Fair Game Inc (2010) (10 page)

oIf this is your idea of a sick joke....o

oJoke! Honestly, Amber, I have better things to do with my time.o

oI certainly hope you do.o

oLook,o he said, desperately trying to remain in control of the situation. oForget about the work. Let me drive you home.o

oI can drive myself, thank you.o

Snatching up her purse, Amber vanished through the office door.

Chapter
SIX

oWhat do you mean she was cool to you?o Roger steamed milk for cappuccino as he contemplated GraysonAEs plight. The idea of a woman responding with less than unbridled passion was obviously a foreign concept to him. oDid she smack you across the face or something?

oNo, of course not!o Grayson snatched the cup from RogerAEs grasp, ignoring the grin his brother didnAEt even go to the trouble of trying to hide. oWhy, do women make a habit of smacking you?o

Roger shrugged. oItAEs happened, sure.o

Grayson shook his head. Why had he ever thought Roger could help? He leaned against the spotless black counter top and smothered the urge to spill something on it just to make the place look lived in. He didnAEt need to walk down the hallway and peer into the bedroom to know that RogerAEs domain would be just as obsessively neat, with his black lacquered bed, paisley duvet and not even a dirty sock out of place. To Roger appearances meant everything.

As boys theyAEd fought over space in their bedroom, down to the last inch, finally laying a strip of masking tape across the floor to mark their territory. And he wanted us to buy a condo together! Grayson shook his head incredulously. They would have been at each otherAEs throats!

oYou still havenAEt told me who this mystery woman is.o Roger added a froth of steam milk to the top of his own coffee and motioned for Grayson to join him in the living room.

oNo, and IAEm not going to.o

Grayson sunk wearily down onto the overstuffed black couch and waited for the leather to warm up to skin temperature. RogerAEs living room furniture, like half of his wardrobe was black leather. Roger thought it made him look artsy. Grayson thought it made him seem like a teenager in the first throes of rebellion against the status quo.

Roger sprawled on the other half of the L-shaped couch. oWe wouldnAEt be speaking of the lovely Ms. Shaw, would we?o

oNo.o He bit off the word, knowing his brother would see through his white lie as if it was written in neon letters above his head. But Roger took his denial in good grace. oSheAEs someone I met in court.o That, at least, was the truth.

oMy, havenAEt we been busy lately, big brother.o

oThat, too.o

They were silent a moment while Roger grinned like the Cheshire Cat and Grayson struggled with his thoughts.

oObviously I said something I shouldnAEt have, I just canAEt figure out what it was.o

oShe didnAEt tell you to get lost,o Roger offered helpfully. oWhat makes you think she was put off?o

Grayson groaned. RogerAEs view of the world was painted in bold brush strokes. If a woman told him to drop dead, that meant no. Anything less could be considered a come on. How could he explain a woman with such baffling nuances as Amber Shaw? Without giving away that the woman in question was Amber Shaw. oOne minute she was all over me. The next she was barely speaking to me.o

oBut she didnAEt tell you to drop dead or anything.o

oNo!o

oMaybe she was just having a bad day.o

Grayson frowned. oThatAEs not much help.o

oMaybe it was something you said.o

oThanks a bunch, Roger.o

Roger offered him another of his leering grins in reply.

oHave you finished entertaining yourself at my expense?o

oNot nearly.o

Grayson set down his coffee cup. oI should go. IAEve got to be in court tomorrow morning.o

Roger stood, blocking his path to the door. oRelax, Gray. I was only kidding. And you still havenAEt told me what exactly you want to know.o

He didnAEt even know what questions to ask. Grayson felt his face coloring with embarrassment. Roger certainly didnAEt want to make this easy for him. oWhat do you say to a woman, when you want her to know youAEre attracted to her, that you want to get to know her better, buta.o

oYouAEre not ready to hop into the sack with her yet,o Roger finished for him.

Grayson drew in a deep breath and prayed for patience. oSomething like that.o

oTell her sheAEs the most beautiful woman youAEve ever met.o

oNot really my style.o

Roger shrugged, less inclined to be helpful now that his golden advice had been ignored.

oItAEs just not the kind of thing you can blurt out over coffee.o

oCoffee!o Roger rolled his eyes. oTake her dancing, Gray.o

Grayson rubbed a hand across tired eyes. oYou know damned well I canAEt dance.o

oOh, right.o

oItAEs not like I got a lot of practice, is it? As I recall, the girls were always more interested in dancing with you.o

Roger crossed his arms in defiance of his accusation. oYou canAEt blame all your romantic failures on me. I mean look at you. You work too hard, you take too little time off, and even when youAEre not working youAEre so deadly serious. ItAEs a wonder women donAEt run screaming.o

oYouAEre making me feel so much better,o Grayson said sarcastically.

His brother looked him up and down. oThatAEs exactly what I mean. YouAEre sitting there right now, glowering at me like the worldAEs about to end instead of discussing this exciting new woman youAEre seeing.o

oMisfortune happens, Roger.o

oThatAEs right. Relationships break up, hearts get broken, businesses go bankrupt, people sue each other. But you spend so much time looking for trouble, you neglect to see the good around you, Gray. o

oIAEm trying to keep DadAEs firm going so Mom can have a good retirement.o

oSheAEs not going to starve because you take a day off.o

oShe might the way BarlowAEs been acting.o

oSo start your own firm.o

Grayson found himself suddenly at the very end of his patience. oThatAEs enough, Roger. I came here for some advice, not a lecture. ItAEs fine for you to make grandiose suggestions, but youAEre not the one who has to carry them out.o He carried his empty cup to the kitchen and set it on top of the dishwasher. Why on earth was he wasting his time drinking coffee with Roger anyway? That extra jolt of caffeine would only ensure he stayed up all night, worrying about his court appointment and ruminating over what went wrong with Amber. The whole thing had been a bad idea. Why had he bothered?

oThanks for the coffee.o He tossed his suit jacket over his shoulder and glanced at his watch. oItAEs late, IAEd better get going.o

oMeant to ask you,o Roger said as he walked toward the door. oCan I borrow your car Saturday night?o

Grayson regarded his brother from under dark brows. oWhatAEs wrong with yours?o

oItAEs in the shop.o

Obviously, he wasnAEt going to get away without one last annoyance. oI guess so.o

oHow about your new sports jacket?o

oDonAEt tell me your leather jacketAEs being repaired as well.o

oAs a matter of fact, I took it to the cleaners to be mended.o

oWild date, I take it?o

oYou could say that,o Roger said obliquely. He slumped back down on the couch and swung his long legs up on the coffee table.

