The doorbell buzzed.
Samantha glanced over at the front door a few feet away and saw Joel through the glass panel. She tossed Blake an expressive look before going over to open it.
Joel stepped inside, his eyes sliding down, then up. “Wow! Don’t you look like a million dollars.” He grinned at Blake a few feet away. “I can’t believe this beauty is going out with me.”
“Neither can I,” Blake muttered, then as quickly gave a smooth smile but Samantha heard him. “I mean, she’s usually picky about who she goes out with.”
She blinked. Was that still an insult? Joel had a puzzled look that said he might be thinking the same thing.
She hurriedly forced a smile. “Thanks for the compliment, Joel.” She stood and looked him up and down, too. “For the record, you look like a billion dollars,” she joked, then realized she’d overplayed her hand when Blake sniffed, though she suspected it was more of a snort. She turned her head slightly so Joel couldn’t see her stabbing her boss with her eyes.
Blake ignored her. “So, where are you two dining tonight?”
Samantha was immediately suspicious. “Why do you want to know?”
He smiled. “No reason.”
Joel then mentioned a restaurant in the center of Aspen. “It’s only just opened and I know the owner. It’ll be very hard to get a reservation in another month or so.” He didn’t sound like he was bragging, at least not to Samantha, but she saw a glint in Blake’s eyes that told her he wasn’t in agreement.
She smiled at Joel. “That sounds lovely.”
He looked pleased. “And you, Blake? You’re off to dinner, too, by the look of things.”
Wearing a dark suit, Blake was the one who really did look like a billion dollars, Samantha had to admit, unable to stop herself from wishing she was going out with him instead of Joel, in spite of the fact that Blake was being an overbearing jerk.
“Just a business dinner in town.” Blake looked at his watch. “As a matter of fact, I’d better call a cab. I need to be on my way.”
Joel frowned. “A cab? Don’t you have a car?”
“I noticed it was leaking oil this afternoon so I thought I’d better not use it tonight.”
Samantha sensed Blake was manipulating the situation for his own benefit again. Did he think she was stupid? He was doing this on purpose to try and keep her and Joel apart as much as possible to spoil her night.
She stared at him. “But you only bought the vehicle a few months ago and it’s barely been used. How can a luxury Cadillac SUV have an oil leak already?”
He looked totally guileless. “I agree. It’s the darnedest thing.”
“We could give you a lift, if you like,” Joel said, making Samantha want to rattle him.
“Oh, I’m sure Blake doesn’t want to ride with us.” She was determined not to give her boss any satisfaction. “The resort has a chauffeur service.”
Joel frowned. “No, that’s okay. I don’t mind. We’re going that way anyway.”
She would have sounded mean-spirited to refuse. As Blake well knew, she decided, watching the satisfaction in his eyes. He was Joel’s boss and he knew Joel wouldn’t deny doing a favor for him.
She passed her coat to Joel. “Would you mind helping me on with this, please?”
“Of course.” Joel held it open while she slipped into it, then he helped lift her hair out from under the collar so that it was once again bouncing around her shoulders. It was somewhat intimate and Samantha felt a little awkward at having a man touch her hair, but she soon felt better when she saw the steely look in Blake’s eyes after he noted it, too.
“Thanks,” she said, smiling brightly at her date, then deliberately linked her arm with his. She gave Blake a sweet smile as he put on his black evening coat, letting him know she didn’t care that he wasn’t pleased. Too bad!
“My car’s out front,” Joel said.
They left the lodge, then Samantha slipped onto the front passenger seat before Blake could take it himself. She wouldn’t put it past him to try and make her sit in the back, and she wasn’t about to let him play at being boss while she was on a date. This was her night out. Blake may have been the reason for it, but right now she wasn’t about to give him an inch.
Soon they were driving off into the night.
“This is very good of you, Joel,” Blake said, sounding grateful from the backseat, which didn’t sound right to Samantha’s ears. Blake never sounded grateful like other mere mortals.
“We don’t mind, do we, Sam?” Joel said, shooting her a sideways smile.
“No, of course not. We have to keep the boss happy, don’t we?” She smiled back at Joel, knowing Blake could see her from his diagonal viewpoint behind the driver’s seat.
“By the way, Samantha,” Blake said, placing the slightest emphasis on her name, making her realize that Joel had called her “Sam” again—the name Blake had never called her.
“Yes, Blake?” she said, keeping her tone idle.
There was a tiny pause before he spoke. “Don’t worry about that very important phone call I was waiting for tonight. One of the resort staff will sit in the office and wait for it.”
“Good.” She took her job seriously, but Erica’s suggestion had been a good one, so she wasn’t about to feel guilty about it.
