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Reading quickly, he learned that Autumn had a bachelor’s degree in Economics and Mathematics, and a master’s degree in Statistics. All from Yale University. She was an Ivy girl, she was smart and she loved numbers. Plus, she had a killer body. It added up to some serious trouble for a man who was trying not to be attracted to her and failing badly.
“I hope you won’t let our respective universities affect our working relationship,” she said in a teasing voice.
He glanced up from the paper in front of him. “You’re referring to the long-standing rivalry between Yale and Harvard.”
She nodded and crossed her legs, sheathed in sheer hose he yearned to rip away.
He smiled. “A little bit of competition always makes things more interesting, no?”
“Most definitely,” she responded. “But I’m glad I’m on your team, rather than fighting against it.”
Isaac raised a brow. “Because you know you would lose?” he said matter-of-factly, hoping he didn’t sound arrogant.
She shook her head. “Not at all. But winning isn’t everything.”
Isaac glanced over at the door. “Don’t let Sterling ever hear you say that.”
Autumn didn’t ask why and Isaac was glad he didn’t have to explain. If she wanted a career at Paxton, she would learn for herself soon enough.
He returned his attention to her résumé and noticed something that puzzled him.
Like Autumn, Isaac had also made the decision to pursue an advanced degree directly after college. But the difference was that when he finished graduate school, he’d gone straight to work for Paxton, which was one of the leading investment firms in the country.
On the contrary, Autumn had worked at some midlevel investment banks all around the country. Los Angeles. Phoenix. Miami. Companies whose names he’d never even heard of.
He considered pressing the issue but decided against it.
Multiple job hops might make some people nervous, but not him. Autumn was young, intelligent, and she obviously knew when a situation wasn’t working to her advantage. Ambitiousness was a quality he admired, especially in a woman.
Besides, if Sterling trusted her enough to hire her, why shouldn’t he?
Still, he couldn’t let her off the hook completely. “Your résumé is impressive,” he began slowly. “But you’ve moved around a lot. Surely that’s not because of the economy every time, is it?”
“I always leave myself open to the possibilities of a greater challenge or something new.”
He flipped back to the first page again. “Your previous place of employment was in Cleveland?”
Autumn’s lips curved into a mischievous grin. “What can I say? I love to rock and roll!”
Isaac laughed aloud, pleased by the free-spirited tone in her voice. He found her playful attitude refreshing and very appealing. Even in the overbearing atmosphere of the boardroom, not to mention the pressure of the first day in a new job, she had no problem being herself.
Most women tried everything they could to impress him. The girls in the office knew he was single, available and one of the wealthiest men in New York City. Out on the street, the women knew him as a regular guy who was hotter than the asphalt on a July afternoon. In the winter, they worshipped the ground he melted ice on.
He’d be the first to admit that sometimes he took the bodies they willingly offered and he enjoyed them. The one-night stands most of these women hoped would turn into a lifetime of ardor and passion meant absolutely nothing to him.
While the opportunity to bed a beautiful woman and run the other way the next morning was still there, now he had two good reasons to refuse their advances. His children.
Consequently, he hadn’t slept with a woman in a very long time. Whether becoming a father caused him to feel a sense a guilt or greater moral virtue, he didn’t know.
The more likely reason was that he was tired of being a pawn in a two-player game that never went anywhere. Of pretending he didn’t want a woman to love him for more than his face, his body or his money.
Isaac checked the time on his phone and stifled a yawn.
He’d been up late again helping his son, Devon, with his math homework. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d had a good night’s sleep. And tonight, he expected that thoughts of what Autumn looked like without the corporate jail suit would impede his rest even further.
“What do you say we rock and roll and get a jump on that tour?”
“Sounds great,” Autumn replied. “You can show me the cafeteria and we can finally get that cup of coffee you missed out on this morning.”
Isaac tried to swallow back another yawn. When it escaped, they both laughed.
“Yeah, you can tell I really need it, can’t you?”
His eyes caught hers again. God, she was even prettier when she laughed. Thank goodness, the analysts occupied a space on another floor in the building.
