The Illegitimate Heirs: Caleb, Nick & Hunter: Engagement between Enemies

Five

When Caleb steered the truck into his reserved parking space, Alyssa immediately noticed that something was wrong with her car. Instead of sitting level, it was tilted to one side. So much for making a quick getaway before someone in the office saw her disheveled appearance.

“Looks like you have a flat tire,” Caleb commented when he got out of the truck and came around to open the passenger door for her.

“Great. Just what I wanted to do before I go home,” she said, wondering what else could go wrong. “I get to change a tire.”

He frowned. “You’re going to do it yourself?”

She nodded. “I’ve been changing my own tires since I learned to drive. My father insisted on it.”

“You don’t have an auto service plan?”

“No.”

He held out his hand. “Give me the keys.”

“Thanks, but I’ll take care of it,” she said, removing her suit jacket.

“Not while I’m around.” He took the keys from her, then motioned toward the building. “Why don’t you go inside and get out of this heat?”

She nibbled on her lower lip. The temperature was rising, but so was her apprehension that someone would see her.

“I’d rather not.”

She could just imagine the stares if she walked into her office looking the way she did. Her clothing couldn’t have been more wrinkled from spending the night in the truck and her hair was hanging down her back like a limp mop because Caleb had lost most of the pins when he’d taken it out of her usual chignon.

“Don’t be silly.” He opened the trunk of her sedan. “It’s already in the nineties and—”

“No need for you gettin’ all hot and dirty, Caleb,” Ernie Clay called as he hurried out of the building toward them. The security guard stopped in front of them, then, grinning like a Cheshire cat, he nodded at her car. “Clarence noticed Ms. Merrick’s tire was flat and had me call my brother-in-law. He owns a garage and tow-ing service and should be here in a few minutes to take care of it.”

“Thanks, Ernie.” Caleb placed his hand at the small of her back and started urging her toward the entrance. “We’ll be in our offices. Let us know when your brotherin-law has the tire changed.”

The last thing Alyssa wanted to do was walk into the office looking the way she did. But before she had a chance to protest, Caleb ushered her through the building entrance and over to the elevators.

When the elevator door slid shut, she looked down at her clothes. “I’m a complete mess.”

He frowned. “You look fine to me.”

She shook her head. “My hair is down, my pantyhose has a huge run and I look like a raccoon from the mascara smudges under my eyes.”

Removing her glasses for a closer look, he shook his head. “Just one little place under your left eye.”

Her jacket fell to the floor as she was thrown off guard by his unexpected touch, and she braced her hands on his chest to keep from falling when the elevator came to a halt on their floor. “I’ll take care of—”

The doors opened at that very moment and to Alyssa’s horror, Malcolm Fuller and the entire publicrelations department observed her clinging to Caleb as he used his thumb to wipe gently at the tender skin below her eye. From the looks on their faces, she could tell exactly what they were thinking.

“Well, hello there,” Malcolm said, not even bothering to hide his ear-to-ear grin. “We’re headed out to our first team-building picnic. Would you two like to join us?”

“No, thank you,” she said before Caleb could get them into something else that would no doubt cause her further humiliation. “But have a good time.”

Her cheeks burned with embarrassment as she picked up her jacket, then brushed past the group and headed straight for her office. She didn’t wait to see if Caleb followed, nor did she care that he still had her glasses. She’d spent two and a half nerve-racking days with him and she needed some space.

Although her father would strongly disapprove and probably come back to haunt her for being such a coward, all she wanted to do was hide out in her office until her car was fixed. After that, she had every intention of going home, climbing into bed and sleeping the entire weekend. Hopefully, when she woke up Monday morning, she would escape the nightmare she’d been trapped in for the past week.

But even as she mourned the loss of her wellor-dered work environment, she couldn’t deny that her body still hummed from Caleb’s touch. And just the memory of his steamy kisses was enough to leave her aching for things she had no business wanting.

As she walked down the hall toward the conference room to meet with a client, Alyssa finally began to relax. It had been a week since she and Caleb had returned from the Roswell trip and it appeared that he’d been right about the gossip dying down once they’d told the whole story. To her immense relief, she hadn’t heard a single word about them spending the night together or being caught in a compromising position in the elevator. Other than a few smug smiles and knowing looks from a couple of her male coworkers, it had been business as usual around the office.

“Has anyone seen them together since Friday?” Alyssa overheard someone ask as she approached the door to the break room.

The hushed voice stopped her dead in her tracks.

“No. I think they’re probably trying to be a little more discreet about their affair.” The woman laughed. “I mean really, getting caught in the elevator like that, then trying to convince us that he was looking at her eye. How dumb do they think we are? I heard that half of her clothes were on the elevator floor and she was tearing at his shirt when the doors opened.”

