While Amber gave instructions to the emergency operator, Margaret called the company nurse.
Within minutes, the nurse had Jamison on his back on the floor of his office and was administering CPR.
Amber watched the scene in horror. Had his heart truly stopped? Was he going to die right here in the office?
She knew she should get word to his family. His wife needed to know what had happened. Then again, Mrs. Tucker probably shouldnt be alone when she heard. She probably shouldnt hear news like this from a company secretary.
I need to call Tuck, Amber said to Margaret.
All the blood had drained from Margarets face. She dropped to her knees beside Jamison.
Margaret? Amber prompted. Tuck?
On my desk, Margaret whispered, as if it was painful for her to talk. Theres a phone list. His cell number is there.
Amber left for Margarets desk in the outer office.
While she punched Tucks cell number, the paramedics rushed past with a stretcher. The commotion inside Jamisons office turned into a blur.
Hello? Tuck answered.
She cleared her throat, fighting to keep from looking through the office door, afraid of what she might see. She thought she could hear a defibrillator hum to life. Then the paramedics called, Clear.
This is Amber Bowen, she said into the phone, struggling to keep her voice from shaking.
There was silence, and she realized Tuck didnt recognize her name. It figured. But this wasnt the time to dwell on his lack of interest in the company that supported his playboy lifestyle.
Im Dixons assistant, she said.
Oh, Amber. Right. Tuck sounded distracted.
You need to come to the office. She stopped herself.
What Tuck really needed to do was to go to the hospital and meet the ambulance there. She searched for a way to phrase those words.
Why? he asked.
Its your father.
My father wants me to come to the office? His drawling tone dripped sarcasm.
We had to call an ambulance.
Tucks voice became more alert. Did he fall?
He, well, seems to have collapsed.
What? Why?
I dont know. She was thinking it had to be a heart attack, but she didnt want to speculate.
What do you mean you dont know?
The paramedics are putting him on a stretcher. I didnt want to call Mrs. Tucker and frighten her.
Right. Good decision.
You should probably meet them at Central Hospital.
Is he conscious?
Amber looked at Jamisons closed eyes and pale skin. I dont think so.
Im on my way.
Good.
The line went silent and she set down the phone.
The paramedics wheeled Jamison past. He was propped up on the stretcher, an oxygen mask over his face and an IV in his arm.
Amber sank down onto Margarets chair, her knees wobbly and her legs weak.
Margaret and the nurse emerged from Jamisons office.
Margarets eyes were red, tears marring her cheeks.
Amber rose to meet her. Its going to be all right. Hes getting the best of care.
How? Margaret asked into the air. How could this happen?
The nurse excused herself to follow the paramedics.
Do you think he has heart problems? Amber asked quietly.
Margaret shook her head. He doesnt. Just last night... Another tear ran down her cheek.
Did something happen yesterday? Amber assumed Margaret had meant yesterday, maybe late in the afternoon.
He was in such a good mood. We had some wine.
You had wine in the office?
Margaret stilled. Panic and guilt suddenly flooded her expression, and she took a quick step back, glancing away.
It was nothing, she said, focusing on some papers in her in-basket, straightening them into a pile.
Amber was stunned.
Jamison and Margaret had been together last night? Had they been together, together? It sure looked like it.
Margaret moved briskly around the end of her desk. I should... That is... She sank down in her chair.
Yes, Amber agreed, not sure what she was agreeing to, but quite certain she should end the conversation and get back to her own desk.
She started for the hallway, but then she paused, her sense of duty asserting itself. Ill call the senior managers and give them the news. Did Jamison tell you about Dixon?
Margaret looked up. What about Dixon?
Amber decided the news of Dixon leaving could wait a couple of hours. Nothing. We can talk later.
Margarets head went back down and she plunked a few keys on her keyboard. Jamison had a lunch today and a three oclock with the board.
Amber left Margaret to her work, her mind racing with all that would need to be handled.
