________

BRYAN

 

The next two weeks passed slowly and I was hoping I would get, at the very least, an email from Alistair during that time, but I didn’t hear a peep from him.  The closer it got to my start date, the further Alistair Dibb was from my mind and I started to accept that he had blown me off.

 

At least I didn’t invest too much time in him. I told myself that to make myself feel better about being blown off and it almost worked.  I did my best to push him completely out of my mind and I was happy when the first day of my new job finally rolled around so that I could focus on something else besides the gorgeous alpha.

 

I was up extra early that morning with first day jitters coursing through my veins.  I arrived at the office 30 minutes early and Ms. Stevens’ assistant met me in the waiting area. 

 

“Bryan?”

 

I stood up and smiled at him.

 

“Yes.”

 

“Hi, I’m Kellan, Ms. Stevens’ assistant, and I will show you to your office.”

 

“Office?”  I didn’t even know I had said it out loud.

 

“Yes, it’s right this way.”  He was a little bit cold but I didn’t think anything of it.

 

Each step was filled with more excitement than the previous step as the reality of what was happening settled over me.  I had my own office and a real job with a major company.  Life was feeling really great in that moment.  My office wasn’t some huge ornate space, but it was mine, I had a window, and that was more than I thought I would have.

 

Kellan showed me around the office and introduced me to a few people and then he walked me back to my office.  I thought we were done but he stood next to my desk and gave me a serious look. 

 

“Bryan, you have been given an incredible opportunity and I would like to offer you some advice.”

 

His tone surprised me and I felt myself getting defensive.

 

“Okay.”

 

“Mr. Blocke is very demanding and expects his assistant to be at his beck and call.  Anything he needs, you will get for him right away.  His needs come before anyone else’s.  If you keep him happy, the whole office is happy and that is the goal at Blocke Designs.”

 

What in the hell was he talking about?

 

“I’m sorry, I don’t understand.  Mr. Blocke’s assistant?  I applied for the design assistant position.”

 

“Yes, and that is what you are.  This is Blocke Designs, Mr. Blocke owns the company, and you will be his assistant.”  He didn’t even give me a chance to respond.  “Follow me.”

 

I followed him over to the bookshelf against the wall and he pressed a button inside the shelf and I watched the bookshelf slide open revealing a huge office on the other side.

 

“This is Mr. Blocke’s office and he prefers that you enter and exit his office through this door.  You will spend much of your time working closely with him so don’t be surprised if you find yourself spending almost all of your time by his side.  Any questions?”

 

Hell yes, I had questions but I wasn’t going to ask the bitchy robot standing in front of me!  I gave him a saccharine-filled smile.

 

“No, thank you.”

 

“Okay, great.  Check your schedule, you have a meeting at 10:00 in conference room D.”

 

With that, he spun on his heel and walked out of my office.

 

What crawled up his butt?  I had to push him out of my mind because I was confused about my position.  When I interviewed with Ms. Stevens she never mentioned that I was going to be the assistant to the boss.  I thought I was going to assist a senior designer and have a chance to really learn something.  I didn’t know I’d be a glorified admin and I don’t think I would have taken the position if I had known that’s what it really was.  I walked down to her office to get some clarity.

 

“Ms. Stevens? Do you have a minute?”

 

“Of course Bryan, come on in. How can I help you?” She said, smiling at me.

 

“Kellan just told me that I am going to be Mr. Blocke’s assistant. I was under the impression that this position was for a design assistant. I thought I was told I would be assisting a senior designer. I didn’t know that I was going to be the executive assistant to the boss.”

 

She was clearly surprised by my question and she asked me to close her door and have a seat.

 

“Bryan, the position with Mr. Blocke is the most coveted position in this firm when you are just starting out. No one can teach you more about interior design than the creator of the firm, Doris Blocke.   You won’t be learning from Mr. Blocke, you will be learning from his mother, Doris.  While you won’t be working directly with her, you will be learning everything from her through other senior designers here.  I don’t know if you know this, but Mrs. Blocke semi-retired from the business a few years ago and gave the responsibility of keeping the company going to her son, Sebastian.  Mr. Blocke runs several businesses around the world under the Blocke Industries umbrella, and interior design is not one of his interests. However, he always makes sure Blocke Designs is thriving because it is his mother’s greatest love, aside from her family, of course.  Doris still runs things behind the scenes and Sebastian sees that all of her needs are met. 

