A Designed Affair (3 page)

“Yeah I have plans. I told you about Taija, the woman I met through Loren?”

Mike remembered who she was.

“Right, from the bachelor auction?”

Duron knew Mike was trying to be funny. Both of his friends had ribbed him for days about his participation in a bachelor auction, but he didn’t care. The amount of money raised would benefit a lot of families and charities in the Atlanta area and he was happy he could help his sister with her sorority’s fundraiser.

“Don’t start Mike. The business side of the auction is over and I happen to like her, a lot. We’re just hanging out tonight. What are you up to?”

Mike didn’t want to show any excitement about his evening with Loren.

“Oh, not much. Just planning to grab a bite to eat at Jase’s supper club with Loren to talk about the house.”

“That’s right I forgot you wanted her to work on your house. I’m glad she finally called you back. I know she’s been tied up with business. She is on her way up these days. Loren told me about all the new clients she’s been taking on. I talked with her earlier and she finally hired some new assistants to help take some of the load off and it’s about time because she really needs the extra help.”

Mike knew Loren’s business had really been picking up since she worked on the interior designs of their office and on each of their current homes.

“Yeah. She’s been very busy and tonight was the only free time she had, so I took it. I’m hoping she’ll have time to squeeze my little project in, especially since it would mean several trips to the west coast. She said it wasn’t a problem so that eases my mind of one less thing to worry about. Now I can just focus on getting the office up and running and I’ll turn everything about the house over to her.”

The elevator came and they both got in.

“Speaking of the new office, you, Tyrone and I need to talk early next week more about logistics,” Duron said. “I know we had tossed the idea around, but now that we’re making this happen, I want to talk about the projects we’ll do out of that office as opposed to this one. I’d like for all three of us to fly out to do the interviews for the staff of that office since we’ll all have to work with them. I also received an inquiry about a new project I want to run by you both. I think it’s something Tyrone may want to handle, but we need to jump on it. This one involves some speaking engagements and one is in Texas. I think he should handle that, but we can talk more about it soon.”

Mike knew they had a lot of business coming in and that they were each being pulled in many different directions. They needed to do more prioritizing in order to not let anything slip through the cracks.

“That’s cool with me.”

They reached the garage level and headed to their cars.

“Mike, tell my sister I said hello and I’ll talk to her over the weekend.”

“I will and good luck with your date.”

“Man, you know me. I appreciate the good luck, but I won’t need it,” Duron said laughing and walking away.

Mike laughed at his inflated ego.

“Jerk,” he said to Duron as he walked away.

“Yeah, yeah,” Duron replied and made his way to his car.

Loren was glad that she’d arrived at the restaurant before Mike. She didn’t want him to see her walk nervously over to him. She chose their friend Jason’s super club to have dinner because it was a place they were both familiar with. She loved the atmosphere and the food was the best in Atlanta.

She had just been seated by the hostess when she looked up to see Mike enter. He was wearing a gray dress shirt opened at the collar and gray tailored slacks that swayed with his long, strong strides. When he reached her his bright smile lit up the room. She couldn’t help but smile brightly back. She stood to give him a hug and she relished at how good it felt to hold him tight. She got her quick sniff and was pleased at how good he again smelled. She could get lost in his scent.

“I hope you haven’t been waiting long for me?” Mike asked as he took the seat opposite Loren.

“No not at all since I just sat down myself.”

“You look lovely Loren.”

Her heart flutter. That voice of his was going to be the end of her. She had to tell herself it was just a simple compliment and that there was nothing more to it.

“Thank you.”

She watched as Mike took his seat across from her. The man was simply gorgeous and she could tell from the looks of other ladies around the restaurant who couldn’t help but stare at him, that she wasn’t the only one who felt that way.

“This place is packed tonight,” she said, ignoring the jealous looks of other women. It’s a shame, she thought, for them to waste their jealousy on a situation that was all friendship and nothing more.

“I know. This is definitely becoming one of the most popular spots for dinner, music and dancing.”

“I don’t think I’ve been here since the night we celebrated the last big contract you, Duron and Tyrone acquired. It’s been a while for me. My business has picked up since I did work for you guys. I don’t get the chance to get out too often for pleasure at places like this.”

Mike was listening as Loren spoke, but he found it hard to concentrate on anything other than the shimmer of the lip gloss that coated her lips; lips that he thought were perfect for kissing. Down boy, he said to himself.

Loren reached for her glass of ice cold water the waitress had just brought for them boy did she need it. Her body was already burning up from the inside out, starting at the intimate spot between her legs and making its way to other hot spots. If she had this reaction to him after only a few minutes, how was she going to survive the rest of the evening.

