Barbara Dunlop - Christmas Secrets

An intelligent light came into Bartholomew’s eyes. “Mr. Henderson had a lot of faith in Sidney. I believe that was appropriate. He also had a lot of faith in Roth. I believe that faith may have been misplaced. He also understood the need to deploy Julius in certain situations.”

“Such as?”

“Would you like me to be blunt?”

“Always.”

“Julius is a pit bull. But he’s Coast Eagle’s pit bull.”

“What about Max Cutter?”

“Max Cutter will be completely up front and honest with you. If I had to guess, I’d say he can’t wait to get out of the president’s role and back to the legal department.”

Cole agreed with that assessment. Max had said as much himself.

“And Amber Welsley?” Cole asked.

“I knew Mrs. Henderson a lot better than I knew Ms. Welsley.”

“Impressions?”

“She has always struck me as hardworking but below the radar. I’m not certain she thought very highly of Mr. Samuel Henderson.”

“He married her baby sister.”

“Indeed. Though I’m not certain she was a fan of Mrs. Henderson, either.”

“May I rely on your discretion, Bartholomew?”

“You may.”

“Good to know.” Cole was impressed with the man so far.

“If I may, sir?”

“Yes?”

“You haven’t asked about Samuel Henderson.”

“That’s because I don’t want to know.”

Bartholomew was silent for a moment. “Very good.”

“Is that a problem for you?”

“Not at all.”

Cole looked through the doorway to the outer office and Bartholomew’s desk. “Give me the lay of the land here.”

Bartholomew moved to stand beside him. “You’ve seen reception, and my desk is right there. The office to your right is the president’s. Max isn’t using it, because he already has an office on this floor. Around the corner to your left is Roth, next to him is Julius, and Sidney is around the corner from the president’s office. The east boardroom is next to Sidney, and the west meeting room is next to Julius. After that, you’re through reception to the director’s offices and the executive lunch room.”

“Is everyone in today?”

“As I understand it, yes.”

“Thank you, Bartholomew.” Cole exited the office and made his way to the elevator in the reception area.

Under Sandra’s veiled curiosity, he pressed the button for seven. He could well imagine the conversations and speculation would start the second the door closed behind him. That was good. He wanted people to wonder.

On the seventh floor, he took a left then a right, quickly finding Amber’s office.

Her door was open, and he was taken aback by the small size. She sat at her desk, head down, writing on a financial sheet.

“There’s an adding error on report sixteen,” she said without looking up, obviously hearing him arrive. “I know we have to pull the soft commitments in manually, but we need to make sure the formulas are—”

She spotted Cole in the doorway. “Sorry.” His presence seemed to fluster her. “I assumed you were my assistant.”

“Nope.” He walked in.

She sat up straight and set down her pen. “You’re here.”

“I’m here.” He glanced around. “More to the point, you’re here. ”

“I’m usually here.”

“This is your office?”

“It is.”

“So the office of the assistant director of finance?”

“That would be me.”

He braced himself on the desk across from her. “Not anymore.”

She drew back. “Have I been fired?”

“Promoted. Or haven’t you been paying attention?”

“Being temporarily nominated as guardian is not a promotion.”

“You’re chair of the board.”

“For the next five minutes.”

“If you want people to take you seriously, you need to look the part.”

“Pretending I’m the real chair of the board would be embarrassing for everyone involved.”

He straightened. “I don’t get you.”

“I’m not that complicated.”

“Yes, you are. But that’s not my point. We need to use every weapon at our disposal. One of the strongest, if not the strongest we have is the fact that, for now, we are in charge. Get up.”

Her brows shot up. “Excuse me?”

“There’s an empty office on the top floor—you’re moving in. Right now.”

“You can’t order me to—”

“Amber.”

She set her jaw.

He ignored the expression. “Your biggest weakness is that nobody can picture you at the helm.”

“That’s because I’m not capable of taking the helm.”

“Who says?”

“Reason and good judgment?”

“They’re wrong. And you’re wrong.” His tone hardened. This was too important to mess up. “And if you don’t march yourself up to that corner office right now and start giving orders, then you haven’t done your best by Zachary.”

“I have done everything—”

“No, Amber. You haven’t. Right now, between the two of us, we control sixty-five percent of Coast Eagle. Let’s start acting like it. Let’s let the world see us at the helm. That way, they’ll know we can do it.”

She glanced around her office, the three computer screens, the stacks of reports. “But—”

“First stop, your boss’s office to give him permission to replace you.”

“Give away my job?” The prospect clearly distressed her.

“Temporarily. Trust me, Amber. And if you can’t trust me, trust Destiny. Phone her now. I know she’ll agree.”

Amber’s lips compressed as she obviously thought through the situation.

“Being seen in charge is our best weapon,” he reiterated. “Don’t throw it away.”

“Okay.” She came to her feet, expression determined. “I’m willing to try anything.”

Cole felt a surge of relief. He’d known she was stubborn. But he’d also known she was smart. Luckily, smart had won out.

“I’ve never even set foot in this store,” Amber whispered to Destiny.

The next step in Cole’s stated strategy was to deck both of them out in what he called a power wardrobe. From what Amber could see, that meant spending a whole lot of money.

“I’ve never shopped here, either,” Destiny answered. “But I know some of the senior partners do. I’ve heard them mention the name.”

“I don’t dare look at the price tags,” said Amber, glancing around at the gleaming floors, marble pillars and leather furniture groupings with complimentary designer water and champagne.

“What price tags?” asked Destiny. “If you have to ask, you can’t afford it.”

“I think I might break out in hives.”

Cole and Luca entered the store behind them.

“This ought to do it,” said Luca with obvious satisfaction.

Cole took in the high, brightly lit ceilings. “It’s nothing like the Fashion Farm back home.”

“Are you two going upstairs?” Destiny nodded to the sign for menswear.

“And miss the fun?” asked Luca.

“Let’s get Amber decked out first,” said Cole. “I want to make sure she doesn’t hold back.”

“You doubt my powers of persuasion?” asked Destiny.

“You’ll make me self-conscious,” Amber told Cole.

“What better means to cure you? If you can get comfortable in front of me, the rest of the executives will be easy.” He pointed to a headless mannequin in a blazer and skirt combination. “What about that?”

The skirt was short and black, scattered with tiny white flecks. The blouse was white with a braided scooped neck. And the blazer was solid black, fitted, with the sleeves pushed up the forearms.