A chill raced through her and it felt as if ice water had replaced the blood in her veins. She wanted to scream that they were wrong in their assumptions, that it really was just as Caleb had told them. But she knew it was useless.

“You know there’s a door connecting their offices,” she heard a third voice chime in. “There’s no telling how many times during the day they get together for a little tête-à-tête.”

The laughter that followed the erroneous statement made Alyssa nauseous. Feeling as if her world had just caved in on her, she retraced her steps and headed back to her office. She’d heard enough to know that her professional reputation at Skerritt and Crowe had gone down in a blaze of glory—and that there was nothing left but cinders.

“Please call Geena Phillips and have her meet with Mr. Holt in the conference room,” she said, placing the client file on Geneva’s desk.

“Is something wrong?” the older woman asked, her obvious concern reflected in the tone of her voice. “You don’t look like you feel well.”

“I don’t.” That was the understatement of the year, Alyssa thought as she walked into her office and closed the door.

She’d been a naive fool to think that people weren’t talking about her and Caleb. How could she have been so stupid? The employees weren’t going to discuss their thoughts on the issue in front of the two people involved.

Walking straight to her desk, she sat down at her computer and began drafting her resignation. She’d hoped to have another job lined up before she quit, but the choice had been taken out of her hands. There was no way she could stay at Skerritt and Crowe now. By close of business this afternoon, she’d be unemployed.

“Geneva told me you’re sick,” Caleb said, walking into her office without so much as a tap on the connecting door. “Do you need to see a doctor?”

“No.” Alyssa should have known their secretary would run to him with her concerns. Geneva, the traitor, had embraced every one of Caleb’s ideas and took it upon herself to keep him informed of everything that went on in the office as soon as it happened.

“Are you sure you’re all right?” He frowned. “You do look pale. I’ll drive you—”

“I’m fine.” She glared at him as she keyed in the command to print her resignation. “Now, will you please leave?”

“You don’t feel well and you’re cranky as hell. But you’re fine?” An understanding smile suddenly turned up the corners of his mouth. “That time of month, huh?”

Exasperated, she threw up her hands and sat back in her desk chair. “Why do men automatically think of PMS when a woman wants to be left alone? Did it ever occur to you that I might be tired and just want a little peace and quiet?”

Instead of going back into his office as she requested, he sat down in one of the chairs in front of her desk. “You were on your way to outline a retirement plan that you’ve been working on for the past week, then all of a sudden you turn the file over to Geena. If you aren’t sick, what’s the problem?” Before she could answer, he shook his head. “And don’t feed me that line about peace and quiet. What’s going on?”

Suddenly feeling much too tired to argue, she removed her letter of resignation from the printer, signed it and handed it to him. “I think this is self-explanatory.”

He scanned the letter, then shook his head. “You can’t resign.”

She laughed humorlessly. “I just did.”

“I’m not going to accept it.” He ripped the paper in half, rose to his feet, then rounded the desk to turn her chair to face him. Placing a hand on each of the chair arms, he had her trapped and she had no alternative but to listen to him. “Talk to me, Alyssa. Tell me what’s brought on this sudden decision to bail out of a job I happen to know you love.”

His face was only inches from hers and it took every ounce of her concentration to remember what he’d said. “You were wrong,” she finally blurted out before she could stop herself.

He frowned. “About what?”

Defeated, she fought to keep her voice even. “The gossip hasn’t died down about us. If anything, it’s led to more speculation among the employees.”

“That’s it?”

“Isn’t that enough?”

“No.”

Caleb’s gut churned with a mixture of anger and desperation. He’d known they were still the favorite topic of idle conversation around the office and although he wasn’t happy about it, he’d done his best to ignore it. Trying to set the record straight once again would only make matters worse and add more grist to the rumor mill.

Unfortunately, that was only the tip of the iceberg. The possibility of Alyssa leaving the firm was what had him tied in knots. He wasn’t proud of having to rely on her without her knowing it, but he needed her expertise to keep things running smoothly until he got a grasp on what he was supposed to be doing.

But as important as her business acumen was to him, the real reason his stomach churned like a cement mixer whenever he thought about her leaving Skerritt and Crowe was far simpler. He’d hated to admit it, even to himself, but he just plain didn’t want to face coming to the office without her being there.

Noticing a tear at the corner of her big blue eyes, he removed her glasses and gently wiped it away. “Did you overhear something, sweetheart?”

She nodded. “According to some, you and I are having a grand old time in here.” She rolled her eyes. “Several times a day.”

