condition.”
He slowly turned and arched an eyebrow at her. “Another one? We already shook on the deal.”
She shook her hand. “This is personal. No more kisses.” Heat rose in her cheeks as a slow smile spread across his face.
He stepped closer to the desk and planted his hands on either side of her, leaning close until she could see the flecks of gold in his eyes.
“You’re right. That is personal. And I think you liked it. I know I did.” He straightened. “If you say I can’t kiss you, then I’ll want to even more.”
Before she could protest, he strolled out of the office, closing the door firmly behind him. Damn his arrogance. And damn her traitorous libido, standing at attention and all but begging for him to kiss her right then, damn the consequences. She’d have to be careful. Not only was Lucas dangerous to her team, but he was dangerous to her body.
At least she got what she wanted for the team. Time to find a way to make the payment and get new players. Time to prove to her father she could do the job. Time to save the Knights. Four months wasn’t all that long, especially being in spring training already. She needed some new ideas. She pressed the intercom button for her assistant.
“Get me Tom in Houston.”
*
Miranda swiveled in her office chair to stare at the back wall. She took deep, even breaths, striving for a calm she feared wouldn’t arrive before the call. Her heart pounded in her chest and she could hear the blood rushing in her ears. Rarely had anyone except her father been able to push her buttons quite like Lucas. His calm, even demeanor and resolute logic made her want to scream, even though a part of her acknowledged he was right about what he said.
The buzz of the phone made her jump. “Houston, line one.”
She picked up the phone. “Tom, thanks for taking the time to speak with me today.”
“No problem, Miranda.” The deep raspy voice echoed through the phone, making her wince with the volume. “Sorry to hear about your father. How is he?”
“He’s hanging in there, thanks for asking.” She paused. Now that the moment was here, she wasn’t sure what she wanted to ask.
Her father had beaten into her to never show weakness and asking for help was weakness in the extreme to Seamus Callahan. But she didn’t see a way around it this time.
“Miranda?”
“Sorry, I have a lot on my mind. Listen, I’ve been hearing about your change in strategy for the past couple of years and I had some questions.”
He laughed. “Are you asking me to share team secrets? We’re competitors, Miranda.”
She smiled. “Considering you’ve been interviewed about your strategy and talked to several team owners about it, I highly doubt it’s a state secret.”
“Why don’t you ask your new consultant, Wainright? He’s the one who advised us.”
“You used Lucas Wainright for your changes?”
“Some of them. Look, we’re a small market team. Houston doesn’t seem small market but Texas is football country. We have fans and the media but we still can’t compete. Even so, we were falling behind financially and in the win column because we couldn’t sign the big players. We had to figure out a new way, a combination of the right players, changes on the field, and streamlining our operations.”
“But you need the players to bring in the fans.” Seamus’s voice echoed in her mind, only it was her voice speaking the words.
“No, you need wins. Big players can bring in fans initially but if you don’t win, the attention is gone quickly. Your goal is to win more. You need to find a way to do that. If you do, the fans will follow, along with sponsors and media deals.”
She sagged in her chair. “We got to the playoffs last year and our season ticket sales are even lower this year. It didn’t carry over.”
He sighed. “That’s where the big player comes in. It brings the fans to the gate but the wins keep them there. You’re going to need to build some
He slowly turned and arched an eyebrow at her. “Another one? We already shook on the deal.”
She shook her hand. “This is personal. No more kisses.” Heat rose in her cheeks as a slow smile spread across his face.
He stepped closer to the desk and planted his hands on either side of her, leaning close until she could see the flecks of gold in his eyes.
“You’re right. That is personal. And I think you liked it. I know I did.” He straightened. “If you say I can’t kiss you, then I’ll want to even more.”
Before she could protest, he strolled out of the office, closing the door firmly behind him. Damn his arrogance. And damn her traitorous libido, standing at attention and all but begging for him to kiss her right then, damn the consequences. She’d have to be careful. Not only was Lucas dangerous to her team, but he was dangerous to her body.
At least she got what she wanted for the team. Time to find a way to make the payment and get new players. Time to prove to her father she could do the job. Time to save the Knights. Four months wasn’t all that long, especially being in spring training already. She needed some new ideas. She pressed the intercom button for her assistant.
“Get me Tom in Houston.”
*
Miranda swiveled in her office chair to stare at the back wall. She took deep, even breaths, striving for a calm she feared wouldn’t arrive before the call. Her heart pounded in her chest and she could hear the blood rushing in her ears. Rarely had anyone except her father been able to push her buttons quite like Lucas. His calm, even demeanor and resolute logic made her want to scream, even though a part of her acknowledged he was right about what he said.
The buzz of the phone made her jump. “Houston, line one.”
She picked up the phone. “Tom, thanks for taking the time to speak with me today.”
“No problem, Miranda.” The deep raspy voice echoed through the phone, making her wince with the volume. “Sorry to hear about your father. How is he?”
“He’s hanging in there, thanks for asking.” She paused. Now that the moment was here, she wasn’t sure what she wanted to ask.
Her father had beaten into her to never show weakness and asking for help was weakness in the extreme to Seamus Callahan. But she didn’t see a way around it this time.
“Miranda?”
“Sorry, I have a lot on my mind. Listen, I’ve been hearing about your change in strategy for the past couple of years and I had some questions.”
He laughed. “Are you asking me to share team secrets? We’re competitors, Miranda.”
She smiled. “Considering you’ve been interviewed about your strategy and talked to several team owners about it, I highly doubt it’s a state secret.”
“Why don’t you ask your new consultant, Wainright? He’s the one who advised us.”
“You used Lucas Wainright for your changes?”
“Some of them. Look, we’re a small market team. Houston doesn’t seem small market but Texas is football country. We have fans and the media but we still can’t compete. Even so, we were falling behind financially and in the win column because we couldn’t sign the big players. We had to figure out a new way, a combination of the right players, changes on the field, and streamlining our operations.”
“But you need the players to bring in the fans.” Seamus’s voice echoed in her mind, only it was her voice speaking the words.
“No, you need wins. Big players can bring in fans initially but if you don’t win, the attention is gone quickly. Your goal is to win more. You need to find a way to do that. If you do, the fans will follow, along with sponsors and media deals.”
She sagged in her chair. “We got to the playoffs last year and our season ticket sales are even lower this year. It didn’t carry over.”
He sighed. “That’s where the big player comes in. It brings the fans to the gate but the wins keep them there. You’re going to need to build some
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