by Sandi Lynn
“That was the trip from hell. First off, I got stuck next to this annoying beautiful woman.”
“I can see how that can be a problem.” He rolled his eyes.
“It was a problem. She was fucking nuts. I feel sorry for her boyfriend if she has one. If she doesn’t, I can see why. And, I lost my wallet. I think I left it on the plane.”
“Oh shit. That’s not cool, Damien.”
“Joslyn is calling the airport to see if anyone turned it in. But it’s highly unlikely. Even if they did, I’m sure they stole all the cash I had in it. You know, that woman went to Tennessee to visit Graceland and The Grand Ole Opry.”
“So? A lot of people do that,” he said.
“It’s just weird. And then the lady across the aisle from her gave her some necklace she hand made. She doesn’t even know her. Do you believe she had the nerve to tell me that money shouldn’t be the only important thing in life? And she said I was a workaholic who let my work consume me.”
“Well, you are a workaholic and you do nothing but work 24/7.”
“And? What’s your point?”
“I’m just saying. By the way, you sure are getting all worked up over this woman. Why?”
“I am not. I’m just saying she was annoying and wouldn’t stop talking to me. I asked her for one favor and it was all downhill from there.”
“What favor was that?” He smiled.
“The line at the coffee shop was too long, so I asked her if I could cut in front of her because I was in a hurry.”
“You were in a hurry to sit and wait for your delayed flight?” He laughed.
“The point is I didn’t have the patience to stand in line. Anyway, she let me and then had the nerve to say that I should have bought her coffee since she let me cut in front of her.”
“That actually would have been a nice thing to do.”
“Get out of here, Scott.”
“No. This woman really affected you and I want to know why.”
“Because everywhere I turned, there she was. It was so damn annoying. It was bad enough I had to deal with her in the airport, then come to find out she had the seat right next to me. The airline upgraded her for free. Do you believe that? Just my luck. Now my wallet is missing.”
“And don’t forget that you had to fire Adam.”
“Yeah. That too.”
He stood there and narrowed his eye at me for a moment.
“Mr. Prescott?” Joslyn popped her head through the door. “The airport said no one has turned in a wallet.”
“Of course not. They’re probably too busy using all my credit cards!” I shouted. “Cancel them now!”
Chapter Four
London
I was sitting in the back of the cab when I opened his wallet. It was stuffed with cash and a couple of credit cards. I didn’t see a driver’s license, so I pulled out one of his business cards: Damien Prescott CEO, The Prescott Group, 276 5th Avenue, New York, NY.
“Where to, lady?” the cab driver asked.
“276 5th Avenue, please.”
Was this a coincidence? I was doing a freelance project for the Prescott Group. The driver pulled up to the curb.
“Can you wait for me, please? I just have to drop this wallet off and then I’ll need you to take me to my Airbnb.”
“Of course.” He kindly smiled.
I entered the building and the doorman asked if I needed help.
“I’m looking for the Prescott Group,” I spoke.
“Take the elevator up to the fifth floor. Someone will be there to help you when you get off.”
“Thank you.” I smiled.
I took the elevator up to the fifth floor. I wasn’t looking forward to seeing that rude man again and prayed he had gone home from the airport. That was wishful thinking on my part. He needed his wallet, and the very little I knew about him, I was sure he was in an uproar over losing it.
“Can I help you?” a nice redheaded woman asked as I stepped out of the elevator.
“I’m looking for Damien Prescott.”
“I’m sorry, but Mr. Prescott is busy. Is there something I can help you with?”
“I found his wallet.” I held it up.
“Oh. Thank god. He’s been a tyrant ever since he got back. Go down the hallway and make a right. His office is at the end. You can give it to his secretary, Joslyn.”
“Thank you.” I smiled.
I walked down the hallway all the way to the end and made a right. The moment I turned the corner, I saw a desk with a nameplate on it that said “Joslyn” and a woman in her mid-forties with sandy-brown shoulder-length hair sitting behind it on the phone. She stared at me with a look on her face I couldn’t quite describe.
“Give me a moment,” she whispered as she held up her finger.
I held Damien’s wallet up and her eyes widened. She quickly hung up the phone.
“Is that—”
“Yes. This is Mr. Prescott’s wallet. He left it in his seat on the airplane.”
“God bless you, honey. Did you have to sit next to him?” she asked in a whisper.
“Yes.”
“I’m so sorry.”
All of a sudden, his office door opened.
“Joslyn,” he shouted. “What the hell?” He looked at me and his eyes widened. “You. Are you fucking stalking me?”
“In all honesty, I couldn’t stalk you because I didn’t even know your name. So how would I stalk you?” I held up his wallet. “You left this in your seat.”
“My wallet.”
I handed it to him, and he quickly opened it and counted his cash.
“It’s all there, Mr. Prescott. Trust me, I’m not interested in your money and I’m not a thief.”
“You can never be too careful these days,” he calmly spoke. “You went out of your way to bring this to me?”
“Yes. I knew you must have been freaking out. Plus, I wanted to spare the poor souls in this office who work for you.”
