Surprise Seduction Read online

  “I can’t believe you’re doing this. I’m glad you’re doing it, just a bit blown away.”

  “What choice do I have?” Adrienne frowned at her long-time friend. “Drew wouldn’t let me within a hundred miles of a managerial position. When I figure out what’s going on with Weston Pharmaceuticals, I’ll present the information to the board, along with my intent to take my father’s place. They’ll have to take me serious.”

  Sheila’s face twisted in concern. “I’m not sure. From what I remember of Drew, this could be dangerous. He isn’t going to give up control of Morrigan’s easily.”

  “No,” Adrienne conceded. “He won’t. I’ve thought it out and can’t think of any other way that puts me on the inside. I don’t have time to wait.”

  “George Weston may be in cahoots with Drew. You do realize that?”

  “I don’t think so. Even though dad took over Weston years ago, George’s family has remained involved in operations. Dad and George were friends from Harvard. If anyone is in with Drew, I suspect Chase or one of the vice-presidents.”

  “I find that hard to believe. Chase has always held everyone to such high ethical standards. Besides, your father handpicked him to run Weston. Why would he team up with Drew?”

  She shrugged. Why did anyone do anything in the business world? “Money. Power. Take your pick.”

  Adrienne’s comment was cut off by Sheila’s secretary interrupting via the phone’s intercom speaker. “Mr. Aaron is here and would like to speak with you.”

  Adrienne’s gaze met Sheila’s. If Chase found her in Sheila’s office, he’d know he’d been had.

  Sheila pressed the button. “I’m busy at the moment. Could Mr. Aaron come back later?”

  “No, he can’t.” Sheila’s secretary didn’t answer, Chase did.

  Adrienne glanced around the office looking for a place to hide. No closet. No bathroom. Her gaze dropped to Sheila’s desk with its solid front covering.

  Her friend nodded. “Hurry up. He’s liable to barge in.”

  She hurried around the desk and scrambled beneath the desktop, crouching in the opening at Sheila’s feet.

  The office door opened and Chase’s presence swept in with the force of a hurricane.

  “What the hell was this afternoon about?”

  Adrienne stared at Sheila’s feet, holding her breath, praying she didn’t sneeze or cough or something else just as stupid. They’d never be able to explain her presence under Sheila’s desk. The only explanation that might be halfway plausible, she wouldn’t use, not in a million years--even if she was supposed to swing the other way.

  “What are you talking about?”

  She had to give Sheila credit. Her friend sounded clueless.

  “Blinky, Snarly, and Miss Man-hating Mouse.”

  Adrienne almost snickered. He’d summed up the two actresses she’d hired quite accurately. The two women had obviously played their roles well. And, maybe she hadn’t done such a bad job herself.

  “What are you talking about? You told me you didn’t want someone likely to hit on you. I thought I’d done a great job of screening the applicants.”

  “You’re kidding.”

  Sheila tapped her foot and remained silent. Seemed her long time friend had a bit of actress in her as well.

  “Aw, hell. Those were real applicants? You weren’t having fun at my expense?”

  Sheila’s foot tapped again, and Adrienne’s shoulders shook with silent amusement. She could almost picture the look that would be on Chase’s face. His gorgeous face.

  She closed her eyes. No, she couldn’t think about him that way. Maybe before her father’s death she could have, but her carefree days to do as she pleased were over.

  A spasm shot through her lower back.

  Darn, she couldn’t risk attempting to get more comfortable. Chase would undoubtedly pick up on her movements. She pushed the events of the past few months out of her mind and focused on the conversation taking place above her.

  “I have to admit if those three were your idea of a joke, I didn’t find anything about this afternoon humorous.”

  “They were the most suited to your needs.”

  “My needs?” He groaned. “You have no idea.”

  “Actually, I do. You gave me a list of what you required. All three met and exceeded your specifications.”

  Oh, she’s good. Maybe she’d take Sheila with her to the corporate office. If she succeeded. And she would.

  “The last one was too young.”

  “That shouldn’t be a problem under the circumstances.”

  Her heart raced as Chase sank into the chair she’d previously occupied. Could he still feel where her body had warmed the chair? She rolled her eyes. She should be more worried about his picking up on the volcanic heat radiating from her rather than if he noticed she’d warmed his chair.

  Following Chase’s lead, Sheila sat back down, kicking Adrienne in the shoulder as she did so.

  Ouch. She bit her tongue to hold in her cry.

  “I’m supposed to believe you’re serious about those three?”

  “You could always keep Kelly for a few more weeks if you want me to start over.”

  He groaned again. Loudly.

  Startled, Adrienne jerked, bumping her head against the top of the desk. She bit her lower lip, the metallic tang of blood souring her tongue. How stupid. Her heart pounded as she huddled into as small a shape as she could.

