Sweeter Temptation (Kimani Hotties) (2 page)

Kyle kept his cool in the face of his uncle’s threat. “That won’t be necessary,” he said.

“Then go take care of business, and prove to me you deserve to sit in your father’s chair.”

Chapter 2

T
he crowd was turning on her.

Nia King heard it in the disgruntled murmurs filling the high-school auditorium. Saw it etched in the worried faces surrounding her as she stood before the crowd gathered for the town council meeting.

“If you’ll all continue to be patient. We have a plan...” she began.

“Plan?” A man in a tattered John Deere cap heckled from the back of the room. “Your grandmother was supposed to have had a plan. Only nobody knows a single detail of this mystery plan to save our jobs.”

A chorus of jeers erupted in the audience echoing the man’s sentiment. They drowned out the mayor banging his gavel against the rickety table calling for order.

I don’t need this crap,
Nia thought. She hadn’t taken a leave of absence from her job in suburban Chicago and put her life on hold in the months since her grandmother’s death to get shouted down. She should just throw up her hands, jump into her grandma’s battered pickup and put the citizen’s of Candy, Ohio, along with their problems in her rearview mirror.

But she knew she wouldn’t. Couldn’t.

She’d made a commitment. One she’d keep, even if the only person to hold her to it was dead.

A sharp whistle sliced through the air, silencing Nia’s thoughts and the din of unrest. The howl of the icy wind outside was the only sound, as every eye in the room shifted to the high school’s gym teacher blowing the whistle she wore on a cord around her neck.

“For God’s sake, I didn’t come out in this dreadful weather to listen to you all gripe,” Amy Miller said. “Pipe down and let Nia finish. This isn’t her fight, but she stayed on here to help us. The least we can do is listen.”

The heckler’s face flushed a chastened pink underneath his cap. “Sorry,” he muttered.

Nia nodded a silent thanks to her childhood friend Amy. These were good people, she reminded herself, but they were scared. And who could blame them?

Christmas season profits, vital to a company that produced only peppermint bark, were abysmal, and its new parent company had been silent for months. If the hundred-year-old Peppermint Lane Candy Factory shut down it would leave most of the people in the room unemployed and the town named for it in serious jeopardy.

“No apology necessary,” Nia said, feeling a twinge of guilt over her earlier thoughts of abandoning them. “You’re right. I’ve searched every inch of my grandmother’s place, and unfortunately, I haven’t found any clues to what her plans were to revive the factory.”

She paused and cleared her throat. “However, I’m working with the mayor and the city council on another plan. One we believe will finally put the Peppermint Lane factory and the town of Candy on Ellison Industries’ radar.”

A cell phone belted out a tune, and the mayor motioned for Nia to continue as he walked outside the auditorium to take the call.

“We’re putting the finishing touches on a proposal we’ll present to you all next week in a special town-hall meeting,” Nia said. “It includes—”

“Excuse me, Nia,” the mayor, who’d returned to the auditorium, interrupted. He turned his attention to the audience. “Folks, I’m afraid I have to adjourn the meeting. The weather forecast of several inches of snow has been upgraded to a full-blown blizzard.”

Grumbles rippled through the crowd. Again, Nia couldn’t blame them. According to the calendar, spring had officially sprung more than a week ago. However, it seemed to have skipped western Ohio. Now, even the most hard-core winter lovers were past ready to retire their ice scrapers and shovels for the season.

“We’d all best head home while we still can,” the mayor said.

Nia shrugged on her goose-down parka and pulled a wool hat over her recently shorn head. She should have held off until spring had gotten a foothold before getting rid of her relaxer with “the big chop,” she thought, jamming her hands into mittens. She stuffed her notes back inside her tote bag and looked through the crowd for Amy, spotting her friend already walking in her direction.

While the majority of people at tonight’s meeting lived in town and didn’t have far to go, Nia’s late grandmother’s and Amy’s farmhouses were located in the county’s outskirts.

