Chasing Happy (Texas Desires #1)

by Rylie Roberts

  Maybe he could help pick up the pieces when he broke the news to Lara. He made it up to his apartment in record time, grabbed his wallet, and then left his apartment as quickly as he’d come before heading back to the coffee shop. He finger-combed his hair as he jogged across the street. The place was deserted, all except the two employees at the counter. It looked like a hipster paradise. Both men had that gauged ear, weird piercings, long unruly hair thing going on with tattoos up and down their arms. Once he got a better look, he figured they weren’t as young as he’d thought. They were probably close to his age.

  Reed kept his eyes on the man he thought might have been with Kade while the other one greeted him. “What can I get you?” Reed pointed toward the other guy with his back to Reed, working on something unseen.

  “Dude, he wants you.” He looked up and then over to Reed.

  “What can I get you?” There was clear interest in his eyes. The guy came forward and leaned across the counter. Reed supposed the grin could be considered sexy in some circles. Suddenly, Reed wondered about every person’s ethics in this world. The guy had just been hooked up with Kade out on the street. Now, he was giving Reed all the signals that he was available. At least Reed had gotten up from the lunch table and stopped his pursuit when he thought Lara was in a committed relationship. Was everyone this open?

  “The guy you were with on the street. Who is he?”

  “Are you with the force?” Out of all the answers he could have gotten, that was the most odd, and he looked down at his running clothes, wondering why he asked that.

  “No…” he finally answered.

  “What’s it to you, then?” The come-hither look disappeared, and the guy stood to his full height, which matched Reed’s. “Wait, you’re the guy he turned around and looked at. I thought you looked familiar. Nah, we just spend time together. He’s available.”

  “What about his girlfriend?” Reed asked.

  “Who? Wait, are you talking about Lara?” The guy’s look was almost comical.

  “Yeah.” Silence ensued as they eyed one another. Reed pulled out his wallet like he’d expected to do. The guy’s silence wasn’t protectionary, but more of a request for incentive kind of quiet. He dug through his wallet, frustrated his smallest bill was a twenty. He handed it over.

  “They’re high school friends.” Okay. He nodded at that information. High school friends… He had his own set of loyal-to-this-day high school buddies. None were women, but that didn’t really mean anything. Actually, thinking over their brief meeting today, that explained a lot. Except, she wanted him to meet her high school friend? He wondered why. Unexpected, overwhelming relief coursed through his body. He focused on getting as much information as he could to fill in the holes.

  “You’re certain of this? They’re not in a committed relationship?” he asked. And that earned him another round of silence. A little frustrated, he thumbed through his wallet again, pulling out another twenty dollar bill. In his estimation, twenty bucks should answer more than one freaking question.

  “Nah, not at all. Kade’s gay. He’s not like you and I,” the guy said, giving him a wink.

  “How are you and I anything alike?” Reed asked, dumbfounded. “And I’m not paying for that information.”

  “We’re bi, man. We don’t limit our good time.” A fist bump came across the counter in some sort of show of solidarity. He didn’t engage.

  “I’m completely straight.” That caused confusion and the guy eyed Reed up and down. “What? I look gay?”

  “Sort of… Yeah. I mean, totally yes.” The guy crossed his arms over his chest, clearly considering Reed as if it were open for debate.

  “How?” Reed finally asked.

  “I don’t know. You’re really put together well.”

  “And that means gay?” he asked, a little surprised.

  “Kinda. Most of the time around here it does.” Reed just let it go and stayed focused on the topic at hand.

  “Is she seeing anyone?” Of course there was silence. He pulled out another bill. “This is the last twenty I’m giving you. Answer my damn questions.”

  “I don’t really know. I don’t see her with anybody. Kade’s real protective. He’s not great at letting people get too close to her. Something happened to her when she was young. That’s all I know.” He shoved all the money into his front jeans pocket.

  “What happened?”

  “Yeah, about that, I still don’t know from when I just said that’s all I know.” That cocky pierced grin returned. “That’s all I got, dude. But I can’t see you with her. I see you more with him.”

  “I don’t even know what that means. Thanks for the information.” Reed turned to leave, but the guy stopped him again.

  “You aren’t getting coffee?”

  “No.” He pushed through the front doors of the shop and jogged back across the street to his building. The light feeling from his earlier time spent with Lara returned. He was down sixty bucks, because he hadn’t been able to get her out of his mind all day or night. Money well spent as far as he was concerned.

  Now, his plans were back in full force. His goal revived. It was only a matter of time before he reeled her in. He hit the front doors of his building for the second time that night, acknowledging the security guard behind the desk with a wave this time. Relief coursed through him. She hadn’t been unaffected by his handhold at lunch; he’d felt her pulse stutter when he took her fingers in his. Now, he didn’t need to worry about angry boyfriends gunning for him or causing any more of a media nightmare than he usually had.

  Tomorrow was a new day. He had some things to take care of before morning, and he was more than ready to begin this game.

