by L. J. Dee
The floating lasted precisely fourteen seconds before Melody cut me back down to size informing me that there was no work to do again. She seemed busy enough and I wondered why she wouldn’t just share. It wasn’t as if I was trying to steal her job. So much for showcasing my talents!
Lucas was out until late afternoon, offering a tight smile and beckoning me into his office the second he strode through the doors, wearing a black suit that seemed to match his mood. The playful nature of the last two days had vanished; he was back to brooding and moody and it jarred in my gut as I stood in front of his desk, watching as he sat without gesturing for me to do the same.
“I need you to accompany me on a trip to New York. I have several meetings and require a PA. We leave tomorrow and we’ll be back in two days,” he said as I stared at him aghast, his face unreadable while mine contorted in shock.
My instant reaction was elation, one that quickly got quashed with a harsh dose of realism, and I wondered why he couldn’t take Melody. In his current mood I decided against asking that question.
“I don’t have a passport,” I stuttered quietly as he looked down at the papers on his desk, sighing as he spoke.
“Make an urgent appointment with the passport office now and go and get one. Meet me at Heathrow at 7.00am. You’ll need business attire and a dress suitable for a black tie dinner,” he said, glancing up at me and smiling briefly.
“I can’t go, Sir,” I said as he put down his pen, slowly bringing his gaze up to meet mine.
“And why not, Miss Evangelista?” he asked and I had no idea whether he was annoyed or amused.
“Overseas travel isn’t part of my job description. Mr Turnbull never asked....” I started, my voice trailing off as he hit me with a long, deep glare, slowly rising and rounding the desk, leaning casually on the edge, crossing his long muscular legs and regarding me closely. Annoyed - definitely annoyed.
“Mr Turnbull is no longer your employer. I am, and your job description just changed. If you would like to resign your position with Hunter Industries, Jessica, that’s entirely your choice, otherwise be at the airport 7.00am sharp,” he said, quirking his eyebrow as if to challenge me.
I couldn’t quit, he knew that. I’d have to speak to Chas and see if she could look after Dex, get my passport and go. I stared at the floor, taking a deep breath before looking back up at him.
“Yes, Sir.”
There was nothing I would rather do than gallivant around the Big Apple with the glorious Lucas Hunter for two days, and I was grateful he was offering me work to do. But I knew this would be nigh on impossible, hoping that a face to face pleading with Chas would be more effective than a garbled telephone call. I rushed to the apartment to pick up my papers for the passport office. It was clear from the look on her face that my little proposition was a no-go.
“We’re too busy at Elite, Jess. Mrs Jones would have to have him overnight and do the school run for three days straight. The Christmas casuals are back at University now and we’re on skeleton staff. You know I would if I could,” she smiled apologetically as I nodded my head. “Anyway, it’s unreasonable to expect you to fly off at a few hours notice. It’s alright for him, but you’re a PA, not an international business magnate,” she said as I sighed deeply and there was more than one reason for my current dark mood.
“What’s the worst that can happen if you say no? It’s not like he’s going to fire you, is it? Tell him to take that sour faced bitch you work with. I’m surprised he didn’t ask her anyway,” she said, popping the kettle on as a small smirk traced its way across her face.
“I wonder why he asked you?” she quipped knowingly as I rolled my eyes. “Maybe he fancies paddling your posterior in Central Park or a spot of whipping at The Waldorf,” she grinned, flashing her eyebrows.
“I wish he did, Chas, but he’s in a foul mood and it looks like I’m just about to piss him off again,” I said, blowing out another deep sigh as I pulled out my phone and made the call.
“Melody, is Lucas there?” I asked as she tutted and I could practically see her eyes rolling. “No he’s unreachable for the rest of the day. His mobile is off too. I think he’s out with Roberta,” she said coolly as I took a deep breath. Unfortunately, the ice queen was my only hope.
“He needs a PA to travel with him to New York tomorrow for two days, leaving at 7.00am from Heathrow. He asked me, but I can’t do it. Something’s come up and I wondered if you could go and I’ll cover your work here,” I said, holding my breath and crossing my fingers.
