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I walked over to him.
“Looks like Amber and Gregg are clicking.” I could see that she was playing him, but all Jackson could see were the pheromones jumping off Gregg.
“She can do better than that idiot.”
“He’s not an idiot. He’s a nice young man. He hasn’t taken his eyes off her all night.”
Jackson drank the rest of his bourbon in one swallow. “He’s as dull as a stone.”
By the time we were seated for dinner, Gregg was thoroughly infatuated. Amber already had him wrapped around her finger. All she had to do was look thirsty, and he was waving the server over to get her another drink. The other women didn’t miss it either.
Jenka, a brunette beauty married to one of Jackson’s golf buddies, leaned over to me and whispered, “Doesn’t it make you nervous? A girl like that right outside his office every day? I know he loves you, but he is a man, after all.”
I laughed. “I trust Jackson implicitly, and Amber’s a good friend.”
She looked dubious. “If you say so. There’s no way I’d let Warren hire somebody who looked like that to be his assistant.”
“You’re too suspicious, darling. I’ve nothing to worry about.”
Gregg was the last to leave. He gave Amber a chaste kiss on her cheek. “See you Sunday. Pick you up at noon.”
When he’d gone, I turned to her. “Sunday?”
“He’s invited me to have lunch with him at the club and then seeCat on a Hot Tin Roofat the Playhouse.”
“How lovely. Well, I’m exhausted. Shall we go to bed?”
She nodded.
I gave her the guest room across the hall from us. I wanted Jackson to know she was close by.
He was in bed when I came into the bedroom.
“Nice evening, right?” I said.
“Except for that moron, Gregg. I don’t know why you invited him in the first place,” Jackson grumbled.
“It would have been awkward for Amber not to have a companion. He’s nice enough. Just drinks a little too much.”
“A little too much? The guy’s a drunk. I detest people who can’t control themselves.”
I slid under the covers. “Amber has a date with him on Sunday.”
“She’s too smart for him.”
“Well, she seems to like him.”Good. He was jealous.
“If he didn’t have a rich father, he’d be living in a studio apartment over someone’s garage.”
“Jackson, I need to ask you something.”
He sat up and turned the light back on. “What?”
“You know how much I miss Julie. Amber’s the closest thing to a sister I’ll ever have. Your interest in her seems more than just professional.”
His voice rose. “Now just a minute. Since when have I ever given you a reason to be jealous?”
I put a gentle hand on his arm. “Don’t be mad. I’m not accusing you of anything. But I see how she looks at you. She adores you. And who can blame her?” Did I sound convincing?“I just don’t want anything to happen between you. Anyone can slip. Amber is my only true friend. If you should find yourself attracted to her, please don’t give in to it. That’s all I’m saying.”