I had a big puffy leather chair, a corner cubicle with twice the space my old cubicle had and a line into one of the executive assistants. In a big investment bank like Smith & Ward, this was luxury.
Smiling with satisfaction, I started to organize my desk. I would have new responsibilities and more interactions with clients. I wanted it set up for maximum efficiency and comfort so I could concentrate on my client relationships more than anything. That would be the key to me moving up to Senior VP, which was my next goal.
As I was going over my client list, I felt a tall, male presence enter my cubicle and I looked up expecting one of the other VPs. Instead I was looking right at Mr. Christopher Ward again. My stomach did a flip-flop. I must have made an impression. I felt a determination sweep over me. I threw away my chance at the fundraiser but now the revenge gods were giving me another chance.
“Good morning, Mr. Ward.” I smiled as I swirled my chair all the way around to face him.
“Good morning, Miss Bishop. I came to welcome you to your new position before you get swept up in HR hell.”
“Oh? Are you the welcoming committee for all new VPs?”
“Only the ones named Alison.” He looked around my cubicle but his face didn’t show any kind of reaction.
“Oh, lucky me.” My sarcasm was light and not near as thick and full of contempt as I would have liked but I had to keep up appearances.
“I would like to invite you to a celebration lunch on the rooftop café today. Are you free?” He ignored my sarcasm and stared at me with a business-like focus.
“That’s a loaded question but yes, I have lunch open today. However, do I want to? That’s the question.”
“Okay, then if you want to, I’ll be up there. If not, I’ll have a nice lunch on a beautiful day with my own company. Either way, I win. I’ll see you when I see you, Miss Bishop.”
That dastardly man did not give me the chance to turn him down. He knew that not showing any concern, either way, would make me want to show up more. He was good. I had to give him that. He was very good.
“Hey, you. Are you getting all settled?” Rose walked in a few minutes later, dressed in a white suit that was an incredible fit. I had to find out where she shopped.
“Yes, absolutely. Just getting ready to head up to HR.” I smiled at her as I stood up.
“Did I just see Christopher Ward walking out of here?”
“Oh, yeah. He came to invite me to lunch.”
Rose’s brow furrowed and I wondered if she was jealous or concerned. It really did suck when somebody was this hard to read. I lose all feeling of control over a situation when I can’t figure out what’s going in a person’s head.
“Interesting. Are you going to go?”
“I kind of have to. Don’t I?”
“Yeah. It’s probably not the best idea to stand up the CEO.” Her face lightened up a bit and she smiled. “But, you do still have free will. I mean, it might mean stalling future promotions but you do have free will.”
“That’s great. Thanks, Rose. You’ve been super helpful.”
She laughed and wished me luck as she went down the row of cubicles to talk to an associate.
I stood there for a minute contemplating how to prepare myself for the lunch. Taking out my phone, I texted Mac letting him know the new development. He might have a few words of advice for me. Hopefully, it was more than, “Don’t screw this up.”
** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** **
Christopher was already at the table when I got away from HR to meet him for lunch. Nobody else was in the executive’s café and I wasn’t sure if that was good or bad. I chose to see it as good and steeled myself to be stronger with my internal emotions. I had a job to do and I have never let emotions stop me before.
I focused on how attractive Christopher was and he really was. His dark brown hair was perfectly groomed and his designer stubble was sculpted around a very strong jaw line. I hadn’t seen his body but the way his suits fit him told of a very nice and well-built body. He was very clean and always smelled so good.
When I sat down, I got a very subtle hint of his cologne and it did make me weak in the knees, though he would never know that. He was texting somebody and didn’t look up. I used to see this as disrespectful but I now know it’s a power move as I have used it myself a few times. That doesn’t make it any less disrespectful but I understand it a bit more now.
I wasn’t going to talk until he did, so I picked up my menu and looked to see if anything they were serving today had lobster in it. I let myself really get into the menu, which was easy to do because Smith & Ward hired only the best chefs and each week they put out a new menu of new culinary creations. It was like eating at a Michelin Star restaurant.
“Do you see anything you like?”
I looked up from my menu to see that Christopher had finally stopped texting and was looking at me. I didn’t know for how long and I wasn’t about to care at this point. He was trying to power play me. I had his number.
“The salad I had the other day was fabulous, I was thinking of trying another one.” I looked straight into his eyes with no vulnerability or hint of being annoyed that he was on his phone when I sat down.
He studied me for a minute before looking at his own menu. He quickly threw it down and grabbed mine from my hands. My gut reaction was to be annoyed but I quickly held that back and kept a calm demeanor as if he hadn’t just ripped something out of my hands. I didn’t laugh or act scared. I just stared at him, with determination.
“We’re going to get a specialty I have the chef make for me sometimes. You’re going to like it. No salads. No sandwiches. We are going to celebrate your new position and the millions of dollars you saved us.” He motioned for the server to come over. “What kind of wine do you like?”
“Red.” My gaze never wavered but I did let myself smile. This was fun; I had to admit. I liked the spontaneity of it.
