I don’t hear a thing he says. Only when we’re dismissed, do I stop thinking about him. I spend the rest of my day locked up in my office, buried beneath piles of unsolicited manuscripts, in hopes of forgetting about Kyler.

No.Such.Luck.

~ Kyler ~

When my father asked me to start working for him I was hesitant, for no other reason than I like my current lifestyle. Work of any kind hasn’t been a priority, unless it’s the physical kind. With a woman. But something about my father's request has me feeling uneasy. I can’t fight the nagging in my gut that something is wrong, that what my father is really doing is preparing me to take over from him. Funny thing is, he’s about ten years away from retirement and wouldn’t be leaving unless he has to. I push the concerns aside and start organizing my office. For whatever reason, my father needs me and I’m not about to let him down. Jessa can always join me for a ‘quick lunch’ in my office, once my chaise lounge set arrives. Oddly enough, it’s not her I picture being bent over my desk. No. It’s that brunette I met in the elevator, Quinn’s friend. What was her name again? Great, asshole. You can picture bending her over your desk but you can’t remember her name? It wouldn’t be the first time I’ve wanted to do ungodly things to a woman whose name I don’t remember. I have a shameless history of one night stands to prove that. Jessa is the only woman I’ve had a semi-consistent relationship with, if you consider attending social events together and having meaningless but hot sex afterward, a relationship. My mother has it in her head that Jessa Price and I will someday get married, start a family and live happily ever after. I’m fairly certain Jessa has the same idea in her head. They’re both delusional. If I ever settle down, and that’s a very small possibility, it won’t be with someone like Jessa. She’s all about status and social climbing and I have no doubt that she’ll cheat on me the minute she gets bored. No, thanks. I would rather stick to my nameless one night stands than subject myself to a lifetime of misery. It would take a special woman to tame the animal in me and she is yet to be discovered. My mind unwillingly drifts back to Quinn’s friend. Why the fuck can’t I remember her name? Dammit. Maybe I should try and see her again? Shouldn’t be too difficult now that I’ll be working with her. It could just be two colleagues getting to know each other. Have you lost your damn mind? You’ve met the woman once and now you’re conjuring up excuses to see her again? Ridiculous. It makes me grin.

“What has you smiling like a fool?”

My head snaps up and my father walks into my office. “Nothing,” I shrug my shoulders. It’s obvious he doesn’t believe me but he doesn’t push it either.

“You settling in okay?” he asks, looking around the large open space. The hardwood floors glisten as the morning sun shines through the floor-to-ceiling windows, overlooking the city with Lake Michigan on the horizon.

“Yeah. The new furniture should be here by Wednesday,” I reply. I watch my father rub his face and for the first time I notice how tired he looks. “Is everything okay, Dad?”

He doesn’t answer me. Instead, he stares at the city skyline, getting lost in his thoughts. “Dad?” His head whips up and he looks startled. What is going on with him lately? It’s as if he isn’t even here.

“What, son?”

“I asked if everything’s okay.” He stares blankly at me, and it’s almost like looking in a mirror. Except the reflection staring back at me is an older version of myself. He shakes his head as if to bring himself back to the present.

“Yes, yes,” he replies over enthusiastically. “Everything’s fine. I just wanted to make sure you’re ready for all this.” The double meaning of his words doesn’t escape me. He’s telling me something without actually saying the words. It bothers me.

“I’m ready, Dad,” I assure him, even if I’m not entirely sure of myself. My father has left a legacy, treating his employees like family and always doing what is right for the company, never at the detriment of someone else. I’m not even half the man he is and until this very moment, looking at his tired, drawn face, I have never questioned my life. Sure, I may have a bit of a reputation as a philandering man whore, but at twenty-eight years old and the world at my feet, I don’t see anything wrong with having fun. I guess now it’s time to grow up.

“You’re going make me proud.” He smiles at me like I’m the four year old kid who rode his bike without training wheels for the first time. With pride. I nod once, unable to find words. I feel the weight of his expectation resting on my broad shoulders. God, I hope I don’t let him down. He turns to leave but stops short to look back at me.

“Oh, I almost forgot, I want you to help Cassey get her presentation ready for the executives next week.” My brows furrow.

That’s her name! “Who’s Cassey?” I ask, going for nonchalance. Her face pops into my head.

“She’s the Publishing Assistant, and if she pulls off her presentation half as well as I think she will, she has a very bright future here,” he pauses. “Just don’t sleep with her.”

I laugh, waiting for my father to laugh with me. When he doesn’t, I realize that he’s being serious. “What makes you think I’ll sleep with her?” I ask, incredulous.

“Because I know you, Ky. You can’t resist a beautiful woman,” my father sighs. “I’m just warning you.” His assumption isn’t entirely wrong, but it still irritates me nonetheless.

“Thanks for the warning, Dad, but I’m sure I’ll be fine. I’m aware of the ‘no fraternizing’ rule amongst colleagues.”

“Good,” he says over his shoulder as he leaves my office, leaving me alone. I fight the urge to go find her and see exactly what my father is warning me away from. I got a good glimpse of her in the elevator and she’s by no means ugly. Her gray pencil skirt hugged her curves, showing off a small waist and wide hips. I caught sight of the white lace bra she had on under her white button down blouse. It made me hard. And then when I saw her again in the boardroom, I couldn’t resist the pull I felt towards her green eyes. They screamed innocence, and purity, two things that have never been so alluring to me before. I don’t particularly have an inclination to go for ‘good girls’ but I’ve never been afraid to bend or even break the rules, especially if they’re mine. But now I’m intrigued. My father never warns me against women, not even when I got ‘involved’ with Jessa.

I’ll just have to find out for myself.

About Tamsyn

Tamsyn is a 22 year old blogger turned author who has an insatiable hunger for New Adult Contemporary Romance novels, coffee and chocolate. When she’s not getting caught up in yet another steamy romance with a new book boyfriend, she can be found spending endless hours working away on her laptop in pursuit of her Marketing degree and a career in book Publishing. Tamsyn is a Brat when it comes to books and believes that every story, no matter how challenging, should have a Happy Ever After. Tamsyn is currently hard at work on her next novel, Destined To Fall, due out late 2013.

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