CHAPTER 4

“Jack, they’re ready for you in the boardroom.”

Jack looked up from the rent application on his desk. After visiting his grandfather the day before, the news of his illness still hung over Jack like a nightmare he couldn’t wake up from. Jack wasn’t worried about the inheritance. He made more than enough at Landon Enterprises to live a luxurious lifestyle. What had bothered him was that his grandfather thought he was unhappy. Jack didn’t know how, but he needed to prove he was happy before his grandfather took a turn for the worse. He checked the time on his watch and realized he was already ten minutes late. He had a meeting with the board scheduled for a new rental, Turner Events. The agents had bluntly turned the application down due to the fact that the applicant couldn’t pay the standard six month rent down payment on the lease. Jack had always felt that everyone should have a fair chance, and for that reason all refusals were to be sent to him. If he saw that someone just needed a hand up, if he could he would give it. Turner Events had a promising list of clients, and in a few months could be rising name in Event Planning in Manhattan. If Landon Enterprises turned them away now, he might regret it later. He had asked for a meeting with Turner Events and a detailed business plan. If the business plan looked promising, Jack would consider negotiating a down payment with a rent hike further down the road to make up for it. He had always used a democratic style of management and for that reason any exceptions to the rule he ran by the board first. This morning he had asked Turner Events to introduce themselves to board as well so Landon Enterprises could make an informed decision.

He swiftly made his way to the boardroom where everyone was already waiting.

“Good morning everyone.” Jack said as he sat down at the head of the table, placing the rent application in front of him. “I’m glad you could make it this morning.”

There were murmured greetings amongst the six members around the table.

“I want to ask your advice this morning on a rent application. The company is Turner Events. They’re looking at a small corner office we currently have available, but they can’t afford the six month down payment.”

“Why would we consider them then, Jack? How do we even know they’re going to be able to pay rent at all?” Dalton, a miserable middle aged man with a paunch, asked him over the spectacles resting on his nose.

“Because they’ve had quite a few big commissions, and if they are as good as they say they are we don’t want them saying down the line that Landon Enterprises had turned them down just when they were starting out.”

“If they’re a new business how do we even know they know what they’re doing?”

“We’re going to ask them,” came Jack’s short reply. Jack pressed the button for the intercom and spoke into the speaker. “Jenna, please send in Turner Events.”

A few seconds later the boardroom doors opened and a woman stepped inside. Jack looked up and wanted to smile to welcome her until he recognized her face. Momentarily he had lost the power of speech. It was her. Six months ago he thought he would never see her again and now she was standing in his boardroom, already reawakening his desire for her. The memories of that night rushed through him as he took in her neat figure in the business suit. The loose knot she had tied her hair into suited her, as did the red lipstick. He looked into her jade green eyes and waited as recognition dawned.

Madison walked into the boardroom determined to dazzle them with her smile and her slap-dash business plan. But there was no way she could have foreseen what was waiting inside the doors. She smiled at the suits sitting around the table until her eyes rested on the man sitting at the head of the table. She was sure her body recognized him before her mind did. His black hair was due for a cut and just touched his collar, those steel grey eyes taunting her with a shared passion. She could feel the warm heat pool low in her belly as she met those grey eyes. She tried to drag her eyes away from the intimate way he was looking at her, but she couldn’t. She had spent nights dreaming about him, she had spent her days watching the random faces on the busy streets for him and had accepted that she would never see him again.

“Jack?” A bald man asked from the side of the table, and Maddy was drawn back to the reason why she was here. Maddy looked from the bald man to Jack wondering how he was going to play this. Was he going to admit he knew her, or was he going to keep quiet? God knows she didn’t want to announce to everyone in the room that they had a one night stand six months ago.

“I’m Madison Taylor, thank you for meeting with me.” She introduced herself before Jack made her regret their previous encounter.

Jack’s lip curved in one corner, knowing that this was just as awkward for her as it was for him.

“Thank you for coming Madison, I’m Jackson Landon and these are my board members.” Jack’s forced himself to sound professional and hoped for the best. Madison, the name suited her. It was distinguished and elegant, like she looked at that moment in the gray business suit, and yet different. He imagined familiar friends and her family would call her something like Maddy, which suited the image he had of her more appropriately, witty, passionate and friendly.

Maddy felt a flicker of desire as her name left his lips. She had always hated her name, but when he said it in that low voice with his eyes on hers, she almost felt proud of it.

“Pleased to meet you all.” Not sure which way the meeting was going and unsure of her position at the moment, Maddy kept quiet and waited for Jack to instruct her on what he expected. Jackson Landon, Landon Enterprises. Oh my word, the realization bolted through her like lighting. He owned Landon Enterprises. Landon Enterprises were one the biggest realtors in Manhattan, which means her night with a stranger wasn’t just any stranger. He was a multi-billionaire and one of the most powerful men when it came to securing realty in New York.

“So tell us about Turner events.” Jack’s eyes were still on hers. She couldn’t help but wonder if he was replaying their night of passion over in his mind, the same way she was. Remembering how he had kissed her intimately, the scent of sex hanging in the room, and his strong hands on her hips. Maddy cleared her throat and opened her business plan in front of her, reacquainting her with the most important points she cleared her throat and set the business plan down on the table in front of her and stepped back.

