Tempted at Midnight

by Cheris Hodges

  As overconfident as people thought Sylvie was, the truth of the matter was, this project scared her.

  It wasn’t as if she hadn’t designed for businesses before. Her first client, the Sweet Spot, was a Brooklyn bakery. Her redesign of the space became just as popular as the succulent desserts the bakery sold.

  Every month Sylvie received a basket of goodies from the bakery.

  Padding into the kitchen, Sylvie made a snack and decided to veg out in front of the TV for a while. Maybe if she thought about something else she could lower her anxiety about tomorrow’s meeting. Of course her mind floated right back to New Year’s Eve.

  Erik.

  Sylvie wasn’t one for regrets, having learned a long time ago that it was such a useless emotion, but she wished that she hadn’t left that saucy note on the mirror. What if Erik’s was that magic New Year’s kiss she’d been dreaming of her whole life?

  Stop it. That man was a good lay and that’s it. No need to worry about things you can’t control. Sylvie grabbed a cup of yogurt and a spoon. Why did it even matter what he had going on when she’d never see this man again in her life? She dipped her spoon in her peach yogurt and sighed. Tomorrow was shaping up to be the biggest day of her career, and she was thinking about a hot one-night stand?

  Focus on what’s important. Jordan Industries. Plopping down on the sofa, she polished off her yogurt while watching the evening news. When she heard the anchor mention Jordan Industries, she reached for the remote to turn up the volume. But before she could focus on the story, her cell phone rang. Sylvie rushed to her bedroom to grab the phone. When she saw her mother’s face on the screen, she smiled.

  “Hey, Ma!”

  “Just wanted to give you a call and let you know that I’m back in Charleston.”

  “How was the cruise?”

  The satisfied sigh that chimed in Sylvie’s ear told her everything she needed to know. Her mother had had a great time.

  “It was so beautiful, Sylvia. The snow-covered ice caps and the polar bears. But when we got to Juneau and took that tram, I realized that I was in love.”

  “Ma, you better not move to Alaska!”

  “Excuse me? You’re forgetting who the mama is here, young lady. Luckily, I wouldn’t be able to function in a place where it’s dark for sixty-seven days straight. But the fireworks show Vernon and I saw was magical. I think we fell in love all over again when the sky lit up blue and red. Enough about me. Please tell me you did something exciting to ring in the New Year.”

  Sylvie closed her eyes and Erik’s naked body flashed in her mind. “Oh, not really. Went to Olivia’s party. She got engaged.”

  “Good for her. But what did you do?”

  “Drank some champagne, ate some sushi, and prepared for my new project.” Sylvie bit her bottom lip as if she was trying not to tell her mother how she really rang in the New Year.

  “You need a life that expands beyond work, Sylvia. When is the last time you had fun?”

  “Fun is overrated.”

  “Little girl, I’m going to tell you like Billy Dee told Diana, success is nothing without someone to share it with. And you need to settle down and stop trying to be Superwoman.”

  “Ma!”

  “Well, you’re not getting any younger. And the older you get, the harder it is to find a decent man.”

  “That’s a nice thing to say.” Sylvie sighed and wondered why her mother was worrying about her settling down all of a sudden.

  “I’m getting too old to worry about being nice, but no pressure.” Peals of laughter filled Sylvie’s ear. “And despite what Vernon says, I’m not going to start introducing you to the new guys at the church when you come visit. And when do you plan on visiting?”

  Sylvie groaned inwardly. Her mother was being extremely extra tonight. “Ma, what’s going on with you?”

  “What do you mean? I want my only child to be happy and have a family. Why does something have to be wrong?”

  “Who said having a family would make me happy?”

  “Who said it wouldn’t? Sylvia, I’m not telling you how to live your life, but just live a little.”

  “All right. I promise I’ll take a vacation as soon as I finish this project. But I’ll be going somewhere tropical, no matter how beautiful Alaska is.”

  “Just like your dad, you love the sun.” Sylvie smiled at the thought of playing on the shores of Grande Isle with her dad. “Yeah. I do.”