I heard a snicker come from Joslyn.
He held his finger up and pursed his lips together.
“Thank you,” he finally spoke.
“You’re welcome. I hope the rest of your day goes better, Mr. Prescott.” I turned and walked away.
I climbed into the cab and thanked the driver for waiting for me.
“Where to?” he asked.
I pulled up the email on my phone.
“525 West 28th Street, please.”
I stepped inside my new studio Airbnb that would be my home for one month. I rolled my suitcase into the bedroom and then looked around the small space. It was beautifully decorated in a mix of light and dark grays. Walking over to the window in the living room, I stared out at the city that I’d always dreamed of seeing. I let out a long yawn and my eyes felt heavy. It had been an exhausting day already and I needed to take a nap before I ventured out into the big city.
Chapter Five
Damien
It was ten o’clock before I finally left the office and headed home. I stepped into my penthouse, turned on the lights and went to my room to change into something more comfortable. Walking to the kitchen, I opened the refrigerator and pulled out a carton of leftover chicken teriyaki, scooped it on a plate, and threw it in the microwave. Once it was done reheating, I took it over to the table, where I set down my laptop and began working while I ate. The thing was, I couldn’t focus. The only thing that kept running around in my head were the events of today and that girl. The one who let me cut in front of her in line. The one who offered me to sit with her for breakfast. The one with the big smile, and no matter what I said to her, that smile never left her face. The same girl who went out of her way to bring me my wallet. My phone dinged, and when I looked at it, there was a text message from Katherine.
“Just in case you were wondering, I made it to Italy, asshole.”
I rolled my eyes and didn’t respond. There was no need to. I really didn’t care. The only thing I cared about in life was my bus
iness, money and how to make more. I was already at the top at the age of thirty, but I wanted to be higher. I wanted more.
The next morning, I was sitting at my desk when Landon from the graphics department walked in.
“Morning, Damien. I need your approval on these.”
“What is it?”
“The mock-ups for the Stafford account.”
“Just leave them on my desk. I’ll look at them later. I’m busy right now.”
“But—”
“What part did you not understand?” I snapped at him. “I said I’ll look at them later!”
“Yeah. Sure. Sorry.” He walked out of my office.
“Hey, Landon just said you’re in a mood.” Scott smiled as he stepped into my office. “I asked him what else was new.”
“Very funny. Don’t forget we have that dinner meeting tonight with Bradbury.”
“How could I forget. You are bringing Katherine, right?”
“Katherine is in Italy and I’m not seeing her anymore.”
“Bro, then you better get that little black book of yours out and find someone. You know Bradbury is a family man and he wants a company that’s family oriented. He specifically said he hates these bigshots that only care about business. Which, my friend, is you. You need to show up with a hot chick on your arm or else we’re going to lose this deal. I don’t know about you, but I think securing a multi-million-dollar account is worth faking it for one night.”
“Shit.” I leaned back in my chair. “Don’t worry. I’ll make a couple calls. With everything going on, I forgot. I’m going to grab a cup of coffee,” I said as I got up from my chair.
“Why? You always have Joslyn get it for you.”
“I need the walk. I didn’t sleep well last night.”
He looked at his watch. “I have to go. I’m meeting Madison for a quick breakfast.”
We walked out of my office together. He went right and I went left and headed to the break room for a cup of coffee. On my way back, I heard the elevator ding, and when I happened to look up, I saw that girl from the plane step off. What the fuck?
“Considering I didn’t leave anything else behind, I’m going to say you’re stalking me now,” I spoke as I walked up to her.
“Good morning.” She brightly smiled. “You can stop flattering yourself. I’m just here to drop something off. Have a good day, Mr. Prescott.” She turned and pressed the button to the elevator.
“Excuse me? What the hell would you have to drop off here? At my company?”
The elevator doors opened and she stepped inside.
“The artwork for one of your accounts.”
The doors closed and I stood there in confusion for a moment before I went over to the elevator and pressed the button.
“Damn it,” I spoke, as it was taking too long.
I took the stairs down to the lobby and rushed out the door, looking to see which way she went. She wasn’t too far down, so I ran to catch up with her.
“Hold on a second. You need to explain to me what the hell just happened back there.”
“What’s to explain? Your company hired me to do some freelance work and I was dropping it off. I finished it last night,” she said as she kept walking.
“For fuck sakes, will you stop for a minute?”
She stopped and turned to me.
“What?”
“None of this is making any sense to me at all. First we meet at the airport and now you’re doing freelance work for my company?”
“Yeah. Weird. Right?” She smiled.
I took in a deep breath to try and calm myself.
“Come back to my office with me. I want to know exactly who you are,” I spoke in a stern tone.
“Say ‘please.’”
“Excuse me?”
“Say ‘please’ and I’ll go back with you. There’s a right way and a wrong way to ask.”
I was two seconds away from losing my shit.
“Will you please come back to my office with me?”
“Sure. Now didn’t that feel better asking politely?”