  Chapter 7

  “Good morning, Ms. Hunter.” Lara looked up, startled as the front doors to the high-rise opened before she could push through them. She stopped and looked at the man holding the door open for her. In all the times of coming into this building, she’d never been greeted at the door. It took a second, but she walked through, smiling at the man who nodded back at her.

  “Thank you,” she offered, taking off her sunglasses. What a difference twenty-four hours made. The sunny skies and warming temperatures had made for a much nicer walk to work. The hustle and bustle of the building closed in around her. It reminded her of rush hour with all the people propelling her toward the escalators. The building was so massive she had to remember which grouping to take up to her row of elevators.

  “You’re on this one, Ms. Hunter,” another security guard said, extending a hand to a bank of escalators beside him. She moved over and stepped on. She gave a quick thank-you and stared at him for as long a she could while riding up. It wasn’t until that same scenario played out another time in front of the elevators that Lara realized not everyone was getting the same treatment. That made her inwardly groan. Fear of them worrying about her being a clumsy risk inside their building had her moving to the very back of the elevator, ducking her head a little in embarrassment. This was so not the way she wanted to start this day.

  In such a packed elevator, she had to push and shove her way out when it arrived at her floor. She stumbled off into the receptionist area of Press International. She took a deep breath, exhaled, and forced a neutral smile on her lips. She walked forward to the front desk. The woman’s first glance was a quick assessment before she looked away. Her head did an immediate bob back in Lara’s direction. The same overly bright greeting she’d gotten downstairs appeared on the receptionist’s face. She must have been alerted too.

  Great. Lara wondered if the whole building had been warned about her arrival.

  “Hi, I’m Lara Hunter. This is my first day,” she said. She did her best to ignore her embarrassment.

  “Yes, Ms. Hunter, I’m supposed to make sure you have everything you need. Cooper’s away from the office for a couple hours, but we’ve got everything set to get you started. Let me forward the phones and I can take you back to your office.”


  “I remember the way,” Lara offered.

  “It’s no problem. Besides, it gets me away from my desk.” Lara didn’t point out that it looked like she’d just gotten there with the fresh cup of coffee and plate of warm food on her desk.

  “Good morning, Lara,” someone said, walking behind her. She looked over to say hello, but had never seen the person before. Nor did they stop as they walked across the lobby and into another door.

  “I’m Jenny. It’s nice to meet you. Everyone’s excited about you being here. Can I get you any coffee?” the receptionist asked, coming to stand right in front of her.

  “Is everyone greeted like this when they first start?” she asked, uncertain why everyone was being nice to her. There was a pause before Jenny answered.

  “Well, not everyone, no,” she said, leaving her answer right there as she turned and walked inside the inner workings of the office. Instead of going to the right, like yesterday, Jenny took her to the left.

  “Then why me?” she asked.

  “Good morning, Ms. Hunter,” a well-dressed man said, grinning big as he walked past her. Lara ignored him and waited for Jenny’s answer.

  “I’m not entirely certain. I was just asked to greet you and show you to your new office, which is right here.” Jenny led her inside an office that was roughly four times as big as the one she’d been shown yesterday. The lights came on automatically the minute they walked inside.

  “I’m not sure this is mine.” Lara stopped at the door. The amount of space wasn’t the only difference. The office furniture was brand new and decorated with color-coordinating pictures and plants already in place. She also had a much larger window overlooking downtown Dallas.

  “I’m certain this is yours. We only had one person starting today. You’re the PR executive that’s handling China, correct?”

  “I don’t know about the executive part, but I’m here for Asia,” she answered, now as confused as the receptionist looked.

  “I guess you were hired at the right time. China’s the whole company’s initiative right now. Here’s the Press International company handbook. They also created you a login and password for email. Your desktop computer’s ready to go. You’ll get a laptop later today. I’m supposed to get you settled this morning, then HR’s coming down to meet with you about eight thirty. Want me to show you the break room?”

  “I guess,” she said, taking her purse off her shoulder and finding a random drawer to place it in.

  “We supply some snack foods. Mostly healthy foods, but also light pastries, muffins, things along those lines. Please take what you want. We have fresh brought in every day. Also we have a regular supply of coffee, teas, sodas—again take what you want,” Jenny said, walking two or three doors down from her office. She disappeared through a door and Lara followed her inside a large, spacious sitting room. So not the regular break room she was accustomed too.

  “Wow.” Sofas and plush chairs surrounded the room with several tables placed casually in the middle. Along one wall was a sink and countertop filled with the snacks, fruits…just everything. Soda machines ran along another wall.

  “I know. This is something they really do right around here. Press International gives back to its employees. We even get a Christmas bonus.” Jenny walked to a coffee slash tea bar. “What would you like?”

  “Coffee, I guess.”

  “We have tons of creamers and flavoring,” she said, pointing for Lara to make her selection of creamers as she poured a cup.

