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Fearing she could read his expression, Adam kept his gaze firmly entrenched on the view outside the glass wall. When his father had purchased this office building more than twenty years ago, he’d also bought several adjoining lots to keep any sort of neighbors at bay. To this day, beautiful woods of pine, spruce and aspen grew right up to the back of the building, and at most any time of the day, chipmunks and birds could be seen feeding right outside the windows.
“I don’t have the final say-so whether you work here or not. My father has that right,” he told her.
“That’s not what I said,” she pointed out.
“I think you’ve come here searching for something you couldn’t find in Houston. I don’t think you’ll find it here, either.”
How could he know what she was searching for? Maureen wondered crossly. She swallowed the last of the bitter coffee and tossed the cup in a trash can sitting next to the desk. “Are you an authority on geologists or women or both?”
“I don’t profess to be an authority on anything.” he retorted.
She smiled, but the expression didn’t reach her eyes. “Then don’t try to figure me out. More than one man has tried it and failed.”
That got his instant attention, and he twisted around and pinned her with a stare of disbelief. “Look, Ms. York, I’m not trying to analyze you. I just want to make sure you’re here to work. This may not be like the huge company you worked for in Houston, but we do sink a lot of holes. If you came out here thinking this job was going to be easy, then you might as well head back to Texas.”
She walked to within a step of him, folded her arms across her breasts and looked up at him. “How old are you, Mr. Sanders?”
He frowned as though he couldn’t believe her question. “Twenty-five. Not that my age has anything to do with this conversation!”
“Hmm. Well, I was just amazed that you got so smart in such a short length of time. It takes most men many more years than you’ve acquired.”
Adam could rightly say without a drop of conceit that he’d always found it easy to converse with women, to charm and cajole them around to his way of thinking. He normally had a gift for gab. Especially with the opposite sex. A trait he’d been told he inherited from his birth father, Tomas Murdock, who’d died shortly after he was born. But this woman was not like any he’d encountered before. He wanted to kiss her and strangle her. He wanted to shake the haughty confidence from her face.
She dropped her arms, and his eyes fell to the generous line of her breasts. Beneath the mint-geen cotton shirt, he could see the faint outline of her lacy bra. He tried not to think how she would look without either piece of clothing.
“I guess you could say I’m a...fast learner,” he drawled.
Noticing the line of his vision had strayed lower than her face, Maureen folded her arms back over her breasts and glared at him. “I can tell you right now, the only reason I’m going to stay with Sanders Exploration is your father. He’s a man who’s highly admired in this business, and now that I’ve met him, I can see why. I’m flattered to have the chance to work for him. And I’ve decided it would be foolish to throw it away just because he has a cocky, know-it-all son.”
His brows lifted as his lips spread into a devilish grin. “So this means we’ll be working together?”
“Against my better judgment.”
It was certainly against Adam’s judgment, too. But he wasn’t a man to back away from a challenge. “My dad will be pleased to hear it.”
She smiled then. A sumptuous little movement of her lips that packed enough power to curl Adam’s toes.
“You don’t have to bother saying you’re pleased, too.” she countered.
As if she considered their conversation closed, she walked over to the chair she’d been sitting in and picked up a leather purse. She pulled the strap onto her shoulder and started to the door. Adam’s gaze followed the graceful swing of her hips.
“Do you need help finding a place around here?” he asked in afterthought.
She glanced at her wristwatch, then opened the door. “I’m meeting a real-estate agent in thirty minutes.”
“A real-estate agent! You mean you’re planning to buy rather than rent?”
She smiled again. “You said Sanders Exploration sinks a lot of holes—well, I plan to sink some roots.”
“Without a trial run?”
She nodded. “The moment I saw this area, I fell in love with it. In the past few minutes, I’ve decided that whatever I have to put up with on the job will be a small price to pay to make my home here.”
My home. She’d told Adam she wasn’t seeking a home in the traditional sense. So what was she looking for? And why did he keep picturing her as a wife and mother? She was a scientist. A woman who studied rocks and shale and sludge and seismographic charts.
“Then I hope you’re not disappointed, Ms. York.”
“The only way I’ll be disappointed is if you continue to call me Ms. York. My name is Maureen,” she said with a wry smile, then slipped past the door and out of Adam’s sight.
Adam thrust a hand through his hair and let out a low groan. The woman was a walking piece of dynamite. Just looking at her was dangerous. And working with her? Well, he could already see the explosion coming.
Chapter Two
The sky was full of stars and a warm breeze carried the scent of sage and pine. The sweeter fragrance of petunias blooming close by mingled with the tangy smells of the high desert country.
It was a pleasant night to eat outdoors, and for the first time in ages, his parents had managed to find time in their busy schedules to meet him at this favorite mountainside restaurant.
Across the table, Chloe was finishing the last of her chocolate mousse while the two men sipped their coffee. “I know you’re ready to go, darling,” she said to Wyatt. “But just give me time for a few more bites. It’s rare I have a chance to eat a dessert I haven’t made myself.”
Wyatt chuckled and patted his wife’s hand. “I know, you’re just a regular little slave. One of these days, I might let you out of your chains.”
A faint smile crossed Adam’s face as he watched the teasing exchange between his parents. After twenty-some years of marriage, the two of them were still very much in love and completely devoted to each other. The solidity of his family had always been reassuring to Adam. Yet now that he’d grown older, his parents’ relationship oftentimes amazed him. And sometimes even saddened him. Because he knew he would never be blessed in such a way.
Chloe put down her spoon and dabbed her lips with her napkin. “Okay, signal the waiter for the check and we’ll get out of here,” she told her husband. “I need to get home anyway and check on that mare. If she doesn’t foal tonight, she will tomorrow.”
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