Let It Be Me (Let It Be Me #1) (22 page)

Bobby nodded, probably absorbing what she was saying. “For you to come to me, I assume things are serious?”

She nodded.

“That’s good,” he simply said, astonishing Kayla. “You’ve worked here for what, ten years now? You’ve always proved your loyalty and professionalism.”

“Thank you,” Kayla said earnestly.

“You will follow through with the Stone Homes,” Bobby said. “If we do get asked to work on any of the foundation’s projects, however, I would have to pass it to another associate.”

“Of course, I understand,” Kayla agreed.

“I’m pretty sure Alex would make you part of it anyway,” Bobby added with smile. 

“I don’t think he could stop me from butting in,” Kayla admitted, grinning. “I truly believe in the foundation’s vision.”

Bobby nodded, “That was why I assigned you to the project in the first place. I knew you were going to put your heart in it. But business aside, I’m happy for you, Kayla,” he said. “For a second, I was worried about you, working too hard and all that. I’ve known Alex for some time now, and he seems like a very fine man. I think the two of you couldn’t do any better than each other.”

“Thank you, Bobby,” Kayla said, touched by her superior’s kind words.

“You know what, Cynthia would be quite happy,” Bobby divulged. “Since she first saw the two of you in the office party months ago, she thought you and Alex were quite a match.”

Kayla felt her cheeks redden that her boss’s wife actually thought about it. “Really. Well guess things did work out.”

“Tell your man he owes me,” Bobby kidded. 

“I will definitely tell him that,” Kayla assured good-naturedly, grateful for her mentor’s approval.

A year after, the partnership has remained strong between the foundation and the firm. Alex has started talking to Bobby about a school he wanted to put up next. Alex knew Kayla couldn’t work on it anymore but she was going to help him – in her own time – come up with the project brief. She told Alex to make sure, however, not to have pompous Dave Connor be assigned to it. Alex of course was on board with that idea, especially when he found out Dave had tried to ask Kayla out before.

Jenny was another case. Kayla admittedly hasn’t told Jenny a lot about her life but she knew that her friend deserved this news about Alex. It took Kayla a week as well before she told Jenny because she wanted to savor the newness of her relationship with Alex. She wanted to be selfish for a while. 

Kayla just came back from her talk with Bobby. She was back in her office, replying to some emails when her friend walked in. 

“The lighting consultant is asking if we can move our meeting with them an hour later,” Jenny informed her. “Is that okay with you?”

Kayla looked at the calendar in her phone. “It’s no problem.”

“Okay,” Jenny said nodding, turning to head back to her desk. “Will tell them then.”

“Hey Jen, hold on,” Kayla called, standing up. “I wanted to tell you something.”

She motioned for Jenny to join her by the window, as far away from her office door.

“What is it?”

“I owe you a long chat but I wanted to share the good news first,” Kayla said mysteriously, smiling at her friend.

“What is it?” Jenny repeated, now frantically.

 Kayla thought of how she was going to phrase it, but since Jenny was her audience, there was only one way to do it. “I’ve been having sex with Alex Stone.” It’s true. Alex has been visiting her almost every night for the past days when they were both done with work. 

“Oh my God,” her friend mouthed. She screamed without a sound, jumping around and hugging Kayla.

Jenny looked up at Kayla’s clock to see it was eleven-thirty in the morning.

“We’re having an early lunch,” Jenny declared “Now.”

So Kayla told her the story over lunch, with Jenny’s agreement that they were going to use a code name. She didn’t want to risk anyone overhearing. 

At the end, Jenny couldn’t resist saying, “Trey is going to be thrilled you’re dating Hawkman!” Kayla burst into laughter. 

Over the past months Jenny has started to learn to be less star-struck with Alex, as they frequented having potluck dinners, and Alex would join them whenever he could. In time, Kayla learned to open up to Jenny as well. Jenny kindly understood Kayla’s reservations to talk about her past, but has proven to Kayla that she could be trusted with her life. Their friendship was stronger than ever.

 “That tree house looks quite sturdy,” Alex said wickedly, breaking into her thoughts.

