Captivated Hearts Read online

  From his office, he glimpsed orange shoot past him, and instantly, he was on alert. Jada was back in the building after completing an assignment. He’d successfully put his rampant erotic images of her on the backburner for much of the day, but that didn’t stop his mind or other body parts from wanting her.

  Damian had learned a long time ago that he had to stay focused. When he’d been shuttled from foster home to foster home, he had seen that another future was possible. It had started when he was nine years old. He’d been with a foster family in which both parents were educators. They’d instilled in him how important having a higher education was to achieving his goals. Damian had decided right then and there that he would go to college, somehow, someway.

  He’d hoped to get adopted, but when the once childless couple miraculously became pregnant, he was placed back into the system. He’d run away from the next foster home because the father was a drunk and beat the children. Damian had been older and refused to be pushed around, so the father had told him to hit the road. He’d been a sophomore in high school and struggling with honors classes, but despite living on the streets for a few weeks, he’d shown up to class each and every day. He had stayed at the odd shelter until one day an elderly woman, Mrs. Lockett, had seen him sifting through the trash for some leftovers at the local neighborhood diner.

  Much to the dismay of Mrs. Lockett’s husband, she took Damian in and offered him a place to sleep for the night and breakfast the next morning. Damian didn’t know what to expect and asked what he was required to do for the handout, but she looked at him strangely and said he owed her nothing. When she dropped him off at high school that morning, Damian thought he’d never see her again. So, he couldn’t have been more surprised when after school, he found Mrs. Lockett waiting for him, standing by her Honda CR-V.

  Damian smiled at the memory and the way his heart turned over just thinking about the kind elderly couple who’d taken him in. Mrs. Lockett had seen something worthwhile in him that made her take a chance on a street kid and give him a home, a future. Unfortunately, in Damian’s freshman year of college, Mr. and Mrs. Lockett died in a car crash when a drunk driver hit them. Afterward, Damian learned that the Locketts had ensured his entire college education was paid for in the will.

  “Mr. McKnight, I was heading out for the evening. Is there anything else you need?” Andrew asked.

  “No, I’m fine. Have a good night.” Damian must have been staring at the facts and figures for a few hours because it was indeed after six p.m. But his night at the office was just getting started. It’s not like he had anyone to go home to. And that was just fine with him.

  “It’s so good to hear your voice,” Jada said when she finally reached Bree later that Monday evening. She’d just kicked her heels off and was padding through her living room with the phone in one hand and chopsticks cradling a takeout-sushi roll in the other. Jada was not a cook. She could barely boil an egg, and even then she had problems. Most nights, she ate out or grabbed something on the go.

  “It’s good to hear your voice too,” Bree said from the other end of the line. “I’m sorry I missed your call the other day. Grayson, Cameron, and I were playing chess.”

  “You ignored me for a board game?”

  “I didn’t ignore you. You know if you need me, you need only call the house phone and Sonya will come and get me.”

  Jada sighed. “I know. I know.” Sonya was Grayson and Bree’s live-in housekeeper and Cameron’s everything. She’d been with him since he was a toddler and hadn’t left his side since, not even when his and Grayson’s mother, Julia, passed away.

  “So, what was so urgent?”

  “The new owner of WLB-TV.”

  “I would think new ownership is a good thing. They could shake things up, and you’d finally get your chance to be front and center.”

  “That might’ve happened if the owner didn’t hate me on the spot.”

  Bree chuckled. “I doubt that’s true. There’s never been a man or woman alive you couldn’t charm when you set your mind to it.”

  “Not this man.”

  “So, it’s an individual? Not a corporation?”

  “It’s more like the man behind the corporation,” Jada said. “And he wants no part of Jada Hart.”

  “C’mon, you’re exaggerating. When did this happen?”

  “Last Monday.”

  “And you’re already throwing in the towel? That’s not the Jada I know. You never give up. I remember when you were eleven years old and Daddy told you you couldn’t ride a big horse and still needed a pony. You were determined to show him you were a capable horsewoman. And you did. You wouldn’t have won those jumping competitions if you were a quitter.”

  “Yeah, well that was a lifetime ago.” Jada smiled to herself as she recalled how furious Duke had been when she’d steadfastly refused to get off her first palomino. “It’s too big for you,” he’d said. “What if you fall and break your neck? Your mother would never forgive me.” But Jada had been relentless. And slowly but surely, she made Duke see she could handle the large animal, and eventually, her daddy respected her decision.

  “That doesn’t matter,” Bree said, interrupting her thoughts. “You have what it takes.”

  Bree was right. Damian McKnight was no different.If her usual charm and vivacious personality didn’t do it, she’d have to show him that she was made of strong stock. “Thanks, Bree. Talking to you was exactly what I needed.”

  “Hey, I’m always here for you when you need a pep talk.”

  “Enough about me.” Jada fell backward against the sofa cushions. “How are you? How’s the pregnancy going?”

  “Not bad.”

  Jada sat upright. “That doesn’t sound good.”

  “I have a little high blood pressure is all, and the doctor wants me to take it easy.”

  “Bed rest?”

