Lucas: The Hunter Brothers Series (8 page)

I
sank even further onto the floor, soaked with coffee and sweat as the footsteps
stopped right outside the bathroom again. I squeezed my eyes shut and waited for
them to walk on. They didn’t and as the door opened slowly I froze completely.

 
“You can come out now, Jessica,” I heard. At
least I thought I did. Oh no, he didn’t really say that did he? I kept my eyes
squeezed shut, cradling my legs in my arms, praying that I’d imagined it and he
wasn’t actually standing there.

“Jessica,”
he said again, this time more firmly as I forced myself to look up, my heart
blasting through my chest, cheeks burning red under his intense gaze and my
legs trembling so badly that I struggled to stand. My feet were iron and I
couldn’t move at first, just staring at him as he burned me with those
magnificent blue eyes. Oh God, he was going to go fucking crazy.

He
walked away and eventually I stumbled out of the bathroom as he sat in his
chair facing me, raking a slow and curious gaze right the way over my shaking
body. “I’m sorry, Sir,” I tried to say, but it came out as little more than a
squeak and I sounded absolutely ridiculous. The tension was unbearable, a heavy
silence lingering over the office as we just stared at one another. I wasn’t
sure if he was angry, his face was utterly unreadable and I swallowed hard as I
eventually broke the gaze and stared at the floor.

“How
did you know I was there?” I managed in a desperate bid just to break the
silence and it was merely a whisper. He might have only just realised, but what
if he’d known all along and said those things to the mysterious Morgan anyway?
I needed to know. My brain was racing. It could be a wind up, done to make me
feel uncomfortable, a punishment for sneaking into his office, but he didn’t
look like he was joking. Nothing about Lucas Hunter right now conveyed humour.

“Well,
let me see. There is coffee all over my floor and you are the only person I
know that has drinks calamities wherever she goes, my bathroom door is always
closed and your handbag is on my counter,” he said as I flushed again.

If
I’d been unable to speak before, now my words, apologies and justifications
came
tumbling out in an unedited stuttering mess. “I’m sorry,
Sir, I wanted to see where I’d be presenting on Monday and I thought you might
want coffee so I practiced with the machine in case...then I heard you and I
thought you’d be mad...I just wanted to make a good impression because so far I
haven’t...I’ve messed up..I’m sorry I didn’t mean to...” my voice trailed off
as I sighed deeply and risked a glance at him.

I
was expecting annoyed and thunderous but I didn’t get it. His eyes were soft as
they gazed into mine, a very small curve at the side of his gorgeous mouth. He
certainly didn’t seem in the least bit embarrassed, not like me. “I’m really
sorry, Sir, are you going to fire me?” I asked gently and his ensuing laughter
took me aback.

“I
think we’ve already established that I won’t be firing you, Jessica,” he said,
obviously referring to the fifty grand pay off he’d owe me if he did.

“So
what
are
you going to do?” I asked as
he rose from his chair, striding over to me and gazing so intently with those
cobalt blues that my body went into involuntary overdrive, my heart still
pounding and there was only one thing I wanted him to do. Jesus, what was wrong
with me? I needed to get my head in the game because right now all I wanted was
him kissing me, holding me and fucking me instead of Morgan.

I
knew it was wrong, that I shouldn’t feel like this. It was absolutely not what
the situation warranted, but it was as if a fierce need was winding through my veins
like poison ivy, strangling my sense and logic while firing my cells to life.

I
could barely breathe with the strength of the connection between us; damp
between my thighs and my nipples straining through the stained mess of coffee
soaked silk. He looked dark and intense, moving even closer as my body arched
instinctively towards him, screaming out for him as I tried to hold my nerve.

 
He lifted his open palm to the side of my
face, not close enough to touch, yet I found myself leaning into it, needing
and relishing the feel of his hand on my hot skin. I closed my eyes, basking
and floating in instant warmth that had my heart racing. I wasn’t thinking and
I needed to...where the hell
was
my brain?

“I
can see what you
want
me to do
Jessica,” he said in a low voice, eyes burning into mine and he was right, but
I had to respond, taking the deepest breath I could manage.

“I
think we’ve already established I’m not a girl who fucks her boss,” I uttered
quickly, forcing myself to take a step back and all but running to grab my bag
and out of the door, hearing Lucas Hunter’s low chuckle still ringing in my
ears as I hit the pavement outside.

What
the hell had just happened?

