by Maxene Novak
Clay smiled widely and shifted in the chair, crossing his legs at the ankle like he was making himself more comfortable. “I haven’t hired anyone yet. I was actually hoping to find someone with a background in law enforcement. Someone who I would really be able to trust. You wouldn’t happen to know anybody you might recommend? Unless of course I could entice you into a career change yourself.”
Spencer’s eyes widened and he just watched Clay for a moment. He was trying to determine if the CEO of Hale Inc. was just messing with him, or if he had actually just offered him a job in a roundabout way. Clay looked him in the eyes and never flinched, and Spencer saw nothing in the other man’s face that would indicate he was anything but serious. “Actually, I have been thinking about finding something new.” Clay didn’t need to know why Spencer had been thinking about leaving his career as a detective, just that he might be interested.
Clay sat back up and handed Spencer his card. “If you’re serious about that I would love to set up a meeting to discuss the job. See if it is something you think you might be interested in. I think you would find that Hale Inc. is a pretty great place to work, and you wouldn’t have to see so much of the ugliness I am sure you detectives have to deal with on a regular basis here.”
“You know, I think I would like that.”
“Great. Why don’t you come by first thing in the morning and we can talk about it some more.” Clay stood to leave.
“Sounds like a plan.” He shook Clay’s hand again and this time he wasn’t able to keep the smile off of his face.
“Great, I will see you at eight then.”
When Clay turned to walk away Spencer was still smiling. It wasn’t until he realized his eyes had involuntarily moved to take in Clay’s tight ass that he let it fall from his face. He rubbed his hands over his face and sat back down. If he was going to work for Clay, then he had to get a handle on whatever it was that kept making his dick stir whenever he was around the guy. He wasn’t sure how he would do that since his body seemed to have a mind of its own every time he was around Clay, but he would have to figure it out.
***
The next morning Spencer got up early and put on the only nice suit he owned. It was the one he used to attend formal events for work. He had worn it to every police officers ball that had been held at Hale Hotels so he hoped that Clay wouldn’t notice. He was so anxious about his meeting with Clay that he had barely slept the night before. On the plus side it meant he hadn’t woken up in a sweat from one of his nightmares. Even without having spoken with Clay about the job specifics, Spencer was already feeling excited at the prospect of a fresh start.
When he got off the elevator on the top floor of Hale Inc. he was fifteen minutes early for his meeting with Clay. Not wanting to interrupt anything, he walked to the office adjacent to Clay’s where he knew Clay’s assistant worked. Her door was open but she was focused on her computer monitor, so Spencer knocked lightly on her door jamb to get her attention without just walking in on her.
“Oh, hey Detective Cole. Sorry I wasn’t at the elevator to great you. Kyle usually calls up to let me know when someone is on their way to meet with Clay.”
Spencer rubbed the back of his neck in embarrassment. He hadn’t even stopped at the reception desk to check in. The only time he’d ever been in the offices was to pick up Clay’s former head of security and haul him off to jail, and Clay had instructed him just to come straight up without talking to anyone. “That would be my fault. I didn’t actually check in with him. I’ll make sure I remember to do that in the future if I’m ever back here again.”
“Well, I certainly hope you will be.” Spencer turned around when he heard Clay’s voice. His breath caught and his heart tried to take off again when he found Clay right behind him—so close he was able to smell that spicy cologne the man wore again. “I was just coming to check in with Jemma and tell her good morning before you got here.”
“Ha!” Jemma laughed and Spencer looked back at her and caught her rolling her eyes. “You mean you were coming to see if I had brought you a coffee from your favorite spot before you got your meeting started with the detective here.”
Jemma held up a coffee to-go cup from Biaggio’s and Clay stepped forward to take it from her. “You are a saint.”
“Yeah, yeah,” she waved her hand at Clay like he was a fly she was shooing away.
Clay focused his attention back on Spencer. “Shall we take this to my office?”
“Alright,” was all Spencer could say. He had a feeling that people loved working for Clay Hale and it only made trying to understand what in the hell that Josh guy had been thinking even harder.
Clay led the short distance to his office and motioned for Spencer to enter ahead of him. Spencer walked toward Clay’s desk and turned around to face the other man when he heard the door shut. He cocked his eyebrow at Clay when the saw his eyes dart upward from the downward angle he’d been looking. Had he been checking out Spencer’s ass? Spencer shook his head. He was surely just projecting his own feelings on the guy. No way Clay looked at him the same way he…What the fuck? He wasn’t attracted to Clay that way. No way. Was he? Fuck! He was here for a job interview and the last thing he needed was to be checking out the guy he hoped he was going to be working for soon.
He watched Clay rub the back of his neck as he made his way over to the side of his office where there he kept a couch and a couple of chairs. “I thought we could sit here were its more comfortable. I sit behind that desk all day long, so any chance to get out of that computer chair I like to take it.”
“I guess I’d feel the same way,” Spencer responded. He walked away from the desk and took a seat in one of the chairs.
