The Heartbroker (2 page)

And note to self: stop watching rom coms. They’re clearly not good for my professional health.

“Here we go. Two lovely cuppas,” Jocelyn says, placing a tray of tea and pastries on the table.

“Cheers, Jocelyn.” I’m thankful for the interruption her presence brings.

“Baked goods? Wow, you’re amazing,” Logan says, smiling up at Jocelyn.

She flushes with pride, winking at me again before beating her retreat.

I take a sip of my tea as Logan bites into his pain au raisin, wondering why Jocelyn has taken to all this winking today. It’s not exactly her usual form of communication. I’m finding it a little disconcerting to say the least.

Logan takes a bite of his pastry. “Mm, this is so good. You should try one.”

“Thanks, but I’m fine,” I reply. I work hard to look good and eating carb-intensive pastries, although tempting, is a luxury my thighs frankly can’t afford.

“As you know, we’re very interested in finding the synergies I’m sure exist between our companies so we can forge an effective and mutually beneficial partnership agreement,” Logan says, getting straight down to business.

As he talks I find my eyes drifting to his lips. I wonder what it would be like to kiss those lips, like Isla Fisher kisses Ryan Reynolds when they finally get together in
Definitely, Maybe
?

“—still good for you?” he asks, bringing me back to reality.

Err, what? I’ve been too busy fantasizing about him to know what he’s just said, and now I need to respond? The safest thing to do is to simply agree with him.

“Yes, absolutely.” I put on my best ‘I’m-a-serious-professional’ face. Which I am, but you would never know it by the way I’m behaving.

By now the heat from my face is creeping towards my hairline. It’s so hot I could probably fry an egg on it: hand and cheese omelette, anyone?

Logan looks at me and nods, clearly happy with my reply. I heave a metaphorical sigh of relief. Got out of jail on that one.

“Great! I know our assistants set this up, but I’m also aware we work in a dynamic business and things can change. So shall we get down to it?” he asks, pulling up the calendar on his phone.

“Sure,” I reply.

This is so unlike me! Ordinarily I’m the queen of control: work comes first, second, and third in my world, with no room for anything else. You’ve heard of A-type personalities? Well, when it comes to work, I’m an A-plus-type, that’s how single-minded I am.

And hot guys with thick, floppy hair, square jaws, and playfully twinkling eyes barely manage a footnote.

I must be ovulating or something. Yes, that must be it. This is all down to my hormones.

Or, the thought strikes me with a sickening blow, my biological clock has suddenly kicked in and my eggs have decided to scream at me. ‘
Fertilise! Fertilise!
’ I shudder.

No, just ovulating. I’m only twenty-nine, after all. And twenty-nine is still biologically young.

Isn’t it?

“I want to see how you work, your culture, how you run things. What Brooke Mortimer and
Live It
is all about. As I mentioned on the phone, you run a really successful enterprise, Brooke. We’re impressed at the depth of your market share here in New Zealand: a country, as you know, we don’t currently have a presence in. If we are to progress this thing, I need to spend some time with you, with your team, to really get to know the ‘ins and the outs’ of your operation.”

‘This thing’, as he calls it, is the very reason Logan McManus is here in Wellington with me and not in his native San Francisco, doing whatever it is native San Franciscans do.

Thoroughly handsome and sexy things, by the looks of it. Sigh.

You: Now
and has expressed an interest in working with us to expand into the New Zealand market. It would mean selling fifty per cent of the business to them and going into equal partnership. I would have to relinquish the complete control I have right now, of course. But it’s an incredible opportunity for
Live It
to work alongside his company and reap all the rewards associated with their global presence.

It could help us expand into Australia and even South East Asia, which we’ve been trying to do with little success for some time now.

It really is the opportunity of a lifetime—of
my
lifetime—and I need to give it my full attention. Not let my rom com-addled brain run away with foolish notions of being swept off my feet by some matinee idol American.

