woman.â
âThen, take Lucas with you.â
âLucas has to keep our current freight moving across the ocean.â
âYouâre right.â Amber pursed her red lips, folding her hands primly in front of her. âItâs all hopeless. We should just give up and go home.â
He didnât have a comeback for her obvious sarcasm. He knew what she was doing, and he didnât appreciate it.
âAre you this insubordinate with Dixon?â How had she kept from being fired?
Tuck dialed Jackson.
âI donât need to be insubordinate with Dixon. He knows what heâs doing.â
âWell, I...â But there was no retort for that. Tuck didnât know what he was doing. And that was the problem.
Jackson answered his phone. âHi, Tuck.â
âYou need to pull out the stops,â said Tuck. âDo whatever it takes.â
âButââ Amber began.
Tuck silenced her with a glare. âI just lost my marketing director and my finance director.â
âDid you fire them?â asked Jackson.
âThey quit. Rumor has it they got an offer from a rival, and with Dixon out of the pictureââ
âPeople are getting nervous.â Jackson filled in the thought.
âIt seems Iâm not seen as a strong leader.â
âYouâve barely gotten started.â
Tuck knew that was no excuse. Maybe he should have barreled past his fatherâs objections years ago. They might have been able to stop him from having any power at Tucker Transportation. But they couldnât have stopped him from learning. This was his fault, and he had to fix it.
âFind him,â he said to Jackson.
âIâm in New Orleans.â
âDo you think heâs there?â
âI donât know that heâs not. Thereâs no evidence that he left.â
âIs there evidence he arrived?â
âMaybe. It could be nothing. Can I get back to you?â
âDonât take too long.â Tuckâs gaze met Amberâs.
She gave a slight shake of her head.
He knew she wanted him to leave Dixon alone and do it all himself. But there was too much at stake. He didnât dare try.
* * *
Tuck looked fantastic in a tuxedo. But then Amber had known that all along. Sheâd been seeing pictures of him in the tabloids for years, mostly at posh events or out on the town with some gorgeous woman. His ability to work a party had never been in question.
The Tucker Transportation reception was ending, and the last few guests trickled out of the ballroom. Amber made her way to the main doors, grateful to have the evening at an end. Her feet were killing her, though that was her own fault. Sheâd knowingly worn two-hour shoes to a five-hour party.
But she hadnât been able to resist. This was by far the fanciest party sheâd ever attended. And sheâd never even taken the silver lace peep-toe pumps out of the box. They had a crimson stiletto heel and sheâd done her toenails to match. Her feet looked fabulous, setting off her rather simple black dress.
The dress had cap sleeves and a slim silhouette. Its one jazzy feature was the scattering of silver sequins at the midthigh hemline. Sheâd worn it at least a dozen times, but it was tried and true, appropriate to the occasion.
Tuck appeared beside her, lightly touching her waist. âYou promised me a dance.â
âYour dance card seemed full,â she answered him.
âWomen kept asking, and I didnât want to be rude.â
Amber kept walking toward the elevator. âYou forget the point of hosting such a lavish reception was for you to make business contacts, not to collect phone numbers.â
âYou sound jealous.â
She wasnât jealous. She refused to be jealous. She was merely feeling critical of his wasted opportunities.
âThat was a business observation, not a personal one.â
âNo?â he