Chapter 5
Sophia
It had been an entire week since that insane kiss with Lucas in his office. By some small miracle, I'd managed to avoid meeting with him alone since then, likely due to the fact that he’d been traveling for most of the week. He had gone along with my public statement about his ex and issued an apology for swearing at his last interviewer. As a result, I anticipated his next interview would go well.
Meanwhile, I was hoping the next time I had to be alone with him, I would have better control of myself. I didn't seem capable of controlling my pulse, or the fact that my panties got wet whenever he happened to be around me. He didn't hesitate to keep his heated gaze on me, which annoyed me to no end. It should've annoyed me even more, given what happened in my last job. Yet, I secretly savored it. Everywhere his eyes landed sent sparks flying through me. Lucas was no aging, leering, entitled wealthy man. He was young, handsome as sin, and actually a halfway decent guy as far as I could tell.
There was little drama at his company. The company environment was one thing I tried to get a feel for when I took on a consultation. It usually told me more about the company than any public statement would. Some companies were filled with drama at every level—gossip among the staff, petty battles within the day-to-day functioning of an office. That was not the case at all at Chandler International. I didn't know what it was like in the other offices for the company, which were flung all around the world, yet this one ran quietly and smoothly.
I’d gotten to know Suzanne and liked her a lot. She'd worked for Chandler International for ten years and was the lead HR manager for the entire corporation. Danny was also wonderful. He was funny and charming. As the gatekeeper to Lucas, he managed that responsibility with finesse.
Next week, Chandler International was rolling out its latest innovative project. They’d partnered with a firm in San Francisco for this project, which was rare for Lucas. Energy Synergy happened to be one of the few sustainable energy firms Lucas hadn't attempted to absorb into Chandler International. According to Danny, Lucas had high respect for the owner, Seth Lawrence, and that alone kept him from trying to steal the company out from under Seth’s nose. Not to mention, the firm was quite a bit smaller than Chandler International, and they were also a privately held company. They were rolling out an initiative where energy could be captured in small, wind chime-like contraptions that hung in trees. They were affordable and expected to revolutionize the use of wind power.
While my time with Lucas himself had been limited, in the short time I'd been at Chandler International, it was clear he was passionate about clean energy and a clean planet. According to Danny, that passion was what drove everything he did. The one topic I’d gathered little information on was Lucas’s distant relationship with his father. His father was an oil executive, and I occasionally wondered if Lucas's passion about sustainable energy was almost an act of rebellion against his father.
Danny was very open about Lucas and what he knew about him. While I'd gotten somewhat comfortable with Danny, I wasn't comfortable asking questions that could be perceived as gossipy about Lucas’s family. I figured I'd eventually gain my own understanding.
As I left the offices that evening, I texted my friend Megan. We’d planned to meet for dinner and drinks, but hadn’t confirmed where. Megan had recently moved in with her fiancé who lived in an exclusive high-rise in Manhattan. Rumor had it, residents were allowed to purchase there by invitation only.
Where are we meeting?
Let’s grab dinner at the café in our building. I ran late at the office, so I’m just getting home now. Mind meeting me here?
Np. Be there in 10.
I walked briskly down the street, weaving through the crowded sidewalk. The building where she lived was so exclusive, it didn’t even have a name. I wasn’t quite sure the point of that, but whatever. Nobody knew who the actual residents were unless you knew one of them personally. I figured it would be amusing to meet Megan there. We'd been friends for years. She was a lawyer, and her fiancé ran an investment company. They’d actually met when she provided legal consultation on an investigation for improper trading at his company. Talk about opposites attracting.
I arrived at her building and was met by a doorman dressed entirely in black. With his lack of a smile and completely blank expression, welcoming wasn’t the word that came to mind.
“Whom are you here to see, miss?” he asked, the light glittering through the massive glass entryway glinting off of his dark hair.
“Megan Parks, please.”
He tapped a button on his headset and spoke into it. After a beat, he nodded. “Ms. Parks will be right down.”