He does that by communicating daily with his assistant who is really Doris’s assistant, which is going to be you.  Although she rarely comes into the office, Mrs. Blocke does attend all major company meetings through video conferencing.  So, while Kellan may have painted this as a secretarial position, it is far from that.  You have been given an extraordinary opportunity, Bryan.  I have faith that you will do very well here.”

 

After hearing that I was overcome with excitement.  I was going to be working with Doris Blocke!  She had won several design awards and had been featured in several design magazines.  Doris Blocke was easily my interior design idol.  I read that she had retired and I had no idea she was still involved with the company.  I never expected that I would actually meet her, let alone work with her!  My first day had already been full of surprises and it wasn’t even 9:30!

 

“I don’t know what to say.  I am so honored that I will be working with Doris Blocke.  Can I ask one thing?”

 

“Of course.”

 

“Why wasn’t I told this during my interview?  The job description paints this as an assistant to a designer.”

 

“Yes.  You will be the assistant to the designer.”

 

“I know but…”

 

She cut me off.  “I know what you mean.  The Blockes are very discreet and no one knows that Mrs. Blocke is still running things because she values her privacy.  Her life was very public for many years and she tired of the constant grappling for her attention.  When the paparazzi became popular a few years ago she wanted out of the spotlight.  She didn’t want to give up what she loved, so she does it behind the scenes.  Mr. Blocke is involved peripherally and you will spend a lot of time with him in person, or on the phone or through video chat when he is traveling.  Does all of this still sound good?”

 

Did it sound good?  Um, yes!  “It sounds amazing, Ms. Stevens, and I am very excited and grateful for the opportunity.”

 

“Wonderful.”  She glanced at her watch.  “You should go to your office and grab your tablet.  The meeting is starting in a few minutes.”

 

When I walked into the conference room there were at least 10 other people there and for a minute I thought I was late, but another 10 people shuffled in after me a few minutes later.  I glanced around at everyone, feeling nervous and a little out of place in my off brand suit, and I noticed that they all had two things in common.  Everyone was extremely attractive and they were impeccably dressed.  A super friendly woman, who was perfection head to toe, grabbed the empty chair next to me.  She gave me a quick once over and big smile.

 

“You’re new.”

 

That made me chuckle.

 

“Yes, I am.  I’m Bryan Steele.”  I held out my hand and she shook it, her eyes taking all of me in.

 

“Yes you are, sweetie.  I’m Eva Davis, designer extraordinaire.”  She waved her hand in the air for effect.

 

She was fabulous.  “It’s nice to meet you, Eva. Hey, how long do these meeting usually last?”

 

“It depends.  Mr. Blocke can do anywhere from 5 minutes to over an hour.  One thing is for sure, the meetings are always full of great information.”

 

“Oh, I didn’t know Mr. Blocke would be here.”

 

She looked at me like I was crazy.  “He’s at all of these meetings.  You haven’t met him yet, have you?”

 

“No, do you have some inside info I need to know?”

 

“Just do what he asks and you’ll be fine.  What is your position here anyway?”

 

“I am Mr. Blocke’s new assistant.”

 

Her eyes grew as big as saucers and she looked like she had just gotten the best piece of gossip in the entire world.  She leaned over and whispered in my ear.

 

“Oh honey, you’re in for a wild ride!”

 

Just as I was going to ask what she meant by that the room fell silent as someone entered.

 

“Sorry to keep you all waiting.”

 

Wait a second.  I literally froze in place as that deep, sexy voice washed over the room.  I know that voice, but there is no way…it can’t be…

 

I looked up and standing at the head of the table was gorgeous, mysterious Alistair Dibb.  What the…?  I was completely confused.

 

Ms. Stevens spoke up first.

