Читать книгу Lost Without You - Yahrah John St. - Страница 11

Chapter 3

“Mr. Jackson?” Gabrielle gasped, touching her chest. “What are you doing here?” She hadn’t seen her father’s employer since she’d left Marietta well over eleven years ago. “And at this hour?”

Andrew Jackson looked the same as she remembered. He was well over six feet, lean and dark as night. Nearly a dozen years had passed, but he still wore his black hair the same, slicked back from his face without a hint of gray, and he had the same mysterious dark eyes. As a child, she could never tell if he was happy or sad.

“Gabrielle, how wonderful to see you again, darling,” Andrew Jackson said with a country accent. He kissed her cheek and walked into her hotel room without an invitation.

Gabrielle was a little stunned at his rudeness, but closed the door anyway. Did everyone think she was supposed to follow them today? “I have to admit I’m surprised by the visit, Mr. Jackson.”

“It has been a while, hasn’t it?” Andrew glanced around the hotel room, noting the elegant decor and plush surroundings. Trust Ethan Graham to spare no expense when it came to hiring the best. He’d scouted a chemist last year himself, but had he known Gabrielle Burton was open to moving back to the States, he would have snapped her up himself. Jax Cosmetics could use a chemist like her.

He turned back around to face Gabrielle. “So, little lady, how has life been treating you in ole Paris? It’s been what ten, eleven years since you’ve been home?”

“Give or take.” Gabrielle had no intention of discussing her personal life with anyone, much less her father’s employer.

“What can I do for you, Mr. Jackson? I’m sure you didn’t come all this way to ask me about my years abroad.”

Andrew laughed at Gabrielle’s forthrightness. Time had turned the once-timid little girl into an outspoken woman. “I came by to bring you up to speed on what’s been going on with your father.”

“You’re here about my father? Is something wrong? Is he okay?” Gabrielle’s heart started pounding loudly in her chest. Although she may not be as close to her parents since Seth’s death, she certainly didn’t wish her father ill. And their family certainly couldn’t handle another loss.

“No, no.” Andrew took a seat on the couch. He spread his arm across the back and folded one leg across the other. “It’s nothing like that.”

Gabrielle preferred to stand while Andrew appeared to be making himself quite comfortable in her quarters. “Well, then, what is it?” What would bring Andrew Jackson all the way from Marietta to her hotel room at night uninvited?

“You may not be aware, but James has developed a drinking problem and a gambling habit.”

Gabrielle folded her arms across her chest as she digested the information. For some reason, she wasn’t surprised. Her father had always wanted more. A better house, a better job, more money, nicer clothes. It wasn’t a stretch for her to imagine he thought he could win it at a casino table.

“He’s racked up quite a debt,” Andrew continued, watching Gabrielle carefully. She didn’t bat an eyelash and appeared unaffected by the information he’d just given her. Perhaps he’d underestimated how far she would go to protect her family.

“What’s it to you?” Gabrielle asked.

“To me?” Andrew asked. “I would imagine it would mean something to you since he’s in debt to the wrong sort.”

“And what do you mean by wrong sort?”

“The Goretti family,” Andrew answered swiftly. “You may not have heard of them, but they are the sort who don’t mind breaking a few ribs, if you get my drift.”

“I do. But if the ‘wrong sort’—” Gabrielle used her hands to make quotation marks “—are looking for money, they are barking up the wrong tree. I live within my means.”

Andrew raised a brow. “You don’t sugarcoat your words, young lady, so let me get straight to the point. I would be willing to pay your father’s debt, if you do something for me in return.”

“Of course.” Gabrielle laughed shrilly as understanding dawned on her. “You wouldn’t help him altruistically.”

They had come to the crux of why Andrew Jackson was there in the first place. He wanted something from her. What? She wasn’t sure. She couldn’t fathom what she could possibly offer him that was worthwhile. She had some money in savings for a rainy day, but that was about it. “What do you want, Mr. Jackson?”

A crooked smile spread across Andrew’s face. “I hear you’ve accepted a position with Adams Cosmetics. And that could be beneficial to me.”

Gabrielle frowned and several lines formed across her forehead. “I don’t understand. How so?”

Andrew couldn’t believe how naive Gabrielle was. He would have to spell it out. “You could supply me with information.”

