Balancing Act Read online

  “He’s too little,” she agreed.

  “That’s right.” Seth kept her going. “But you’re not. So this weekend I will take you both to the beach. We can fish and sail. How does that sound?”

  “You don’t have to do that.” Wistfulness colored her voice even as she made the protest.

  “Yes, Tessa, I do,” he said. “We could all use a break. It will be a celebration.”

  She stared out the window again, hitched a breath but couldn’t seem to get enough air in her lungs. It was stifling and suffocating.

  “H-how much longer will it be?” she asked in a small voice.

  There was a pause on the other end. “Not much longer, Tessa. You okay?”

  “I want out, Seth. Please, please get me out.” Tessa’s voice dwindled away, and she swallowed another sob. “Please, Seth.”

  The elevator lurched again, dropping a few feet. A ding sounded and the doors whisked open. Tessa turned her head as Seth pushed past the security guard and the maintenance worker. He bent and picked her up, cradling her against his chest. Tessa had never been so glad to see his dear, scowling face. Over his shoulder he barked at the security guard to get her purse and the laptop. Someone opened an office door for them and Seth took her into a spacious corner office with plenty of windows. He started to set her in a large overstuffed chair near the windows, but she clung to him.

  “Please. Hold onto me for a minute. I’ll be okay.”

  He sat down in the chair instead, and brought her with him on his lap, her head tucked under his chin.

  “I’m sorry, Tessa,” he murmured. “I should never have left you on your own, knowing you would have to take the elevator. I don’t know what I was thinking.”

  The steady beat of his heart beneath her ear was soothing.

  She shook her head against him. “It’s not your fault.”

  Her breathing settled back to normal and she became conscious of his large hand where it rested against her thigh. This was her boss. Fear may have left, but now embarrassment flooded in. She should be standing on her own two feet, not leaning on him for support.

  “I–I should get up. We need to finish the contracts.”

  She straightened away from Seth’s solid chest, her back ramrod straight. He reached into the inside breast pocket of his suit coat and produced a large white linen handkerchief. As he handed it to her, she noticed his initials were embroidered in the corner of it.

  “Wipe your eyes, Tessa.” The order was gently spoken. “I’ve called the limo. I want you to go to the hotel and relax. All we have to do is sign the contracts, thanks to you, and I think I can handle that.”

  Tessa opened her mouth to protest.

  Seth set a finger against her lips. “No arguments. You’ve been through something that would have rattled anyone, let alone someone who’s claustrophobic, and you’ve still got to get back down to the ground floor. If you don’t want to get back in the elevator, I understand. I’ll be happy to walk down with you.”

  Tessa scrambled off his lap and smoothed her skirt. She gulped. This man was her boss, and she had clung to him like some helpless airhead. She detested women who tried to appear weak and helpless. It so went against her grain, just thinking about it made her stomach tie up in knots.

  There was a mirror in the far corner. She grabbed her purse from the chair where the security guard had left it and went over to repair her hair and make-up. It gave her something to do, a chance to regain her composure. She needed that now more than ever. She had never begged a man to hold her. How mortifying.

  * * * *

  Seth watched her, eyes narrowed as his mind worked overtime. He could still hear the fear in her voice as she’d begged him to get her out. He swallowed. There had been much more than simple claustrophobia there. She had sounded traumatized. He had expected her to be worse off than she was. As he watched her, she wiped the tracks of the tears she’d shed and reapplied some of her makeup. After that, long, nimble fingers set about smoothing and pinning the sleek French twist she always wore back into place. He’d never seen her hair down. He wondered again what she would look like with it loose and flowing.

  He let his gaze drift down to her narrow waist and her heart-shaped bottom, outlined by the snug suit skirt she wore. He also remembered how that firm little derriere had felt snuggled in his lap. What did she wear beneath it? Something practical or silky? He could almost feel the touch of warm silk on his fingertips.

  Seth shook his head in disgust at himself and where his thoughts had gone. She was his secretary–and a damn good one, for a change. So he had better watch his step.

  “Are you about ready, Tessa?” he asked, a hint of gruffness back in his voice.