Shaking his head, Grayson turned the brass door handle. He glanced over his shoulder, throwing a dark look in RogerAEs direction. oGAEnight, Roger.o

oGo to bed, Gray. If you wonAEt take some time off, at least get some sleep.o

Grayson closed the door on the rest of RogerAEs lecture.

oWhy did I bother asking him?o he muttered to himself as he waited for the elevator. oWe never agree on anything. Especially women.o **** Roger watched the door swing quietly shut. For a moment he stared at it, as if he could launch his thoughts through it into GraysonAEs departing back. Finally, certain his brother wouldnAEt be returning, he got up and locked it. He leaned against the door, surveying the spot Grayson had been sitting. GraysonAEs thoughts proclaimed themselves as loudly as if theyAEd been written above his head in letters ten feet high.

A slow smile broke across RogerAEs face. Of one thing he was sure. Amber Shaw was the woman Grayson was seeing.

oBig brother, thou doth protest too much.o

Not that the fledgling romance was going to last with Grayson being such a clod. He shook his head again. What a pity. As much as heAEd like a chance at winning her affection, she was obviously perfect for Grayson. It didnAEt take a genius to see why. A woman like Amber Shaw with a keen wit and a penetrating mind wouldnAEt be swayed by what she saw on the surface. GraysonAEs profession, his house wouldnAEt mean anything to her. SheAEd be far more interested in the Grayson inside, the man Grayson showed to no one, not even his twin.

What a shame the relationship was doomed to fail.

Then again, perhaps it didnAEt have to.

RogerAEs smile broadened. He ran a hand through his long, curly hair. He was long past due for a haircut. He snickered softly to himself.

oThe sacrifices I make for you, big brother.o

****

oHe called in sick!o

oAccording to his secretary. I just called from the phone booth across the street.o The photographer waited patiently for Amber to pay her and send her home, or to book overtime at twice her usual rate.

Amber stamped one high heeled shoe against the soft earth and choked back the urge to scream. Her heel sunk into the grass up to the sole. Yanking her foot from the sod, she succeeded only in pulling up a hunk of turf, which didnAEt satisfy her urge for destruction at all. The logistics of this prank had been a nightmare from the moment sheAEd taken the case.

An hour ago, posing as a photocopy machine meter reader, sheAEd been admitted to the plant. Finding Apartment 4AEs office, she replaced the tie he kept hanging pre-tied on a hook in his closet with an identical one smeared with an extremely sticky clear substance. Together with the photographer and the videographer, sheAEd crouched below his office window waiting ... at a price tag of over two hundred dollars an hour.

Now sheAEd received word that Apartment 4 called in sick. Strangely, so had his boss. Which of course meant she was going to need another tie, another way of getting it into the office, and she must pay the tradeswomen for their time and send them home. JenniferAEs satisfaction would have to wait until early next week, setting her schedule back several more days.

Her rent wouldnAEt wait several more days because she ran into a string of bad luck. Neither would her other expenses. If things got much worse, sheAEd have to take Grayson up on his offer of freelance work.

A wave of embarrassment over last nightAEs events tinged her cheeks pink. Amber wrenched her thoughts from Grayson to the problem at hand. Two women tallied their overtime bonuses and awaited her decision.

oSame time Monday?o she asked finally.

oThereAEll be an extra charge,o the photographer said, ofor the extra hours.o

oI know, I know.o Amber waved her hand impatiently in dismissal. oPayment is on delivery as usual. Just invoice me for the extra time.o

oGood enough,o said the videographer, packing up her tiny video camera. Confident that sheAEd just doubled the amount of her contract, she strolled cheerfully off toward her car.

oHave a good weekend,o called the photographer, slinging her camera bag over her shoulder and rushing off to catch the next bus.

Amber took one last look at Apartment FourAEs office and mentally kicked him. Good weekend, indeed! She was already late for her Friday night stint at Barlow & Charles.

****

Grayson wasnAEt there when she arrived. Instead she found a hastily scribbled note saying heAEd been in court all day and would be tied up in meetings until late in the evening. Underneath was a list of things that needed to be done.

His note gave no indication of his mood or what heAEd intended by the aeincidentAE last night. At least sheAEd been granted a reprieve from the Grayson dilemma, and a chance to think it over level-headedly during the weekend.

oNow what am I going to do?o she asked the empty office. Every minute she spent in GraysonAEs company would be agony after what happened at the restaurant. Obviously, heAEd been buttering her up to ask her to do some work for him. SheAEd misinterpreted his attentions and humiliated herself by practically throwing herself at him.

Amber rubbed her temples, trying to ease the tension in her forehead. She hadnAEt slept well last night. Though her body was exhausted, her mind refused to stop running in circles around Grayson Charles.

oHow could I possibly have misread him like that?o she muttered aloud. Amber prided herself on being an expert judge of character. But sometime during the ill-fated dinner with Grayson, her common sense had evaporated. oWhat was I thinking?o