He chuckled. “I’m good, but I wasn’t aware that I’m that good.”

Her cheeks turned a pretty pink. “I wouldn’t know any-thing about that. But I do know that I can’t effectively supervise when everyone thinks I’m sleeping with the boss.”

Lifting her chin with his index finger, he stared at her for several long seconds. God, she was pretty and it tore him up to see her upset like this.

“It’s going to be all right, Alyssa. I promise.”

“I don’t know how.”

She looked so dejected, it was all he could do to keep from taking her into his arms. But that would only add fuel to the fire if someone walked into her office and caught them.

As he continued to stare at her, a germ of an idea began to form. It was crazy enough that it just might work.

“I think I have a solution that will stop the tongues from wagging and allow you to keep your job here,” he said, smiling.

She looked doubtful. “I’m listening.”

“Let’s go along with the rumors.”

He laughed when she looked at him like he might not be playing with a full deck. “Have you lost your mind?”

“Probably.” He took her hands in his, then pulling her to her feet, took her in his arms. “My grandpa used to say that sometimes the only way to put out a fire is to throw kerosene on it.”

“In other words, insanity runs in your family?”

Caleb grinned. “Grandpa did have his share of peculiarities, but most of the time his logic made a hell of a lot of sense. Toss a little fuel on a fire and it burns itself out real quick and that’s the end of it. Leave it alone and it can smolder for a while, then flare up again and again.”

“Would you care to explain how that relates to our current problem?” To his satisfaction, she’d wrapped her arms around his waist and seemed genuinely interested in hearing him out.

“If we come out in the open and tell everyone that we are romantically involved, there won’t be anything left to speculate about.” He paused as something else came to mind. “In fact, as of right now, we’re engaged. Then, in a few weeks, we’ll announce that we’ve changed our minds and decided to just be friends.”

“Now I’m sure you’ve gone over the edge.” Pulling away from him, she stepped back and shook her head. “It would never work.”

“Sure it will. And the sooner we announce our big news the sooner we’ll be back to business as usual.” Giving her a quick kiss, he reached over to press the button on her intercom. He wasn’t waiting for her to come up with any more arguments why his plan was faulty. “Geneva, call a mandatory meeting of all employees for two this afternoon in the lobby downstairs.”

“Consider it done,” the secretary answered. “Is there anything else?”

“Nope. That’s it. Thanks, Geneva.” Turning back to Alyssa, he smiled. She had that deer-in-the-headlights look again. “Relax. In about an hour, we’ll make our big announcement and the problem will be over.”

She sank into her chair as if her knees would no longer support her. “Or just beginning.”

“Trust me, sweetheart. An engagement is just what the doctor ordered to take care of this little problem.”

She sighed. “Which doctor would that be? Kevorkian?”

Laughing, he headed back into his office. “Hang on to your sense of humor and everything will work out great. You’ll see.”

When he closed the door behind him, Caleb walked over to stare out the window behind his desk. A fake engagement? What the hell had he been thinking?

But when Alyssa had shoved her resignation at him, he’d felt like his stomach had dropped to his shoe tops. And it hadn’t been entirely due to the fact that he needed her to stay at the firm and keep things running while he took his classes.

The simple fact of the matter was he didn’t want Alyssa to leave because he had a case of the hots for her and there didn’t seem to be any way he could stop it. Not even reminding himself of his miserable track record with a career woman had lessened her appeal. Since their trip to Roswell last week, all he’d been able to think about was how soft and sweet she’d looked when she slept and how good it had felt to hold her.

He took a deep breath and shook his head in an effort to clear it. If they were going to convince the Sker-ritt and Crowe employees they were wild about each other, it was going to take some planning.

A slow grin spread across his face. They had an entire weekend to get their act together and he knew the perfect place to hold their strategy session. Now all he had to do was convince Alyssa to go with him.

“This is never going to work, Caleb,” Alyssa said as they walked out of her office into the deserted hall.

“Just follow my lead and act happier than you’ve ever been in your life.” He waited for her to step onto the elevator. “I’ll take care of the rest. Did you get your purse?”

She nodded. “Although I can’t understand why you think I need it.”

“You’ll see.”

His grin told her that he had something up his sleeve, but she didn’t have time to think about what it could be. What was about to take place was foremost in her thoughts and had her wondering if they’d both lost their minds. In just a few short seconds, the elevator doors were going to open and they’d tell the entire Skerritt and Crowe staff they were engaged.

When the elevator came to a halt on the ground floor, Caleb grinned and took her hand in his. “Ready?”

“No.”

“Smile,” he whispered as the doors swished open.