  She turned from the mirror, her poise back in place. “Yes, sir. I’m sorry, Mr. Barrett.”

  “Seth,” he corrected her. “Call me Seth. It’s about time we dropped some of the formality, don’t you think?”

  God in heaven! What was he doing? He just finished telling himself he needed to cool it, and in the very next breath he made things less formal between them? He began to wonder which head was doing the thinking for him when it came to Tessa Edwards, and he was afraid he knew the answer already.

  Tessa smiled slightly. She picked up her bag, but when she bent to grab the laptop, Seth beat her to it.

  “I’ll get this. Come on, Tessa, the limo driver can run you to the hotel. Once you’re there, take a dip in the Jacuzzi and relax.”

  Tessa had booked a two-bedroom suite connected with a living room between the two bedrooms. In addition, it featured a terrace with a Jacuzzi, one of the little perks that a man like Seth could not only afford but was accustomed to having.

  As they stepped into the hall, Tessa turned away from the stairwell and back toward the elevator. Seth grabbed her hand to stop her.

  “Are you sure?”

  “Yes.” Tessa’s blue eyes met his. “If I don’t do it now, I’ll never get back on one. I can’t live like that, Seth.”

  He took hold of her hand as they stepped in, noting her surprise, but in a moment, her slender fingers relaxed within his grip. Not until the doors opened to the lobby did he relinquish his hold. He didn’t make any big deal out of it. In fact, he kept his expression as frowning as ever to ease her discomfort. She smiled at him, fingers trembling.

  “Okay?”

  Tessa nodded. “Thanks, Seth.”

  Chapter 5

  It didn’t take Seth long to finish closing the deal. He and Golding had enjoyed a very productive lunch. Tessa’s message had cut things short, but Golding understood. Once the contracts were signed, Seth shook hands with the older man and the board.

  “We’ll make the announcement in the morning, Barrett, if that suits you. When you get to be my age, you don’t always want to field a bunch of questions late in the day.”

  “Excellent, sir. Tomorrow morning is fine.”

  “Can I take you and your assistant to dinner tonight?” Golding offered, his expression genial.

  Seth shook his head. “I appreciate the offer, but I believe Miss Edwards has had enough excitement for one day.”

  Golding smiled. “Another time, perhaps. It’s always a pleasure to meet a fellow journalist.”

  The two men shook hands and parted ways in the lobby. Seth sat back in the limo, ran his fingers through his thick hair, and pulled his phone out to call his father. His conversation with Alexander Barlow-Barrett was short and to the point. The deal was closed pending shareholder and government approval. He shoved his phone back into the clip on his belt.

  The conversation over his future role at Barrett Newspapers could wait until the ink had dried and he was back home where he could talk to his father face-to-face. What he had to say needed to be handled in person. It was time Alexander Barrett took a hard look at Brandon and realized he was grooming the wrong Barlow-Barrett to step into his shoes. Seth’s heart was not in it, Brandon’s was.

  He turned his thoughts back to Tessa. Heari
ng the panic and fear in her message, he had felt an instant need to go to her. Getting her to think about the beach had helped. He wondered if she remembered it. Panic sometimes made people blank out about details, but he wanted her to remember. He was serious about taking her and Zach there. They could stay at his beach house, go for a nice easy sail, nothing too adventurous the first time out. He’d take Zach fishing.

  Seth snorted at where his thoughts had led him. What was he hoping for? A ready-made family? Or some social life at all that didn’t involve elite clubs and the rest of his family? He flicked a speck of lint off his suit slacks. He was tired of meetings, trips, formal dinners, and making meaningless small talk on topics about which he cared nothing at all. He wanted… The limo stopped in front of the hotel and the doorman rushed to open the door for him. Seth tossed him a tip and sprinted up the steps.

  He wanted Tessa, but he doubted that was possible or even probable. She gave off more than the usual volume of keep-off signals. Except for an odd moment now and then, he got the feeling she not only didn’t like him but secretly laughed at him. It was damned annoying and intriguing at the same time. Seth wasn’t sure that anyone had dared to laugh at him, with the possible exceptions of Brandon and Anna. Even their other siblings always seemed to regard him with awe.