Kayla swatted him. “Perv!” she kidded, looking around to check if any of the guests have overheard. But they were all busy enjoying the buffet and chatting amongst themselves.

“Oh you like that side of me,” Alex said proudly, earning another blush from Kayla. She and Alex have definitely been quite adventurous in that aspect for the past months.

Alex laughed before turning serious. “I’m so happy I found you. My desire to proceed with the foundation’s projects has further been inspired by you.”

“Your parents will be very proud of you, Mr. Stone,” Kayla said draping her arms over his shoulders as he reached for her waist. 

“I wish you were able to meet them,” Alex said sincerely, leaning down to rest his forehead on hers. “They would have loved you.”

“I love you, Alex Stone.”

“And I love you, Kayla Richardson.”

Want to know Ben’s story?

Here is a preview of Come with Me.

Chapter 1

Liz

Liz looked at the message at her phone then looked up at the sign. It looked like she was at the right building along Broadway. 

She made her way into the old, nondescript building and walked to the reception desk. The office building was plain and didn’t even have couches or seats in the lobby.

The guard who was manning the desk was young and looked sleepy at ten in the morning. “Who are you seeing?” he asked automatically.

“Henry Chapell at RHS Foundation,” she supplied.

“Your name?” 

“Elizabeth Hatton.”  

She watched as he checked his logbook. 

Probably seeing her name, he said, “Please log in here. They’re at the fourth floor.”

“Thank you,” she said, signing her name and log in time.

The guard pointed to where the elevators were, but knowing she was still a few minutes early for her interview, she skipped the elevator lobby and walked to the fire exit staircase. She liked squeezing in some exercise whenever she could, and it also made her feel good to help save energy by not using the elevator. 

Four flights up, she exited into the lobby of the fourth floor to see the simple signage of the foundation. She was pretty fit, so the walk up didn’t give her a sweat even in her low heels. She looked down at her simple slacks and the light blazer she wore over a camisole. She raised her hand to check her high ponytail. Okay, seemed she still looked like the way she did when she left her apartment.

There was a moment of nervousness, but she convinced herself she’s been preparing for this for a while now. 

She opened the glass door and was greeted by a woman she guessed to be in her forties at the reception desk. She had dark red hair, a friendly face, and thick-framed glasses. She looked much more excited than the guard downstairs.

“Elizabeth?” she guessed with a smile.

“Yes, that’s me,” Liz confirmed, smiling back, walking closer.

“Hi, I’m Miranda,” the lady introduced. “We spoke on the phone. I’m Henry’s secretary and part-time receptionist. We take turns manning this little table.” She laughed. She stood up and said, “I’ll show you the meeting room, then I’ll inform Henry you’re here.”

Miranda led her to a room that had a conference table that could seat ten to twelve people. The room didn’t have the latest technology but it had the essentials of a projector installed in the ceiling and blinds to block off sunlight during presentations.

“Would you want some coffee?” Miranda offered, as Elizabeth sat down at the side of the room against the window.

Elizabeth shook her head. “No, thank you.” Miranda was already doing double duty. She didn’t want to impose.

“Okay, Henry should be with you in a while,” Miranda said, closing the door behind her.

Waiting for her interviewer, Liz stood up and looked around the room. It was sparsely decorated. There were just some photos of the team led by the actor Alexander Stone, along with some photos of their completed and on-going projects. 

There was also a scaled model of Stone Homes at the far corner of the room. She was itching to check it out, but she knew she shouldn’t in case Henry Chapell came in and considered her nosy.

She walked over to one wall that was cladded with glass meant to be like a whiteboard. Seeing her reflection, she checked if her hair and her clothes were in place. She had dark brown hair that she usually wore long and wavy, but she had it tied in a ponytail for the interview. She had really fair skin, and large brown eyes. She was lucky to have gotten her mom’s eyes. Her friend Brian said it made her look like a pixie.

She took the seat that had a direct view of the door and waited for her interviewer. A few minutes passed until the door opened and an elderly man walked in. Elizabeth stood up automatically. 

“Miss Hatton, I am Henry Chapell,” he said, walking over to shake her hand. She recognized him from the photos on the walls. He was just average height and looked very distinguished not just because of his more formal suit and tie ensemble, but because of his demeanor.

