Conquest of the Heart

Conquest of the
Heart

By R.J. Dillon

Copyright 2010 R.J. Dillon

Smashwords Edition

Smashwords Edition, License
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CHAPTER ONE

It was a typical day at Carlisle
&Associates, Inc. (C&A) - a multi-billion dollar sports
marketing firm with offices located in Dallas, Chicago, San
Francisco, New York, and two international offices in Paris and
Italy. The floors were buzzing with marketers and journalists,
working feverishly to pull together sponsors for the upcoming NFL
draft. This would be the biggest draft yet, and everyone had to be
ready.

Gavin Carlisle, the Vice President and son of
founder and President Adrian Carlisle, was doing what he usually
does on days like this - he was working on his next proposition.
Gavin was forward thinking, and he never settled very long on the
present activity. He was an excellent executive that way, and the
reason why the company reached billion dollar status year after
year. Gavin was of Italian descent, with piercing green eyes, wavy
dark brown hair that barely touched his shoulders, and naturally
tan skin. He stood six feet tall, and had a muscular build.

More importantly, Gavin was still single.
Every woman within all of the offices saw this as an opportunity,
and it didn’t matter if they were married. Many joked that they
would leave their current spouses for a chance to be with him. He
used this to his advantage.

Chandler, Gavin’s frequent and latest muse,
stopped in to see him before heading to her desk.

“
Hey, baby. I enjoyed our
time together last night.” She was leaning against the door with a
sultry smile on her face.

“Don’t get used to it,” he said flatly,
annoyed that she was there. “I know you ladies talk. You know we
won’t be together for very long before I move on to something
better, but I appreciate the accolades. I enjoyed it, too.” Gavin
didn’t even look up as he spoke. He stayed focused on his work.

She walked into his office, stood next to him
as he sat at his desk and turned his chair around to face her.
“Well, you never know what might happen. You might find that my
lovin’ is just what you were looking for,” she said in a sexy tone,
leaning down so he could see her breasts, and staring straight into
his eyes. Chandler didn’t believe in dressing conservatively. Gavin
didn’t squint, and never looked down.

As he pushed her away from him, he said,
“Chandler, you’re not my type. I got what I wanted from you, and
that was sex. There’s nothing else I need from you. Now please
leave and tend to your work so I can think.”

“Fine,” she huffed. “I don’t know why so many
women throw themselves at you. You’re such a pig.”

“Money. That’s all they want. That’s all you
want. As long as that’s all you want, I will get what I want. Right
now, until I find that special person, all I want is sex.”

“Have a good day,” she said sarcastically as
she stormed out.

Chandler was the only one who could speak to
Gavin like that and not risk getting fired. She had slept with him
numerous times. She was also one of the top marketers of the
company, having signed several large accounts, including Tiger
Woods and Venus and Serena Williams. She wasn’t going anywhere and
she knew it. She was an average woman, of average height, with long
strawberry blonde hair, and brown eyes. Out of all the women that
Gavin “enjoyed,” he enjoyed her the most. He always threatened not
to see her again, but always came back. He could count on her for a
booty call at any time.

Gavin checked his calendar for upcoming
meetings. He saw that Adrian had set up a meeting with the
executives to introduce a new director. They were in need of
improved public relations. All he could remember about her was her
name was Faith. All he could think about was how much faith he had
that she would end up in his bed provided she was to his
liking.

As Gavin stood up to go to
the meeting, he stopped to glance out of his window. He could see
the Statue of Liberty from his office. ‘
Now
THAT is a lady,’
he thought.

He walked down the hallway, receiving the
usual hellos, and stopped to chat with Carter. They went to college
together and were best friends. Carter was the Director of
Promotions. He had met more sports moguls, both nationally and
internationally than one could imagine. He could party with them
too, which at times could get him into trouble. Carter was a few
inches shorter than Gavin, with short blonde hair, and baby blue
eyes. He had a boyish look about him, which often caused problems
when he was with Gavin. With Gavin looking more mature than the two
of them, women often overlooked Carter. Though this was no fault of
Gavin’s, Carter was slightly envious of his friend for this, as
well as other reasons.

“When did you get back?” asked Gavin.

“This morning. The only reason I’m here is
for this meeting. Do you have any ideas about this woman your dad
hired? What sort of experience does she have?”

“Must be enough if Adrian found her. He
probably met her at some seminar. You know how he is about new
talent. He can discover someone anywhere.”

“Already got plans for her?” asked Carter
coyly.

“Of course.”

“Your father’s not going to like that. She’s
going to be a Director. He already disapproves of you sleeping with
the marketers and sales personnel. But a Director? That won’t go
over well at all.”

“I can handle Adrian.”

“Maybe so, but I’d like to see you deal with
your mother.”

“Now that’s a different story,” Gavin
chuckled. “Are you ready? Let’s go meet my new prey.”

“You know, it’d be nice if you’d share the
wealth a little bit,” Carter joked.

“I can’t help looking this good. Women are
drawn to me.” The men both laughed as they approached the
boardroom.

