Page 9 of Mr Monday
I did my best to ignore him until he saw me into the limo. It wasn’t until I was safely locked behind my apartment door that I realized I hadn’t given my address to the driver. Mr Gorgeous hadn’t said a word either. This was all becoming very intriguing and unnerving. Perhaps they’d researched me just as well as I’d researched them. That was a very unsettling thought indeed.
The next morning I stretched luxuriously. I’d treated myself to a fairy-tale bed, kingsize; my mom had given me it before heading back to England and I’d splurged on pillows, high-thread-count sheets and a duvet that pluffed up around me like a cloud. I sighed, enjoying the sense of well-being that filled me. I couldn’t quite figure out why I felt so good and tried to recall any dreams that may have been responsible. Nothing. I’d been dead to the world and glad of my loud alarm clock when it pulled me up through the deep layers of sleep. I turned to look out of the window and smiled: it was going to be a glorious day. The sun shone bright, casting golden rays over my bed, even at this god-awful hour. Six o’clock was a criminal time to wake up. I blinked and sat bolt upright. Today was the day. My first day at Diamond Enterprises. The first day of my infiltration into the organization through this bizarre interview process.
I was jazzed and rolled out of bed, curled my toes into the thick rug on the worn wooden floor. My apartment was an older walk-up. I was lucky to have found it; even with its cranky radiator heating and cramped space, I loved it. It was my private place. I did a few yoga stretches, thinking about the day ahead, and couldn’t stop my excitement growing. Then I padded to the bathroom and took a shower to clear the cobwebs. I wasn’t a 6 a.m. kind of girl, and I needed to get the fog out of my sluggish brain.
I saw my Kate Spade bag, which I’d left last night on my antique dresser, and smiled. It reminded me of Mr Gorgeous.
My heart tumbled a bit when I thought of him, and I had to catch my breath. That man was sex on a stick. I’m sure, under normal circumstances, he would have been the first thing on my mind when I woke up; instead, I was already consumed by thoughts of Diamond. Even so, a throbbing warmth started up between my thighs, shocking the hell out of me.
I played the events of the previous night over and over in my head as I got ready: the secretiveness, the deception they used to get me to the interview, Mr King justifying it – and, for a brief moment, I had been excited about it, thinking that perhaps his reasoning had made sense . . . at first. Now I could see the flaws – or was I just jaded? I had accepted his offer. So that meant I was committed. I was a woman of my word. Yet now, in the light of day, I was having second thoughts.
While I’d been on board with the whole CEO idea at the time, now I wasn’t so sure. All the hard work I’d put into preparing for my interview for the job as executive assistant hadn’t resulted in what I thought it would. It had opened the door to so much more. I knew I could do the assistant job without any difficulty. But could I handle the position of CEO? That was huge. So much responsibility.
Plus, was Diamond the kind of company I wanted to be CEO of?CEO!But it was a company with questionable leadership. With a lying executive team that went right up to the owner. I reminded myself that this was why I was doing this. To knock down that ivory tower and expose the lies. My original goal of becoming an executive assistant would’ve given me access to the documents I wanted, but being CEO would open up a whole new world of possibilities. I wiped the steam from the mirror and combed my fingers through my hair. I looked at my reflection and tried to decide if I’d be able to continue to look at myself in the mirror without shame if I took the job as CEO because, no matter how you looked at it, I was being deceitful as well, albeit for justifiable reasons of revenge. On a positive note, I would have the power to change the company. Make it better, fire all the lying executives and bring the company out into the light.
But if it all went wrong, then what? Plus, if anyone ever found out who I was I would be out on my ear, just like my dad. It would all be over.
I shook my head. I was having a difficult time digesting last night. It was surreal.
I finished getting ready and went from my tiny bathroom, grabbing my purse on the way, to my slightly larger living-room-and-kitchen combination. It depressed me for the first since I’d moved in here five years ago. My apartment would have fitted into the foyer of Mr King’s home.
As I left the apartment, I paused and turned back to gaze around the little place I called home. The shabby-chic decor, filled with little treasures I’d found at flea markets and garage sales and then refurbished myself, was where my heart lay. Absolutely nothing like that big mansion on the cliff. But I swallowed the lump in my throat and pushed down my self-doubt. Hell, I knew I could do this! The flutter of excitement in my belly made me nervous. I was okay with that. After all, I’d passed the first test even without any inkling I was being tested.
Would participating in the next tests mean I would have the chance to see Mr Gorgeous again? Hopefully, at least six more times.God bless the small miracles if it did!He would be a temptation, and I knew he would be so hard to resist. It would be way too easy to get distracted or, worse, fall for him. My life was too complicated at the moment for there to be room for a man.
