by Helena Shaw
With a light bump of her hip, Olivia motioned for Cadence to stand up and introduce herself.
“Hi,” Cadence said, but her voice caught in her throat when she finally got to see Draven Crane in person.
The first thing that struck her was how tall he was. He was at least a foot taller than her petite five-foot-two frame, with dark hair that fell to just below his ears. His piercing blue eyes gazed into her own and she found herself staring at his soft lips. He was imposing, intimating, and all too sexy.
“Cadence Lowry?” Draven Crane confirmed in his deep, almost seductive voice.
“Yes,” she nodded as she managed to stop herself from staring.
“She comes from us from Cornell,” Suzanne said, skipping the part about Cadence neither graduating nor having had a job before.
“And you’re taking over for Olivia?” Mr. Crane confirmed as he watched her. Cadence refused to look up, but she could have sworn that his eyes were burning into her very soul.
“Yes sir,” Olivia cut in. “She’s picking things up very quickly and I can see her working on her own by the end of the day. I’m sure I can begin my training with Ramona by tomorrow.”
Mr. Crane seemed to completely ignore Olivia as she was speaking. Instead, he turned back to Suzanne.
“Suzanne,” he said, his voice a silky, sensual purr. “I think we’re going to have to make some changes to the staffing.”
Cadence’s heart sunk. She’d only just met the man and couldn’t make a good enough impression to keep her job. She’d failed again. The sting of tears overwhelmed her as she struggled to keep from crying, her humiliation topped off by the presence of the other secretaries who turned to watch what was happening at the back of the office.
“I’m sorry, sir?” Suzanne asked, her happy voice now dark and worried.
“Did I mumble?” he asked, his purr turning into a growl. “I need the staffing changed. Olivia, I apologize, but you’ll be staying with Mr. Norsworthy for the time being. I’d like Miss Lowry to be my new executive secretary.”
“Sir?” Suzanne questioned, but she corrected herself before he did it for her. “Of course. I’ll have the paper done up immediately.”
“Excellent,” he said before he turned to Cadence. “Miss Lowry, you can accompany us back upstairs. I’d like Ramona to start your training immediately.”
Cadence couldn’t even muster the words to answer. She just did as she was told, following Ramona and Mr. Crane back towards the elevators while everyone else silently stared at the back of her head.
Chapter Two
The elevator ride up to the third floor was the most awkward thirty seconds of Cadence’s life. She stood at the back of the elevator while both Ramona and Mr. Crane kept their eyes on the door. No one said a word, no one discussed what had just happened, they just stood in silence.
Even as the doors slid open, revealing the wide open third floor with its expansively high ceilings, no one said a word. Mr. Crane stepped out first with Ramona on his heels and Cadence shuffling behind them.
“Mr. Crane, your noon appointment is in your office,” Ramona said as she moved towards her own desk.
“Thank you, Ramona,” he said without looking back. “Please be sure Cadence gets settled in.”
With no other instruction, Draven Crane entered the only office in the building that didn’t have windows for walls and it wasn’t until the door was closed that she finally let herself breathe a sigh of relief.
“Sorry about that,” Ramona offered once they were alone. Mr. Crane’s secretary was a pretty, if not a little plain, brunette that was only a few inches taller than Cadence. Ramona wore the same uniform as the rest of the secretarial staff, but somehow she looked so much more polished. She had small eyes and a pleasant smile that she only offered once Mr. Crane was out of the room.
“I’m so lost,” Cadence said. “I’m just supposed to be a secretary downstairs. Now I’m up here. I don’t get it.”
“Mr. Crane sometimes makes snap decisions,” Ramona told her. “Don’t worry, this job isn’t any more difficult than working under Mr. Norsworthy. The hours are a little more erratic and you do need to follow Mr. Crane’s schedule, but it’s mostly making phone calls. That, and exercising a heightened sense of discretion.”
