Into Temptation Page 5

  ‘Frank wants to see you in his office.’ The other woman lowered her voice conspiratorially. ‘He’s got some guy in his office with him and – let me tell you – you’ve never seen a man half so good-looking. Although I think he’s pretty well aware of the fact. Seems a bit too arrogant by half.’

  ‘But I’ve got a meeting. Can you tell him I’ll come in later?’

  ‘I don’t think it’s going to wait Amber. I don’t know what’s up, but it looks like something big is up. You’d better come up. Straight away.’ She hung up.

  Whatever could it be? Amber peered into her compact mirror and smoothed down her hair, wishing she didn’t look quite so pale – or feel so tired. She started for Frank’s office. Whatever it was, with any luck it wouldn’t take too long, and she’d still be in time for her meeting – or at least not excessively late.

  ‘He says to go straight in.’ Karen looked up briefly at her approach.

  Amber knocked and entered. Frank was sitting, as usual, behind his antique mahogany desk. With his back to her in the high-backed leather swivel chair opposite her boss was another man.

  ‘Ah Amber! There you are.’ Frank jumped up with a grin and strode across, placing a friendly hand on her shoulder. ‘I wanted you to be the first to know.’ He gestured towards the seated man, who finally swiveled around so that she could see him. ‘Amber this is Jack Ward, the owner and chief executive of Ward Hotels – and now the new owner of De Garis Hotels. He bought us out this morning. Jack, may I introduce Amber Dorey, my very talented accountant?’

  Chapter Four

  Her heart flipped over. She gulped for air, silently, painfully. But there was none in the room.

  Jack Ward… Ward Hotels… New owner of De Garis Hotels… Her brain frantically scrabbled to grasp the ramifications of what Frank had just said, to tie together the unbelievable strands of truth. It couldn’t be, it just couldn’t be!

  Dimly she was aware of Jack extending his hand to be shaken, and her placing her own within it. Frank was laughing, making some remark, but she hadn’t a clue what it was.

  Ward Hotels. The people who had taken over her father’s hotel and put him out of a job. And now they owned De Garis Hotels. He did. Jack Ward. The man who had tied her expertly in knots of pure passion just hours earlier – but concealed from her the fact he was going to be her new boss.

  Ward. A common name, she hadn’t thought about twice. But that had been the name of the man her father had always mentioned. Adam Ward. Yes! And hadn’t he told her that his middle name was Adam? He must be Adam Ward’s son. Her stomach lurched. Adam Ward had died a few years back. Which meant Jack Ward was now the boss of Ward Hotels – and her boss too.

  Amber became aware that Jack was saying something.

  ‘Your accountant?’ he repeated slowly, a sardonic smile spreading across his mouth. ‘Amber and I have met already. As you know, Frank, I’m staying at Le Grand Creux. I was under the impression that Amber was your conference organiser. Well, Amber, what a pleasure it’s going to be, working even more closely with you than I had expected.’

  Amber, still mute with dread, numbly withdrew her hand from his.

  ‘It was Amber who spent several weeks putting together the sales dossier for you Jack,’ said Frank.

  Of course, she thought miserably; now it all made sense. The report she’d worked so hard on for Frank had in fact been a sales prospectus for De Garis Hotels, not the simple review of the business operations that she’d thought she’d been compiling. She’d thought it slightly odd at the time that Frank had ordered such a comprehensive survey, but decided he must have his reasons. Never in a million years had it occurred to her that Frank wanted it because he wanted to sell up. And now all her painstaking work had helped sell the company she loved. To Jack Ward.

  ‘It was an extremely impressive piece of work,’ said Jack, his dark blue eyes boldly interrogating her. ‘Your forecasts for future earnings were particularly well-put together, although far too optimistic.’

  ‘I know this must be something of a shock Amber,’ Frank intervened, ‘but I hope it’s not too much of an unpleasant one. Jack has big plans for De Garis Hotels, and the future looks very exciting – for all of you. And as a condition of sale there are to be no redundancies. Jack’s just about to hold a staff meeting now.’

  Amber gave her former boss the most genuine smile she could muster. ‘Good. That’s very good. Yes. Now if you’ll both excuse me, I have a meeting I simply must attend. I’m already late.’