 

“Mr. Blocke, the new ad campaign is finalized and waiting for your approval.”

 

I swiftly turned my head and stared at Alistair and then back at Ms. Stevens.  Did she just call him Mr. Blocke?

 

I looked at Alistair as his eyes scanned the room seemingly looking for someone and then his eyes landed on me.  I saw that familiar twinkle and my cheeks burned with fire as he uttered his next words.

 

“That sounds great.  Ms. Stevens, it looks like we have a new employee so before we go any further, introductions are in order.”

 

She looked over at me and smiled.  “Of course, my apologies.  Everyone, I would like for you to meet Bryan Steele, he is Mr. Blocke’s new assistant.  Bryan is a recent college graduate and comes to us from The Braeburn Boutique.  He was responsible for designing all of the display windows and has a beautiful eye for design.  We are very excited to have him come on board and join us.”

 

Alistair looked at me and I was pretty sure I looked like a deer caught in headlights as he smiled at me.

 

“Welcome Mr. Steele.”

 

The meeting continued and I don’t think I heard one thing anyone said after that.  Alistair had lied to me.  But why?  I didn’t get it.  Before I knew it Eva was nudging me asking me if I was okay.

 

“Yes, just a bit overwhelmed,” I somehow managed to answer.

 

“I’m sure you are sweetie.  Most men have your reaction when they see my cousin for the first time.  Everyone in this city is trying to land him.”  She gathered her things as the meeting ended and glanced over at me.  “Let’s grab lunch later, say around 1:00?  I’ll give you the inside scoop on everyone here.”

 

Wait, did she say she was his cousin?  I gave her a half-hearted smile trying to get my bearings.  I would have to ask about the cousin thing later.  Lunch sounded great.

 

“Okay, sounds good.”

 

“Great, I will swing by your office later.”

 

“But you don’t know where my office is.”

 

“Doll, everyone knows where Mr. Blocke’s assistant’s office is.”

 

With that she gave me a smile and a wave and she was gone.  I gathered my things and as I stood up I knocked my tablet on the floor.  Just as I started to bend down to get it, he was there.

 

“Let me help you with that.”  That voice…

 

I glanced up into Alistair’s beautiful blue eyes and could barely breathe.  I quickly glanced around afraid that everyone could see that I had feelings for him and was relieved to see that we were alone.  I stood up and my lust for him quickly turned to anger.  My hand instinctively went to my hip as I gave him a cool stare.

 

“Alistair…Dibb…I am waiting for you to explain.”

 

He turned with his backside leaning against the wall, his arms crossed across his taut chest and I saw a small flash of fire fly across his eyes.

 

“Do not speak to me like that!”

 

His firm tone caught me by surprise and I was left speechless.  He must have seen the look on my face because he softened his approach. 

 

“Bryan, if I had told you who I really am I would never have known if you liked me for me.  My name is Sebastian Blocke, which you already know by now.  I was planning to tell you everything when I got back in town, but I just landed a little over an hour ago.  When I found out you were starting today I figured I would just see you here and explain everything in person.  I didn’t mean to lie to you, but I have been burned before so I am very cautious about who I let in.”

 

I looked up at him, my eyes searching his.  “But I have seen you three different times and you had plenty of time to come clean.  You lied to me over and over.  Sebastian, I am really not interested in playing games.  This job is a dream come true for me and I want to do really well here so let’s just keep things professional. I think that is the best for us going forward.”  I was pissed and sad at the same time.  I had been played.

 

I stood there facing him, my tablet in my hand and I started to leave when he blocked my path.  I could barely breathe as he closed the gap of space between us.  The close proximity of his body to mine made my mouth go dry and the thought of his touch was almost too much to bear.  I sucked in air as his face nearly touched mine, and his hands rested on my hips as his sparkling blue eyes held mine.  I could barely think and in that moment all I wanted was to feel his hands all over my body.  No, no, no!  I was not going to be sucked in by a liar!