“Nice to meet you, sir,” she greeted politely.

“Have a seat,” he said, taking the chair opposite hers. 

She sat down.

He opened the folder he had then browsed through it. 

“Why would a journalism graduate with a master’s degree want to work in a non-profit organization?” Henry Chapell asked. 

Liz was expecting a question like that, and she came prepared.

She cleared her throat and started. “My parents have exposed me to philanthropic efforts since I was little. From my high school to college years, as part of organizations and student councils, I continued with those efforts and found that I enjoyed it and gave me the fulfillment that I crave for. After I got my master’s degree earlier this year, I knew that this was direction I wanted to take.”

“You do realize that the pay isn’t much,” Henry said candidly.

 “That isn’t an issue, sir,” she said.

“Miss Hatton, to be honest, I’ve met your parents. Do they know you’re applying for a job here?”

Liz stilled. It surprised her, but not quite. Her parents supported several foundations. She never really checked if RHS was one of them. Even if it wasn’t, it wasn’t surprising that Henry Chapell has encountered them. The question could have sounded nosy, but Mr. Chapell asked it matter-of-factly, and she knew what she meant.

“Yes. They respect the decisions I make,” Liz declared. 

Henry nodded, probably pondering on what she said. “You’re applying for the position of managing assistant director. Whoever gets the position will be under me to learn the ropes. You can expect that in organizations like this, people assume several tasks. It could be quite busy especially with the now larger projects, but we take pride that the people who work here are given a comfortable work atmosphere and are given much credit for their work done.”

She nodded, listening as he gave more detail on what the job entailed. She was initially intimidated when she met Henry Chapell a few minutes ago, but through the course of the interview, she started to admire him, knowing he was a man who made things happen and that she could learn a lot from him.

She suddenly got excited. She’s researched about the foundation’s mission and vision, and their projects. She wanted the job so bad. 

“With Alex being a public figure, we ask our employees to be very discreet,” Henry said. “As part of all employees’ contracts, we have everyone sign a non-disclosure agreement when it comes to Alex’s private life.”

Liz nodded. “That’s reasonable.”

“Very well, I still have a couple applicants I will be meeting today,” Henry said. “We shall call you soon if we’ve made our decision.”

He stood up, and Liz followed suit. 

“I’ll lead you out,” Henry said.

“Thank you,” she said, following him out the room. 

Just as they stepped out, Liz noticed someone walking down the hallway. She looked to recognize one of the heads of the foundation. She saw him in some of the photos in the meeting room. He was attractive in an approachable kind of way. He had sandy blonde hair, a mildly stubbled jaw, and a body that seemed fit. He was dressed in a slim-fit button-down dress shirt over tailored slacks. With his leather lace-up shoes, his outfit was very well put together. 

“Elizabeth, this is Benjamin Wright,” Henry said, when Benjamin was closer. “Ben, Elizabeth is one of our applicants for the managing assistant director position.”

Ben stopped to join their little group. Liz was only five-foot-five. And even in her heels, she had to look up at Ben’s towering height that must be close to six feet. But when her eyes met his green ones, she was surprised to see a frown creasing his forehead. 

Despite the frown, he offered his hand. He didn’t say anything. Liz, taught by her mom to remain polite always, took his hand. She looked up at him, wondering why there seemed to be disapproval in his face.

Releasing her hand, Ben looked at Henry and said. “We have a meeting at four, right?”

“Yes, Bobby’s team will be here.”

Ben nodded. “If you’ll excuse me then.” He walked away, hardly acknowledging Liz.

“Let’s go,” Henry said, oblivious to what happened. He walked with Liz to the reception area. 

“Thanks for your interest in this position, Elizabeth,” Henry said. He still was formal; Liz gathered that much about him. “Send my regards to your parents.”

“I will,” she said. “Thank you, and nice to meet you.”

She shook his hand then walked out. She also saw Miranda waving, and she waved back. She took the stairs down, having mixed feelings about the interview. She wasn’t very confident she would get it. It didn’t help that Henry Chapell recognized her surname and has actually met her parents. But he couldn’t hold that against her, right?