  He opened the door of the hotel suite, surprised by how quiet it was. A quick glance around the living room showed it was empty. He stepped out on the terrace, but the Jacuzzi was still, and Tessa was nowhere out there. Seth turned toward the smaller of the two bedrooms. The door was open a crack.

  “Tessa?” he murmured, but got no response.

  He pushed the door farther open, feeling a little like he was intruding but concerned enough about her in the wake of the elevator incident, he went ahead and peered inside. She was wrapped in a white terry cloth robe that swallowed her. Delicate toes painted a soft pink peeked from beneath the hem. She lay on her side, one arm resting on the bed and covering her breasts, the other curled beneath her cheek. Her lips were parted in sleep, and her thick, auburn hair spilled across the pillow and around her shoulders. Seth drank in the sight of her like a man stranded in the desert getting his first sight of an oasis. She looked so tiny…and so damn young. What the hell was he doing?

  He had started to withdraw when she sighed and opened her eyes. He couldn’t leave now. It would seem like he was snooping. And hadn’t he been? A flush warmed his cheeks.

  Her eyes opened wider when she spotted him.

  “Seth?” she mumbled while she struggled to wake up. “Did everything go okay?”

  Relieved she hadn’t taken offense at his looking in on her, he allowed himself a slight smile. “Yes. The contracts are signed. I thought I might take you out on the town. Are you up to it?”

  Tessa sat up and pulled the bathrobe tighter, but not before he’d gotten a glimpse of one generous, rounded, creamy breast. “Sure. What time is it?”

  “A little before five, so there’s no rush. I thought I might grab a drink and sit in the Jacuzzi for a few minutes. Care to join me?”

  Tessa shook her head. “Not in the Jacuzzi. I tried that and it made me sleepy, but I will come outside with you.”

  He nodded, pleased she would spend some time with him. She was already curled up in a lounge chair on the terrace when he came out in swim trunks, with a towel slung around his neck and a whisky in one hand. He sipped it and sighed.

  “Hmm. I needed that. Would you like anything?”

  “No, thanks. I have a bottle of sparkling water.”

  They talked about work. It seemed to be the safest topic. He liked the way she flushed with pleasure when he praised her for her insight about Golding.

  She ran one of her manicured nails along the arm of the lounge. “I’m sorry about the whole elevator thing, Seth.”

  “Don’t be. As long as you’re all right, there was no harm done. Let’s forget about it, okay?”

  Tessa smiled. “Gladly. Where are we going to dinner?”

  He arched one brow at her. “Getting hungry?”

  “Well,” Tessa drawled, “I didn’t get any lunch.”

  * * * *

  She watched in amazement as Seth downed the rest of his whisky in a gulp and stood up. Water dripped off his powerful body. It was all Tessa could do not to stare open-mouthed at him. The water accentuated what she had noted in the most abstract of ways before. He was muscled, as if he spent a lot of time outdoors. His golden-brown skin was covered with fine, blond hair arrowing down to the low-slung waist of his swimming trunks, which now clung to his body. Tessa’s eyes wandered lower and she averted her gaze. The man was her boss. What on earth was she thinking?

  “I have reservations at Charlie Trotter’s for seven,” Seth was saying. “Did you bring something dressy?”

  “Yes.”

  “Great. Let’s head that way then.”

  It was the proverbial little black dress. It had to be. Operating on a tight budget, Tessa was always careful to keep her wardrobe as classic as possible, so a short while later, she smoothed it over her hips. The material flared just past there into a swingy skirt that ended a few inches above her knees. The bodice was strapless and form-fitting, and her breasts swelled at the top of the heart shaped neckline. She added a strand of pearls and strappy stilletos.

  Seth waited for her in the living room. He blinked when she walked in before he smiled at her.

  “You look lovely, Tessa. Once again.”

