Serendipity (Inevitable) (16 page)

Jake prattled on about some TV show he was watching during the short drive to the Gregson offices, but he was the only one talking, seemingly oblivious to the awkward silence that existed between Julia and Nathan. When they arrived at the parking garage, Nathan handed the keys over to the valet before hurrying over to open Julia’s door for her, somehow beating Jake to the punch.

“Here, watch your step,” he cautioned as he offered Julia his hand.

She took it lightly, grateful for his assistance as she stepped down from the SUV in her high heels. Before she could reach back in for her case, he was doing that for her.

“I’ll take it,” he assured her. “It’s a lot heavier than I thought, you should have had one of us carry it down for you.”

She shrugged. “It’s not so bad. But thank you.”

Julia noticed with satisfaction that Jake kept a careful distance from her as they exited the elevator from the parking garage to the main lobby of the building. Conversely, Nathan kept a light hand on her elbow, guiding her through the busy throng of people entering and exiting the main lobby until they were inside a crowded elevator car. It was the first time he’d made even the tiniest bit of physical contact with her since they’d met again, and she forced herself not to read too much into his almost impersonal gesture.

The Gregson Hotel Group’s American headquarters encompassed four full floors of this high-rise building, with the executive offices and meeting rooms on the twentieth floor. Julia found herself wedged into a corner of the packed elevator, with Nathan right beside her. When the woman in front of her turned slightly to rummage in her oversized handbag, she gave Julia an unintentional bump that pushed her back against Nathan.

His free hand instinctively grasped her forearm to steady her. “Easy,” he murmured in her ear.

Even though the wool of her coat she could feel the warmth of his hand, and she had to resist the urge to lean against him. The longing she felt to be in his arms again, to kiss him and be naked with him was almost overwhelming at times. She wondered how he could be so unaffected by her, how he could act like a completely different person than the man she’d had such mindblowing sex with in New York. But it was becoming more and more apparent that their time together hadn’t meant anything to him, and maybe even that it hadn’t been the first occasion he’d cheated on his fiancée. She forced that particular thought from her mind, for it only further ate away at the memories she had of that magical night, cheapening them to a greater degree.

The elevator doors opened into a spacious, elegant reception area with marble floors, a trio of pale mocha sofas arranged around a round glass-topped table, and a gleaming walnut reception desk. Nathan announced them to the receptionist – a cool, pretty blonde who smiled at the two men with an air that spoke of familiarity. She didn’t spare Julia a glance, something Julia had grown used to over the years. Most women found her threatening in some way or another, especially if there were men in the vicinity, and it was one reason she had only a few close female friends.

Within two minutes, a slim young man of medium height wearing a conservative dark brown suit and wire-rimmed glasses walked briskly into the reception area. He was unsmiling and looked all business. Julia couldn’t imagine ever trying to crack a joke around him.

He extended his hand first to Nathan, then to Jake, before turning to Julia. He did a bit of a double-take before introducing himself. “I’m Andrew Doherty, Mr. Gregson’s PA. You must be Ms McKinnon. We’ve all been looking forward to meeting the new designer for this project.”

She shook his hand, a little surprised at his firm, assured grip. He gave off something of a nerdish-vibe, but the brown eyes behind the glasses were sharp and intelligent, and she doubted he ever missed a detail.

“A pleasure to meet you. And please, call me Julia.”

Andrew gave a brief nod of acknowledgment. “Let’s head back, shall we? Everything is ready for you, and I’ll just let Mr. Gregson and the others know you’ve arrived.”

Andrew ushered them down a long, plushly carpeted hallway past half a dozen or more private offices to the left and cubicle workstations to the right. They turned right at the end of the hallway and were shown into a large, spacious conference room. One wall of the room was floor to ceiling windows that let in some much needed light on this rather gloomy, overcast day. The square conference table was huge and polished to a shiny rosewood patina. At least two dozen plushy upholstered chairs had been placed along the sides and at either end.

At one end of the room a wall to wall built-in credenza had been set with a complete coffee service, fresh fruit, and pastries, everything beautifully arranged. Closer to the other end of the room, several display easels had been set up.

“I assume this is where we should sit?”Julia asked Nathan, indicating the chairs closest to the easels.