  ‘We’ll speak when you get back Amber,’ said Jack. ‘I have a couple of meetings to attend myself. But, say two o’clock?’

  She gave a curt nod and exited.

  She felt sick. Sick to her stomach.

  She had slept with Jack Ward – son of the man who had destroyed her father. A man who was now taking over the best company she’d ever worked for. A man who’d apparently thought nothing of deceiving her about his true identity. Had it actually given him a perverted kick to sleep with her, knowing that he was soon about to be her boss? Even if he did erroneously believe her to be the conference organiser she was still an employee of De Garis Hotels. What kind of man did something like that?

  A Ward. That’s who. Like father like son. That’s what they did, didn’t they? Use people. Ward senior had thought nothing about lying to her father, using him to get what he wanted. And apparently his son was cast from the same mould.

  Oh God, why was this happening to her? First Rory and now this. Were all men the same? And to top it all she had spilled her guts to him, told him that he was only her second ever lover. She was utterly humiliated. She would have to resign. There were no two ways about it. She would never work for him. Never in a million years.

  Sudden tears sprung into her eyes, tears of anger, sadness and shame. For her father, and for herself. How could lightening strike the same family twice? She loved her job. She’d never find anything remotely comparable – she was too young. She’d have to take some inferior, far less interesting position and work her way back up the corporate ladder. And it was going to be difficult financially too – the disastrous apartment rental with Rory had cost her dear. How could it all have come to this? She’d have to go and see Frank as soon as she got back. Before Jack returned.

  She got through her meeting as best she could, then went back to De Garis Hotels, where everyone was abuzz with news of the takeover. She went straight to her own office, cancelled the rest of that day’s appointments, and prepared a brief letter of resignation. Then she went to find Frank – who was in his office packing up his personal possessions.

  ‘Amber, come on in!’ he called. ‘I was just about to come and find you.’

  She eyed the boxes into which he was placing his books and other effects. ‘You’re leaving so soon?’ Sadness washed over her.

  He nodded. ‘It’s a condition of the sale that I leave immediately. Jack’s bringing in new people, though he’s going to be here bedding things in himself for the first month.

  ‘I see.’ She sat down. Well that fact only hardened her resolve to leave straight away.

  ‘I’m so sorry I couldn’t keep you posted while negotiations were going on Amber,’ said her boss. ‘I feel as if I’ve been deceiving you – or at least as if I haven’t been completely honest with you. But Jack Ward insisted on complete confidentiality.’

  ‘Well I suppose it would have complicated things,’ she acknowledged with an attempt at a smile. It was typical of Frank to be so worried about other people. His staff had always been his chief concern. The no-redundancies clause in the sale was something he had doubtless insisted on. ‘What persuaded you to sell?’ she inquired. ‘I thought you were looking to carry on for at least another few years. Or was the offer just too good to refuse?’

  ‘The offer? No, not particularly,’ he said, taking a seat. ‘In fact the man drives a bloody hard bargain. To tell the truth, I wasn’t looking to sell at all – you’re right about that. I’d always meant to
carry on until I couldn’t go on any longer – you know this company is my life. But buyout offers don’t come along that often. And he made such a good case for De Garis Hotels as part of Ward Hotels. Obviously you know they already own several other properties in the Channel Islands.’

  Oh yes. She knew it all too well. But Frank knew nothing about her father’s run-in with the Wards – or even that he’d ever owned Le Fourchet Hotel. It was all a long time ago, and she’d decided from the start to keep it a secret from Frank – she didn’t want her family’s past to have any bearing on her career.

  ‘But the real deciding factor,’ Frank continued, with a sigh, ‘is that Wendy isn’t well.’ Wendy was Frank’s wife of forty years. ‘Six months ago the doctors discovered she has cancer. They’re managing to keep it at bay for now, but the likelihood is that it’s going to come back.’

  ‘Oh Frank, I’m so sorry.’

