by L. J. Dee
“No.”
“Good. Get your glad rags on. I’ve had one hell of a day, Chas, and we are celebrating,” I laughed, pressing end call as the deep voice reverberated behind me. If I wasn’t mistaken it was laced with more than a little annoyance and I froze.
“That might be a little premature.”
Fuck. I didn’t turn around for long enough to make the whole situation awkward and uncomfortable and the second I did, I wished I hadn’t. ‘No, no,no,no,no’ I screamed inwardly, my cheeks burning and my mouth dropping open as I soaked in the beautiful vision standing directly in front of me. He looked every bit as utterly shocked and stunned as I did before he quickly regained his composure, standing there cool, serious and more than a tad menacing.
“I’m sorry, you startled me,” I muttered quickly, trying to buy a bit of time as we just stood and gazed at each other. He recognised me. I knew that much and I sure as hell recognised him. I didn’t know whether to ignore that fact or acknowledge it, deciding to follow his lead after making the quick assessment that there was only one reason he would be here in this office at six thirty in the evening.
“I’m Jessica,” I smiled. He didn’t smile back and I knew right then that mentioning Friday would be a bad idea.
“I know that now,” he said firmly, holding my gaze. “Lucas Hunter, your new boss.”
My brain went into meltdown as we stared at one another, the intensity of those hypnotic, ruthless eyes just holding me there, igniting my body and scrambling my thoughts in the same way he’d done that night on the decking. Only now he wasn’t smiling, or helpful or friendly.
It didn’t matter to my cells that burst to life with an electrical surge as he held me with that gaze. They didn’t care about friendly, they cared about fucking. I flushed involuntarily at my reaction, and at least this time he wasn’t blatantly gazing at my nipples as they hardened beneath the lace of my bra.
I was waiting for a smile, an acknowledgement, anything to give me a clue how I should react here, but none was forthcoming. If he was as ruffled as I was, he certainly wasn’t showing it. I decided on a handshake, holding mine out towards him as he took it in his firm grip. I pulled back almost instantly. If I hoped that connection was a momentary reaction one Friday night when I was absorbed in one hell of a mortifying moment I was wrong.
His touch electrocuted me now, just as it had then, in an over the top reaction that had plunged our official introduction into unprecedented awkwardness. “I was just collecting my coat,” I mumbled quickly, pulling it against me for comfort, like Dex did with his favourite blanket. I was trying desperately to shield myself from the overwhelming effects of Lucas Hunter, but it wasn’t working.
“To go celebrating, I know, I heard,” he said and there was nothing I could do but nod and get my arse out of there, sweating, breathing heavily and not quite knowing what to think. The blue eyed crush who’d smacked me with an almighty thunderbolt and momentarily stopped my world from spinning was now my boss. Worse still, absolutely everything about his demeanour had screamed that he hated the idea.
“So what are we celebrating?” asked Chas, who had got her glad rags on as I suggested and was cuddled on the couch with Dexter who was also in his. In our case, glad rags equated to our favourite pyjamas and celebrating involved a giant pizza, ice cream and coke with whatever film Dex chose.
“I’m not sure we are now,” I shouted from the bedroom, pulling on the comforting spotty fleece before I filled her in on the events of the day, except the last bit. This I would have to handle carefully I thought as I cuddled up to Dex.
“You know that guy from the party.”
“Blue eyed thunderbolt?” she asked as I nodded.
“Yeah, well I found out his name,” I said as she turned an almighty grin on me.
“Good girl, what is it?”
“Lucas Hunter,” I said, biting my lip as she stared at me wide eyed. Her slack jaw all but hit the floor before she burst out laughing, almost swearing, but remembering the little five year old squashed between us, just in time.
“No way,” she squealed. “Jeez, Jess, he is like the ultimate unobtainable. In fact, strike that, he is one step beyond; that man is untouchable,” she laughed.
“How do you mean, Chas?” I asked as Dex hopped off the couch and announced he was, “Going for a poop”.