“You two are welcome to stay at my house,” the mayor offered. “The wife and I’d be glad to have you.”

Nia appreciated the kindness of the man, who the town had selected to finish her grandmother’s second mayoral term after she’d died late last year. However, she preferred to ride out the storm in her own space, relaxing in a much-anticipated bubble bath.

“Thanks, but I promised Matt I’d deliver Amy home to him.”

“It’s pretty nasty out,” the mayor said.

“Certainly is.” A voice from behind them concurred, and Nia groaned inwardly.

“Evening, Deputy,” she said, as the sheriff’s deputy joined the conversation.

“How many times do I have to tell you to call me Don?” he asked.

Nia knew the deputy had been summoning up the courage to ask her out again, and she’d managed to dodge him earlier. He was a nice guy, and she didn’t like hurting his feelings, but she simply wasn’t interested.

“I’d be happy to give you ladies a lift or follow you in the squad car to make sure you both get home safely.”

“Thank you, Deputy Butler, that would be...” Amy began, before Nia zeroed in on her with a laser-beam side eye. “Um, I mean it’s not necessary.”

“Are you sure?” he persisted. “Snow’s piling up, and the roads are slick. Wouldn’t want you sliding off the road and getting stuck.”

Ten minutes later, Nia wished she hadn’t been so hasty in turning down the deputy’s offer. The snow was coming down at a faster clip than when they’d started out, rapidly adding inches to feet remaining from back-to-back storms in the past weeks.

Nia eased the truck down the two-lane road she usually sped along. The wipers on the 1979 Ford pickup barely kept pace with the snow pelting the windshield. Her passenger, on the other hand, was unfazed by Mother Nature’s tantrum.

“You’d think we would have heard something from those damn Ellisons by now,” Amy said.

Nia knew her friend was frustrated. Her husband, Matt, a foreman at the factory had seen his hours cut to the point he was practically part-time and had begun searching for a job out of town.

“What good is the factory being bought by a powerhouse company if they’re just going to ignore it?” Amy asked. “You can’t turn on the television without seeing a commercial for their paper towels or detergent. You’d think Peppermint Lane could get a sliver of that fat Ellison money pie.”

Nia thought about the idea she, along with the mayor and town council, had been working on for weeks. It was a solid business proposal she hoped would get the attention of the Ellison Industries CEO, Jonathan Ellison.

A patch of black ice suddenly jerked the truck out of Nia’s control and sent it veering toward the guardrail. Easing her foot off the gas, she white-knuckled the steering wheel and wrestled the ancient truck out of the skid seconds before it would have crashed into the railing.

Nia blew out a shaky breath at the close call. Despite the frigid night, beads of sweat rolled down her back.

“You okay?” she asked.

Her passenger was too wrapped up in her own thoughts to notice the near accident. “Matt’s interviewing at a manufacturing plant in Georgia next week. If they make him a job offer, he says he’s taking it...” Amy’s voice trailed off. “I don’t want to leave.”

“Let’s hope Jonathan Ellison bites on this proposal, so you won’t have to,” Nia said.

The tires of the truck crunched through the packed snow as Nia turned onto the narrow road leading to the Miller’s house. Visibility had decreased to the point she could hardly see the glow from the house’s lights less than a quarter mile ahead.

“I know you turned down the mayor, but you’re welcome to stay with us,” Amy said.

“I don’t have far to go now. I’ll be okay,” Nia assured her.

“It’s not the drive. I don’t want you getting lonely out there by yourself. We could end up snowbound for days.”

Nia chuckled. “Don’t worry. I have plenty of work to keep me company.”

Amy looked through the windshield at the blowing snow and shivered. “Work won’t keep you warm on a night like this.”

“I have two fireplaces and a stack of wood. They’ll keep me nice and toasty,” Nia countered.

“You know what I’m talking about.” Her friend waggled her perfectly arched brows.

“
You know
isn’t high on my priority list.”

Once she wrapped up her grandmother’s unfinished business, Nia had her own career to focus on. And nothing made a woman lose sight of her goals quicker than getting caught up in a man.