“Yes,” she gushed excitedly before snapping, “He asked you?” as I tried to stifle my annoyance and bit my tongue. “You’ll need a dress for a dinner event,” I said, sensing she wanted to squeal in delight as I hung up the phone.
I was more than a little fed up and flopped on my bed dreaming of Lucas, yellow taxi rides and missed opportunities, wondering momentarily if he had asked me to finally get me alone. Not that it mattered now, and the thought that he might have just made me feel even worse.
True to form, Melody had left me absolutely no work to do as I arrived in the office at nine, latte in hand, putting my feet up on the desk and pulling out another magazine. I imagined all I’d be doing was fielding calls, and most of them wouldn’t even get through the main reception. Hell would probably freeze over before someone would actually call me. I jumped, spilling boiling hot coffee all over my hand as the door flew open violently, almost knocking it from its hinges and Lucas stormed in followed by a very worried looking Melody.
“My office now,” he barked as I winced in pain at my reddening hand, mopping up the coffee as best I could with the pages of my magazine and a packet of post-it notes which only served to make the whole mess worse. I swallowed hard at the thunderous look on his face, wondering why he wasn’t half way over the Atlantic and suddenly wishing he was.
Angry heat was radiating from my knuckles as I stepped inside his office, putting my hands behind my back, hoping he hadn’t noticed and slightly aggrieved that he’d made me spill my drink – again.
He stood just staring at me for a moment before his face softened slightly. “Have you burned yourself?” he asked as I nodded, moving towards me and taking my hand from behind my back. He held my palm gently, lighting the skin underneath his touch which only added to the immense heat and I winced.
“Follow me,” he ordered, leading me into the bathroom where I’d cowered against the wall, mortifying visuals bombarding my brain as my cheeks flared as red as the skin on my throbbing hand.
He turned on the cold water, gently placing my hand underneath as I tried to pull away against the sting. “Keep it there, Jessica,” he said, holding it firmly in place as I caught his gaze in the mirror, running his finger soothingly across my palm as I forced myself to look away.
His kind thoughtfulness and deft digits were doing nothing to help my composure or alleviate the inappropriate thoughts that were coming more and more frequently, and now was certainly not the time. He switched off the tap, walking back into the office and I grabbed the sink, bracing myself and gearing up for the mother of all bollockings.
The tender facade had indeed been temporary and as I stood before him I gazed at the floor, looking suitably contrite and praying this would be over quickly. He wasn’t furious; this was worse – calm, measured breathing, dark eyes and an unreadable expression. I would rather he’d just ball me out, but I was beginning to realise that was not Lucas Hunters style and the tense silence was excruciating.
I shuffled on the floor, staring at my thumbs, risking a quick glance as he pierced me with that stunning cobalt gaze.
“Has somebody appointed you head of staffing without making me aware?” he asked as I stared at him puzzled, shaking my head. “Then what gave you the impression you could shirk your responsibilities and give Melody permission to leave the UK business and travel to New York for two days?”
I swallowed hard against the steely glare that was completely at odds with the
kind glances we’d shared in the bathroom.
“I’m sorry, Sir. Something came up at home and I just thought...” I said as my voice trailed off. Trying to excuse my behaviour would only make things worse.
“Thought what, Miss Evangelista?” he asked, staring at me intensely as my body ran hot and cold under invasive blue eyes.
“I thought that since I couldn’t go, and you needed a PA, that Melody would be a suitable replacement.”
“Don’t ever presume to know what is or is not suitable for me,” he snapped harshly as I stared at the floor, desperate to escape his gaze. “If I wanted Melody to go, I would have asked Melody to go. Do I strike you as a man who doesn’t know his own mind?” he asked sharply as I shook my head.
“Are you going to fire me?” I asked and suddenly the cool demeanour was gone and he could barely contain his fury.