  “And you know something else that you have in common with your father?”

  Here we go. You don’t know how to relax. Sylvie and her mother had had this conversation so many times in the last three years.

  “You don’t know how to relax. He was so determined to provide for us that he worked himself into an early grave. Broke my heart to lose him. I am not going to watch you do the same thing.”

  “I’m not going to do that, Ma. But I have to get this business off the ground. Especially after what Amanda did to me.”

  Her mother sighed. “Didn’t you work your ass off over the holidays to make up for that filthy heffa skipping out on you?”

  “And it all leads to this. Ma, I’m going to be fine, have a good life and a successful business. I just want to make you and Dada proud.”

  “Honey, I’m proud, and Dada is smiling on you from heaven. You don’t owe anyone a damned thing.”

  Just myself, she thought as her mother talked.

  “Hey, Ma. I have to go. I love you, but . . .”

  “You have to get ready for your meeting. Go ahead.”

  After hanging up with her mother, Sylvie headed back to her office. Booting up her laptop, she was determined to make sure her proposal for the new CEO of Jordan Industries was perfect.

  It was well after midnight before Sylvie headed to bed. All she could do now was pray that she made the right impression in the morning.

  * * *

  Erik walked into the office with a cup of black coffee clenched in his fist. It was his third cup and he still felt as if he was sleepwalking. He’d spent the night going over financial reports—again. Somehow, he needed to find money to save jobs and rebrand the cosmetics line.

  “Mr. Jordan,” Linda said as he walked into his office enclave. “Ms. Gates is here, and since you said that I could take charge of this project, I let her into your office.”

  “You did what?” He struggled to keep his voice even. The last thing he needed was to have this decorator in his office when he had real work to do. “Y’all need to move this party someplace else, because I have a meeting with the executive staff.” He glanced at his smart watch. “In an hour.”

  “Well, I did have your computer moved into the conference room. And—”

  Erik held his hand up. “Linda, thank you. I’m sorry if I was a little gruff, but I didn’t get much sleep last night and I didn’t expect Ms. Gates to start her project so soon.”

  Linda handed him a file showing the drawings Sylvia had gone over with her. “She is super talented.”

  Erik gave the drawings a brief glance and nodded. “I’m going into the conference room.”

  “Don’t you want to meet her? She’s really lovely.”

  Erik waved his hand and took off down the hall. Didn’t matter how lovely this woman was, he had business to take care of that didn’t include looking at color swatches.

  Once he entered the conference room and sat down at the table, Erik realized one thing was for sure—he needed his chair. The foam seats of the faux leather chairs surrounding the table were beyond uncomfortable. Whether it was in the budget or not, Erik was buying new chairs. No one deserved his or her ass to be this sore.

  Heading down the hall, Erik was stopped by one of the security guards he’d hired from a new company.

  “Mr. Jordan, I wanted to let you know that the new security cameras have been installed and we’ve removed the access codes from the old system so that no one can access the system.”

  Nodding, he thanked the man. Knowin
g that Simon had always had access to everything at JI, Erik knew he needed to make changes to the building and the business’s security. Tomorrow, he’d have a new IT team come in and sweep the network for any backdoor access to the servers and files. He knew his father had something up his sleeve and he was going to do whatever he could to stop him. Walking into his office, Erik was about to cross over to his desk and grab his chair. Then he stopped short when he saw a shapely ass covered by a pair of skintight jeans wiggling in the air. He took a lingering glance, and then cleared his throat. He was at work, and no matter how amazing that ass looked, he had work to do and this woman was . . . Sylvie.

  * * *

  Measurements, that’s why she’d been on the floor, and thank God for being on her knees, because when she locked eyes with Erik, she would’ve passed out. What was he doing here?

  “Sylvie?”

  Stand up. You can do this. Her legs wouldn’t cooperate. Nodding, she reached for the edge of the desk and pulled herself up. “Erik. Wow. What a surprise.”

