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Authors: Victoria Ashe
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personal tragedy has befallen you, I trust?”
Alexandra’s composure held firm. “You’re so kind to inquire. But no, I’m afraid the ring you refer to was nothing, just a cheap imitation of the real thing, much like the man who gave it to me, I’m afraid.” She addressed the other men at the table with a winsome smile. “I really dodged a bullet with that one.” She laughed and winked at them, causing them to laugh in return. Her energy was contagious when she wielded it that way.
After half a dozen drinks and the laughter of his companions assailing his ego, Duncan’s poise wasn’t so intact. “You weren’t woman enough to wear that ring, Alexandra,” he spat. “If it hadn’t been for your corporate connections, you wouldn’t have been able to amuse me in any way while we were together. Oops, I guess you didn’t, even at that.” Duncan tossed his napkin onto the table. “I’m through with this dinner and I’m through with you.”
Duncan staggered to his feet and Scott jumped to his. He had a good idea of what had passed between them, but where he came from, a man didn’t treat a woman that way, especially not in public.
“You’re not even close to finished,” he said. “You owe the lady an apology and I want to hear it now.”
Duncan looked Scott up and down, judging his strength and knowing when he was beaten. “My obviously oh-so-sincere apologies,” he snarled and tottered out of the room. He knocked against his empty cup as he moved away, and it crashed to the floor without him bothering to pick it up.
Mike and Roger both stood, stammering and red-faced. “We’re so sorry. We apologize,” they said together several times. “We don’t know what could have come over him. Again, let us apologize.”
They each spoke a stream of embarrassed sentences in unison, stopping and stumbling over each other’s words before running down the hall to catch Duncan.
Scott and Alexandra sat alone at the table. He turned to her, “Duncan was also the man you were involved with, wasn’t he?”
Alexandra nodded miserably.
“Why didn’t you tell me? We’re supposed to be on the same side here. Why didn’t you trust me?”
“I don’t know, Scott. I didn’t really even think to say anything. I just felt so stupid. I mean, take a good look at the guy. Stupid, ugly, stupid beard.”
“Tell me what you really think.” Scott shook his head. “After all that time in the cabin, you didn’t think to tie the pieces together for me? You told me about the stolen documents and then about the man who had hurt you—your former fiancé nonetheless. But, you never had any intention of really letting me know you, did you?”
“Not then. It seemed too personal at the time.”
The thought of Duncan, that puffed-up philanderer so much as laying a finger on her beautiful skin, touching and kissing her—the image cut straight through him. How could she have settled for, given herself to a man so undeserving? How could a man like that have betrayed someone so wonderful as Alexandra Hunter? The world was an upside-down place.
“I’m not sure if you’re angry with me or jealous,” she said in disbelief. “One thing is for sure, though. We let things go too far in the cabin. We’ve let personal feelings leak over into business.”
“I hope you don’t consider that a problem. I don’t. I just realized I jumped to a few too many conclusions, Alex. What I know for sure is that you and I have feelings of some sort for each other. Don’t you think we should find out where they lead? Come on, forget about Duncan and get to know me better. Heck, for all you know, I really could have been fooling around with celebrities in Europe all my life.”
“You don’t really think I still believe that, do you?” She ran her hand across her forehead. “Never mind. It doesn’t matter. I think Duncan’s little display at dinner tonight is an excellent example of exactly why I’m better cut out for a career
Alexandra’s composure held firm. “You’re so kind to inquire. But no, I’m afraid the ring you refer to was nothing, just a cheap imitation of the real thing, much like the man who gave it to me, I’m afraid.” She addressed the other men at the table with a winsome smile. “I really dodged a bullet with that one.” She laughed and winked at them, causing them to laugh in return. Her energy was contagious when she wielded it that way.
After half a dozen drinks and the laughter of his companions assailing his ego, Duncan’s poise wasn’t so intact. “You weren’t woman enough to wear that ring, Alexandra,” he spat. “If it hadn’t been for your corporate connections, you wouldn’t have been able to amuse me in any way while we were together. Oops, I guess you didn’t, even at that.” Duncan tossed his napkin onto the table. “I’m through with this dinner and I’m through with you.”
Duncan staggered to his feet and Scott jumped to his. He had a good idea of what had passed between them, but where he came from, a man didn’t treat a woman that way, especially not in public.
“You’re not even close to finished,” he said. “You owe the lady an apology and I want to hear it now.”
Duncan looked Scott up and down, judging his strength and knowing when he was beaten. “My obviously oh-so-sincere apologies,” he snarled and tottered out of the room. He knocked against his empty cup as he moved away, and it crashed to the floor without him bothering to pick it up.
Mike and Roger both stood, stammering and red-faced. “We’re so sorry. We apologize,” they said together several times. “We don’t know what could have come over him. Again, let us apologize.”
They each spoke a stream of embarrassed sentences in unison, stopping and stumbling over each other’s words before running down the hall to catch Duncan.
Scott and Alexandra sat alone at the table. He turned to her, “Duncan was also the man you were involved with, wasn’t he?”
Alexandra nodded miserably.
“Why didn’t you tell me? We’re supposed to be on the same side here. Why didn’t you trust me?”
“I don’t know, Scott. I didn’t really even think to say anything. I just felt so stupid. I mean, take a good look at the guy. Stupid, ugly, stupid beard.”
“Tell me what you really think.” Scott shook his head. “After all that time in the cabin, you didn’t think to tie the pieces together for me? You told me about the stolen documents and then about the man who had hurt you—your former fiancé nonetheless. But, you never had any intention of really letting me know you, did you?”
“Not then. It seemed too personal at the time.”
The thought of Duncan, that puffed-up philanderer so much as laying a finger on her beautiful skin, touching and kissing her—the image cut straight through him. How could she have settled for, given herself to a man so undeserving? How could a man like that have betrayed someone so wonderful as Alexandra Hunter? The world was an upside-down place.
“I’m not sure if you’re angry with me or jealous,” she said in disbelief. “One thing is for sure, though. We let things go too far in the cabin. We’ve let personal feelings leak over into business.”
“I hope you don’t consider that a problem. I don’t. I just realized I jumped to a few too many conclusions, Alex. What I know for sure is that you and I have feelings of some sort for each other. Don’t you think we should find out where they lead? Come on, forget about Duncan and get to know me better. Heck, for all you know, I really could have been fooling around with celebrities in Europe all my life.”
“You don’t really think I still believe that, do you?” She ran her hand across her forehead. “Never mind. It doesn’t matter. I think Duncan’s little display at dinner tonight is an excellent example of exactly why I’m better cut out for a career
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