Susan Mallery - Lone Star Millionaire

She glared at him. “They’re more interesting than that.”

“I doubt it. You are not the kind of woman who has deep, dark secrets. Don’t worry, Sabrina, I’m not complaining. Far from it.”

Before she could protest that she could be bad, too, if she wanted, he did the most extraordinary thing. He reached out and took her hand in his.

Sabrina blinked twice, then stared at their linked fingers. She and Cal often touched. A light brush of his arm against hers when they walked together. A teasing poke in her side if he thought she was being too stuffy. He’d hugged her a half dozen times or so over the course of their working relationship. But those had all been impersonal buddy-type contacts. This was personal.

She felt his heat and strength. His long fingers and broad palm dwarfed her hand, leaving her feeling incredibly feminine. A strange lethargy stole over her, and it was only when her chest started to get tight that she realized she’d stopped breathing.

She forced herself to draw in a deep breath, then release it. This wasn’t happening. She glanced down and saw that it was. He was actually holding her hand. Then, as if he’d read her mind and realized what he was doing, he squeezed once and released her.

Sabrina sat next to him, feeling as if she’d just survived a force three tornado. Her entire body felt buffeted. Every cell was on alert, her skin tingled where it had been in contact with his, and if she allowed herself to notice, she would have to confess to a definite hint of dampness on her panties.

Danger! a voice in her head screamed. Danger! Danger! Do not do this to yourself!

She straightened and gave the voice her full attention. Every word was true. Cal Langtry was deadly to women everywhere. He was only ever interested in the chase. Once he’d caught his chosen prey, he lost interest and ended the relationship. She’d seen it happen countless times. Besides, they had a perfectly wonderful working relationship. She adored her job, she was well paid, and she wasn’t a fool. Not only would she jeopardize everything if she started thinking of Cal as a man instead of her employer, she would be wishing after the moon. After all, she wasn’t his type.

As painful as it was, she forced herself to remember a phone call she’d overheard nearly six years before. She’d been working for Cal all of two or three months and had been fighting a serious crush. It had been late and she’d entered his office unannounced.

He had his back to the door and didn’t notice her in the shadows. She still didn’t know who he’d been talking to and she didn’t want to know. What she recalled most was that he’d been talking about her.

“Yes, my new assistant is working out great. I’m impressed with her.” He’d paused to listen. “I did say ‘her.’ Sabrina is very much a woman.”

She thought about how her heart had leapt in her chest and her knees had grown weak. Was it possible he’d been attracted to her, too?

“No, you’ve got it all wrong. She’s perfect for me. She’s bright and too good for me to ever want to let her go. She’s attractive enough so that no one is going to think she’s a dog, but not pretty enough to interest me. It’s great. No matter how closely we work together, Sabrina Innis will never be more than office equipment to me.”

The words had laid her soul bare. She’d crept out silently and spent the rest of the night crying away her foolish dreams. In the cold light of dawn, she’d made a decision. She could continue to want what she could never have, or she could make the best of what was a wonderful job. With Cal she would make enough money to put her three siblings through college and provide for Gram. She would also be able to build a nest egg for herself. The position of Cal’s assistant meant travel, all of which would be first class, a chance to meet interesting people and gain experiences she would never have otherwise. Did it matter that she didn’t turn the man on?

In the end, common sense had won out over ego. She’d ruthlessly suppressed every hint of her crush until her wayward emotions fell into line. Now she could look at Cal and see him for the handsome bachelor he was without feeling anything but friendship. She’d bought gifts for his women and had made arrangements for romantic weekends away all without a twinge of jealousy or regret. So what had just happened?

Sabrina thought about all that had occurred in the past twenty-four hours. It must be the tension, she told herself. She hadn’t slept much the previous night. Dealing with Cal’s family was difficult for both of them. He’d reached out for comfort and she’d happened to be the closest person. She’d reacted because he was a good-looking man and she’d been living like a nun. Wayward hormones and close proximity. Nothing else. She didn’t have any romantic feelings for the man. How could she? She knew the worst about him. She still liked him, but she sure wasn’t fooled by his charming personality. Cal Langtry might be an incredible catch, but he had flaws, just like everyone else.

The limo pulled up in front of the hotel. She looked over at her boss. “What do you want to do?”

“There’s no point in staying here. Let’s change the flights and go to Ohio this afternoon. I’ll call Jack and have him notify the aunt. If I can, I want to get my daughter as soon as possible.”

The town was a three-hour drive from the airport. Cal slowed at the intersection. There were only two other cars in sight and both of them were at least ten years old. Although he’d traveled to many unusual places, he’d always lived in large cities—Houston, Dallas, New York for a short time. In the back of his mind, he’d wondered what it would be like to live in a place where everyone knew everyone else.

“Follow this street about a mile,” Sabrina said, consulting the handwritten directions Jack, his attorney, had provided them. “Then turn right. Oster Street. There should be a stop sign.”

There were small business on both sides of what was obviously the main road. A diner, a barber shop, a closed five-and-dime. He was about to say it didn’t look as bad as Jack had made it out to be when he noticed the peeling paint on most of the buildings. Some of the windows were boarded up. The farther he drove into town and away from the highway, the more run-down everything seemed.

He turned right where Sabrina indicated. Commercial and retail areas gave way to houses. He saw a lot of broken or missing fences, cars up on blocks. Side yards contained clotheslines with drying garments flapping in the brisk breeze. Porches sagged, yards were overgrown with weeds. They passed a block with five houses for sale, four of which had signs proclaiming the price had been reduced.

“This place is dying,” he said.

“I know. It’s sad. Jack said the main factory closed and there’s no employment. A lot of people have already gone, and those who stayed are having trouble earning an income. In a couple of years, there won’t be anything left.”

Their rental car was a plain General Motors four-door sedan, nothing fancy. But it was relatively new and seemed out of place on the narrow street. “I’m glad we didn’t take a limo.”

“I agree. Turn right at the stop sign.” Sabrina rolled down her window and took a breath. “I feel badly for these people. You can smell the poverty.” She shivered. “What’s that saying? ‘Been there, done that, bought the T-shirt.’ I don’t want to go back.”

Cal frowned. “You told me that you grew up without a lot of money, but things were never this desperate, were they?”

“Not really. We didn’t have extra spending money, but we got by. After my folks died and we moved in with my grandmother, we had a few months that were pretty difficult, before the social security kicked in. Then it wasn’t so bad. Besides, Gram was a hoot to live with. I remember her standing at the stove fixing macaroni and cheese. We had it about three times a week because it was cheap and all us kids liked it. Anyway, she would stir in that orange powder stuff, look at me and say, ‘Sabrina Innis, being poor sucks. You make sure you do better.’” Sabrina laughed. “She was wonderful.”