His phone beeped, bringing his attention back to business. He pulled it out of his pocket, looked at it and groaned.
“Unfortunately, the tour is going to have to be a quick one. I’ve got another meeting in ten minutes and I think I’ve used up all my Get to a Meeting Late cards for the day.”
“How do I snag one of those?” Autumn joked.
“Trust me, you do not want to be in Late Club,” he said, in all seriousness.
“Why not?”
“Because I’m the one and only member.” His gut did a little flip when she pursed her lips at him. “I didn’t used to be,” he backtracked. “I mean, it was only when I—”
He stopped abruptly at the winsome look on her face and realized he was rambling. Something that was completely out of character for him. Worst of all, he’d almost told her about his kids. No one at Paxton knew about them and he wanted to keep it that way for now.
“Just do your best to never be late to a meeting, especially one with Felicia or Sterling,” he said curtly.
“I appreciate the heads-up,” Autumn affirmed. “By the way, is there always that much tension between them? My neck was beginning to hurt watching their verbal ping-pong match.”
“Yeah,” Isaac snorted. “But you’ll get used to it. We all have. Felicia plays the Daddy’s-girl role around here to the hilt, but she’s very capable.”
And lately very dangerous.
Isaac had heard rumors of people getting terminated, supposedly because Felicia didn’t like them, but those were typically lower-level employees. They were the unfortunate ones she liked to trample on the most.
Hopefully, Felicia knew better than to mess with him. Isaac had too much stake and longevity in the company to throw it all away just because of her passive-aggressive antics.
If only he could figure out why Sterling was giving him the cold shoulder all of a sudden, then he’d be able to come clean about his kids. They meant more to him than anything in the world, and being made a partner at Paxton would secure his new family’s financial future.
He wouldn’t let anything or anyone stand in his way.
Not a bitch like Felicia.
Nor a beauty like Autumn.
Isaac felt her eyes examining his face, as if it would reveal all his secrets, so he got up and walked over to the floor-to-ceiling window.
The snarl of people far below seemed to belong to another world. He always liked to remind himself that he was one of them, especially during those times he was afraid of losing everything.
“Can I ask you a question?”
Isaac turned away and faced her. “Sure, anything.”
“What do you like best about working here?”
Isaac took a few steps and leaned against an empty console.
“That’s easy,” he replied. “I get to play with other people’s money, and make a bundle of my own. What about you? What attracted to you Paxton Investment Securities?”
She folded her arms. “The reputation of the company in the industry. Plus, the fact that I love to analyze every investment to insure we are maximizing profits and shareholder value while maintaining the highest ethical standards in every transaction.”
He was surprised that her bold confidence excited him, making him stir in all the wrong places. When a woman’s strong work ethic was a major turn-on, that’s a sign that one was severely undersexed.
“You sound like Sterling,” he said with hidden admiration. “No wonder he hired you.”
Although he truly meant it as a compliment, she brushed his comment aside.
“I just try to do the right thing, in any and all situations.”
“That’s wonderful. That’s the way it should be,” he asserted. “You are reporting to Sterling, right?”
Something flashed in her eyes. “Wh-what do you mean?”
He gave her a strange look. “He’s your boss. You’re his direct report, not mine, right?”
Autumn nodded. “Yes. Sorry, I blanked out for a bit.”
Isaac was relieved. At the moment, he worked solo and that’s the way he liked it. Having to manage Autumn would be a major distraction, one he couldn’t afford to risk right now.
“It’s kind of an odd arrangement, isn’t it? That analysts report directly to the president of a firm. Especially one of this size.”
Isaac shook his head. “Not at Paxton. Sterling wants there to be a clear division between the investment bankers and the analysts. He feels it’s easier for the analysts to remain objective and impartial, in order to avoid any conflict of interest.
“Have there ever been any issues?”
Isaac clenched his jaw. While he appreciated her curiosity, she needed to know that there were some questions that were off-limits at Paxton. But it wasn’t his place to tell her that. All he was supposed to do was give her a tour of the building and that was it.
