“Harks?”
I jumped and turned around. Macer was staring at me impatiently.
“Something wrong with the office? It’s probably not as fancy as what you’re used to.”
“No,” I recovered myself quickly. “The office is fine—it’s all fine. I’ll get started familiarizing myself with this and see you tomorrow at the staff meeting.”
She chuckled and took me by the arm, leading me back out into the hall. “Ideally, that’s exactly what I’d like to have you do. Only now—we don’t have the time. This thing came down the pipe a full seven days early, and it’s all hands on deck. I’m afraid you’ll have to get up to speed later—we have a meeting right now.”
“Oh, okay.” I stumbled along behind her, eyes scanning quickly around the office as I tried to get my bearings. “Who’s the meeting with?”
A door opened in front of me and my stomach fell to the floor.
It was Abe Larchwood. The CEO himself.
An unnatural hush fell over the entire floor as he walked out into the hall. His white hair was impeccably styled over a stiff suit that I was sure cost more than my first and second apartments combined. A vintage Rolex poked out beneath his left sleeve, just below a pair of what I swear was Theodore Roosevelt’s personal cufflinks.
“Hello, Patti,” he barked as he passed her.
“Hello, Mr. Larchwood.” He disappeared down the hall, and she turned back to me. “That’s the meeting.” Her voice was still hoarse as hushed as conversations began to pick back up around us. “Now I know you’re kind of being thrown into the middle of this—but are you going to be okay?”
I read through to her real question as easily as if she’d said it aloud. You’re not going to make me look stupid, are you? I smiled with that same mask of confidence and straightened to my full height. “I got this.”
“Good,” she mumbled as she pushed her way inside, “because we’re in for a hell of a ride. But we know you’re the best. It’s why we sent for you.”
I went to follow her when a sudden wave of nerves made me stop. It was the same feeling I had when I got out of the cab and stood on the curb, looking up at the building. Talk about high stakes, this was about as high as it got. What exactly had I gotten myself into?
A hand on my lower back made me start in surprise.
“You going in? Or are you just going to stand here looking?”
Chapter 2
It only took me a second to recognize him. Chestnut curls, deep chocolate eyes, a smile so wicked and tantalizing it had reportedly been banned in several states. It was the same face I’d seen staring back at me from a hundred correspondence dinners and magazines, but even more frequently from the tabloids. Only in person, he was a thousand times more delicious than any picture could suggest.
This was Michael Larchwood. He was the younger son of the legendary Abe Larchwood; second heir to the keys of the castle.
He was also a notorious playboy.
My back stiffened involuntarily beneath his hand, and I pulled myself casually away. “I’m the new girl from California—Jenna Harks. Patti sent me up?”
His eyes did a quick scan of my face, probably wondering about my lack of California tan before he flashed me another million dollar smile. “Perfect, you’re right on time.”
He gestured inside, and I eased past him. But instead of following his hand to the right, I made my way across the room to a seat already flanked by two people—feeling his eyes on my back the entire time. Don’t get me wrong—the opportunity to sit down for a business meeting next to Michael Larchwood? Priceless. And I’d have to be as blind as Katie McGill not to feel some sort of animal magnetism drawing me to that body. The thing is, not only did the company have a zero tolerance policy toward inter-office fraternization, but Michael was well known for flouting those rules. I’d read of at least four women in the last two years getting fired after being seen leaving his apartment, and I was in no way interested in making that list.
That being said...it wasn’t like he was the easiest person to ignore.
He didn’t turn his eyes away even though I’d made my preference clear by sitting on the far side of the room. Instead, he rose to the challenge. The man was shameless. He kept me fixed in a gaze so attentive, that eventually, I had to politely return the seductive smile he was sending my way. I kept it professional and brief. No more than a passing glance as my eyes inadvertently swept his direction. But when a pair of dimples was ready and waiting, I had to actually angle myself around so he wasn’t even in my peripheral line of sight.