This was a new description in Chas’s dictionary of man-speak and I had never heard her use it before in relation to anyone. “Well, take Brad Johnson. He’s unobtainable because he doesn’t do girlfriends. He’s a bed-hopping arsehole, but if you’ve got a nice face and a decent rack, you can always get near enough to strike up a conversation if you’re savvy. Lucas Hunter is untouchable. You can’t get close enough to wiggle your tits in his face. It’s like he’s surrounded by some kind of repellent force field,” she laughed and I knew at some point she must have tried.
“So you don’t think he’s a bed-hopping A-hole?” I asked, still confused.
“I’m certain he is. He’s a six foot three, man shaped wall of testosterone. There is no way he’s going without, but he isn’t so obvious about it from what I’ve seen. He oozes confidence, but he’s not one of those arrogant guys who goes around showing how much pussy he can pull. Lucas Hunter doesn’t need to. You just kind of know. I didn’t think you went for men like that,” she said and she was utterly incredulous.
“I don’t, I mean I didn’t even know he was, Chas,” I shrugged, still unable to believe quite what had happened today.
“So how did you get his name?” she asked, still stunned.
“It just so happens that I met my new boss before I left tonight,” I said, taking a deep breath as she stared at me. Dex returned, wriggling back up on the couch to resume his favourite position, snuggled between us.
“Don’t tell me, Jess... not Lucas Hunter?” She couldn’t stop the laughter that had almost bent her double. ‘No fucking way’ she mouthed mutely over Dexter’s head when she’d finally collected herself.
“And he isn’t happy about it, Chas, he’s really hacked off,” I said quietly, my smile fading instantly.
“Tough. You’ve kept your job and that’s the main thing. You know the rules though, Sis, no nookie with the boss,” she laughed as I rolled my eyes.
“No chance of that after the way he looked at me today,” I sighed and I could tell she was still in shock.
“What’s nookie?” asked Dex, looking up at me. “Chocolate cheesecake. Go and pick a film, Sweetheart,” I replied, narrowing my eyes at Chas in a ‘be careful around my kid’ chastisement. She took no notice and was clearly still gobsmacked as we ordered a pizza and settled down to watch Toy Story.
CHAPTER 4
I smiled at the girl from yesterday who’d made herself totally at home at Ruby’s desk, and by at home, I mean she had cleared it of everything except her computer monitor and got herself one of those ergonomic chairs. She didn’t smile back, glancing up briefly and nodding, before returning to tap perfectly manicured hands on her keyboard.
‘Alright then’ I thought, instantly realising that Lucas Hunter wasn’t the only one who didn’t want me here. I persevered. There were three of us on this floor and life would be very uncomfortable for me if things continued like this. “I’m Jess,” I said. Nothing.
I wasn’t having this. “What’s your name?” I asked as she looked up, raising her perfectly plucked eyebrows and releasing a very deep sigh.
“Melody McClean, Lucas Hunter’s primary personal assistant and extremely busy if you’ll excuse me,” she replied coolly, returning her long fingers to her efficient tapping.
Melody McClean, absolute bitch and uptight ice queen I decided right then, switching on my computer to discover everything had been wiped completely. There was absolutely nothing left. It was all gone; files, diary, forthcoming appointments...everything. What the hell was going on?
“There’s nothing on my computer, Melody,” I said, realising that she’d be annoyed with
my little interruption.
“I know,” she replied without looking up. “When there is work for you to do, me or Mr Hunter will let you know.” I shook my head and went to make myself a cup of tea, calling Chas from the kitchen and explaining what had happened.
“It looks like they want to freeze you out. Speak to HR and find out what’s so special about your contract, and if they want you to do nothing, do it. You’re still getting paid, Sis,” she said before she went, altogether failing to lift my spirits.
I couldn’t get hold of anyone from HR. They had been really affected and were being merged and relocated to Hunter Industries head office and it was chaos. The woman on the phone tried to explain, but I didn’t really understand, putting down the receiver and silently biding my time, waiting for instructions that never came. I pulled out my copy and went through it again, unable to find anything remotely unusual. It was as I thought. They were just standard employment terms. Except for the extra day’s holiday that Mr Turnbull had added yesterday, which wasn’t in this old copy, I could see absolutely nothing that made it as ‘special’ as Charlie Hunter had indicated.
