The Billionaire's Challenge (Sinful Nights Book 1) Read online

  He controlled the vehicle easily and with confidence. The traffic was heavy, but he wasn’t one of those arrogant drivers who cut people off in order to get ahead of one vehicle. He took the back roads, avoiding the main arteries of the Four-Ninety-Five beltway or Interstate Sixty-Six that took residents from the edge of Washington D. C. all the way out to edge of suburbia and beyond. Both of those routes would be parking lots at this time of the day. Instead, he took the less known roads.

  “I came here to meet you and discuss the marketing idea you submitted,” he reminded her.

  “Yes, but what else?”

  “No other reason. Brant, my brother and the chief operating officer, and I listened to our marketing director explain your ideas yesterday. I flew out today specifically to talk with you.”

  “You came out here just to hear about a marketing idea?”

  He nodded his head. “Yes. Your idea, bolstered by the fact that sales in your district are higher than any other area in the country, confirmed the decision to come out and meet you in person. I want to hear more and understand the genesis of your ideas. They’re great!”

  This time, the pink in her cheeks was the flush of pride. “Thank you,” she said softly, but with a sincerity that came from her heart.

  “No, thank you. Your idea was well researched and well thought out. We get ideas all the time, but most don’t have details and data to back them up.” He pulled into a small strip mall, which surprised Selena. He had an underlying elegance about him that shouted “extreme wealth”. He had said something about a hole in the wall restaurant, but Selena hadn’t believed him.

  She stepped out, shielding her eyes from the evening sun, and stared at the restaurant. It was tiny, with the tackiest décor she’d ever seen, and it seemed completely deserted. But the smells! Goodness, the scent of food made her stomach scream!

  “I promise that the food here is better than the décor. I stop by whenever I’m in the area because it’s really that good.”

  Darn it, she hoped he didn’t notice the way she shivered every time he touched her. How embarrassing!

  Pasting what she hoped was a confident smile on her face, she nodded. “It certainly smells amazing,” she walked slightly ahead of him but stepped back when he reached around her to open the door. Wow, good looking and a gentleman! How…rare!

  “Thank you,” she murmured as she stepped through the door. She got another whiff of that male scent and breathed in.

  “You’re welcome,” he replied. Had his voice gotten huskier somehow? Even his eyes seemed darker.

  “Mr. Jones!” an elderly voice called. “What are you doing out in this miserable heat?” the voice demanded. A moment later, a tiny woman appeared from behind the chipped, dingy counter, her arms outstretched, wearing an enormous smile that revealed missing teeth and sparkling brown eyes. “Shouldn’t you be back on your mountain, doing fun things in the nicer summer weather?”

  Reid immediately hugged the tiny woman who must be the owner of the restaurant.

  “Elsbeth! How have you been?”

  The two of them chatted about her kids and grandchildren, before she turned her weathered eyes on Selena. “Ah! You finally bring your bride to meet me, eh?”

  Selena jerked, her mouth dropping open in horror at the mistake. “No! Oh no,” she gestured between Reid and herself. “We’re not married!”

  The woman cackled for a moment, then shook her head. “Not yet, right?”

  Selena’s face burned with embarrassment. “No! Oh, my goodness! Sir, I’m so sorry!” She glanced up at Reid, who looked as if he was fighting back laughter. “This is just a business dinner!”

  The woman nodded. Reaching out, she patted Selena’s hand. “You keep telling yourself that, dear. In the meantime,” she turned slightly, “you sit here. I get you food.”

  Reid stepped behind one of the chairs, holding it for her. She stared at him for a long moment, surprised. It was one thing for a man to hold a door for a woman. But holding out her chair? That was a lost art. No one had ever held her chair before and she wasn’t really sure what to do.

  Sitting down, she glanced behind her as he pushed in her chair. She couldn’t help but wonder why he was being so polite. She was just an employee. And not even one that was high up the corporate chart! In the grand scheme of her world, Selena accepted that she was one of the worker bees of this corporation. She was good at her job and loved it, but she didn’t pretend that it was as important as what the employees at the headquarters out in Colorado did for the company.

  “Tell me how you came up with the ideas you sent to me.” He leaned forward eagerly, eyes sparkling with curiosity.

  Ah, firmer ground, she thought with a sigh of relief. “Well, I flew out to your corporate headquarters in Denver last fall for a training class and noticed that most of the women there didn’t wear much makeup. They went for more natural colors, but with a little flare. Whereas, when I travel downtown to Washington, D.C., I notice the women wear almost no makeup at all. In New York, the look is all about red lips and lots of color.”

  Reid nodded, his dark eyes flashing approval as he continued, “And in the south, Virginia included, the look is softer, more feminine. And they wear more makeup.”

  “Exactly! So I thought about how to market to not just the different areas of the country, but also the various groups of women. Such as the suburban mother, who might not put on makeup until the end of the day, if at all, because she’s running around with her children, cleaning the house, or meeting with teachers. Or the working mother who has about five minutes to put on makeup before she has to run out the door so she can drop her kids off at school or day care, then get to that meeting someone obnoxiously scheduled at eight in the morning.”

