“I like the sound of that.” She did a cute little shimmy.
Tristan laughed. “I think you’ll do great here. So, do we have a deal?”
“You bet.” She shook his hand, the warmth spreading up her arm.
“When can you start?” he asked, looking relieved.
“Tomorrow. And you’re sure about the hotel room?” She secured her bag filled with waters and snacks for the long train ride, thinking how amazing it would be to live in Manhattan. Like...Luke. “It will be a huge help. It’s a brutal train ride back and forth.”
“Do you want me to send one of our limos to your house tomorrow so you don’t have to bring all your luggage on the train?” Tristan was already smacking away at his phone.
“Seriously?”
“I’m a serious guy.” How bad could the brother be if this guy was such a sweetheart?
“Okay. Thank you, Mr. Hart.” She loved that name, too.
“Tristan, call me Tristan. I’ll bring you down to HR to fill out the paperwork. Katy’s office is behind the front desk.” He steered her to the door, the sidelight trying to push as much of this guy’s sunshiny personality in the dim hallway. “Do you want to meet your new boss now or wait until tomorrow?”
“Tomorrow.” She gave one more glance at the view behind his desk. “Sounds like I have a lot to prepare for.”
CHAPTER SIX
Lexi
“I can get used to this,” Lexi said, rolling down Fifth Avenue in The Sterling’s limousine the next morning. It smelled of leather, spicy cologne, and...scotch.
Thanks to Tristan Hart’s generous limo offer, she’d packed rather generously. She hated leaving her mom alone, especially since the motel was empty. Her mother surprisingly hadn’t acted worried about it. She enthusiastically helped Lexi cram all her stuff into several suitcases. They were both so excited a great opportunity had fallen into their lap when they needed it the most.
Good one, Damon. She’d been wondering how and when to thank him. Sleeping with that sleazeball had come with one benefit. The tides had to turn in her favor, eventually.
When the limo reached the hotel, a man in a mustard coat and shiny black cap opened her car door and asked, “Checking in, Miss?”
“Sort of.” She ambled to the trunk, but the driver was there already removing her bags onto a gold luggage cart.
A warm breeze threatened to undo her chignon, but only a few wisps escaped. Spring had arrived to New York City, making her feel alive and full of promise.
“Ah. My savior,” Tristan said, strutting by with what looked like a bakery bag. Sweets for his sweetheart, she bet. This guy was too much.
“That’s a lot of pressure, Mr. Hart,” she said, digging through her purse for cash to tip everyone.
“No gratuities needed. It’s all taken care of. And please call me Tristan.” He cupped her hand and eyed the tall pile of luggage. “Wow, you’re moving in, huh?”
“Now, Tristan...” She gave him a flirty smile. Sleeping with Luke had given her a fresh sense of sexual energy, charm flowing through her easily now. Like he’d woken up her sensual side. “You don’t look like a man new to the ways of a woman. This shouldn’t be a surprise.”
He lowered his voice. “I assure you, I know women quite well. So does my brother. I’m warning you and I’ve threatened him within an inch of his life to behave himself. Please give him a chance.”
“I’m not afraid of a little harmless flirting.”
“Oh, I don’t expect him to flirt with you. Unless trying to eat you alive, counts.” He gave her a wolfish grin. “And I mean that in the figurative sense. Not literal.”
She had to wonder what her boss looked like if his brother had the women walking by tripping over themselves. “As a future lawyer, I’ll also have to be thick skinned.”
“Good.” He snapped his fingers at a bellman. “Bring these to room 702.”
She headed for the revolving door. “Have my room already picked out?” She hoped they treated all the guests this way.
“I took it out of the reservation system this morning. You’ll still get housekeeping every day. The room is yours.” He let her in first.
“Thank you again, for that,” she said when he swung through.
“HR will give you all your ID cards when we settle you in. You’ll sit with Jessie, my assistant, for most of the day. There will be some basic admin tasks for you to do. But your priority is working on the Chevalier deal.”
