Victoria Pade - Not Strictly Business! - Prodigal Son / The Boss and Miss Baxter / The Baby Deal

She glanced at him from under her lashes. “I’m a complete adult and I accept responsibility for what just happened.”

Was that her way of saying she wasn’t going to back off and run this time?

“And?” he asked, knowing there had to be a punch line.

“No and. Just that. And me saying thanks for being patient.”

“My pleasure.” Although pleasure didn’t exactly describe his painful state of arousal. He reached for another chicken wing and bit into it. In time, the need would fade to a manageable level. His erection would cease to throb with each beat of his heart and the temperature in his body would slowly cool. But until then, life was hell.

“You’re going to have to go to a few Cubs games when the season starts,” he said.

She laughed. “You’re deliberately changing the subject.”

“You noticed.”

She smiled. “This is in an effort to erase the tension here and keep me from feeling awkward.”

“Something like that.” Some of his motivation was selfish. Thinking about baseball was a time-honored way to keep from thinking about sex.

Her smiled widened. “Okay. Then tell me everything you know about the Cubs.”

“At least the news isn’t getting worse,” David said.

“Not exactly the sign of forward progress I would like,” Jack said. “But it beats the hell out of our string of bad news. You’ve been working hard to get us favorable play in the press.”

“It’s my job.”

Jack leaned back on the sofa in his uncle’s office. “Helen came to see me last week. She wanted to talk about how I was doing. It was almost as if …”

David raised his eyebrows but didn’t speak.

Jack shook his head. “It was almost as if she was worried about me.”

“Is that impossible to believe?”

“Yes. Why would she care?”

“Why wouldn’t she? You don’t know anything about Helen.”

“Do you?”

“Not really. George and I haven’t been exactly tight these past few years. But I’ve spoken with her, spent a few dinners with her. She seems reasonable and intelligent. You might want to take the time to get to know her.”

“That’s what Samantha says. She’s a serious advocate.”

David smiled.

Jack narrowed his gaze. “What?”

His uncle’s smile turned into a grin. “There’s something about the way you say her name. So things are progressing.”

“No and no. We’re getting along. She works for me. That’s it.”

“Like I believe that.”

“It’s true. She is just getting over a divorce. I’m not interested in getting involved in that process.”

“Have you considered the fact that you already are?”

Was he? Jack thought about the weekend, when he and Samantha had spent so much time together. Hearing about her past and her marriage made a lot of things more clear to him. But that didn’t mean he was interested in her. Not in any way but sexually.

“I’m not involved,” he told David.

His uncle nodded. “Keep telling yourself that. Eventually it will be true.”

The company had gone all out for the advertisers’ party. As this was the first one Samantha had attended, she didn’t know if the stunning decorations, incredible view and fabulous food were normal or if this party was a little bit extra-special in an effort to soothe their accounts.

Either way, she was excited to be there and felt just like Cinderella at the ball. For once, she’d left her loose and comfy clothes behind and had instead worn a form-fitting strapless gown in dark apple-green.

The shimmering fabric very nearly matched the color of her eyes. She’d gone simple in the jewelry department, wearing vintage paste earrings that looked like amazing diamonds. The antique settings made them look like the genuine article. Last, she’d spent nearly two hours on her hair, curling it on big rollers and then drying it. But the effort had been worth it. Her normally tight, natural curls were now loose and sexy. She’d pinned up the sides and left the back to cascade over her shoulder blades.

She felt good and knew she looked her best. The question was had she done enough to dazzle Jack?

“Not that I care,” she murmured as she made her way to the bar for the glass of white wine she would hold on to for most of the evening. She refused to define herself by a man.

Not that she was. Wanting to knock Jack’s socks off had nothing to do with definition and everything to do with the fire she’d seen in his eyes last weekend when they’d kissed.

She saw David and moved toward him. It was early and most of the guests hadn’t arrived.

“You look beautiful,” he said with a smile.

“Thank you. Great place. I love the view.”

From one set of floor-to-ceiling windows was the lake and from the other were the lights of the city.

“We have a lot on the line,” David told her. “Are you rethinking your decision to take this job? This isn’t Hanson Media Group’s most shining moment.”

“Jack asked me that as well. I meant what I said then. I’m excited about the opportunity to create something wonderful.”

“I’ve seen the preliminary designs on the Web site. They’re great. And I’ve been over the security you want to put in place. It could be called obsessive.”

She laughed. “I’m sure I’ll hear worse before the launch. The point is to make this a safe destination for children. I’m willing to do everything possible to make that happen. Even if it means driving the IT guys a little crazy.”

David grinned. “Good for you. Next week let’s set up a meeting to talk about publicity for the launch. I’ve already reserved some space in a couple of kid magazines and there will be a few Saturday morning cartoon spots.”

Samantha stared at him. “Television advertising?” She knew how much it cost.

“Jack said you were going to be the one to save the company. So he told me to think big.”

She doubted Jack had ever said she would save the company but she knew the Web site could go a long way to boosting the bottom line. Still, she was surprised and pleased to find out how much he was supporting her.

“I’ll call you,” she said. “I have a lot of ideas for the advertising.”

“Why am I not surprised?”

She laughed. “I have ideas for pretty much everything.”

“That’s what Jack said.”

There was something in David’s voice that made her wonder what else Jack had been saying about her. Not that she would ask.

Several clients walked into the ballroom. David excused himself and went over to greet them. Samantha followed more slowly, wanting to give him a moment to talk before she moved close and introduced herself.

She’d done plenty of industry parties. They had a simple formula for success. She had to make sure she spoke with everyone, was charming and friendly and remembered their names. Then, during the second half of the evening, she needed to circulate, chatting about anything and finding subtle ways to talk up the company. She’d also learned to pay attention to anyone who seemed to be on his or her own. Being lonely at a party was never a good idea. Taking a little time to be a friend and then introduce the shy person to others went a long way to making the evening a success.

David spoke with the group of eight men and women. She waited for a lull in the conversation then moved in closer.

David smiled at her. “This is Samantha Edwards, one of our newest and brightest additions to Hanson Media Group. Samantha is working on an incredible expansion of our Internet site for kids.”

One of the women raised her eyebrows. “Do I want my children spending more time on the computer?”