Clay waited for Spencer to sit down before he took a seat across from him on the couch. Spencer watched Clay when he sat back and crossed his leg so that his right ankle was resting on his left knee. Clay had just assumed this meeting was going to be very formal; all business. Apparently, he was wrong about that.
“I’m not going to beat around the bush, Spencer, so here it is.” Spencer nodded. He appreciated someone who just got right to the point. “I want you for this job. I run a multimillion dollar business and I need people I can trust. I have seen and heard enough about you to know that you are someone who will fit the bill. Your long career in law enforcement makes you an even better candidate. I can assure you that the pay is quite a bit better than your detective’s salary, but I also understand that I am asking you to leave a career you’ve invested a lot of years into.”
Clay paused and Spencer took the opportunity to ask a question, not that it was going to sway him either way. He had already decided he would take the job if Clay really offered it to him. “Just out of curiosity, when you say that the pay is better than what I make now, how do you know that to be true.”
Clay grinned and winked at him. That simple gesture sent a wave of heat through him and he had to bite his own tongue to distract himself enough to keep from groaning out loud. “Well, Mr. Cole. When you have the kind of money I do it opens up a lot of resources. Resources that make it rather easy for me to find out that your current annual salary is forty thousand dollars.” Spencer felt his eyebrows draw together while he stared at Clay. “If you take the job with me your salary will increase by double.” That time Spencer’s jaw dropped. Eighty thousand dollars! Holy shit!
After he gave it a minute to sink in, he spoke up. “Sir, I don’t want to sound ungrateful, but don’t you think that is way too much money? It just seems like a lot for a security guard.”
Clay put both feet back down on the floor and scooted forward in his seat, getting closer to Spencer. Spencer tried to ignore how amazing Clay smelled. He considered breathing out of his mouth so he wouldn’t be inhaling the man’s spicy, masculine scent, but he decided against it. Watching someone breath through their mouth wasn’t exactly the kind of thing that he imagined would attract employers. “First of all, you won’t be a security guard. You will be th
e head of security for Hale Inc. That means you will be in charge of the security team at all Hale Hotel locations, here at our corporate office, and at the new children’s home, which will be opened before the end of the month. Think of it more like a district manager position where you coordinate with the employees to ensure the utmost security at all of our locations.”
Spencer’s eyes widened at that. Clay wanted him to be in charge of what Spencer considered to be the most important part of any business. As far as he was concerned nothing was more important than security. Before he had the chance to wrap his mind around everything and say anything, Clay spoke again.
“I know you’re probably thinking that eighty isn’t enough. I agree, but it’s a temporary number. After ninety days if we’re both happy that salary will increase, and I have a pretty good feeling that we are going to be happy.”
Clay reached across the space between them and squeezed Spencer’s shoulder. Spencer felt his heart skip a few beats when Clay said the words we are going to be happy, and when he reached out and touched him Spencer was sure his heart did a full on summersault in his chest. He closed his eyes briefly. He really needed to get a handle on his body around Clay. He really wanted this job, and he didn’t want to fuck it up by doing or saying the wrong thing whenever he had to interact with Clay because he was suddenly acting like a teenage boy experiencing his first crush.
“I’ll take it,” Spencer finally said. “I mean, I accept your offer.”
“Great,” Clay patted him on the shoulder and gave him another squeeze before removing his hand. Spencer immediately felt cold, like he missed the contact. Spencer pinched the bridge of his nose. This was going to be harder than he had anticipated. Then again, when he started he was sure he’d be working out of one of the hotels so his time being in the same room or even building with Clay probably wouldn’t be all that much. “Come with me and I’ll show you your office.” Clay stood and Spencer just stared at him for a moment.
“My office,” Spencer asked.
“Yes, your office. You’ll have access to the cameras and all of the systems for each of the locations right from here. We also have a conference room you will have access to for meetings or team building meetings with your security staff. Obviously, you will also work outside of the office, visiting the other locations and getting a hands-on accounting of everything that goes on at each place, but you can get most of your job done right here.”
Spencer slowly stood. Well, shit. There went his theory about not having to see Clay on a regular basis. He would just have to find a way to get his libido in check because there was no way he was passing up this job. Even if Clay hadn’t offered to pay him an insane amount of money, Spencer really wanted this opportunity. He still got to look after the safety of others, but his regular exposure to the scum of humanity should drastically decrease and that made it all worthwhile.
After Clay showed him to his office, which happened to be right across the hall from Jemma’s and therefore only a few feet away from Clay’s, Spencer was ready to get out of there and let his sergeant know he would be resigning down at the station. With all of the leave time he had on the books, Spencer wouldn’t even have to work out a notice, which meant he would be able to get started on his new job right away. Clay had seemed rather thrilled when Spencer shared that little detail with him. “That is great news. I was worried I’d be waiting quite a while for you to make the transition.”
“Honestly, I’ve been considering this for a while now. I’ve saved up my leave time so that if the chance to follow through was ever presented I wouldn’t have anything holding me back.”
