The room continued to fill with people as 10 a.m. approached. Louise came in, sat across from her in the chair to the left of her fatherâs seat and offered a small smile. Her mother reached across the tableâs polished surface and grasped her hand. Eve said nothing, but offered a nod and a small smile of her own in return.
At two minutes till, her father finally strode in. Another man entered the room on his heels, and she felt a charge in the air. The atmosphere changed around her as a familiar scent filled her nostrils.
Her eyes traveled up the body of the man accompanying her father. His muscular frame was draped in a well-fitting gray suit, soft blue shirt and deep blue tie. Her gaze went higher, to meet the manâs face.
The dark eyes met hers, and recognition lit them almost immediately.
Shit!
Her mind registered who he was: the shirtless brother in the background of the picture Lina had texted her. Before she could stop herself, she said aloud, âOh my God, itâs the elevator and volleyball guy...â
All eyes turned on her, including the sexy ones belonging to the brother in the gray suit.
Heâd heard her.
She closed her eyes, and wished the floor would open up and swallow her.
* * *
What is she talking about?
Darius blinked, held his eyes closed for a moment, then opened them again.
But that didnât change anything. The beautiful woman heâd seen on the elevator yesterday was still there, wide-eyed.
Today she wore a navy blue sheath dress that just grazed her knees. He found he much preferred it to yesterdayâs pantsuit, as this getup allowed him an unobstructed view of her long, silky-looking brown legs.
Thinking he should respond to what sheâd said, he dragged his eyes upward, toward her face. âIâm sorry, but I canât say Iâve ever played volleyball in an elevator.â It was a nonsense response to match the nonsense statement, and he hoped it would break the tension hanging between them.
She appeared mortified, her cheeks filled with red. She dipped her head, lay a graceful hand over her brow, as if doing her best to disappear. âThat didnât come out right.â
Aware of the watching eyes of everyone present, he offered an easy chuckle. âApparently.â
A few laughs sounded around the table.
Someone even made a comment about how the size of an elevator simply wasnât conducive to a good volleyball game.
âUnless weâre talking about a handheld game,â someone else interjected.
To him, they were just disembodied voices in a crowded room. His eyes stayed on the pretty lady whoâd captured his attention the previous day. The one who was now doing her best to avoid looking at him. âItâs all right to misspeak now and then, you know.â
She looked up at him, her face tight, the brown eyes narrowed. âForget what I said. What I mean is, Iâve seen you before.â
âHow could I forget?â He smiled at her, coming a little closer to her seat, and taking her hand. âItâs nice to see you again, Miss...â
Her hand trembled, and as she tilted her face to look at him, a silken lock of her upswept hair fell into her face. He found the sight captivating.
Someone cleared their throat. âI see youâve met my daughter, Eve.â
He jerked his head around, and saw Franklin there, looking on. Releasing her hand, he studied his mentor, whose face was unreadable. âThis is your daughter?â
Franklin nodded in response.
Turning back to her, he met her curious eyes. âPleased to meet you, again, Miss Franklin. Iâm Darius Winsteadâan old friend of your fatherâs.â
In a moment, her expression changed from curiosity to anger. Her lovely brows furrowed, her sweet little painted mouth twisted into a scowl. In an outraged whisper, she said, âYou! Youâre the old friend?â
Not wanting to rile her any further, he stepped back. âYes, I guess I am.â
She opened her mouth, then closed it again, as if becoming aware of the other people in the room. Blowing out a loud sigh, she folded her arms over her chest and turned toward the center of the table. She was obviously angry about something. But rather than say anything else, and risk a shouting match with her in front of the people he would soon lead, he rounded the table and took a seat in an empty leather chair across from her. She cut her eyes at him, a brief gesture that communicated her desire to either slap him, or let the air out of his tires, or both. He couldnât tell and he didnât want to find out.
So, the gorgeous woman from the elevator was the old manâs daughter. He never would have guessed it, having only seen pictures of her as a child scattered around Franklinâs office. What really upset him, though, was the way she reacted when heâd introduced himself. Why was she so annoyed that he called her father a friend?
Franklin stood behind the chair at the head of the table, and called the meeting to order. Soon the old man had called on the board secretary to read aloud the minutes of the last meeting. Darius knew he should probably pay attention to what was being said, but this was the part of business that bored him into a coma-like state. When he looked across the table at a tight-faced Eve, he saw her drumming the eraser end of a sharpened pencil on the tabletop. At least he wasnât the only person struggling to stay awake.
To keep his eyelids from growing any heavier, he took a moment to look around the room. It was a very modern space, with soft gray walls and matching carpet. One wall was similar to the one in Franklinâs office, all glass, and looked out onto Trade Street. The other three walls were hung with framed magazine and newspaper articles about FTI, as well as a few pieces of colorful abstract art. The table they were sitting around was long and rectangular, made of glossy polished mahogany or some other dark wood. The twenty or so people present were all sitting in chairs the same shade of dark brown leather, with padded armrests. He shifted in his seat. It wasnât as comfy as the memory foam one upstairs, but the slight discomfort might be just enough to keep him awake.
He heard Franklin call his daughterâs name and ask her to summarize the past monthâs financial reports. She stood, tugging at the hem of the sheath dress. An aide walked over and turned on the projector set up in front of the roomâs only blank wall. As the aide operated a laptop slide show, Eve pushed the wayward lock of hair away from her face and began to speak. Angling herself away from him and facing more toward her father, she spoke about profits and losses, overhead and the other particulars of the company budget with confidence. Watching her, it was pretty obvious she knew what she was talking about, and was likely damn good at her job. Why was Franklin so sure she wasnât ready for the position of CEO? From where he sat, she seemed altogether capable and intelligent.
Once the slide show and her presentation came to an end, she sat down again. Impressed with both her body itself and her body of knowledge, Darius kept his eyes on her for the rest of the meeting.
Finally, mercifully, the meeting came to an end. Most of the people in the room filtered out, but Darius remained, along with Franklin and his daughter. The old man, whoâd stood as the board members exited, sat down again. Eve remained in her seat, and they both looked in his direction. Taking the hint, he got up and moved down to the seat Mrs. Franklin had been occupying, with the old man between them.
Franklin started. âEve, I...â
She cut him off. âPlease excuse me, Daddy, but I would really like to know what qualifies your so-called âold friendâ to run this company. What kind