He nodded. “Yes, Ian always sits at the head of the table here, and he prefers us close by. Do you need any help setting up your presentation boards?”

She shook her head as she began to shimmy out of her coat. “No, thanks. I’ve got it. I just need my case.”

“Here, let me,” he offered, as he helped her out of her coat. Julia’s breath hitched at the feel of his hands on her shoulders as they eased the gray coat off. “I think there’s a coat rack around here somewhere.”

“Oh, I’ll be happy to take that for you, Mr. Atwood,” said a soft, feminine voice.

Julia glanced up as a beautiful, shapely blonde girl walked into the room, her arms filled with a stack of folders. She set them on a corner of the table before taking Julia’s coat.

“Thank you, Tessa,” replied Nathan with a smile. “Julia, this is Tessa Lockwood, who works here for Ian and his staff. Tessa, I’d like you to meet our new interior designer, Julia McKinnon.”

Tessa, whom Julia guessed was a couple of years younger than herself, smiled sweetly, her big blue eyes kind. “It’s nice to meet you, Ms. McKinnon. What a lovely coat this is. Your dress, too.”

Julia’s discerning eye immediately pegged the black and white checkered wool skirt and black turtleneck sweater Tessa wore as inexpensive, most likely from a discount chain store. But when you had the sort of tall, curvy body the blonde girl did you looked good in most anything, expensive or otherwise. Julia smiled at her almost reassuringly. “Thank you so much. And please call me Julia.”

Tessa’s cheeks pinkened, and she swept an arm to the back of the room. “Please, help yourselves to coffee and such. I’ll be back in just a minute or two. The others are on their way.”

Jake make a smacking sound with his lips as Tessa hurried from the room. “I’d like to help myself to a nice big bite of her. Next to Julia, she’s the best looking thing I’ve seen in a long time.”

Nathan rolled his eyes. “Keep it under lock and key there, lover boy. And forget about Tessa – she’s a married woman.”

Julia’s eyes widened. “Really? She’s so young.”

Nathan shrugged. “Don’t know the story there. All I know is that Gigolo Jake here needs to back off.”

“That’s okay,” replied Jake with a grin. “I’d rather have Julia anyway.”

Nathan flashed him a warning glare, but Julia was more than capable of sticking up for herself. “Well, news flash. Julia would rather
not
have you, so give it a rest, okay? I may have to work with you but that doesn’t mean I have to put up with your constant flirting,” she retorted.

Jake smirked. “Probably all for the better, I couldn’t afford you, anyway.”

She gasped at the same time that Nathan angrily cautioned, “Watch it, Jake. I can pull you from this project in a flat second.”

“And what the hell did that last comment mean, anyway?” demanded Julia. “Are you trying to imply –“

Jake waved a hand in dismissal. “Of course not. All I meant was that you like a lot of expensive designer clothes. Those shoes you have on – six or seven hundred bucks, right? I know Travis isn’t paying you
that
well.”

Julia put her hands on her hips. “So – what? I must have a rich sugar daddy supporting me? Not that it’s any of your business, asshole, but I have an aunt in the fashion business who sends me stuff. Now – end of discussion. I’ve got a presentation to set up.”

She wasn’t sure who looked more shocked by her outburst – Jake or Nathan. But it didn’t matter because both of them shut up and swiftly finished helping her set up the display easels with the various designs they were presenting today to Ian Gregson and his team.

Within minutes, a dozen different people – men and women – began filtering into the room. Nathan did his best to introduce Julia to them – a Director of Marketing, a Facilities Manager, a Project Manager, and so forth – but she knew she’d never remember most of their names or titles at this first meeting. Until Ian Gregson entered the room, and she knew that no one could ever forget that name or face.

He was a tall, broad-shouldered man who instantly commanded attention and respect. Julia guessed him to be in his late thirties, possibly even early forties, and he was one of the most strikingly handsome men she’d ever met. Not in the same classically handsome, dreamy way that Nathan was, but in a more rugged manner that was at odds with his conservatively tailored black suit. Ian was also dark haired but the style was cut shorter and closer to the head than Nathan’s luxurious mane. Power rolled off this man in waves, and Julia felt more than a little intimidated by him.

