Meetingpub (5 page)

The
next morning, I showed up at Syngex promptly at eight o'clock ready
to start my day. It was strange working in an office instead of a
restaurant. Everyone looked so stuffy and professional that I felt
out of place. One thing was certain. With my first paycheck, I'd
definitely need to expand my wardrobe. Currently, I only had two
business outfits. The rest were all casual attire. Hopefully, Jack
wouldn't notice if I wore the same thing every other day for a while.
It was an embarrassing thing to have to do, but it couldn't be
helped.

When
I arrived on the seventy-ninth floor, I was greeted by the blonde who
had directed me into Jack's office for my interview. She gave me a
fake smile as she looked me up and down, assessing me while she
spoke. “Good morning. My name is Ulga, and I'll be showing you
your more basic job duties. You can start by getting Mister Kemble
his coffee. His tastes change from time to time, but lately he's been
stuck on the large caramel macchiato from Third Rail Coffee down the
street. I'm sure you're familiar with the location.”

The
way she suggested I was familiar with the location of the coffee shop
put a bad taste in my mouth. There was something condescending about
the way she spoke to me, and I could tell we would not be best
friends. Hopefully, the other blondes were more pleasant.

Ulga
gave me a ten-dollar bill and sent me on my way. Of course, Jack
Kemble couldn't be simple enough to take a coffee from the coffee
maker upstairs. He had me hiking down the street in high heels,
ensuring I would come back perspiring and unkempt. If this was what I
had to look forward to, then I wouldn't last a week.

When
I returned with the coffee, I bypassed Ulga and went straight into
Mister Kemble's office. It wasn't even eight-thirty in the morning,
and I was already sweaty and tired. He gave me a warm smile,
smoothing down the front of his vest before reaching out to take the
coffee.

“
Good
morning, Miss Strayer,” Jack greeted me.

“
Good
morning, Mister Kemble.” I gave him my best phoney smile.

After
handing Jack his cup of coffee, I turned to take my leave. I had
barely reached the door when he tried to get my attention. “Miss
Strayer.”

“
Hm.”
I looked at him, awaiting my next menial assignment.

“
You
forgot the espresso.”

My
jaw clenched. That bitch Ulga hadn't mentioned anything about a shot
of espresso. Then again, I suppose I should have remembered from the
time we went for coffee together.

“
Would
you like me to go back downstairs and get you one?” I asked,
knowing that I'd realistically be going to get in my car and leave.
If Jack was willing to send me out again just for a shot of espresso,
then he was every bit of a jerk as I had suspected.

“
No.
Just try to remember tomorrow,” he replied before returning his
attention to some papers on his desk, a good indication I had been
dismissed.

As
soon as I left Jack's office, I walked over to Ulga's desk and waited
for her to get off the phone before saying, “You forgot to tell
me he took a shot of espresso in his coffee.”

“
Did
I? I'm sorry,” her voice sounded sincere, but I couldn't tell
if it really was or not. After a few minutes of standing there while
she finished up her work, Ulga showed me to my desk. I would stick
out like a sore thumb amidst the sea of blondes. Maybe I should dye
my hair after all.

The
rest of the day was a lot less stressful than the first fifteen
minutes. Ulga had me stuff envelopes until lunch. At lunch, I sat at
my desk while everyone else went out. It felt strange to be so
isolated, but I dealt with it well enough. These girls definitely
weren't very welcoming. After lunch, I shadowed Ulga while she
answered phones and scheduled meetings for Jack. Apparently, this
would be more in line with what I'd actually be doing. We made
reservations at several fancy restaurants for Jack and his
colleagues, as well as booked a hotel suite for an upcoming business
trip he had planned. Ulga told me I'd be going with Mister Kemble if
I stuck around long enough. I noticed that only one suite was booked,
not two, but I didn't question it.

That
night when I got home, Mandy seemed enthusiastic toward asking me how
my day had gone. I did my best to stay positive. After all, giving
any hint of my discontent would put fear in her that I would go back
on my word. To be honest, I still wasn't sure how I felt about the
job.

“
The
blonde squad didn't seem too welcoming,” I admitted.

“
They'll
warm up to you. Just give them time,” Mandy assured me.

“
I
hope you're right. They didn't even invite me out to lunch with them,
which I thought was strange.”

She
shrugged. “Maybe they're jealous.”

“
Of
what?” I laughed.

“
That
you're going to be spending more time with Jack Kemble than they
are.”

I
hadn't really thought of that before. “There's nothing to be
jealous of. Nothing is going to happen between us.”

“
How
do you know?” She smirked.

“
Because
I don't plan on being a slutty butt with him.”

“
If
you say so.”

“
I
do say so,” I insisted. “What, you don't think I can
resist Mister Jack Kemble's charm?”

Mandy
gave me a sardonic look. “It's Jack Kemble. He's a panty
melter. No, I don't think you'll be able to resist him, if that's
what he's after.”

Now
it was a personal challenge. “We shall see.”