Clay smirked and stepped closer to Spencer. “So, you been thinking about working with me for a long time then.”
Spencer’s eyebrows shot up. He hadn’t meant for it to sound that way. “I just meant I was ready to leave all of the ugliness I see as a detective behind.”
When Clay put on an exaggerated pout, Spencer nearly burst out laughing. Seeing this big time business mogul stick out his bottom lip like a pouting four-year-old girl was the funniest thing he’d seen in years. “So it wasn’t my charms that lured you away. And here I thought you liked me.”
After that Spencer wasn’t able to hold it back anymore. He burst out laughing, bending over and clutching his stomach, and Clay followed suit. He couldn’t help but think about how much he liked the sound of Clay’s laugh. It caused that same tingling warmth throughout his body at the sound like it did whenever Clay touched him in any way. It was time to get out of there before he did something stupid. “If we’ve covered everything for today I should head out. I want to get down to the station and give my Sarg notice right away.”
“Yes, of course,” Clay nodded. “Just one last thing before you go. Since you said you’d like to get started right away, we are having a fundraising ball for the new children’s home at the hotel on Main Street Saturday night. Do you think you could come? It would be your first chance to get your feet wet as the new head of security, and a lot of the staff you’ll be working with will be there so you’ll get to meet them as well.”
“I should be able to make that. How about I call or text you once I’ve talked to my Sarg to let you know for sure.”
“Sounds good.”
“Okay, I will.” Spencer held out his hand and shook Clay’s once more before he turned to leave. Half way to the door an image of the balls he had attended for police officers popped into his head. All of the gowns and tuxedos. As a cop he hadn’t given a shit about following some strict dress code for those parties, but as the head of security for the guy throwing the party he should probably make sure he was dressed in appropriate attire. He turned back to Clay, “Hey, what should I wear to the ball if I can make it?”
“A tux,” Clay said while he grazed the length of Spencer’s body with his eyes. Spencer swore Clay’s green eyes became darker. “As soon as you let me know you’re coming I will get you set up with my tailor at Emma’s Alterations. She is the best and she’ll be sure to bill the company and not charge you for the tux. Hale Inc. pays for formalwear since I make it a requirement for the staff to attend functions like Saturday night’s ball whenever we have them.”
“Okay. I will let you know before the end of the day. Talk to you later.” Spencer threw his hand up in a half wave and turned around to leave Clay’s office.
CHAPTER FOUR
Clay
Spencer had only been gone for a short time before Jemma was popping into Clay’s office to announce Lorie’s arrival. He had definitely not forgotten about the beautiful woman coming in to visit the children’s home with him this morning, but his time with Spencer had been a nice distraction.
Clay stood to greet Lorie when she walked into his office. Unlike the day before she wasn’t wearing a suit. She was still dressed professionally in a silk button-down shirt and dress slacks, but she looked more comfortable, which only made her even more beautiful. “Lorie, it’s great to see you this morning. I hope you’re looking forward to visiting the home.” He knew he sounded like a kid getting ready to show off his favorite toy at show and tell, but he couldn’t help it. This children’s home was his pride and joy. He hadn’t gotten into business just to become rich. His real goal had been helping kids. Children who had it rough like he had growing up. Good kids who just needed a decent place to live with people who would really care about them. Clay hadn’t been so lucky, but in the end he had found his own way to success and he planned to turn that success into the help these children needed.
“I can’t wait,” she said. Clay was pleased to hear the same enthusiasm echoed in Lorie’s response. He wasn’t sure what had happened in her life to make her so passionate about helping children, but he did hope it wasn’t anything like what motivated him. Maybe she was just a good person by nature; it had taken him a long time to believe that naturally good people existed in this world, but eventually he’d learned that they did. His assistant Jemma was a prime example of that quality he
rself.
Clay walked to the door and held it open for Lorie to walk through. “Great. Let’s get going then.” He shut the door behind himself and walked her over to the elevator. The elevator ride down was silent, but pleasantly so. In the small space Lorie filled his senses. He fought to keep from staring at her the entire ride down, but he could smell her perfume and that only made him want to get closer to her. It was light but feminine; lavender maybe, but definitely not overdone. Just when he had the thought cross his mind that he could stay in that elevator all day if it meant he would get to stay with her, the door opened and a garage full of cars came into view. Lorie didn’t hesitate to step out of the elevator and his momentary fantasy of them spending the next couple of hours secluded in the small space was broken.
“We’re just to the right,” Clay told Lorie. He pointed towards a silver Acura parked in a reserved parking spot just to the right of the elevator opening. He walked alongside Lorie and when they reached his car he opened the passenger side door for her. Once she was settled in the car and he’d shut the door, Clay made his way around the car to the driver’s seat and started the engine.
“This is nice,” Lorie said, looking around the car interior. “Not what I expected, but nice.”
Clay grinned. He had a feeling that he knew what she had expected, but he wanted to make her say it out loud anyway. “Really? What did you expect?” He glanced at Lorie quick enough to notice her slight blush. “Don’t be embarrassed. Tell me.”