Playboy Heir

by Brandy Munroe

Regaining his composure, he replied, amused, "It must have been quite a sight from your point of view."

  I did not want to make light of his enthusiasm for finding entry into the hidden space, but I knew I was about to burst his bubble and make him feel even more foolish than he already did.

  I pointed out the issue was that he was focusing too much on the old blueprints when he should be wondering what changes needed to be done to the building as it now sat. Included in those current blueprints were notations showing the entrance had been bricked off.

  "What a rookie mistake," Aleksander chastised himself as he ran his hands through his hair looking defeated. "Of course I should have been looking at the most recent plans."

  Guilt nestled in my brain as I watched him. "Okay, okay,". I confessed. "I didn't happen to discover the changes in those plans."

  I faced Aleksander and disclosed that I had talked to Leona and was shocked to learn that when The Boutique was in the planning stages, Leona and Evonne decided to use the attic as a secret hideout.

  "The key word here is secret," I accentuated. "From what Leona told me, she and Evonne decided to take a nap up there one afternoon. By the time Mr. Van de Graaf found them, Mrs. Van de Graaf was practically catatonic. Mrs. Van de Graaf had the entrance completely bricked off."

  Then I informed him that Leona remembered that all the original equipment from the beginning of time was stored up there.

  A lightbulb ignited in my brain. I stood up and paced the length of the room and stared wide eyed at the ceiling.

  "The loft is almost the size of the entire upstairs," I stated, then I sat, stared Aleksander straight in the eyes, and continued. "If that equipment is still up there — and why wouldn't it be — it would be in great shape. I'm not an antique specialist but I know they stay intact if they are not exposed to the air and elements." I stood waving my hands in the air to elaborate. "If we put in a glass ceiling, we could create a floating museum. It could showcase the history of the Van de Graaf family."

  "Like we saw at the Marine Museum?" Aleksander asked.

  "Exactly like we saw at the Marine Museum," I beamed.

  We discussed other changes and I made it clear that he needed Richard in on these plans. Some of the changes we were discussing would affect the spacing downstairs. When the men's stockroom got moved upstairs, that would leave an empty space where Richard could expand if he choose. It made sense to keep the break room where it was. Leona's office was already downstairs and would remain unchanged.

  A lot was getting accomplished and we seemed to have the same vision for the upstairs. We used the term so often I joked, "we should just put a sign on the door saying The Upstairs."

  Aleksander wasn't laughing. "That's brilliant," he exclaimed. "Van de Graaf's Boutique and The Upstairs. This gives us something to work with for the next major shoe convention. We made such a big deal with the press conference, everyone is going to be expecting a big reveal. Plans of the new store and a general ideal of what will be sold there." He sounded unsure of himself.

  "The Boardrooms and Beyond have always spoken for themselves," I reminded him. "What you don't have is filler, as Leona calls it. The current men's line caters to an exclusive clientele. If you want the common man to shop here you need a common shoe. What you need, Aleksander," I reaffirmed, "is a designer who can build you a common shoe that can compete with the Boardroom and Beyonds without looking like they belong in a department store."

  Aleksander was sitting face to face with me, next to me, working, and I was thinking only business. I noted to myself mentally, now this was progress. I was pleased with myself; here I had been sitting close to Mr. Tall, Dark and Brooding and I hadn't blushed, not once. Aleksander was right; we got it out of our system, now we could work together.

  Aleksander hesitated for a moment. I sensed he wanted to tell me something but wasn’t sure if he could trust me. Understandable after what happened the last time he lay his trust in someone.

  I hopped he had come to the same conclusion as me. We had been working a better part of the afternoon together and there had been no sexual tension. We were definitely making progress. But trust?

  Slowly he reached for his briefcase, the new one I sold him that first day we met. He pulled out a sheet of drafting paper, walked to the whiteboard at the end of the table, stuck it on and sat back down.

  I scanned the work on the board. I walked over so I could get a better view, then returned to my seat.

  "Nice lines, custom stitching, not exactly an Oxford and yet not a dock shoe. Custom stitching does not a common shoe make,” I asserted.

  "That's the nice thing," Aleksander said. "It doesn't have to be custom stitched."

  He returned to the board, took the drawing and put it under my nose. I read the notations on the side and did a double take. "Is that a one piece shank from heel to toe? Can you do that? Will it be flexible enough not to break? This is unheard of." I found myself rambling without taking a breath again.

  I sat there stunned. "One of our designers came up with this?” I raised an inquisitive eyebrow.

  After a long pause, he faced me and confessed, "no, it's mine."

  He then began to tell me how when he was traveling last year he took to buying shoes from local cobblers. He found this feature intriguing. The cobbler explained the process and how the shank was made with a flexible rubber that was custom made for him by this little company outside of town. Aleksander told me about the research and conceived he could transfer this knowledge into something mainstream.

  "Like I pointed out, it's not an Oxford, not a dock shoe. What do you call it?" I demanded.

  "Nothing" he shrugged. "You're the first person I showed it to. I know I’m not known as a designer but I know what I like. I drew what I liked. The issue is getting someone to make it. I wanted a prototype for the upcoming convention. I wanted to knock everyone's socks off with this and I can't even get off the ground."

