gave a sharp laugh. “Oh, come on. Trisha’s nothing like Virginia.”
No, Virginia Matthews, formerly Virginia Moore, was one of a kind, but she and Trisha both shared that spark to succeed at any cost, which made Trisha Bain a woman he’d need to keep far from his heart.
“She wants to do well, not take over your business,” Bill added.
Logan didn’t intend to give her the opportunity. He’d been a stupid young executive when he’d married his ex-wife, stupid enough to let his smaller head make the decisions and hand over control of half his business. Business she’d taken with her when she’d walked out the door. It had taken the Moore Agency three years to recover its position as one of the top ad agencies in San Francisco, but it would take longer than that for him to recover his trust in women, especially women with the looks and brains of Trisha Bain.
“She is doing well,” Logan said. “I’ve seen the briefs of her ads for Tyndale Resorts. She’s nailed him. Landing Tyndale will be the feather in our cap that puts us back on top.” And sticks it in the craw of the lovely Virginia Matthews. Oh, what he’d give to be there when Tyndale pulled the rug out from under his ex. He’d pay money to see the look on that surgically enhanced face when they told her she’d lost her account to the man she screwed over three years ago.
“You two make a great team.”
He shot a glance at Bill. “In business, and that’s where it ends. I’ve been there, remember? We both almost lost our jobs thanks to my brilliant choice in women.”
And the fact that Trisha kept haunting his thoughts was proof he hadn’t learned a thing.
After Virginia, he’d sworn off dating women in advertising, especially women at his firm. It was the only way to be sure he’d never threaten his company again. But after two years working with Trisha, he’d nearly broken the rule, the brain in his pants apparently having a shorter memory than the one between his ears. Trisha was everything that had attracted him to Virginia—a bundle of smarts, a clever wit, a killer smile, all rolled up in one tantalizing body.
It all came together as one bright neon “No” and no matter now much he tried to see their differences, the similarities between Trisha and Virginia were too obvious to ignore.
“You’re forgetting one thing,” Bill said. “I know Trisha. She’s Adie’s best friend. She’s not another Virginia. And if you recall, I was the one who told you to watch out for Virginia in the first place, but you didn’t listen.”
No, he hadn’t, Logan thought. He’d been too smitten by Virginia and too stupid to care. She’d wrapped him in such a fog, he’d believed every word she’d uttered between the sheets, her lies about wanting a family, how much she’d loved him, all the dreams about their future. And in the end it had all been a ploy to gain stake in his budding agency.
Virginia hadn’t wanted a family or a husband. She’d only wanted her own agency and figured marrying a man who had one was easier than building one of her own.
The two were going to form a partnership, in business and in life. But the moment they’d made their mark, she’d dropped the bomb. Children weren’t her future, marriage wasn’t her bag and the only thing she wanted from him was a divorce and half his business.
He’d had to sink into debt to buy her out, giving her the money and status she needed to start a business of her own and then slowly snatch his accounts, one by one. He’d managed to restore his business, but the damage she’d done to his faith in his instinct was irreparable. How he’d been so colossally blind was a question for the ages, but he’d bought it all at a hefty price tag.
And it was a mistake he wouldn’t repeat.
“I’m not interested,” he said.
“Suit yourself, man. But one of these days, you should start listening to your old buddy here. I know what’s good for you.”
“So why are you asking me about tomorrow night?” Logan asked, trying once again to change the subject.
“Adie and I are going to a club to listen to some band she discovered. We were trying to get a few people to go along with us.”
Logan raised an eyebrow. “What few people?”
“Nobody, just a couple friends, that’s all.”
The caged look on Bill’s face told him those couple of friends included Trisha Bain.
“Stop trying to fix me up with Trisha,” Logan insisted.
“I’m not. Trisha’s not even going.”
Confusion set in. If Bill’s plans didn’t involve matchmaking, then something else was up.
Logan narrowed his eyes. “What are you really doing tomorrow?”
Bill opened his mouth, but nothing came out. He stuttered a moment before finally confessing through a long exhale, “Okay, so it’s some sort of…poetry reading.”
Logan threw his head back and laughed.
“Oh, come on, man. Adrienne’s mom is making her go. I guess it’s something special and she wants the whole family to be there.”
“I’m not family.”
“There will be music afterward.”
“What, a sitar?” Logan asked through his chuckle.
“Probably.”
“I don’t think so.” Although the thought of watching Bill trying to order a beer in some hippie tea house was tempting.
“Aw, come on. Help me out.”
Logan looked at Bill in amazement. “Are you kidding? My ears are still bleeding from that punk rock festival you dragged me to last year.” He shook his head in disgust. “What was her name?”
“Fawn and it was alternative rock, not punk.”
“It’s all the same to me.”
“You’re just an old fart.”
“And you’ve got bizarre taste in women,” Logan added under his breath. “At least Adrienne’s a move in the right direction.”
“And so is Trisha. I don’t know why you don’t go for her. You two would make a nice conservative couple, elevator music and all.”
Logan ignored the slam and shook his head. “Forget about me and Trisha. I have plans for her and none of them include sleeping with her.”
Bill perked. Insider information was his favorite joy in life. The man relished being in on a secret, and sometimes Logan truly believed that Bill was a thirteen-year-old girl in a past life.
“Spill, big guy. Don’t keep me in the dark.”
Logan smiled and paused, dragging out the tension. He loved toying with Bill, just as Bill loved toying with him. It was a little game they’d been playing since they’d met ten years ago.
Bill