  “No, thank heavens,” Bree said with relief, “but I am cutting back my hours. There’s nothing more important than delivering a healthy baby girl.”

  “That’s right. You have to take care of my niece and keep her safely tucked in your oven.”

  Bree chuckled. “That’s why I love you, Jada. You always know exactly what to say to lighten the mood.”

  After hanging up, Jada felt better about her situation at work. Yes, she’d made a horrible first impression on Damian McKnight, but surely she could turn the tide, right? Get him to see that she was a great contribution to the team and that she had the chops to do more than just fluff pieces?

  Jada leaned back on the couch. Tomorrow, she would put her best foot forward.

  The remainder of the week didn’t improve for Jada where Damian was concerned. He seemed determined not only to find fault with her but with several staff members. By Friday, he had already fired a producer, cameraman, and director. Everyone was on edge about their jobs, including Jada.

  She was not Damian’s favorite person. From the start, she’d offended and antagonized him, but she’d been making a concentrated effort to redeem herself this week. She put forth her best ideas in the production meetings, all of which Damian had been staunchly against. It was as if whatever story she championed earned his automatic veto. It was driving her crazy. How could she do her job if he was always in her crosshairs?

  She couldn’t wait for today to be over and the weekend to arrive. Fridays were casual at the station. Everyone wore jeans or khaki pants, and an air of lightness marked the workplace. Usually, that is, until Damian’s arrival last week had everyone worried about their jobs.

  Jada arrived in her normal Friday ensemble of skinny jeans, crop top with a flyaway sweater, and Louis Vuitton Pochette Metis leather handbag. Because it had been raining outside and she didn’t have her umbrella, she’d run inside the station forgetting her garment bag in the trunk of her car. She was glancing out at the deluge when she felt a fami
liar unease come over her. She turned to find Damian with his arms crossed over his chest. He was staring at her.

  He was dressed in dark jeans and a black T-shirt that revealed muscled arms. Someone knew his way around a gym. Jada hazarded him a glance before looking back out the window.

  “I hope you’re not going on air dressed like that,” Damian said.

  She turned back and glared at him. “That’s exactly what I was going to do. I was going to show my belly button to all of San Francisco because that’s exactly what they want to see with their morning coffee and bowl of cereal.”

  “Aren’t you feisty this morning?”

  “And don’t you have anything better to do than sneak around in the shadows watching people, waiting for them to mess up so you can pounce and fire them?”

  His eyes narrowed. “Is that what you think?”

  “It’s what we all think, Mr. McKnight. I’m just the only one brave enough to tell you.”

  His piercing black eyes were furious with rage. He took a few extra steps toward Jada until his face was within inches of hers. If Jada didn’t know any better, she’d swear he wanted to turn her over on his knee and spank her.

  “You think being so outspoken is brave?” he hissed. “I would say it’s rather shortsighted considering where you stand.”

  “And where’s that?”

  “On loose footing.”

  Her eyes narrowed, but she instinctively took several steps backward. Her back hit the lobby wall. “Are you firing me?”

  Damian stepped closer, invading her personal space. “Not yet. But don’t push me, Jada. You might not like what happens.”

  “Oh, I think someone should push you,” Jada said tartly, jabbing her finger in his chest. “Maybe then you’d see you have everyone around here scrambling around like frightened rabbits because they’re afraid of losing their jobs.”

  “And you’re not afraid?”

  “Of you?” Jada scoffed, but inside her stomach was somersaulting. Why the hell couldn’t she just shut up and walk away? But she couldn’t seem to stop having diarrhea of the mouth whenever she was around him. “Should I be?”

  He closed in further until he had her caged in between the hard wall of his chest and the wall of the building. Jada didn’t like it one bit. She lowered her gaze. “Didn’t your mother ever teach you not to mess with scorpions because you might get stung?”

  “If she did, I never listened,” Jada said as she glanced up at him under lowered lashes. He could not intimidate her like he did everyone else. She’d grown up around Duke and a hell of a lot of cowboys, which made her immune from being afraid of the likes of Damian. But she did recognize he held her future at WLB-TV in his hands, so she had to tread carefully.

  “That’s a shame,” Damian said, “because you should be afraid.” With that comment, he grasped the keys from her trembling hands and ran out into the downpour.

  Jada was shocked as she looked through the window to see him push the button to open her trunk, retrieve her garment bag before closing it, and run back inside the studio. He handed her the bag, and all she could do was stare at him open-mouthed.

  He was dripping wet all because of her, because he’d gone out on a limb to help her. Damian McKnight was a mystery, and Jada doubted she would ever understand him. But she did like what she saw. Damp jeans and a soaked T-shirt clung to every inch of his well-defined chest. She could even see his nipples puckering from the chill of the air conditioning. Tiny beads of water clung to that handsome face of his, coating his bushy eyebrows and chiseled jaw.

  Suddenly, Jada’s mouth felt parched. She licked her lips to wet them. Damian caught the action, and his gaze landed directly on her mouth. Heat rays shot from his eyes, and Jada found she couldn’t speak. She could hardly breathe.