“Um,” Cadence mumbled at hearing the word discretion. It kept coming up and it was starting to worry her. “I understand the need to keep clients’ private lives private, but everyone keeps warning me about discretion. Are we doing anything...?”
“Illegal?” Ramona finished with a laugh. “No, but we have some very, how should I put this? Very special clients. Some of them are well known men and women, which is why Mr. Crane chose to move our office out of the city. Being in a small town allows our clients to come and go without the fear of some photographer snapping away while they discuss private matters.”
“So what does Mr. Crane do?” Cadence found herself asking, realizing only after the words were out of her mouth that the question was probably ridiculous. She should already know that, but she didn’t.
“Well, we’re a legal firm,” Ramona explained. “But we don’t handle settlements or go to court or anything. Mr. Crane and the firm work exclusively with contracts. There is very little paperwork on our end, so mostly you’re in charge of showing in clients and running any errands that Mr. Crane might have for you, though he doesn’t often need much.
Most importantly, we call clients one week ahead of the end of their contract to book their appointment for renewal. They get one phone call, and then it’s up to them to call back if they don’t answer. All the contract dates are in the black binder in the top drawer.”
That’s when it hit Cadence, and she was surprised she hadn’t seen it earlier. Despite the modern look of Mr. Crane’s office, Ramona’s desk was missing one key feature. There was no computer.
“So, do you have a laptop or something?” Cadence asked.
“Finally noticed the lack of computer, huh?” Ramon said with a laugh.
“Yeah,” Cadence admitted.
“I know, I know,” Ramona nodded. “Mr. Crane is very particular about privacy. If he catches you with your phone turned on while you’re working, he’ll probably fire you.”
With that warning, Cadence dug her hand into the pocket of Jane’s blazer to turn off her own phone.
“My suggestion,” Ramona told her. “Is bring books. You’re going to have a lot of down time during office hours. The girls downstairs usually just go on Facebook or Twitter, but you don’t have that luxury.”
The thought of the secretaries downstairs reminded Cadence about her promise to go out for lunch with the other women in the office. Something told her that their offer was off the table and Ramona somehow sensed her sudden apprehension.
“It’ll be tough,” Ramona nodded. “Mr. Crane put you in a rough spot. Olivia’s been gunning for my job since she started here and she won’t make things any easier for you, but they aren’t allowed up here without being requested. I’m done as of Friday. After that, you’re on your own.”
“Can I ask why you’re leaving?” Cadence asked.
“My husband got a job in Chicago,” Ramona told her. “I’d stay on, but there’s really no room for advancement. I mean, my salary is amazing, but money isn’t everything. When he got the job offer, we agreed the time was right. I’m a little sad to go, but I’m excited too.”
With a guiding hand, Ramona showed Cadence the schedule book, and the big black book full of contracts. There wasn’t much to learn, it was exceptionally simple and she wasn’t sure why Mr. Crane needed a separate secretary for just for a few simple tasks, but she kept her mouth shut and did as she was told.
It quickly became apparent that Ramona had a memorized script that she followed when she made her phone calls. Cadence pulled out a pen and paper and jotted it down, word for word, to use when it was finally time for her to make the important calls.
Just as she thought she could bre
athe a little, the heavy black door of Mr. Crane’s office swung open and someone stepped out. For a moment, Cadence rubbed her eyes, thinking they were playing tricks on her again, but the person in front of her was really real and she couldn’t help but let her mouth hang open.
Ramona gave her shin a light kick and Cadence shut her mouth and put her eyes towards the desk. She had one job and she’d already failed it.
Thankfully, Ramona wasn’t Mr. Crane and she let the indiscretion slide. “Don’t let it happen again,” she said once they were alone, her voice uncharacteristically stern.
“I’m so, so sorry,” Cadence groveled. “It’s just, that was Hayden Adams. I’ve seen all of his movies!”
