The Hourglass (23 page)

When the next song came on,
the beat of the music had us grinding into one another, dripping in sweat. “Drink!” I called over the thumping music, as I pointed to the bar. I needed something to quench my thirst and the heat growing inside of me. Leading me off the dance floor,
he kept my hand laced with his
and we wound our
way through the bar crowd till
we
arrived at
the counter.

“What would you like?” he asked leaning in close enough that I could feel his breath on my face, see the lust filling his eyes, and taste his lips. My body was propelling itself forward as
the last thread of my fuzzy
brain
fought the urge
to
succumb to passion and
kiss
him.

“You,” I replied, feeling bold.
In slow motion,
he closed the gap and pulled me tightly to his body.
Wrapping
my arms around his neck,
I clung to him and let myself just enjoy the moment
as
the sexual tension
grew
between us.

“My room or yours?” his husky voice asked as he carried me toward the exit.

“Yours.
I’m not sure I can even find mine at this point.”
My voice slurred, the drinks
having caught
up with me.

Outside the club,
he slammed me against a corridor wall, molding his mouth to mine and sliding his hand up the hem of my skirt, just close enough to
tease
the root of all my problems. “Yes, please, touch me,” I choked out.

“Brooke
Reid!” Savannah shrieked. “No!
No!”
She shoved the eye candy off me as he looked on at us both,
thoroughly confused. “This isn’t you.
You
will regret this.” Taking my hand Savannah led us back to our room, determined to have the best friend powwow I knew I could expect from her.

Once we were in the room, she handed me a glass of water. “Chug.”

“Savannah, I don’t get the big deal, I’m trying your method. Fun times, no strings.” I smiled as I sipped my water.

“No Brooke, that’s not you. Don’t let Luke change you. You know what I learned? That I wanted more. I am tired of just sharing a bed with a man. I’m ready to share my life with one. Just not my best friend,” she teased.

“You’re right, there is a man out there, I’ll find him when it’s time,” I agreed.

The rest of the days were spent soaking up the sun and enjoying the many features the cruise ship had to offer. For the sake of my pride, thank heavens I never ran in to the eye candy again. The time away was exactly what I needed to forget the pain and rage I felt toward Lucas Wellington and find myself again.

As I slipped into Savannah’s car to head to work, I couldn’t help but feel the dread wash over me. “So this is it, time to face the music,” I said calmly, having made peace with it all. When we got to the office Monica’s assistant instructed us to come to her office first thing. Walking in my stomach felt like a million butterflies had taken flight.

“Good morning ladies, I trust you enjoyed your time away judging by your tans?” she asked looking at us over the rims of her eyeglasses. Savannah and I both just nodded, unsure of what response she wanted and not wanting to slit our own throats.

“So I’ve come to a conclusion about your employment here at Hourglass. I’m not going to lie. I want you both here, you know exactly what I expect, and I never have to wonder about the quality of work I will get back.” Both of us let out a huge sigh of relief, we were safe.

“But!” she began, pushing her red rimmed eye glasses to perch on her head so she could glare at us. “Your behavior at the auction was unacceptable, so I am leaving the fate of your jobs in
your
hands.” The smile spreading across her face told me this was going to be an obstacle course like none other.

“As you know I am gathering sponsorships and ad contracts for our winter issue, and I’ve heard about a winter clothing company that has recently taken off in the fashion industry. A contract worth millions,” she emphasized, slamming her hands down on her desk to ensure she had our attention.

“The CEO has agreed to a meeting this morning but has also expressed concern regarding you two since he was in the auction at the invitation of Nike. You will both go to this meeting to meet their Director of Marketing, be on your best behavior and woo her on why to sign with Hourglass. Come back with a signature, or come back with a box for your stuff, it’s up to you. Now go!”

We jumped up and raced to the conference room, each carrying the files Monica’s assistant had provided us with in order to learn everything we could about the company’s designs. They were an up-and-coming clothing company that focused on outdoor wear, specifically known for their ski gear being fashionable and warm.

Strolling into Worthington Squared, we both felt confident in our presentation, determined to keep our jobs and nail this meeting. Ms. McCall greeted us at the main lobby, dressed in a pair of slacks and knit top. She looked so casual that I worried we were overdressed.

“Thank you, ladies, so much for meeting me today, I apologize that Mr. Worthington cannot be in the meeting, but I imagine if we proceed forward he will want to meet you.”

“Well, we certainly plan to have you completely interested in Hourglass before this meeting is over,” I said with determination as I took a seat at the conference room table. Within thirty minutes, I was pretty sure we’d sold her on Hourglass and was breathing easier knowing I’d have a job tomorrow if my instincts were correct.

“Well, I think we should schedule another meeting with Mr. Worthington.” Her smile reaffirmed my growing confidence as she pushed a button on her lit-up phone. “Oh, and Savannah, are you free tonight? I just got word our photographer cancelled and we need a last minute fill. It would give you a great opportunity to meet some of the designers and see how we prefer to present our line.”

Without a moment’s hesitation Savannah spoke up. “Of course!”

CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE

Savannah

AFTER CLIMBING OUT
of Brooke’s jeep, I leaned in and grabbed my favorite and most expensive camera, and then slammed the door. Inhaling the crisp air I pulled the camera up to my face and snapped a few pictures of the sun setting over the pointed mountains. A giant Chevy Avalanche nearly clipped me as it pulled into the parking space next to me. I dropped my camera, letting it dangle from the strap around my neck as I began in on the guy getting out of the huge vehicle.

“Whoa!” I yelled. “Watch where you’re going, buddy. I’m sure there are plenty of other pretty faces we can hire for this shoot, but there’s only one Savannah Prescott.”

The guy smirked and lifted his chin. “Sorry about that.” I grimaced at him as he turned his back on me and walked toward the building.

Upon walking through the door of the original mountainside Worthington Squared store, I spotted Amber McCall. Unfortunately for me, she was talking to the man who’d almost cost me my legs just moments ago.

When she spotted me she waved. “Savannah, please come on over, I’d like to introduce you to someone.

As I approached, the man’s phone rang and he politely excused himself, stepping into a back room and closing the door. Amber placed her hand on my arms. “I’m sorry about that; I’ll have to introduce you to Mr. Worthington when he is finished with his telephone call.”

My heart began racing at the realization that I’d just sealed my fate. Brooke was going to kill me for costing us both our jobs. There was no way this man was going to sign on with Hourglass after I just verbally attacked him at his own store.

Amber’s voice pulled me out of my momentary mental lapse. “Savannah, we’re all set up out back. After all, we do have the most incredible view of the Colorado Mountains.”

Escorting me outside, she introduced me to several in-house designers and the handful of models who I’d be working with. She went over the entire shoot and before I knew it, I was snapping away. The sun was radiating through the sky perfectly in spectacular shades of purples and pinks and the models didn’t even need coaching. Obviously this wasn’t their first rodeo.

Amber called a wrap on the first portion of the shoot and I clicked through my camera, admiring the pictures I’d taken when a giant, rugged man appeared next to me, practically taking over my personal space. Glancing up, I came face to face with honey brown eyes and a mouthful of pearly whites. Instantly realizing who it was I took my hands from my camera and jetted my hand out toward his. “Mr. Worthington, it’s a pleasure to meet you, I’m—”

Before I could finish, he shook my hand, interrupting my introduction. “Ah, yes, the one and only Savannah Prescott. I believe we’ve met.”

My cheeks flushed with heat. “Please allow me to apologize for earlier, I should have been paying better attention.”

He laughed at my apology. “I almost ran you over and you are apologizing, I think it needs to be the other way around, besides, aren’t there laws about texting and driving?” When he winked down at me, a shiver took hold of my body and I rubbed my hands over my uncovered arms.

“Are you cold?” he asked in a gentle, yet masculine voice that blasted over me like the blazing sun on a hot summer day

I nodded. “I’m fine. I just need to get my jacket out of the jeep. Would you excuse me?”

I turned and began heading for the jeep when he hollered over to me. “We’ve got plenty of jackets inside; why don’t you try one on? After all, I’d never hire someone to promote my product unless they’ve tried it first.”

A smile spread across my face as I followed him back into the store. The lights inside the store seemed brighter now that the sun had set, and I was finally able to get a real look at the owner of Worthington Squared. Even with a large stature, his clothes hung well, and I could tell under the sweater and denim jeans that hugged his muscular thighs was a sculpted body, but not one to be found on the beefcakes at the gym. No, this was an outdoors man. His muscles came from skiing and hiking and all those other activities the Colorado mountain boys spent their days doing.

He chose a petite black jacket from the rack and held it up in the air. “I think this should fit. Come try it on.” Stepping closer to him, I lifted my camera strap from around my neck and placed it on the tabletop, then slid my arms into the jacket and turned so we were facing each other. His hands slowly gripped the bottom of the jacket, one holding it in place as the other tugged the zipper, my eyes following his fingers as they made their way up the front of the jacket. Pressing his hands into his pockets, he whispered, “Perfect,” as I stared at his lips.

Focusing in on him, I admired the sexy scruff that adorned his face. There was too much of it to be a five o’clock shadow, but it was just enough to be sexy. His skin held an olive complexion, which matched perfectly with his dark brown tousled hair. Licking my lips I continued admiring him, as he was only inches away from me. His dark blue jeans hugged his thighs and his thick sweater clung to his chest and arms in all the right places, leaving me wondering for a moment what it would feel like to have full access to his chiseled body.

A feminine voice interrupted my dirty thoughts and I glanced over to see Amber standing in the doorway. “Savannah, we’re all ready for the next shoot.”

Swiping my camera off of the table, I responded in a breathless voice. “Great, I’ll be right there.” Looking back into those delicious eyes I smiled. “Thanks for the jacket. It’s perfect.”

The shoot went better than I could have ever imagined, so well that I went straight home and began editing the photos so I could have them back to Amber first thing in the morning. As I slipped into my chair in the office, I powered on my computer and gave my photos one last review before shooting them over to Amber. Then I called over to Brooke’s office. I was dying to tell her about my run in with Mr. Worthington, but she didn’t answer.