Millionaires' Destinies(27)

He really needed to get on the phone with Mack and Ben and warn his brothers that their aunt was dedicating herself to playing matchmaker these days. If she tired of her lack of success with him, they were definitely next in line. He owed them the heads-up. Then, again, it might be more fun to let her take them by surprise, the way she’d sneaked up on him.

“Why don’t you meddle in Mack’s life?” he suggested hopefully. “Or Ben’s?”

Destiny’s eyes sparkled with merriment. “What makes you think I haven’t?” she inquired blithely, then turned and sailed out of his office, leaving him speechless and not one bit closer to being off the hook.





Melanie stared glumly at the Carlton Industries folder on her desk. It had been such a wonderful opportunity for her, but the odds of Richard ever changing his mind and hiring her were so astronomical, she might as well run the folder through the shredder.

She was genuinely considering doing just that when Becky came in with two cups of latte and cranberry scones from the café down the street. She held them just out of Melanie’s reach.

“If I give you these, will you tell me everything that went on between you and Richard Carlton this weekend?” she asked.

“No,” Melanie said, snatching the coffee out of her friend’s hand. She could live without the scone if she had to. Caffeine was another story.

“Testy, aren’t you? It must not have gone very well.”

“That depends on your definition of success,” Melanie replied, taking her first sip of the heavenly latte. “He didn’t toss me out in the snow.”

“Interesting,” Becky said with a thoughtful expression. “Then you were stranded there all weekend?”

“Yes.”

“And with all that time on your hands, you couldn’t convince him to hire you?”

“I never even convinced him to read the proposal,” she admitted grimly. “I was just about to shred my copy and write the whole thing off as a loss.”

Becky stared at her in shock. “What kind of defeatist attitude is that? You never give up.”

“I do when the odds of winning are impossible.”

Becky’s gaze narrowed. “Did he seduce you?”

Melanie scowled at her. “No.”

“Did he at least try?”

Melanie thought back over the weekend and the dance they’d played. Richard had tossed out a proposition, she’d dodged it, he’d parried, then she’d taken a turn muddying the waters. “It was a bit confusing,” she said finally.

“Then he did try,” Becky concluded. “And you what?”

“I said no, of course.”

“And then?”

“What makes you think that wasn’t the end of it?”

Becky gave her a knowing look. “It was a long weekend.”

“Okay, then I threw myself at him.”

“Interesting.”

“No, stupid. I corrected the mistake almost immediately.”

“Almost?”

“Soon enough,” Melanie said. “I didn’t sleep with him. In fact, I only kissed him once. No big deal.”

“Oh, right. The sexiest, richest man in all of Alexandria, maybe in the entire Washington metropolitan region, kisses you, and it’s no big deal.”

Melanie sighed. “Okay, the kiss was a big deal, but that’s as far as it went and it won’t be happening again. He couldn’t get me out of there fast enough yesterday morning.”

“Probably because he was tempted,” Becky concluded. “Men do that, you know. They act all weird and crazy when they’re losing control.”

Melanie heard something in Becky’s voice, a faint catch, that hinted she was no longer talking about the weekend Melanie had just shared with a prospective client. “Something happen with you and Jason?” Jason was the love of Becky’s life, or so she’d persuaded herself. He was the fourth one this year, but even Melanie was almost convinced he was a keeper.

Becky’s eyes immediately clouded up. “We broke up. More precisely, he broke up with me.”

That was new. Usually Becky was the one running for cover. Melanie tried to muster the appropriate amount of sympathy, which was getting harder and harder to do. It was somewhat easier with Jason, because she’d genuinely liked him. She’d even thought Becky had gotten it right for once. “Oh, sweetie, I’m so sorry. I know you thought he was the one.”

“He is the one,” Becky said fiercely. “He’s just being stubborn and scared and stupid.”

“It’s really hard to argue with stubborn, scared and stupid,” Melanie pointed out. “You should know. You’ve done it often enough yourself.”