  ‘Something like that really puts things in perspective you know,’ he said, ‘helps you see clearly what your priorities should be. From now on my time is going to belong exclusively to Wendy. We’re going to do all the things I’ve been promising her for so long, but that we’ve never had the time to do.’ His face flooded with pain. ‘I’ve given most of my life to De Garis Hotels, Amber. Too much of it. Whatever’s left is Wendy’s.’

  ‘I understand completely,’ she said with empathy. ‘And in your position I would do exactly the same thing.’

  His demeanor brightened. ‘Well at least it’s at least a comfort to know that I’m handing on the reins to someone whom I know will build on what I’ve been doing. With Ward money behind it the sky’s the limit. They can fill our hotels in a way I never could. It’s a great opportunity for someone like you Amber. It wouldn’t surprise me one bit if you were in charge of the whole Channel Island operation in a couple of years’ time, or maybe even sooner.’

  Amber stiffened. The time had come for her to say what she had to say, and it would give her no pleasure at all. She took a deep breath, swallowed hard, and put her letter of resignation on the table. ‘Actually, Frank, I want to hand in my notice.’

  Frank’s kind eyes widened. ‘You what…?’

  ‘It’s something I’ve been thinking about for a while,’ she lied, hating herself for the untruth – but Frank mustn’t think that his decision to sell was the reason she was leaving. That would upset him, and it was the last thing he needed. ‘I’ve been talking to another company for a few weeks now,’ Amber said, ‘and with the news that De Garis is about to be taken over, it’s the perfect opportunity to make the break.’

  ‘Well…,’ said Frank, manifestly nonplussed, staring at her letter, ‘this is a surprise. You always seemed so happy here… so settled.’

  ‘I was. But sometimes certain opportunities come along, don’t they? Opportunities we can’t afford to pass up.’

  He smiled. ‘You’re right, of course. And I’m not complacent enough to believe I’m the only employer who would want you on my team.’

  She stood up. She needed to get out. Now. Before she started to get too emotional. This was harder than she had thought it would be. ‘In the circumstances I think it best that I leave straight away,’ she said, ‘and forfeit a month’s salary instead of giving a month’s notice.’

  ‘Are you sure Amber? Of course it’s not for me to say any more, Ward Hotels owns the company now, but I don’t want to see you do anything hasty...’

  ‘My mind’s quite made up,’ she said.

  He sighed. ‘Well in that case I’ll pass your resignation onto Jack Ward. I’m sure he’ll be disappointed. You’ll be hard to replace.’

  Good, she thought. Putting a spanner in Jack Ward’s works would give her great satisfaction. She held out her hand, hardly believing that any of this was real. She tried to swallow the hard lump that had formed in her throat. ‘Thank you Frank, for everything. You’ve been very good to me, and I appreciate it.’

  He came around his desk and took her hand in both of his. ‘It’s been my pleasure Amber. You’ve been a great asset to this company. And I’m sure you’ll be a great asset wherever you decide to go next. You’ll come to my retirement party, won’t you? I’ll let you know the details.’

  Tears pricked at the back of her eyes for the second time that day. She nodded. ‘You know I wouldn’t miss it for the world. Goodbye Frank.’

  She went back to her office, gathered up her things, and left.

  Back at the cottage Amber leaned on the kitchen counter and stared unhappily out of the back window. The view from the cottage was beautiful – meadows stretched down almost to the sea itself, billowing with buttercups and ragwort, the occasional small brown and white Guernsey cow pulling contentedly at the long grass. Beyond lay the arc of Bordeaux bay, its water ripening to deep cerulean blue in the evening sun.

  How different things had been last night. Then she’d been on top of the world, making love on the beach with an incredible man, the stuff of dreams, who’d wiped out all her difficult memories of Rory with one stroke, who’d set her body and mind on fire, and made her feel like a real, flesh and blood woman for the first time.

  Now she had nothing. Her career was in tatters and her self-esteem badly dented. And all because Jack Ward had decided to muscle into her life.

  She would excise him from her mind. Cleanly, decisively. Yes. Starting from right now. And to get things under way, she’d begin the search for a new job immediately. She’d put in calls to a couple of contacts she had at other island hotels and ask if there was anything going. Then tomorrow morning she’d phone the recruitment agencies, ask them what they had on their books, and to put the word about that she was available. She had to be optimistic. The local tourist industry was booming. And Frank would give her a fantastic reference. Something would surely come up.

