He tossed the towel aside and strode into his bedroom, dressing in a dark suit, a white shirt but no tie. His throat was already constricted enough.
He raked his hand through his hair, absentmindedly scanned his reflection and headed for the door.
It was time to get down to business.
Pure. Business.
* * *
Jennifer checked her mobile for the umpteenth time, one foot tapping impatiently as she waited for the lift to reach her office floor.
He had to be shitting her.
It was unsettling enough having him join the company unannounced, but to call a meeting like this without waiting for her, to take such an impudent step on his first real day, was taking the piss.
And she was later returning than she had intended.
Lucy’s need to talk had been evident in her honesty that morning. Jennifer had managed to give her some reassurance, promising to get her husband the help he needed, and seeing the strain in the woman’s face ease, even just a little, had been worth every delayed second.
Or so she’d thought.
It was pushing lunchtime now, which meant the meeting was in full swing.
And without her...
Frustration bubbled up her throat and she forced it down. She needed a level head to deal with the situation appropriately—professionally.
Finally the lift doors opened and she stepped out, faltering mid-stride as she spied Tony’s office—in use. Its new owner leaned back against the glass wal
l, his arms folded, one leg crossed over the other, totally relaxed as he gave Maxine—her head of product development—his full attention.
Her petite, feminine charm shone across the distance as she stood at a flip chart and spoke to the room. There were two other attendees, both men she didn’t recognise—likely part of his product development team judging by the invitation he’d sent her.
Jennifer was starting to draw looks from the staff and, forcing a smile, she put her legs in motion and headed over to Anna. ‘How long have they been in there?’
‘A couple of hours,’ she admitted. ‘Can I get you a coffee?’
‘Please.’
She speared Marcus through the glass. Seeing him so at home, straight off the back of her morning’s dealings with Tony’s wife, only compounded her anger. Yes, he’d cleared himself of any wrong-doing in the business deal, but it didn’t make seeing him in his predecessor’s shoes any easier.
And then he turned his head, his eyes meeting hers, and defiant sparks of delight shot through her.
She looked away and strode straight into her own office, closing the blinds to shut him out as her anger swelled.
You’re not angry at him for Tony’s sake. You’re angry because you can’t control how you feel about him and you’re angry because he’s called a meeting that’s pissed you off and still you want him.
She threw her coat over the stand and headed to her desk, extracting her mobile from her bag to check the meeting invitation. Double-checking, triple-checking that she’d declined it.
Sure enough, she had, and her response had made clear that it should be rearranged. A meeting entitled Product Prioritisation made her presence mandatory.
He should have re-bloody-scheduled.
Behind her, Anna walked in, mug in hand. ‘Here you go.’
‘Thanks.’ She took it and breathed it in, waiting for the usual comforting magic to hit.
Yeah, right, like coffee’s going to do it.