before bed the night before, researching like crazy, learning all she could about TAKA-Hanson, which had home offices in Chicago and Tokyo. "And it occurred to me I ought to come in and get my résumé on file," she added. "Just in case."
The woman across the desk nodded. "As it happens, your timing is perfect. We've learned this morning that Tom Holloway, CFO in our hospitality division, will be needing a new assistant."
Yes! Inside, Shelly was jumping up and down, doing the happy dance. But when she spoke, it was in her most polished, professional tone. "It sounds like exactly what I'm looking for."
The woman clicked her mouse and frowned at her computer screen. "If you've got time, I'd like to go ahead and send you upstairs now. You'll meet with Verna Reed, the woman you would be replacing."
"I have time. Definitely."
The elevator ride to the top floor seemed to last forever. But the doors slid wide at last and a slim, fiftyish woman was waiting on the other side. "Shelly? I'm Verna. Follow me.…"
They went to Verna's desk in a roomy alcove outside a closed door with Tom Holloway's name on it. Verna looked over Shelly's résumé and explained the job duties and asked questions about how Shelly might handle this or that situation. Shelly felt she did well. And she liked Verna, who was friendly and down-to-earth.
"I love this job," Verna confessed. "The money's great, there's lots of variety—and Tom Holloway is my hands-down favorite as bosses go. But my husband's retiring. You should see the RV he went out and bought. We've always said someday we'd travel together, see America, all that." She cocked her neatly combed head. "Let me see if Tom can spare a minute or two for you right now. What do you say?"
Shelly's heart did a forward roll. Yes! "I'd love to meet Tom."
Two minutes later, Verna ushered her into the sunlit corner office. The man behind the wide desk looked up. He had gorgeous blue eyes. "Shelly. Hi." He rose to greet her.
His jacket was nowhere in evidence and his silk shirt, which exactly matched those unforgettable eyes, was rolled to below the elbows. She took the hand he offered. His grip was solid. Strong.
When he released her hand, he gestured toward a nearby chair. She sat.
"Verna seems to think she's already found her replacement." He had a great voice. Deep and firm. Warm. And so…manly.
She grinned then. She just couldn't help it. "I think so. And I really hope you think so, too."
He had her résumé and application up on his computer. "Let me have a look here.…"
She waited, thinking how attractive he was, wondering if she was happy about that or not. Having a hunky boss could be a distraction.
But hey. She could learn to live with that. She could learn, easy.
"Everything seems to be in order here." He sent her an approving glance. "Two years at Southern Illinois University studying business…and until a month ago, you were managing the office at Coffey Fire Alarm, Incorporated?"
"That's right. Life kind of got in the way of my getting my degree." Life in the form of a beautiful baby boy. "And at Coffey, I wanted a promotion. And more money. They were happy with my work—you can see they gave me a great letter of recommendation. But they're a small company. I was running the office for them. That was the best they had to offer."
"So you quit."
"Yes. I loved working at Coffey. But after making several requests for a raise and a promotion, and being told there was nothing available unless I wanted to move over into sales, I felt the job was going nowhere. I wanted to be free to look full-time for something better." She didn't mention the sleepless nights since then, the worry and the guilt. What sensible single mom quit her job when she didn't have another one lined up? At the time she handed in her resignation, she'd felt she just couldn't bear another day in the job that went nowhere. But months without a paycheck had shown her otherwise.
Tom was nodding. Did that mean he liked her answer?
God. Interviews. Like walking through a minefield of handshakes and loaded questions and cordial smiles.
"What brings you to TAKA-Hanson?"
He would have to ask that one. She hated to lie. And really, why not just tell him the truth? Her uncle's name was on the tip of her tongue.