  But nothing nearly as good as the position she’d had at De Garis Hotels, came the gloomy thought. And not only that, what were her mother and sister going to say – her mother in particular? She could hardly keep the news of the takeover from the two of them: it would be in the local newspaper. They’d understand why she felt she’d had to resign, but her mother, in particular, would be devastated. It would bring back all the terrible memories of what her husband had gone through years before at the hands of Adam Ward. And if she ever knew the whole truth – that Amber had actually slept with the enemy – that would surely kill her.

  Then the doorbell rang.

  Who on earth could that be? It was still too early for Jessica – but it might be her mother, she thought with a pang. Her shifts at the hospital often tended to be unpredictable. Maybe she’d forgotten her key. The bell sounded again, impatiently…

  She opened the door to reveal not her mother – but Jack Ward, leaning against the doorframe, exuding impatience, his handsome face arranged into a scowl. Her head pounded. And suddenly, as she took him in, she was assailed not by anger or bitterness – but something else entirely: the memory of him moving strongly inside her, stirring her to a passion she had never known. Shocked – and appalled at herself – she scrambled to regain control of her senses.

  ‘What do you want?’ she finally managed to utter.

  He glared down at her from his considerable height. He was dressed simply in a pair of chinos and a pale blue cotton shirt. He produced a piece of paper – which she recognised immediately as her letter of resignation.

  ‘I’m afraid I can’t accept this,’ he said.

  ‘Well you’re just going to have to try,’ she said sarcastically, crossing her arms defensively and trying her level best to sound much more together than she felt.

  ‘You misunderstand Amber,’ he said coldly. ‘I am unable to accept your resignation – for the simple reason that you are not permitted to resign without notice.’

  ‘I’m afraid you’re the one who misunderstands,’ she said.

  ‘No,’ he countered, slowly, deliberately, fixing her with austere, dark blue eyes. ‘Your terms and conditions of employment state
clearly that you may resign without notice only where your employer sanctions such a move. I am your employer now, Amber, and I do not sanction it. I require you to work out your month’s notice – in full.’

  ‘But…’

  ‘I’ve checked with human resources, and you have no holiday entitlement left outstanding. As such, I shall expect you back at your desk promptly at eight-thirty tomorrow morning. We have a great deal to do over the next few weeks. I plan to go through each hotel’s books with a fine tooth comb, and to visit them all individually – and I shall need my company accountant by my side.’

  Dull realisation bled slowly into her stomach. She knew that what he said was true. Of course, the strict wording of her contract was that she needed her employer’s say-so to resign without notice. With someone like Frank it would simply have been a formality. But not with Jack Ward. No, he was the sort who relished his power, who wouldn’t hesitate to use every opportunity he had to turn a situation to his advantage, who would never allow anyone to get the better of him, who always had to have the upper hand.

  ‘But it’s impossible,’ she cried. ‘I refuse to work for you!’

  ‘If you break your contract,’ he said slowly, his inscrutable eyes locking with hers, ‘I will be forced to take legal action – and you shouldn’t be in any doubt that I will win. Guernsey’s a small place, Amber. And a judgment against you for breaking your contract of employment wouldn’t sit particularly well with any potential future employer, now, would it?’

  ‘You wouldn’t dare!’

  ‘Try me,’ he said coldly, his voice laced with challenge. ‘But why cut off your nose to spite your face, Amber? We both know what this is all about: you’re simply angry that I didn’t reveal my true identity to you last night. But really, what difference would it have made? Even if I’d known your true role in the company I wouldn’t have done anything differently. Why throw away a job you love – and which you do well? We’re both adults, both professionals quite capable of separating work from pleasure. And it was a great pleasure Amber. For you as well as for me – I could quite easily see that. A pity you’re so angry with me. I was rather hoping we could continue our affair – or whatever you might want to call it – for a little longer.’ He put up a hand and, ever so lightly, brushed a finger against her face – and she jumped at his touch. All at once she was back in his hotel suite, her body arching up with pleasure under his incredible hard body, his strong hands, his searching tongue…