She put her legs to use on those marble stairs to the lobby level. “I checked out some of their other partner hotels.” She chose not to reveal her mother had been trying to do business with Chevalier for years. The name hadn’t clicked yesterday, but she’d gone into her mother’s office and did some digging last night. Voila! This experience might allow Lexi to make a contact over there.
“Good,” Tristan said, steering her toward the elevator.
She wondered if food and alcohol were free, too. But she’d wait to see about that one. Even if they were free, she didn’t think stuffing her face and getting sloshed at the lobby bar was the wisest way to end her work days.
“How is your fiancé feeling?” she asked Tristan to remind him she knew he was taken.
He smiled at her. “Good. Thank you. You’ll meet her. She’s working on the renovation.”
“Is she an interior designer?” Lexi asked to keep the conversation moving.
“Textile designer. She designed all the fabrics for the new furniture.” He seemed taller when he spoke about her.
“I envy that creative skill. Me? I’m all logic and theory.” She leaned against the chair rail inside the elevator. Man, Tristan was tall. She wondered how tall his brother was. A giggle escaped her thinking of the movie Twins. Tristan would definitely be the Arnold Schwarzenegger character. The way life could be cruel, her boss might look like Danny DeVito.
How hilarious would that be? The tough munchkin boss. She and her five-seven height would put him in his place.
How tall are you?
Five-seven.
God, I love sex like this...
That memory of Luke rushed through her. Thinking about him made her body flush all over again and her center throbbed remembering how he made love to her holding her against his bedroom wall. Among other places in his penthouse apartment.
“Are you all right?” Tristan asked. “You just turned very red.”
Many a man had called her too cerebral. Too smart. Boring. She’d been hurt plenty of times. Somewhere that cycle had to end. “I’m fine. Just excited.”
“Good,” he said. “We’re here. The room is to the right. I’m sorry it’s close to the elevator. We book from the outside in. Most guests want quiet. These rooms close to the elevators are the last to go.”
“That’s good info to have. I wonder if my mom does it that way? Not that we have an elevator, we have stairs that lead to...” She looked down to make sure she didn’t trip and got stunned by the vivid blue carpet. With...golden sunbursts. Hang on... This was the same hallway carpet outside Luke’s penthouse.
Uh oh.
“Feel free to share any of our procedures with your mom if you think it’ll help her business,” Tristan blabbered on. “And if you ever have questions or want to run ideas by someone, please come find me.” At least that’s what she thought Tristan had said, much of it sounded like wah wah.
Her mind snapped back. Many buildings use the same commercial carpets. This pattern might be everywhere. Someone must have run a gaudy sale.
The bellman lumbered up to them with all her bags piled on his cart, the shiny brass accentuating the gold in the carpet. Like the hair on...
“Wouldn’t my boss be able to answer questions? I’ll be working closely with him. You have enough on your plate.”
Tristan opened the door to her room. “Luke hasn’t been very connected to the business the way I’ve been. He’s—”
“What did you say?” Her mind had to be playing tricks on her at t
his point.
“My brother’s not been—”
“Your brother’s name is Luke?” She pulled a few bags off the cart and tossed them inside without even checking out the room. “My...my boss’ name is Luke?”
“I mentioned that, didn’t I?” He looked at her oddly, handing her more bags.
Had he? Oh, dear mother of God. “I... I don’t think so.” She yanked the rest of her luggage from Tristan’s hands and kicked the last one through the door before letting it slam.
Tristan rubbed his chin and handed her the key card. “I guess you want to get to work.”
Breathing heavily, she asked, “Do...do you, I mean, do we have a penthouse?”
“No,” he answered, scrunching his nose at her.
“Oh.” Her breathing returned to normal. This was driving her crazy.
“We have two,” he said with pride.
Her brain spasmed. “Two penthouse suites?” She’d seen two other doors besides Luke’s the other night.
Tristan folded his arms. “No. Two penthouse floors. One for guests and the other is a floor of private apartments for me and my brothers. Luke, being one of them.”