  The spell was broken when one of the crewmembers came running through the entrance doors. “It’s nasty out there,” the man said to no one in particular because Jada and Damian were still staring at each other.

  “Yeah, it is,” Damian said. He looked away first, breaking their trance.

  Jada was glad he did because she hadn’t been able to. What was it about this man that made her act completely out of character? With every other man, she was all charm and grace. Jada had perfected the art of batting her eyelashes to get her way, but it didn’t work on Damian. Instead, she was all fire. It didn’t make any sense.

  Once the crewmember left and it was just the two of them, Jada managed, “Th-thank you.” She held up the bag. “You didn’t have to do that.”

  Damian turned back around to face her. “Didn’t I? Somehow, I didn’t see you going out in the rain.”

  “I don’t mind getting wet,” Jada huffed, and as soon as she said the words, she wished she could take them back. Taken out of context, they could mean something entirely different. Her cheeks flamed.

  Damian smirked. He knew that her thoughts had gone down a different road, an intimate road.

  “I have to go, or I’ll be late.”

  “And I need to get out of these wet clothes,” Damian said. “Care to help me?”

  Jada flushed and immediately rushed out of the lobby without answering.

  Care to help me? Damian still couldn’t believe he’d solicited Jada’s assistance in relieving him of his clothing. What the hell has come over me? He could be accused of sexual harassment for such a blatant comment. But dammit, that’s what happened whenever he was around that woman: He couldn’t control himself.

  She infuriated and surprised him in equal measure.

  She had a way of speaking whatever came to her mind regardless of the consequences. She was direct and outspoken, and he kind of liked it. Damian knew he shouldn’t. He shouldn’t appreciate her insubordination, but he did.

  He enjoyed sparring with her. She challenged him. She didn’t back down from a fight. Oh no, not Jada Hart. She gave as good as she got. It turned him on. A lot.

  He didn’t have to go out in the rain, but when he’d stood by the sidelines watching her look forlornly at her car, he’d known he would step in. And he’d done it after she told him off and pretty much called him a tyrant who had his entire staff on pins and needles.

  But that was his style—always had been and always would be.

  He couldn’t come in there and behave like he didn’t know what he was doing. He had to make decisions and be authoritative, and sometimes that meant lackluster individuals who weren’t adding to the bottom line lost their jobs. WLB-TV would be a success by the sheer force of his will because Damian never lost. Just like he hadn’t lost a conversation yet in his verbal repartee with Jada Hart.

  Hours later, after her broadcast, Jada sat in her chair in the newsroom. She still didn’t know what to make of the exchange she and Damian had engaged in. At first, their conversation had been highly combative as it always was with him, but then something changed and the air between them had crackled with sexual tension!

  Damian was a good-looking man, there was no denying that. With those broad shoulders, slim hips, and what Jada’s overactive imagination suspected was a washboard stomach, she was tied up in knots. But why him? She found Damian to be conceited and arrogant, and she’d love nothing better than to tell him so, but she wouldn’t get the chance—not if she cared about her career.

  WLB-TV was just a stepping stone, and if she had to go through Damian McKnight to get to the next rung of the ladder, then so be it.

  Whatever tension that had developed between them in those few minutes this morning had to be nothing more than a one-off, an anomaly at best. Jada liked her men attractive, charming, and jovial, and she could certainly do without Damian’s perpetual frown and creased forehead staring at her.

  “So, are you excited for tonight?” Kyler said when she stopped at Jada’s desk and interrupted her musings.

  “Excited about what?”

/>   “The media awards dinner. Did you forget the entire team was invited to go?”

  Of course she had, considering all the drama in the newsroom. “Yeah, I guess I did. I’m going to pass.”

  “Since when does Jada Hart pass on an event? You’re the life of every party.”

  “Perhaps I don’t wish to be the main attraction.”

  “And miss an opportunity to cozy up to boss man? I thought you needed all the help you can get?”

  “McKnight is coming?” Adrenaline surged through her at the prospect of seeing him again.

  Kyler nodded. “The entire team is going, and if you bail it will look awfully suspicious and be very unlike you. You don’t avoid—you attack things head-on. That’s what I love about you. You’re direct.”

  “I dunno.”

  “Yes, you do. You’re going to take that gorgeous tush of yours home, shower, shave, and shine. And you’re going to be at the media dinner and show McKnight that he hasn’t broken you.”

  “Is this some sort of pep talk?”

  “It is indeed.”

  Jada smiled. “Alright, I’ll do it, but only because you’re going to be there. And you promise to back me up, right?”

  “Of course.”

  Jada certainly hoped so, because something told her that tonight was going to be very interesting.

  Chapter 3

  Jada spent an extraordinary amount of time selecting her dress for the evening. It had to be classic and elegant, yet true to herself. That was hard to do with a closet that held nothing but bold and daring outfits. She settled on a demure dress she’d worn once to a Hart Enterprises function.

  It was a strapless gown of deep violet with a square bodice that cinched in at the hip to show off her figure before flowing out like a mermaid to her ankles. She added four-inch sandals and chandelier earrings to top off her ensemble. She looked stylish, and Jada knew she wouldn’t offend anyone at the dinner, least of all Damian.