  “So you’re the new hire everyone’s talking about?” A nice-looking, very well-dressed young man came forward, sticking out a hand. “I’m Jonathon. I’ll assist you. Sorry I was late this morning. Something about midnight memos will mess with your sleep.”

  “Assist me with what?” she asked, and that caused both Jenny and Jonathon to chuckle. Okay, she didn’t mean it as a joke, but smiled along with them.

  “I’ll take over from here. Thanks for filling in,” he said. Jonathon went straight to the counter and started loading a plate full of various fruits and pastries. “I’m not sure what you like, but wearing a dress like that probably means you don’t eat fatty foods.”

  She looked down at another form-fitted, body conscious dress she’d gotten yesterday and smoothed a hand over her flat tummy. “Oh, I’m a terrible eater. I don’t miss too many meals.”

  He started to leave the break room only to pivot abruptly on his heels, almost like a dance move. His skill at busting such a move without spilling the plate was impressive. “Then you need to try this cream cheese kolache before they’re all gone. They always go quick.”

  He loaded one right on top the other food and grabbed her coffee cup. “You’re obviously one of those naturally good metabolizers. The women around here are going to be so envious about that.”

  He continued carrying her plate and coffee as he took the lead toward her new office. “Jenny tell you about your meeting with HR this morning?”

  “She did. Listen, why did everything change since yesterday?” she asked as Jonathon placed the plate on her desk. He also went to open the window blinds for her.

  “You’re taking on an important job for us,” Johnathon started.

  “But that’s no different than yesterday.” She cut him off, wanting a better answer. Jonathon gave her an indulgent look and she stared straight back at him. After a minute, something changed in his face.

  “All I’m comfortable saying right now is that when Mr. Prescott gets involved, everything changes. My desk is right out front. I support all the executives along this wall. I need to check email. Take a look through this, and I’ll be back when HR gets here.” He was gone, effectively not answering her question at all, except to bring up the overly moody Reed Prescott. Lara took a deep breath and sat at her desk, grabbing one of the kolaches on top. She took a big bite, expecting the taste to be one of those super-processed pastries that came in a box from any grocery store. Instead, she had heaven on her palate. Enough so that it took her mind from wondering why things had changed to just being glad they had. She opened the large file folder and pulled out her login and password combination and the company handbook.

  Three hours later, she’d completed her Human Resources orientation. She had her new employee identification badge pinned to her dress and had met with Cooper, her senior director. Apparently she’d moved up a notch or two on the food chain. She’d also be working with the senior executive team over this division.

  She was still trying hard to navigate her morning buzz, to catch everything being thrown her way. The first order of business was to become familiar with the entire history of the China operation since its inception last year. She had appointments scheduled with every department in the company over the next week to help gain her bearings and get up to speed on the situation. Her work was most definitely cut out for her. It hadn’t taken long for her to understand that her role in Press International would be more of a liaison to help soothe the ruffled feathers of the acquisition. It was a rare day for an American-based company to acquire such a large global conglomerate, as Press International had done in Asia with Jiang Technologies. What no one dared say aloud was that they may have bitten off a little more than they could chew with that company. But there were several whispered urgencies explaining Press International’s parent company was watching this closely. With all the dread used in those words, apparently no one wanted that to happen.

  “These just came for you,” Jonathon said, standing at the door, holding a huge bouquet of cut flowers.

  “They’re gorgeous, but I’m not sure they’re for me,” she said, smiling at the load he carried. The bouquet was designed to impress. They were bright, huge, and most likely very heavy. No way her father could afford anything like that.

  “Lara Hunter,” he said, placing them on the side of her desk. He held out an enclosure card. She couldn’t restrain her smile as she saw her name on the card.

  “Does the company send flowers?�
�� she asked, flipping the sealed card over.

  “Not that I’ve known,” he said.

  “Then they must have come from my roommate,” Lara offered and beamed at the bouquet that took up a good quarter of her desk.

  “Great roommate.”

  “He’s been my best friend since kindergarten.” The computer and Asia files were completely forgotten as the scent of the blooms filled her office. She’d never gotten flowers delivered before.

  “Congratulations,” Jonathon said, leaving her office. She could still feel the giant grin on her face as she finally opened the card. She’d stalled for fear Kade had written something sappy and she might actually start to cry. He absolutely shouldn’t have done this. They certainly didn’t have the money to waste on something so expensive, but she was sure glad he had. She reached for a flower, plucked it out, and brought it to her nose. It smelled incredible.

  As she began to read the card, she started to reach for her purse to grab her cell phone to help mark the importance of this day. He’d be proud to see the picture of them on Facebook. The penmanship and words stopped her. A guy had totally written this card with no signature.

  Enjoy the day. I look forward to seeing you soon.

  She opened the envelope back up and found nothing inside, then flipped the card over again to see no other name but her own on the outside. There was no clue who sent these flowers.

  After a minute more of just being confused, she went in search of Jonathon. He didn’t lie when he said his desk was literally right outside her door.