The girl behind the desk looked up, all polished nails and makeup and a cap of perfect dark hair. “Do you have an appointment?”
Lucy blinked. “Uh...no.”
The receptionist gestured to a chair. “Have a seat and I’ll see if he has an opening to see you.”
*****
“You haven’t even been back three days and you’re turning the place upside down.” Zach glanced up as his brother. He smoothed his tie and gestured for Mike to come in and take a seat. “I told you my plans when I got back.”
Mike perched on the edge of Zach’s desk. “I didn’t think you were serious. This place looks like a bomb went off.”
Glancing around, Zach tried to see his office the way Mike must be seeing it. He’d already packed half his bookcases, he’d pulled the art—most of it good Remington reproductions off the wall. He’d have gotten more done, but he’d had two new contracts to review, and he’d had the board meetings to hold to present his new vision for the company. He’d also had working dinners with Mike and long evenings with the lawyers, drawing up all the necessary documents. It was amazing things were moving so fast, and he was going to take that as a good sign.
He was not going to worry that Lucy so far had not shown up.
But he kept waking up in the middle of the night and thinking of booking a flight back to her, just so he could ask her why she hadn’t come to New York.
Mike flashed a smile. “You sure about this, bro? I mean, you’re giving up a lot.” Mike waved a hand. He had the same dark hair as the rest of the family, but Mike kept his slicked back. His eyes also had more gray in them than blue, a lot like their mother’s eyes. Two inches shorter than Zach, he also carried twenty pounds more, all of it solid muscle. Mike’s idea of a good time was a hard game of racquet ball followed by a workout with weights.
Leaning back in his chair, Zach pushed his computer laptop closed. “Not giving up anything—I’m getting the life I always wanted. You know that.”
Mike shook his head, stood and smoothed his tie. He’d left his suit jacket in his own office probably—he wore suits to the office every day, but the hated the damn things worse than Zach did. “In other words, I should have paid more attention to when we played cowboys and cowboys as kids. What if the girl bails on you?”
Mouth tight, Zach shook his head. “Then I’ll just have to work harder to convince her I’m the right guy for her. Now what about the papers—did the lawyers finish up the new article of incorporation.”
“Ted swears we’ll have it by end of the day. Oh, by the way, office gossip is already going crazy. So far I’ve heard we’re shutting down, we’re out of money, we’re being sued, and we’re being bought out and sold to the highest bidder. I’ve encouraged all of them, but we’d better make an announcement soon or our top people will have their resumes out on the street and probably be juggling ten offers each.”
Zach shrugged. “That’s fine. We only want those who want to stay staying.”
“Easy for you to say, man who won’t be here. Oh, hey, I told Tina I’d mention you seem to have someone waiting for you. Don’t know if it’s another interview or what.”
Zach rolled his eyes. “I should put it off.”
“Hell, no. We’re going to want press and lots of it. And you are still the man in charge.” With a sloppy salute, Mike headed out of the office.
Zach glanced at his laptop and then his watch. He hadn’t had lunch and breakfast had been a single cup of coffee. Maybe if this was an interview he could do it over lunch. He had a hundred loose ends to tie up and he wanted all of it done by end of the week. He smiled and shook his head—he’d be lucky to make it by end of the month.
Standing, he headed for the lobby to see who Tina had waiting for him.
***
Lucy sat on a leather couch, staring around her. Everything here made of glass or marble or steel or leather. Her pulse pounded unsteady and her stomach kept flipping over. She wanted to get up and run. She wanted to be anywhere on the ground where she had trees and open land around her. She did not want to be here.
The receptionist kept shooting her glances as if she was afraid Lucy was going to pick up one of the potted plants and walk off with them. Taking a deep breath, she repeated over and over inside her head that she could do this.
Oh, hell, who was she kidding. She couldn’t do this. This wasn’t her type of place—cities weren’t where she wanted to life. She stood up. She’d leave a message for Zach and head straight back to the airport. She’d catch a flight home and if he really wanted her, he’d come see her. She couldn’t stand this one second more.
“Lucy?”
Turning, she saw Zach. Except it wasn’t her Zach. The battered Stetson had disappeared. His dark curls looked brushed and orderly. No more plaid shirt, jeans and boots. Instead, he had on an open-neck polo shirt, gray slacks, and what looked like expensive loafers. Everything, in fact, looked expensive.
He came forward, but Lucy had the weird feeling she was meeting him for the first time. She stuck out a hand. “Mr. Collins.” She’d never called him that, but he looked more like a Mr. Collins and not at all like her Zach. Only his blue eyes seemed familiar,
but right now they clouded over.
Glancing at her hand, he took it. He didn’t shake her hand, but held hers between his two hands. “I’m glad you came.”
She pulled away and jerked a thumb over her shoulder. “I was just leaving.”