LITMIR.BIZ

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      It was Opal’s opinion that D’marcus had handled the situation remarkably well, but then she wasn’t surprised. As his administrative assistant, she had seen him in action several times with both domestic and overseas buyers, and it always amazed her how astute he was in his business dealings.

      “I appreciate you coming, Ms. Lockhart. I know it was unexpected.”

      She blinked, then noticed the other two gentlemen had left, leaving them alone in D’marcus’s office. She stood. “No problem. You said it would take less than an hour and it did.” It then occurred to her that this was the first time her boss had ever shown his appreciation for anything. Usually, although she tried her best, they seemed always to be at odds with each other.

      “Do you need me for the press conference later today?” she asked as she inserted her note pad into her desk drawer when she’d type the notes for Monday morning.

      He shook his head. “No, I’ll have the task of explaining why one of my key players was charged with possession of an illegal substance. Dashuan, of course, will no doubt be thrilled with the hours of community service he’ll have to do.”

      She nodded as she gathered her purse and placed the straps on her shoulder. “All right, then.”

      He glanced at her T-shirt. “About your family reunion…”

      “Yes?”

      “I apologize for having to call you away from it.”

      Now he was apologizing. This was another first. She shrugged. “No big deal, I told them I’d be back in an hour and I will be. I’ll see you on Monday.”

      She moved to leave and then turned back around. She knew he intended to remain at the office awhile, so she said, “We have plenty of food. Barbecued ribs, baked beans, corn, potato salad, all sorts of desserts. If you’d like, I can drop off a plate for you since I know you’ll be here a while.”

      D’marcus, who was about to reach for the phone, stopped abruptly and narrowed his eyes at her. “I don’t need you to do that, Ms. Lockhart,” he said rather harshly. “If I get hungry I can very well order something up or stop what I’m doing and go somewhere for a meal.”

      Although she should not have been, Opal found she was taken aback by his tone of voice. She really should be used to it by now. “Excuse me for making the suggestion, Mr. Armstrong.”

      As she turned and walked out of the room she wondered why she even bothered trying to be nice to the man.

      Chapter 2

      “I’m glad you made it back,” Colleen Richards said when Opal stepped out on the patio.

      “I told everyone I would,” Opal said, mirroring her smile. She and Colleen were more than first cousins of the same age. Opal considered Colleen her very best friend, as well. And Colleen’s sister, Paige, was Pearl’s best friend and roommate.

      Opal glanced around. It seemed the crowd of guests had thinned. “What happened to the church group that was sitting over there?” she asked.

      Colleen rolled her eyes. “Thanks to Amber, they left. I think a few of the sisters got disgusted with her brazen behavior. Megan Townsend left first, hauling her fiancé out of here so quick it almost made your head spin. And then when Amber started trying to flirt with a few others, their significant others hauled them away, as well.”

      Opal sighed, shaking her head. “I thought Ruby asked Luther to talk to her.”

      “From what I understand he tried but it didn’t do any good. He told Ruby that Amber said her flirting was harmless.” She shrugged. “It seems she was determined to get into mischief today.”

      Opal glanced around the yard. “And where is she?”

      Colleen chuckled. “When most of the single men left and she couldn’t do any more damage, she and that girl she was with left, too. She said they were going clubbing later.”

      When Colleen fell silent, Opal released a deep breath. There was no way around it. She, Ruby and Pearl needed to have a serious conversation with their baby sister.

      “Oh, and I might as well be the one to tell you that you were the topic of speculation among your sisters after you left,” Colleen said smiling.

      Opal lifted a brow. “What sort of speculation?”

      Colleen chuckled. “I tried to tell them D’marcus Armstrong wasn’t your type, but Pearl and Amber are convinced you should go after the man. He’s handsome, rich, looks good in his clothes, so they’re convinced he’ll look good out of them, and they think you’re what he needs.”

      Opal rolled her eyes when she thought about how she and D’marcus had parted ways just moments ago. “Trust me, I am not what that man needs.”

      “That’s what Ruby said. She doesn’t think he’s the type of person you should get involved with. He’s too moody. But Pearl and Amber said with all that money he has, they think you should be able to forget his moodiness.”

      Opal shook her head. “Those two would think that way.”

      “The three of them did agree on one thing though.”

      Opal truly didn’t like the sound of that. “And what would that be?”

      “They think you have a crush on the man.”

      “What?”

      “Just telling you what they said. I didn’t agree with them, of course.”

      “Thanks, Colleen, I appreciate that.”

      “But now they do have me thinking.”

      Opal turned toward her cousin. “Thinking about what?”

      “You are the most easygoing, tolerant and optimistic person I know. You always look on the bright side and usually don’t let anything ruffle your feathers. But D’marcus Armstrong has been doing just that.”

      “There’s only so much any one person can take, Colleen. I’m not a saint.”

      “No, but why is he getting next to you? If he’s that bad, just quit.”

      Opal released a groan of frustration. “Mr. Armstrong is not all that bad, really. I think his bark is worse than his bite, and a part of me wants to think he deliberately tries getting on my last nerve.”

      Colleen arched a brow. “Why do you think he would do that?”

      Opal shrugged. “That’s the way some bosses are, I guess. They like to be in control. He just has a rough-and-gruff demeanor. I’m getting used to it. But trust me when I say that I don’t have a crush on the man. Of course, I think he’s good-looking and all that, but he is not someone I want to get to know personally. I like my space and I’m sure he likes his.”

      Colleen nodded. “What do you know about him…personally?”

      “Just what the gossip mill around the office says. He was raised by an aunt and uncle after his parents were killed in a car accident when he was six. He was engaged to marry his high-school sweetheart in his last year of college when she was killed in a boating accident two weeks before their wedding.”

      “Oh, how awful that must have been for him.”

      Opal nodded. She knew that Colleen, who was pursuing a degree in psychology, was probably trying to figure out if D’marcus’s past somehow had had an effect on his present state.

      “You’re back,” she heard Pearl say behind them as she came out of the house carrying another bowl of potato salad. “What was so important that The Hunk had to call you away?”

      “Nothing important,” she said quickly. Because of the often confidential nature of her job she never divulged any private information. “He just needed me to take a few notes for him.” And to change the subject quickly

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