her stepfather’s side. The older man pointed out the window, and Cole looked in the direction of his finger.
“What the...?” Cole blinked.
He stared dumbfounded at the electronic billboard in the distance, unable to believe what he was seeing. The gasps of the employees who had followed him to the window filled Cole’s ears.
No, the hell she didn’t.
The ad for Burger Tower’s mouthwatering burger was gone. In its place was an advertisement for Stiletto Cosmetics, featuring the man in drag from the newspaper article photo. Even though it was a mile away, the ad flashed boldly against the gray winter sky.
The faux old lady wore the same lopsided gray wig, a hideous paisley dress and a thick coating of outdated makeup. He was juxtaposed against a chic young woman in skintight leather pants and high heels.
Cole’s molars ground against each other as he glared at the caption—Stiletto: Not Your Granny’s Makeup. It was scrawled across the bottom of the ad, in the same shade of red as Sage’s lipstick, as if she’d signed it personally.
The blasted woman knew he’d see it. He’d told her he could see this billboard from his office window.
He felt a nudge at his side, and Loretta handed him a pair of binoculars she’d somehow located in the minutes since everyone had gathered at the window. Her efficiency still amazed him. No wonder his mother, Victor and now Cole gave her insolence a pass.
Peering through the binoculars, Cole zeroed in on the billboard. Magnification only made the damn thing worse.
“Looks like you poked the wrong bear.” Loretta’s gravelly words went into his right ear.
“Stiletto’s owner is not just good-looking, she’s ballsy, too.” Victor snorted in his left ear as Cole stood between them, binoculars still trained on the offensive sign in the distance.
Bring it!
Sage’s taunt and his own rising anger drowned out the voices of his secretary and stepfather. Anger mingled with the respect Cole grudgingly had to give her. This was something he would have done, if his attraction to her hadn’t thrown him for a loop.
He continued to stare at the heavily made-up man on the billboard, silently ridiculing Espresso. The insult was just the kick in the behind he needed to make his next move.
“This meeting is adjourned,” Cole said firmly as he turned away from the window.
His department heads started to file out of the room, still buzzing about the billboard. Cole glanced at Loretta, who was looking at Stiletto’s website on her tablet computer. News of the Valentine’s Day event dominated the page.
He smiled to himself and called out to two of the retreating department heads. “Tate, Barnes, I’ll meet you both in my office in five minutes,” he said. “You too, Vic.”
“What are you up to?” Loretta asked.
“I’ll fill you in when we get to my office,” Cole said.
It was time he showed the bear the consequences of taunting a tiger.
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