I take a sip of my tea. “I’ve got it all set up, Logan. This is very important to me, so absolutely nothing has changed,” I reply. “We’re meeting the head of sales and marketing next. First I want to present our approach and structure, which we can do now, if you like?”

I’ve prepared a fantastic presentation showing who we are, where we came from, and what we want to achieve, complete with video footage of some of our participants’ more dramatic self-discovery moments. No matter how long I’ve been doing this, I’m always amazed at the way some people leap at the opportunity to share their heartache with the world. I keep mine firmly under lock and key, that’s for sure.

As I launch into the presentation I’ve prepared for him on how
Live It
came about, our ethos and approach, thoughts of Logan’s hotness mercifully float out of my mind. I’m so passionate about what I do, what we’ve achieved as a company, I almost forget about how intently he’s looking at me, how he makes my heart race. Almost.

“You’ve achieved so much in such a short time, Brooke. It’s fantastic to see.” He looks directly at me and I find myself struggling for air.

Without wanting to boast, he’s right. I’ve taken this company and made it into what it is today. And I’m damn proud of it too. But there’s so much more I could do with it. With Logan and
You: Now
’s help, that is.

Keeping my mind on the work, rather than on Logan McManus, is going to be one tall order. But it’s one I have to fill if I’m going to change my life forever.

LOGAN AND I WALK out of my office together. It’s only just before eight in the morning and already the place is a hive of activity.

We all know you can’t discriminate against anyone based on age, race, gender, and religious beliefs: you know, all the big ones. However no one ever said you can’t choose only to employ morning people. Being a morning person myself, I prefer my team to be up and at it before most of the city has hit the snooze button. Voila, an office full of hard working, focused early birds.

It makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside, just looking at them.

As we walk into the open plan office every eye turns in our direction.

“Morning everyone. I’d like to introduce Logan McManus from
You: Now
in San Francisco, and, well—” I shrug and smile at him “—everywhere.”

Logan shoots me a sexy smile and I swallow hard.

He turns to face the team. “Good morning, all. It’s great to be here with you.”

There’s a general murmur of “Hi Logan” and “Welcome” from the staff.

“As you all know, he’s come to New Zealand to spend some time with us, and I’m sure I don’t have to say again what an honour it is to have him here,” I add for good measure. “We hope you enjoy your time here with us.”

See? You can do it, Brooke. Professional and in control: that’s me.

“I’m sure I will, Brooke,” he says with a hint of a smile teasing the corners of his mouth. Is it just me or did that come across as a little flirty?

“And hi everyone. I’m looking forward to spending some time with you over the next couple of days. But really, just forget I’m here.”

Ha! As if.

I’ve known Logan McManus for—what? Half an hour?—And already I’m finding it hard to concentrate on anything but his dreamy eyes, his broad shoulders, the hint of stubble around his strong jaw… See what I mean?

“It’s great to see you all here so early. I won’t hold you up,” he says by way of farewell.

“Oh, we like to be up at the sparrow’s fart here, Mr McManus,” Jocelyn replies, suddenly at my side without me noticing.

She’s alarmingly nimble for a large woman.

“The sparrow’s what?” he asks, that oh-so cute confused look spreading across his handsome face again.

“She means ‘early’. It’s a Kiwi expression,” I explain.

Jocelyn is the best assistant I could imagine having, but she certainly favours the use of New Zealand slang. If you’re not a local, I could imagine following what she says could be quite a challenge.

“Stefan’s got the conference room sorted out and he asked me to come and get you,” she says.

She takes Logan by the arm, walking him back to the conference room. I trail behind. “Now, I know you’re the Yank here to suss us out, so you need to know we really bust a gut around here to put on a good show. Not that I want to skite or anything. I just thought you should know we really care about what we do.”

Logan nods at her, smiling like a dimwit. “Yes. Good,” he replies with clearly more conviction than he’s feeling.

I suppress a smile. “Thanks, Jocelyn.”