At twenty-seven years old, she’d finally earned her bachelor’s degree in urban planning. Now that she’d acquired the education to accompany her work experience, Nia hoped her boss would make good on his promise to promote her from her dead-end secretarial job in the economic-development office of the small Chicago suburb.

Amy made a tsking sound. “Would it kill you to take off those goody two-shoes of yours, just once, and have some fun? Just because you’re staying at your grandmother’s place doesn’t mean you have to live like an old lady.”

“I am not a goody two-shoes.” Nia rolled her eyes skyward at the nickname Amy had teased her with since the second grade, after she’d tattled on her friend for swiping Oreo cookies from their teacher’s secret stash. “A woman doesn’t have to be stuck up under a man 24/7 to be happy, you know.”

“Then you haven’t spent any quality time underneath the right one.” Amy nudged her with an elbow and snickered. “Or on top of one. For instance, Candy’s own Deputy Butler who’s been smitten ever since you came back to town.”

“Don’t start that up again,” Nia warned.

“He’s not so bad,” Amy said. “You could do a lot worse.”

Nia’s brain automatically filled in the words her friend was too kind to say. An ordinary-looking woman like her didn’t exactly have eligible bachelors knocking down her door. Unlike her mother, Nia was no great beauty. It was a fact she’d accepted long ago.

She slowed the truck to a stop in front of her friend’s house. Even if she were in the market for a bed warmer, the idea of getting down and dirty with the deputy didn’t rouse her libido from its long hibernation.

“Girl, get out of my truck with that matchmaking mess.”

“Okay, okay,” Amy relented.

The wind whipped through the pickup’s cab as Amy threw open the passenger-side door. More lights came on and Matt appeared on the porch. He trudged through the snow toward them.

“Thought you were working second shift tonight?” Amy asked, when he took her hand and helped her down from the truck.

Matt shook his head. “Not enough work. They sent us home. So I’ve got dinner on the stove and a bottle of wine chilling.”

He stuck his head inside the truck. Snowflakes clung to his hair and eyelashes.

“Evening, Nia. You okay driving home?”

“I’m good,” she said.

Nia watched the couple walk up the snowy drive and climb the porch, Matt’s arm wrapped protectively around his wife. He whispered something in her ear, and Amy’s girlish giggle rode the night wind.

Nia felt a pang of longing, but quickly dismissed it as she put the truck into gear.

Once she sold the Ellisons on her proposal and got her long-awaited promotion, maybe she’d take Amy’s advice—kick off her sensible, goody two-shoes and replace them with a pair of sky-high, do-me stilettos.

Chapter 3

K
yle clenched the padded-leather steering wheel barely managing to maneuver the sports car out of another skid.

Driving his new Ferrari to Ohio had seemed like a good idea back in Nashville, where daffodils were popping up all over town. However, five hours north the temperatures had done a free fall, and the colors of spring had given way to a blanket of white.

He’d only half heard Margie when she’d mentioned the Ellison jet was down for maintenance, and an impending snowstorm had made it impossible for her to book him a charter or commercial flight. He’d been too busy replaying the scene with Uncle Jon and Logan in his head.

By now, Uncle Jon had offered his cousin the vice-president job, and Logan had undoubtedly accepted. Kyle relaxed his clenched jaw before he ground his teeth to dust.

Like it or not, his ascension to the CEO job was no longer a sure thing. So, in addition to his image problem, he had to prove he’d make a better CEO than Logan, who already seemed to have an ally in Uncle Jon.

Kyle switched on the satellite radio, and the soothing strains of classical music filled the car’s interior. His strategy was simple. He had to make quick work of shutting down the Peppermint Lane Candy Factory and haul ass back to Nashville as soon as possible.

He glanced at the dashboard. According to the GPS, Candy was only twenty-eight miles away. He looked forward to getting out of this weather and settling into the hotel Margie had booked for him in the adjacent town of Brookville.