Dixon was gone. Jamison was ill. And that left no one in charge. Tuck was out there somewhere. But she couldnt even imagine what would happen if Tuck took the reins. He wasnt a real vice president. He was just some partier who dropped by the office now and again, evidently giving heart palpitations to half the female staff.
* * *
A week later, Tuck realized he had to accept reality. His father was going to be weeks, if not months, in recovery from his heart attack, and Dixon was nowhere to be found. Somebody had to run Tucker Transportation. And that somebody had to be him.
The senior executives seated around the boardroom table looked decidedly troubled at seeing him in the presidents chair. He didnt blame them one bit.
What I dont understand, said Harvey Miller, the finance director, is why youre not even talking to Dixon.
Tuck hadnt yet decided how much to reveal about his brothers disappearance. Hed tried calling, text messaging and emailing Dixon. Hed had no response. And there was nothing to go on except the cryptic letter his brother had left for their father, saying hed be gone a month, maybe even longer.
Dixons on vacation, said Tuck.
Now? asked Harvey, incredulity ringing through his tone.
Mary Silass head came up in obvious surprise and chagrin. I didnt hear about that.
She was in charge of human resources and Tuck knew she prided herself on being in the know.
Get him back, said Harvey.
Instead of responding to either of them, Tuck scanned the expressions of the five executives. Id like a status report from each of you tomorrow morning. Amber will book a one-on-one meeting for each of you.
What about the New York trade show? asked Zachary Ingles, the marketing director.
Tucks understanding of the annual trade show, a marquee event, was sketchy at best. Hed attended a couple of times, so he knew Tucker Transportation created and staffed a large pavilion on the trade-show floor. But in the past hed been more focused on the booth babes and the evening receptions than on the sales efforts.
Bring me the information tomorrow, he said.
I need decisions, said Zachary, his tone impatient.
Then, Ill make them, Tuck replied.
He might not have a clue what he was doing, but he knew enough to hide his uncertainty.
Can we at least conference Dixon into the meetings? asked Harvey.
Hes not available, said Tuck.
Hes not available, said Tuck.
Where is he?
Tuck set his jaw and glared at the man.
Do you want a full quarterly report or a summary? asked Lucas Steele. He was the youngest of the executives, the operations director.
Where the others wore custom-made suits, Lucas was dressed in blue jeans and a dark blazer. His steel-blue shirt was crisp, but he hadnt bothered with a tie. He moved between two worldsthe accountants and lawyers who set strategic direction, and the transport managers around the world who actually got things from A to B.
A summary is enough for now. Tuck appreciated Lucass pragmatic approach to the situation.
Lucas raised his brows, silently asking the other men if there was anything else.
Tuck decided to jump on the opportunity and end the meeting.
Thank you. He rose from his chair.
They followed suit and filed out, leaving him alone with Dixons assistant, Amber.
He hadnt paid much attention to her before this week, but now she struck him as a model of fortitude and efficiency. Where his fathers assistant, Margaret, seemed to be falling apart, Amber was calm and collected.
If shed wandered out of central casting, she couldnt have looked more perfect for the part of trustworthy assistant. Her brunette hair was pulled back in a tidy French braid. Her makeup was minimal. She wore a gray skirt and blazer with a buttoned white blouse.
Only two things about her tweaked his interest as a manthe fine wisps of hair that had obviously escaped the confining braid, and the spiky black high-heeled sandals that flashed gold soles when she walked. The loose wisps of hair were endearing, while the shoes were intriguing. Both could have the power to turn him on if he was inclined to let them.
He wasnt.
We need to get Dixon back, he told her, setting his mind firmly on business. His brother was priority number one.
I dont think we should bother him, she replied.
The answer struck Tuck as ridiculous. Hes got a corporation to run.
Her blue eyes flashed with unexpected annoyance. Youve got a corporation to run.
For some reason, he hadnt been prepared for any display of emotion from her, let alone something bordering on hostility. It was yet another thing he found intriguing. It was also something else he was going to ignore.