I
looked a mess and I felt a mess and for the first time in my life I decided not
to share the incident with my sister. She’d have me dragging him up on a sexual
harassment charge, but it wasn’t like that. It was me who was blushing,
trembling and as aroused as hell. There was nothing in his demeanour to suggest
that he was in any way affected by the whole situation, except his eyes. They
had been blazing and then he’d touched me, only he hadn’t. I had touched him,
lured like a magnet by the promise of warmth and the suggestion of more.

He’d
told me he could see what I’d wanted and he was right. My body had utterly
betrayed me and reacted in a way it never had before, and I stood on the
pavement panting for air, flushed, gasping and beyond embarrassed. I walked slowly
down the street, slumping onto a nearby bench, trying to gather my wits and
grateful that the commuters and tourists who were swirling around me weren’t
giving me a second glance. This was London, strange things happened on every
corner.

My
head was spinning and my stomach was in knots, knowing that what had occurred
in that office spelt bad news. I had to do a presentation in front of the man
on Monday which was already taking me so far out of my comfort zone, and that
was before this. I’d have to come to terms with it and it wasn’t as if I could
even blame Lucas.

I
was the one cowering in his bathroom and eavesdropping on his private
conversation. I’d been the one stuttering and spluttering while he stood calmly
looking on. I’d even used the word ‘fuck’ – Oh Holy Mary, mother of God. I
shrank lower into the cold metal bench, cringing as I replayed the words in my
mind. ‘I’m not a girl who fucks her boss’.

What
was I thinking? It wasn’t as if he’d asked me to fuck him, it had just popped
out. That was my fantasy, not his. I was wincing, drowning in humiliation and
paying little attention to the large black car with huge silver wheels that
pulled up alongside me as I stared at the pavement.

“Jessica,
are you okay?” I heard, looking up into the smiling face of Charlie Hunter
who’d stepped out of the car and was regarding me with more than a little
curiosity and I couldn’t help but wonder if he knew.

“Can
I give you a ride somewhere?” he asked as I shook my head violently, but he
wasn’t listening, taking my elbow firmly and guiding me across to the open door
of the car.

“Come
on, let me run you home,” he said kindly, smiling and bewildered, sliding into
the car and patting the seat as I reluctantly slid alongside him, relaxing into
the leather until I saw two Armani clad knees sitting directly opposite me. Oh
God.

He
wasn’t alone and all I wanted was for the ground to open up and swallow me
whole, grabbing for the door handle and about to climb out before Lucas closed
it, effectively trapping me in the car. I couldn’t even look at him. “Please
let me get the tube, it’s too far out of your way,” I said, gazing up as
Charlie laughed.

 
“You don’t even know where we’re going,” he
grinned, but I could hazard a guess that they wouldn’t be going anywhere near
my side of the city.

I
muttered the name of my street quickly to the driver, glancing up to see a
slight smirk on Lucas’s face before turning away quickly and straight into the
gaze of Charlie whose eyes were moving slowly across my blouse.

“What
happened to you?” he asked as I wondered again if Lucas had shared the incident
with his brother, something that could only serve to make the whole thing
entirely more humiliating.

“I
spilled coffee,” I said eventually.

“Shit.
Did it burn you?” he asked as I nodded.

“Are
you hurt?” Lucas asked quickly as I turned to look at him properly for the
first time, floored by the genuine look of concern on his face.

“A
little, mainly just my pride,” I said softly, not referring to the coffee and
staring into the foot well as though it were the most mesmerising thing I’d
ever seen. He looked like he wanted to say something, but stopped. I risked a
glance at Charlie who was looking between us with a puzzled, bemused frown
playing across his brow.

I
stared out of the window as we made our way slowly through Westminster, gazing
at the ancient architecture, steeped in history and watching the tourists with
their cameras trained happily on Big Ben and the Houses of Parliament. It was
easy not to notice the majestic magnificence of this incredible and eclectic
city when you were running for the tube or trying to snatch a lunchtime
sandwich, and it was rare that I was above ground enough to enjoy it this way.

Charlie
and Lucas were involved in a clearly personal conversation and I was grateful
to be left out of it, staring mutely out of the window and trying to regain
some element of composure, but it wasn’t easy.

“Has
the Private Investigator turned anything up on Roman?” Charlie asked as I half
listened in.

“No.
He had a lead suggesting he might be in Bosnia, but he’s loathed to pursue it.
The kinds of people who might have the answers we need are not the types who
like to be asked questions,” Lucas replied.

“What
now?” Charlie asked as Lucas sighed deeply.