We reach the conference room door. I spot Stefan through the window, bouncing about the room like a kite in the wind, putting the final touches to his presentation. It’s obvious to me he’s nervous, and I say a silent prayer he doesn’t fall apart in front of Logan.

Now that I think about it, perhaps I should throw in a prayer for me, too!

“No worries, love. Good as gold,” Jocelyn says, closing the door behind her.

I glance at Logan, taking in his bemused look. “She’s a little hard to understand if you’re not from around here.”

“You can say that again. I’m amazed Kristie could understand enough to organise our meeting.”

I laugh. “Maybe she had a Kiwi-American dictionary on hand?”

I open the conference door and enter the room, followed by Logan.

“Morning, Stefan,” I say. “Logan, this is Stefan Drake.”

Stefan is my head of marketing, and one of my close friends. We met when he applied for the job three years ago and I liked him instantly. He keeps me entertained with his wicked sense of humour and his ever-eventful love life. And he’s good at his job, too.

Logan walks over casually and shakes Stefan’s hand. “Great to meet you, Stefan.”

“Likewise,” Stefan replies, his smile broadening as he gives Logan a none-too-subtle once over.

I dart him a ‘keep-it-in-your-pants’ look—ironic, I know—and he purses his lips at me in response as he checks the connection between his laptop and the projector.

What is it with this guy? He’s got the two of us so hot under the collar I’m surprised neither of us has spontaneously combusted.

“Stefan has a presentation on our marketing strategy and successes for you today, Logan. He’s been with us for some years now and has some real achievements under his belt.”

“Oh, stop it, Brooke,” he purrs, obviously thrilled by the compliment.

I pull out my chair and sit down before Logan has the chance to act like an American Prince Charming again. He takes a seat a couple of chairs away and I heave a sigh of relief: keeping some physical distance between us is just the ticket.

Turning to face us with the title of his presentation flashing up on the screen behind him, Stefan begins. “
Live It
is the personal development experience of choice for thousands of New Zealanders. With a satisfaction rate of over ninety-two per cent, what began as a small enterprise catering to only a few has expanded into the most popular group of seminars in New Zealand’s main city centres and beyond.”

Stefan flicks up slides covering our numbers throughout the country for both our government and corporate work and our weekend seminars, which are open to all. He’s his usual efficient, knowledgeable self throughout, but has a stiff, formal air I’ve not seen before.

I catch Logan glancing at me a couple of times as Stefan talks through his slides, and I feel a little thrill in my belly each time.

“Can I interrupt?” Logan asks when Stefan pauses for breath.

“Sure.” Stefan shoots him a steely look.

I glare at Stefan, wondering what’s got into him. One moment he’s undressing Logan with his eyes, and the next he seems irritated by his presence.

“Have you run seminars in Sydney or Melbourne? They’re the largest cities in Australia, right?” he asks.

“Yes, they are,” Stefan replies icily. “We’ve been trying to crack the Australian market for a couple of years now, although competition is high over the pond.” He returns to his presentation, flicking to the next slide.

“Just a minute, Stefan,” I say, interrupting him. “Stefan can show you some of our results and the tactics we’ve been using over there, if you’re interested?”

“That would be great,” Logan replies.

“Of course.” Stefan brings up the relevant information and talks us through it, pointing to expected growth across six Australian cities. Growth we can only achieve with Logan’s company’s help.

“Okay, so I can see your market penetration has increased in the last fiscal year, which is great,” Logan says after Stefan has completed his spiel. “Our research suggests this is just the tip of the iceberg in Australia.”

“Exactly!” I reply with enthusiasm, glad we’ve reached the crux of the matter. “That’s why we want to work with you, Logan. Your backing in Australia and beyond could increase
Live It
’s business ten-fold.”

I hope I don’t come across as desperate. Truth be told, we’ve been working hard to crack the Aussie market, but so far there’s been no pot of gold at the end of that particular rainbow. We may be New Zealand’s current success story, but we’ve still got a long way to go.

There’s a sudden beep and we all automatically glance at our phones.

