Harmony Evans - When Morning Comes

“Their loss is our gain,” Isaac replied with what he hoped was a reassuring smile.

Her exuberant grin was infectious. “Thank you. I’m really excited to be here and to be working with you.”

Autumn tilted her head and he watched her curls skim the edge of her jawline. He wondered what that hair would feel like in his fingers. Her white, long-sleeved silk blouse did not detract his eyes from coveting what was beneath. In his mind, he saw his hands around her trim waist as she hitched up her navy blue skirt.

Isaac’s groin tightened painfully and he shifted slightly in his seat as his body involuntarily reacted to a sudden desire for Autumn that he didn’t understand. But he did know this: furtive glances at her across the cafeteria or in a meeting room would never satisfy him.

He bet that, beneath the stark corporate garb, she was as soft and fleeting as the snowflakes that were beginning to swirl outside. Yet he sensed she was tough to catch and even tougher to hold on to. That’s why he had to stay as far away from her as he could manage.

He picked up her résumé to distract himself. There was no current home address listed, but he assumed she lived in the area. As was his custom, he flipped to the last page so he could review her work experience in reverse chronological order.

Reading quickly, he learned that Autumn had a bachelor’s degree in Economics and Mathematics, and a master’s degree in Statistics. All from Yale University. She was an Ivy girl, she was smart and she loved numbers. Plus, she had a killer body. It added up to some serious trouble for a man who was trying not to be attracted to her and failing badly.

“I hope you won’t let our respective universities affect our working relationship,” she said in a teasing voice.

He glanced up from the paper in front of him. “You’re referring to the long-standing rivalry between Yale and Harvard.”

She nodded and crossed her legs, sheathed in sheer hose he yearned to rip away.

He smiled. “A little bit of competition always makes things more interesting, no?”

“Most definitely,” she responded. “But I’m glad I’m on your team, rather than fighting against it.”

Isaac raised a brow. “Because you know you would lose?” he said matter-of-factly, hoping he didn’t sound arrogant.

She shook her head. “Not at all. But winning isn’t everything.”

Isaac glanced over at the door. “Don’t let Sterling ever hear you say that.”

Autumn didn’t ask why and Isaac was glad he didn’t have to explain. If she wanted a career at Paxton, she would learn for herself soon enough.

He returned his attention to her résumé and noticed something that puzzled him.

Like Autumn, Isaac had also made the decision to pursue an advanced degree directly after college. But the difference was that when he finished graduate school, he’d gone straight to work for Paxton, which was one of the leading investment firms in the country.

On the contrary, Autumn had worked at some midlevel investment banks all around the country. Los Angeles. Phoenix. Miami. Companies whose names he’d never even heard of.

He considered pressing the issue but decided against it.

Multiple job hops might make some people nervous, but not him. Autumn was young, intelligent, and she obviously knew when a situation wasn’t working to her advantage. Ambitiousness was a quality he admired, especially in a woman.

Besides, if Sterling trusted her enough to hire her, why shouldn’t he?

Still, he couldn’t let her off the hook completely. “Your résumé is impressive,” he began slowly. “But you’ve moved around a lot. Surely that’s not because of the economy every time, is it?”

“I always leave myself open to the possibilities of a greater challenge or something new.”

He flipped back to the first page again. “Your previous place of employment was in Cleveland?”

Autumn’s lips curved into a mischievous grin. “What can I say? I love to rock and roll!”

Isaac laughed aloud, pleased by the free-spirited tone in her voice. He found her playful attitude refreshing and very appealing. Even in the overbearing atmosphere of the boardroom, not to mention the pressure of the first day in a new job, she had no problem being herself.

Most women tried everything they could to impress him. The girls in the office knew he was single, available and one of the wealthiest men in New York City. Out on the street, the women knew him as a regular guy who was hotter than the asphalt on a July afternoon. In the winter, they worshipped the ground he melted ice on.

He’d be the first to admit that sometimes he took the bodies they willingly offered and he enjoyed them. The one-night stands most of these women hoped would turn into a lifetime of ardor and passion meant absolutely nothing to him.

While the opportunity to bed a beautiful woman and run the other way the next morning was still there, now he had two good reasons to refuse their advances. His children.

Consequently, he hadn’t slept with a woman in a very long time. Whether becoming a father caused him to feel a sense a guilt or greater moral virtue, he didn’t know.

The more likely reason was that he was tired of being a pawn in a two-player game that never went anywhere. Of pretending he didn’t want a woman to love him for more than his face, his body or his money.

Isaac checked the time on his phone and stifled a yawn.

He’d been up late again helping his son, Devon, with his math homework. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d had a good night’s sleep. And tonight, he expected that thoughts of what Autumn looked like without the corporate jail suit would impede his rest even further.

“What do you say we rock and roll and get a jump on that tour?”

“Sounds great,” Autumn replied. “You can show me the cafeteria and we can finally get that cup of coffee you missed out on this morning.”

Isaac tried to swallow back another yawn. When it escaped, they both laughed.

“Yeah, you can tell I really need it, can’t you?”

His eyes caught hers again. God, she was even prettier when she laughed. Thank goodness, the analysts occupied a space on another floor in the building.

His phone beeped, bringing his attention back to business. He pulled it out of his pocket, looked at it and groaned.

“Unfortunately, the tour is going to have to be a quick one. I’ve got another meeting in ten minutes and I think I’ve used up all my Get to a Meeting Late cards for the day.”

“How do I snag one of those?” Autumn joked.

“Trust me, you do not want to be in Late Club,” he said, in all seriousness.

“Why not?”

“Because I’m the one and only member.” His gut did a little flip when she pursed her lips at him. “I didn’t used to be,” he backtracked. “I mean, it was only when I—”

He stopped abruptly at the winsome look on her face and realized he was rambling. Something that was completely out of character for him. Worst of all, he’d almost told her about his kids. No one at Paxton knew about them and he wanted to keep it that way for now.

“Just do your best to never be late to a meeting, especially one with Felicia or Sterling,” he said curtly.

“I appreciate the heads-up,” Autumn affirmed. “By the way, is there always that much tension between them? My neck was beginning to hurt watching their verbal ping-pong match.”

“Yeah,” Isaac snorted. “But you’ll get used to it. We all have. Felicia plays the Daddy’s-girl role around here to the hilt, but she’s very capable.”

And lately very dangerous.

Isaac had heard rumors of people getting terminated, supposedly because Felicia didn’t like them, but those were typically lower-level employees. They were the unfortunate ones she liked to trample on the most.