Touch of Heaven by Maureen Smith Page B

it here, and I like working for you. We all do.”
    Raina smiled gently at her. “Then stop trying to break up the family. I’m not selling the property, so all of you are stuck with me.”
    Tina heaved a long, dramatic sigh. “I think we can live with that.”
    Raina chuckled dryly. “Thanks.”
    Tina grinned lasciviously. “But I do feel bad about you sending Warrick Mayne away empty-handed. Are you absolutely sure you can’t think of other ways to accommodate him? Hmm?”
    Raina scowled. She thought about the string of beautiful, glamorous women Warrick had dated over the past several years. She thought of the way Deniece Labelle had been draped all over him at the restaurant last night, the way they’d held hands across the table and exchanged intimate looks that left no doubt in Raina’s mind what they would be doing afterward.
    â€œBelieve me,” she said cynically, “Warrick Mayne is not suffering from a shortage of women willing to ‘accommodate’ him. In fact, I think it’s safe to say he has no trouble whatsoever finding, ah, available accommodations.”
    â€œSo true, so true.” Tina sighed enviously. “Of all the days I had to be off from work. If I were here, I wouldn’t have let that fine man leave without at least offering him a complimentary massage. Lord have mercy.”
    Raina couldn’t help grinning. “We don’t do happy endings, Tina. I’m not running that kind of business.”
    Tina snapped her fingers. “Damn!”
    The two women laughed.
    â€œBut seriously,” Tina said, sobering after a moment. “If you happen to run into Warrick again, could you please get his autograph, and possibly his business card, for my younger brother Alphonse? He’s studying engineering at the university back home, and even he has heard of Warrick Mayne before. Alphonse is a huge fan of his, and I know he’d be thrilled to find out you actually met his idol.” She chuckled. “You could even put in a good word for my brother. Let Warrick know Alphonse is a straight-A student who’ll be looking for a job when he graduates in two years!”
    Raina smiled. “Hey, that’s wonderful, Tina. I didn’t know your brother was an engineering major.”
    â€œGod, yes. That’s all he’s ever wanted to be—an engineer. I guess that’s another reason I admire Warrick Mayne so much. He’s been such an inspiration to my little brother.”
    Raina’s smile softened. “Well, if I ever run into Warrick again, I will definitely get his autograph and tell him about Alphonse. Idon’t know how much good it will do coming from me, considering I just turned down his sales offer.” And considering he already hates my guts, she silently added.
    But at Tina’s hopeful look, she found herself going a step further. “I know—that is, I’ve heard —that Warrick really enjoys mentoring youth. Remember he founded that community center in the Third Ward, and his company has a wonderful minority scholarship program for high-school seniors as well as paid internships for college students.”
    â€œAlphonse would kill to do an internship at Mayne Industries,” Tina said wistfully. “But he’s already tried applying for an internship there, and the competition is fierce. Alphonse said they receive so many applications that at a certain point they have to start turning people away. He thinks his chances are even slimmer because he doesn’t live in the States.”
    â€œWell, you know how it is sometimes,” Raina said sympathetically. “It’s not what you know, but who you know.”
    â€œBelieve me,” said Tina, “if I knew Warrick Mayne, I would do whatever I could to help my brother get an internship with him.”
    Before Raina could help herself or stop to question her sanity, she heard herself saying,