Finding Forever (16 page)

“I have to be honest,” Amy said with awe. “This is all a little overwhelming. I mean, the history of this wealthy family, the amount of business to keep track of, even the building itself. I don’t know how one man keeps track of it all.”

“Oh, it takes a whole team, sweetie, believe me. Don’t let yourself get worked up over nothing. The way to keep sane in this chaotic place is simply to do one task at a time. Look at the smaller picture, and before you know it, the day is done and you’ve accomplished far more than you ever imagined,” Esther reassured her.

They walked down the hallway and through a large oak doorway into a huge office. Was everything in the building done on a much grander scale than your average place? In the middle of the room was a huge three-sided desk. On the surface sat a top-of-the-line computer and an overflowing In and Out box. Two chairs were placed in front of the desk and one large chair behind it.

A bookshelf took up most of one wall, its shelves lined from top to bottom with many titles. Amy hoped she wasn’t expected to read them all in a short time period. Hopefully, they were only there for either decoration, or for when she needed a specific answer, though with the Internet, it was much faster to search online for whatever a person needed nowadays.

Natural light flooded the room from the floor-to-ceiling windows lined up on the back wall behind the desk. Amy was grateful for the uncovered windows, knowing if she got too stressed, she could take a minute to face the amazing city of Seattle while her stress had a chance to diminish. It really was an ideal office.

“Come in and have a seat. Make yourself comfortable while I show you what you need to get started. Before you know it, you’ll be excellent on your own, no longer needing my help at all,” Esther said kindly.

“I have my doubts about that, but I’m sure glad you’re the one training me. You seem very nice.”

“Thank you, Amy. Do you mind if I call you by your first name? I’ve never been huge on the formality thing. I feel that an office environment should be enjoyable, and
really
knowing who you’re working with makes a big difference in making it so. Joseph became a dear friend of mine, and so did his beautiful wife, Katherine. I’ve watched their children grow into fine young men and have been treated like a part of their family. It’s a good thing, too, because there are weeks you’ll see far more of this office than your own place. You need to have a healthy working relationship with your boss.”

“I’d love to keep it informal. Joseph said the same thing to me during the interview, and I didn’t know how to respond, but I’m beginning to see this place isn’t what I thought it would be. I was expecting a rigid staff and endless work,” Amy replied. As she realized what she said, she quickly tried to correct herself.

“I wasn’t trying to say hard work is bad, or being professional is a negative thing. I was just…”

“You don’t need to explain, Amy,” Esther interrupted. “I understand exactly what you’re saying. Before I was fortunate enough to get a job with Joseph, I worked for a large developer on the other side of the city. He was rude, to me and his clients, never smiled at anyone, and didn’t care about those who worked for him. He only cared about the bottom line. There are a lot of corporations like that, but this isn’t one of them. They expect a great deal from you, but they’re also willing to compensate you for your work. They treat their staff, from the lowest positions to the highest, with respect. The benefits are almost mind-boggling, but you’ll soon learn why they can do this. They save a lot of money by having an incredibly low turnover rate, and they never hurt for more business, because they have repeat business in all their divisions. Even in bad economic times, they not only survive, but thrive.”

Amy relaxed as she listened to Esther. The woman should be a recruiter for the corporation, not that it looked as though they needed to recruit. Before that moment, Amy hadn’t realized quite how lucky she was to have gotten her job. It didn’t matter, though. She’d work hard no matter what; she didn’t know any other way.

Amy felt slightly overwhelmed as the two women worked together the rest of the morning. By the afternoon, she was starting to pick up on some of the tasks, though, and she really enjoyed Esther’s company. They worked well together, and Amy wished she had more than one week of training with her. Amy didn’t have a mother and tended to enjoy the company of older women, especially when they were open and caring.

Esther put Amy on a project as she cleaned out her email. Amy was glad to find she was able to do the assigned task without asking for help. They sat in a comfortable silence as they worked for a few hours before they were interrupted.

“Esther, can you cancel my appointments for the rest of the day. I need to go to my father’s. Before I leave, I also need the Niles reports if you’ve finished them.”

Amy looked up as the most stunning man she’d ever glimpsed walked through a connecting door on the south wall. He was looking at a piece of paper in his hand, which gave her a few moments to secretly observe him.

The first thing she noticed was his build. He had to be at least six-foot-four, with wide shoulders, a full chest, and a flat stomach. As his arm moved, stretching the obviously tailored dark business suit, she could easily guess he was solid muscle, not an ounce of fat daring to attach to his body. The white shirt clearly accentuated his golden tan. The outfit was complete with a loosened tie, making him look like he’d just stepped off the closest movie shoot rather than his office.