This could not be just a wild coincidence. The carpet under her wobbly legs looked identical to the one outside Luke’s penthouse. The Luke she’d met four days ago. Now, she was about to work for a Luke, who lived in a penthouse apartment with the same damn carpet.
“Can I see it?” She couldn’t take it anymore.
“You want to see my penthouse floor?” He arched an eyebrow at her. “Alexis, please don’t take this the wrong way. But the floor to our penthouse apartments is restricted. Your room key isn’t authorized for that level. If Luke gives you access, that’s up to him. And forgive my bluntness, I really hope the hell he doesn’t. But, if something happens that you’re not comfortable with, please come to me.”
“What?” She thought fast. Her heart pounded and whatever semblance of a brain she had left took over. “No. No. You misunderstood. Of course, I don’t want to see your secure floor. I meant the other penthouse suites. Um... One of the things Chevalier promotes is luxury villas.” She took a deep breath. “You should consider converting a second floor of visitor suites to rent out. If those are the guests you want to draw to The Sterling.”
That’s our business, right? Thinking quick on our feet.
I think quick. I don’t do everything quick.
Lexi’s throat went tight, all of Luke’s words kept flooding into her brain, jamming up her neurotransmitters.
“I’m sorry.” Tristan lowered his head and swiped a loose dark-red strand of hair from his forehead. “I didn’t mean to presume. Luke’s got a bit of a reputation. And I’m very trigger-happy when it comes to him.”
“Reputation?” She swallowed a scratchy lump. “For? As his assistant I should know what to look out for, right? Will I be getting calls from his...girlfriends?”
“Luke doesn’t have girlfriends. He doesn’t do relationships. I call him no-commitment Luke.”
“I see.” Not the response she was hoping for.
“He didn’t take his CEO job all too seriously at first, Alexis. Did a lot of partying. With... I can’t believe I’m saying this, but I feel like I can trust you, with a lot of women. A lot of women.”
If she’d been one of many, then Luke lied when he said his bed had been cold. She felt what she shared with that man was special. He’d made her feel that way. Even though it was one night. He’d told her it’d been a while. And he was a lawyer.
Hang on. Hang on. Hang on. Her reasonable brain chimed in. There’s no way this is the same dude. The last ditch hope they were talking about two different Lukes hung on by a thread.
“I think it’s time I meet your brother Luke.”
Luke
“WHEN’S THE LAST TIME you slept the whole night, honey?” Luke’s mother asked, her voice sounding small on the phone.
He sat at his desk rubbing his tired eyes. His mom’s question prodded him to think about Lexi. The last time he slept well was over the weekend, after the most incredible sex he’d ever had. That wasn’t something Mom wanted to hear.
“Not for a while.” He checked his watch. His new assistant should arrive any moment. Oh right, she was his intern. His prodigy. If he was a mentor.
“Anytime you want to hop on Dad’s plane to come down to Florida, you’re always welcome. I didn’t buy a house with four master suites to be alone all the time,” she needled him. And the dig about it being his father’s plane, well that just hurt.
“I’ll make sure Grayson gets down there soon, if I can’t.” Grayson would always be her baby. Up north, he was more black sheep than golden child.
“I’ll have the extra scotch on hand.” She was kidding, hopefully.
With everything going on, Luke needed to keep a better eye on his youngest brother. He and Grayson were always close. Wasn’t that always the way? The oldest and the youngest. Tristan always had his girlfriends, and that left two wild Hart boys to tear the world apart.
“I’ll be visiting some hotels later this month,” he said to his mom to give her something to look forward to. “I’ll wrap a weekend in Miami around it.”
“Oh good, I miss you boys,” she cooed. Grayson was her favorite, but Tristan would pull into the lead if he’s giving her a grandchild.
Luke had been his father’s golden child. His blond hair often felt like a crown, and sometimes the thorns poked at him. He cast a glance at the photo Laney had taken of him, Tristan, and Gray last month. Their pronounced cheekbones, long roman noses, and square jaws gave away that they were brothers, but they all had different color hair and eyes. His finger running across the glass cast a pinkish hue against his golden mop and the combination of colors made him think of Lexi.
