Page 11 of Office Intrigue (Office Intrigue Duet 1)
Now it was time for a mani-pedi and then off to have a few drinks with Kristen. I was sure she’d understand that I had to make it an early night.
After all, I needed to get my beauty sleep.
Tomorrow was going to be a big day.
•
I met Kristen at a bar close to my apartment. It was a little hole in the wall that we came to every now and then. Nothing fancy, but it was cozy and the owner/bartender was nice.
“Where’s Tim?” I glanced around, noticing her boyfriend was absent.
Kristen grinned. “He had something he needed to work on.”
“Well, that means we can dish about boys.”
“Boys?” Her dark eyebrows rose.
“It appears you’ve been holding out on me,” I prompted when Jerry delivered our drinks.
I went with my usual Sex on the Beach while Kristen had a glass of red wine. Granted, from time to time, I mixed it up and asked for a Blow Job, but only because I knew it embarrassed Jerry.
“Holding out on you?” She had a serious twinkle in her eye. One that told me she knew exactly what I was referring to.
I took a sip of my drink. “So, I show up at this fancy office building downtown only to find out no one was there. I was just about to start searching when four ridiculously hot guys stepped off the elevator. Imagine my surprise when I realized they worked there.”
Her expression didn’t change.
“You didn’t happen to mention that you were friends with four of the hottest men in town.”
Kristen chuckled. “I wouldn’t necessarily call us friends.”
“No?”
“We just…run in the same circles.”
“What does that even mean?” I probed, leaning in closer. “Are you members of some sort of club or something?”
“Or something.”
I huffed. “You’re always so tight-lipped.” I raised my hand to the bartender. “Hey, Jer. Could you bring her the bottle of wine and a straw? There’s some information I need and I think I’ll have to ply her with alcohol first.”
Of course, Jerry didn’t hear me because he was at the far end of the bar, but I got my point across.
“They obviously knew that I knew you,” I admitted. “Landon asked me specifically how.”
Kristen smiled and she looked like an angel. So sweet, so innocent.
Yeah, right.
“I told him about you,” she finally admitted. “He mentioned he had a position open at his office and I immediately thought of you.”
“Me? Why me?”
She lifted her glass to her lips. “Because you’re my friend and you’re looking for a job.” She smiled. “I told them you’d be a good fit for the firm.”
“Well, I sure hope you’re right.” I stirred my drink with the skinny straw.
“I am. You’ll do fine. Plus, I happen to know they liked you.”
My head jerked toward her. “How do you know that?”
“I talked to Landon.”
Holy crap. So, she was more than merely an acquaintance if she had already spoken with him.
“What? Did he call you and tell you about it?”
Kristen shook her head. “Not exactly. We had…a meeting this afternoon.”
I chuckled. “Right. For this club you’re in?”
“Actually, yes.”
I wasn’t sure if I should believe her. I couldn’t tell if she was just messing with me or not. I decided not to goad her into more details because, truthfully, I didn’t want to know. They had offered me the position and now it was my turn to prove myself. Kristen might’ve put in a good word, but I wanted them to keep me based on merit, not loyalty to one of their friends.
“Fine. Whatever.” I giggled. “But they are hot. All four of them. I’m not sure how I’m going to keep from spontaneously combusting when they’re around.”
“Oh, I’m sure you’ll figure out how to…adapt.”
Maybe.
Hopefully.
I guess we’d soon find out.
Five
I WOULD ADMIT, I WAS proud of myself.
It was 7:25 a.m. when I stepped out of the elevator the following morning. My first day on the job and I had arrived five minutes early. Not too shabby. Hopefully, that would go in the extra minutes bank and offset the day I came in five minutes late, because, let’s face it, it was bound to happen. My snooze button and I had a good thing going and I wasn’t looking to break up anytime soon.
Not that it mattered, I realized as I glanced around the lobby.
The lights were once again off. Since I was familiar with the place now, I headed over, hit the switch, and brought the room to life.
With a confident air, I waltzed over to the desk, set my purse on it, then turned toward the coffeemaker. Before I could get three steps away, the elevator dinged and I peered over, plastering a huge smile on my face.
“Ah, crap,” the man in the elevator muttered as he stepped off, swiping at his shirt and the apparent coffee stain he now had. His gaze instantly lifted as though he sensed me. A smile formed quickly and his eyes twinkled. “Good morning, doll. You must be Luciana.”