“We are going off the menu and going to have the Angus rib-eye with mushroom puree. You know the dish. And a bottle of cabernet.” He handed the menus to the server and then looked back at me. “I assume you’re not a vegetarian?”
“You assume correctly. I like a good bloody steak.” I smiled and winked at him. I was looking forward to seeing what he liked to eat so often that he had the chef keep ingredients in the kitchen for it. The more he revealed to me about himself the better.
“You seem like somebody who could tear into a piece of meat with no problem.” The sun was now having an effect on his eyes and the blue came through like a body of water. Full of life and energy with a hint of danger.
“I can tear into a lot of things, Mr. Ward.” I took a drink of water without looking away. The intensity was building but I had a handle on it and it felt like a battle of wills for who would control the seduction. I liked that.
“Listen, Alison. If you are going to sit here and have lunch with me, you must call me Christopher. I can’t handle the Mr. Ward thing when I’m buying you lunch. I order you to do it, as your CEO and as a very powerful man.” His eyes gleamed. It was light hearted joking but he had no idea how much those words resonated with me. He would one day, though.
The server brought our wine to us. He went through the wine service, getting Christopher’s okay with every move. After the taste was had and Christopher approved it, both glasses were filled and Christopher raised his glass.
“To your new position in our company. May you save us millions more.”
We clinked glasses and each took a sip. It was a velvety yet tart Cabernet. It was magnificent. I savored the taste as I got ready to cut to the chase.
“Okay, Christopher. What is the real reason you wanted to have lunch with me today? Promotions happen in this company all the time. You don’t seem like the type who beats around the bush, so what’s the deal?” I leaned back in my chair, waiting for my answer. He smiled and let out a short laugh.
“Oh, you really do fascinate me, Alison. You’re right. This isn’t just about your promotion. I want to take you out. I want to do more than lunch. I want to do more than chat at a fundraiser. I want a night where you’re all mine.” He leaned forward with the last sentence and penetrated me with his blue eyes.
I couldn’t deny it to myself. That made me shiver with arousal and it felt very good to hear. I had to tread lightly, though. I couldn’t just give him everything he wanted all at once. Not if I was going to stay in control.
I didn’t move or even squirm. Oh, I did on the inside but there was no external indication that his words had any effect on me. I sat there without answering and just looked at him, a half smile on my face. He was waiting for me to respond but he never asked me a question or said anything that required an answer. All he did was tell me what he wanted from me. To respond to that would give too much away. I was going to wait for him to talk again. He probably already knew this tactic, I’m sure he used it all the time, so if he didn’t budge, the rest of the lunch would have to take place with nothing but stares and silence.
We did sit there for what seemed like forever. I have no idea exactly how long as I didn’t even want to bother grabbing my phone. I sat as still as could be and he did as well. We both had smirks on our face at this point, which was the only thing that moved between us. It was a battle of the wills. He would find out just how strong my will was.
He cleared his throat and arched his eyebrow. He was cracking. I felt relief as I wanted this to go somewhere, but I wasn’t about to give anything away about myself to do it.
“Eight O’clock, Wednesday night. I have tickets to see the Philharmonic. I want to see you in formal attire. Red would look good on you.” He broke the silence but with a command of when we would have a date and what I would wear. Oh, he was good.
I cocked my head and looked at him with an arched eyebrow and looked at him with geniuine curiousity. He looked at me with a blank expression, nothing to read. Damn. I was hoping he would give me something.
“I will meet you there, no picking me up and I’ll wear black.” I nodded my head and clasped my hands together in front of me. This was now a negotiation. That felt more comfortable to both of us.
Our food came then and as our plates were set in front of us, neither one of us broke our gaze.
“Red with black accents and you meet me in my limo, which will be parked in front of David Geffen Hall for a drink first.” He looked satisfied with that and decided to break our latest staring contest by picking up his knife and fork and cutting into the perfectly cooked rib-eye strips that were drizzled with a mushroom puree.
“I can do that. Deal.” I followed suit with my knife and fork.
The food was a welcome distraction. I was starving, it looked delicious and our battle of wills was interrupted for one of the best reasons it can be. The steak melted in my mouth and the mushroom puree was one of the best things I had ever tasted. Washing it down with the velvety cabernet only made it better. I was actually enjoying myself. I had to keep reminding myself of my true purpose.
Christopher looked up at me as he chewed his food, in the classiest and understated way, of course. No cow chewing for him. He swallowed his latest bite and spoke up.
“I have never negotiated a date before. That kind of thing is one of the many reasons I find myself drawn to you.” He didn’t smile or frown. He just stated it matter-of-factly. “You aren’t impressed by me, are you?”
“Not at all.” I looked at him and smiled and then took a drink of wine.
He laughed. He had a good laugh. It felt good to hear it. It felt too good. I broke my gaze, going inward to my breathing. This was not a pleasure thing for me. I could derive pleasure from this only if it didn’t distract me from my purpose.
Focus, Ali. Focus.