Our First Embrace. Judy Lynn Hubbard

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СКАЧАТЬ stopped by her station and tapped her on the shoulder.

      “I forgot to tell you, the boss likes to have staff meetings every Monday at ten. I’ll show you how to set up your calendar when we get back.”

      “Okay.” Nicole stood and picked up a notebook and pen.

      “Use this for notes. It’s easier.” Monique handed her a tablet. “This one is yours. It has our design software on it—the same that’s on your laptop. Feel free to take it home. I take mine everywhere.”

      “Thanks.” Nicole eyed her expensive tablet. “Mr. James doesn’t skimp, does he?”

      “I told you the boss is good to us,” Monique reminded her. “Let’s get going. He hates it when people are late.”

      “Uh yes, I’ve noticed that about him.” Nicole’s fervent whisper provoked a sympathetic smile from Monique as they walked toward the conference room.

      Thankfully, they were the first to arrive at the meeting, save Alexander James, who sat at the head of an enormous oval oak table. He had removed his jacket and had rolled up his shirtsleeves, revealing hair-covered, sinewy forearms. He nodded at them when they entered and then returned his attention to his computer. Nicole and Monique chatted quietly as other staff filed in. Nicole felt the hair on the back of her neck standing up and turned to find a blond woman staring at her with blatant hostility. Where was that coming from?

      “Hey,” Nicole whispered in Monique’s ear. “Who is that woman?”

      Monique glanced in the direction Nicole covertly pointed with a tilt of her head. “Oh, that’s Crystal Danforth. Don’t pay any attention to her.”

      “Did I do something to her?”

      “No, Crystal doesn’t much like anyone, but she is an excellent designer,” Monique grudgingly admitted, “which is why the boss keeps her around.”

      “Oh.” Nicole glanced up and met Alexander’s intense gaze briefly before he busied himself with his computer again.

      “Don’t sweat it.” Monique winked and added, “If she gives you any trouble, she’ll answer to me, and I outrank her.”

      Nicole smiled at Monique’s threat and glanced at Crystal again, who treated her to another hateful stare before focusing her eyes on her tablet.

      So much for not having any enemies in the office. Nicole silently sighed.

      Within ten minutes, the room was full. After everyone was settled in with coffee, juice and pastries, Alexander began the meeting.

      “You all know Victor.” Alex pointed to his brother, who was sitting to his right. “For some reason, he insists on loitering around the office today.”

      Victor smiled. “You know you miss me when I’m not here.”

      “Yeah, right.” Alexander chuckled. “Why are you here today anyway?”

      “Three reasons.” Victor stood. “First, I had to fix your computer for you after you mistreated her,” he reminded his brother with a wink, which caused chuckles from around the room. “Second, I’m doing an upgrade on everyone’s computer.” He laughed at the groans and surveyed the twenty people in the room. “Hey, do you guys want to be state of the art or what? I promise the downtime won’t be long.”

      “Promises, promises,” Monique drawled, drawing Victor’s interest.

      “I always keep my promises,” Victor softly responded.

      “Hmph!” Monique didn’t sound convinced.

      “And three?” Alexander queried, interrupting their banter.

      “I don’t have anything better to do.” Victor sighed and resumed his seat amid laughter.

      “That’s my brother, folks.” Alexander shook his head in mock disgust.

      “You know you love me,” Victor taunted.

      “Be quiet,” Alex admonished and chuckled when Victor made a zipping motion across his lips. “All right, down to business. As you all know, we have a new associate designer, Nicole Carter, who comes to us all the way from New York—albeit a little late.”

      Nicole’s smile faded slightly as he added the latter, and she bit her lower lip to hold in the angry retort that was trying desperately to escape from her mouth. She purposefully brightened her smile in response to the various welcomes from her coworkers before resuming eye contact with Alexander.

      “I know you’ll all make her feel welcome. She’ll be working on the Bettina line, and I’m counting on those of you who are also assigned there to quickly get her up to speed.”

      “She’ll be there in no time, boss,” Monique chimed in, and Nicole shot her a grateful smile.

      “With your help, I’m sure she will.” Alexander nodded with a slight smile. “We have our early-spring fashion show at the end of April, so I’m expecting a hundred and ten percent from everyone.” Nicole bristled again when his eyes rested on her. “We’ll probably be going to a six-day workweek in a week or so.”

      Victor glanced at Nicole and mouthed, “Don’t mind him.”

      Nicole sighed visibly and Victor chuckled.

      * * *

      Alex caught Nicole and Victor’s subtle exchange, and his eyes narrowed on his brother’s seemingly innocent face just in time to see him wink at Nicole, who, much to his annoyance, returned his gesture. Why the friendly interaction between the two irritated him to no end he was loath to examine.

      “Do you mind?” Alex frowned at his brother. “I’m trying to run a meeting here.”

      “Be my guest, bro.” Victor leaned back in his seat, crossed his arms and waited for Alex to continue.

      “Thank you,” Alex sarcastically said. “If you’d all turn your attention to your tablets and pull up the memo I sent this morning, I’d like to start with that.”

      As Alex presided over the meeting, he found it next to impossible to keep his eyes from straying toward Nicole more often than not, which annoyed him to no end. She sat there with a frown on her beautiful face, unless she was smiling at Monique—or Victor, which peeved him. He knew she was shooting daggers at him because of his earlier reference to her delayed start with the company, and although he shouldn’t care, he did.

      Alex glanced away from his presentation to answer a question, and his eyes automatically stopped to stare at Nicole—even though she wasn’t the one asking the question. She held his gaze for a second before tilting her head in Monique’s direction, who was whispering something in her ear that made her smile. She was gorgeous when she smiled.

      Oh, hell!

      Somehow he concentrated on answering the question at hand, but he was acutely aware of his newest employee—he noticed everything she did, when she smiled, said something to Monique, crossed her legs, sighed. With her mere presence, she was disrupting his neatly ordered world, and he didn’t like it!

      Thankfully, СКАЧАТЬ