didn’t. “Can the charm, Dupree. You and I have a few things to settle between us.”
He watched the way her soft dark curls fell against the white collar of her prim blouse, giving her a look of pristine disarray. “Can I have my Danish and coffee first?”
Right on cue, Janice entered with a steaming mug, grinned at them, then left the room with raised eyebrows.
Autumn watched Janice beat a hasty exit. “Suit yourself.” She didn’t move a muscle, and her eyes never left his face.
“Look,” he said, holding his hands out, palms up, “I know we didn’t get off to a very good start the other day, but…you’re here now. Let’s start over.”
She stood there like a pretty doll, looking as if she might break if he touched her. So Campbell went about the business of lacing the coffee Janice had placed on his desk with two heavy creams. Then he set his strawberry cream cheese Danish out on a napkin, cut it down the middle, then sat down to stare up at her. “Want half?”
He breathed a sigh of relief when she sank down in one of the black-leather high-backed chairs across from his desk. She eyed the messy Danish with disdain. “No, thanks, I’m not hungry. And why didn’t you take my father’s office?”
That question threw him. “Because it’s still your father’s office. That won’t change.”
She pushed at the sensible silver clip holding her hair back off her face. “I can’t believe he retired.”
Campbell felt something deep in his heart turning as mushy as the inside of his Danish. “More like, you can’t believe he retired and didn’t tell you.”
“That, too.”
“That must have made you angry.”
“More like, hurt.”
“Well, don’t be.”
“Actually, I’m more hurt and concerned that he had a heart attack and told you instead of me.”
“Only because I work for him.”
“Right. But that’s not the issue. The issue is his health and well-being.”
“Yes, of course. And just to set your mind at ease, he’s taking care of himself. Your mother is making sure of that.”
“So she tells me.”
“You don’t look convinced.”
“I’m kind of that way—I have to see something with my own eyes to believe it.”
“I’ll make a note of that.”
She settled back against the chair, then crossed her long legs. Campbell caught a brief glimpse of her feet, and admired her shoes again. He almost missed the days of working with heavy-bellied, gray-haired, golf-playing executives back in New Orleans. Almost.
“I’m not going back to New York,” she told him in an I-dare-you voice. “I’m going to stay right here and work. With you.”
That sounded like a challenge, and he could never turn down a good challenge. So he stated the obvious. “With me.”
“That’s what I said.”
“But you really don’t want to do that, do you? I mean, work with me.”
“No, not really. But then, we don’t always get what we want, do we?”
“Amen to that.”
They sat there staring across the mahogany desk at each other until Campbell once again offered her half of the Danish. He held it out, hoping she’d see it as a truce. Besides, he had another whole one for later in his bag.
Autumn took the flaky concoction, grabbing it and the napkin before the strawberry filling could fall out on her skirt. Then she eyed his coffee.
“Want some?”
“I could use a good strong cup. But I like mine black.”
He got up. “I’ll file that away for future reference.”
“Where are you going?”
“To make you a pot of strong black coffee.”
He thought he saw admiration flickering in her eyes. And he couldn’t help the smile that split his face as he headed down the hall to the break room.
Two hours later, they had talked about everything from 401(k) accounts, penny stocks and mutual funds to overhauling Social Security. They’d covered real estate investments, capital gains, market losses, asset management and property and estate taxes.
They’d just polished off the second Danish—this one apple—and a whole pot of coffee.
Campbell sat back in his chair, his hands clasped at the back of his neck. “Okay, you win. I haven’t been able to trip you up on anything financial.”
“Were you trying to trip me up?” Autumn asked, comfortable with him for the moment. She’d sure had fun discussing work with him. Too much fun.
“Weren’t you trying to trip me up?” he retorted, his winning smile almost winning her over.
Almost. But not quite yet.
“I just wanted to make sure you—”
“You wanted to make sure I wouldn’t run your father’s company into the ground,” Campbell finished for her, his eyes glistening like diamond chips. “I can appreciate that.”
“Wouldn’t want it any other way, right?” Autumn countered, enjoying the back and forth of their conversations. That should irritate her, but it didn’t. Not a good sign. That and the fact that Campbell Dupree was right on target with his financial savvy and his math skills. She couldn’t find anything else to nitpick about.
“That’s right.” He leaned forward in his chair, his hands dropping over the stacks of clutter on his desk. The man obviously didn’t believe in organization. “I wouldn’t have taken this job if my only purpose was to do in Maxwell Financial Group, Autumn. That wouldn’t do me any good, now, would it?”
She caught the hint of Cajun in his words. It was in the inflection, in the way his eyes gleamed, in the way he tilted his head to one side. Lethal. If this man really wanted to turn on the charm, she knew it would be killer.
Why was he showing so much restraint around her? Well, she was the boss’s daughter. And he was minding his p’s and q’s, no doubt.
“No, I guess you want to make money right along with the rest of us,” she said in answer to his question. “And you seem to be very good at your job.”
“I try.”
“Will my being here bother you?”
He gave her a look that made her think he was already bothered with her being here. And then
