Page 12 of In Charge

“Nonsense.” Dad cracked a smile. “I know everything that goes on around here, and that report wouldn’t have gotten done without your help. You did a good job, and I want you to know I noticed.”

“I just pulled numbers.” My head shook before I could stop myself. And you don’t see everything, Dad. “Anyone could’ve helped her do that.”

“Yes, but it was you who stepped up and did it.” Dad leaned forward and handed me a folder.

“What’s this?” I lifted his brows.

“It’s a proposal I prepared for a new client. I was going to give this to Ms. Stone to handle, but I’d like to see what you can do with it.” Dad dropped the smile and was all business. “Ms. Stone will be busy with her new client and expanding this new division. Plus, you need to make it here on your own. What do you say?”

“I’ll look it over.” I maintained a calm voice. Thank you, Dad! This was a perfect opportunity for me to really stick it to him. When I sabotaged this new client opportunity, it would be the dagger-in-the-heart effect I was looking for.

“Great, read it over and come by my office after three. We can discuss the specifics and my expectations then.” He stood and walked to the door. “Now, let’s go see Ms. Stone.”

***

MAYA SAT AT HER DESKwith that sexy look of focus and determination that always managed to get me worked up. Today, she exchanged her typical light blouse with a dark skirt for some color. A sapphire blue dress clung close to her body revealed every sexy curve. The sleeveless, scooped neck revealed nothing of her cleavage, yet it was far more tantalizing than her blouses that occasionally allowed for a peek.

I leaned against her door, waiting for her to notice my arrival, but she was absorbed in her work. I loved watching her work. I’d never met a woman like her before. From my experience, hot women like her didn’t work. They married rich or were born into wealth and had Daddy’s money to keep them happy, but not Maya. There were a lot of buts where Maya was concerned, and those buts were starting to unnerve me.

“Ms. Stone, congratulations on the new client.” Dad shoved past me and walked up to her desk, straight face, with his hand held out in front of him.

“Mr. Pennington.” Her voice gave away her surprise. “You didn’t have to come here personally. A phone call would’ve sufficed.”

I smiled when she gripped my dad’s hand in a firm handshake. I loved that she didn’t cower down when my dad was around. “I came to see Robbie, so I decided to stop by instead.”

“Well, thank you, sir.” She nodded. When she glanced at me and smiled, I held my breath. Does she have any idea what she does to me? She turned back to Dad, and her smile faded. “Bo Jensen is very pleased with what we’ve offered. So much so, he’s already referred others. I’ve received three calls this morning from other musicians.”

“Three!” Dad sounded genuinely surprised. “Well, this really is a reason to celebrate.”

“Let’s not get ahead of ourselves. I still have to close those deals, too.” Maya’s smile made it to her eyes.

“Since when have you not closed a deal?” Dad laughed. This was new. I couldn’t remember ever seeing a genuine laugh from Dad, and this was definitely genuine. Not only had Maya charmed me, she apparently charmed Dad as well. If Maya had been ten years older, no doubt Dad would have made a pass at her. The thought made my stomach turn. But the look on Dad’s face was not that of a man attracted to the woman before him. It was the way a father should look at a child he was proud of.

And my anger kicked in. The way dad looked at Maya was the way he should look at his own daughters.

Aside from the hefty bank accounts, Dad never acknowledged that he had six daughters. If he did, he’d know they were all successful and gave him just as much reason to be proud as Maya did right now. My sisters had all done far more with their lives than I’d done with my own. He’d know that if he paid an ounce of attention and taken the time to get to know them.

“You’ve made more money for this firm than any other agent. Maybe even more than me with this new division. I couldn’t be prouder,” Dad continued. I was ready to puke.

“Thank you, sir. That means a lot to me.” Her smile faded when she looked at me. “Are you feeling okay, Robbie? You look a little pale.”

The sick feeling in my stomach eased to a flutter at the sound of my name on her lips. She never called me Robbie, and I fucking loved the sound of it. “I’m just hungry. I didn’t eat much for breakfast.”

“Let me treat you two to lunch then.” Dad dialed his phone and made lunch reservations before either of us could object. “Your table will be ready in thirty minutes. Everything’s taken care of—it’s on my tab. I’d join you, but I have another meeting I must attend.”

“Sir, you don’t have to do that. I can get my own lunch,” Maya objected.

“Of course, you can. But this one’s on me.” Dad glanced at me and winked. “Bringing Robbie on to help you may be the best decision I ever made. With Robbie’s help handling other new clients, you’ll be able to focus more on growing this new division. You two will be a stellar team.”

“New clients?” Maya dropped her smile. “What new clients?”

“Oh, just one for now.” Dad waved her concern off. “A senator I’ve been schmoozing for a while. Finally got him ready to sign.”

“Would you like me to take a look at the file?” Her voice was a little too eager. “You know, just to make sure Robbie doesn’t miss anything.”

“Not necessary. I want to see how Robbie performs on his own.” He paused at the door and glanced between us. He had a gleam in his eye that I couldn’t interpret. “Now, you two go to lunch and enjoy yourselves.”

Thanks, Dad. Lunch with Maya may be the only thing he’d ever given me that I wanted, and I didn’t even have to ask for it. How many times did I beg Dad to take me to a game or the park or even a movie, and he’d ignored me. All he ever wanted to talk to me about was business. I guess that was a benefit to my attraction to Maya. In Dad’s eyes, this was business. But to me, it was personal.

I turned to Maya, and the look on her face worried me. She didn’t think I could handle a new client on my own. I couldn’t blame her, not really. It wasn’t like I’d done anything spectacular since I started working for her to show her I could handle this. I guess I have more than one thing to prove to her. “Don’t worry, Maya. If I need help, I’ll ask you.”

“It’s fine.” She forced a smile and lifted her eyes to mine. “Your father’s visit surprised me is all.”

I braved a step closer, hopeful she wanted a repeat of last night, and brushed my hand across hers. The slightest tremor moved up her arm, and her fingers twitched. “Shall we, Ms. Stone?”

“Shall we what?” She surprised me when she didn’t pull away. I glanced over my shoulder to confirm no one was around. I laced my fingers with hers and pulled her closer so her body pressed against mine. She sucked in a breath, and my smile grew.

“Lunch. We don’t want to be late for our reservation.” She rolled her eyes and the corner of her lips turned up. I wanted to claim her lips and kiss her hard, but instead I released her. This wasn’t the time or place for such a display of affection. She fumbled and grabbed hold of the edge of her desk. As soon as she regained her balance, she snatched up her purse and was out the door before I turned around. I smiled and took a deep breath.

This was going to be fun.

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