“For the stunt you pulled this morning, believe me I would like nothing more,” he said, moving across to the intercom. “This is not going to work, Jessica. Melody, get me the employment solicitors on the phone, NOW,” he shouted and I could feel my bottom lip begin to quiver, trying to steady my breathing and push back the hot tears that were pricking at my eyes. I wasn’t sure how much longer I could hold myself together.
“You can go,” he said firmly as I turned on my heels, pulling open the heavy office door and racing past Melody, diving into a vacant boardroom as I saw a familiar mop of blonde hair rounding the corner. I had barely shut the door before the tears came.
I was angry, I was sad, confused by my feelings for Lucas, as a wave of hopelessness rolled over me. I thought the docklands party had been a new start, but my position here was untenable. I couldn’t go on like this. I’d dealt with being ignored and judged and I thought we’d moved on.
The last two nights he’d been charming and full of praise, but I’d been swept away with my overzealous imagination and his attitude now was even harder to bear than before. I didn’t look up as the door opened.
“Jess, what’s the matter?” came the soft voice of Charlie, pulling up a chair beside me and placing a warm comforting hand on my back. I kept my head buried in my hands, shaking it gently from side to side, unwilling to relive my humiliation. Tears were streaming over my stinging knuckles, reminding me of how kind Lucas could be, and wondering why the hell he blew so hot and cold around me. Chas was wrong. There was nothing about me that impressed Lucas Hunter; he’d just made that perfectly clear.
“Jess,” Charlie whispered again as I finally lifted my head, his concerned frown reigniting my tears as he looked at me, bewildered.
“Lucas is really angry with me, Charlie,” I said as he frowned deeply.
“I thought he was in New York,” he said as I sighed, blowing out a long slow breath.
“He’s supposed to be and I was supposed to be going with him, but a relative needed me so I asked Melody to go along instead,” I tried to explain and Charlie looked even more puzzled than he had before.
“Why did he ask you to go with him?”
I shrugged. It was the million dollar question and I didn’t have the answer. “God knows – probably so he could push me out of the plane somewhere over the Atlantic. I don’t want to be here anymore, Charlie, and if I didn’t need the money I’d quit. He really wants to fire me this time.”
“He said that?” Charlie asked as I nodded.
“I was trying to help. I didn’t want to leave him stranded at the airport without a PA and I was going to cover Melody’s duties here,” I said as he smiled kindly.
“Listen, Jess, he’ll be pissed off that the New York meetings have fallen though. Don’t take it to heart. Go and get yourself cleaned up and I’ll find you some work to do if Lucas still isn’t giving you any. You did a fantastic job on the docklands,” he smiled and I followed his advice, washing my face before returning to the office.
“Save it,” I snapped at Melody as she opened her mouth to speak. It wasn’t as if she ever had anything nice to say to me.
We glanced at one another briefly, turning our heads towards Lucas’s office at the raised voices, straining to hear what was being said. They were shouting in turn before Charlie stormed out and Lucas’s gruff voice boomed out over the intercom. “Miss Evangelista, come to my office.”
I took a deep breath and geared myself up for round two, wishing I could dislodge the unshakable soft spot I had for the complex CEO of Hunter Industries.
He was watching me closely as I walked in, beckoning me to sit. “I understand our little exchange upset you,” he said as I nodded, embarrassed by my reaction.
“I know I deserved a telling off and I shouldn’t have done it, but I just thought it seemed like a sensible solution to send Melody. I tried to tell you, but she said you were unreachable, Sir.”
“Why didn’t you say a sick relative needed you?” he asked as I stared at him puzzled.
“I said a relative needed me, not that they were sick,” I clarified as his face softened slightly.
“Thank you for your honesty. What I’d like to establish is why you cried, Miss Evangelista. You’ve admitted that you deserved to be reprimanded, so why?
I swallowed hard against the invasion of those cobalt blues, my insides erupting under the intensity and wondering how he managed to make me permanently edgy and squirming uncomfortably in my seat.
I stayed silent, knowing I couldn’t answer with the truth as he tipped his head, watching me closely. “Is it because you were chastised, or because I was the one to chastise you?” he asked as my cheeks flared and I stared at the floor, betraying my answer before it had even formed properly in my own head.
