“Don’t worry. I’ll be providing status for our team. I just need you there for moral support and in case he has questions I don’t have the answers to.” She peeked outside my office then shut the door. “Seriously, don’t worry too much. I know he looks like he’s just waiting for a chance to bite your head off, but he’s more chill these days. I think that means we’re doing something right.”
“Thanks. That makes me feel better, I guess.” I rose to my feet and grabbed my iPad. “Lead the way.”
We were the first ones to get there, so I had a choice of seats. I went with the first chair along the wall. I figured that was the safest place in case I needed to make a quick escape. My heart pumped hard as my mind conjured crazy scenarios where people found out Declan and I had wild sex in his high-rise apartment all weekend. I definitely needed a quick getaway if that ever happened.
“Not there.” Sophia smiled at me. “Lead programmers get a seat at the table.” She gestured to the spot next to her.
“Okay. Thanks.” I removed my sweater. Suddenly the conference room temperature felt like it was ninety degrees.
“Seth.” Declan strode in and grabbed the executive chair at the head of the table. “You first. Is the additional equipment here yet?”
“Oh.” Seth shot to his feet, with his eyes wide as he shuffled through a bunchof sheets.
I glanced up at Declan because I knew he hated wasting paper like that. Sure enough, he had a deep scowl across his forehand. He sat back and slow blinked. “Do take your time.”
“I-I have it here.” He raised a finger. “Right. Um. Two weeks. It should be here in two weeks.”
“That was the status you gave last week. And the week before that.”
“Back order.”
“Call your rep and escalate. I need the equipment onsite by Wednesday.” He raised an eyebrow. “Yeah?”
“Yeah, absolutely.” Seth nodded and quickly lowered himself down onto his seat.
Declan released a breath, scanning the room. His gaze brushed past me and settled on my manager. “Sophia?”
She rose quickly and cleared her throat. “We’re ahead of schedule still.”
“I like the sound of that.” He pushed himself up and strolled in our direction.
My heart thrashed in my ears when he stopped right behind me. I could feel his eyes on my chest and his body heat permeating though the mesh fabric on the backrest. Was he really doing that in front of everyone? Staring down at my cleavage while Sophia gave him a full report on what was completed last week. I rubbed the nape of my neck where I could still feel his lips hot against my skin.
“And the update I sent on Friday. Has that been implemented?”
That was me. I had been working on that all day. Sophia turned to me. “Isla started work on it today. Isla?”
“Oh.” I shifted my weight to talk directly to Declan, buthe had already returned to his seat. He had a glass of water in his hand, which told me he hadn’t been standing right behind me after all. He was getting himself a drink. My brain just couldn’t think right when he was near me. “I’m halfway done. I should have it finished by the end of the day.”
“Good. I need it done tonight. Even if you need to stay past your bedtime.”
What? My bedtime? “I will stay until it’s finished.”
“Thank you, Isla.”
My cheeks flushed because he wasn’t supposed to call me that at work. As I looked around no one seemed to care. They were too focused on their own reports. Declan moved on to the next person, firing out questions as he went.
All in all, the whole meeting was done in under fifteen minutes. Declan was really all about getting the job done. I supposed that was why people called him the fixer.
When I returned to my office with my pulse still elevated, Declan’s new admin Lisa was there waiting for me. “Mr. Noble would like to see you.”
“Did I do something?”
“I don’t think so, sweetheart. He seemed in a good mood. Actually, today he’s been in a real good mood.” She leaned in and whispered. “You should be fine. Don’t be scared. His bark is bigger than his bite.”
Before I could do anything about it, an image of Declan biting the inside of my thigh while he slid his fingers inside me flashed in my head. I blinked fast to clear it, then focused on what Lisa was saying. Something about her leaving for lunch. And to remember to knock first before I walked into hisoffice.
I thanked her and made my way to the other side of the building. Seeing the empty desk outside Declan’s door brought memories that I shouldn’t consider as good or happy since they were from the one day I spent working as his admin, right before he fired me because of my escapade at a sex club. Oh, the irony.