Ignoring the question, he eyed the stack of paperwork on the table. “We’d better get a move on it. You’ll want to get those forms filled out and turned in quickly. Paxton has one of the best employee benefits package in the industry, especially if you have—” He choked back his secret. “I mean, if you’re married or have a significant other.”
Not reporting a life change, namely the adoption of his children, was another rung Felicia could hang him by. But if he reported it to her, she’d run to Sterling and tell him right away, and that would be the beginning of the end of his career at Paxton.
Even though Sterling had a daughter of his own, he was well-known for being antifamily. His priorities began and ended with Paxton, and he expected his employees to have the same love and dedication for his company that he did.
Isaac was certain that if Sterling found out about his children, he could pretty much kiss the partnership goodbye.
Needless to say, he was praying his children wouldn’t get seriously ill. Although he was already very wealthy and had private insurance coverage, depending on the injury or severity of illness, he could end up in a financial bind. After growing up poor, that was something he never wanted to experience again.
Isaac pushed himself away from the table and rose. “Let’s get this show on the road.”
He strode to the door and leaned against the wall, waiting while Autumn gathered the rest of her things. Everything she did—straightening the papers, stowing her pen in her purse and then hitching it over her thin shoulder—seemed larger than normal in his eyes.
But of course it wasn’t.
It was only him, without understanding his need, trying to soak in as much detail about her as he could, as mundane as it might be. Before he had to turn her loose and go on about his business.
Although he knew he shouldn’t, he couldn’t stop his eyes from wandering all over her slender body, from tip to toe, as she walked over to him, clasping the thick wad of paperwork in her arms like an innocent schoolgirl. Her curly mane beckoned him unknowingly, her body forcing him to bite the inside of his mouth as he stiffened once again.
“Ready to go?” she asked.
Thank God she was standing an arm’s length away, because if he could have it his way that stupid paperwork would be littering the floor and she’d be wrapped in his embrace.
At just over six feet, he was taller than her, yet he knew instinctively she’d be a perfect fit.
“Yeah,” he muttered thickly, hoping she couldn’t see or hear his desire for her.
He opened the door, bowing slightly. “After you.”
She murmured her thanks, giving him a strange smile as she walked out of the room. The sultry way Autumn’s skirt clung to her backside was almost too much for one man to bear, especially on a Monday morning.
He’d just turned off the lights in the conference room when his phone rang.
“Hi, Sterling, what can I do for you?”
As he listened to his boss and the man that was almost a father figure to him, his heart raced with excitement and dread.
He ended the call and glanced quickly at Autumn. “I’m going to need to postpone the tour. Are you going to be okay?”
Her brows knit together in confusion. “What was that about?”
“I’ll explain at lunch,” he replied, shoving the phone in his pocket. “Meet me in my office at noon.”
Without waiting for Autumn’s response, he turned and jogged down the hall, feeling her eyes on his back and her smile settling in his heart.
Chapter 3
“And we’re off,” Autumn whispered under her breath as she watched Isaac round the corner.
Way to go, Sterling.
Her plan was falling together nicely. Though she was curious what her new boss had said on the phone to make Isaac invite her to lunch, it hardly mattered. She routinely left the initial minor details of a surveillance case up to the client. Experience taught her that doing so put her on the fast track to gaining her client’s trust. In the end, she did what she wanted, when she wanted to do it, whether the client liked it or not. All was forgiven when she solved a case and got the answers they wanted.
Autumn shifted the stack of papers in her hand, wishing she could toss them into the nearest trash can. She had no need for any of the Paxton benefits, the government took care of her quite nicely. Whether she had a nosebleed or a gunshot wound, she could walk, run or crawl to any hospital and get medical help. No questions asked and no payment required. Being a friend of Uncle Sam was the best insurance policy in the nation.
Hopefully neither of those injuries would occur on this case. But Autumn wasn’t so sure about what would happen to her heart. Over the past few years, she’d been in some pretty scary situations, but none of them made her heart beat as hard as it did when she looked at Isaac, or when he looked at her.