Stepping off the elevator, instead of looking deliriously happy, she’d bet everything she owned that she looked more like she was about to throw up. The sick feeling intensified when she watched several of her colleagues exchange knowing glances.

“Since our trip to Roswell last week, there’s been a lot of speculation about the nature of the relationship be-tween me and A.J.,” Caleb said, getting right to the heart of the matter. “That’s why we’ve called you all here this afternoon. We want to end the speculation and set the record straight, once and for all.”

There was no turning back now. She took a deep breath and trained her unwavering gaze on Caleb. She wasn’t certain she’d be able to get through the next few minutes if she had to look at anyone else.

“Yes, there’s something going on between me and A. J. Merrick.” Her heart skipped several beats when he looked down at her and smiled. “I’d like to announce that as of this afternoon, Alyssa and I are engaged.”

Stunned silence reigned for several seconds before the crowd suddenly broke out in a round of enthusiastic applause. But when Caleb pulled her to him and kissed her like a soldier returning from war, the cheers were so loud it was almost deafening.

When he raised his head, he announced, “Alyssa and I are leaving town for the weekend, so don’t try calling us. We’ll be busy making… ” His pause and suggestive grin caused several knowing smiles. “Wedding plans,” he finished. He pointed to Malcolm. “You’re in charge until we return on Monday.”

The kiss and Caleb’s announcement that they were going away together had taken her by surprise, but he shocked her beyond words when he swept her up into his arms and carried her from the building to the uproarious cheers and applause of the Skerritt and Crowe employees. Unable to find her voice and not knowing what else to do, she threw her arms around his shoulders and hung on for dear life.

“What in the name… of all that’s holy… do you think you’re doing?” she finally managed to squeak out as he walked across the parking lot toward his truck.

He laughed. “I’m whisking you away like any white knight worth his weight in beans would do when he’s won the hand of his fair maiden.”

“Don’t you think you’re taking this farce just a bit far?” she asked when he opened his truck door and deposited her on the bench seat.

When she started to scoot over to the passenger side, he slid behind the steering wheel and pulled her up against him. “If this is going to work, we have to look like we’re wild about each other, right?”

“Yes, but—”

“Don’t you think everyone would expect us to spend time together away from the office?” he asked, starting the truck, then backing it from the parking space. “And especially right after we got engaged?”

She sighed. “All right, you’ve made your point.”

He gave her a grin that curled her toes inside her black pumps. “We’ll drop by your apartment for you to get some clothes together, then head up to my place to hide out for the weekend.”

Feeling as if her life was spinning out of control with no hope of recovery, she gasped. “I beg your pardon. When did this fiasco escalate to me actually going away with you?”

As he drove the truck out onto the street and headed in the direction of her apartment, he shook his head. “Think about it, Alyssa. Ed Bentley lives in the same complex you do. In fact, he and his wife live in the building across the street from yours. Even if you stayed in for the entire weekend, he’d notice your lights going on and off and know you were home.” He gave her a pointed look. “The success of our plan hinges on this, sweetheart.”

Her temples began to throb and her stomach felt as if it had been filled with rocks. “Why did I ever let you talk me into this?”

“Because the rumors and gossip were getting to you.” He took her hand in his to give it a gentle squeeze. “Besides, we need to map out a game plan for how we’ll play our engagement and eventual breakup.”

Everything he said made perfect sense, but that did little to lessen the apprehension building inside her as he steered the truck into her apartment complex. She didn’t even have a clue where he lived.

As if he’d read her mind, he smiled. “Be sure to bring a jacket. It gets chilly at night.”

“You live in the mountains?” Somehow, she wasn’t surprised.

“Yep. About twenty miles from here, in the East Mountain area,” he said, parking in front of her building. He shrugged. “I never have been much of a city boy.”

She took a deep breath and reached for the door handle. “I’ll pack accordingly.” When he started to get out of the truck, she shook her head. “If you don’t mind, I’d like a few minutes alone to collect my thoughts.”

He stared at her for a moment before he nodded. “Don’t forget to pack your swimsuit. I have a hot tub and pool.”

As she entered her small apartment to begin packing a few things for her weekend away with Caleb, Alyssa wasn’t sure whether to laugh or cry. Why on earth had she allowed him to talk her into such a ridiculous scheme?

But as she finished folding clothes into her small bag, then made arrangements with Mrs. Rogers to take care of her parakeet, Alyssa knew exactly why she’d gone along with Caleb’s plan. She simply didn’t want to leave Skerritt and Crowe to find a position elsewhere. Other financial firms might offer the same opportunities to do the work she loved, but there was one thing they didn’t have—a handsome CEO with hazel eyes, a sexy as sin grin and kisses that turned her into melted butter.