Wronged (The Cuvier Widows Book 1) by Sylvia McDaniel

Widow Cuvier.
Business would be slack today, because of the constant foot traffic
in front of her office. Not to mention the employees that flowed
continuously into his office asking questions regarding the
widow.
    At first he’d been polite and explained that
Mrs. Cuvier would be in the office for a few days. Or at least he
hoped that’s all it would take before she’d become discouraged and
give up this foolish notion of working in her dead husband’s
place.
    “Excuse me, sir. I have some papers that need
your signature,” his clerk said, stepping into his office and
disrupting his thoughts.
    Louis glanced up and frowned. “Leave them on
the comer of the desk and I’ll sign them.”
    Jon peered out the doorway, across the way to
where Marian sat reading the book. “What’s she doing here?”
    The frustration that had been building for
most of the day engulfed him. “Hasn’t everyone filled you in yet?
She’s taking Jean’s place.”
    His voice came out louder than he expected
and he saw Marian glance up at him, a quizzical look on her face.
Not only did he get to show her around, but their offices were
located directly across the hall from one another. Unless their
office doors were closed, they could see each other at any
time.
    Just what he needed, to look up and see
Marian’s smile. The woman could be pure vinegar one moment and then
suddenly with just one look, have your nerve endings standing up
and taking notice. And he’d already taken more notice of the widow
than he considered wise. After all, he still intended to sell the
business.
    “Sorry, sir. I’ve been out of the office most
of the day.”
    Louis shook his head. Now he was taking out
his frustrations on his employees. “No, I’m the one who should
apologize. It’s not your fault.”
    “No need, sir.” The young man all but ran
from his office.
    Louis bent his head and tried to work once
again. If he continued to disregard her, would she take the hint
and leave? Yet to overlook a beautiful woman in his direct line of
sight was difficult at best. Several days of avoidance should do
the trick and Mrs. Cuvier would never darken his door again. Until
the sale he hoped for would bring them together one last time to
sign the final papers.
    A shadow fell across his desk and the smell
of lilacs alerted him that she had walked into his office. He
glanced up and felt as if his insides were being squeezed. For a
moment he wanted to reach out and touch her skin to see if it were
as smooth to the stroke as it appeared. Annoyed for taking notice
of her complexion, he gave himself a mental slap. It would be
better to avoid sensuous ideas involving the widow.
    She smiled. “I’m finished for the day.”
    He shook his head, the frustration of the day
once again rearing like an ugly sea serpent’s head. “Mrs. Cuvier
... may I call you Marian?”
    “Since we’re going to be working together
every day, I think that would be a good idea,” she responded, with
a smile that left him stunned, but only irritated him more because
she was both cheerful and beautiful.
    “Marian, do yourself a favor, stay home
tomorrow. There’s no need for you to come in here every day like
this. I give you my word that your part of the business will be
fine,” he said, his voice sounding sharper than he intended.
    She tilted her head. “But Louis ... I can
call you Louis?”
    “Yes.”
    She smiled. “Louis, it’s very necessary that
I come in here and work each day. Maybe it’s not my share of the
business I’m concerned about, but yours? After all I will be here
looking out for mine.”
    “Damn it, woman!” he shouted, jumping up from
his desk, staring at her. At the sound of his voice, some women
would have run for the door or at least broken down in tears at his
outburst. But not Marian, who just took one step back.
    “I have tried to keep my patience with you,
but I don’t know how to help you to understand,” said Louis.
“You’ve disrupted the office,