She grabbed a cup of coffee from the break room on her way to her corner office. Her space was small, but she treasured the window with the view of downtown Myrtle Beach. It was a big upgrade to her starter cubicle in the cube-farm down the hall. Just as she was running through the emails that had accumulated since yesterday, her boss, Hank, walked in and sank down in the chair in front of her desk.
“How’s it going, kid?”
She smiled at his standard greeting. Hank was in his forties and saw everyone around him as his kids. He had a thick mane of gray hair and if she squinted just right, he reminded her of Richard Gere. He had more than a few admirers in the office, both male and female, so apparently everyone else agreed with her assessment of his looks. “It’s going, no problems to speak of.”
Hank shook his head, giving her a rueful smile before saying, “Well, I’m about to mess that up for you. I know you’ve got half of your crew in Alabama this week, and Nikki is out with her . . . um . . . lady problem, but I’ve got a local install that just came through and it’s VIP.”
Mia rolled her eyes. “First of all, Nikki just had a baby; how is that a ‘lady problem’? And secondly, who’s the local VIP? Unless we’re talking about something for the city, it should only require a couple of technicians, tops.”
“You know the Oceanix Resort?” Mia nodded even though it wasn’t really a question. Most locals could never afford to stay there but everyone still knew the Oceanix Resort. It was high-end luxury. She would never voluntarily admit it to her coworkers, but she suspected that Hank knew she might be familiar with the resort. “They are replacing their entire system with ours and the Myrtle Beach location is to be the first install. If things go well, the other nine locations will be next. The catch is they want to start on Monday, which means that the preliminary work needs to be laid out this week. Since you’d normally send Nikki on a local job, that only leaves you, kid. This needs to go off without a hitch so we can’t send some wet-behind-the-ears newbie and besides, those are your people, aren’t they?”
Indeed they had been at one time. You didn’t grow up as the only child of Jefferson and Madeline Gentry without rubbing elbows with some of the privileged elite. Her parents were what you would call “old money.” If there had ever been a poor Gentry in the family tree, it was too far back to be found. She had bowed to parental pressure and attended an Ivy League college, which was probably why Hank suspected that she was from money. After she graduated, she had started to pull away from the crowd she had grown up with. The pressure to fit in had long ago gotten old and she was eager to experience life without a constant safety net under her.
Of course, her parents had been less than thrilled with her choices. She would have thought her computer science degree would have tipped them off, but apparently they just assumed she had spent four years in college to study a hobby. When she moved out of her gated childhood home in a posh oceanfront section of Garden City Beach, they had been quite vocal in their disapproval. She had struck a compromise with them and had moved into a condominium that her father owned in nearby Surfside Beach. She wanted to hate it, but truthfully she loved her two-bedroom home right on the ocean. It was a small twelve-unit building and even though she was well paid at Danvers, it would have been out of her price range.
She rarely saw any of her childhood friends now. Most of them just didn’t understand her anymore. As was often the case, they had all moved on. She had new friends now such as her good friend and coworker, Nikki, who was currently on maternity leave and had named Mia the godmother of her first child. Indeed, life was different, but better now. Her parents might never understand her, but she hoped in some tiny way, they respected her need to make it on her own.
Hank snapped his fingers, jerking her from her trip down memory lane and back to the present. Damn, what was his question again? Oh, yeah, her people, hmmm, how to answer that. “I don’t know about that. I’m not familiar with the owner or owners.”
He grinned, obviously amused with her efforts to sidestep his question. “Have you ever been inside the Oceanix Resort?”
Well shit, he had her there and he knew it. “Er . . . a few times. They have a good Sunday brunch.”
“Whew, I can only imagine how much a meal in that place would set you back.” Without waiting for an answer, he continued on. “So, at least you’re familiar with it. Bullshit aside, Merimon asked that we send you.”
Mia’s heart stuttered. Oh my God, Gray Merimon knew she existed? Maybe that threesome idea wasn’t all in her head. “Wow, okay. If Gray asked for me.” Before she could start mentally picking out lingerie, Hank busted her bubble.
“Gray? No, the other one, Nick. He handled the contract and requested the team leader. He even mentioned you by name.”
Talk about having the rug pulled out from under you. It wasn’t that she didn’t find Nick attractive; he was delish. His fiancée, Beth, was hot as well, but she was pregnant. It seemed wrong to have a fantasy about someone knocked up. Oh, well, it was probably for the best. She would just continue to admire her idol from afar. “Yeah, I’ll head on over there this morning and get everything started. Who do I need to ask for?”
Hank pulled some paperwork that he had rolled in his shirt pocket and handed it over to her. “Seth Jackson is your contact. He also indicated that you can speak with someone named Margie if he isn’t in.” Hank’s name was paged for a call and he left her office with a curse.
Mia spent the next hour answering emails and returning calls. She packed a bag with her iPad and a notebook to jot down some quick notes. She stopped off at the restroom to survey her reflection before she left. She had dressed a bit casually for a customer visit, but it would have to suffice. She was wearing black skinny pants, with her high-heeled pink pumps and a matching pink-and-white striped top. Her wavy, brown hair was styled in the usual intentionally messy look, and her makeup consisted of pink blusher and a sheer lipstick. Yeah, it would have to do. She seldom spent a lot of time with management in the preliminary stages anyway.