“I know Duron told you we’re opening a west coast office. I’m planning to get that office up and running, so I’ll be moving to Los Angeles in a few months to oversee the construction of the office there. It won’t be as big as our office here in Atlanta, but it will still rival any other firm in the area. The house should be ready for final inspection soon. I was wondering if you could fit me into your schedule and work on decorating all of the rooms for me. I love what you did with Duron’s house and thought you might have some great ideas for mine as well. I need someone who knows me well to do it. I like the color scheme you created in my condo and I want to expand on that, using the same colors throughout.”

Loren loved the sound of his voice and she tingled a little when he said the word, need.

“I know it’s asking a lot considering it would involve you taking a few trips to California, but I’ll cover all of the expenses. I’ll email you photos as much as I can so that you won’t have to take a lot of trips, but for some of it I’m sure you’ll have to see things for yourself. Just send me an invoice for your expenses along with the costs for what you buy and I’ll take care of it.”

Mike was looking Loren over as he explained everything to her. He was talking business, but his thoughts were far from anything that had to do with the house or the business. He couldn’t help but notice how stunning she was tonight. Blue was definitely her color.

“If it’s too much, I understand, but I couldn’t think of another designer I would trust with knowing what I want.”

Loren already knew she’d do anything for Mike. She couldn’t wait to put her professional touch on his personal residence.

“Of course I can and I can’t wait to see this new house. Duron joked that you were trying to outdo the house he purchased. I swear, you boys have to stop trying to be so competitive and play nicely,” she joked.

They both laughed.

“What happened to the house you were building here in Atlanta?”

“Now that we have agreed that I would handle all of the west coast operations, I’m putting that property on the market. I’ll keep my condo for when I’m in town, but I don’t see a need for a bigger house in the area.”

“I can understand that. The last time I talked to my brother, he did mention something about the move, but he didn’t say when it would take place or how far along you guys were. Your company is growing very fast and I’m excited for you.”

The waitress arrived with their drinks and they placed their orders for dinner. Loren decided to go for her favorite which was the broiled salmon while Mike decided to order his usual porterhouse steak and potato.

“Tell me about this house,” Loren said.

“It has three very large bedrooms on the top level with each having an attached bathroom and one additional bathroom is also on that level. The next level down is the main level with the living room, dining room, a huge media room and office and a kitchen that will lead out to the back where I’ll have an in-ground pool built.”

Loren was impressed.

“Wow. Sounds nice so far,” Loren acknowledged.

“I’m happy with it,” Mike said. “My favorite level the lowest where there is a movie theater, the room that will house my gym, along with two big open spaces, a full kitchen area, an additional bedroom and two bathrooms. The movie theater was a must. I like the one your brother has in his house and I am a huge movie buff. I often do my best work sitting in front of a movie. My building design creative juices seem to really flow when I’m relaxed with a movie.”

“I understand because I love relaxing at the one in Duron’s house every chance I get. Well, I can’t wait to see this house when it’s finished. When do you think I’ll be able to get my first look inside?”

He didn’t hear anything Loren had just said. He was too busy ogling her. He could tell she was meant to be in the career that she has. Her whole body lit up when she talked about designing. He got excited seeing her excitement.

“Mike? Mike? Are you okay?”

He realized Loren was saying something.

“What? Oh I was just thinking about something. What did you say?”

“I was asking when I would be able to get a look at the finished house so that I can get some photographs of each room to begin my search for the perfect furniture and art for the walls, curtains, etc.”

“Not too long actually. I was able to get the house mid-construction. The original builders had to move to China for business purposes and rather than halt the project, they sold it to me. I was able to work out some plans for some of the changes I wanted and it fit right in to the current construction plans. I’ll check and get back to you on that.”

For the next twenty minutes until their meal arrived Mike gave Loren information on extras he’d like to have in the house.

By the time they’d finished dinner, Loren could almost picture each room and being the architect that he was, Mike was able to get the waitress to grab him a pen and some paper and he sketched out the design of the house which gave her more insight into how the house flowed and the ideas began pouring into her head. She already had ideas in her head for the bedrooms. She remembered getting a catalog recently with a lot of new ideas for bedrooms that were all male.

Silence ensued and Mike had a feeling the evening was about to be over since he’d answered all of her questions and he didn’t want that. Since the conversation over the house and the business was done, he moved into a more personal conversation. He knew he shouldn’t because he believed in being careful what you asked for because the answer may be more than you bargained for. He went for it anyway.

“So Loren, tell me something. It’s Friday night and you’re out with me talking business. No hot date or anything for you?”

Mike wasn’t sure he wanted to hear her answer. He would be disappointed if she said that she was seeing someone and that she would be meeting him after their business dinner. He was a curious George though.