“What kind of information?”

“Oh, you know…” He paused. “Their latest research, marketing and, of course, any upcoming products.” Andrew searched her face to ensure she was getting exactly what was on the table.

“You want me to commit corporate espionage?” Gabrielle couldn’t believe her ears.

“I wouldn’t call it that,” Andrew said. “I would say one hand is washing another. You give me information to help boost Jax Cosmetics and help level the playing field. In return, I save your father from a terrible fate at the hands of some mob henchmen.”

Gabrielle swallowed hard. There was a reason she had never quite trusted Andrew Jackson even as a child, and now she knew why. He was the devil incarnate.

“I think you should go, Mr. Jackson.” Gabrielle had heard enough and walked toward the door.

Slowly, Andrew rose to his feet, buttoned his suit jacket. He walked toward her and when he reached her, he glared down at her. “Listen, little girl, your father is in a bind.”

Gabrielle hated his condescending word usage, but couldn’t help replying much too petulantly to her liking, “My father is a grown man. He made his bed and he’ll have to lie in it.”

“So you would leave your father hanging in the wind?” Andrew asked. When she didn’t answer right away, Andrew knew there was still hope he could get her to do his bidding. “Why don’t you take a little time to think about it?” He opened the door to her suite. “I’ll be back in touch.”

Seconds later, the door closed behind him, and Gabrielle breathed a sigh of relief. What the hell had just happened? Had Andrew Jackson really just asked her to risk her job, her freedom and commit corporate espionage to save a father who in the past decade hadn’t shown an ounce of interest in her?

* * *

“Morning,” Shane said unenthusiastically at the breakfast table the next morning. It was a beautiful day, and their butler had set up a table out on the terrace so they could enjoy the fresh air.

“Hello, grumpy,” Courtney said as she poured granola over her fruit yogurt. She’d just enjoyed a leisurely dip in the pool and was famished.

“I’m not in the mood for you today, Courtney.” He’d slept fitfully the night before, barely getting a few hours of sleep, and now he was irritable. He reached for the carafe of coffee and poured a cup. He drank it black, uncharacteristically.

“Okay, okay.” Courtney held up her hands. “I will leave you alone.” She ran her fingers through her damp hair.

“What has got you in a bad mood?” his mother asked, sipping her coffee. It wasn’t like her son to be so snippy with his sister.

“No reason.” Shane lowered his head, adding some eggs and bacon to his plate from a nearby platter.

“Are you sure about that?” Elizabeth looked at her son suspiciously. She could read him and knew when he was hiding something. “How did it go with your new employee yesterday? You weren’t at dinner last night, so I couldn’t ask you how it went.”

“It went fine.” Shane dug his fork into his eggs and ate a generous amount.

“You could have fooled me,” Courtney returned. “I ran into her in the hall and she looked positively flustered.”

“Puh-lease,” Shane responded, taking a bite of bacon. “Gabrielle Burton can hold her own. She gave as good as she got.”

“But you were professional?” his mother countered.

“Of course, Mom. Courtney here even took her out for lunch on her first day.”

“That was kind of you,” their mother replied, turning to her daughter. “Is she as bad as Shane says?”

“No,” Courtney said, glaring at Shane. “She’s a lovely woman, though she could use a little fixing up. I told her I would help her.”

“So she’s your new pet project?” Shane inquired, raising an eyebrow. “I believe you have better and more important things to do with your time at Adams Cosmetics than fix up some straightlaced prude.”

“Shane!” Elizabeth was flabbergasted at her son’s response.

“See, I told you, Mama.” Courtney pointed at Shane. “He has it out for her. He wants her to fail.” For some reason, she felt as if she had to fight for Gabby, maybe because she was the only woman who’d ever gotten under her brother’s skin.

“I do not have it out for her,” Shane replied testily. “Nothing I’ve said isn’t the truth. You know as well as I do that Gabrielle Burton could stand to loosen up a bit.”

“But there’s no reason to be mean,” their mother admonished. “That is no way to treat a lady. I’m warning you, Shane. I better not hear that you’ve mistreated the young woman.”