“I do apologise. I’m going to have to make some calls,” Logan says, still looking at his screen. “But I’m impressed with what I’m seeing here. You’ve confirmed everything we had thought about you.”

I feel a surge of excitement and anticipation. Does this mean they want to do the deal? Wow, this could mean huge expansion for us.

“Brooke? Is there a private office somewhere I can make some calls?” Logan asks.

“Sure. Of course. Stay in here. We have lots of work to do for the seminar this weekend in Queenstown. Take your time.”

As Stefan and I leave the room, closing the door firmly behind us, he corners me. “You should watch yourself with that one, Brooke.” He’s speaking in hushed tones.

“What? Why?” I snap.

“Mr America in there.” He nods his head towards the conference room. “He’s not to be trusted, Brooke.”

“Why?” I ask, shocked. “What have you heard?”

I lean in conspiratorially. Alarm bells begin to ring out an unpleasant tune in my head. This deal could take
Live It
to the next dimension, and then some. It
has
to work.

“Nothing,” he replies, shifting his weight from foot to foot again. “It’s just he strikes me as dodgy.”

“Dodgy? How?”

“I don’t know, Brooke. Too smooth, I guess.”

I narrow my eyes at him. “Too
smooth’
?” I ask, incredulously. “We’re trying to pull off a multi-million dollar deal here, and you’re concerned that ‘Mr America’, as you refer to him, is ‘too smooth’? Come on, Stefan, if you’re going to raise something like this with me, you need to have some substantial evidence to back it up.”

He bites his lip. “Look, Brooke. All I’m saying is there’s something not quite right about him. And I care too much about this company to let it fall prey to some Flash Harry’s personal agenda.”

Deciding it’s best to placate my over-sensitive head of sales and marketing, I give him the most sympathetic look I can muster, which probably isn’t that convincing, really. “OK. Thanks. I’ll do that.”

As I turn to leave, he grabs me by the arm. “And one other thing,” he continues.

I turn back towards him to listen, but I’m reaching the end of my tether with this malarkey now.

“What?”

“I saw the way he was looking at you in there. I know I’m
clearly
not his type, shall we say.
You
most certainly are, if you know what I mean.”

“What?” I squeak, sounding like I’ve just sucked in a balloon full of helium. I try to hide the instant flush of warmth creeping up my face as my heart kicks up its pace. Stefan thinks Logan’s attracted to me?

He laughs and it sounds a little bitter. “You must have noticed, Brooke. You might be acting like you’re some sort of nun these days, but that guy would quite happily defrock you, given half a chance.”

My stomach does a flip at the prospect of having my clothes ripped off me by the very sexy guy in our conference room right now.

Stefan darts me a knowing look. “See? You fancy him too. No, Brooke. It’s dangerous territory. He’s a total player,” he advises, taking me by the shoulders. “I know one when I see one. Don’t go near him with a ten-foot barge pole.”

Why has he come over all concerned-big-brother on me? He wasn’t like this while I was dating Scott Wright. And with the sorry way
that
one turned out, I could have done with it then.

“I’ll do my best,” I reply, trying to muster a most convincing ‘what-the-hell-are-you-talking-about’ look on my face. Ha! As if I didn’t know.

Before he has the chance to see just how far my blush has reached, I turn on my heel and head to the sanctity of my office. I close my door behind me and throw myself onto the cool black leather sofa in an effort to stymie the heat in my cheeks.

Stefan’s words ring in my ears. Logan McManus is a serious businessman, here to do a deal with us. He wouldn’t have flown all this way to meet with us if he didn’t have every intention of making our deal work. What would be the point?

And so what if he’s a player? That’s his business. He might be the hottest guy I’ve met in a year—perhaps ever—but I’m not looking for a relationship. Or even a fling, for that matter.

No. I’m in no danger of any kind here. None at all. He’s just here to broker a deal with me that will make me—and him, of course—a lot of money. Nothing more, nothing less.

And I would do very well to remember it.