  So did he. Dressed in a dark dinner suit with a pristine white shirt and a conservative gold-toned tie that brought out his unusual eyes even more, he oozed power and money. He’d brushed his thick, wavy blond hair off his face. As he held out his arm, Tessa took it without hesitation. She stepped into the elevator, which faced a central lobby, with hardly a blink of the eye, though she did keep a firm hold of Seth’s arm the whole way down.

  The restaurant was amazing, and so was Seth. He put himself out to entertain her. Tessa had never enjoyed such a wonderful time with anyone. For all his taciturn ways in the office, he could be a very amusing dinner companion.

  “Would you like some wine to start?”

  At her nod, he conferred with the sommelier before choosing a chardonnay. Once he tasted the wine and nodded, the sommelier filled her glass, then Seth’s. Tessa hid a smile. She had watched many men over the years botch this part of an evening. It was refreshing to see Seth pay it no more notice than he would putting his napkin on his lap. It was just another part of dining out for him, not an ornate ordeal.

  “I know you were a little stressed in the elevator today when I talked about the beach,” Seth began, “but do you truly like it?”

  “As long as I have a crate of sunscreen for Zach and me, we love to go as often as we can.” Tessa laughed. “Zach loves fishing. I’m not that keen on it, but I try to humor him. It gets him away from the video games some.”

  Seth smiled. “What do you do for fun?”

  “Swimming. There’s something so peaceful about it, whether I’m in the ocean or working out in a pool. It’s quiet, you know?”

  “Mmm. That’s the way I feel about sailing. Perhaps not always the quiet part, but being able to be alone with my thoughts–that’s what I appreciate most.” The sparkle in his eyes made it obvious how much it meant to him.

  “I’ve never been sailing. Riding, swimming… Those things I’ve done, but sailing was never part of the Edwards family hobbies.”

  “Ah, if you ride,” Seth said with a grin, “then you need to meet my sister Anna. She has a real gift with horses. She’s a veterinarian in North Carolina. In fact, you remind me of her in some ways.” A wicked gleam entered his topaz eyes. “Short, stubborn… Did I say short?”

  Tessa arched a brow at him. “Very funny.”

  When they arrived back at the hotel, she was relaxed. Seth looked that way too. His verbal bantering had put them at ease with each other. She was reluctant to end the evening and return to their roles of boss and assistant. For
now they were Tessa and Seth. Two people with more in common than she’d suspected. The lobby was all but deserted as they entered, the clerk at the reception desk giving them a respectful nod before returning to his work.

  “There’s a piano bar to the left. We could have an after-dinner drink there, if you’d like. A toast to your success.”

  Tessa smiled. “No, to your success.”

  Seth ordered cognac for himself and Tessa requested a Bailey’s. When the drinks arrived, Seth lifted his glass and touched it to hers with a faint ting of crystal.

  “To our first successful business venture.”

  They sipped in silence for a few minutes, listening to the music. One or two couples danced on the small dance floor. Tessa watched them, but was still surprised when Seth asked her to join him. She nodded, not knowing what to expect, but she should have known. He was smooth and confident, as if it was something he did all the time.

  Tessa wished the evening could go on forever. It seemed Seth did too. He pulled her closer to him. One of her palms was splayed over his chest, the other hand held there by his large fingers. Seth’s free hand had slipped down below the small of her back to press her hips to his thigh. Tessa soon found that the motion created liquid heat in the pit of her stomach that left her breathless.

  “Maybe we should go upstairs,” she said, still not at all sure she wanted the night to end, and even less sure what she was suggesting.

  Seth searched her face with slumberous eyes and nodded. As they rode upstairs in the elevator, he tucked Tessa against him, keeping her there as they walked down the hall to the suite. The lights were set on dim in the main room when they entered.

  “Are you tired?” Seth asked.

  “Not really.” Tessa’s nerves tightened. Sleep would be elusive tonight.

  “Join me out on the terrace? I think the lights and the view from there are something you won’t want to miss.”

  He held the door open in invitation, then stood next to her, one arm thrown around her shoulders. There didn’t seem to be much to say, but the silence wasn’t uncomfortable. They both watched the lights twinkling below them. When Seth turned her toward him and tipped her head up, it was the most natural thing in the world. Then he kissed her.