“Hello, Ms. Jennings,” a perky brunette said from behind a desk the size of most people’s kitchen counters. “Mr. Anderson is waiting. You can go on back.” The smile the woman wore was just about as big as Sarah’s, but hers looked genuine. Of course it was. She worked in a pretty great position for the best company in Seattle.
“Thank you,” Sarah said. She didn’t need to ask which way. The massive hallway was a good indication of where she needed to go.
“Can I bring you something other than coffee?” the woman, whose nameplate read Jennifer, asked.
“No, thank you,” Sarah said. Her smile was beginning to falter.
She moved down the hallway, hearing Joseph long before she neared the door. He said something, then laughed loudly. Her smile turned up, but this time it was real. She wondered how a person could feel that much joy all the time. Joseph was an enigma, certainly a person she’d love to know more about. Maybe she should’ve majored in journalism instead of design.
She stepped up to the door, not sure if she was supposed to knock. It was wide open, but no one was looking her way. She stood there feeling even more unsure than she had when she’d been outside the building trying to decide if she should enter.
As if he could sense her—or she’d made a sound, which she was sure she hadn’t—Noah turned, his gaze boring into hers. Damn! She hadn’t seen him in over a month, and the impact of his eyes still had the power to make her legs tremble.
“Hello, Sarah. You look well,” Noah said. His voice was a soft purr that contrasted so much with Joseph’s deep baritone. Of course Noah could get just as loud as Joseph when he let down his guard. But most of the time he had a purr that would make any woman want to curl up on his lap.
“Hi, Noah,” she said, turning away quickly. She couldn’t face him too long. She’d rather look at Joseph, even though the man intimidated the crud out of her. “I’m sorry if I’m late, Mr. Anderson.” She wasn’t late, but since she was the last one in the room, she felt the need to apologize.
“Nonsense, young lady. We were just having a chat while we waited for you to arrive,” Joseph told her. “Sometimes it’s a real pain to navigate your way through this city.”
“It most certainly is,” Sarah agreed as she moved forward. “Which is why I live in Cranston and not the city.”
“Yes, I’ve grown quite fond of the small town of Cranston.”
“I would think so, with the massive project you’re doing there,” she said, feeling tense all over again. She needed to spit out the words that had to be said and then walk from the office with her head held high and her dignity intact. She felt utterly tongue tied, though, which was nothing unusual around this beast of a man.
“I’m not the one doing the project,” Joseph said before looking at her for a long moment, as if he knew what she wanted to say. It made her even more nervous. He finally looked away to pull out a folder. “I have your contract, which should’ve been signed a while ago. With the accident and all, we’re a little behind schedule, but we can fix that right now.”
She felt her throat tighten. Again she wondered how many people told this man no or refused something he asked of them. The answer had to be zilch to none.
“Sir . . .” The look he gave her made her stop what she’d been about to say.
“You know I hate being called sir,” he said with a slight frown. She shifted in front of the large desk he was occupying. Sarah wondered where Lucas was. It would be so much easier to tell Joseph’s son she didn’t want the job than to tell the man himself.
“I’m sorry to interrupt, Joseph, but Sarah and I have spoken about this project at length, and she’s told me she doesn’t want to be on it,” Noah said. He was looking at Joseph rather than her, and there were frown lines etched in his forehead. He hadn’t been happy with her when she’d told him she was quitting. His mood obviously hadn’t improved.
Joseph’s knowing gaze centered in on her, and she felt like a grade school student about to be scolded by the principal. She wanted to remain strong, but it was difficult to do with two alpha men who were obviously unhappy with her staring her down. Well, that was just too bad for both of them.
“Why do you want to step down?” Joseph asked. Of all the scenarios she’d played out in her head, she hadn’t once considered he might ask her that question. She wasn’t sure why not. She didn’t know how to answer. “Is it something I’ve done?” He now looked concerned, instantly making her feel bad.
“No, of course not . . . Joseph. It’s just that with the accident we’re already behind schedule, and I think Noah will move much more quickly without my help,” she said, feeling brilliant for coming up with that on the spot. There was no way she was telling Noah’s uncle she didn’t want to do the project because she wanted to jump his nephew every second they were together. She also wasn’t going to mention how much the project meant to her.
“I’d take it as a personal insult if you were to walk away,” Joseph said. “I take time when considering who I want to work for this company, and I personally handpicked you.”
Sarah was speechless again. Her friends would find that quite amusing, as she always seemed to have something to say. Sometimes she talked just because she didn’t want to have nothing but silence surrounding her.
But to get back to what Joseph had asked—it was fairly simple. She was afraid to work with Noah for many reasons. The strongest was her attraction to the man, but also her pride was in there. Noah’s name was the big one on this project, and she didn’t want to be jealous about that, but she had no doubt she’d be living in his shadow. She had a lot of pride herself and didn’t like to be considered second best. She wasn’t sure what she should do.
She found herself unable to answer Joseph. His eyes twinkled. The man knew he was nearly impossible to refuse. She wanted to do just that out of principle. But still she stood there silently. What had happened to her entire pep talk to herself? She was failing miserably.
“Sign this form, and we’re right back on track,” Joseph said as he pushed a pile of papers toward her. She had no choice but to step a little closer to the desk and therefore closer to Noah as well.
Though in her opinion she felt Noah would rather she walk away, he didn’t seem to be thrilled about the idea. She just wasn’t sure what was going to make any of them happiest. She decided not to speak as she picked up the papers and began to read through them. For once Joseph was silent. Noah hadn’t been saying much at all since she’d stepped into the room. She was used to that. He seemed to be a man who thought a whole lot.
She read the contract. It was more than fair to her. She’d already been doing the job for quite a while, and she was being paid more than she could’ve ever hoped to be paid for a newly graduated architect. She should just sign the papers and do her job. Still, she hesitated.
When she looked up again, she found both Joseph and Noah staring at her. Joseph was holding out a pen that probably cost more than her rent the last month. She felt like a deer in headlights.
What was she going to do?
Her eyes connected with Noah’s, and she lost her breath. There was a challenge in his gaze. Her shoulders stiffened. Tick tock. Time was running out.