“You need to get over the star struck thing quickly,” Ramona said, relenting just a little. “They come and go almost daily and expect you to be professional. And of course, you can’t tell a soul that they’ve been here.”
“Definitely,” Cadence agreed. “It won’t happen again.”
Cadence’s apologies were cut short when the buzzer on Ramona’s phone rang. Quickly, she snatched the phone out of its holster and didn’t speak, just listened.
The call was brief, but when she hung up the phone, Ramona turned to Cadence and said, “He would like to see you.”
Cadence gulped hard as she stood up from the desk. She thought she might get at least a little more time before she had to face Mr. Crane on her own.
She attempted to smooth out the wrinkles in her oversized blazer, but it was no use. The thing would never look right on her, no matter how much she tried and she didn’t want to keep her new boss waiting. She had no choice but to go in there and face him, even if there was something about him that scared her.
“Mr. Crane?” she called through the door as she opened it. The lighting in his office was turned down, but the raging storm outside illuminated the space with each crack of lightning. The rain beat against the wall of windows where Draven Crane watched the stormy weather outside.
“Miss Lowry, yes please come in,” he said as he turned to face her. “Please get the light on your way.”
A crack of lightning brightened the room just in time to let Cadence find the switch. With the lights all the way up in the room, Cadence quickly realized that there was no fourth floor of the building, only the vaulted ceiling that extended at least thirty feet above.
The room itself was bare, save the large black desk in the center of the room. Instead of furniture, the focus of the room was on the large windows that made up every wall of the office, save the one that separated his space from Ramona’s.
“How is your first day going?” Draven Crane asked as he stepped away from the windows and sat down at his desk. “Have a seat,” he instructed before she had the chance to answer.
“It’s going well,” she said, though it was only a half truth. Part of her wanted to ask him why the hell he thought he should promote her over Olivia and instantly make her an outcast at the office, but part of her wanted to thank him. It meant a large bump to her already considerable salary and she could use the money.
“I’m glad to hear it,” Draven said as his eyes scanned her face. “And Ramona is showing you your new responsibilities?”
“Yes sir, thank you Mr. Crane,” she managed to say.
“Please,” he stopped her again. “Call me Draven. Mr. Crane is so formal.”
“Um, okay,” she nodded.
“Now, Cadence,” he said as he stroked his strong jaw with his finger. “The name Lowry, it’s English, is it not?”
“I think so,” Cadence nodded, unsure what he was getting to.
“I think I’ve met some Lowrys before,” Draven nodded as his eyes intently watched her. “Do you know anything about your family history?”
“Not really,” Cadence said as she fiddled with her own fingers. Why is he asking me this? she thought as she tried to calm herself down. Draven’s gaze was intimidating and she wasn’t sure if she could sit still much longer while he continued to watch her. Despite his strong glare and intense eyes, she was never truly scared of him. Something about him made her feel strangely safe, despite her own uncertainty.
While Cadence sat and played with the uneven fingernail on her pinky finger, Draven stood up from his desk. Thunder boomed all around them as he walked around the side of his desk and moved behind her chair.
She didn’t know whether to watch him as he moved, but she couldn’t help but keep her eyes straight forward as Draven almost prowled around her. Even with the thunder outside and the rain pounding on the windows, she could hear her own heart in her chest. She could almost feel the heat radiating from Draven and she couldn’t stop a shudder as she thought about him watching her.
Even though she didn’t know the answers, Draven still questioned her. “What school did you go to?”
“Cornell,” she answered, only managing the one word.
“What did you study?” he asked as he sat on the edge of his desk.
“English literature,” Cadence answered, but she couldn’t meet his gaze. “But, I, uh, didn’t finish,” she admitted to him.
“And why’s that?” Draven asked. His eyes narrowed as he waited for her answer.
“I didn’t really think I was getting what I wanted out of it,” she answered honestly. Something about the way he looked at her felt like she was compelled to tell the truth.
“And what was it you wanted out of it?”
