AllFreeNovel
Share Us
She pauses and there’s something loaded about it. I feel my eyebrows rise. “Everyone?”
Her face gets pink. “Okay, I’m mildly besotted. He’s always crystal clear about the fact that it’ll never happen, but fool that I am, I can’t resist trying anyway. I mean, he flirts outrageously when we’re both at the bar, but then ignores all my emails and DMs.”
“You email him? At work?”
“Sure,” she shrugs. “It hardly matters. Cash is the discrete brother. Colton is anything but.”
I smile but feel a knot clench in my stomach for Lacey. With what’s going on with the insider trading rumors, the company will surely keep a tab on every email and message being sent. It sounds humiliating.
“Looks like I’ve arrived at a crazy time.”
“Oh, for sure,” she sounds wildly pleased about this. “But it’ll all calm down once the SEC figures it out. Assuming we haven’t lost all our clients by then.”
“Dusty!” I hear Penelope calling me from across the office and swivel around to see where she’s standing. She beckons me over and I’m relieved to have the excuse to get out of the pressure-cooker that is Lacey’s compulsion to over-share.
When I reach her, Penelope’s standing with Noah and Evan. They’re both looking at the iPad Noah’s holding but they look up as I walk over to them.
“Dusty, you’ll remember Noah and Evan from your interview,” Penelope says.
“Nice to see you both again.”
Evan nods and Noah shakes my hand. “Fantastic to have you on the team, Dusty.” He’s as business-like as he was during my interview, and with that same almost-familiarity I can’t quite place, but I like him instantly. He’s got a calm, in-control vibe. Even if the company is on the verge of imploding, you get the feeling that everything will be fine if Noah’s in charge.
“I’m excited to be here.” Which is true, but it’s a tiny bit easier to keep it in check after Lacey’s gush. It’s my dream company but there are obviously cracks, just like with everything in life. Nothing is ever as perfect as it seems.
“Who’s this?”
I look up to see a tall, good-looking man who resembles Noah—and damn, really reminds me…crazily…of Ace.
I must really be losing it if I’m hallucinating this badly. My dream made his memory feel so fresh again.
Get a grip!
“Colton, meet Dusty Rose, the newest member of the Invested Enterprises team.”
“Dusty. A pleasure. Colton Maddox.” His voice has the same deep huskiness as Noah’s, but where Noah’s tone is warm, Colton’s comes out as mischievous and walk-the-line playful. Colton’s large hand finds its way into mine, holding on for a fraction of a second too long. His eye contact is so direct it makes me blush. “I’m Cash and Noah’s younger, much better-looking brother.”
Penelope smiles at him almost giddily, her slick HR professionalism slipping as she giggles like a schoolgirl. “I do my best to keep our new recruits away from you as long as possible, Colton.” Does he have this effect on everyone?
“Nice to meet you, Colton.”
“Dusty will be part of Evan’s team,” Penelope tells him. “She’s joining us from Stellar Investments in Austin, Texas.”
“Well, yeehaw,” Colton laughs and, as much as the comment might be borderline obnoxious, he has the easy charm to pull it off.
“Is Cash in his office?” Penelope asks.
“Yeah, he’s in,” Colton says. “And in a bitch of a mood. Almost bit my head off five minutes ago.”
Penelope glances at her iWatch. “Cash always wants to meet the new starters. I’m sure he won’t mind a quick meeting. I told him I was bringing Dusty up to meet him.”
“Good luck,” Colton laughs.
I follow Penelope to the elevator and once we’re inside, she shakes her head almost sheepishly. “Just ignore Colton.” Like she takes Colton’s playfulness as her own personal responsibility. “He’s just way too cocky for his own good.”
Which makes me wonder what Cash will be like. I hope we’re not catching him at a bad time.
The elevator doors slide open and I follow Penelope into a foyer with three desks and three large wooden doors. The offices of Cash, Noah and Colton, I’m assuming. There’s also a hallway that looks like it leads to several glass-walled meeting rooms.