Shane rolled his eyes at his younger sister. He didn’t appreciate a scolding by his mother. He was a grown man, after all. “If you’ll excuse me.” He scooted back from the table, nearly knocking his chair over. “I wouldn’t want to burden you with my presence.” He walked off the terrace and headed toward the front of the house, where he’d parked his Jaguar.

* * *

When he arrived at the laboratory, he was in no better of a mood. Gabrielle must have sensed his inner turmoil, because she gave him a wide berth that morning. She chose instead to work with several other members of his staff, and that was just fine with him. Shane didn’t know why her presence bothered him, but bothered he was. Even more so when he saw her dressed in a prim black skirt with a white silk blouse that tied at the neck. He wanted nothing more than to untie that knot and free her of her inhibitions.

Shane shook his head. Where the hell had that thought come from? He turned around and glanced in her direction. Gabrielle must have sensed it because she looked up at him with her almond-shaped eyes and gave him a broad smile. He noticed that she was wearing her hair differently from yesterday’s prim look. Instead of having her hair in an updo, she’d decided for a half up, half down look.

He looked away and returned his focus to his perfumer’s organ and pulled out several scents. He was determined to hit the right notes today and get this fragrance right, once and for all.

* * *

From the other side of the lab, Gabrielle reengaged herself with her coworker on the new skin-care products in development. She hadn’t meant to smile at Shane, but when she’d found him staring at her so openly, she’d thought they were off to a new start. She must have been wrong, because he hadn’t returned the smile; he’d ignored her and looked down.

She didn’t know why she was thinking about him anyway. She had more important things to worry about. Namely, Andrew Jackson. Overnight, she’d had to time to think, and thanks to Jackson, she felt compelled to at least reach out to her father and find out exactly what was going on. She didn’t relish the task. She hadn’t spoken more than polite pleasantries to her parents in over a decade.

She wasn’t sure if they even wanted to see her. If she didn’t call them, they certainly didn’t call her. Ever since Seth’s death, it was as if she didn’t exist. It hurt knowing they didn’t even think about her, but she’d had to make her peace with being alone in the world.

After much debate, Gabrielle decided to call her parents when lunchtime came around. She left the laboratory and walked outside to the courtyard, where most folks were congregated for lunch. It was a beautifully manicured garden. Gabrielle dialed her parents’ number and waited with bated breath for someone to answer. She was hoping no one was home and that she could just leave a message and walk away unscathed.

No such luck. Her mother picked up on the third ring. “Hello.”

“Hi, Mom, it’s Gabrielle.” She took a seat on a nearby concrete bench.

“Gabby?” her mother asked. “What are you doing calling during the middle of the day? Are you in some kind of trouble?”

“Trouble?” It was more the other way around. Though Gabrielle doubted her mother knew a thing about her father’s gambling habit. “No, of course not. I’m here in the States. Georgia, to be exact.” Her words nearly jumbled together as she tried to get them all out.

“Well, that’s good to hear,” her mother replied. “You should come home and get some real food instead of all that French cooking.”

Actually, Gabrielle had become accustomed to French cooking and quite enjoyed it, but that was another matter entirely. “That would be nice,” Gabrielle said, using it as an opening. “I was actually hoping I could stop by this Sunday for a visit, if that’s all right.”

“We have plans this week,” her mother responded, “How about next Sunday? I can make your favorite dish, shepherd’s pie.”

Tears formed in Gabrielle’s eyes. She was surprised her mother even remembered what she liked. “Th-That would be great.” Gabrielle choked the words out. Although she wanted to talk to her father sooner, she would have to wait. Andrew Jackson hadn’t given her a time constraint.

“We’ll see you Sunday at three, right after church.”

“See you then.” Gabrielle ended the call as fresh tears surfaced on her cheeks. How could one phone call from her mother make her come apart? She was so wrapped up in her own thoughts that she didn’t hear Shane come up beside her.

Shane bent down until he was eye to eye with Gabrielle. “Are you okay?”

Gabrielle turned away and swiftly began wiping away the tears with the back of her hand. She didn’t want him to see her like this.

“Gabrielle,” he said more sternly, grabbing both her shoulders and turning her around to face him. “What’s wrong? Did something happen?” He’d never seen her so, so…vulnerable, and it called out to every male instinct in him to protect her.

“Everything is fine.” She kept her head low, but Shane lifted her chin with his hand.