  "Yes, you can," I assure him. "You don't need the actual shoe, you just need a presentation. Take this design and dress it up. Like this.” I took his laptop and pulled up aerospace plans and explained. "They don't build the airplane, they show you how they are going to build the airplane. You can do the same thing with this. Bring it up on a big screen, show the concept of what the finished product will look like. Below list the features," I paused, catching my breath. I offered a tag line. "Heel to toe space age revolutionary shank exclusive to Van de Graaf."

  I grilled, "You can work on getting an exclusive on this, can't you?"

  Aleksander nodded but did not elaborate how he would that.

  I was on a roll and continued, "Don't name it."

  "It needs a name," Aleksander forced.

  "No, it doesn't." I pushed back. "You introduce the shoe, explain the design, and the entire promo campaign will be to let the public name the shoe. Have a contest, have everyone talking about that shoe."

  The shoe Aleksander Manos designed.

  Well Mr. Manos, I think you earned your designer credit. And with this you will knock their socks off," I assured him.

  I was so excited about what had transpired it took me some time to catch my breath. When I sat back and breathed deeply, the magnitude of what happened occurred to me. He trusted me. Aleksander trusted me with something he trusted with no one else, not even Richard.

  This was going to be big for him and I was not going to let him down.

  I realized the day had gotten away from us and I was ready to go downstairs and assist Leona with the last of the interns. Like the mind reader she was, Leona appeared right on cue.

  "We're done here for the day," I told Aleksander. It was a statement not a question. “I am going to help Leona finish downstairs."

  "I'm done," Leona said. "I just thought I saw one of the interns out the corner of my eye get lost and come up here. Since it's just the two of you, I guess not."

  "We didn't see anyone," I confirmed.

  "Let's wrap this up and call it
a day. What's on our plate for tomorrow?" Aleksander asked.

  I rolled up the plans and handed them to him. "You are going to go over these changes with Richard. Leona and I are going to watch the interns interact with actual customers tomorrow. That will separate the women from the girls."

  "Isn't that a little sexist," Aleksander baited us. "Are you telling me you have no male interns on your list?"

  "We had no male interns on your list,"Leona reminded him. "The list Richard and you gave us. Maybe you need to go back and revamp that list for us," she jabbed. “Or are you admitting that women have superior minds than men?”

  I saw it took Aleksander a moment to shake it off, clear his head and understand he was never going to best Leona. With that we called it a night and headed downstairs to lock up.

  When we hit the bottom of the stairs, someone was waiting. "Hi, I'm Katie," she introduced herself. "I hope I didn't startle anyone. I was told to come here for the interviews for the interns who wanted to work here." Then she pulled open her portfolio and handed Leona a resume.

  "Let me finish this one," I volunteered. "You did the rest while I played upstairs, so get yourself home and I will fill you in tomorrow morning."

  "Have a seat," I told Katie. "You brought a resume? You didn't need to bring a resume." I added, "We are looking for interns who have the right attitude about learning what goes on in The Boutique."

  I figured I might as well glance at the resume that was in front of me. "You have retail experience selling shoes?” I blurted out.

  "Yes," Katie humbly replied. "That's why I decided to go to design school. I wanted to give the customers what they were asking for and I assumed I could do that if I designed them myself."

  Katie's eyes shifted downward; I thought she looked like she was about to cry. Instead, she pulled herself together and announced, "I suck at this design thing. I was hoping that if I came back to my roots, to where I fell in love, something will inspire me and I can move forward. I hope I'm making sense," she said. "You know my motives and I hope you can help me advance my career by helping me get back my mojo." She got up to leave and held her hand out for a goodbye handshake.

  "Come back tomorrow," I said to her. "Leona and I will see how you handle the customers and what we think you can learn by being here."

  "Thank you," Katie gushed, "I know this will be a great fit for all of us." She picked up her portfolio and left.

  I was proud at how I handled myself today with Mr. Tall, Dark and Brooding. Now that he was officially my boss, I needed to keep him at arm's length. Keep the sexual tension for my dreams. With an impish smirk, the last thought I had while locking up was, sometimes, dream do come true, don't they.

  But it can never happen again.

  Chapter 20

  Haley

  I was amazed at how quickly the time had passed. What I was most proud of was how professional Aleksander and I had been around each other. I checked my fantasies at my front door and it seemed Aleksander had did the same. I was truly enjoying my new job. I did not want to do anything that would put it in jeopardy.

  Katie was a good fit; she was exceptional with the customers and was a great help to Leona. I felt good about my decision to take Katie as one of the interns. It was important to me with everything happening at what seemed like whirlwind speed.

  I knew if Aleksander was going to be at the shoe convention then the expectation would be that I would be at his side. I knew the day was going to come when this job would take me out of town.

  I went online and analyzed every event featured to decide which ones Richard and Alexander would have to be present at together and which they could handle individually if necessary.

  As Alexander's PR Specialist, it was assigned to me to ensure they had access to all the events pertaining to the advancement of the Van de Graaf brand.