“Fuck
knows. I’ve got someone else working on the Special Forces angle. The problem
is, everyone he deals with is like him – dangerous and clandestine. Money
talks, but loyalty is fierce. It’s like trying to crack a stone wall with a
fucking toffee hammer,” he finished before Charlie changed the conversation to
their plans for the weekend.

There
would be dinners and fundraisers, the races and lunch with their father as I
sat quietly, looking as poised as I could possibly manage in my current state.
“What plans do you have for the weekend?” Charlie asked as I shrugged.

“No
plans,” I replied quietly, hoping that would be the end of it. Unfortunately for
me, Lucas had other ideas.

“You’re
twenty one, Jessica. I thought you’d be hitting the clubs and bars,” he smiled
as I shook my head gently, wondering how he knew my age. It was on my resume,
but I was surprised he remembered.

 
“It’s not really my thing,” I said quietly,
turning again to look out of the window, suddenly panicking a mile and a half
away from the apartment. “Here’s good, thank you,” I shouted quickly to the
driver as he pulled the car to a halt and I glanced up to find Lucas frowning
at me.

There
was every chance Dex would be standing at the window, looking out and waving to
me like he always did, and I had no intention of letting the Hunter brothers
know about my son. They’d been judgemental enough over Turnbull and I was
finally getting a chance. If they knew I was pregnant at sixteen they would
write me off completely. I’d had enough stares, callous comments and gossip
over the years to last a lifetime – uncharitable assumptions that held no basis
in fact and those seemed to be Lucas Hunters speciality.

“She
doesn’t live here, Charlie,” I heard as I climbed out quickly and shut the
door, watching the car drive off into the distance and rounding the nearest
corner out of sight. I wasn’t sure how he knew. He’d have my address, but I
couldn’t imagine Lucas being familiar with this area. Now he’d think I was a
liar. Oh well, he’d just have to add it to the rest of my shortcomings. There
was no doubt, as far as he was concerned they were already stacking up.

CHAPTER 7

I
couldn’t shake my anxious mood all weekend. Luckily Chas was just putting it
down to nerves about the presentation and didn’t push the issue. She was out on
Sunday, so I took Dexter down to the park to feed the ducks and spent way too
long obsessing over what to wear tomorrow. I needed to feel confident, to
appear controlled and capable. By the time I’d rummaged through my wardrobe and
Chas’s, I knew I’d cracked it.

Black
power suit, the highest heels my sister owned and a white silk shirt. Mr
Turnbull expected smart, but not suits, and there were no specific rules about
dressing for the office. Tomorrow would be different.

I
had to be Jessica Evangelista, confident events organiser, not Jess the
inexperienced PA in mismatched outfits that no one wanted there. Lucas had
featured in my dreams for the last two nights, but I needed to push those
thoughts away. The ones that had me fantasising that I was Morgan and that
delicious sounding punishment would have been all mine.

I
wasn’t and it wouldn’t, so there was little point in spending any more time
thinking about it.

I
was first up, ahead of the people from the agencies and as Lucas summoned me
into his office smiling broadly, my heart was racing, my stomach erupting in
butterflies and simultaneously churning. It was a strange, intense feeling that
was making me more than a little nauseous. “Good morning, Jessica,” he smiled.

“Good
morning, Sir,” I stuttered, forcing myself to take a deep breath and pushing
the humiliating events of Friday to the back of my mind. There was no one else here
yet as I made my way around to the meeting table.

“Please
take a seat,” he smiled, striding towards the coffee machine as I sat watching
him. He turned to gaze at me and hit me full on with those beautiful eyes and I
swallowed hard. God, this was not going to be easy.

“Can
I get you a drink?” he smiled and I giggled slightly, nervousness getting the
better of me as I remembered the mess I’d made with that damn machine.

“Do
you want me to do it?” I asked, biting my lip as his smile broke into a broad
grin and he was laughing now. My little joke had worked and it eased the
tension.

“No.
I happen to like this suit and the cleaners won’t be in until later,” he chuckled,
gesturing me over. “Come here, I’ll show you how it works.” I made my way
slowly towards him, relaxing slightly and realising he was trying to put me at
ease. I was incredibly grateful for it.

“These
three sections represent the three nozzles,” he pointed out and I rolled my
eyes at my own stupidity. Of course they did. I wished I’d noticed that on
Friday.

“It
looks pretty simple now you’ve said that,” I smiled, looking up at him as he
smiled back and I swallowed hard, realising that we’d held each other’s gaze
for a little too long.

‘Get
your head in the game Jess’ I coached myself. It was too easy for him to
distract me when he looked that way and I couldn’t allow it to happen during
the presentation.