  “I loved your idea about a lower cost line of products for teenagers. Where did that come from?”

  Selena smiled briefly, thinking back to the day she’d thought of it. “I was getting my mail one afternoon and my neighbor’s daughter was doing the same thing. We chatted for a moment, but I was so distracted by her eye makeup that I couldn’t tell you what we were discussing. It was awful, clashed terribly with her skin tone, and wasn’t well applied. When we started discussing makeup, she mentioned she borrowed her mother’s makeup but it didn’t really work for her.” Selena shrugged slightly. “Then I thought about luxury car companies. Over the past decade, they started making inexpensive cars, priced for college kids who’d just started their first job. They don’t have a lot of money, but they like the prestige of the brand. The car companies earn the loyalty early on with a quality, lower-cost product, and the consumers understand that there will always be a more expensive car they can exchange for when they get their next raise or promotion.” She shifted slightly in her chair, excited about her idea. “That’s when I came up with the idea of boxing the various products for the individual consumer based off needs. It’s much easier for a busy working mom or a mother with kids to walk up to one of our counters and ask for the ‘box for me’ instead of trying to figure out all of the various items. I figure it will take them five minutes at the counter to figure out their skin tone and colors. From that moment forward, they need only submit something online and the box with colors and makeup is sent directly to them. Although, they don’t have to buy the whole box all the time, just what they run out of. It is a way to up-sell, but with compassion for busy lifestyles.”

  He watched her for a long moment. Selena had trouble remaining still under his continued perusal, but finally, he nodded his head. “It’s brilliant, actually. I love the idea.”

  Their food arrived and, although though neither of them had taken a moment to glance at the menu, the elderly woman brought out every one of Selena’s favorites.

  Downing a huge glass of water, she picked up chopsticks and dug into the curry chicken and basil plate, ignoring the rice completely.

  As they ate, he continued to ask questions and she warmed under his genuine appreciation for her ideas.
Never had anyone paid her this kind of attention before and it was startling and gratifying.

  “Have you had enough to eat?” he asked, glancing at her plate. “You hardly ate anything.”

  She looked down as well, noticed that he’d eaten a huge amount of food. She patted her stomach and smiled gratefully. “I’m full. Thank you. You are right, the food here is wonderful.”

  He stood up and pulled out his wallet. “Good. Let’s get dessert.”

  She shook her head. “No need for dessert,” she told him, thinking she needed to go for a long run in order to release the tension that had only intensified during the meal. Frustration from the almost continuous awareness of him as a man was hitting her hard and fast. A good, long run would ease some of the tension that had built up in her back and shoulders during the meal. While dessert sounded lovely, she knew that she couldn’t manage all that sugar.

  “There’s every need for dessert,” he countered. He tossed several bills down onto the table, probably twice what the actual meal costs. “Elsbeth! Everything was delicious! See you next time, okay?”

  The woman appeared out from behind the curtain that guarded the secrets of the kitchen from the dining area, a huge grin splitting her features. “Next time you come back, have a ring on your woman’s finger!” she admonished.

  Reid. “I’ll work on it,” he promised.

  Then he led Selena out of the restaurant. “I’m sorry about that,” she told him.

  He waved that away. “Don’t worry about Elsbeth. She’s a hopeless romantic and thinks she knows everyone’s business.”

  Once more, he held the door open for her and waited until she’d pulled her legs inside. While she attached the seatbelt, he closed the door and walked around. “So no dessert. How about a glass of wine?” he offered. “There’s more to this request than just information on how this got started.”

  She shrugged, liking the idea. Probably dangerous, but…why not? She hadn’t had a glass of wine in…years! “Okay, there’s a small pub right across from my apartment building. Would that be okay? That way I wouldn’t have to take the Metro home.” She cringed at how that sounded. “I mean, if it’s not too much trouble, that is.”

  “Your apartment it is,” he told her.

  Another cringe. “I didn’t mean to imply that I was…that wasn’t a sexual suggestion. I don’t…we aren’t…”

  He laughed softly. “Selena, it’s much too early in our relationship for sex.”

  She sighed with relief, her shoulders relaxing. But then his words sank in and her whole body stiffened with…horror? Too early for sex? Huh? What did he mean by that? She couldn’t interpret his expression.

  So instead of saying anything or making a fool of herself with another silly blush, she turned to face forward while he drove towards her apartment building.

  It was only a short drive to her apartment. She had him park in the space across the street where the pub was located. She could just walk across the street from there.

  Once they were seated in the intimately lit interior, she realized that this suggestion had been a mistake. She ordered a glass of white wine and he asked for a beer.

  Needing to return to business, she leaned forward, looking into his eyes with a determination that sprung from a deep-need inside of her to control her world. “Okay, what else do you need to know about the marketing plan?”

  He gazed at her and Selena’s muscles tightened with the weight of that look.

  “I need to know when you’re coming out to Denver to implement the plan.” He watched her for a long moment before continuing. “We’ll pay all your relocation costs, plus a salary increase.” He named a figure. Selena gasped, not sure she’d heard him correctly. Surely, he hadn’t meant that number in dollars!