The other executives began to fill the room,
and they all began to chatter amongst themselves as they waited for
the President to join them. As Adrian Carlisle entered, the whole
room stood at attention. He was a man who commanded respect, and
had great authority. On a more personal level, he was charming,
kind, and gentle. Adrian was tall, with cleanly cut salt and pepper
gray hair. He was highly intelligent, having graduated from
Cambridge, and received his Masters in Marketing from Northwestern.
He founded C&A when he was only twenty-five. Adrian had an
uncanny ability to recognize and recruit talent. He employed them
at a level that was both challenging and exciting, and provided the
most competitive salaries in the world. C&A was his baby. Now
sixty-five years of age, he was still operating at his peak.

“Good morning,” Adrian spoke as he walked in
the room.

“Good morning,” everyone said. Gavin and
Carter were standing on the outside of the table, with their backs
leaning against the windows.

“I’m sure you’ve all been wondering who our
new Director of Public Relations is. This position gets a great
deal of exposure to the media, and I knew it was going to take a
special person to fill the role. C&A is not just a family owned
business, it’s about family. It’s about you, and it’s about the
clients for whom we promote and market. The person we trust to
publicly represent our company must be strong, wise, witty, bright,
and smart. At the same time, they must be tough enough to stand in
the trenches when necessary.

“My last trip to Paris was very productive.
Our international promotions are steadily growing, and our presence
is having a positive impact on the French community. Our sales team
and marketers are doing commendable work. When I’m there, I always
meet with a friend from a fellow company, Amusement Printanier. For
those of you who don’t speak French, that’s Spring Entertainment.
We’ve known each other for a long time. He told me about a young
lady, who had the qualities that I was looking for, and invited her
to dine with us one afternoon. I was more than impressed. She is an
incredible person, who works and lives with integrity. We can all
learn a lot from her, and I look forward to seeing the positive
changes that occur over time with her help. Now, I know that you’ll
have many questions for her, and I assure you, you’ll have plenty
of time to get to know her at the party. That memo is going out as
we speak. This meeting is to welcome her to the family. She will
speak briefly, and is anxious to get started.

“So, without further ado, I would like to
introduce our new Director of Promotions, Faith Scott!”

As everyone clapped, Faith
walked into the boardroom, smiling and looking around at everyone.
Carter had to push Gavin’s mouth shut, who was taken aback from
what he was seeing. He had never seen a more beautiful woman. She
had light brown eyes, beautiful caramel brown skin, and dark brown
hair that fell just below her shoulder blades, which was tied back
with a jeweled brooch. She wore a burgundy pencil skirt suit,
complemented perfectly with diamond earrings and a designer
necklace. Her outfit was completed with matching burgundy pumps.
She had a slender, but fit figure. The only makeup she wore, from
what he could tell, was her lipstick, burgundy, which highlighted
how beautiful her skin was, and tied the whole outfit together.
‘
What a vision
,’
Gavin thought. She spoke a few words.

“Good morning,” she said, scanning the room
again. Faith’s voice was clear, smooth, and confident. “I asked Mr.
Carlisle - ”

“Adrian, Faith. Please call me Adrian. She’s
so proper.” Adrian smiled.

“I asked Adrian not to make this a big deal.
But I understand he has a reputation for doing the opposite of what
you ask.” She paused as everyone chuckled over the comment. Adrian
smiled and pointed a playful finger at her.

As she continued to speak, Carter leaned over
and whispered to Gavin. “So how do you plan to conquer this one?
She might be harder than you think.” Gavin didn’t answer. He was so
encapsulated by her voice, all he could do was listen.

“I’m excited to be among such wonderful
people and working for this excellent company. I have an open door
policy, so please feel free to stop by my office any time, which is
located near Adrian’s office. Though I’ve done some studying on my
own, I will need your help getting to know the ins and outs of the
company. There’s nothing like good ‘ole hands on experience. I look
forward to getting to know all of you and learning from you. Thanks
for making me feel at home.”

Everyone clapped and nodded their approval as
Faith concluded her short speech. Adrian gave her a big hug, like a
father hugging his daughter. He led her from the room and directed
her to her office.

“You’ve been begging for that office for
months!” exclaimed Carter. When he didn’t get a response, he looked
over at Gavin. Gavin was still motionless. This had never happened
to him before. This feeling inside was different.

“Are you okay? Hey – snap out of it.” Carter
waved a hand in front of Gavin’s face.

He shook his head. “I’m sorry. Did you say
something?”

“I’ve only been trying to talk to you for the
past five minutes. What’s gotten into you? I’ve never seen you like
this.” Carter leaned back against the wall. “She’s gorgeous, isn’t
she? How are you going to approach this one? She’s right next to
your father, an office you couldn’t even buy! He’s going to be
guarding her from you.”

“I told you. I can deal with Adrian.”

“So you are going to pursue her?” Carter had
to ask this question again. He had never been quite moved by anyone
he worked with. He wouldn’t mind getting to know Faith himself, but
always backed down from anyone that Gavin was interested in. It was
something they had agreed to do after college. Although, this time,
he might deviate from that agreement.

“Definitely,” Gavin said under his
breath.

“Of course.” Carter was disappointed, however
he had his own ideas. “I’ve got to get back to work. Talk to you
later.”

Gavin sighed and looked out of the window
from which he was leaning. This conquest was going to have to be
different.

CHAPTER TWO