He reached up and ran his fingers through his dark brown hair, causing the short strands to stick out in a few places, making him even sexier, in her opinion. In the next moment he looked up, and his deep azure eyes met her startled green ones.

“I’m sorry, Esther. I didn’t realize you had a client in here.”

Amy was shocked by his words. Why was he calling her a client?

“Lucas Anderson,” he said as he held his hand out to her.
I’m in trouble, big, big trouble,
was her only thought as she looked at his hand as if it were a snake. Skin-to-skin contact would feel far too intimate, even though it was simply shaking hands, but when had she ever touched a man of this stunning caliber? She also knew full well she couldn’t refuse to shake her boss’s hand.

As she hesitated an awkward amount of time, she saw him raise his eyebrows at her questioningly. Her face turned a nice shade of red as she finally broke eye contact.

She snapped out of her trance, realizing he was waiting for her to introduce herself. Finally, she stood and gave him her hand. “Hello, I’m Amy Harper.”

Amy was rooted to the spot as his fingers closed around hers, her breath instantly held prisoner inside her lungs.

A
s their hands
touched, Lucas felt a surge of adrenaline rush through his body and straight to his groin, shocking him. He tightened his grip a
round her fingers, tugging a little, enough that she noticed. He didn’t like the instant attraction—not one bit.

Amy was beautiful, sure, but so were thousands of other women he was in contact with. It seemed, though, that none of them had the power to electrify him with only a simple touch. The electric moment with Amy was a first for him.

As a myriad of emotions crossed Amy’s face, Lucas found himself fascinated by her expressions. She didn’t seem capable of hiding a thing from him, though he was sure she’d like to. Their gazes were locked together, her cheeks flushed and eyes wide as he watched a mixture of desire and fear play from deep within their depths. He found himself wanting to lean closer, shock her into gasping, opening those luscious pink lips, but somehow he managed to pull himself back.

He had work to do—important work. He certainly didn’t have time to play with the obviously innocent woman.

Slowly, Lucas turned toward Esther, releasing Amy’s hand at the same time. “When your guest leaves, step into my office and grab the paper on my desk. I have several letters that need to go out today and a few other tasks I want done before five.”

“I think you and your father need to talk right away, Lucas,” Esther said, stopping him.

“Talk about what?” He saw the hesitation on Esther’s face and got a bad feeling.

“I sent you my notice last month and told you that your father would be hiring a new assistant.”

“I told you then that I needed you to stay longer. I assumed the matter was settled,” he answered a bit too harshly.

“Lucas, don’t you dare use that tone of voice with me. Don’t forget, I’ve seen you running around in nothing but a diaper. You knew when your father retired that I’d be leaving as soon as you got settled in. I stayed on to make sure you had a smooth transition, but now it’s my turn for retirement. I love this company but, like your father, I believe sometimes it’s best to get on with things and bring in a new generation.”

“I’m sorry about the misunderstanding. Can you work one more month so I can find an appropriate replacement to take your position? I’ll double your salary, knowing it’s an inconvenience,” he asked, trying to forget Amy was in the room.

“Your father already conducted the interviews, and Amy’s your new assistant. I’ve been training her all morning, and she’s doing a remarkable job,” Esther finished and patted Amy on the hand.

His gaze turned immediately to the woman in question, the one who’d seared him with nothing more than the touch of her fingers. There was no possible way she could work for him—not even a chance.

Suddenly, Amy found herself the object of Lucas’s intense gaze. The minute he turned those cold blue eyes back on her, she felt her stomach drop. He had enough heat raging in his eyes to be considered a fire hazard. The intensity flowing between the two of them was enough to leave her shaking, though she really hoped her fear wasn’t showing through.

She tried to firm her shoulders and meet his look with an expression of indifference, but she was sure she wasn’t pulling it off.

“I’ll speak to my father about this, but I should’ve been informed of the interviews. Don’t get too comfortable in your new position, Ms. Harper,” he spoke with the utmost authority before storming through the doorway, shutting it a bit harder than necessary.

“I thought he knew I’d been hired. He didn’t even know you were leaving,” Amy said with apprehension in her voice. She could be losing her dream job before it even started.

“Now, don’t you worry about anything, Amy. It will all be just fine.”

“I know you’ve worked here for a lot of years, Esther, but the look on his face wasn’t that of a happy man. I wouldn’t get too set on retirement if I were you,” Amy said, attempting to make a joke, though it fell flat.