“What
would you like?” he asked as I thought about it. Based on my last two
experiences, drinks with this man seemed to end in nothing but disaster, but
surely I could manage one without destroying my blouse, his shirt or the floor,
show him that I wasn’t a total disaster when it came to liquids.

‘I’m going to spank you’.
His
words rang out in my head as I pushed them away.
‘Concentrate
Jess.’

“White
coffee please,” I smiled as he pressed the button and the hot liquid flowed
seamlessly without incident into the cup below and I couldn’t help but laugh. I
took the cup and moved back to the table to put some distance between us. I was
certain he wasn’t doing it on purpose, but being so close was distracting. I
could feel the heat of his body, a wonderful masculine aroma invading my
nostrils as I drank it in. I was relieved when Charlie showed up moments later,
smiling broadly. For a split second I wondered again if he’d shared the
incident on Friday with his brother.

I
needed to stop obsessing, push it to the back of my mind as I picked up my
memory stick and walked to the plasma, firing it to life.

I
could do this. I was ready.

“Take
a seat, Jess,” Charlie smiled as Lucas glanced at him, looking slightly puzzled
at the familiar way he’d addressed me. I’d been planning to present from the
front, but with only the two of them it seemed unnecessarily formal and would
still my quaking legs, so I sat with the remote control in hand and began.

They
were full of questions, firing queries all the way through. Where would the car
park go? How long would it take to set up? Was it too far out of the city to
appeal to the audience?

I’d
thought of all these objections and answered confidently and decisively. The
site foreman had told me it could be done in a matter of days and would alter
the works to accommodate it if required. The cost would be negligible.

Charlie
was very vocal about how impressed he was and my confidence was soaring. I
wasn’t sure whether he liked the actual idea, but Lucas congratulated me on how
thorough and well thought out the presentation was, and by the time I was
dismissed I felt good.

If
nothing else, I had put to bed how useless they’d thought I was, a fact that
was reinforced when I received an email from Lucas fifteen minutes later asking
me to book his flights and accommodation for a business trip to New York. It
was a test.

I
sought Melody’s advice. “Where does Mr Hunter like to stay when he’s in New
York?” I asked as she glanced across at me, narrowing her eyes.

“Why?”

“He’s
asked me to book a business trip for him,” I said, unable to wipe the smug
little grin from my face as she raised her eyebrows.

“Anywhere
but the Waldorf,” she said firmly, returning to her keyboard, clearly not
happy. I didn’t trust her for one minute and booked the Waldorf.

I
spent the day watching the representatives from the three agencies disappear
into Lucas’s office and come out. All had seemed confident and content when
they left, certain that whatever they’d done had worked well. I felt that way
too, so now it was just a waiting game to see who they’d decide to go with.

I
emailed Lucas with the details of his trip. If I’d been wrong about Melody and he
hated the Waldorf then I was certain he’d let me know about it. From what I’d
witnessed he was far too demanding to settle for less than perfection, and
there was plenty of time to change it. I heard nothing back and presumed that
was a good sign. What a bitch.

She
was out at lunch and the Hunter brothers were still in the office when I took a
call, unsure whether to disturb them or not. There were no instructions either
way and based on what had happened earlier, I couldn’t trust a damn thing Melody
told me anyway. It was nothing like working with Ruby. “Mr Hunter” I said as
Lucas answered on the first ring. “Yes, Jessica.”

“I
have a Mr Hunter on the line for you, Sir.”

“Which
Mr Hunter?” he asked as I explained I’d tried to clarify, but Mr Hunter had simply
said ‘the main one’ which Lucas found amusing and told me to place the call
through.

I
must have been out when Charlie left the office, because when Lucas called me
through at two thirty, he was back at his usual desk and alone. I sat across
from him, smiling gently as he smiled back and I couldn’t contain my curiosity.
“Which Mr Hunter was on the phone, Sir? Just so I’ll know next time he calls,”
I asked, which I thought made my enquiry sound a little more professional and
not just because I was being nosey, which I was.

“My
father,” he smiled as I nodded. Well that made sense.

“We’re
going to run with your idea, Jessica,” he said as I looked at him in stunned
shock.
“Really?”
I squealed, unable to hide my obvious
delight.

“Yes,
it sounds good. Are you certain you can deliver everything you said?” he asked
and I swallowed hard, nodding. I’d made all the enquiries, visited the site and
had reassurances from all the suppliers that it could be done before I’d
presented it. It was a huge undertaking and I’d never done it alone before. I’d
helped Patrick and Chas during my time at Elite, but this was another level
altogether.