 

“Just professional going forward?  No, that is not going to happen.”  He slid his fingers along my collarbone and then gently stroked my cheek.  “I want you, Bryan.  I have wanted you since the first night I met you and I told you then that you were going to be mine.  I haven’t changed my mind on that.  I told you why I couldn’t say who I was at first and I apologize for that.”  He gently held my face in his hands, his eyes searching mine.  “I will never lie to you again.”

 

I didn’t know what to say to that so I didn’t say anything.  How was I supposed to be able to concentrate at work knowing that I would be working so closely with the one man I couldn’t get out of my head?  The one man I didn’t want to stop thinking about.  I looked up at him hoping to find answers in his eyes but I could see that he had already switched to work mode.

 

“Come Bryan, we have a lot of work to do.”

 

I didn’t protest, I didn’t say a word; I just followed him to his office, painfully aware of all eyes on me as we walked down the hall.

 

“Close the door behind you.”

 

I closed the door and walked over to his desk, my tablet in hand ready to take notes.

 

“Before we get started I have something for you to look over.”

 

He handed me a piece of paper with the word ‘CONTRACT’ emblazoned across the top and I was a bit confused.  I already had the job so I didn’t understand why I had to sign something new.  I looked up at him completely confused.

 

“I don’t understand.  What is this?”

 

He crossed his arms as his eyes held mine and I began to squirm a bit under his stare.

 

“That is a proposition.  You can either accept or decline the offer, and whatever you decide your employment status with us will not be affected.  I think you are so bright and talented, you have an amazing future ahead of you, and I want to offer you an opportunity that no one else has ever received.”

 

“Okay…” my words trailed off as I began to read the contract.  When I finished reading I slowly looked up at him.

 

“So, I see you’ve read everything.  Any questions?”

 

“Um, yes.  Is this real?”

 

His gaze was unwavering.  “Yes, it is.  I have a high-end shopping center in Paris that is scheduled to be completed soon and I am offering you the opportunity to possibly design one of the stores.  I will show you the renderings and I want a sample portfolio on my desk by Friday so that mother can give the final okay.  If she approves your ideas, you will have one month to complete the task.  We will be working out of the Paris office and you will work with the senior designer there, but you will be responsible for the design.  If your design is successful, meaning mother approves, you will be promoted to senior designer.  Now, during that time you also have to do whatever I ask - anything I desire - no questions asked.  If you agree you can sign the contract and my secretary will make your travel arrangements.”

 

I sat there, staring at him in disbelief.  It was all so much to take in; my brain had a hard time comprehending everything.

 

“What happens if Mrs. Blocke doesn’t like my ideas?”

 

His words were firm.  “Then the offer is off the table and you will just continue to work your way up in this office.”

 

“And if she approves and I am promoted won’t I get a lot of backlash from the other employees here?  I am sure there are people who are much more deserving than me to be promoted.  I mean, I just started here and I don’t want to make enemies.”

 

He looked at me intently.  “Bryan, if anyone deserved a promotion, they would have been promoted by now.  Don’t worry about your co-workers.  Everyone who works here is generously compensated and should not have one complaint.  If anyone ever gives you any trouble I want you to come to me and only me.  Okay?”

 

“Yes.”

 

“Good.  I want your designs on my desk by Friday.  We will revisit this opportunity next Monday.  For now, we have a lot of work to do so let’s get started.”  There he went, right back into work mode.  It was amazing the way he was able to do that and it was something I was going to work on perfecting myself.

 

We worked tirelessly the rest of the morning, with Sebastian going over every detail of the company and his mother’s vision of where she wanted it to go.  He was all business and I kept hoping I would see a glimmer of the feelings he claimed to have for me, but it was as if work turned him into a robot.  I had never met a more focused man in my life and it turned me on more than I could have imagined.  I found myself forcing myself to concentrate as I listened to him, wanting to do nothing but wrap my arms around him.  His words kept running through my mind, ‘do whatever I ask’, and a shiver ran down my spine every time I thought about what that could mean.  We broke for lunch around 1:00 and Eva was at my office door five minutes later.  She was a welcome relief from the sexual tension I found myself wrapped in and I couldn’t wait to get some fresh air.

 

“Ready to go?”

 

“Yes, let me just grab my wallet.”