Minutes turned to hours, hours turned to days, and I still hadn’t been given anything to do. The ice queen was on the phone to Lucas Hunter all the time, and from what I could make out he was pretty demanding. The phone calls were short and there was never any small talk. I didn’t know what they spoke about. All I ever heard from this end was “Yes, Sir” before she ended the call. Weird. It was nothing like working for Mr Turnbull and I was beginning to think it might have been better if they’d let me go.
By Thursday afternoon, after days of twiddling my thumbs I challenged Little Miss Manicure again. “Melody, I need something to do, please, anything,” I all but begged as she stared at me in a way that could only be described as hostile.
“When Mr Hunter has something he needs you to do, believe me, you will know about it.” I called Ruby the second she left for lunch and she didn’t understand it either.
“I thought they’d have let you go. What they’re doing makes no sense. You’ll have to ask Mr Hunter,” was the best advice she could offer. I would when I saw him, but right now he was as absent as my workload.
At a quarter to four on Thursday afternoon he finally turned up. I quickly shut down the game of electronic patience I’d discovered yesterday. It seemed pretty apt.
He said something quietly to Melody that I couldn’t make out before looking over at me. I took a deep breath and tried not to get sucked into the vortex of those irises or I’d never hold it together. “Can I have a word please, Mr Hunter?” I asked as confidently as I could manage, rising as he nodded and held the door open for me, beckoning me into his office.
He took a seat in the huge leather chair at his desk before gesturing for me to sit. Despite the fact that he’d ignored me for almost a week, I couldn’t deny the pounding of my heart and the fact that I thought he looked absolutely gorgeous, but I needed to get my head on this. The bottom line was; I was pissed off.
“I’m not sure what you want me to do, Sir. Melody seems to be covering all your PA duties,” I said as he watched me closely, frowning slightly.
“Yes, Jessica. I have one assistant who knows how I like things done. Despite the fact that I’m responsible for running several companies, I find that is sufficient for me, unlike Mr Turnbull,” he said, sitting back in his chair and raising his eyebrows. I felt immediately defensive on behalf of my previous employer and wondered where the hell that left me going forward.
“Ruby was Mr Turnbull’s PA. I was taken on in advance of her retirement so I could learn the job and gain experience,” I replied, sitting up a little straighter and trying to justify my place on the team. He continued to stare at me with those amazing blue eyes as he reached into a drawer, pulling out what looked like my CV and placing it on the desk in front of us.
“It looks like you need to gain experience of everything, Jessica. I can’t see anything in your resume that would qualify you to act as PA to the CEO of an International organisation,” he said firmly as my cheeks flushed. He was right of course, but unless I wanted to pack my bags and leave now, I needed to fight my case.
“No you’re right, but I do have skills now. I’ve attended training, completed a number of courses and gained experience on the job. I’m a fast learner and I’m willing to put in the hours, whatever it takes. You might want to try me.” I risked a smile as the corner of his mouth curved slightly before it set again in its impassive, unreadable line.
“Very well. I have a meeting scheduled tomorrow at one o’ clock with Charlie and the business heads. Please attend and take the minutes. I’ll need them for tomorrow evening,” he said as my heart sank. Why did it have to be on Friday? Bloody typical.
“I’m sorry, I have a half day holiday booked for tomorrow afternoon,” I said as he quirked an eyebrow at me. “If I could change it I would, but I can’t, Sir,” I uttered regretfully as he nodded curtly.
“That will be all, Jessica,” he said brusquely as I left his office, totally deflated and no better off than I had been before. At least he’d offered me a chance, but there was no way I could work tomorrow afternoon. I slumped back in my chair and glanced across at Melody who was silently smirking to herself. Bitch.
