over Troy. He didn’t want a relationship, and Stacie didn’t either. End of story!
By the time she opened the door and walked through, Troy was halfway to it.
When he saw her, he stilled.
‘Hi. I hope I didn’t keep you waiting. Mum was on the phone.’ Wishing I was going on a real date with you.
As though Stacie had any kind of hold on Troy to make such a thing happen; of course she didn’t. And even if she did, and he took that up, she wouldn’t want a relationship to be unevenly balanced. It should be a fair exchange, a choice that both people made because it was what they wanted.
Stacie and Troy wanted completely different things.
No, they didn’t—they wanted the same thing, to live single lives. Since when had she forgot that fact about herself—even for a moment!
And she was reaching hugely even to use the word ‘relationship’ when it came to this man.
But in this moment Stacie registered every step she took towards him and so did Troy.
His voice was deep. Slow words seemed to rumble from his chest. ‘That colour suits you, Stacie. You look … nice.’ His glance dropped to peach nail-polish decorated with tiny sparkly diamond shapes, and approval shone in his gaze. ‘I like your ever-changing nails. Those ones are very pretty.’
‘Thank you. It’s nice of you to say that.’ It was the silliest thing, a validation of a quirk that her sisters used to make fun of years ago, but somehow it made Stacie feel good to hear Troy’s praise.
Maybe if she hadn’t caught his gaze after that, Stacie wouldn’t have been as affected by the small compliment. But she looked into his eyes, and they were deep pools of admiration.
She’d teamed a pale-peach skirt and matching jacket with a pair of darker peach pumps, and had put her hair up in a loose knot held with a pearl-encrusted clip her parents had given her on her last birthday. A soft cream-coloured blouse matched the pearl clip.
‘Thank you.’ Stacie tried to breathe normally. ‘You look good too, Troy.’
That was an understatement. He looked stunning. He had a military bearing that she doubted he would ever lose. It clung to him, or perhaps it came from within him. Tonight he wore drill trousers and a black sweater that moulded to his musculature.
You’re not to notice him in that way, Stacie.
Troy opened the passenger door for her and stood back.
Stacie caught her breath, caught the scent of the cologne he wore, and fought not to close her eyes to enjoy it all the more. If she did that she’d be right back in her thoughts to being kissed by him, and she couldn’t afford to think about that. She stepped blindly into the car.
During the drive they spoke of the rain, the plant, Troy’s almond orchards and the number of times Houdini had found a way to be over at Troy’s since Troy had first found him.
It wasn’t a long trip and it passed quickly while Stacie was trying to pull her thoughts together for the evening ahead. She couldn’t walk into this night overly aware of Troy. The work aspect of the evening had to be her focus.
It was raining lightly by the time they arrived outside the restaurant.
‘Perhaps the weather forecast will prove accurate and we’ll be rained out tonight.’ Stacie spared a thought for the possibility of frizzy hair, while Troy took an umbrella from the glove compartment.
He took her arm so they could share the umbrella as they approached the welcoming lights of the restaurant. Sensible efficiency shouldn’t have added to her ultra-awareness of him, but it did.
‘That’ll be him over there.’ Troy spoke quietly and guided Stacie to a man waiting at a table set for three to the side of the room.
‘Troy Rushton?’ The man got to his feet.
‘Yes. And let me introduce the plant’s administrative assistant, Stacie Wakefield.’ Troy shook their guest’s hand, and introduced the man to Stacie in turn. ‘Stacie, this is Marc Crane.’
Stacie smiled. ‘Hello.’
Marc was an athletic looking man in his mid-thirties.
His gaze rested on her for a moment before they all took their seats.
Stacie didn’t even register the attention. Well, she did, but just as a passing moment of being summed up.
And how could she even drum up enough interest to care, when the only man she could manage to think about like that was the man at her side?
Andrew had hurt her so much. She’d thought a part of her would go on loving him, even when she didn’t want to. Had those feelings gone now?
She wasn’t thinking of Troy in that way, of course, but she hadn’t expected even to notice a man for a very long time at least.
They settled into their seats at the table. Stacie made sure she took her part in the conversation. With every moment that passed, she struggled not to fall deeper under the spell of her employer’s appeal.
She’d never felt like this. It was as though, by sharing those kisses with him, she’d opened a pathway that she now couldn’t seem to step off, that she wanted to follow forward.
What was she saying—that she did want to try to pursue a relationship with Troy?
Out of the question.
She’d told Troy she didn’t want that, and he’d said the same right back to her.
‘We don’t have split shifts to work the plant around the clock, no.’ Troy answered Marc’s question and expanded to outline the current hours. ‘Thanks to a very good manager, the plant has locked in three new almond suppliers in the past year, Marc, and we’re now in negotiations with several more.’ Troy continued the discussion. ‘The plant shows every sign that it will definitely expand until it is running around the clock.’
‘All good to hear.’ The other man nodded. ‘I like to understand how a plant works if I’m thinking about doing business with it.’
Their meals arrived: pumpkin ravioli for Stacie; steak dressed with sautéed prawns for the men, with herb bread in a wicker basket and crisp individual salads. Stacie ate her delicious meal and watched Troy shine as he put the plant forward in its best light to this potential business-contact.
No one would ever have known Troy hadn’t been running the plant in a very hands-on fashion for years and years!
‘I’ve enjoyed the meal.’ Marc glanced at his watch and then met Troy’s gaze. ‘And I’m looking forward to dealing with you. I’ll email you when I get back to my offices to sort out our next step.’
‘I’ll look forward to that.’ Troy rose as Marc did.
The men shook hands and Marc left.
‘He’ll get soaked between here and his car.’ Stacie made the observation as Marc pushed the restaurant’s
