Page 3 of Claimed By My Ex's Brother

“Sure,” I said.

“Lena, what made you want to come to work here?”

“Well, actually, Mr. Alson, the thing is …”

The blue eyes patiently observed me. His expression didn’t change.

“… Actually, I never intended on working here.”

His eyebrows raised, and for a moment, something like a smile crossed his lips. It was just for a single moment. Then, I watched nervously as his brows knit together.

“Then why,” Alex growled, leaning forwards across the desk, “did you come for an interview?”

“I mean, I always wanted to be a PA for a company like this. You could call it my dream job working in a luxurious hotel such as this.”

“I see. So why haven’t you applied for this job before? Especially since you live in Honolulu.”

I wanted to tell him then and there. I wanted to tell him that I knew his brother, Jared. That we were past lovers. And for a little while, I was sure I’d met the man I was going to marry. I wanted to tell him that this wasn’t really what I wanted, that I wanted to be a model, not a PA, and I didn’t want to waste his time …

But I didn’t say any of that.

“I don’t know if I’m the PA you want,” I began. Sure, I’m good with people and I’ve worked in retail and as an admin before. I know my way around a computer and I’m polite and presentable. Well, I think I am, at least. You can be the judge of that.”

“I certainly like what I see,” said Alex politely, and a warm, rushing feeling of appreciation.

“But I’ve never done this job before. And I know you have high standards.”

“I do,” said Alex. “I didn’t get to be where I am without working to high standards. And do you know what I care about the most, Lena?”

I hung my head, expecting this to become a long string of emotionally charged words being thrown at me for wasting his time. That was all based on the fact of what I had been told about him from others at the temp agency. He was a hard cookie to work for.

“Honesty. You’ve honestly admitted to me your strengths and weaknesses, and I must say, I like that. No doubt you’ve heard that I haven’t been able to get anyone else to fill this position for a very long time. And that’s because eventually I always catch them in a lie.”

I was frozen. Was this some kind of trick? I valued honesty just as much as Alex did. Right now, I was being worse than dishonest.

“With that kind of honesty, Lena, you could go far working forHonolulu Hotels. Let’s start you out tomorrow. If you don’t feel you can keep up—well, no harm done. I don’t exactly have anyone else who can fill in at the desk right now.”

I was shocked. He stood up and shook my hand curtly, and then stepped over to the door with three graceful strides of his long muscular legs, and opened the door. On the way out, I felt his hand rest reassuringly on my shoulder, and my heart finally exploded, pounding and leaving me breathless as I stumbled down the hall and back into the elevator, where I rested against the glass and took deep breaths.

I was working for my ex-boyfriend’s older brother.

And, what’s more, I was hopelessly, inextricably attracted to him.

Chapter Two

Alex

I’vebeenmakingdecisionsevery day of my career, and if there’s one thing I’ve learned, it’s that sometimes the best ones are made on the spur of the moment. Sometimes instinct takes over. And so, even though I knew it made no sense, I’d hired Lena Chambers to work for me. A woman who’d confessed in her interview she’d never done this job before.

And yet, Lena had impressed me. Not just with her good looks—her soft brown hair that rippled over her shoulders, her good looks, tall and trim. It wasn’t her open, angular face with its hazel-colored eyes that had intrigued me. There was something else about her that seemed to impress me about her. She was open-hearted and unpretentious. And I got the feeling she was a hard worker.

But still, I wasn’t just about to hire anyone to work for me without finding out a little about them.

And especially not right now. In its eighth year, Honolulu Hotels Inc. was expanding. I was in the process of acquiring the old Continental Hotel on Kauai. Formerly one of the most popular attractions on the islands, it has fallen into disrepair.And I was just organizing the sale of an apartment complex, I’d been developing in town. I didn’t want to bring someone in from the mainland, even though I knew it would be easier. Instead, I wanted an employee who had their feet on the ground already in Hawaii, who knew the locale and could be relied upon to find their way around.

I didn’t have any appointments left for the rest of the day, so I called for a ride home. But when I left my office, shutting down my computer and shouldering my bag, I went not to the elevator but instead through another door, which led to a white marble staircase. I followed it up to the top floor and out onto the roof.

There, my pilot was busy preparing flight checks on my helicopter. A light EC 120 Eurocopter, it was the perfect way for me to get across the island at short notice without the need for a car. I stepped in and loosened the silk Hermés tie around my throat, folding it neatly and putting it into my pocket while donning a pair of headphones.

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