“Ha, look who’s talking about hot dates, Mr. Playboy himself. I’m just as surprised you’re coming up for air long enough to have a free weekend night. There isn’t some woman waiting for your call for a Friday night quickie?”

Loren knew the moment the words came out of her mouth that she should not have said them. A serious and seductive look came over his face and the look made her briefly hold her breath.

“No Loren, no calls and no quickies. Besides I’m not a quickie kind of guy.”

Before Loren could reply, Jase, the owner and friend to them, walked up to the table to say hello. She was glad because she needed a reprieve from thoughts that entered her mind at the mention of the word quickie. She had no doubt Mike was a man who took his time.

“Hey man.”

Mike looked up to see Jase reach for a handshake. He stood up to greet his friend.

“Loren, you look lovely and how are you?” he said as he leaned down to give her a hello kiss on the cheek.

“Hey Jase. I’m fine, thank you,” she responded.

He then turned his attention back to Mike.

“Man it’s been a few weeks,” Jase said.

“Yeah, it has. How’s business?” Mike asked.

“Business is great. It’s good to see you here. I told Tara, the hostess, that you were coming in tonight and to be sure to give you the royal treatment. You know everything’s on me tonight so enjoy.”

“I appreciate it man. You know you don’t have to always comp my meals when I come here. I can afford a meal or two.”

They all laughed at Mike’s quip. It was well known how successful Mike, Duron and Tyrone’s business was.

“What brings you two out here tonight and where is Duron?” Jason asked.

“Loren and I are talking business and Duron had a date. Loren here has agreed to work on the design for a house I’m purchasing in California.”

“California? You’re moving to California?” Jase asked.

“Yeah. We’re expanding the business there. We’ve been given the opportunity of a lifetime to work on two new projects, one in California and the other in Phoenix. We decided to open an office on the west coast instead of attempting to do all of the work out of the Atlanta office.”

“Congratulations on that man. I’m going to let you get back to your evening.”

Jason turned to Loren.

“Loren, always good to see you.”

“Likewise Jase.”

After Jason walked away, Loren turned her attention back to Mike.

“Just in case I haven’t said this before, I’m so proud of you guys. You are not letting any grass grow under your feet in the business world,” Loren said.

Mike agreed. He and his partners were certainly on their way up in the business world. Landing the most recent multi-million dollar contracts was what they had dreamed about when they were together in college at Howard University.

“Yeah. Things are moving pretty fast. We’re just lucky to be able to keep up with the demand for our services. I volunteered to run the west coast office because someone had to do it so that we wouldn’t lose out on the potential work from new clients. I love Atlanta, but I have family on the west coast that I don’t get to see too often and though I was born and raised in New York, I have always loved visiting the west coast and besides there is great opportunity for the business by expanding, so I’m doing my part. I also know my mother will be happy about the west coast move. Though she lives in New York, she loves the west coast and now she’ll have more reasons to visit. Your brother, of course, wants to stay in the Atlanta area to be close to the family which I understand.”

Loren understood what it meant to be near family. She loved being close to hers.

“So now that the work discussion is over, would you like to hang around a while and do some dancing? I know you said you don’t get out often, that is, unless you have other plans for the evening.”

Mike hoped she’d say yes.

“No, I don’t have any plans and dancing sounds great,” Loren replied.

Mike stood and made a path for Loren to get to the dance floor.

They danced and Loren admired how Mike moved. He definitely knew his way around the dance floor. When the fast song ended and everyone started clapping and cheering, they went right into a slow song. People on the dance floor started pairing up and Loren and Mike stood looking uncomfortably at each other. It appeared neither knew how to proceed into dancing to a slow tune and the moment seemed awkward.

Mike wanted to dance with Loren and couldn’t wait to hold her in his arms, but he didn’t want to make her feel uncomfortable at the intimate nature of a slow dance. He had been thinking about it since the moment they hit the dance floor.

Loren started to nervously nibble on her lip as she looked around at all the couples that began to dance around them. Feeling like a spotlight was on them since they were the only two no longer dancing, she started to turn to head back to their table. Before she got too far, Mike grasped her elbow to turn her back around.

“Would you like to dance Loren?” he whispered softly, letting her know she didn’t need to feel awkward or uncomfortable around him.

“Sure,” she said nervously.

She moved into his embrace as he placed his hands on her hips, drawing her in closer to him. Other than for a friendly hug, Loren had never been this close to Mike before and her heart sped up at the immediate contact her body had with his. The contact wasn’t too intimate in reality, but in her mind, they were as close as two people could get.

As Mike drew her closer, Loren reached her arms up and grasped his arms, feeling the bulging muscles through his shirt. She fell right in step as he swayed to the soft sounds of the band. What she really wanted to do was reach her arms up and wrap them around his neck, but that seemed too personable for the kind of friendly relationship they had.