Louis drove his carriage recklessly toward the docks, so afraid of what he would find. While at the attorney’s office regarding the sale of Cuvier Shipping, he’d been told the dockworkers were marching on the company.
The image of Marian’s face appeared before him and he urged the horses faster. The workers would tear her apart if they got their hands on her and it would all be his fault. He had hoped to sell the business before the labor problems became an issue. Now all he wanted was to get Marian to safety.
His heart pounded in his chest and he took the whip to the horses urging them faster. Panic rode him hard as the carriage sped around a corner and rocked, almost tipping over. Louis didn’t even flinch as he focused on reaching his partner.
There were no crowds, no shouting angry men as he pulled the horse to a halt in front of Cuvier Shipping. An eerie quiet surrounded the building.
Louis jumped out of his carriage, tethered his horse and then took the stairs two at a time. Fear sent him running in the front door, glancing around wildly for Marian.
She stepped out into the hall and glanced up staring directly into his eyes. Fury darkened her eyes and sparked their smoky depths.
“The crisis with the dockworkers is over, Louis,” she said. “But you have a much larger fiasco on your hands right at this moment.”
He hurried down the hall and took her by the arm. He pulled her into her office and into his arms. She stiffened. “Thank God, you’re safe. Are you all right? I hurried over as soon as I heard. I was so worried. What happened?”
She pulled out of his arms and glared at him. “Tell me Louis, did you know the workers were about to go on strike? Is this one of those details that you forgot to tell me? Another one of those business decisions that both partners need not know about?”
He threw up his hands in the air, his words spilling out in a rush. “Marian, I never thought it would go this far. I didn’t believe they would strike.”
“Have you forgotten to tell me anything else, Louis? I need to know, because I promise you I won’t be so understanding next time.” She placed both hands on her hips, her voice shaking with fury. “I could have been killed by those men today.”
“I know. I’m sorry, Marian. I should have told you, but I didn’t believe they would really go on strike. You were new to the company and I didn’t want to worry you.” She turned to face the window and stood looking out the glass. He walked over and put his hands on her shoulders.
“How can I trust you, when I keep finding you’ve not told me what’s going on?” she said, her voice shaking with anger.
“You’re right. You have every right to be angry with me. Believe me, Marian, I’ve never been that frightened for anyone before.” He squeezed her shoulders and then whirled her around to face him. “I hurried as fast as I could to get here. Thank God, you’re all right!” She gazed up at him, her gray eyes searching his and then she sighed and leaned her head against his chest. “Call me a fool, but somehow I believe you. I think this time it really was unintentional.”
He smoothed his hand over her hair, loving the feel of the silken strands beneath his hand. “God, I’ve never been so afraid.”
“They wanted to burn the place down. I didn’t know what to do,” she said with a weary sigh.
She shivered in his arms and he tightened his hold on her. Remorse filled him as he realized he’d left her here to face that angry mob all alone. “Why didn’t you leave?”
“I wanted to, but I couldn’t.” She sighed. “Someone had to stay and try to stop them. With you gone, it could only be me.”
He was the biggest damn fool. He’d risked her life because of his stupid sense of pride and wanting to own his own business. When would he put an end to this constant struggle to achieve this goal?
“How did you stop them?” he asked trying to keep her in his arms. She felt so good, so right in his embrace.
“I gave in to their demands, but not to everything that they wanted. I gave them only a five-cent-an-hour raise, with holidays and Sundays off. I also agreed to meet with them regarding creating a pay increase schedule.”
“How can we afford that?” he asked.
“We’ll have to increase our shipping rates,” she said. “I know it’s not the best solution, but given the time, it was all I could do.”
He put his finger beneath her chin and tilted her head up to gaze deeply into her gray eyes. “I don’t care. I’m just glad you’re safe. I wouldn’t have cared if you gave them Cuvier Shipping.”
His lips covered hers in a fierce and demanding kiss, fed by fear and hunger. He’d come close to losing her and somehow until that moment he hadn’t realized just how much she’d come to mean to him.
Until this afternoon, Marian had been an interesting woman who intrigued him and now he realized just how much he needed her. How much he desired her.
She leaned into his kiss, responding with the press of her body against his hardness, gripping his shoulders like a vine clinging to life. She moaned in the back of her throat, the sound heady and thrilling, as he gripped her buttocks through her skirts, pulling her even closer to him.
The sound of someone clearing his throat as he walked past her office had them jumping apart.
They looked at one another, their expressions locked in a stunned gaze. The kiss they’d just shared left Louis reeling.
Their one night of passion, he feared, could possibly be made of the stuff that lifetimes were created from. And suddenly he realized he was in more trouble than even he knew how to elude.