Within moments, I saw Megan waving to me through the glass and pushing the door open. “Hey Soph, come on in.”
Like me, Megan was still wearing what I presumed she’d worn to work—a fitted black skirt that fell to her knees, low heels and a dove gray blouse. Her honey gold hair was swept up into a knot atop her head. She glanced to the doorman.
“Dan, anytime Sophia comes to visit, you can just let her in,” she said as she tugged me into a quick hug, her blue eyes warm.
“No matter the time of day?” Dan asked.
Megan nodded firmly. “No matter. She’s always welcome. Just buzz me and let me know she’s here.”
Dan simply nodded and held the door for us.
Megan had only moved in with Jonathan Harmon, her husband-to-be, a few weeks ago, so I’d yet to have a chance to visit her here. I glanced around as we walked through the reception area. It was tiled in porcelain with subtle colors on the walls. Megan led me through a keycard entrance into a back hallway. Our footsteps echoed on the tile flooring. We stopped beside some elevators and rode up so quickly, I barely noticed it.
“This place is something. Your doorman looks better suited to being an undercover agent,” I commented with a chuckle.
Megan giggled. “I know, right? It's kind of ridiculous. I told Jonathon that now he’s not a bachelor, we have to move somewhere else.”
“Why? Is this place only for bachelors?”
She rolled her eyes as we rounded a corner in the hallway after stepping off the elevators. “It seems like it to me. Jonathon swears it's not, but I'm like one of five women in the whole building, so go figure. It’s a big mystery who lives in the penthouse on the top floor. I told Jonathon I bet it’s a woman and she’s richer than everyone else here,” she said with a sly grin.
She stopped in the hallway at another security entrance. There was no sign to indicate where we were going. Once we stepped inside, I realized we were in a restaurant without a name. Only residents and their guests could eat here. I glanced around to notice there were nothing but men here.
“What’s with the no-names thing?” I muttered under my breath.
Megan snorted. “Exactly my question. I think the idea is they protect your privacy here, but it’s a bit overboard.”
Megan tugged me to a booth in the corner. The restaurant was dimly lit with tables scattered in the center and tall, leather-backed booths lining the back wall. Once we were seated, a waiter swung by and reeled off the specials with a promise to return quickly. While we waited, Megan updated me on her wedding plans and asked about my new position.
“I can't believe you got that position. Chandler International is probably the most secretive company in the world. Mr. Chandler lives here, you know,” she said.
“He does?” I asked.
“He sure does,” she said with a firm nod. “I haven't even seen him. He travels a lot.”
As if conjured by name, Lucas stepped through the entrance. I glanced his way just as his eyes scanned over to where we were in the corner. My disobedient pulse lunged.
“Oh. Well, I guess I’m wrong. There he is,” Megan said. She leaned forward. “What’s it like working for him?”
“Oh my God. Not now,” I hissed.
Before I knew it, Lucas was walking straight toward us.
“Oh, he's on his way over. Damn, he looks even hotter in person,” Megan observed.
I rolled my eyes, hoping to play it off. The last thing I needed was Megan to notice just how hot I thought he was. “Seriously, don't be ridiculous.”
Megan rolled her eyes right back at me. “I'll be as ridiculous as I want. He’s hot,” she offered.
Megan was my best friend. She was also shamelessly blunt. Every so often, I wished she didn’t like to tease so much.
Lucas arrived at our table, his eyes flicking between us and landing on me.
“Nice to see you, Sophia. What brings you here?” he asked.
Megan fluttered her fingers in the air. “She's my bestie. I don't think we've met.”
Lucas shifted his gaze to her. “I don’t believe we have.”
“This is Megan Parks. She’s an old friend,” I offered.
“I only recently moved in. Jonathon Harmon is my fiancé,” she added.
Lucas inclined his head. “I see. Nice to meet you. Shall I buy you two a drink?” he asked.
Megan ignored the warning glare from me and nodded. “That would be lovely. Why don’t you join us?”
I bit back the urge to swear at her. Lucas slid into the booth beside me, and inside of a millisecond, I was hot all over.