The cell phone on the passenger seat buzzed, and Kyle saw Greta’s name on the small screen. He considered letting the call go to voice mail, but picked up instead. The statuesque beauty with the raven hair was just what he needed to get his mind off Logan.

“Hello, stranger,” she said.

Kyle had dated the freelance photographer on and off last year back when he had time for both work and play. Those carefree days seemed like a lifetime ago.

“Greta.” Saying her name reminded him of impromptu trips to sunny locales. “What a nice surprise. How are you? Where are you?”

“I’m on a fashion shoot in Miami,” she said.

Kyle looked out at the snow beating down on the windshield. “Must be nice.”

“It would be a lot nicer if you fired up the Ellison jet and joined me,” she said. “Did I mention having two courtside tickets to this weekend’s Miami game?”

“Against Boston?” Kyle stammered.

A huge basketball fan and former college player, his mouth watered at the prospect of watching the battle of the conference rivals. “That’s a hot ticket.”

Greta’s voice dropped an octave. “The game won’t be the only thing hot and waiting on you to get here,” she said. “I promise to make the trip worth your while.”

Kyle grinned. He was sure she would. Unfortunately, his delight was only temporary. There was no way he could take off to Miami.

Commandeering the company jet for some fun in the sun would only feed into the impression of him he’d allowed to go on too long. Initially, he thought it was cool and even enjoyed his player rep. So what if it overshadowed the hard work he put in at Ellison; his brother was supposed to eventually take over the business.

Now Kyle knew if he ever wanted to be taken seriously, it was time for him to show his business side full force and prove he was also his father’s son.

“Sorry, but duty calls. I’m up to my eyeballs in work and can’t break away,” he said.

“You said that last time I called.”

“We’re starting up a new personal care division at Ellison,” he said. “It’s kept me busy.”

“Yeah, you said that too.”

“Because it’s true.” Kyle felt a prickle of annoyance. He also remembered why he’d cooled things with the dark-haired beauty.

A pause followed, and Kyle didn’t have to imagine the pout on Greta’s face. Considering the way the wind was whipping the snow across the road, it was time he got off the phone anyway.

“Well, I’d better be going. Good...”

“There was something else I wanted to talk to you about.”

Now she was getting around to the real reason she’d called, Kyle thought.

“Uh...if I remember correctly, you’re a member of the Coach Country Club, right?” she asked.

“Yeah, I am.” His family held a lifetime membership in the prestigious club and took full advantage of its amenities. He and his brother enjoyed the fitness options, including state-of-the-art gym and an aquatics center with three Olympic-size pools. His uncle stuck to the offerings of its gourmet restaurants.

“I was wondering if you were planning to attend their Coach Ball this year,” she said, “because I’d love to go.”

Ah, so that was it, he thought. The Coach Ball was the premier spring event of the region’s social season—and one of the most exclusive. Kyle had always looked forward to the black-tie gala, but with all the turmoil at work he wasn’t sure of his plans this year.

“The ball is still weeks away. There’s so much going on at the office right now, I have no idea if I’m even going.”

“But if you do go...”

“I already told you I haven’t decided,” Kyle said. The last thing on his mind right now was a ball.

“Fine!” Greta huffed. “But you don’t have to make up a story about being busy. I know you Kyle Ellison, and if you don’t want to have fun with me then you’re having it with someone else.”

The low-battery warning beeped on his cell phone a second before it went completely dead. So much for thinking a conversation with Greta would pull him out of his Logan-induced funk. All it did was remind him Greta was a woman used to getting her way and when she didn’t her mean streak came out with a vengeance. Kyle opened the armrest compartment to retrieve his charger and then remembered it was in his other car.

Suddenly, the Ferrari lurched forward, careening from side to side on the slick ice.

“Damn,” Kyle muttered.

He gripped the steering wheel struggling to turn it out of this skid as he’d done with the others. Only this time the sports car whirled out of control, doing a 360-degree spin. Kyle pumped the brakes, but they were as useless as the tread on his tires against the sheet of glass hidden beneath the snow.