We walked back to the building and took the elevator up to the fifth floor. As we stepped out of the elevator, I grabbed the envelope she left at the front desk and we headed to my office.
“Joslyn, hold all my calls.”
“Yes, Mr. Prescott.”
“Hi, Joslyn.” She smiled.
“Good morning. It’s nice to see you again,” Joslyn spoke.
Shutting the door, I told her to take a seat as I sat down behind my desk.
“First of all, what is your name?” I asked.
“London Everly.”
“London?” I arched my brow.
“I was conceived in London. My mom thought it was cute.”
“Oh. How did you end up doing work for us?”
“I was contacted by Jeff, one of your employees, who saw my work on a website.”
“So why the hell didn’t you say anything yesterday when you brought me my wallet?”
“To be honest, Mr. Prescott, you really didn’t want to hear anything I had to say.”
I sighed, leaned back in my chair, and stared at her.
“Is something wrong?” she asked. “I’m not sure I like the way you’re staring at me.”
“No. I’m just trying to figure you out. Have you lived in New York your whole life?”
“I don’t live here. Actually, this is my first time in New York. I’m staying for about a month and then I’m leaving.”
“Where are you from?”
“Minnesota.”
“And why are you here and only for a month?” I asked out of curiosity.
“I have things I want to see and experience, and a month is all I’ll need.”
“Like what?” I narrowed my eye at her.
“Just the sights New York has to offer,” she replied.
I needed to know more about her because she was the most bizarre, annoying beautiful girl I’d ever met.
I ran my hand through my hair as I couldn’t believe what I was about to do.
“You know, I’m actually glad I ran into you. Do you know anyone in New York?”
“No.” She shook her head.
“Now that’s not true, London. You know me. Since I’m the only person you know here, I’m asking you for a favor.”
“A favor?” She cocked her head. “What could I possibly do for you?”
“Attend a business dinner with me tonight.”
She let out a light laugh.
“You,” she pointed at me, “want me,” she pointed to herself, “to go to a business dinner with you?”
“Yes.”
“First of all, Mr. Prescott, I don’t know you. We exchanged some words, and not too pleasant ones on your end, in an airport in Nashville and then again on the plane where you told me to stop talking. Second of all, what are you after?”
“I’m not after anything. Listen.” I sighed. “I have a very important meeting with a potential client and he’s all about family and shit. He only deals with firms that are basically the same. So I need to bring someone to make it look like I believe in the same shit he does. I can’t show up alone or I’ll lose the deal.”
“But why me? I’m sure you have a harem, a tribe of women at your beck and call.”
“I do.” I grinned. “But it’s short notice and you’re here, so I’m asking you. It saves me the trouble of having to find someone. Which to be honest, I don’t have time for. Do me this favor and you will be well compensated.”
“I don’t want your money, Mr. Prescott. Not everything or everyone can be bought.” She got up from her seat. “Thank you for the invite, but I’m going to have to decline.” She began to walk towards the door, and I stood up from my seat.
“London, please. Please come with me tonight.”
She stopped, turned around, and stared at me for a moment.
“This is really important to you, isn’t it?”
“It is. It�
�s a huge deal and one I’m not willing to lose over something as stupid as family and values.”
“Fine. I’ll go with you on one condition,” she spoke.
“What’s your condition?” I narrowed my eye at her.
“You take me to the Empire State Building tomorrow.”
“Seriously? You want to go there? Why?” I frowned.
“Why not?” She smiled.
“Sure. Okay. I’ll take you to the Empire State Building.”
“Thank you, and I’ll go with you tonight. What time?”
“Dinner is at seven thirty, so I’ll pick you up at six forty-five? Which hotel are you staying at?”
“I’m not. I’m staying at an Airbnb on West 28th Street.”
“Text me the address,” I spoke.
“Are you sure you want to give me your phone number?” she asked.
“Do I have a choice?” I arched my brow at her.
She pulled her phone from her bag and I rattled off my number.
“Sent,” she spoke. “I’ll see you tonight, Mr. Prescott.” She opened the door and walked out of my office.
Chapter Six
Damien
“Who the hell was that beauty that just walked out of here?” Scott smiled as he stepped inside.
“I thought you were at breakfast.”
“We only had time to grab a quick bagel. Madison got called into an emergency court hearing. Again, who was that beauty?”
“Her name is London Everly and she’s the woman from the airport, the plane, and the one who returned my wallet to me.”
“Fuck, Damien. You weren’t kidding when you said she was beautiful. What was she doing here? Is she stalking you or something?” He laughed.
“So get this,” I leaned across my desk, “she was hired by Jeff to do some freelance work for us. She was dropping off the artwork.” I handed him the envelope.
“Wow. She’s good. I can see why Jeff hired her. But wait.” He shook his head. “So she knew when she returned your wallet yesterday that she was doing freelance work for us?”
“Yep. She sure did and she didn’t say a damn word about it. When I confronted her and asked her why she didn’t tell me, her response was, ‘You really didn’t want to hear what I had to say.’ Do you believe that?”