“Everything is far from fine,” he said, peering into her eyes. “Whoever it was on the other end of that call obviously upset you a great deal. Is there anything I can do?”

His burning eyes held her. She couldn’t believe Shane was being so nice to her. Where was the arrogant, cocky man she was used to?

Shane reached in his suit pocket and handed her a handkerchief and then scooted himself next to her on the bench. That tiny act of kindness had Gabrielle questioning everything she’d ever thought about Shane. She accepted the handkerchief and used it to wipe her eyes, blow her nose and get control of her emotions.

“Feel better?” Shane asked, pushing her hair back so he could see her face. Her skin was bright, nearly translucent. Seeing Gabby in this light, so vulnerable, made her seem more human and attractive, which surprisingly had his groin tightening in response. What was wrong with him? This was Gabby Burton, Gabrielle Burton, the hard-nosed chemist who’d been driven to beat him at all costs in perfumery school. So why was he finding himself wondering what lay beneath that cool reserve of hers?

Gabrielle’s mouth curved into a smile, and Shane found his heart beating just a little bit faster. “Yes, much.”

“Good. So what do you say we go back inside and get back to work?” Shane asked.

“Sounds good.”

* * *

The rest of the afternoon went by quickly, as did the remainder of the week. Gabrielle found herself enjoying her position immensely. She’d even offered her opinion to Shane about what chemical to put in the new skin-care lotion, and he hadn’t bitten her head off. They were definitely making progress. She’d caught him staring at her again several times, but he’d looked away, as if his hand had been caught in the cookie jar.

She was so deep in work on one formula on Friday evening that the time got away from her, and when she glanced up, she noticed that only she and Shane were still in the lab. She glanced at her watch and realized it was nearly 7:00 p.m., way past quitting time. She walked over to Shane and leaned over his shoulder to see what he was working on.

The scent of Gabrielle wafted to Shane’s nose. It wasn’t the scent of any perfume, because his nose didn’t detect any notes. It was her natural smell. Not to mention he could feel her warmth from behind him. He spun around on his stool. “You ready to get out of here?” he asked, surprising himself. “We could grab a cocktail, and you could finally let your hair down for a change.” He could use a drink; he was wound up too tight.

“After that flattering invitation, how can I turn you down?” Gabrielle asked curtly. “And if you hadn’t noticed, my hair is down.”

“Oh, c’mon, Gabby.” Shane continued to call her by her nickname. “I was just razzing you. Don’t tell me you can’t take the heat? I remember you dishing it out in school rather well.” He recalled how she’d once called him an egotistical spoiled rich boy.

“I can take the heat!” Gabrielle huffed. “I’ll just get my suit jacket.”

“Leave it!” Shane ordered before she could make a move. He went to the laboratory door and held it open. “You could stand to loosen up a bit and go with a more casual look.”

Gabrielle’s cheeks burned fire as she walked toward him. “Oh, I will show you I can loosen up. Just you wait.”

“Bring it on, Gabby,” Shane said as he followed her through the double doors. He was eager to finally see her look less like a schoolmarm and more like a woman.

* * *

The jazz lounge Shane took her to was filled with the after-work set wanting to ease the load after a hard day. Gabrielle could sure use a drink. The phone call with her mother a few days ago had released some emotions she’d thought she’d buried. She’d thought she was long past caring if her parents wanted to see her, so it had surprised her when her mother remembered her favorite meal.

Shane, meanwhile, was uneasy. He’d been feeling off-kilter all day and was happy when Gabrielle had insisted on driving separately in her rental car. It gave him some breathing room and time to figure out what it was he was doing. He’d never dated a coworker, much less a subordinate. Though cocktails after work hardly qualified as a date, he would never have thought he would willingly spend time in Gabrielle Burton’s company. Yet there was something about her that intrigued him. He wanted to know more.

They slid inside a plush velvet booth and a blonde waitress in an electric-blue bustier came over to ask for their drink order. She was buxom, just how he liked his women; he couldn’t even tell if Gabrielle had a figure under the dour clothes she wore. “We’ll have two Scorpions.”

Gabrielle huffed from his side. “Do you always order for your women? Because I’m quite capable of doing so myself.”

Shane smiled at her Miss Independent stance. “It is their signature drink. Trust me, you’ll love it. It has bite.”