The raw power that he exuded, even when he was relaxed, made her unabashedly wet between the legs.
She smiled with pleasure. It wasn’t until the end of the meeting, when she had stood before him and his hot gaze sent a jolt of fire down her body, that she’d realized his hunger was for her.
Sadly, she’d almost laughed. The man had no idea that she was there to potentially destroy him.
It had been a while since she’d seen that look in a man’s eyes, and even longer since she’d welcomed it.
But Isaac? He was different. If she were to be truly honest with herself, there was something about Isaac that made her want to run into his arms. Yet, for the good of the case, she knew she would do well to remind herself on a daily basis that she was there to learn the truth, not hop into bed with the most gorgeous man she’d seen since—well...ever.
What she needed right now was a distraction. A nice cup of tea would make her forget about Isaac’s tawny-brown eyes and help her refocus on the investigation.
She was just about to try to find the Paxton cafeteria herself when she heard a voice calling her name. She turned to see Felicia walking toward her. How she didn’t manage to trip in those stiletto heels was an unfortunate miracle in itself.
“There you are. I’ve been looking all over for you, and here you are exactly where I left you.”
Felicia’s voice was so syrupy sweet that it made Autumn want to gag.
She opened the door to the conference room, peered inside and quickly shut it. “Where’s Isaac?” she demanded.
Autumn pasted a smile on her face. “He had to run to a meeting.”
“You mean he left you here without giving you a tour?”
“No. He gave me the tour,” she lied. “We stopped back at the conference room because I accidentally left my paperwork on the table.”
Autumn grasped the wad and waved it in Felicia’s face so hard her eyes blinked. “See?”
Felicia pushed the paper away with annoyance. “All I see is that it’s not filled out. You’d better get to your desk and get started.”
“Sure. I would be happy to do so if I knew where my desk was located.”
Felicia touched the back of her hair. “All analysts are housed in the cubicles on the second floor. Didn’t Isaac show you?” she said impatiently.
Autumn shook her head. “No, that was our last stop but then he was suddenly called into a meeting.”
Felicia let out an exasperated breath. “Come on, I’ll show you.” She started down the hall, muttering under her breath. “I guess if you want something done right around here, you’ve got to do it yourself.”
“Wait,” Autumn called out. “Sterling wrote down the location of my work space. He said it was somewhere on this floor.”
Felicia swiveled on her heels, her eyes narrowing. “Are you sure? This floor is for members of the Paxton executive team only.”
Autumn accidentally dropped the scrap of paper Sterling had given her earlier. She bent to retrieve it and when she stood, Felicia rudely snatched it away.
“Let me see that.” Felicia’s cheeks reddened and she crumpled the paper into a ball.
Autumn bit back a smile. She had no idea where her work space was located, but it was obvious the woman didn’t like it.
They walked down the carpeted hallway, in the opposite direction from where Isaac had run, and through a small corridor. A few minutes later, they stopped in front of a door with no nameplate. It was constructed of heavy wood and there was a thin plane of glass running vertically down one side of the door, the view through which was obstructed by cardboard.
“I think my father has made a mistake. We use this room for file storage.”
Felicia’s hand shook a little as she placed it on the knob and turned. “I don’t understand this,” she shrieked.
Autumn stepped into the small but clean room. Two rusty gray file cabinets lined one wall, one of which was graced with a plastic houseplant that had lost most of its leaves. The old-fashioned metal desk had a couple of beat-up chairs in front of it. On the desk was one of those spotlight lamps, the kind with the lightbulb that burned so hot it could singe anything that got to close to it.
Clearly, the room had been hastily furnished with some vintage finds from somebody’s attic or basement. A laptop was the only modern thing in the whole place.
Autumn walked around the desk and set down the stack of papers she was lugging around, as well as her purse. Then she sat in the vintage wooden chair and spun around to face Felicia, who was still by the door.
“It’s perfect!” she exclaimed with a broad smile. “What’s wrong with it?”
