She grinned as he smiled.
“You were the driver, so I believe that title belongs to you.”
“I’d love to take you for another ride in the future,” he said in a flirty tone.
“Sure, if you can last a little longer. That sure was a quick ride.”
He laughed. “I assure you we can go for a much longer ride, perhaps all night.”
“Perhaps.”
Chapter 10
LUKE DIDN’T MAKE A habit of asking employees out on a date. He hadn’t crossed that line since he was twenty-five. He knew flings and co-workers didn’t fly well. The last time it happened, things went weird and it was awkward in the office workplace. He had never made that mistake again. And here he was planning a date with Paige. He should stay away from her. It was the right thing to do. But every time he looked at her, sparks flew.
Luke had always prided himself on detail work. He believed in going above and beyond expectations to really astound those he presented to at work. He was driven, a perfectionist. So when it came to planning a date or two with Paige, the secretary who’d captured his attention and held on to it, he was determined to impress her.
He did the thing that came naturally to him. He created a spreadsheet, bent on deconstructing her expectations of him and the date he would plan. She would expect conspicuous consumption in the form of rare wines, high-dollar menu items, a private room at an impossible-to-get-into nightspot or restaurant. She’d think he was planning to take her somewhere like a movie premiere or an exclusive club. She was going to wear jeans and her blue top with the birds on it, as if in protest to show how average she was. Paige was anything but average or he wouldn’t be interested in her to begin with.
It started as just the challenge, the fact that she’d barged in on him during a private conversation and offered to marry him. Then she’d withdrawn the offer, and his competitive streak flared. He wanted to make her regret counting him out. Luke Conners wasn’t used to being dismissed out of hand. She’d regret it. She’d be desperate for his attention, attracted to him above all other men.
He’d wanted to strike a blow for his pride, his desirability. But it became more than that too quickly. It became a matter of getting Paige specifically to want to be his stand-in bride. Paige who was level-headed and funny and took no crap from him would be the perfect fiancée.
She wouldn’t be a bridezilla caught up in the wedding and reception and which flowers and cake. She’d be all about sticking to the terms of a deal. She’d make it fun, not something he just had to do to get the board of directors to shut up. Spending twelve months with Paige would be something he looked forward to, not an obligation.
Luke wanted her to come to him and say she’d changed her mind. That she was wrong about him. That he wasn’t a douchebag. That she’d like to get engaged to a man like that, no strings attached. They could have a fling, make each other laugh, never taking it too seriously. He wanted what his grandfather would call validation from her. He wasn’t looking for what his grandparents had shared together. He was just looking for a plausible cover of mature stability to reassure his skittish directors.
Luke debat
ed the ethics of having his attorney arrange for payment of the sister’s medical bills. Some sort of agreement could be drawn up to cover her insurance premiums and out of pocket costs while indemnifying him from further financial responsibility. He just knew that, while she needed the help, Paige wouldn’t accept it. She didn’t want his pity or his handouts.
He wanted to come to her aid, to take that worry off her shoulders, but he realized it wasn’t straightforward—that he had money, she didn’t, and he could help out. She would feel obligated, manipulated. As if he would demand something from her, cooperation or sexual favors even. He didn’t like the thought of her believing he’d blackmail her into playing his wife. So, he didn’t call his lawyer, didn’t settle things for the sister’s medical costs.
He’d always done whatever he liked within reason. It was an unfamiliar and unwelcome feeling to restrain himself. He had to consider someone else’s feelings, their reaction. Luke didn’t like it one bit. He’d only ever lived with reference to himself.
There would be flowers on her desk Monday. He’d have Gina send something to her home address for the sister. Some kind of expensive gift set. Gina would know what was appropriate, he was sure. In the meantime, he had to plan a date or two.
He worked the weekend. Unsurprising, since he always worked the weekends. He turned up solo to a scholarship award ceremony to hand out checks to deserving students. Internet speculation kicked up that very night regarding his relationship status, sexual orientation, and whether his hairline was receding. It was not, he wanted to inform them, so much as a millimeter higher up his forehead, but he’d found that rebutting to such allegations only gave them a level of acknowledgment they didn’t merit.
Magnus called him.
“Did you see what the tabloids posted online? Now it looks as if you can’t get a date. Why haven’t you selected one of the candidates I’ve sent down?”
“They’re boring. Not my type. I can’t endure twelve months of boredom, even if it’s mostly public appearances. She’ll have to live with me. I don’t want to live with someone I hate.”
“You’re not sixteen, mate. These women I picked are perfect. They’re rich, beautiful, captivating. Choose someone, buy a ring. We’ll have it in the corporate newsletter before the end of the quarter.”
“You’re an incurable romantic, Magnus.”
“This is all about the bottom line. Job security. Confidence in your leadership, following in grandfather’s footsteps. Look like a worthy successor.”
“I found someone I think I can convince.”
“Never say you intend to wife one of your disposable girlfriends. They’re all publicity mad, and they’ll give tell-all interviews,” Magnus warned.
“No one like that. She’s an employee. Not staff that reports directly to me, of course...”
“Oh, because that would be sketchy, right? Anyone who works for you could be grounds for harassment. Particularly if, as you say, you’re trying to convince her. No means no, man. It’s the twenty-first century. Don’t wheedle and coax.”