  “What was that?”

  Of course, he’d ask. That thump had probably reverberated around the building. It certainly echoed through her head.

  “That? Oh, I banged my knee against my desk. No big deal,” Sheila covered. “Now, tell me, do you want me to call the agency and have them send over a new batch of prospective employees?”

  His sigh touched Adrienne’s heart, almost making her feel guilty for using him. Then she recalled that he might be in on whatever scheme her stepfather was up to, and she pushed all feelings aside.

  “Hire the mouse.”

  Adrienne sucked in air. Her plan was working.

  “The mouse? Which one would that be?” Sheila’s foot nudged her.

  “If you interviewed them, as you claim to have done, you know exactly which one I’m referring to.”

  “You must mean Miss Morris.”

  “I must.” He didn’t sound overly happy with his decision.

  “She was interesting.”

  What was Sheila doing? Adrienne stared at her friend’s ankles and considered pinching her.

  “To say the least,” Chase said.

  “She should make an appointment with my hairdresser.”

  That was it. She flicked Sheila’s ankle. She had seen Sheila’s hairdresser. Yesterday. The man freaked when she told him what she wanted done to her long curly blond hair. He’d thought she was joking when she said she wanted to go to the dullest shade of brown he had. She’d drawn the line at cutting her hair short, but she’d straightened, dyed, and trimmed to give herself a totally different look. The glasses, baggy clothes, and new persona completed her disguise.

  “You think?”

  “I’ll call Miss Morris this afternoon and let her know the good news.” Adrienne could almost hear Sheila’s smile.

  “You do that.” Chase’s chair scraped across the floor. “And, Sheila, Miss Morris better know her stuff.”

  Footsteps crossed the room and the door opened and closed. Adrienne let out the breath she’d been holding.

  “Better know my stuff,” she mimicked as she crawled out from under the desk. “I’ll have him know he works for me.”

  “Uhm, you had best forget about that. You aren’t Adrianna Morrigan, daughter of the late business scion Ted Morrigan. You’re Adrienne Morris, personal assistant to the charming playboy president of Weston Pharmaceutical.”

  Adrienne dusted her dress. “I won’t forget, but I have a feeling I’ll be biting my tongue quite a bit around Chase.”

  “Better than bitin
g his.” Sheila winked. “Well, only because of your current sexual status. Speaking of which, did you enjoy the view?”

  Adrienne arched her brow in question.

  “Under my desk. I can’t believe you didn’t use your position to take advantage of me.”

  Adrienne’s mouth fell open. She picked up a paperclip off Sheila’s desk and playfully tossed it at her friend. “I can’t believe you said that.”

  Sheila waggled her brows. “You just better hope Chase doesn’t want you to produce proof of your claim.”

  “He won’t do that because regardless of his issues, ultimately, he is a professional and isn’t going to risk sexual harassment or discrimination allegations.” Adrienne walked to the window. “I know pretending to be gay was a long stretch, but I couldn’t let physical reactions cloud the issues. Chase infamously goes for blondes and who better than a woman who could give him control of the company?” She reached up and touched her dyed brown hair. “This way, he won’t even see me as a woman--much less as a prospective date. I’ll be like a useful piece of office equipment.”

  “I think I’d trade you in for an updated model.” Sheila’s gaze ran over her. “Even in that get-up, you’re kinda cute.”

  Adrienne sent Sheila a horrified look.

  “Not Adrianna Morrigan chic, but something kind of cuddly and a fixer-upper.” Sheila’s face broke into a grin. “Miss Man-hating Mouse.”

  The following Monday morning, Adrienne stared into the employee bathroom mirror. Dull, that’s the only word she could use to describe herself.

  She’d spent her entire life making sure she was dressed to the ‘T’ and presented the perfect image. If only her father could see her now. Would he be proud of the initiative she was taking to grab the reins of Morrigan’s? Or would he find her plan a joke?

  Regardless, it was the best she could come up with that gave her what she needed in the allotted time frame.

  “You still hiding in here?” Sheila entered the bathroom, walked to the mirror, and freshened her lipstick.

  “I’m procrastinating.”

  “Oh?”

  Adrienne glanced at the cheap watch she’d bought prior to her interview to replace the one her father had given her. She couldn’t afford any stupid mistakes. Like showing up in a watch that cost more than ‘Adrienne Morris’ made in six months. “I’d better get going. Can’t be late on my first day.”

  “Have fun,” Sheila called as Adrienne left the bathroom. “Just not too much.”

  Adrienne walked to her desk, sat, straightened items that didn’t need straightening, and wondered what she should do until Chase arrived. She stared at his closed office door and jumped when it burst open.

  “You’re here.” Chase’s gaze settled on her face. “And on time. Good.”

  “Yes, Sir.” She resisted the urge to leap to her feet and stand at attention.

