The Courtship of Dani Read Online Free PDF

Clair's office. He had not been at all pleased with that.
    "Call him off," she'd said flatly the moment Frank slid behind the wheel of his Mercedes-Benz.
    Frank swung his head around and looked at her warily. She was sitting ramrod straight in the plush seat, staring straight ahead, her face as expressionless as marble. "Who?" he asked cautiously.
    Turning her head part way, Dani slanted him a scornful look. Her blue eyes stabbed into him like shards of ice. "You know who. Lewis. Your precious son." Sheepishly Frank looked away, and Dani's mouth twitched in a cool little half-smile. "Ahh, I see you know what I'm referring to. Well, listen to me, Frank, because I'm only going to say this once. Tell your son to give it up. To leave me alone. Because if he doesn't, I'll be forced to find other employment."
    "Dani, I—"
    "I mean it, Frank. I won't be put through another embarrassing scene like the one I just endured. Nor will I lose clients because of this crazy pipe dream of yours. Just in case I'm not making myself clear, let me spell it out for you. I will not, under any circumstances, marry Lewis."
    Frank's shoulders slumped. "Ah, Dani, why not? You would be getting a handsome, charming, rich husband, and when the time came, I'd see to it that the running of the company was left strictly in your hands." He lifted his brows and looked at her pleadingly. "Would it really be so bad?"
    "In a word—yes."
    Remembering the defeated look on Frank's face, Dani's smile faded. She regretted having to squash his hopes so bluntly, but patience and subtlety had gotten her nowhere, and enough was enough.
    Dani was relieved to be rid of Lewis but the resentment and anger she felt toward Jason St. Clair was by far the stronger emotion. As she lay there staring at the ceiling, she remembered clearly his sneering remarks and the hateful dismissive way he had looked at her, and she felt a strong desire to hurl something.
    Alarmed, Dani sprang off the bed and stomped toward the bathroom. Just forget him. Put the whole incident out of your mind, she told herself as she shimmied out of the satin slip and tossed it into the hamper. It's not important, so just pretend it never happened.
    But that was a lot easier to say than to do. At work Dani spent the rest of the week closeted with Roger while he brought her up-to-date on his current project. She focused all her energies on the new assignment, approaching it with her usual thoroughness and concentration, asking probing questions, listening attentively, taking notes and going over all the data Roger had already gathered. She put in long hours at the office and still more at home and dropped into bed every night bone weary. But still she seethed.
    By Friday she was fed up and thoroughly irritated with herself. When her dearest friend, Phil Lathrope, called and asked her to dinner, she reacted as though he'd thrown her a lifeline.
    "I'd love to," she said, almost before he got the words out of his mouth, drawing a chuckle from Phil.
    "Bad day, love?"
    "Try bad week."
    "Well, before you make any hasty decisions, I feel it's only fair to warn you we'll be joining some friends of mine."
    "Fine. The more the merrier. I just want to relax and forget about work for a while." Work, and everything associated with it, she amended silently. Most especially Jason St. Clair.
    "Great. I'll pick you up at eight."
    Dani left the office early, allowing herself plenty of time to indulge in a long, hot soak, a shampoo and a fresh manicure. By the time she opened the door to Phil she was dressed in a stunning pale-blue lace creation, with long, fitted sleeves, a swirling calf-length skirt and no back. Diamond teardrops swung from her earlobes and a matching stone, suspended from a delicate gold chain, rested against the top of her lace covered breasts. Her shining sable hair, pulled back on one side and held by a diamond clip, cascaded around her shoulders.
    Phil just stood and gazed appreciatively for a moment. "As