“You’ll find Lucas is far more bark than bite. He’s riled up right now, but he’ll settle down soon. Let’s finish our work for the afternoon. By tomorrow this will be straightened out and you’ll forget all about it,” Esther promised.

Amy had her doubts, but there was no use in worrying about it. She figured she’d do the best job she could, and then
maybe
her position would be safe.

They got absorbed in their work, and the incident was placed on the back burner—still there, but put away for the moment.

“Dad, how do you expect me to run this company when you’re stepping in and doing things without letting me know?” Lucas was pacing in front of his father, back and forth across the parlor.

“Now, son, I told you when I left that Esther would be retiring once you got settled in. I also said I’d take care of her replacement. It’s not my fault you forgot. And it’s not Esther’s fault you didn’t take her resignation seriously.”

“I take everything seriously. At the least, you could have let me know interviews were going on so I could be a part of it. I would’ve been just fine handling them on my own.”

“I know you’re more than capable of doing your job. However, when you took over, I promised to tie up any loose ends left from my leaving. This was the final item I had to take care of,” Joseph said, leaving Lucas with little argument.

“Dad, I know you’re up to something. I just can’t figure out what it is this time, but I’m capable of hiring my own staff. It doesn’t look good for me when I don’t know what’s going on in my own offices.”

“I interviewed about thirty people, and Ms. Harper was, by far, the most qualified candidate. Believe me, you won’t have any problems with her. I checked her out extensively before sending her to you.”

It was a good thing Lucas didn’t know that Joseph was far more interested in her abilities as a possible wife than an executive assistant. Luckily, she really had done well in school and was more than capable of doing her job, and doing it well, for that matter. Lucas would’ve seen right through a woman who was only there looking for a husband.

Joseph felt Amy was a perfect candidate for Lucas. She was smart, strong, and had been through a lot in her short lifetime. She needed a family, and Joseph needed a daughter-in-law. It was a perfect match. Lucas would soon see that.

“You’ve left me with little choice. I don’t think there’s any way I can convince Esther to stay on at this point, now that she’s made up her mind. I’ll see how Ms. Harper works out, but if she doesn’t work soundly with me, then I’ll fire her and the next person will be someone I find, not you.”

“I think that’s a reasonable request,” Joseph quickly agreed, wanting to change the subject. “Now, on to other business.” Joseph knew he couldn’t give Lucas too much time to think about the matter. He was a smart boy, and Joseph didn’t want him figuring out what he was up to. If Lucas had any idea how much Joseph wanted his sons married, Lucas would go running for the hills before he had a chance to fall in love with Amy. That just wouldn’t do for Joseph. He wanted those grandchildren—the earlier, the better.

The two of them spent the rest of the afternoon going over the new benefits package Joseph had modified. Joseph may be retired, but he liked to stay involved. He’d go a little stir-crazy if he left the corporation completely. He’d promised his Katherine he wouldn’t work seventy-hour weeks anymore, but he’d never agreed to forget about the corporation his grandfather had started. She understood that and was supportive of his remaining active with the human resources department. After all, she had a huge heart herself. It was why he loved her so much, even after thirty-five years of marriage.

By the time Lucas left his father’s house, his frustration had greatly lessened. When he returned to the building, everyone was gone for the day.

As he made his way into his office, he could smell a lingering scent of vanilla in the air, just a hint, but enough to remind him of his new employee. He had a feeling Amy was going to be nothing but trouble for him if he let her stay. The best thing for both of them would be for him to simply fire her. He knew his dad would be upset, but he’d support him.

As he stood in the connecting doorway to their two offices, he struggled with himself while remembering her innocent expression, so open and readable.

With a firm resolve, he stood straighter and turned his back to the room, silently shutting the door behind him. He was in control of his emotions, and there was no way he was going to let a stranger get under his skin. Women came and went from his life, serving an essential purpose, and then quietly exiting. His new employee wasn’t going to get the upper hand and control any part of him—certainly not his emotions.

Lucas walked to his desk and picked up a file. He had a lot of work to finish that night, so he relaxed on his couch and started reading. It didn’t take him long to feel his eyes start to grow heavy, then he was falling asleep before he knew what hit him.

Lucas often spent his nights in the office after burning the midnight oil. He’d always driven himself hard, putting work ahead of pleasure at all times. He’d known from a young age that he was going to take over the family corporation. It was in his blood.

Lucas’s last thought, before succumbing to sleep, was of vivid green eyes filled with hunger.