“Gentleman, I’ll start at the beginning. Turner Events have been planning weddings, bah mitzvahs, corporate functions and personal events for the past three years.” She took a breath. “During the past six months Turner Events have received more commissions causing us to need a professional yet quant premises from which to operate.” Maddy hoped they didn’t ask her how many staff she employed. She could lie by omission but had never been good at bending the truth when asked directly. “Your corner office is small enough to remain intimate when meeting with clients, yet large enough to accommodate a bull pen for operations and a meeting room with clients. Although it is a new business I can assure you in twelve months at most, Turner Events will have a reputation in Manhattan as the best event company when it comes to intimate corporate and private functions.”

Dalton scratched his bald head and glared at Jack before turning to Maddy. “And how do we know you’ll be able to pay the rent? Everyone starts out with big dreams, Miss Taylor, but very few achieve them.”

Maddy felt her temper rise at his blatant indication of her imminent failure. “Sorry, I didn’t get your name?”

“Dalton.”

“Dalton let me tell you more about myself. I’m not that person that has a different dream or get rich quick scheme every year. Event Planning has been my passion even before I left high school. I worked day jobs until now and planned events in the evenings, if I managed to build a successful event planning business part time I am confident that if I do this full time the commissions will double, my reputation will soar and I will have enough profit stashed away by the end of the twelve months to buy my own premises.” Maddy nearly grabbed her mouth at the last part, knowing she went too far. It wasn’t a good idea to threaten a prospective landlord before you even had the property.

Jack had to swallow the grin that had spread on his face, she was just as feisty as he remembered. He would have to thank her later for leaving Dalton speechless, not many people had managed that in the past. Looking at the board members he knew most of them were swayed, it was just Dalton and his sidekick looking less than interested at the moment. Jack dribbled his fingers on the table before speaking. “Gentlemen, thank you for coming,” Dalton's eyes flew to his as if daring him to make an autocratic decision. “I’ll continue the meeting with Miss Taylor, I’m confident you have more important things to attend to.” Dalton guffawed and whispered to his sidekick before they filed out of the board room with the rest of the members.

As soon as they were alone the temperate in the boardroom soared. Maddy could feel Jack’s eyes travel slowly over her body; her breasts became heavy and her breathing shallow.

Jack watched Maddy. He remembered how she had tasted, how soft she had felt under his fingers and how responsive her body had been to his touch. Feeling arousal growing between his legs, he realized this wasn’t the time or place. The last thing he needed was for Dalton to pick up on the fact that he and Maddy had a history together. He would use it to suggest that Jack screwed the company every time he screwed a woman. That was why he got rid of them. He would deal with Maddy alone. As soon as the door closed behind the last person leaving, Jack stood up and walked to Maddy, he knew the glass walls of the boardroom were sound proof. So as long as he didn’t jump her anyone walking by would think they were discussing the rent agreement.

He stopped a few feet away from her knowing he wouldn’t be able to keep his hands off her otherwise. The enticing scent of her floral perfume reached him, making the memories of their night together appear in vivid flashes before him. He read somewhere once that the olfactory glands were closely connected with the amygdala. That was why certain smells could reignite memories and emotions so intensely. Before this moment he had never experienced it, he could remember the way her ebony hair had draped over her shoulders, the flecks of gold and brown in her eyes and he couldn’t help but want to experience it all again.

“I tried finding you.” He said softly.

Maddy smiled as she met his eyes, he was just as handsome as she remembered. She had often thought because that night had meant so much to her, her memory of that night had become distorted, making it sweeter and more passionate than it was, making Jack more attractive and his eyes even more intense than they were. Standing so close to him she realized nothing had been embellished, everything she remembered was true. “How would you have found me? You didn’t have my name or my number?”

Jack grinned cockily. “Didn’t stop me from hoping I’ll run into you again.”

“I didn’t think I’d ever see you again.” Maddy admitted through lowered lashes.

“Did you want to?” His voice was earnest.

Maddy wanted to lie, she wanted to tell him she had almost forgotten about him, but she couldn’t. She spoke the truth. “Yes.”

“Go to dinner with me tonight?”

“I can’t, it would be inappropriate.”

Jack laughed sardonically. “Don’t you think we’ve crossed that line already?”

“I didn’t…” her voice trailed off realizing once again that he was a billionaire and a powerful man that had the power to make Turner Events a reality. “I didn’t realize who you were.”

Jack watched her soft lips and knew she spoke the truth. “I believe you.”

Maddy picked up her business plan and placed it back into her briefcase. “Will you let me know about the lease?”

“We’ll talk about it over dinner, otherwise there is no lease.”

“Jack, don’t be ridiculous, this is business. Six months ago wasn’t. Let’s not cross the lines.”

A cocky grin and mischievous glint transformed his face into the stranger of six months ago. “I’ve never enjoyed crossing lines more than with you, Madison.”

“Jack…” Maddy’s eyes pleaded, she wasn’t sure for what.

“I’ll have a car pick you up at seven sharp.”

“You don’t even know where I live,” Maddy said, exasperated.

“I do, it was on your rental application. Somewhere in Brooklyn if I remember correctly?”

“Yes,” Maddy said as realization dawned that he knew more about her than she would care to. He knew her income, her employment history as well as her entire financial history. Suddenly feeling shy, she turned to leave when Jack spoke from behind her.

“I’m looking forward to tonight.”

Maddy tried to ignore the effect his voice had on her body, she tried to ignore the fact that her inner goddess was doing handstands and back flips because she was seeing him again tonight, but most of all she tried to ignore the fact that the fate of Turner Events lay in his amazingly talented hands.