expression. His unsmiling face had pulled into a frown and his eyes were flinty.
When the young woman finally paused to take a breath, Wyatt finally spoke. “Forget it.”
As if his words weren’t answer enough, he shook his head and strode toward the door. Not even looking back, he added, “There’s absolutely nothing on this earth that would ever induce me to work for your family, Cassandra Devane.”
Then he strode out of his own office, slamming the door behind him, leaving her, and the pretty young woman, staring at each other in shock.
Chapter 2
W yatt reeled over Cassie’s unexpected reappearance in his life throughout the rest of the day, and the following day, too. He was still so stressed about it the next evening that he decided to pound out his frustrations at the gym. The office building had a well-equipped fitness center on the third floor. It was rarely used, so since moving his company’s office here, he’d become accustomed to visiting the gym a couple of times a week. He usually had it to himself, and most times ran on the treadmill or pressed a few weights.
Tonight, however, he was beating on a punching bag.
Trying to land a major campaign with a Japanese automotive company had cost him a lot of energy and a lot of sleepless nights over the past few weeks. But now…he’d have to say the stress he was feeling this evening was personal, not professional. And the sleepless nights in his immediate future were not going to be caused by a tough foreign executive but by a sexy American one.
He still couldn’t get over Cassie showing up in his life again. Or what she wanted—for him to work for her family. It would have been laughable if it weren’t so infuriating. Because her trying to get him to work for her family had been the match that had lit the fuse on their troubled marriage all those years ago and made it explode to pieces.
When he’d graduated college a month after they’d married, he’d been a young kid with big dreams of advertising success in his head. His bank account…well, that hadn’t been so big. He’d refused to think it was a major problem, even though deep inside, he’d suspected it was. Still, love and canned ravioli had been just fine for the first six or seven months of his marriage to Cassie.
Those had been the best of times. He’d fallen more in love with her as every day had gone by—in love with her spirit and her intelligence, her sense of humor and her kindness. He’d realized how fortunate he was to have actually found the love of his life. There had been some nights when he’d lain awake in their small bed, simply watching her, listening to the sounds of the breath passing her lips. Wondering what he’d ever done in his life to be so damn lucky.
But as the months had come and gone and he’d still been working at the lumberyard, trying to break into advertising—his real dream—she’d gotten nervous. Concerns about money had turned into arguments, which was why she’d gone to her controlling, disapproving parents for help.
That’d been the match. His reaction to her utter lack of faith in him had been the fuse. Their resulting fight had been the TNT. Goodbye marriage.
Now she was back in his life. Hello, heartache.
“Go back to New York City, little girl, because I am not going down this road with you again,” he muttered as he used his arm to wipe off the sweat dripping from his brow.
“I’m not ready to go back to New York yet.”
He froze, recognizing the voice, not to mention the amused tone. Closing his eyes and willing her to be a figment of his overactive imagination, he slowly turned around. But he didn’t have to open his eyes to know he hadn’t imagined Cassie’s presence. A sweet, feminine scent that made him think of wildflowers blooming under the hot summer sun filled his head. Evidence enough of Cassie’s very real presence in the room.
“Hi again,” she whispered, sounding nervous.
That made his eyes open,
When the young woman finally paused to take a breath, Wyatt finally spoke. “Forget it.”
As if his words weren’t answer enough, he shook his head and strode toward the door. Not even looking back, he added, “There’s absolutely nothing on this earth that would ever induce me to work for your family, Cassandra Devane.”
Then he strode out of his own office, slamming the door behind him, leaving her, and the pretty young woman, staring at each other in shock.
Chapter 2
W yatt reeled over Cassie’s unexpected reappearance in his life throughout the rest of the day, and the following day, too. He was still so stressed about it the next evening that he decided to pound out his frustrations at the gym. The office building had a well-equipped fitness center on the third floor. It was rarely used, so since moving his company’s office here, he’d become accustomed to visiting the gym a couple of times a week. He usually had it to himself, and most times ran on the treadmill or pressed a few weights.
Tonight, however, he was beating on a punching bag.
Trying to land a major campaign with a Japanese automotive company had cost him a lot of energy and a lot of sleepless nights over the past few weeks. But now…he’d have to say the stress he was feeling this evening was personal, not professional. And the sleepless nights in his immediate future were not going to be caused by a tough foreign executive but by a sexy American one.
He still couldn’t get over Cassie showing up in his life again. Or what she wanted—for him to work for her family. It would have been laughable if it weren’t so infuriating. Because her trying to get him to work for her family had been the match that had lit the fuse on their troubled marriage all those years ago and made it explode to pieces.
When he’d graduated college a month after they’d married, he’d been a young kid with big dreams of advertising success in his head. His bank account…well, that hadn’t been so big. He’d refused to think it was a major problem, even though deep inside, he’d suspected it was. Still, love and canned ravioli had been just fine for the first six or seven months of his marriage to Cassie.
Those had been the best of times. He’d fallen more in love with her as every day had gone by—in love with her spirit and her intelligence, her sense of humor and her kindness. He’d realized how fortunate he was to have actually found the love of his life. There had been some nights when he’d lain awake in their small bed, simply watching her, listening to the sounds of the breath passing her lips. Wondering what he’d ever done in his life to be so damn lucky.
But as the months had come and gone and he’d still been working at the lumberyard, trying to break into advertising—his real dream—she’d gotten nervous. Concerns about money had turned into arguments, which was why she’d gone to her controlling, disapproving parents for help.
That’d been the match. His reaction to her utter lack of faith in him had been the fuse. Their resulting fight had been the TNT. Goodbye marriage.
Now she was back in his life. Hello, heartache.
“Go back to New York City, little girl, because I am not going down this road with you again,” he muttered as he used his arm to wipe off the sweat dripping from his brow.
“I’m not ready to go back to New York yet.”
He froze, recognizing the voice, not to mention the amused tone. Closing his eyes and willing her to be a figment of his overactive imagination, he slowly turned around. But he didn’t have to open his eyes to know he hadn’t imagined Cassie’s presence. A sweet, feminine scent that made him think of wildflowers blooming under the hot summer sun filled his head. Evidence enough of Cassie’s very real presence in the room.
“Hi again,” she whispered, sounding nervous.
That made his eyes open,
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