Ryan’s assistant Larry was now frankly appraising him from the other end of the table, silently letting Hunter know that he had his vote! The women were also in the palm of his hand, except for Kali Jones. He shouldn’t have allowed himself to murmur those little words of praise when she picked up the pen. Who knew what kind of pull she had as a member of the PR team?
But Hunter couldn’t help himself. He really wanted to tell Kali that she was a bad girl. She had peeked at him through the glass door of the reception room, and then ran away when he saw her.
Kali met his gaze firmly. “I’m not sure about those round balls for benches. They look like they might be uncomfortable to sit on.”
Bad girl, was on the tip of his tongue. He was sure Kali had said it because he had gotten to her.
Selina Stern turned to that page of the proposal, tilting her head at the benches formed by three balls grouped together. “They look like bronze exercise balls. I’ve never seen seating like this before.”
“You said no flat surfaces or people would try to sleep on them,” Hunter reminded her. “And I don’t like those tacky benches with arms or with the ridges built into the seat.” Tami had put ridges on her proposed seating. “The balls contrast with the linear thrust of the sundial. They echo the semi-circle of the plaza itself.”
“But are they comfortable to sit on?” Robert Ryan asked.
“I’ve already made the pattern and it’s very comfortable. It’s at my studio in Bushwick. I couldn’t bring it with me because it definitely wouldn’t fit in the cab!”
Everyone laughed again, as he had intended.
Ryan said, “You certainly went the extra mile on this proposal, Hunter.”
“I want to work with your company, Mr. Ryan. It would be a real honor to design the plaza for this ground-breaking building.” Hunter hesitated, but now was the time to ask. “I am curious, though, how a man like you ended up with a fountain in the first place?”
Ryan let out an exasperated “humph!” The others looked uncomfortable. “Truth be told, in the original plans it was supposed to be part of the cooling system for this building. But that’s outdated technology. SunTech developed a breakthrough in the HVAC system that regenerates the heat to supplement the power of the pumps. We should have scrapped the fountain when we went with the new technology, but there were too many other details we were dealing with.”
Hunter smiled. “Well, I’m glad because then you wouldn’t be getting such a stellar sundial now.”
Ryan was nodding slowly, tapping a pen on the proposal in front of him, looking down the length of the table at the large painting that Hunter had worked on for weeks. Nobody else dared to speak. Ryan was known to run his company like it was a team, but everything Hunter had read about the guy proved that he had the final word on anything important. Seeing that useless fountain every day must really piss him off.
“I like it,” Ryan finally said. “I liked the idea of a sundial from the beginning. But I want to be sure you can sit on these benches. Selina, why don’t you go to Mr. Munro’s studio and give the bench a test run? I want a report back by Monday.”
Selina looked anything but happy at the surprise task, but she said, “Absolutely, Robert. I’ll send everyone a memo on Monday morning.” Turning to Hunter, she said, “We’ll work out the details before you go.”
This was his cue to pack up, which Hunter did, shaking hands with each person who stopped by on their way out of the conference room. Larry, Ryan’s assistant, hung back as if to speak to him, but was called out by Ryan as he left.
Only Selina and the perky but still piqued Kali were left in the end. He made sure Selina had his address to come by his studio that night, even though it was a Friday. He would have agreed to anything if it would land him this job.
“I have a red-eye to catch tonight to Los Angeles, but I can make it if I come by around six,” Selina told him.
When Hunter said good-bye to Selina, she turned to her assistant, “Show Hunter the way to the elevators, Kali.”
Hunter stuck out his hand to Kali, knowing she couldn’t refuse while her boss was standing right there. “Thank you for your help, Kali. I’m told you put together our proposals. I liked the blue cover.”
Kali slowly shook his hand. “Selina picked out the blue one for you.”
He pulled her hand slightly towards him, unbalancing her a bit and bringing her onto her toes. “Thank you, anyway.”
Kali took a tiny step forward to regain her balance, unclasping his hand. He had to let go of her, though he wasn’t ready to, yet. He usually didn’t care much about whether women liked him, maybe because so many did. But he wanted to give Kali a bit of a spanking for pointing out the unusual benches, even if it was a metaphorical spanking.
He followed her through the hall and back out to the reception area where the flirty receptionist leaped up to say good-bye to him. But Hunter wasn’t thinking about her. He was watching Kali disappear behind the frosted glass again. He hoped she would glance back at him, but she didn’t. He was surprised and a little disappointed.
It was too bad she wasn’t coming to his studio tonight with her boss. But it was probably for the best. He should be thinking about this job, not trying to provoke a woman he had just met. But for some reason, Kali Jones stuck in his mind. He could still feel her hand in his, soft but firm. He had a feeling her whole body was soft but firm, just like her hand. A fresh, ripe girl ready for the picking…
He thought he had wanted this job as much as he possibly could before the interview. Now he wanted it even more.
Chapter 3
Kali was hardly through the door of the communal PR office before Debby, the graphic designer, said, “I heard one of the artists is really yummy.”
“He’s hot as hell,” Kali tossed off. “He’ll photograph well if we choose his design.”