He was in the office again on Friday morning. Laid in bed last night an idea had come to me, so I knocked on his office door, entering on his command. “I thought you could use this for your meeting, Sir, and I’ll type the minutes from the recording,” I said, handing him the device I’d been using to improve my typing and dictation skills as part of my training.
“Thank you. Melody will type the minutes,” he said, slowly looking up at me. As our gazes locked it was so intense I felt like could see right through me, read my thoughts. It unnerved me. Recording the meeting hadn’t been the only thought featuring Lucas Hunter that I’d had in my bed last night, feeling my cheeks heat under that burning gaze.
In total contrast, I had absolutely no idea what the man was thinking. He was impossible to read and said nothing else until I was almost at the door. “Enjoy your afternoon off, Jessica,” he smiled gently before returning to his work and I returned to twiddling my thumbs.
I considered offering him a tea or a coffee halfway through the morning, but I’d noticed maintenance taking one of those huge, sleek machines into his office. He wasn’t the kind of man you just disturbed on a whim and I decided to sit tight, assuming if he wanted one that he’d let me know. I glanced continually over to his office, despite the fact that the shades were drawn. It was like a draw, a strange magnetic force, and I began to realise that working under my blue-eyed thunderbolt could have its drawbacks.
Melody was out and at ten thirty five, Lucas’s fearsome looking eleven-o’-clock appointment entered the office. Within five minutes he was pacing the floor impatiently, stopping in front of my desk, eyes so dark they were almost black as he stared at me.
“How long will he be?” he asked in a powerful deep voice laced with a thick Russian accent, so physically foreboding that I could feel myself shrinking into my seat.
There was a huge tattoo on the side of his neck, a black spider that seemed to crawl menacingly from the collar of his shirt and I shuddered involuntarily. The smirk on his face betrayed the fact that he knew what I was thinking and I imagined it was a reaction he was used to. He looked me over, his gaze so penetrating it actually felt like he was mentally undressing me and deciding what he’d do with me. He was just staring and it was making me nervous, so much so that I even hoped Melody would hurry back.
He wasn’t the kind of man you wanted to be alone with, although I was certain that she would sacrifice me to save herself, if this turned ugly. This man was so menacing that it didn’t seem beyond the realms of possibility right now.
“I understood your appointment was at eleven, Sir. Mr Hunter is currently busy,” I said, refraining from pointing out that he was actually twenty minutes early. He did
n’t move.
“I didn’t ask you that. I asked how long he would be,” he snapped icily as my eyes flew open in shock. I tried to recover quickly, deciding that if he was going to be rude, I would make it my business to point out the obvious.
I stared at the clock for a second. “Your appointment is at eleven, so I imagine he will be nineteen minutes. He may be longer. He often runs late, but I have never known him to be early,” I said, swallowing hard at the dangerous look that flashed across his dark, intimidating features before he leant over my desk and started to laugh.
My heart was pounding. This man was seriously strange. “Would you care for a drink while you wait?” I asked, knowing I shouldn’t leave him alone in the office, but equally needing to escape that penetrating stare.
“No.” He walked back to the couch and settled into the seat, pulling out his phone. “Get up here. I need someone to amuse me for twenty minutes,” he spoke coldly into the receiver as I tried to ignore his presence, pretending to type something, but it was impossible.
I sighed in audible relief as Melody walked in, taking two steps forward before freezing in her tracks, looking momentarily terrified before a small smile rested on her bright red lips.
“Dimitri” she gasped as he stood, holding her shoulders, kissing her cheeks and I couldn’t decide from her body language whether or not she was comfortable with what was happening. His strong muscular arms began to roam across her body in a way that was utterly inappropriate and I couldn’t tear my gaze away. She obviously knew him, intimately from the looks of things.
She was frozen, transfixed as though she were in some kind of trance. “You missed me, Melody,” he said, a statement not a question and she hadn’t taken her eyes from the Russian giant who was flooding me with a strange anxiety. He was captivating to watch, and I couldn’t stifle my gasp as a petite young girl wearing way too much make-up and a barely-there dress walked nervously through the doors.
