Taming McGruff (Book 3, Once Upon A Romance Series) by Laurie LeClair Page B
Authors: Laurie LeClair
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challenge among the employees. King’s needed their help, their expertise. Suggestions poured in. Griff assigned and delegated duties and hand-picked mentors to groom the new leaders among them.
He’d set the wheels in motion to launch not only a continuing line for the Charmings brand, but for King’s as well. It was about time they developed and created their own products to sell. The public clamored for anything related to the King daughters. And the spin the store had taken on with the recent marriages of the two oldest generated a refreshing sizzle in town and among the industry.
The store buzzed with excitement. The air crackled with electricity. A new day had begun.
He’d plotted to ruin King’s for years; now he doubted he could carry through with that quest when so many people would be harmed.
Was it even in him to try to fail? he wondered, too numb to care about the answer at the moment.
Griff may have shifted his outlook on the store itself and empathized with the employees’ fate. However, he continued to sharpen and fine-tune his revenge against the woman who stole his childhood and robbed him of his father. She would pay, somehow and in some way. Agnes King would not get away with what she’d done to him and his family.
Through it all, despite all he’d done to eradicate it, one thought persisted.
Priscilla had turned him down. That hurt more than he realized. It derailed his latest plan, but it was the invisible wound to his heart that cut the deepest. God, he was falling for her. Correction, he already fell. Hard.
How the hell did that happen?
Now, he cursed under his breath.
“Holy moly, the paint’s peeling off the walls at that one,” Peg said, scooping up a file from the corner of his desk.
Griff pulled up short. “Sorry, Peg,” he muttered.
“Nothing I haven’t said or heard before, Boss.” She scooted out of his office. “I’ll just leave you to,” she waved her hand and wrinkled her nose, “whatever you want. Throw something maybe?”
Propping his elbows on his desk, he dropped his head into his hands. The pounding in his temples persisted.
The door clicked open. “Forgot. Meeting in ten.” She closed it again.
Silence reverberated. His mind swirled with thoughts; memories of his father and the day Griff was taken away to foster care drummed over and over again. But his heart tore wide open. No one stays .
That sexy little pixie had crawled in and around his defenses and stole her way into his heart.
He blew out a hot breath.
It had been days since her refusal. She dodged him at work, staying holed up in the salon as the packing continued around the regular appointments. After King’s closed Saturday night, the construction crew would return, work all through the night, all day Sunday, and finish up by Monday in time to open again. It was a grueling schedule, but one that had to be adhered to in order to cause the least disruption to the salon and the store.
Avoiding her had taken its own costly toll. He couldn’t afford to lose anymore. Failure was not an option.
Griffin shoved away from his desk, stood, and then marched to the door and flung it open. On the way by her desk, he said, “Peg, cancel the meeting.”
“You got it.”
A few minutes later, he arrived at the salon. The young girl at the desk gulped when she spotted him. “Mr. James. I didn’t know you were coming.” She ditched her bag of chips and then brushed the crumbs off her skirt. “Ah, we’re short-handed, you know. I was just finishing my lunch.”
He didn’t have time for explanations. “Is Priscilla King here?” Gazing around at the curtained-off area, he noticed preparations for the remodel already in progress.
“She’s right behind you.”
Griffin turned around to see Priscilla, accompanied by Rico, enter the salon. Their heads were together and they were laughing at something. A jolt went through him when her green-eyed gaze landed on him.
“Ah…ah,” she stuttered.
He’d set the wheels in motion to launch not only a continuing line for the Charmings brand, but for King’s as well. It was about time they developed and created their own products to sell. The public clamored for anything related to the King daughters. And the spin the store had taken on with the recent marriages of the two oldest generated a refreshing sizzle in town and among the industry.
The store buzzed with excitement. The air crackled with electricity. A new day had begun.
He’d plotted to ruin King’s for years; now he doubted he could carry through with that quest when so many people would be harmed.
Was it even in him to try to fail? he wondered, too numb to care about the answer at the moment.
Griff may have shifted his outlook on the store itself and empathized with the employees’ fate. However, he continued to sharpen and fine-tune his revenge against the woman who stole his childhood and robbed him of his father. She would pay, somehow and in some way. Agnes King would not get away with what she’d done to him and his family.
Through it all, despite all he’d done to eradicate it, one thought persisted.
Priscilla had turned him down. That hurt more than he realized. It derailed his latest plan, but it was the invisible wound to his heart that cut the deepest. God, he was falling for her. Correction, he already fell. Hard.
How the hell did that happen?
Now, he cursed under his breath.
“Holy moly, the paint’s peeling off the walls at that one,” Peg said, scooping up a file from the corner of his desk.
Griff pulled up short. “Sorry, Peg,” he muttered.
“Nothing I haven’t said or heard before, Boss.” She scooted out of his office. “I’ll just leave you to,” she waved her hand and wrinkled her nose, “whatever you want. Throw something maybe?”
Propping his elbows on his desk, he dropped his head into his hands. The pounding in his temples persisted.
The door clicked open. “Forgot. Meeting in ten.” She closed it again.
Silence reverberated. His mind swirled with thoughts; memories of his father and the day Griff was taken away to foster care drummed over and over again. But his heart tore wide open. No one stays .
That sexy little pixie had crawled in and around his defenses and stole her way into his heart.
He blew out a hot breath.
It had been days since her refusal. She dodged him at work, staying holed up in the salon as the packing continued around the regular appointments. After King’s closed Saturday night, the construction crew would return, work all through the night, all day Sunday, and finish up by Monday in time to open again. It was a grueling schedule, but one that had to be adhered to in order to cause the least disruption to the salon and the store.
Avoiding her had taken its own costly toll. He couldn’t afford to lose anymore. Failure was not an option.
Griffin shoved away from his desk, stood, and then marched to the door and flung it open. On the way by her desk, he said, “Peg, cancel the meeting.”
“You got it.”
A few minutes later, he arrived at the salon. The young girl at the desk gulped when she spotted him. “Mr. James. I didn’t know you were coming.” She ditched her bag of chips and then brushed the crumbs off her skirt. “Ah, we’re short-handed, you know. I was just finishing my lunch.”
He didn’t have time for explanations. “Is Priscilla King here?” Gazing around at the curtained-off area, he noticed preparations for the remodel already in progress.
“She’s right behind you.”
Griffin turned around to see Priscilla, accompanied by Rico, enter the salon. Their heads were together and they were laughing at something. A jolt went through him when her green-eyed gaze landed on him.
“Ah…ah,” she stuttered.
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