  “Call me Chase.”

  She didn’t say anything.

  “Let’s get started. I’ll go over my schedule for the next few weeks, what I expect from you, and we’ll address any questions you have before my meeting at ten.”

  “Yes, Sir.” She followed him into his office, silently saluting behind his back and hoping her new found skills would see her through and that the extra help hired through Sheila could take care of the rest. All without Chase ever having a clue, of course.

  Chase sat down at his desk and let his gaze travel over the woman across from him. All weekend, he’d found himself thinking about her and how he’d been so aware of her presence. He’d finally convinced himself he imagined the whole thing.

  He hadn’t. His body was doing the same weird jittery thing this morning.

  Today, his new assistant wore a dark charcoal suit. The skirt fell down to her ankles and the jacket hung loose giving little clue as to what she hid beneath. Her thick-framed glasses had gone out of style forty years ago. Her dull hair was pinned back to her scalp. The tight style made him want to wince.

  Admit it, she intrigues you.

  Okay, he admitted it. Now he wanted his fascination with her to go away. She wasn’t his type.

  “Where would you like to start?” she asked.

  At your hair. I’d like to pull those pins out and...He blinked. He’d never been interested in one of his employees. Never.

  “Let’s start by going over my schedule. And yours. For the rest of the week, you’ll go everywhere I go, do everything I do.”

  She swallowed. “Yes, Sir.”

  “We’ll be working closely together. Call me Chase.” He picked up a packet off his desk and tossed it in front of her. “You need to know everything in this backwards and forwards by the end of the week.”

  Her finger’s closed around the packet. “Yes, S--”

  “Don’t even say it.” He held up his hand.

  Her eyes widened. “Okay. What else?”

  “We’ll go over what I need you to have on my desk each morning when I arrive.” He launched into how he wanted things done. At least, the things he could tell her.

  The things he’d imagined her doing over the weekend, he’d keep to himself and hopefully soon forget altogether.

  Two Monday mornings later, Adrienne soaked up every word Chase spoke as he discussed the projects he currently worked on and what he needed her to accomplish with each one. She made meticulous notes.

  “What kind of research do you need on the Miller Project?” she asked, scribbling down his previous statement.

  He leaned back in his chair, eyeing her. “You don’t actually do any of the research, Adrienne.”

  “Yes, Sir.”

  “Your job is to make sure each department has their end done and the full report on my desk. If you have any questions on how to organize it, check with George Weston’s assistant as she can tell you most anything you need to know. I plan to let you spend the last week of the month working with Mrs. Gray. I’m flying to Chicago and won’t be back until Friday, the night of the anniversary party.”

  “Chicago?” Adrienne swallowed. Had he heard how her voice broke as the word escaped her mouth?

  “Yes. A much larger conglomerate, Morrigan’s, owns Weston. Ted Morrigan passed away two months ago. Since his death, there’s some question as to who will step into his shoes.” Chase’s shoulders sagged ever so slightly. “Morrigan’s stock has dropped significantly since Ted’s death. Millions have been lost. The board owes it to its stock holders to stop this trend.”

  “How will they do that?” She hoped she didn’t sound overly curious.

  “My guess is they’ll publicly acknowledge Drew Steinberg as heading the company.”

  Her stomach plummeted. That’s what she feared his answer would be. She didn’t want Drew named anything, but it would be a few more months before she could effectively compete with her stepfather for control of the company.

  “Who is Drew Steinberg?” As if she didn’t know. The jerk.

  Chase’s bitter laugh had Adrienne looking up from her notepad. “Now, there’s the kicker. He’s married to Ted’s ex-wife. He holds a large chunk of shares and the seat on the board that Ted’s wife was awarded in their divorce settlement.”

  “You sound as if you don’t like him.”

  Seeming to catch himself, his gaze met hers. “It isn’t my place to like or dislike. Morrigan’s needs to present a strong front, with Ted gone, Drew now owns controlling stock. If the board doesn’t back Drew, it’ll leave the company too vulnerable.”

  Actually, Drew didn’t own majority shares. She did. But, she wasn’t going to point that out. Especially as she didn’t have control of those stocks. Not yet. But she would. Soon.

  “Vulnerable?”

  “For a take-over attempt.”

  Her eyes widened. She’d thought she only had Drew to contend with. But it made sense others would want Morrigan’s.

  “So you’ll vote him in?”

  “The only other real contender is Roger Hillington.”

  Her ex-fiancé. S
he managed not to flinch.

  “Is he more qualified to run the company?” Roger had certainly tried to convince her that he was.

  Chase nodded. “Hillington has the credentials, and is a shrewd businessman, but Steinberg has influence over the board. Hillington doesn’t stand a chance—-not unless he manages to get Ted’s daughter to the alter.”