“Lucky us,” I mumble to myself. I would have preferred to skip this retreat altogether.
The wheels touch the tarmac, and I close my eyes, thankful to be firmly back on earth. I normally don’t have a problem on planes, but a tiny one like this flying around the edges of a hurricane isn’t my first choice for travel.
I’m late, and there’s nothing I hate more than not being on time. My company was bought out by Darian Wilson, and I’ve spent the last week on planes, trains, and automobiles around the globe transitioning it for him. I don’t know why I agreed to it, but when I got the call that he wanted to take over, there was something about him I trusted.
My company helped develop his biometric products, but he was right when he said our merger would be mutually beneficial. I get to stop traveling so damn much and bring our company to Boston, where his labs are located.
It will be the first time in a long time that I’ll be making roots, that is, once I’m done with this stupid department head vacation. I was told we’d hit the ground running, but the memo I got from the new CEO directed me to a beach getaway. Maybe I wouldn’t mind so much if the hurricane riding my ass on the way here wasn’t so dark and gloomy.
There’s not a time I can recall where I wasn’t changing cities each week in different parts of the world. I’m looking forward to taking a breath while reaping the benefits of this new partnership.
My phone chimes as soon as the plane pulls into the hangar, and I see a few missed texts. Once I’ve read the messages, I delete them quickly and tuck my phone away.
“How far are we from the hotel?” I grab my bag as the pilot opens the door for me. I’ve never been happier to get out of such a confined space.
“Just a quick ride to the other side of the island. There’s a car waiting for you, Mr. Fox.”
I look ahead to the black sedan and quickly make my way over to it after I thank the pilot for not killing me.
I’m the newest department head to the company, and I haven’t had a chance to meet with anyone yet. I’m hoping this doesn’t work against me since I’m late on top of it. I’m sure most of them are already close colleagues if not friends. From what I’ve heard, Darian is a personable boss and is hands-on with all of his departments.
My company was in charge of product distribution, and although we’ll still be doing the same thing, we’re moving all of our offices to Boston, and we’ll fall under Darian’s umbrella. He mentioned turning over some of my responsibilities to his staff so that I could lighten my load, but I don’t know if that’s in the future for me.
As if reading my thoughts, my phone chimes again. This time I delete the texts without reading them.
When I get to the hotel, the lady at the counter tells me there’s no reservation, and I grit my teeth. After a few minutes of them searching for somewhere to put me, I’ve finally got a key but no itinerary. Apparently Darian Wilson Inc. didn’t get the memo that I was attending this retreat. Too bad I didn’t find this out on the other side of the ocean. I could have spent the weekend house hunting, but instead I’ve got to search the damn island for people I don’t even know.
There’s a throb between my eyes by the time I drop my bag in my room and make my way to the convention center. The hotel staff told me all of the events scheduled this weekend would be located in that area and to just look around.
“Look around,” I grumble, my mood getting worse by the hour.
In the distance I can hear people talking and laughing, so I decide to check it out. Maybe there will be a sign with the company name on it, or perhaps Darian will be in there.
What I find as I open the door is not at all what I was expecting.
On the other end of the room is a large group of people cheering and shouting with music blasting. The lights are dimmed, and drinks are being poured like they’re on spring break. On my side of the room, there’s a ribbon strung all the way across like it’s a finish line.
Before I can comprehend what insane game they’re playing, a woman with long red hair wearing a blindfold is barreling toward me. I want to shout at her to stop but the room is too loud, and I don't even know if she could stop if she wanted to.
If she keeps going, she’s going to smack right into the door I just walked through at full speed, so I make a split-second decision. I hold out my arms and brace my feet as she breaks through the finish line ribbon and slams into me.
My back takes the brunt of the impact as my arms wrap around her and we fall to the ground. The wind is knocked out of me as I lie there with her body on top of mine.
Somewhere in the back of my mind I think about how soft she is, but there’s not time to focus on it.
“Fuck,” she hisses, yanking off her blindfold. “Oh my god, are you okay? Shit, I knew blindfolds were a bad idea.” She burps and then covers her mouth. “And tequila.”
“I’m okay,” I groan as I look up into the most beautiful golden eyes. “Are you?”
“Lucky for you I’ve got plenty of cushion.” She clamps her mouth shut like she didn’t mean to say it.
“Lindsey, are you okay?” A young woman rushes over to her side. “I told Peter shots were a bad idea.”
The two of them laugh as Lindsey climbs off of me, and I’m annoyed at the loss of her warm curves.
“I’m okay, but the next game you and Peter come up with, no blindfolds.”
The woman nods and then looks down at me. “Who is this?”
“My knight in shining armor,” Lindsay says while I stand up.
Her cheeks flush as she sees me come to my full height and tower over her.
“I really am sorry about that. Our games have gotten a little out of hand since we’re stuck indoors. Are you with hotel management? Don’t worry, I’ll tell them to keep it down,” she rushes to say, and I’m surprised to see her flustered.
“No, I’m here for a work retreat. Is Darian here?”
With my question, her eyebrows pull together in confusion. “Darian isn’t here. He put me in charge a few weeks ago.”
Now it’s my turn to be confused…and a little irritated that he failed to mention this during the merger.
“Oh really?” I let out a long sigh because it’s not her fault. “I’m Gibson.” I hold out my hand and try to keep my cool.
“Lindsey.” When she puts her hand in mine, that warm, soft connection comes back, and I like the way it feels when I’m holding her. “Glad you could make it, Gibson.”
She doesn’t look at me when she says it, and out of the corner of my eye I spot a short, gray-haired woman walking over. Lindsey takes her hand in mine, and for the hundredth time today I’m annoyed.
“You must be Gibson. I’m Mary. Darian just sent over your paperwork today. It must have slipped his mind now that he’s retired.”
Lindsey and Mary laugh at their own inside joke, and I don’t like being out of the loop.
“Come with me, and we’ll get you a schedule,” Mary says, and then the woman from before is beside Lindsey again.
“Okay, Peter and I have reevaluated the game and we have an even better idea this time.”
I don’t hear the rest of the conversation as I’m forced to follow Mary. But as she goes over the activities of the weekend and expectations, I can’t keep my eyes off the redhead in the room.