I sighed and pulled my door shut carefully, locked it, then walked down the two flights – that’s right, no elevator – and out into the early-morning sun. It was going to be a hot day. I felt the humidity already and again I was glad of my short haircut rather than my long red curls.
I stood on my pretty tree-lined street and looked up and down. It wasn’t long until a car pulled up alongside the curb. I checked my watch. Dead on 7 a.m. Part of me hadn’t been entirely sure a car would pick me up. Perhaps the night before had been an elaborate joke to amuse a dying old man. But there it was. Long, sleek and shiny. I shuffled backward on the sidewalk, putting distance between me and the car which would lead me to a destiny I’d been thinking about since I’d woken up. No matter how hard I tried, there was no way I could avoid this next step. Could I?
The back passenger door swung open, and I held my breath. Was Mr King in the back? No, that wasn’t likely, given how frail he’d been last night. So who was it? I saw the outline of a man’s leg. A well-muscled thigh clad in black slacks and feet encased in shiny shoes. I immediately knew who it was. I didn’t have to see his face to know I was lusting for this man. The mysterious Mr Gorgeous. He stepped out and stood tall in front of me. For the first time, I saw him in the brilliant light of day. He was shiver-worthy. I swallowed and blinked, momentarily at a loss as to what to say. I knew I was presentable and ready for the first day of the interview process, but now I wish I’d given my appearance a little more attention. He didn’t seem to notice anything, though. His eyes fixed on mine and it was as if he had reached across the space between us and touched me. My heart pounded like I’d just done a high-intensity workout, and I couldn’t catch my breath. Shit, who needed the gym with this sexy devil around to make your heart pound as much as it would after a cardio workout?
Here he was. That made happy. Right now, I didn’t want to think about tomorrow, or if there would even be a tomorrow. I would have to pass today’s test for that. I didn’t quite know what to do, seeing him standing there in all his wonderful maleness. He draped his wrist over the top of the door and smiled. I melted. He spoke, and it was hard to focus; I was too caught up in my lustful haze to hear him properly. He didn’t look away from me and raised his eyebrows.
‘I’m sorry. Pardon? I-I didn’t—’ I tipped my head slightly and let myself get lost in his blue eyes. No point in telling him I hadn’t heard a word he’d said because he was just too damn gorgeous to be legal. But I think he knew when he smiled and spoke again.
‘Good morning, Ms Canyon.’ His voice was just as silky and seductive as it had been last night.
I was doomed.
‘Good morning.’ That’s about all I could muster. I tried not to croak like a toad. My body was betraying me; my muscles trembled and my blood pumped slowly, sensually. This was ridiculous, my reaction to him.
‘Are you ready?’ He smiled more widely and my heart faltered, and tingles spread throughout my body, only to centre low in my belly in a delightful flush. I drew in a soft breath and enjoyed the feeling.
‘Well . . .’ What could I say? I needed to sound as confident as possible, and the last thing I wanted was to show him how much he aroused me. I needed to summon the confidence I’d had the night before. It was difficult this morning – you know, waking up in the light of day, when everything seems so different? Words tumbled out in a hot mess. ‘I’m not sure. I’ve had time to sleep on it, and I have questions. The tests, what are they?’
‘I would be disappointed if you didn’t have questions. As would Mr King. But time is moving on, and there is traffic. So, please, can we be on our way?’
He said exactly the right words, reassuring me, even if he didn’t know he was doing it. I adjusted the strap of my purse on my shoulder.
‘You’re rushing me.’
‘No, I’m not. This was the designated time. You were waiting, and I am here. On time.’ He looked at the watch on his wrist. I craned my neck to see it; it looked like a Rolex. ‘Your first meeting is at eight thirty. If we don’t get moving, we’ll be stuck in traffic.’
I didn’t like him telling me what I had to do. Even if that’s what he had been doing since we first met, last night.
‘Is this what it’s going to be like, then? You giving me instructions? Telling me what I need to be doing and when? I thought CEOs ran their own schedule.’ I tried to speak in a teasing tone but swallowed nervously when he looked at me from under his dark brows. That damned scar didn’t look so intriguing right now. It looked rather menacing. I held my breath, wondering if I might have been a tad too cheeky.
‘You’re not CEO yet. Remember that,’ he informed me. It was something I was well aware of. ‘And if you complete all the tests and become CEO, you will have an executive assistant who will be running your schedule for you.’