  “That’s one word for it.” He drank in her casual image; formfitting jeans, low-heeled black boots, and a long-sleeved white shirt with her company’s logo on the front. Right across her breasts. Clearing his throat, he smiled. “Didn’t know you were Sylvia Gates.”

  She chewed her bottom lip as an uncomfortable beat passed. “How is this going to work?”

  “Just fine, I suppose. We have a contract with your company and looks like you’ve already jumped in.”

  “Have you seen my portfolio? I’m damned good at what I do and—”

  “Oh, I know you’re good.”

  She speared him with a frown. “I had no idea who you were that night.” Her voice was low, but there wasn’t a sign of regret.

  Erik threw his hand up. “That night was a funky good time. But we’re adults and you can get this project done.”

  “You’re damn right I can, and I don’t think I like your attitude.”

  He shrugged. “You can quit if you’d like. Of course, we’d need our money back and then you’re going to have to explain why you walked away from this. And here I was looking forward to seeing your vision.”

  Sylvie slapped her hand on her hip. “I don’t quit, and if you have a problem with me being here, then fire me. That way I can keep the money.”

  Erik licked his lips. “Why would I do that when you have so many talents?”

  She rolled her eyes and reached for her tape measure, which was on the edge of Erik’s desk, and snapped it open. “Let me get back to work, unless you have notes for me.”

  He closed the space between them and smiled at her. “No notes. I came for something a little more important.” Stopping in front of her, he glanced at her lips. When they locked eyes, Erik could almost feel her yearning for him to kiss her. But he rounded her and grabbed his chair. “Make sure you follow your designs. They looked good and I can’t wait to see what you do with this place.” And with that, Erik rolled his chair out of the office and down the hall.

  Sylvie smirked as she watched Erik walk away. She deserved that. But who knew Erik, her midnight snack, was the CEO of Jordan Industries? This changes nothing. Do your job and don’t think about that man. That man who holds your future in his hands.

  Returning to measuring the area around his desk, Sylvie’s mind flashed back to his naked body pressed against hers and his lips devouring her own. She’d thought he was going to kiss her. Scratch that. She wanted him to kiss her. Wanted his lips against her as if it was midnight on New Year’s Eve again. But he seemed to make it clear that he was over it. Fine, she could be over it too.

  A few hours later, Sylvie had finished her measurements in the executive offices and was ready to move on to the lobby, which she considered to be her calling card. She glanced at her sketchpad and realized that her ideas for the lobby weren’t good enough.

  Sylvie needed something that would celebrate the company’s history and nod toward the future.

  Erik. He was the future as the new CEO. A portrait would be easy, but Sylvie wondered if she could push the boundaries with him. After all, she’d already seen him naked.

  Looking up at a picture of what she assumed was the company founder and his wife, she couldn’t help but wonder what kind of woman Erik would take a picture with and show the world. She’d been studying the portrait so intently that the sound of Erik’s voice made her yelp.

  “Didn’t mean to startle you.”

  “I was deep in thought.” She pointed to the black-and-white portrait. “The founders?”

  Erik smiled sardonically. “Aka, my parents, Simon and Yvonne.”

  Sylvie stretched her eyes and pointed to the woman in the picture. “The Yvonne? The inspiration for the best line of red lipstick in the history of makeup?”

  Erik rolled his eyes. “I should’ve known you were a fan. Red lipstick is your thing, huh?”

  She narrowed her eyes at him. “Mr. Jordan, I’m sure you’ve walked out on a sleeping beauty once or twice.”

  He cleared his throat and ran his hand across his five o’clock shadow. “Actually, I planned to let you have the suite for the day.”

  “In other words, I beat you to the punch and you’re salty? Wow.”

  Erik released a low chuckle. “You know I’m far from salty.”

  She turned away from him as heat flooded her cheeks. “Anyway. With all of the changes that have gone on here, I think your lobby should reflect that.”

  “Do what you want to do.” He shrugged. “You’re the expert.”