“I don’t know,” she admitted. “I went into it because I love reading and I’ve thought about writing, but I don’t know. I think I just thought it would give me more real life experience.”
“And that’s why you left?” Draven asked. He sat so perfectly still as he watched her that it was nearly unsettling, yet she couldn’t find it in her heart to be truly scared.
“That, and stress,” she said, unable to stop herself. “My eyes kept going all weird and I was seeing stuff and wow I shouldn’t tell you this. You’re my boss.”
“It’s fine,” he assured her. “We’ll be working closely together and I want to know about my new assistant.”
“Okay,” she relented. “But it’s not like I went crazy and was actually seeing things or hearing thing, nothing that bad. It’s just like, shadows at the edge of my eyes. Little things, but they got worse when I was in school.”
Draven’s calm veneer was strong, but he couldn’t hide the slight rise of his eyebrow as his interest grew. “And do you still see those shadows, as you call them? Do you see the now?”
“I do still see them,” she nodded. “Even after I left school, they kept getting worse. Actually, this is the first time I haven’t seen them in a while.”
“Well that certainly is something,” Draven noted. “And may I ask, how old are you?”
“Twenty,” she gulped, hoping that her young age wasn’t a mark against her. “But I’ll be twenty-one on November first. What about you?”
The moment the question came out of her mouth, she regretted it. It was stupid and childish and she expected a lecture about disrespect, but she couldn’t stop herself. Even though he was guarded and decidedly dark, there was something about him that drew her in and just as much as he wanted to know about her, she wanted to know about him.
Instead of anger, he let out a low laugh that was closer to a purr than a chuckle.
“Older than twenty, that’s for sure,” he admitted, but offered little more than that. If Cadence had to guess, she’d say he was about thirty, but that did seem awfully young for someone to be running a legal firm. Especially a legal firm that had such high profile clients.
It was the first time that she had seen him smile and there was something about it that tore down her guard. Even just the hint of a grin on his lips made her see that he wasn’t quite so intimidating, at least when he wasn’t trying to be, and suddenly a part of her wanted to get to know him better.
“Now Cadence,” he said, his voice turning almost stern again. “I know I put a lot of pressure o
n you, promoting you like I did.”
“Kind of,” she admitted without thinking. “But I can handle it,” she immediately assured him. She needed the money and didn’t want to risk the raise she was sure to get.
“I know,” he agreed with a glint of something mischievous in his bright blue eyes. “There is definitely something very special about you. I’m very glad you’ve decided to join my firm.”
“Me too,” Cadence said, and she did mean it. Her new boss may have been intimidating, but she couldn’t deny that she liked him. She was even a little attracted to him, but she knew that needed to be kept to herself.
Despite knowing she needed to keep her mouth shut, something compelled her to speak. She almost found herself saying something incredibly stupid, but Ramona buzzed the office just as Cadence opened her mouth to speak.
“Mr. Crane?” she said. “Your next appointment is here.”
“Thank you, Ramona,” he answered as he leaned back on the desk and pressed the button on his phone.
“Should I go?” Cadence asked as she squirmed in her seat.
“Please,” Draven nodded.
Quickly, Cadence rose from her chair and made for the door. She almost made it to the door before he called to her again.
“Oh, and Miss Lowry,” he said.
“Yes?” she answered.
“I do so look forward to speaking with you again.”
A hot blush crept over Cadence’s pale cheeks as she fled the office. Something about his voice and how he said those words sent a shiver down her spine in the best way possible. She barely even noticed that as she left, Jared Stark, a leading actor since the eighties, passed by her in the doorway.
“Oh wow, was that...” she went to say to Ramona, but stopped herself.
The executive secretary gave her a look that said, ‘What did I tell you earlier?’
“Was that... how long I was in the office?” she recovered with and received an approving nod from Ramona in return for her efforts.
“I had it covered,” Ramona smiled. “You did get a phone call though, reception put it through.”
