Tempted By Her Tycoon Boss. Jennie Adams
treated the warning to the same response he gave it every time. ‘Nevertheless, you know where I stand on this.’
‘There are times when you’re going to give back, whether it reduces your profit margin or not. Yeah, I know. I’m proof of that myself.’ The other man gave a wry laugh and yielded the point. ‘You gave me a great chance when you employed me, and I haven’t looked back since.’
‘You can fill the time while you’re waiting for those units to sell by property shopping for me in Queensland,’ Linc offered. ‘How does that sound? I’ve been wanting to buy into that state for a while.’
He gave his broker—suddenly a much happier man—his instructions, ended the call and set out to find Cecilia.
‘She’s in the office.’ Jemmie, Cecilia’s second-in-command, told him as Linc strode across the courtyard.
‘Thanks.’
As Linc headed for the office, he acknowledged silently that he really wanted to see Cecilia. He should want to see her again to prove to himself that this recent and inexplicable sharpening of his interest in her had disappeared as quickly as it had made its presence felt.
Odd that he should feel a lift in his spirits as he approached the door of the plant-nursery office, if that was the case.
The office door stood open. As Linc drew closer, observing Cecilia’s concentration and hearing the sound of her voice as she spoke into the phone, he silently acknowledged that she looked beautiful sitting there and that seeing her gave him a warm, happy feeling.
He could live with that without ever doing a thing about it. In a short span of time he’d be out of here and back to his regular world, anyway.
Out of the way of temptation?
‘Linc. Hi.’ She glanced up after ending her call and offered a welcoming smile.
For a moment Cecilia looked equally happy to see him. Happy and...interested? Linc couldn’t take his gaze from hers. And blue eyes stared back at him—before she seemed to realise how long their glances had held.
She dropped her gaze. ‘I wasn’t sure if you’d be here today.’
He stepped over the threshold and let his gaze linger on her face, enjoying the lovely lines, the sweep of her lashes against her cheeks.
‘The business with my property guy didn’t take long.’ Linc gave himself full points for sounding so close to normal. ‘I wound it up a few minutes ago on the phone, actually.’
He brushed aside his travelling all over Sydney to inspect his property holdings as though it had barely impinged. Right now it didn’t seem to matter. All he could focus on was Cecilia.
What the heck was going on with him?
‘Besides, I’ve got this review to do for you. It still shouldn’t take too long if I get a good run at it.’
As though to mock him, his phone rang.
‘I think you may have spoken too soon.’ Amusement crinkled the skin at the corners of Cecilia’s eyes, and her mouth turned up into a soft smile.
Linc lost himself in her in that moment. His breath caught and, still stuck on that smile, he answered his phone absent-mindedly.
He had to run the caller’s first few words back through his mind again before he could focus. ‘Sorry, Alex. Which export law did you say is concerning you?’
Linc forced his attention to the call.
Cecilia turned her focus to her work while Linc spoke on the phone with his brother. It felt strangely intimate to be in the same room with Linc while he did that, yet she had learned from his brief time here so far that he would step outside if he wanted privacy for a call.
Maybe she should find a reason to step out, anyway. She didn’t need to add any extra feelings of intimacy to her connection with this man. She was having enough trouble ignoring her awareness of him as it was.
She started to stand.
‘Okay. Tell Jayne I said hi.’ Linc’s voice softened noticeably as he said his goodbyes on the phone. ‘I’ll stop by to see you both tonight on my way home.’
The man loved his family to pieces.
Cecilia’s heart softened and ached a little at one and the same time. He must be close to his family. That was so appealing. Yet it made her feel sad because she, on the other hand, was experiencing a difficult phase with her sister.
But that was going to get better. It was!
Linc ended the call and glanced up just as Cecilia settled back into her chair. ‘How did the committee’s visit go yesterday?’
‘It went well.’ She welcomed the distraction from her thoughts more than he could know. ‘The committee members were happy with the standard of the maze and with the area that will be used at its centre for dancing. There will only be a hundred guests. Tickets to the ball are being auctioned online, with proceeds going to charity. I’m relieved the committee were satisfied with my plans and with the site itself.’
If the nursery played its cards right, it might get a yearly event out of this. She would definitely hold more balls for special occasions...weddings. The possibilities were endless. Cecilia couldn’t help but feel a little excited about the doors this first event might open up.
‘It sounds as though you have things well under control.’ Linc murmured the words as he sat down to recommence his review.
Cecilia laughed. She didn’t mean to, but the sound escaped her. ‘All except the fact that Valentine’s Day is about to erupt onto my work horizon, whether I feel ready for it or not—and I’m leaning somewhat towards the “not” side of that particular equation right now.’
As Linc turned his attention to his work—with numerous interruptions on his cell phone, despite his desire for a clear run at the review—Cecilia refocused and settled in to finalise stock orders for Valentine’s Day.
She worked hard, but she had to admit—to herself, at least—that Linc’s proximity was corroding her concentration. He was just so there.
And she was so busy. Every time she tried to work on her orders, the phone rang again or a supplier called through directly on her cell phone. There were cancellations of previously established orders, stockists informing her that they’d oversold to other buyers and couldn’t fill her order, asking if other blooms could be substituted.
Cecilia’s answer was always the same. No, they couldn’t!
This happened every year—it was part of dealing with this particular day on the nursery’s calendar—but that didn’t make it any less busy or any less challenging for her to ensure she reached her necessary stock levels.
On top of that the floor staff came in more often than usual, with odd questions that simply couldn’t wait. The more that time passed, the busier it became.
‘Linc, I’m putting this call on speaker. I’m sorry if it disturbs your concentration.’
She tried not to let frustration colour her tone as she jabbed at the settings on her cell phone. Once she had placed it atop the filing cabinet in the corner of the room, she began to riffle through the cabinet’s contents.
‘It’s fine. I can see you’re under pressure.’
Linc’s words were calm. He had fielded numerous distractions of his own since he got here today, and he seemed quite unfazed. As though he didn’t find Cecilia’s presence and nearness at all disturbing.
Not that Cecilia felt agitated due to his presence. Certainly not in any personal kind of way. She’d had that conversation with herself earlier. She simply had to get over the nerve-racking, overalert, oh-so-conscious of him feeling.
And she was over it. She 100 per cent totally was. Her consciousness could just