“I don’t like making you angry, Lucas,” I said quietly, risking a glance at his reaction as his lip curved slightly and I racked my brain for something more profound to say. It wasn’t forthcoming.
“Why is it you seem to be much more open with my brother than you are with me?” he asked curiously, gazing at me intensely. The answer was like a neon sign at the forefront of my thoughts, flashing so wildly and vividly I wondered for a moment if he could actually see it.
‘Because I’m desperate for you to kiss me, hold me and spank me instead of Morgan. Because you’re magnetic and electrify the air every time I see you, and because I wish you’d just fire me, haul me over your desk and fuck me like there was no tomorrow’. I blew out a long slow breath as he watched me closely, looking almost amused but it was hard to tell. I settled on “Because you intimidate me.”
He slowly raised his eyebrows and I knew, mortified, that he wasn’t about to leave it there. “Tell me why,” he said firmly, my head shaking involuntarily before I stopped it, and wishing that flashing neon sign in my skull would fade before it gave me a damn migraine. I needed to be careful here.
I had to get my head in the game.
“Lucas, it was clear from the start that you didn’t want me here. I can’t quit and all I have ever tried to do is show you I deserve a chance. I want to impress you and I thought we’d moved on, but before it was obvious that you don’t want me here again,” I said as he leaned forward, holding me in his gaze.
“Oh I want you here alright, Jessica. But sometimes my desire to chastise you and fire you is somewhat overwhelming. Believe me, you should feel intimidated,” he said, the words so low and deep and dripping with seduction that my breath hitched. If a man had ever fucked with his voice, Lucas Hunter just had and I was practically trembling in my seat under the power in that gaze.
“You need to go now,” he said, his voice suddenly serious as he rose from his desk, walking across to the window, turning his back on me and gazing at the London skyline as I sat there reeling and wondering if ‘being fired’ was a pseudonym for something else. It had certainly sounded that way and Lucas had never behaved like this. For all he was still in control, he looked almost as off kilter as I did.
I stood up, more confused than ever, turning as he called me just before I reached the door. “How’s your hand?” he
asked, smiling gently.
“Better, thank you,” I smiled back, watching for a moment as he shook his head, seemingly amused at something before I made my way back to my desk.
My head was all over the place. I wasn’t over thinking this or reading too much into it, I knew I wasn’t. Lucas Hunter wanted to ‘fire me’ and just like that my brain was in overdrive all over again thinking of all the ways I would like him to do it.
CHAPTER 11
It was afternoon when I received the e-mail, elated that my boss was giving me something to do. He wanted ideas for a party, a club owned by a friend to celebrate its 10th anniversary. I’d done well with the docklands and finally my tenacity was being rewarded. It wasn’t a Hunter Industries event, but a favour and I emailed back, requesting the name of the contact. I needed to get a feel for the place; the venue would determine the theme and my initial proposals, and I was eager to prove my capabilities and get started immediately. With sod all else in my schedule, I decided I would go today.
I grabbed a taxi to the address; a huge mansion house almost an hour outside the city with instructions to meet a man called Zachary. He greeted me at the door, rushing me through the corridors of the stately home into a small room that looked like it had once been a pantry of sorts that had been converted into an office.
It was small with cold brick walls and no windows and seemed an unlikely fit for the tall, broad man who ushered me into a large red velvet chair, smiling broadly. He ran big hands over his shining bald head, offering me a drink as I took a seat. “I’d love a tea,” I smiled as he rang a bell and my gasp was audible as a beautiful petite blonde in an extremely short leather skin tight dress came through hurriedly, nodding as he gave her the order.
I could see the strip of flesh that ran between her stockings and her hem, high heels clattering on the stone floors as she smiled politely and nodded. My gaze followed her out of the room; bewilderment etched on my face as Zachary chuckled, smiling knowingly.
“Did Mr Hunter explain what this place is and what we need?” he asked as I shook my head to another soft laugh.
