Chapter 4

It was no trouble finding his office building. It was a massive forty-storied structure in the middle of the city, made entirely of glass. Very modern, clean and classy; just like him, she thought. It had his company name - Dunn Inc. blazoned in big gold lettering on the side of the building and Ivy stood staring up at it for a few moments, in front of the automatic glass entrance doors.

Sucking her gut in, with her hands shaking slightly as she held on to a coffee cup, she entered the building. The lobby was immaculately shiny, with smooth dark marble floors and people walking around in hushed whispers and dressed professionally. A woman with a tight bun behind her head was sitting at the reception desk and Ivy walked towards her, aware of the sound her kitten heels made on the marble floor.

“Hi,” she said and the receptionist looked up at her with the most delightfully pleasant smile on her face. Ivy made a mental note to practice that smile on her own customers.

“How can I help you madam?” the woman asked and looked down at her casual attire, but didn’t present a judgmental expression. Ivy grew immediately self-conscious of what she was wearing but tried to hide it with her best smile.

“I was wondering if Mr. Dunn was around,” she said, trying to sound casual. The woman’s neatly shaped eyebrows arched up and her smile widened.

“Mr. Travis Dunn? You’re wondering if he’s around?” she asked, with a tone of disbelief entering her voice.

“Yeah, it’s no biggie if he’s not. I just had something to give him,” Ivy said and tucked in a few strands of stray hair behind her ears. She had already realized that this was a bad decision. The woman was literally laughing at her.

“Well, he owns this building and works here, so he’s usually around,” the receptionist said and adjusted her expression now so that Ivy could see that the woman was clearly judging her.

“Okay, great, do you think I could…” she began to say, and then she heard his unmistakable voice behind her.

“Ivy Zimmerman,” he had said her name like it was the most natural thing for him to say. She whipped around, spilling some of the hot coffee from the cup on the polished marble floor. Travis looked down at the spillage and then back at her. He had that same grin on his face and a hand tucked into the pocket of his blue pinstripe suit. It was sharply tailored to mould his muscular athletic frame. His tie was a cherry red today and Ivy couldn’t drag her gaze away from how polished he looked.

“Sir, I wasn’t sure where to send her,” the receptionist’s voice erupted from behind her, but neither of them acknowledged her presence.

“Hi…I…thought I’d bring by your coffee,” Ivy said, trying hard not to stutter today. Travis’ sparkling blue eyes fell on the coffee in her hand and then he gazed at her body, just the way he had done the previous day.

“That is very kind of you,” he said and reached for the cup.

“I’m sorry that my manager sent you away, I felt bad that you were denied your daily dose because of standing up to a bully yesterday,” Ivy said and was sure that he was able to hear her beating heart. Travis took a sip of his coffee and then smacked his lips as though he was very pleased.

“I went elsewhere for my coffee,” he said and suddenly Ivy felt very foolish. “But I was just going out to grab myself another one, so you’re just on time,” he added.

She couldn’t think of anything else to say, any other excuse to keep standing there and staring at him.

“I guess I should leave now. Have a nice day,” she said and avoiding his gaze, she brushed past him, breathing in the whiff of expensive cologne he was wearing.

“I’d like to show you my office,” she heard him say and stopped in her tracks. “Come with me,” he added and began walking in the opposite direction. Turning on her heels, with her skin tingling with excitement, Ivy followed him towards the glass capsule elevator that was waiting for him at the end of the lobby. It seemed to be for his private use only since other people seemed to pass it by.

A porter pinged the door open and Travis stretched his arm out, indicating for her to step in before him. She did as she was directed and then he entered, filling the small space with the intoxicatingly heady scent of his cologne. He had to say nothing, and the porter pressed the button for the fortieth floor and the elevator zoomed up smoothly.

Ivy tried to hold herself together, not look at him as often as she wanted to, but she could sense that he was looking at her.

“Are you on a break at the moment?” he asked, cutting through the silence. She was forced to look up at him now, and she had to clear her throat before she spoke.

“Yes, I am,” she said and when their gazes locked, she could see the fierceness in his blue eyes.

“So we won’t have much time together then,” he said and the elevator came to a sudden halt. She wasn’t sure what he meant by that but decided that he was just being polite. It was amazing enough that he even remembered her name. He didn’t have to. But then again, Travis Dunn was notorious for his shrewd business acumen and impeccable people skills. Remembering people’s names was part of what made him this successful, she figured.

Travis led the way into his penthouse-styled office which was at least three times the size of her entire apartment. Made entirely of glass and decorated to the most sophisticated minimal standards, Ivy walked in behind him, afraid of making any swift movements that might break something expensive.

A solid piece of oak made up his enormous desk, which he was now walking towards and she stopped in her tracks, not quite sure where she was supposed to go.

“This is beautiful. I can’t imagine working in a place like this,” Ivy managed to say and he turned to face her again, leaning against his desk and with his arms folded over his chest.

“The work you do isn’t affected by how expensive your table lamp is,” he said in a deep wise voice and their gazes locked again. She felt a shiver run down her spine because he was looking at her with those same dangerously blue eyes. He was older than her, by fifteen years; she had looked up his exact age. And he had that air of maturity and wisdom. From the comfort he exuded being in his own skin to his confidence in his looks and the effect he had on people; Travis Dunn knew exactly what he was doing.

“I wish I could agree with you, but I don’t feel like I’m maximizing my capabilities in a coffee shop,” Ivy said, with a grin on her face which he didn’t return. The atmosphere in the room had suddenly become very serious. It was like he was thinking about something like he was searching her face for some kind of answer.

“I don’t know you well enough to comment on your talents,” he said flatly, in a voice that nearly sounded enraged and Ivy licked her lips, feeling slightly offended.

“I’m sorry for coming here like this, to your place of work. This was a mistake,” she said, her voice had become weaker. She couldn’t figure him out and as attracted as she was to him, she realized that she knew nothing about him other than what the tabloids print.

He held her gaze for a few moments longer and then took a few steps towards her. Ivy could feel her fingers quivering and she clasped them together in an attempt to stop them from shaking.

“It wasn’t a mistake. I appreciate your thoughtfulness, I liked your coffee yesterday. In fact, I loved it,” he said and stepped even closer to her. She got the feeling that those were just words, which he didn’t actually mean. However, she couldn’t forget that she had spent the whole night fantasizing about him, and now she was alone in a room with him. In his office!

“Thanks,” she said flatly.

“Since we don’t have much time to waste, I suggest that you start taking off your clothes now,” he said and clenched his jaw. Ivy’s lips parted and her eyebrows creased in confusion. She was more shocked than offended by what she had just heard him say. It hadn’t even crossed her mind that someone could speak like this.

“You look surprised. Isn’t this why you’re here?” he said, with not a hint of a smile on his face. He was absolutely serious.