And
now was not the time for a crisis of confidence.

“Yes,
Sir, how long do I have?” I asked, hoping it was at least four weeks. “Three
weeks,” he said firmly, raising his eyebrows and eyeing me carefully as I
nodded.

“I
assume you’ll need to work on this full time until then.”

“Day
and night,” I laughed as he smiled at me. God, I hoped three weeks would be
long enough. It wasn’t a normal three weeks either, we had Christmas in the
middle. Shit.

“Very well.
Do what
you need to do, Jessica, and if the site manager needs my approval, ask him to
contact me directly,” he said, passing his card across the table. “If you need
me for anything, I’ll be out of the country, so call me,” he smiled. This was a
development. I knew his email, but up until now, even his contact details had
been withheld from me.

“Thank
you, Mr Hunter,” I smiled, grateful for the opportunity and even more grateful
that he didn’t seem to be holding Friday against me.

I
still couldn’t get those smouldering words out of my mind. ‘
I’m going to spank you’.

Work
was a whirlwind, and grafting day and night was an understatement. I visited
the docklands almost daily and as the site shut down for Christmas I was a
nervous wreck, there was still so much to do.

Lucas
was in New York, Charlie was in Berlin, Melody was ignoring me and this was
sink or swim, fight or flight. Although I felt like I was literally drowning, I
was still punching my way through every obstacle as it came my way and holding
my own. If this was a test, it was a big one. I had never been more grateful
for the support and involvement of my sister, who was currently sitting
opposite me, with samples of each of the costumes that had arrived for the
waiting staff.

“Can
you keep the noise down,” Melody sniffed as Chas pulled out the Geisha outfit,
holding it up against herself and twirling around the office.

“No!”
she turned and smiled in Melody’s direction, receiving a huge scowl in return
and it was all I could do to stifle my giggles.

There
would be five restaurants at the Waterside development and we would be serving
canapés and finger food representing each one. The waiting staff would be
reflecting each theme. Japanese Sushi, French fusion, classic Italian, steak
and Brazilian. I didn’t envy whoever would be wearing this. The very skimpy
Mardi gras style costumes were not dissimilar to the one I’d been sporting when
I first met Lucas, but with a lot more feathers. It also happened to be the one
Chas was holding up when he walked into the office.

“Very
nice,” he grinned as my cheeks involuntarily blazed red and Chas looked at me
puzzled, before turning to Lucas and smiling broadly. She stood to greet him,
confident and poised, completely unfazed by the fact that last time she’d seen
him, she’d called him a dickwad and a total shithead. The girl had some front.

“Good
to see you again, Mr Hunter,” she said, holding out her hand. He took it
without hesitation and shook it firmly before she sat back down and he walked
into his office chuckling gently, beckoning for Melody to follow him.

“Do
you always go bright red when he speaks to you?” she asked me incredulously as
soon as the door shut.

“No”
I half lied.

“You
need to sort that shit out, Jess, it’s ridiculous,” she laughed as I grabbed
the tiny feathered outfit from her hands. “I know your experience of men is
limited, but even so, you’re like a love struck teenager.”

“It
didn’t help that you were holding this up. Did you see the way he looked at me,
Chas?”

It
was true. He’d looked at the outfit and then at me in a momentary glance that
seared right through me, his eyes blazing. I felt sure he was having flashbacks
to the thunderbolt moment when I’d been knelt at his feet in nothing but two
silver triangles and some very tight hot pants. I know I was.

It
was probably just wishful thinking but my sister’s expert opinion would
definitely help.

“There’s
something there,” she grinned and it played on my mind long after she’d left. I
felt it, but Chas knew men. There was a connection, it was strong and it was
undeniable and something that I fantasised about almost non-stop as I lay in
bed at night. The erotic threat he’d given Morgan, whirling round and around in
my brain. I needed to stop. He was my boss. He wasn’t going to fire me and I
wasn’t going to quit, and until either of those things happened my libido was
in limbo.

Frankly,
my libido had been in limbo long enough. I needed to get fired, but I couldn’t.
I also needed to prove myself with the best chance I’d ever been given. For
five years I’d taken the judgements and been written off. I had a real shot at
something now, the opportunity to show everyone that I was capable of so much
more than they’d always believed, and shed the tags I’d been labelled with
since I was sixteen years old. That wouldn’t be achieved by sleeping with Lucas
Hunter, no matter how much I wanted to.