Page 4 of Waiting for Devon
“Yes, of course. A division of Barrington Industries is one of the hospital’s suppliers.”
“Barrington Industries is a large conglomerate with interests in medicine, cosmetics, oil, construction, and technology, to name a few. My grandfather built the company on nothing more than a dream and a vision of the future. When he died, my father took the reins and turned BI into one of the most powerful, successful corporations in America. Now it’s time for Dad to step aside and name his successor.”
“You?”
“My brother and sister have no desire to be a part of BI at all. It’s been my whole life from the moment I was able to walk and talk. I would follow my father down those grand halls of our headquarters in Dallas and pretend I was a great, important man. When I graduated from high school, I attended Harvard and earned my master’s degree in business administration. I went to work immediately for my father. There isn’t one aspect of the company I don’t know as well as I know myself.”
“So, what’s the problem?”
“My wild, reckless youth is the problem,” Shane confessed with a wry grin. “My father believes my past affairs have been detrimental to my reputation as a serious businessman capable of running BI. He doesn’t feel I am ready for the responsibility of CEO.”
“I see.” Devon tilted her head. “A fiancée will prove to your father you have changed and are willing to settle down. Why pretend, Shane? Why can’t you find a woman you love and propose toher?”
A shadow crossed Shane’s face. “I’ve already found her, and I want to marry her more than anything else in this world. But I can’t. My father will never approve of her.”
“Oh, for heaven’s sake. We’re not living in the Victorian Age. Why not?”
“Because Alana wasn’t born into wealth like the Barringtons. She’s a teller in one of my father’s banks. There is an elite society in Dallas, and we Barringtons are one of several families who form the foundation. I love Alana, but I can’t marry her until I am CEO of BI. Please, Devon, I need your help.”
Forget the twilight zone. She’d stepped into a soap opera. “I’m not wealthy, if that’s what you think.”
“But youarea doctor,” Shane argued.
“What you’re asking me to do is unethical. I have my integrity and my reputation to consider. Frankly, I have no idea why we’re even discussing this. It’s ludicrous. Tomorrow I’m going back to work.”
Shane shook his head. “I can tell you’ve never dealt with anyone as powerful as Jasper Barrington. He bought you for two-million dollars. Linhart will not allow you to return to the hospital until he hears from my father.”
“This is insane.” Frustration colored her tone. “Nothing like this ever happens to ordinary people.”
“Devon, please,” Shane cajoled. “All I need is a little time to convince my father I’m truly engaged. As soon as that happens, he’ll appoint me CEO of BI. We’ll go our separate ways. I’ll make up some excuse, then I’ll be free to marry the woman I love.”
“How much time?”
“I don’t know. Perhaps two weeks. A month, at the most.”
Devon rose from the sofa and wandered over to the large bay window in her living room. She hated deception of any kind, but what choice did she have? If she stayed in San Francisco, she would have to deal with her former husband. She expelled her breath. No one would have to know about her fake engagement. She would spend a month in Dallas, and when she left, she would never see anyone there again. What harm could there possibly be in a little pretense, especially if Jack believed she was getting married?
She turned toward Shane, who watched her with an expectant expression on his face. “All right,” she capitulated. “What do we do now?”
“We have six days to learn everything we can about each other.”
“Okay. Let’s talk over dinner. I’m still hungry. Do you like pizza?”
Shane grinned. “I love it.”
“Good. There’s an Italian restaurant not far from here. After we eat we need to pick up my car from the hospital.”
God help me.
Chapter Two
In a cozycorner of Romano’s Pizzeria, Shane listened as Devon shared her past with him. It had been years since she had spoken of her childhood with anyone, so sentimentality tinged her words. She spoke with great respect of her deceased father, a colonel in the USAF, and of her mother, also deceased, who was a high school math teacher. Devon explained her parents’ strict but loving guidance and support. As a military family, they moved frequently from place to place, and as a result, the Brookses were unusually close-knit. Devon adored her older brother Caleb, an architect for a firm in Seattle, and her younger sister Emmaline, an elementary school teacher in Fairfield. Since their father had passed away from a heart attack three years previously and the untimely death of their mother in a car accident a mere two months afterward, the Brooks siblings grew even closer, drawn together by their mutual grief.
When Devon paused in her narration, Shane repeated everything he’d heard. “Did I forget anything?” he asked, reaching for his third slice of pepperoni pizza.
“No. You’re a quick study.”
“I need to know everything about you, even the most minute or mundane detail.”