“It’s...it’s...ugly,” Felicia sputtered. “The furnishings are horrendous, not at all what we have in the other offices. Not to mention the fact that this is a file room and no one but me is supposed to be in here.”
Felicia looked out into the hallway before she moved deeper inside the room and looked around. “But where are all the files?” she wailed, her eyes wide to the whites. “This room was nearly filled with boxes and now there are only about half left.”
Hopefully, only the ones I need for the investigation, Autumn thought, snickering inwardly.
Sterling may be a grump, but he was turning out to be very, very handy.
Felicia walked up to the desk and planted her hands on her hips. “I’m sure this is only a temporary office,” she said with a note of derision. “There must be some issue with getting your cubicle ready on the second floor. I’ll speak to my father and we’ll get this matter straightened out right away.”
Autumn nodded and tugged on the middle drawer of her desk. “Sounds good.” The drawer stuck, so she tugged even harder and when she finally managed to pull it open, the metal on metal scraped together so loudly that Felicia covered her ears.
The drawer was well stocked with office supplies. Another plus for Sterling. She grabbed the first pen she saw and quickly uncapped it. “I’ll get started on that paperwork now and will have it to you by lunch, okay?”
“Fine,” Felicia snapped, looking over her shoulder again, as if she was expecting someone. “I should have this work space issue corrected by then.”
Autumn rose and went to the door, feigning eagerness to finally start her first day on the job, in the hopes that Felicia would leave. “Thanks for all your help. I’ll drop by your office in a couple of hours.”
She leaned against the jamb and watched as Felicia suddenly hurried down the hall as fast as her stiletto heels could take her. The woman seemed genuinely distraught and confused about the whole situation. She was about to shut the door when she looked up and suddenly realized why.
Isaac Mason’s office was directly opposite hers.
* * *
Isaac smoothed one hand over his close-cropped hair and then got to work reknotting his tie. It was almost noon and he’d made it through his morning meetings, his clients were happy, and there were no frantic phone calls from his children.
Like one of his favorite rappers once said, “It’s been a good day.” But Isaac knew it was long from over.
He wasn’t happy about what Sterling had asked him to do, but if he wanted to make partner, he had no choice.
With his tie neatened to his satisfaction, he took one last glance in the mirror, ignoring the rumble in his belly and hammering of his heart.
It’s just lunch, he told himself, and Autumn’s just another coworker. But he knew she was more than that, or at least he wished she could be.
Isaac walked over to his desk and password-protected his computer. After glancing out his office window, he opened the door and was shrugging into his coat when Autumn stepped out of the opposite office.
“Well, hello!” she greeted him.
Isaac pulled on the lapels of his coat. “What are you doing in there?” he asked, pointing his finger at the closed door. “That’s the file room.”
She gave him a cheery smile. “It’s my office now.”
Before he could ask any more questions, she started to walk away.
“Where are we going to lunch? The cafeteria? Because I’m starved.”
The thought of food was distracting enough without having to watch her sumptuous bottom sway down the hall and not be able to cradle it in his hands. During his morning meetings, his mind had wandered into random thoughts of her—a kind of subtle curiosity that would only be satisfied by seeing and feeling this woman who could never be his, except in his dreams.
“Um. N-no,” he stuttered, feeling a little like Clark Kent chasing Lois as he quickly moved beside her. “I thought we’d go somewhere a little quieter. I have something I need to talk to you about.”
“Sounds serious. Is everything all right?”
“No, but it will be.”
It has to be, Isaac thought. He had to find a way to get back into Sterling’s good graces again. If he could pull this off, he’d make partner for sure.
He leaned against the wall as they waited for the elevator and admired the clean lines of the soft gray coat she wore. Tailored at the waist, it accentuated her trim figure and ended midthigh, which suited him just fine. The more leg she revealed the better, and from where he stood, Lord knows she had two mighty fine ones.
Damn.
There were thousands of women in New York, and the only one that had piqued his interest was off-limits and off-the-chain gorgeous.
Isaac cleared his throat and turned away before his lower body gave away his thoughts.