GRACE

Iwas shocked that I was having such a great time at what I would have once considered a boring corporate office. Maybe it was that I was younger than the rest of the people here, or maybe it was that I was with Jack. He was clearly the one in charge, the one whose lead every other broker followed.

From the research department to client management to the mailroom, it was fascinating to see how many people worked to support the brokers. The actual buying and selling of shares didn't make a lot of sense to me yet, but I appreciated how much work surrounded it.

Then Jack sat me down in his office with a book about the industry while he popped into a private meeting. Learning more about the process piqued my interest even more.

After skimming a few chapters, I looked around his massive office. The entire south wall was made of glass, and the feeling of floating over the city was dreamy. From the elegant black lacquered desk to the tasteful shelf full of books and sculptures, it was an office fit for a king.

And Jack was definitely the king of Blue Street Brokerage. From snippets of conversation I'd overheard in the coffee room earlier, it sounded like the mantle was being passed at tomorrow night's retirement party for Dan Turgeon. Dan and Jack had been the two top brokers for years. Now it would just be Jack.

It looked good on him. I don't know if he was aware of how his colleagues said hello in a different tone, as if hoping to catch his eye and a bit of his attention, but I had noticed it.

Now here I was with all of his attention on me. He had been so sweet from the second we walked in this morning. Although there were no public displays of physical affection, he certainly wasn't treating me like a mere intern.

People had given us some odd looks as we ate sandwiches in Jack's office at lunch, as he casually told me all about what they did here. He managed to make every detail sound fascinating, and seemed sad that he had to leave me alone for an hour while he went to another meeting.

Looking toward the interior offices, I caught a glimpse of Jack shaking hands as he left a conference room. His power, his confidence, everything about him was so darn sexy that it sent flutters through me. It wasn't just that he was several inches taller than the other two men. The way he stood was regal.

I was dying for him to touch me again.

Jack finished saying goodbye and strode toward his office, staring directly at me with a smile that made me melt. But as soon as he reached the door he looked down the hall and his smile changed.

Dad had appeared, and although I couldn't hear him, he was likely going on about what an honor it was that Jack had stopped by our house last night. Jack finally managed to extricate himself, but when he opened his office door, Dad noticed me sitting at Jack's desk with his laptop open to the various live stock tickers.

"Grace?"

"Yes," Jack said smoothly. "She's shadowing me today, to learn more about the industry, and the business world in general. If you'll excuse us, we're late for a meeting."

Jack shut the door behind him and came over to sit on his desk in front of me. "You didn't tell your father that you were coming here today?"

"No. I didn’t see him before I left. 7:45, remember?"

He sighed heavily, running a hand through his thick, dark hair. "Dammit. I'd rather not have an office manager who's pissed off at me."

"For taking his daughter to work?"

Jack's eyebrow raised, as he gave me a positively smoldering look. "Grace, you can’t think for one second that I'm simply interested in hiring you as an intern or receptionist."

Leaning back in his chair, I folded my hands over my stomach. "Well, I was hoping that it would turn out to be more. However, I don't think we've finalized the details on that particular project yet."

Leading back a bit further, I lifted a foot as if to place it on the desk, and he grabbed my ankle. "Don't you dare."

His fingertips gently caressed my ankle bone, then slipped halfway up my calf before releasing me.

"To be honest, I'm leery of defining the parameters of this project so soon," he said. "You certainly don't know me well enough to make a decision on whether you should be with me or not."

Me…be with him…officially?

The thought sent waves of joy through my mind and stomach at the same time.

"I might need a bit more information," I said with a smirk. "After all, a girl can't be too careful these days. You might turn out to be some sort of sketchy lowlife who has just rented this big office to impress me."

Jack's chuckle was incredible, then I was rewarded with a rolling deep laugh. It was sexy and warm.

"Tell me, gorgeous, is your brain nice and full of stocks and bonds and options and commodities?"

"Very."