  “Plus you’ll be flying to the various cities to train the trainers and implement the details. I estimate that it will take approximately six months to get the marketing plan in place and the materials designed. Another six months to get the publicity details worked out. Then six months to travel around to train everyone on the new concept.” He waited, letting the details sink in. “How about next week?”

  She stared at him, her mind trying to catch up. “Next week…what?”

  He smiled slightly. “Selena, my brother and I started this company because we knew what we liked. Women, cosmetics…we knew the kind of look we wanted to go for and we accomplished that goal, building the company into a renowned international brand. We know what we like. We know what works. You’re the one who thought up the idea and I want you to deliver it for Rembrandt Cosmetics. The idea is huge. It’s a massive change in the way we’ve been doing things but it will definitely put us ahead of the competition. Your idea is solid, innovative, and affordable to a wide range of people. I anticipate that the appeal will be immediate and intense.”

  Their drinks arrived and she leaned back, allowing the waitress to set her wine in front of her, but she didn’t touch it. His beer looked delicious, tall, golden, with a small bit of foam at the top. But…moving to Denver? Leaving this area?

  “Are you kidding me?” she whispered, shocked and more flattered than she could believe.

  “I’m completely serious.”

  She nodded her head, trying to think about everything he’d just said. “This is a lot to take in,” she told him.

  He put a hand over hers. “Why don’t you think about it tonight? Write down all your concerns and we’ll discuss them tomorrow morning, over breakfast. Does that sound fair?”

  Selena thought about it for a long moment, then nodded her head. “Yes. Very fair.”

  “Good. Talk it over with your boyfriend and see what he thinks.”

  She shook her head, still reeling with the offer. “I don’t have a boyfriend,” she admitted absently.

  “Good. My research says that your parents are retired, living down in Florida and you rent an apartment here, so you won’t have to worry about selling your house.” He lifted a hand to stop her next words. “We’ll negotiate with your landlord if you’re in the middle of a long term contract.” He waited another moment. “Whatever the obstacle, I’ll figure out how to remove it, Selena. I want you out in Denver, getting started on this project.”

  “Why do you need me?”

  He smiled slightly. “I’ve learned that getting someone who believes in a project tends to ensure the success of that project. You believe in this idea. Furthermore, as you start working through the details, I suspect that you’ll find more ways to enhance and expand further. It makes sense to move you out to Denver, so you’ll be close by.”

  She smiled, feeling hope blossom inside of her. “Okay, I’ll think about it.”

  “Good!”

  Chapter 2

  What was she thinking?! She couldn’t move to Denver! It was a different world out there! Her life was here!

  Selena paced back and forth across her apartment, her mind spinning with all of the questions and worries. Move to Denver…stay here. Moving to Denver would definitely be an adventure but…she lived here!

  But really, what would she be missing? She had her gym and exercise classes, but there were gyms and classes in Denver. She had her apartment, but it was a tiny one bedroom located in Arlington, right outside of Washington, D.C. and rent was more than it should be. She’d already looked up some rentals in Denver and they were several hundred dollars cheaper.

  She wasn’t in love with this area. Selena had moved here simply because of the job. So there weren’t any emotional ties to the area.

  Besides, the salary increase was huge!

  She looked around the small apartment with the tan walls and her tan love seat because the apartment was too small for a full sized couch. She wouldn’t miss the miserable summers, that was for sure. Even now, it was eleven o’clock at night and it was still hot and humid.

  The current temperature in Denver was a soothing seventy degrees. “It’s a dry heat,” she said out loud to the empty apartment. Shaking her
head, she slumped down onto the love seat. “What exactly is a dry heat? And why is that so much better? What’s wrong with a bit of heat and humidity? Who cares if I can’t see outside of my windows some mornings because of the humidity?”

  She leaned her head back against the cushions, staring up at the ceiling.

  “I don’t want to go because of him,” she admitted quietly. Looking back down at her computer where she’d started building a pros and cons list, she flipped over to her Google search and skimmed through the images. He really was gorgeous in a rugged way. There was almost always a bit of scruff on his jawline. She suspected it was because the man just grew facial hair at a faster rate. There were several pictures of him in the morning sunshine and he looked freshly shaved. And a few at night wearing a tuxedo and…yep. Freshly shaved, as if he’d shaved moments before pulling on that striking tuxedo jacket.

  With an exasperated huff, she slapped the laptop closed. “Why am I even hesitating? I hate the summers here! Winters aren’t all that much better either and…well, they presumably have seasons in Colorado! Beautiful seasons aren’t exclusive to this area.”

  And so it went, back and forth throughout the night. By the time morning rolled around, she was no closer to a decision.

  When she stepped out of her building, the first thing she saw was Reid leaning against the Land Rover, looking incredibly gorgeous and relaxed in a pair of jeans and tee-shirt that hugged the muscular biceps she hadn’t noticed before because of his suit and tailored dress shirt yesterday.

  It was all a façade, she thought. Not the gorgeous part, but he definitely wasn’t relaxed. The man probably never relaxed. He was most likely always tense.

  No, tense wasn’t the right word. He was always alert. As she surveyed him, she realized that alert was exactly the right word. And it was confirmed when he looked up, almost as if he sensed she was there.