Choice Matters (Southern Heat Book 1) Read Free

never did, not when it came to something that shook me up as much
as this entire interview. Interview, hell, it was Apolo Choice that rocked me to my core, and Izzie knew my
vulnerabilities.
    By the time we made it back home from dinner, neither of us
felt any pain. Thank goodness our favorite Chinese place was well within
walking distance. The two of us, a couple glasses of plum wine later, had
solved the ills of the world and the fate of Mr. Apolo Choice. He would never choose me out of all the better-qualified candidates he
had.
    A bad boy was something I certainly didn’t need in my life.
Not after Alexander Vanderbilt and the drama he’d left behind when he walked
out of my life.
    The following morning, Friday, I awoke with a searing
headache. Groaning, I forced myself out of bed and into the kitchen, led by the
smell of fresh coffee. Isabel, gone an hour or so earlier, had left her
signature brew, along with a note to take the headache powders and drink the bottle
of water she had so thoughtfully and strategically placed for me.
    I sucked down the medicine with a long swig before I picked
up a coffee mug off the counter and poured myself a hot, steaming cup. When
would I ever learn? Never on a work night. Oh well, it had almost gotten my
mind off Mr. Bad Boy.
    Somehow, I managed to make it into my office unseen, just as
I wanted. If I could be left alone to vegetate for another hour until the
throbbing in the back of my head lessened, I’d be fine. Smooth sailing. But
that was not to be. Chuck Lewis, my immediate boss, stuck his head around the
doorframe.
    “Good morning,” he said cheerfully, ignoring the signs that
I’d been out and consumed a few too many the night before. “You must have made
quite an impression on Mr. Choice.”
    Chuck Lewis was my co-conspirator in running mergers and
acquisitions. The two of us had gotten along like a pair of old shoes from the
moment we met. Our ideas on how to do things were remarkably similar.
    A small, but muscular man, Chuck was a running fanatic. Rain
or shine Chuck was always pounding the pavement somewhere in midtown Atlanta,
training for his next race. He said it helped him focus, and was where some of
his best ideas came from. Married, with two adorable daughters, Chuck may have
seemed like just another lower management worker at a huge empire, but he had
his own plans.
    “How’s that?”
    “Renee? His secretary? She called about a half hour ago and
said Mr. Choice wants to meet with you again. Lunch in his office at
twelve-thirty.”
    I shot him a look, one I hoped seethed of exasperation.
There was too much to do today without Mr. Bad Boy meddling.
    “What? I would think you’d be bouncing off the ceilings,
getting a callback interview and lunch with Mr. Choice. I know I would.”
    “Under different circumstances, yes. I simply don’t get him.
There are others far more qualified. Why waste his time on me?”
    “Hmmm, perhaps there’s more than what meets the eye,
Caitlyn. Do you know how many women would give their right arm to be in your
place? Hell, Katie will be burning up the phone lines, wanting details. Enjoy!
Remember, you can always say you had a private lunch with Apolo Choice.”
    Katie was Chuck’s wife. She was the daughter of another old,
Atlanta real estate family. Like many young women of our times, she was
educated, but still possessed the old southern charm her mama had taught her.
    “Yeah, I suppose you’re right,” I giggled, tilting my head.
Every woman in the building would be green with envy.

 
    * * * *

 
    Twelve-twenty came far too soon. At least my headache had
let up, and I was more focused than earlier. Checking my make-up one last time
before returning my purse to its designated drawer, I grabbed a legal pad and
pen and headed toward the bank of elevators. A wolf whistle emerging from Chuck’s
office was his seal of approval.
    I stood and waited for a car to whisk me up to the executive
suite. I tried not to glance