We both know thats not going to happen, he stated flatly.
We both know no such thing.
Tuck wasnt a stickler for hierarchy, but her attitude struck him as inappropriately confrontational. Do you talk to Dixon this way?
The question seemed to surprise her, but she recovered quickly. What way?
He wasnt buying it. You know exactly what I mean.
Dixon needs some time to himself. The divorce was very hard on him.
Tuck knew full well that the divorce had been hard on his brother. Hes better off without her.
No kidding. There was knowledge in her tone.
He talked to you about his wife? Tuck was surprised by that.
Amber didnt reply right away, and it was obvious to him that she was carefully formulating her answer.
He couldnt help wondering how close Dixon had become to his assistant. Was she his confidante? Something more?
I saw them together, she finally said. I overheard some of their private conversations.
You mean you eavesdropped? Not exactly an admirable trait. Then again, not that he was one to judge.
I mean, she shouted pretty loud.
You couldnt leave and give them some privacy?
Not always. I have a job that requires me to be at my desk. And that desk is outside Dixons office.
Tuck couldnt help but wonder exactly how far-reaching her duties had become when Dixons marriage went bad. He took in her tailored clothes and her neat hair. She might be buttoned down, but she was definitely attractive.
I see... He thought maybe he did.
Stop that, she snapped.
Stop what?
Stop insinuating something without spitting it out. If youve got something to ask me, then ask me.
Fine with Tuck. What were you to my brother?
She enunciated carefully. I was his confidential assistant.
He found himself easing forward. And which of your duties were confidential?
All of them.
You know what Im asking.
Then, ask it.
Despite her attitude, he liked her. There was something about her straightforward manner that he admired very much. Were you sleeping with my brother?
As he looked into her simmering blue eyes, he suddenly and unexpectedly cared about the answer. He didnt want her to be Dixons mistress.
No.
He was relieved. Youre sure?
That wouldnt be something Id forget. My car keys, maybe. To pick up cat food, yes. But, oops, having sex with my boss just slipped my mind? Her tone went flat. Yes, Tuck. Im sure.
He wanted to kiss her. He was suddenly seized by an overwhelming desire to pull her close and taste those sassy lips.
You have a cat? he asked instead.
Focus, Tuck. Dixons not coming back. At least not for a while. I know youve had a cushy run here, but thats over and done with. Youve got work to do now, and I am not letting you duck and weave.
Now he really wanted to kiss her. Howre you going to do that?
Persuasion, persistence and coercion.
You think you can coerce me?
What I think is that somewhere deep down inside you must be a man who wants to succeed, a man who actually wants to impress his father.
She was wrong, but he was curious.
Why do you think that? he asked.
You strike me as the type.
I never imagined I was a type.
Truth was he didnt want to impress his father. But he did want to impress Amber, more than hed wanted to impress a woman in a very long time.
Unfortunately for him, she wasnt about to observe him in the part of suave, worldly, wealthy Tuck Tucker. She was about to watch him fumbling around the helm of a multimillion corporation. He couldnt have dreamed of a less flattering circumstance.
Two
Amber was torn between annoyance and sympathy.
For the past week, Tuck had arrived at the office promptly at eight. He seemed a little groggy for the first hour, and shed fallen into the habit of having a large coffee on his desk waiting for him. She could only guess that he hadnt yet modified his playboy nights to fit his workday schedule.
Shed moved from her desk near Dixons office to the desk outside Tucks office. Tuck didnt have his own assistant, since he was so rarely there, but now he was taking on Dixons work. He was also taking on Jamisons. Margaret had been out sick most days since Jamisons heart attack, so Amber was keeping in communication with directors and managers and all of their assistants, trying to be sure nothing fell through the cracks.
This morning, voices were raised behind Tucks closed door. He was meeting with Zachary Ingles, the marketing director. They were two weeks from the New York trade show and deadlines were rapidly piling up.