  Richard assembled a team from every division to assist with the setup and takedown of the conference room that would house their presentation. It was my responsibility to get them all the necessary passes to freely move about the convention centre.

  It had always been considered an honour to be chosen for this team. The individual chosen also had access to the events and were encouraged to attend as many as they could, soaking in as much knowledge as their brain could process.

  As much as I would have loved to spend a week in New York on someone else's dime it was not feasible. I didn't mind leaving Peyton with Uncle Charlie overnight; an entire week was out of the question.

  Aleksander suggested I take him with me. He obviously had no idea what was involved in caring for a five year old or he never would have been so quick to make that offer.

  My presence would be helpful but was not necessarily needed. He did, however, insist I be present for the big reveal. After all, it may have been his design but it was my concept that saw it to this point.

  Aleksander wanted me there not just for moral support, he intended on giving me equal credit. I had never had a man treat me with such respect. It made it easier for me to see him as a person and stop fantasizing about him.

  Well, almost. Every time he peeled that sweaty T-shirt off after soccer it was hard for the soccer moms not to stare, me included. I knew I set him up with a gym membership and whatever he was doing it was definitely worth the effort. I no longer thought of him as thin as I once did.

  There was so much going on all at once, between the renovations at The Boutique and checking with production to make sure they had something on the shelves when The Upstairs debuted. Aleksander's apartment was being packed up and Annette was settling into her new residence.

  I felt pangs of guilt for how much time I had been spending working these days. It wouldn't be forever, things would slow down. Right?

  Summer was soon approaching and I would need to find full time care for Peyton. I doubted with my new position that I would qualify for the subsidized placement at the community centre. Another thing to add to my very long list.

  I was looking forward to spending a night in New York. Yes, there would be work but Aleksander would have to give me some free time to explore the city. I had never had the opportunity and was not going to waste it.

  With everything going on, I could not believe convention week was under way and Friday was approaching fast. With Aleksander away my workload was lighter. I took it upon myself to spend some time assisting Annette getting acquainted with the town and what it had to offer. It was a pleasant task as Annette was a wonderful woman.

  She insisted I bring Peyton along with us, allowing me to spend much needed time with my son, all the while helping her. I did not feel it was my place to enquire what the relationship was between her and Aleksander. I got the distinct feeling she was much more than just a housekeeper.

  I introduced Annette to Uncle Charlie since the woman insisted she would check up on Peyton while I was in New York. I did not want to discourage the older woman if it made her feel useful.

  Friday arrived and I was excited to take on a new adventure and guilty to be leaving Peyton. It was just one night, I kept reminding myself. The Van de Graaf’s arranged drivers for anyone involved with the convention. I was pleased with the roomy SUV. It gave me plenty of room to work during the long ride in.

  The Van de Graaf’s had a New York penthouse that they insisted be used for such occasions. Myself, Richard, and Aleksander were to share that space. Aleksander's apartment was being packed up, making it uninhabitable.

  I asked Evonne about the layout.

  "You are going to love it," she boasted. "It has four master suites. Each consists of its own bathroom with a shower and a separate jacuzzi-sized tub. There is a sitting room and a dressing room with a walk in closet. The only common space is the kitchen and a large living room designed for entertaining." I felt much better knowing this place was large enough for me to never have to be alone with Aleksander.

  With Richard there to intercept, I was sure I could keep my fantasies in check and keep my hands off
my boss.

  I entered the suite and was amazed at the enormity of the living room. How many people did they entertain, I wondered? You could have a wedding in there and still have room to roller skate without bumping into anyone. There were two bedrooms at one end of the suite, then the living room and open concept kitchen. The other two bedrooms led off the kitchen.

  I knocked before opening each door. I did not need to find any unexpected occupants while I was nosing around. I concluded that Richard and Aleksander each took a room leading off the living room leaving the two bedrooms off the kitchen free for me to have a choice of.

  They all looked exactly the same, so choosing one over the other had no bearing. I was just relieved that Aleksander's room was on the other side of the penthouse. I couldn't imagine myself that close with the only thing separating us was a wall while he lay naked in his bed.

  I didn't sleep naked — why would I automatically assume he did? Wishful thinking on my part, I guessed. I began to contemplate how embarrassing it would be for me to face him in the morning if he decided to take care of himself and I could hear through the wall.

  He was a man and I had not seen him with any female companion in the time we spent together. And we did spent a lot of time together. He must have taken care of his needs on the impromptu trips into the city he had done on several occasions.

  That would make sense. There was no way the famous playboy was not getting his needs taken care of. I was grateful he had the intuition to be discreet. I had not had to deal with any tabloid fallout as of yet. I hope it stayed that way.

  But where did that twinge of jealousy come from?

  I had done so well keeping my mind on business. It came easy with him away in New York. I often missed what we experienced, that one stolen moment we shared. Nothing I did satisfied me the way he did. I had not needed gratification until he showed me what I had been missing all these years. Depriving myself, believing love had to be involved. Maybe he had it right, all you really needed was sex. Mind blowing sex.