"I appreciate that, Crew."
"I'm considering pocketing this." He looks down at the lip balm. "There's not a lot of color to this, is there?"
"There's a selection of lip balms just for men on the back wall." I point to a display that one of the sales staff spent hours perfecting. "Those don't have any color at all and the packaging is more masculine."
"I had a hand in launching that line," he says with a smile. He rolls the lip balm over in his palm. "I had someone else in mind for this one."
"Who?"
Nolan's question raises Crew's left brow. He stares at him before he finally answers. "My niece."
"She's too young for that," Nolan shoots back quickly. "Besides, she'll appreciate your gifts more if you don't have one in your hand every time you see her."
"Good point." Crew nods, setting the lip balm back.
"Thank you again for trusting in my decisions, Crew." I grin.
"You're the expert." He checks his watch. "I'm confident that you're going to curb theft in this store and then we'll move ahead on implementing your changes in all our stores in the city, and eventually nationwide."
It's a huge testament to his belief in me. He can't know how much I value that.
I turn toward Nolan as Crew exits the store. "Is that all? I should get back to work. One of the other guards is due to take their coffee break."
"That can wait. I need you to come up to my office with me." His hand reaches for my elbow. His grip is firm, yet tender. The whisper of something unrelated to discussions about security cameras and scheduled staff breaks is there.
I breathe in the scent of his cologne. Matiz for Men. I recognize the subtle undertone of white musk and cedar. Beneath it is the fragrance of his skin. He smells as good as he looks. "It will only take fifteen minutes, Nolan. I can meet you up there as soon as I'm done."
"You'll come with me now." His touch is more insistent. "It's important, Ellie, and it's not a request."
Which means it's an order.
An order unrelated to his store or the employees who are now milling about, sudden exuberance in their voices as they greet customers. His presence is feeding their movements. Their drive to impress him is obvious.
The slight change in the tempo of his breathing gives him away. As do his fingers as they press into my bare flesh as a female customer stands near us, spellbound by our unspoken exchange.
I knead my hands together. "I'll come."
The irony of the words isn't lost on me, or on him. That familiar flash of triumph in his gaze is quickly replaced with a hunger I haven't seen there before. It's a bold and unapologetic hunger for me.
***
"I'm not a complicated man," he says with a sigh.
Is he serious?
He runs the largest cosmetics company in the United States with a keen eye on global expansion. His family's fortune has punctuated New York's highest society for decades, yet his personal life is incredibly private. I should know. I searched his name online and the results were bone bare.
I glance over my shoulder to where he's standing near his office door. He sent his assistant to get a folder from marketing. She had to ask twice if he was sure he needed to see the hard copy for a lipstick ad that ran in a national magazine three years ago. He insisted, she questioned again and finally she left. That's when he closed the door to his office before he slid his suit jacket from his shoulders.
"You strike me as a very complicated man," I reply honestly.
"Do I now?"
I watch as he meticulously rolls up one sleeve of his dress shirt and then the other. The result is an unobstructed view of his muscular forearms. My eyes flick across his skin before they settle on his face. "You do, yes."
He tugs on the front of his black pants before he lowers himself in the chair next to me. I anticipated him being in the chair behind his desk where he sits all day as he makes decisions that impact the lives of each and every one of his employees, including me. He's close now. Almost too close given the fact that I still have no idea why I'm here.
"You're wrong, Ellie." His gaze travels over the green skirt and white blouse I'm wearing before it lands directly on my face. "My life is simple. I need very few things."