Chapter Three
God, he needed a drink. This day had been nothing but a pain in the ass so far. He had spent the past hour dealing with a customer who swore that the cleaning staff had stolen her wedding ring. The cleaning staff had gotten defensive and plainly pissed off over the accusations and the customer had been rude and obnoxious. After an hour of dealing with it from both sides, the customer’s husband had returned from his round of golf and reminded his wife that she hadn’t brought her ring; it was at home with the jeweler having one the settings repaired. She hadn’t even bothered to apologize. It was as if the whole thing had been an inconvenience to her. Seth intended to ensure that they had no vacancies in the future to accommodate them. He would not subject himself or his staff to that type of treatment again.
Margie wasn’t at her desk so he assumed she had gone on to lunch. She didn’t like to deviate from her schedule. She was usually on some crazy diet and making her wait to eat could damn near get everyone in the vicinity killed. He had just sat down at his desk when he noticed the light on in the attached communications office. Margie was probably in there using the cameras to snoop on Joe again. He got back up and went toward the office with the intention of pulling her out. He came to an abrupt halt when someone very un-Margie-like almost backed her ass up into his crotch. When she continued to shimmy and kept singing, “I’m sexy, and I know it,” he thought he had possibly died and gone to heaven. He settled back against the doorframe to enjoy the show. When she flipped around, he saw her nametag with the words Danvers International and Mia Gentry below it. Well, fuck. Couldn’t Jason Danvers employ someone homely for once? Sadly, the dance moves had stopped and a pair of stunning blue-green eyes looked up at him in question. “So you’re from Danvers?” Brilliant, Seth, way to state the obvious. Follow it up by asking her sign.
Her full pouty lips settled into a mischievous smile as she said, “Yep, and since I’ve already met Margie, then would you be Mr. Jackson?”
Sticking his hand out, he said, “It’s Seth and you must be Mia. I take it Margie showed you around. Did you have any other questions?”
“Nope, I think Margie gave me the 411 on everything. I’m just going over your equipment now. Do you want to keep your hard drive? I can dispose of it, but some people are funny about that.”
Seth couldn’t believe that the words equipment and hard drive had his c*ck stirring to attention. What in the hell was wrong with him? Why was he suddenly incapable of thinking of anything other than bending her over the control desk and f**king her senseless? He had to get out of this room before she noticed the tent in the front of his trousers. “Um, yeah, you can just keep it. I’m sure my hard drive will be safe with you.” Holy shit, did I actually just say that to her? So not cool. Just get out now before this gets worse. “I’ve got to get back to my office. Just let Margie know if you need anything.”
Mia looked at him in confusion and then to the space beyond him. “Isn’t that your office?”
“Oh, sure, yes. I meant to say, I was heading to lunch. You might be gone when I get back.” God, he really hoped so.
She looked down at her watch, seeming surprised by the time. Almost as if by some cruel twist of fate, her stomach growled at the same moment. “Where are you going for lunch?”
Before thinking better of it, he said, “I usually grab something from the restaurant downstairs. They have an excellent lunch buffet.”
Mia moaned and Seth started sweating harder. “Oh, they so totally do. It’s been ages since I’ve eaten there. Do you mind if I tag along? I hate to eat alone and I’m starving.”
“Er . . . sure. Just give me five minutes to finish a few things and I’ll be ready.” He could only imagine what she thought he had to “finish up” when he headed straight for his private restroom on the other side of his office. He just needed a few minutes to collect himself before what would undoubtedly be a long lunch hour. At this point, even having Beth do the system installation would have been preferable. At least he wasn’t likely to walk around with a raging hard-on the entire time. This girl though was getting to him. She wasn’t even his type. She was petite, but her heels made her appear much taller, with wild brown hair that looked like it had just left someone’s sheets. He preferred women with neater hair and more classic taste in clothing. Mia had neither of those things. And yet he would probably never get the fantasy of f**king her while she wore nothing but those damn pink shoes out of his head. Shit, he had to stop thinking about that!
He splashed some cold water on his face and mentally counted to one hundred. He could get through a simple lunch. He worked at a resort that catered to scantily clad females daily. This wasn’t a big deal. She wasn’t wearing a bikini like most of the people he dealt with. Mmmm, Mia in a bikini. Fuck! Enough already!
When he stepped out of the restroom, Mia was leaning against his desk waiting for him. He felt his cheeks color at the look of amusement on her face. Yeah, she thought he had problems. If she only knew. It was better that she labor under the illusion that he had stomach issues rather than the truth. He was dealing with an unruly cock.
“I’m ready if you are,” she said.
Why did everything she said sound like some sexy, double entendre when he knew it wasn’t intentional? “Sure, let’s go.” As they passed through the doorway, Margie was walking toward her desk. Seth wanted to pretend that he didn’t see her because he knew what was coming and she didn’t disappoint.
“Well, hey there, you two. Where are you off to?” She shot him a knowing smirk before looking at Mia as if they were new best friends.
“I invited myself to lunch with Seth.”
“Ah, honey, I’m sure he would love to have you.” Seth coughed, knowing damn well he wasn’t imagining the double meaning this time.
Before it could get worse, he walked to the elevator saying, “I’ll be back in an hour.”
“Take your time,” she yelled after them, “your afternoon is clear.” Sometimes, he truly hated that woman.
The elevator ride to the lobby was crowded, saving him from having to make conversation. When they entered the restaurant, he steered Mia toward his reserved table at the wall of windows. He loved looking at the ocean view while he was eating. Mia took the seat opposite from him, ordering a sweet tea from the waiter. Once their drinks were delivered, she jumped up and made her way toward the buffet at a rapid pace. Apparently, she wasn’t lying about being starving. He was barely halfway through filling his plate when she walked by him flashing a sheepish grin. Her plate was completely loaded and he couldn’t imagine where she would even put it all.