Non-Refundable Groom. Patty Salier

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СКАЧАТЬ was sure that Stanley wasn’t eager to hire another female again. And Grace had told her that Stanley would never again promote or keep anyone who got romantically involved with a co-worker at his branch offices.

      To get that promotion, she had to come up with a way to top Garrett’s credits, and fast.

      With a jolt of energy, she stood up and blurted, “Stanley, I can prove I’m the perfect person for the job.”

      Her boss’s eyebrows lifted with interest. “What do you propose?”

      She could feel Garrett’s eyes on her. She pressed the folder to her chest, trying to keep her mind focused on the job and not him.

      “Give me one month, Stanley,” she began. “Besides doing my regular job, I’ll rev up new accounts to increase your business.”

      Stanley pulled his chair closer to his desk. “Are you saying that you’ll go out and get me new clients?”

      “Absolutely!” she blurted.

      She panicked. She’d never gotten a new management account at her job. Elena had always been assigned properties to manage by Stanley. He was the one who got new accounts.

      “Fascinating idea, Elena,” Stanley said, pondering her concept.

      “It sure is,” Garrett added, looking at her, impressed. “How about if you and I compete for new accounts?”

      “What do you mean?” she pushed out.

      “The one who gets the most new clients for the company wins the vice presidency.”

      “Sounds fair to me,” Stanley commented.

      “I’m in,” she responded, wanting Garrett to know she was ready to take him on full-force.

      “Terrific,” Stanley said. “Now my choice will be an obvious one.”

      Just as Stanley’s phone rang again, Grace stuck her head in the office. “Elena, a tenant at the Fourth Street apartment building is having a problem and needs to speak to you.”

      “Thanks, Grace, I’ll take it at my desk,” she said, wishing she didn’t have to leave at that moment. “I’ll be right back.”

      As Stanley took his call, Garrett couldn’t take his eyes off Elena leaving the office.

      Her willful competitive nature turned him on. He was impressed that she wasn’t intimidated by his longer experience at the company. He respected her headstrong desire to get the promotion over him at all costs.

      The entire time she’d been in the office, Garrett could barely listen to Stanley talk about the promotion. He was totally mesmerized by her enticing blue eyes.

      He yearned to run his fingers through her soft, shoulder-length, streaked blond hair. When he had caught a glimpse of the lace of her bra through her accidentally-opened button, he felt a moment of desire for her.

      “Garrett, I like Elena’s competitive-account idea,” Stanley said, hanging up the phone.

      “She’s incredible,” he said, and then quickly added, “I mean, she’s a clever thinker.”

      “Garrett, I want to be very clear about one thing,” his employer went on. “What I said to you a few weeks ago still holds true.”

      “I haven’t forgotten,” Garrett said.

      Stanley’s proposal was etched permanently into his brain. He’d told Garrett that he planned to retire m the near future, but since he was a widower with no children to pass down the business to, he needed a good man to run his company.

      Garrett’s goal was to become that man. But first, he needed to earn the vice presidency and prove his abilities to govern the company.

      “To be fair to Elena, I’m giving her idea an equitable chance,” Stanley continued. “But I’ll be honest. My eye is on you. I’m sure with your numerous contacts, you’ll acquire plenty of new accounts to make my final decision an easy one.”

      “I won’t disappoint you, Stan,” he said firmly.

      Yet, to his surprise, Garrett felt hesitant about powerhousing for new accounts. And he knew why. He wished that Elena Martin wasn’t his competition.

      Stanley’s phone rang again. Garrett saw Elena walking toward him. His body heat rose at the sight of her. He noticed that she’d safety-pinned her blouse, and the fabric strained across her full breasts. He’d never felt such a powerful reaction to a woman before—not even his ex-wife.

      “Did I miss anything?” Elena asked him, her eyes taking in Stanley on the phone with his back to them.

      “Stan’s very impressed with your new account proposal,” he said, feeling uneasy about his boss confiding that he favored him over her.

      “I’m going to be vice president, Garrett,” she boldly stated.

      The fire in her eyes and the sensual way she was standing with her hand on her hip made him want to draw her into his arms and make wild love to her right then and there.

      “Elena, have lunch with me,” he said instead in a low voice so Stanley wouldn’t hear.

      “Lunch?” she asked, glancing worriedly at Stanley.

      “I want to get a better sense of who my competition is.”

      He didn’t know what was happening to him. He knew that Stanley was uncomfortable with employees romancing in the office. Yet when he was near her, he momentarily forgot his desire to become vice president. Being in her presence made him want to ignore every rule in the book.

      “I can’t have lunch with you,” she told him.

      Stanley hung up. “I’m off,” he said, heading toward the door. “Good luck to the both of you.”

      The moment Stanley left, Elena nervously clasped her hands behind her back, superconscious of being alone with Garrett. Everything inside of her wanted to tell him yes for lunch. But how could she? She had just met him and already she was aching to spend more time with him.

      Hadn’t she learned from her last boyfriend, Ted, how rushing into a relationship spelled disaster for her? Besides, she knew that Stanley would never promote her if she got involved with one of his property managers.

      Grace peeked into the office. “Elena, before you leave for lunch, your sister’s on the phone.”

      “My sister?” Just being near him made her brain turn into mush. “Oh, sure, thanks.”

      “I could wait to go down in the elevator with you,” Garrett suggested.

      “You go ahead,” she said. “I might be a while.” She went to her cubicle.

      Yet as she picked up the phone, she wanted to hurry so she could get to the elevator, hoping Garrett would still be there. She couldn’t stop thinking about him!

      Her sister sounded worried СКАЧАТЬ