Even if Selina hadn’t been busy at her corner desk, Kali wouldn’t have gone into what had happened with Hunter. She and Debby were friendly, but Kali kept her private life strictly separate from work. Debby had no problem airing her most personal matters to Kali or to anyone else within earshot, including Selina. Selina loved to gossip, so she encouraged it. But Kali wasn’t playing that game anymore. She had found out quickly that anything she exposed to Selina would be used against her.
“I wish I’d seen him,” Debby said. “Lindy says he’s super-cute! Are you going to pick him, Selina? It would be nice to have a new guy around here.”
Selina rolled her eyes in exasperation. “I wish it was that easy! Instead I have to go sit on a stupid ball. All my careful planning, covering all the bases… I didn’t expect to have to take a trip to Brooklyn before my flight.”
Debby gave her a puzzled look. Kali tried to clear up the confusion. “You saw the benches for the sundial, didn’t you? Mr. Ryan is afraid they’ll be uncomfortable. So Selina is going over to check them out.”
“Call for a cab to be here at 5:30, Kali,” Selina ordered. “A half hour to get over the bridge should be enough time. I tell you, those balls better work or I’ll break some balls of my own.”
Kali felt a little bad that she might have ruined Hunter’s chances by pointing out the unusual benches. But someone had to. It was one of Selina’s biggest criticisms when they first sorted through the proposals.
Besides, he shouldn’t have been rude. He shouldn’t have called her good girl.
It made her squirm just thinking about it.
For the rest of the afternoon, Kali worked with Selina on plotting out their potential PR strategy if they decided to choose Hunter Munro. Selina had already developed a plan for Tami based on her international appeal, but for Hunter’s hook she focused on his small-town Pennsylvania roots and the local foundry that would cast the sundial. Kali could tell that Selina was now questioning her earlier decision to choose Tami, even though she would never admit it. The meeting at Hunter’s studio would decide his fate.
Kali couldn’t help but feel satisfied k
nowing both Hunter and Selina were being put out because of her. It was totally passive-aggressive, and she knew she shouldn’t feel that way, but there it was. She wished she could point out Selina’s wavering loyalty from Tami to Hunter. But Selina didn’t like being teased or tested, not in any way. She had no sense of humor about herself.
When it came time to pack up to go, Kali was brought up short when Selina grabbed her rolling suitcase and said, “Come on, Kali. The car’s waiting.”
“I’m going with you?”
“Don’t be so stupid! I told you when you ordered the car.” Selina gave her a look. “What’s wrong with you, Kali. Are you sick?”
Yes, Kali wanted to say. I’m sick and tired of you. Now she had to go to Hunter Munro’s studio and act like nothing was wrong. “I’m a little under the weather,” she managed to say.
“Suck it up!” Selina ordered. “I’m not going to Bushwick alone.”
“How am I going to get home?” Kali asked.
“Grab a cab.”
Kali didn’t want to try to explain to an uptown girl like Selina that Brooklyn was not like Manhattan when it came to finding cabs on every corner. Even in her short time in New York City, Kali had learned that confirmed Manhattanites knew very little about the outer boroughs where she lived.
Before Kali could protest or even visit the bathroom to check her hair or freshen her makeup, Selina rushed them both down to the street past the ugly fountain that squatted like a fat, beige troll at the base of their glass building. Kali could almost see the sundial in its place. The bamboo was a little harder to imagine.
As they were whisked over the Williamsburg Bridge in the cool limo-car, Kali felt she was at a real disadvantage. She wished she could put on some lipstick, but Selina was right there and would know she put it on for Hunter. Kali wasn’t going to give her boss that kind of leverage over her. Selina would surely say something uncomfortable in front of Hunter because she never let an opportunity pass by to take a jab at Kali.
But it wasn’t fair—Selina’s makeup was perfect. She had been gone for nearly twenty minutes before she had reappeared to drag Kali away with her. In fact, Selina looked really good. Her frosty blond hair was freshly cut, curving gently at her shoulders and around her cheekbones. She was in her mid-thirties, but she was toned and hard from her daily workout. Men responded to her because of her presence and confidence, but Kali could see the tiny signs of strain in her face. The lines around her eyes, and even worse the wrinkles in her neck. Selina dated a lot, almost constantly, and often told Kali and Debby stories about her dates that were sometimes very funny, and sometimes very cruel. She wasn’t kind to the men who didn’t meet her exacting standards.
Kali let out a sigh. Selina was angling for Hunter.
Kali wasn’t even sure what she was sighing for; this whole thing was such a mess. She wondered if Hunter would bite Selina’s hook in order to clinch the job.
If that’s what Selina wants, then she shouldn’t have brought me along.
Then again, maybe Selina had brought her as protection, to keep things from going too far, too fast. Selina was smart, too smart to risk her professional reputation.
The car took an abrupt left turn, and they drove through a badly pot-holed street, making them bounce into each other on the seat. The sidewalks were lined by squat industrial buildings with loading docks and vents dotting the long brick walls. A lone straggly tree rose up here and there from the sidewalks.
As they pulled up, even Selina sounded a bit doubtful. “Are you sure this is right?” she asked the driver.