  Sylvie smiled. “Glad you think so. I need you to do something for me.”

  Chapter 4

  Erik shifted his stance as his dick jumped at the thought of Sylvie needing him to do something to her. Or did she say for her? All day he’d been extra focused on work, to keep his mind off her in his office. Now, standing inches from her, he had to remind himself to look but don’t touch.

  “What do you need?”

  “A portrait of you. But not like that.” She pointed up at the picture of his parents. “Something edgy and artsy.”

  “As long as I keep my clothes on, I’m down. Guess it’s time for me to put my mark on the place. What do you have in mind?”

  Sylvie offered him a huge smile. “You wearing some of the best makeup you guys sell. Sort of like an abstract painting.”

  “Are you out of your mind?” Erik shook his head. “You got the wrong brother. I’m not the artist here.”

  She shrugged. “This really isn’t about you being artistic, it’s about showing the new direction.”

  “We’re going to do that without me getting a facial.”

  Sylvie folded her arms across her chest and Erik was harder than marble. Looking away from her breasts, he tried to listen to the voice telling him to go home. Instead, he turned to Sylvie. “Why don’t we go have a drink and discuss your ideas?”

  “I’m still working and you’ve already shot down one of my best ideas. I don’t need that kind of negativity mixed with vodka.”

  Erik shook his head and started for the exit. “Miss Gates, don’t forget I’m the boss here.”

  She stuck her tongue out at him and Erik was taken back to their night in the suite. Her tongue was magical. Just as he was about to walk over to her, his phone vibrated in his pocket. Pulling it out, he saw it was his mother calling. What could she possibly want now?

  “Ma?” Erik walked outside at a quick pace.

  “Hope you’re happy with yourself. Your father is in the hospital and I know it’s because of your betrayal. Why, Erik? Why did you want power so bad that you just said screw the family?”

  “Ma, you seem to forget that Dad committed a crime. He was stealing from the company and wanted to hide it by selling out. I find it hard to see how this is my fault.”

  “Simon built that company to give you ungrateful boys a legacy. He sacrificed everything for us and you . . .”

  “Why are you defending him? Dad put you through a l
ot of hell. And—”

  “Don’t talk about my marriage. That isn’t your business and I’m not going to allow you to try and break that up as well. Erik, if you are concerned about me, then you’re going to tell the board and the police you made a mistake.”

  He sighed and bit back a caustic comment about how he wasn’t the lying Jordan. “If you want to have blind loyalties toward Simon Jordan, then I feel sorry for you.”

  “I’m not blind. Your father is going to come after you, and this family isn’t going to recover from a war. End it, Erik. End it.”

  He was about to respond when he noticed that she’d ended the call. Erik knew he’d started a civil war when he had his father arrested and went to the board about Simon’s crimes. Just because the man had founded Jordan Industries, it didn’t give him the right to rob the place blind.

  Erik’s internal investigation had discovered that his father had been embezzling money from the company for years, reporting false profit earnings to stockholders and the board. Those falsified reports had been one of the reasons why the company had been put up for sale. Because of Simon, the company was in the red, when Jordan Industries should’ve been earning millions of dollars in profit.

  Erik wondered how much his mother knew about this. Was she really concerned about the family being at war, or was there something else behind her need to keep Simon from paying for his crimes?

  “Excuse me.”

  The voice came from behind him, reminding Erik that he hadn’t moved since his mother hung up on him. Turning around, he smiled at Sylvie. “Sorry.”

  “I thought about your drink offer and if it’s still on the table, I’d like to take you up on it.”

  “Sure thing. And I promise not to dilute your vodka with negativity.” He winked at her and thought he heard her moan. Maybe it was his imagination, since the last time they were alone together there was a lot of moaning going on.

  “Where are we going?”

  Glancing at her attire, Erik figured the Canvas Club, a bar frequented by well-dressed executives, wasn’t the best place for them to visit tonight. And while he wished he could take her to his penthouse and peel those jeans off her wonderful body, he had to be a good boss and stick to a single drink.