But his hazel eyes twinkled at her, and his firm mouth curved up in a smile as Nathan introduced them. He clasped her hand in his for long seconds, gazing down at her from his vastly superior height.

“It’s a great pleasure to meet you, Julia,” he told her in a crisp British accent.

She smiled up at him with what she hoped was her best professional look. “The pleasure is mine, Mr. Gregson. It’s a privilege to work for the Gregson Group again.”

Still clasping her hand, Ian led her to the chair right beside his and held it out for her. “Ah, yes. I understand you’re responsible for the remodel of our hotel on the Upper East Side in Manhattan. I was given a brief tour the last time I was in New York, and as I recall it was quite impressive.” He slid her chair in once she was seated. “And you must call me Ian. Mr. Gregson always sounds like my father.”

Julia knew from having done her research that Ian’s father – Edward – was the CEO of the company, and that Ian’s two brothers – Hugh and Colin - were Managing Directors of the European and Asia Pacific regions respectively.

Nathan was seated to her immediate left, and as she caught his eye when he took his seat, she was puzzled at the frown he directed her way. She had no idea what he could possibly be displeased about already, given that the meeting had yet to begin. Julia gave him a little shrug and returned her attention to Ian.

To call the man dynamic was the understatement of the century. When Ian Gregson spoke, every person in the room seem mesmerized and paid him complete attention. Julia couldn’t properly explain what it was about him that commanded such attention, for he didn’t speak in a louder than normal voice, nor did he dominate the conversation, yell, demand, or intimidate. In fact, Julia thought him to be one of the best listeners she’d ever met.

No, Ian Gregson just had charisma, bucket loads of it, and both men and women were drawn to him. Even Nathan, who was himself an extremely dynamic and charismatic man, was giving Ian his rapt attention, and Julia sensed it had little to do with the fact that the Gregson Group was his biggest client.

When it came time for Julia to present her design boards, every eye in the room was fixated on her. She ought to have been nervous, for this was by far the most important project she’d ever worked on, but instead she was in her element as she went through each board and deftly answered each and every question that arose.

Julia had to contain a smug smile of satisfaction when Ian expressed some doubts about three of the four designs that Nathan had made her re-do. She was surprised when Nathan offered up, “I believe we have a second idea for each of these. Julia, did you bring the alternate designs with you?”

A raised brow was the only sign she gave him to acknowledge his quick-thinking cover-up. To the rest of the group, she merely smiled and replied, “Yes, I did happen to bring them along. Thank you for reminding me, Nathan.”

Julia forced herself not to gloat, or even to look in Nathan’s direction, when Ian and the others nodded their approval of her original designs. It made Julia wonder if Nathan had forced her to alter them just to be a hardass and exert his control over her.

One of Ian’s managers – a charming, older Frenchman who had recently transferred to San Francisco from the European headquarters – was trying to make a comment about one of the designs but was struggling a bit with the language barrier. Julia had noted from previous comments he’d made that his English wasn’t terribly good, leading her to guess he had likely worked in one of the firm’s French hotels or resorts before transferring to the London offices.

The man – Henri was his name – tapped his fingers on the table impatiently. “I cannot think of the English translation – it is a saying we have in French – ah, I am so stupid today.”

Taking pity on him, Julia told him in perfect French, “
Dites-moi que vous voulez dire
,” or in English “tell me what you want to say.”

Henri’s face lit up, and every pair of eyes at the table was focused on Julia. “
Ah, la belle
femme parle le francais
,” he said joyously. He then spoke to Julia in rapid French, happy to be able to convey his thoughts properly.

She easily translated to English the commentary he had made on the design for the hotel lobby before moving on to the next design board. Once she was finished, it was Nathan’s turn to update the group on some modifications for the original building design that they had apparently requested at a previous meeting.

Julia used the break to rearrange some of her notes, and to discreetly observe the faces and reactions of the group gathered around the conference table. Nathan was an engaging speaker, and kept everyone’s rapt attention, especially that of an older, well-dressed blonde woman who stared at him with ill-disguised interest. Julia knew from the frequent questions and interruptions the woman had made that her name was Morgan Cottrell, and that she was the Business Development Manager. She was quite attractive and well-kept, but Julia guessed her to be at least ten years older than Nathan.