He braced himself for impact as the Ferrari came out of the spin and slammed nose first into the biggest snow bank he’d ever seen.

* * *

Just a few more miles, Nia thought, peering through the windshield at the wind mixing the falling snow with the drifts already on the ground.

Then what?

No hunky hubby would greet her. Dinner wasn’t waiting or much food either since she hadn’t had time to grocery shop.

Just a big, empty house.

“Thanks a lot, Amy,” Nia grumbled aloud. Puffs of smoke formed as her warm breath met with the cold air.

She’d been just fine until her friend had put these silly ideas in her head.

That’s how it all starts,
she reminded herself.

First, you obsess over finding a man. Then you bust your tail coming up with ways to please and hang on to him. Until ultimately, he becomes everything, and you lose sight of the person you were and the goals you had for yourself before he came along.

Flashes of red and yellow from the roadside caught Nia’s eye, interrupting her reverie. She squinted and rubbed her mitten-covered hand against the windshield to clear the condensation clouding the inside of the glass.

Hazard lights.

She slowed the truck, which was already crawling through the snow at a snail’s pace. A car on this road at this time of night was a rarity, and this one appeared to be wedged in a snow bank.

Nia threw the truck in Park. Not bothering to pull to the side of the road, she grabbed a flashlight from the glove box and climbed out of the truck. She prayed the driver and any passengers had the good sense to stay with the car. A shudder went through her at the thought of what may have happened if they’d attempted to walk in this mess. It was a short drive to the Miller’s place or hers from here, but in this weather it would be a long, deadly walk.

Wind-propelled snow stabbed at her, stinging her face. Nia pulled the fur-trimmed hood of her parka over her head and continued to tromp through the snow toward the blinking taillights.

As she got closer, she saw the lights belonged to a fancy sports car, a temporary paper license tag that appeared to be from Tennessee flapped in the relentless wind. The car looked good and stuck, the entire front end practically buried in the snow bank.

The engine was running, and she noted the exhaust from the tailpipe. However, the driver’s window and rear windshield had iced over making it impossible to see if anyone was inside.

Nia tapped on the driver-side window with the butt of the flashlight.

“Hello? Anybody in there?”

Nia shined the light on the window, but couldn’t see anything but her own reflection in the frost. Then she heard a faint noise.

Thump. Thump.

There was someone inside.

Nia yanked on the door handle, but ice had froze the door shut. “Hold on a sec, I’ll be right back,” she shouted.

Moments later, she returned with an ice scraper and immediately began chipping away at the thick layer of ice around the door’s seal.

She gave the door handle another hard pull. The crack of ice breaking sounded before the door finally gave way.

Inside, a hulking figure sat in the driver’s seat. She shined the flashlight—right into the handsomest face she’d ever seen.

Stunned, Nia could only stare.

“Please tell me the cavalry’s arrived,” he said, puffs of smoke coming from between his pearly white teeth.

A blast of icy wind knocked Nia out of her I’ve-never-seen-a-good-looking-man before stupor.

“I’m the closest thing to it you’ll get tonight,” she said. “We need to get out of here, before we both end up stuck. You okay? Can you walk?”

She detected a nod as he shut off the car’s engine and unfolded his big body out of the low-slung car. Nia craned her neck to look up at him. He had to be at least six-four, she thought as he leaned in and retrieved a large leather duffle from the car.

“Get in,” Nia yelled, gesturing to her pickup.

The wind pushed them two steps back for each one they took, and she instinctively looped her arm through his as they trekked toward it.

He stopped. “The rest of my things,” he shouted over the howling wind.

Nia glanced back at the car. If they didn’t hurry they’d both end up stranded.

“Leave ’em.”

Thankfully, he didn’t need any more convincing. When they got to the truck, she threw open the passenger door and made her way to the driver’s side.

Nia turned the heat to full blast for her shivering passenger, who she could either attempt to drive back to town and chance sliding into a ditch herself, or just take him home with her.