“But I did have to give them your cell phone number, as well. Just in case. I hope you don’t mind. Someone has to take the call if by chance it’s missed at the hotel, and I’ll have to turn my cell phone off so it won’t interrupt the guest speaker tonight.”
She could feel herself stiffen. He was trying to take advantage of her good nature for his own purposes again. This wasn’t about taking the call. He wanted to put a spoke between her and Joel’s budding relationship, freeing up her time for the job.
She turned her head to face him. “Actually I do mind. This is my night off. I don’t want to work tonight.”
He raised an eyebrow, like he was surprised. “I’m sure Joel won’t have a problem with it. He’s a doctor. He’s used to being on call. You understand, don’t you, Joel?”
“Sure I do.” Joel glanced at her and smiled. “Leave your cell phone on, Sam. I don’t mind if you take the call.”
Her mouth tightened but she didn’t reply. Her cell phone was already off and she intended it to stay that way. And Blake knew this had nothing to do with Joel anyway. Blake was just trying to make sure the job was in her face tonight.
Joel must have sensed something amiss because he started talking about general things for the rest of the way. Samantha could feel Blake’s eyes on her from the backseat but she ignored him as she responded to Joel, relieved when the car slid to a halt outside a restaurant.
“Thanks for the ride.” Blake opened the back door then paused briefly. “And don’t worry about how I’ll get home. You two have a good time, okay?”
Samantha bit down on her irritation. His sincerity was so false. He was just trying to get a ride back to the lodge to make sure nothing sexual happened between her and Joel. Ooh, it would do him good to wonder and worry what she and Joel were getting up to later in the evening.
She smiled tightly. “We’ll be very late, so you’d best get the car service. Good night, Blake.”
His lips flattened and he shot her a dark look. “Good night.” He waited a second, but when Joel said good night, he got out of the car and shut the door. The last Samantha saw was him striding into the restaurant.
Then they drove off and she looked ahead, hoping Joel wouldn’t say anything. He didn’t, at least not until they were seated at their table and the waitress had left with their order.
“Excuse me for asking, but don’t you like Blake?” he said.
She smiled to soften her words. “Of course I do, but I’ve worked with Blake a couple of years now. Sometimes he thinks everyone is there purely for his benefit.”
Joel grinned. “As a successful businessman, he’s probably right.”
She laughed. “Yes, that’s true.” Then she forced herself to relax against the back of her chair. “Now let’s talk about something else. I really don’t want to talk about the boss tonight.”
Joel smiled. “I’m more than happy to oblige, Sam. Now tell me…”
They had a pleasant evening after that. As predicted, they talked about her family’s business and her experience in transcribing, though Blake’s earlier derogatory comment about deciphering handwriting spoiled the discussion for her. Did Blake always have to be there at the back of her mind?
Unfortunately by the time the evening was half over, Samantha knew Joel wasn’t for her. He was handsome and he was a nice guy, but they really didn’t have anything else in common, much to her disgust. Not like her and Blake. She grimaced. No, she and Blake had nothing in common either—except the job and an attraction that she hated to think was really only on her side. Shades of Carl came to mind.
“Sam?”
She pulled herself back from thoughts of the past. “Sorry, I remembered something I forgot to do,” she fibbed, then she smiled. “But it can wait. Now, what were you saying?” She would have a good time if it killed her.
It nearly did.
Her social life and her work life were the same thing, so she’d never lacked for company at business dinners and parties. But she wasn’t used to being on a date and having to tune in to one person for hours on end. It was very draining.
Unless of course that person was Blake. He never bored her. Every minute of every day he challenged her like no other person on earth. Life with Blake was the adventure she’d always been after. One she soon had to leave, she remembered, her heart constricting. She pushed the thought aside. She would get through this.
“We should do this again, Sam,” Joel said, holding open his car door for her on their return to Pine Lodge.
It was strange, but for some reason an evening of being called “Sam” had started to get on her nerves. It wasn’t Joel’s fault at all, but it was as if the shortened version of her name was an issue between her and Blake and therefore belonged only to them now. And that was rather pathetic.
“I’ve got plans tomorrow night,” Joel said, dragging her from her thoughts. “But I’m free after that. Would you like to go to a movie on Monday night?”
She hesitated, feeling a little bad in using him. She didn’t want to go out with him again, yet if she didn’t continue with her plan to try and make Blake jealous, then Blake would think he’d won. She wouldn’t give him the satisfaction now.
She got out of the car, with Joel doing the gentlemanly thing and assisting her. “I’d like that, but let me get back to you tomorrow, if that’s okay.”
“That’s fine.”
All at once she felt his hand move from her elbow to her chin. It was a smooth move and said this guy knew what he was doing, so perhaps using him shouldn’t really cause her concern after all.