Why couldn’t he stop thinking about her? Was it because she’d disappeared without giving away her number? Did he just want what he couldn’t have? He snorted. If he put his mind to it, he could find her. How many pink-haired law school students at NYU were named Lexi?
He’d love to just keep an eye on her for a while, see her in her element. He didn’t have to do anything about it. Just a sneaky game to add some excitement to his life that didn’t include getting loaded at a fundraiser.
“Knock, knock.” Tristan’s face appeared in his doorway. “I have someone you need to meet.”
Here she comes. The female assistant he’d begged Tristan not to hire. Not because he couldn’t control himself. He knew better than to cross that line. Plus, Lexi had claimed something in his heart. She’d checked all his boxes. Especially the nerdy lawyer side. The man he really was, the guy he missed. She burrowed herself into that part of his soul.
“Come in.” He cranked his chair around to finish the call with his mom. “I have to go.”
“Call me again soon,” she said with a cough. “I love our chats.”
“Are you feeling okay?” he asked, concerned at how scratchy and hoarse she suddenly sounded.
She cleared her throat. “Just a cold I can’t seem to get rid of.”
“Keep me posted.” He stared at the blue sky and fluffy white clouds, a faint hint of pink outlining...everything. “If you need anything, call us, okay?”
“I will, don’t worry about me. Talk to you soon. Love you.” She coughed again.
A reflection in the window registered two people behind him. He didn’t want to appear rude, but he was the damn boss. They could wait two fucking seconds. “Me, too. Bye.”
As he spun around, a shock of pinkish gold flashed in the glass’ reflection. Huh? He turned all the way around and his heart crash landed into his stomach. His jaw dropped, not allowing him to speak, even though his brain was screaming, Lexi. Lexi. Lexi.
His tongue rested on his lower teeth trying to say her name out loud, except, she dropped a step behind Tristan. She wore a shocked expression, reflecting the same terror coursing through him. When he rose from his chair, she shook her head. Violently. Her mouth
. That mouth he fucked hard. The throat he came down. She let him because she was fucking fantastic like that. Her lips. The way she kissed him.
Those lips now puckered into a... No. What the hell? That word hadn’t come out of her mouth Friday night. Not one damn time.
“Luke, this is Alexis Markham.” Tristan glanced at her, and she shot forward to stand next to him again.
Alexis.
Lexi.
With a smile plastered on her face, she leaned across the desk. “It’s wonderful to meet you, Mr. Hart.”
He had her bent over the desk in his apartment’s private office. Her leg lifted while he took her. Everywhere. In and out. Christ, he turned hard as steel just thinking about it. He stared at her hand waiting to be in his. That little hand had jerked him off while she kissed him. She didn’t even care about the mess. She loved it.
“Luke?” Tristan said, staring down at Lexi’s outstretched hand.
He stayed in his seat because his legs were shaking too much and his stiff cock throbbed in his pants. Shaking her hand, he forced himself to go numb when their skin touched. “Sorry. I wasn’t expecting you so soon. Luke. Luke Hart. Alexis?”
“Yes.” She crossed her eyes at him and he had to stifle a laugh.
The universe had one hell of a sense of humor. Only, this wasn’t funny. At all. He felt like a live wire standing there while sweat trickled down his back. He had let his emotions run away with crazy ideas of what Friday night had meant to him. What it could mean to him. And now, it all vanished.
He’d been robbed.
Because now, she worked for him. He couldn’t touch her. He couldn’t have her. He couldn’t...love her.
He felt dizzy at that one and let her hand go. “Great. Great. Welcome.”
“Luke, you okay?” his brother asked, looking stupefied.
He ran a hand across his forehead blazing with heat. “Fine. I was just talking to Mom.”
“Ah. Yeah that gets me a little crazy, too.” Tristan straightened his pale blue tie that popped off his chocolate brown suit. “I’ll have Alexis sit with Jessie for much of the afternoon. But I mentioned the Chevalier project. This I’m sure you’ll appreciate. She’s an NYU law student.”
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