Taken (Dark Desires 1)

Veronica took another breath and then nodded. Lynn opened the door, and Veronica stepped inside.

Upon setting foot in the room, Veronica had to work hard to keep her jaw from dropping. She had heard of the illustrious Frank Davenport, and his intelligence and wit, but she had never had the pleasure of seeing the man in person.

The man was nothing short of absolutely gorgeous. Though he was approaching his middle ages, he had kept himself in fine shape, his perfectly tailored suit serving to display his broad, likely muscular physique. His skin was several shades darker than her own, and his nearly black eyes seemed to gleam with intelligence. His face was framed by a well-kept beard and his hair was artfully faded, with immaculate edges.

“Good morning Miss. Lawrence,” he greeted her, his voice rolling out smooth and low. “I see you are punctual- already a good first impression.”

Veronica nearly had to shake her head to refocus her mind. She was, after all, here for a professional interview on the recommendation of her boyfriend. She was certainly not here to ogle her potential employer.

“Thank you,” Veronica smiled, trying not to betray all her nerves, or the paths that her mind had taken.

“Please, have a seat,” Davenport gestured to one of the chairs in front of his desk, and she moved toward it, sitting down on the edge of the seat, and immediately reaching into her briefcase to pull out her resume.

“Oh I’m not really interested in going through any paperwork,” Davenport held up his hand, and Veronica blinked up at him. She sat back up in her seat and shifted a little uncomfortably. This interview was already taking a far different turn than what she had expected.

“It’s a little formal to call this an interview,” Davenport admitted with a shrug. “Honestly, I would have preferred to discuss all this over a coffee. Or maybe you’d like something stronger?”

Davenport gestured to a small stand beside his desk, on which was a variety of decanters filled with all manner of amber liquids.

“Coffee is fine,” Veronica spoke up, managing to keep her voice level in spite of her accelerating heartrate.

“Coffee suits me better in the morning as well,” Davenport shot her a blindingly white smile as he rose and crossed the office to a counter along one wall where a coffee maker was situated. She watched as he poured out two mugs, and brought them back over.

He placed them on the side table between the two chairs in front of his desk, and Veronica was more than a little surprised that instead of resuming his place behind his desk, he took up a place in the chair beside her. He sat back in the chair and picked up his mug, bringing it to his lips.

“Oh,” he said suddenly. “Do you take cream or sugar? I take mine black, so I just forgot to ask.”

“Both, actually,” Veronica said. She would have just taken it black, but she remembered what Lynn had said about trying to fake him out, so she decided to just be honest.

Davenport gave her a smile, and once again rose and crossed to a small cabinet, withdrawing a box of miniature coffee creamers and a box of sugar cubes. He set those, too, on the side table, as well as a mixing spoon.

Veronica hurried to fix her coffee, and then rose the mug to her lips, doing her best to keep her hands from shaking. She could feel Davenport’s eyes on her the entire time, and she couldn’t ignore the reaction it inspired deep in her stomach.

“So,” Davenport spoke after they had both sipped at their coffees for a moment. “Tell me about yourself and your business.”

“Well,” Veronica cleared her throat, setting down her coffee on the nightstand beside her. “I started out just babysitting other kids in my neighborhood when I was in high school. I started out doing it for free, but I eventually figured out I could make some money doing it. I love working with the kids. I actually considered getting my degree in education instead of business.”

“Oh wow,” Davenport raised his brows. “So you have a degree?”

“Yes,” Veronica nodded. “It’s only really been a couple of years.

“And you were never tempted to go explore other options?” Davenport asked, and she could hear the genuine curiosity in his voice.

“Well, I considered it,” Veronica nodded. “But at the end of the day, I have always wanted to keep up the babysitting. But with my education, I run it more like a business than I did before. It has been very helpful.”

Davenport nodded and gave her a smile, though his thoughts seemed to be elsewhere.

“You seem like a very driven and committed young woman,” he noted, and Veronica heard a shift in his tone. She blinked, taken slightly off-guard by the comment, but she assured herself that it was just meant to be polite.

“If you don’t mind me asking,” Davenport wrapped his fingers around his coffee mug. “What are your rates?”

Veronica shifted a little in her seat.

“Well,” she started, trying to think of the most diplomatic way to say what she needed to say. “I don’t really have a flat fee. I create a plan for each family that I work for, according to their income and their ability to pay.”

“That’s very considerate of you,” Davenport noted, and Veronica blinked, more than a little surprised by his response.

“Some people have said it’s an irresponsible business decision,” Veronica noted, taking another drink from her mug.