He pointed to the number on the side. “Three, two, zero. Like you asked for, Miss.”
It was an old red brick hulk, two floors high with broad factory windows dotting the second floor. The small panes were crisscrossed with wire and some were levered open for ventilation. Several bikes were chained to the wrought iron grate in front, protecting an empty square of dirt. Faint lines of graffiti still showed where the paint had been water-blasted off the bricks.
Selina told the driver to wait and she left her suitcase in the car.
The black steel door had several swirls of fresh spray paint across it. Selina pressed #3 that was marked with H. Munro, and a buzzer sounded to open the door.
A sign on the door to the ground floor space was for a sheet metal fabricator. They had to walk up a battered set of steps to the second floor. Everything was out of scale, with super-high ceilings and wide passageways. It felt so strange that Kali was a bit uneasy.
Whatever happened, she prepared herself to not react, no matter what Selina or Hunter might do. She had gotten back at Hunter for irritating her at the meeting. Now that Selina was trolling for him, she would have to stay far away.
Hunter had his door open waiting for them to emerge from the dim stairwell. “Welcome to my studio. Come on in.”
The space was a raw rectangle with exposed ductwork high above their heads and a wood plank floor with scars and discolorations where the factory equipment had once stood. Behind a folding screen was a small fridge and microwave. The only walls in the room were the cube that enclosed the bathroom in one corner, with a ladder leaning against it leading up to the open space on top.
The loft was filled with art. Splatters of color and odd shapes jutted from every surface. People seemed to be emerging from walls or in the process of sinking in. A giant quarter lay on the floor in one corner, forming a platform for a small table and two chairs. Wood racks held paintings and several were covered over with canvas leaning against the far wall.
Hunter was gesturing to the bench that was sitting in the middle of the empty floor. The three balls were joined at their bulging middles, forming a gentle curve.
“There’s the bench,” Hunter said. “It’s the model that I’ll use to create the pattern for the mold. When I get the job.”
His grin was so infectious that Kali wanted to assure him, but she couldn’t. This was the Selina-show.
“It’s lovely,” Selina said, stroking the bench. Her manicure was perfect, with dramatic red and black square tips. “Will it be translucent like this?”
“That’s the resin covering it. The finished surface will be polished bronze.”
Kali drew closer, admiring the amber-like quality of the resin as the slanting sun caught the edge of the ball.
“Have a seat,” Hunter offered.
Selina made a little show of stepping forward and taking his hand as she sat down. As if she needed help. Kali kept her expression perfectly still.
Selina’s face lit up. “Wow! I’m surprised. It’s really comfortable.” She wiggled around on it. “You wouldn’t think a rounded seat would be this comfortable.”
Hunter sat down on the ball at the other end. “I had to find the perfect size for the human butt. And you can sit in different directions, so it’s not a one-way experience.”
Selina slowly moved her feet, shifting around to face the other way. “That’s a nice touch. We could make renderings that show people can sit in whichever direction will face you away from the sun. That was a concern of ours with a southern-facing plaza.”
“My design works with the sun rather than trying to mask it. I spent days hanging out there while I was coming up with my design. Listening to that lousy fountain!” His grin included them both. “The sun is the main feature of your plaza. I don’t want to hide it with bamboo—I want it to be front and center, twisted in a way that makes people look at the light and interact with the sundial in a bunch of different ways—reading the time, sitting on the benches, looking down on it from the offices above. It will be different from every perspective, so you’ll always connect with it in different ways.”
Kali was ready to give Hunter the job right then, if she could have. Selina looked like she wanted to. Her boss was nodding at him, as if she really liked what she saw. Kali couldn’t blame her—what’s not to like? He was passionate about his work, articulate and engaging. He was as delicious as a man could be, with his
strong hands gesturing as he spoke and his t-shirt hugging the muscles of his chest. Kali wanted to get close so she could smell him again.
Stop thinking that, she ordered herself.
Selina stood up, looking thoughtfully down at Hunter, as if wheels were turning over in her head. As if she was judging him on various different points.
“You like it, don’t you?” Hunter asked her, looking up at her from his own seat on the bench.
Selina smiled at him, really smiled. Not her professional smile that put up a wall between her and other people. Kali’s eyes opened wide in surprise.
“I do,” Selina said softly.
They were looking at each other so long that Kali shifted uncomfortably. If this was going to be that kind of meeting, they could have left her out of it!
Then Hunter stood up, breaking the moment. Selina’s smile was now kind of smug, and she told Kali, “You try it. See what you think.”
Kali went over to the center ball, on the opposite side from where they had sat down. As she turned, she caught Hunter’s eye. He mouthed the word, “Sit.”
Her butt hit the ball as her mouth fell open. What!?
Did he just order me to sit?
His eyes were laughing down at her. He had just ordered her to sit!
Kali popped back up again, her lips tightening in outrage. Selina hadn’t seen anything; she was absorbed in looking around the room at the various pieces of art. From the poses she was striking, she was letting Hunter get a good look at her assets.
Kali didn’t say a word. But she did give Hunter a glare so he would know she didn’t appreciate his jokes.
He laughed. Actually laughed! Which made her even madder.
Good Girl Page 2