***
The next part of this series is scheduled to be released on
06/24/2013, but may be released sooner. To find out then moment the
next part of this story is released, please sign up for the
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Want
to learn more about Jack Kemble while you're waiting for the next
part of the story to be released? Then check out his debut novel:
Fifty Shades of BDSM Trilogy

Bonus Excerpt from

Fifty
Shades of BDSM Trilogy

It
was one of the saddest yet happiest days of my life. In a few short
hours, I would be flying to meet the man I had been promised to,
young and wealthy multibillionaire Jack Kemble. He was practically a
movie star—a man of every woman's dreams, with a chiseled
physique and a smile that could stop you dead in your tracks.

It
wasn't all happy times though. As I sat in my room, my gaze darted to
all the memories on my bedroom walls, avoiding the eyes of the man in
front of me. Liam and I had been best friends since kindergarten, and
as the years turned us from innocent children into young adults, it
had been clear that he wanted something more. Still, my arranged
marriage had kept any feelings that I had for him at bay, and he had
suffered through it, just content to be by my side.

Now
I would have to say goodbye to him forever, and I could almost feel
his heart breaking as he stared at me longingly, memorizing all of my
features so that he could keep me with him like one of the
photographs on the wall.

“
Please
reconsider, Melita. You know you don't want this,” his voice
was strained, and I could hear the crisp pain in his words.

“
You
know that I have to do this for my family.” I let my eyes fall
to my hands, and then they instinctively crossed my lap to his. His
thick fingers twitched, and I couldn't help but remember all the
times those same unsteady hands had held me in my moments of
darkness. How would I ever survive without those strong hands to
comfort me?

The
tears began to flow, despite my resolve not to cry. Crying would only
weaken both of us, and I didn't want to hurt him anymore than I
already had.

“
What
if you don't love this man?” he asked.

“
People
don't always marry for love,” I reminded him, trying to recall
the lessons my mother had taught me.

Coming
from a wealthy family wasn't all that it was cracked up to be. Often
times, marriages were arranged so that two families could join
assets, making them both even wealthier. My parents were deeply
enriched in the oil business, while Jack's family was into everything
else. If our marriage went through as planned, my family would give
Jack a large sum of money to expand his business to overseas markets,
and my father would become CFO of Jack's corporation. It was a
win/win situation for all involved.

If
not for Liam, it would have been a win for me as well. What girl
didn't want to marry a handsome billionaire? But the ties that bound
me to Liam were strong, and there were definite secret feelings
there. Leaving him would break my heart as well.

“
It's
time to go,” my mother said through the bedroom door.

“
I'll
miss you,” I told Liam, taking his hand into mine.

“
If
he doesn't treat you well, you come back to me. Do you understand?”
his voice commanded my attention, and I allowed myself to gaze into
his silvery eyes a final time. So beautiful and soothing. I would
miss them too, the way they seemed to look at me with all the
gentleness and affection of the world.

We
embraced, and I worried he might never let me go. To be honest, I
wasn't sure if I wanted him to let me go. But then my mother was at
the door, opening it up and giving us both her best impatient glare.

Liam
walked me out to the limo, and I watched him through the back window
as we drove out of sight, and I left the life that I loved behind.

The
flight to New York was grueling, despite first class accommodations.
I spent the most part of it nauseous, though I couldn't tell if it
was from altitude sickness or nerves. I tried to distract myself by
imagining what Jack would be like, but I think that only made things
worse.

He
would be waiting to greet me at the airport, and hopefully he'd be
considerate enough to leave the paparazzi at home. They tended to
follow him around like stray dogs, looking for any juicy tidbit that
they could present to their papers or news stations. From what I
could tell, Jack didn't have a personal life. Every woman he went out
with, every good or bad thing he did, was quickly aired across the
nation like dirty laundry. It was sickening to know that my life
would soon be like that simply because of my association with him.

When
I stepped into the NYC airport terminal, I didn't have to scan the
crowd long to realize that Jack wasn't waiting for me there. In his
place, stood a large intimidating looking African American man in a
suit holding up a cardboard sign with my name printed on it. Maybe it
was for the best that he wasn't there in person, I thought with a
sigh, a bit relieved that the butterflies in my stomach could have a
rest. At least this way, I didn't have to worry about the paparazzi.

The
man greeted me and escorted me through the airport. He seemed nice
enough. Obviously, one of Jack's bodyguards.

After
picking up my luggage, he led me outside to a waiting limo.
Courteously, he opened the door, and I stepped inside, nearly
tripping on myself as my eyes landed on Jack Kemble, sitting coolly
with his legs crossed.

He
leaned forward and extended a hand to guide me into my seat. “Miss
Nguyen.”

“
Mister
Kemble. It's a pleasure to finally meet you.” I put on my best
smile, trying not to blush.

It
felt like sitting across from a movie star. Jack Kemble was wearing
distressed jeans and a stylish t-shirt with a black dress coat. His
dark disheveled hair was accented perfectly by a large pair of
sunglasses, which were completely unnecessary for the dimly lit limo.
After a moment of being intrigued by him, I began to realize that the
whole get-up was a bit silly, as if he had gone out of his way to try
to impress me. Perhaps he was just as nervous as I was.

“
The
pleasure is all mine.” He bent forward to kiss my hand before
releasing it back to me. “I apologize for not meeting you at
the terminal. I figured you would probably be exhausted coming off of
your flight and wouldn't want to be bothered with the media.”