His Indecent Proposition by Aphrodite Hunt Read Free Book Online Page B

the job? At least you’ve given it your best shot.
    But I don’t want him to get the job! He’s
never going to let me live it down!
    Straightening her back with new resolve, she
resumes her gait to the CEO’s office.
    Ms. Radcliffe, the forty-something year old
Executive Assistant who has been with the company since its
inception, looks up.
    “Right on time, Ms. Chalmers.” She
smiles.
    “Please call me Susan.” Never hurts to get
on the Executive Assistant’s side.
    “Go right in. He’s waiting for you.” Ms.
Radcliffe jerks her head. “Good luck.”
    “Thank you.”
    Her nerve bundles are starting to fire up
again. Susan swallows, grips both her fists, composes herself and
heads in.
    And almost stumbles.
    The man sitting behind the large mahogany
desk has always unsettled her, and even more so now. Channing
Crawford is in his late thirties and he radiates a magnetic aura of
great power. He doesn’t look his age though. He looks younger,
possibly because he is so fit.
    He is handsome – almost unspeakably so. His
blue eyes are sparkling and vivid in a well-chiseled face. He has
marvelous bone structure – a structure she can well imagine on
ancient Greek kings and war frescoes. His dark hair is razor shorn
into a buzz cut, and his body is bulked up and magnificent under
his dark suit. His lips have a determined and ruthless streak to
them.
    She can’t look away from his eyes. Her knees
begin to wobble again.
    Damn. Now you remember why you take great
pains to avoid meeting this man.
    Not helping are the rumors of how he found
his fortune. It isn’t a matter of luck or investment, though those
came much later. Channing Crawford, William Peterson and Derek
Fulham were Iraqi war veterans – battle-scarred and hardened army
officers who had been decorated for many acts of valor. In Iraq,
they had found hoarded gold bullion and claimed their share of the
spoils.
    The rumors speculated that the way they
found the gold was not without bloodshed. Iraqi warlords were
involved, even organized crime. There were whispers of a bloody
raid, the detonation of an entire citadel and a chase across the
desert.
    Of course, no one could ever confirm what
happened. Only Channing Crawford, William Peterson and Derek Fulham
knew exactly what went down, and they weren’t telling.
    With this gold, they came back to America
and founded the company. William Peterson was killed in a
surfboarding accident (also raising suspicions) and Derek Fulham
sold his shares to Channing two years later. Now Channing Crawford
holds the share majority in a company that has capital investments
as far as China, Bolivia and the Middle East.
    Susan can now feel the weight of speculative
history emanating from this magnificent specimen of a man – mixed
with a thrilling splash of mystery and danger. It’s as if she’s
face to face with a drug lord, not a CEO of a much-admired
company.
    This is a mistake. She shouldn’t have come
here.
    Then she thinks of Leonard Drake in this
very room, facing Channing Crawford down. Her mouth sets into a
determined line. If you can’t bear to be in the same room as
Channing Crawford, then you have no business being a VP of this
company.
    Channing says, “Yes? Susan Chalmers, isn’t
it? You wanted to see me?”
    Direct and right to the point. No
pleasantries required.
    Susan swallows.
    “Yes, Mr. Crawford. I came to see you about
the Vice-President’s job. I’m going to tell you why I think I
deserve it.”
    Before she can lose her nerve, she rushes
into her well-rehearsed spiel about her list of accomplishments
within the company. And yes, it’s a long list. As she states each
achievement and contract she has brought in by rote – without once
referring to any piece of paper – her voice grows steadier and her
back becomes straighter.
    Why, she thinks proudly, I do deserve
this job.
    Channing Crawford listens to her monologue
with an intense look in his blazing blue eyes. When she finally
finishes, he