How to handle such things weighed heavily on his mind.
As the meeting drew to an end, Logan forced his attention back to the room, instead of one woman.
“We are throwing a birthday party for Bret Weaver, the key decision-maker at BG clothing,” Tyler announced. “Mark your calendars for Friday the 18th at the New Yorker Hotel.”
Logan’s eyes went to Lucy and their gazes locked. The New Yorker housed the bar where they’d met. It was like a walk back in time to that hot night when passion burned between them. Lucy blushed and averted her gaze.
“Now,” Tyler said, “here is where the pressure starts. We got in on this bid late. Logan leaves in a week for the Los Angeles corporate offices of BG. He needs ideas by then. Now, I know I don’t need to say this, but I expect all of you to be present and accounted for at this party. And I expect great ideas for this campaign. Unique and original. I realize this is short notice but I have to expect you to step up to the plate and give me a home run. You’ll be paired up in teams to prepare your ideas. And I stress, this is for the professional line only. We get a shot at the rest only if we do this right.”
Logan pushed to his feet, ready to get out of the room and think. Lucy was here now, and she couldn’t run away. But he needed to make his move a good one. That meant he needed to give it some consideration.
“You have very little time here, team,” Logan said to the room. “I need good, innovative ideas. I’ll let you get busy.” Then with a quick nod of his head, he turned toward the door.
Lucy was here now, but she was also his employee.
Where the hell did that leave him?
* * * * *
Lucy walked into her office and pushed the door shut, and then let out a huge breath. She crossed the room and tossed her pad of paper and pen on her desk. Then, the pacing started, because she didn’t know what else to do. Wrapped tight like a rubber band she didn’t know where to put her tension.
It was four-thirty and the first time since coming face-to-face with her one-time lover, she hadn’t managed a moment alone. Somehow, she’d contained her stress, and offered a calm façade to those around her.
But she was anything but. In truth, she was completely, utterly freaked out.
What in the hell was she supposed to do now?
She’d slept with her boss! Well…he wasn’t her boss then, but he was now, so it really played out with the same results. She was screwed.
The worse part was, she still wanted him. Damn the man for pushing whatever buttons he pushed.
She stopped pacing, a sudden thought darting through her mind. What if Logan thought she planned this? Oh, no, not good. She definitely had to talk to him. Not giving herself any more time to think, she marched out of her office and toward the executive suites. Backing out wasn’t an option.
Approaching Logan’s office, Lucy found it closely guarded by a secretary, a woman appearing to be in her mid-thirties who smelled of snobbery. She didn’t even acknowledge Lucy’s presence though Lucy had seen her glance up. Lucy cleared her throat.
With a look of irritation, the secretary’s gaze lifted. “I’m here to see Logan,” Lucy said, and then inwardly cringed realizing she’d forgotten to use his last name. She tried to play it off by ignoring the slip. “I’m Lucy Stark.”
“Do you have an appointment with Mr. Monroe?”
Lucy forced a sticky sweet smile and kept her voice accommodating. “No, but if he would see me, I would greatly appreciate it.”
The secretary sniffed and gave Lucy a look that said I doubt it. Clenching her teeth together, Lucy bit back a retort. The woman actually looked as if she might refuse to buzz Logan before she reached for the phone. Lucy listened as she was announced, and witnessed the moment of surprise as it registered on the woman’s face.
The secretary set the receiver to the phone down. In a tight voice, she said, “Go right in.”
A tiny part of Lucy felt adolescent. She wanted to gloat, but she figured it wouldn’t serve any purpose. Besides, what real victory had she won besides an opportunity to go into the lion’s den?
* * * * *
With a heavy sigh, Logan digested his secretary’s words. Lucy was here to see him. He leaned back in his oversized executive chair, a hand on the back of his neck where the tension seemed to sit like a heavy rock. After his morning meeting with the past, he’d been slammed with appointments. He had hoped for some time to think things through before he came face-to-face with Lucy again.