Secret Worlds (281 page)

Mercer glanced at me from over the menu. “So, I guess you’re ready to get this started.”

“Maybe,” I tried to sound nonchalant. I might have failed.

“How about we play a little game?” he asked.

“What sort of game?”

“A question for a question.”

“You’re really trying for the mutual interview.”

“What not? Normal interviews are so boring. Trust me, I’ve done hundreds.” He lifted his eyebrows. “So let’s keep the questions fresh and interesting.”

“All right,” I said. “But I go first.”

He waved his hand at me. “Feel free.”

“Why did you choose Nerida University for the Proprius project? I mean, we aren’t rated high in technology, or anything else for that matter. Wouldn’t MIT have been better?”

“Maybe, but everyone turns to MIT. I wanted an underdog.” He smiled. “Besides, I know a programmer here that can run with the best.”

“Serenity,” I said. “You’re not here to outdo her, are you? Because you’ve already made a name for yourself? Family doesn’t do that to one another.”

“Oh, no,” he said. “If anything, I think one day she might outdo me.”

The waiter came back and looked at the both of us expectantly. We placed our order, and he scuttled off to the kitchens. I took a deep drink of my wine.

“It’s my turn now,” he said. “Your accent, which you’re very good at covering, isn’t from Texas. Where are you from?”

I sat back and blinked. “Georgia.”

“Interesting.”

“Are you seriously counting on one programmer to carry your entire project? She’d hate that.”

“Like I said, I love an underdog.” He took a sip of his water. “So, why did you come here? Seems like a long way to come for college that isn’t rated very high.”

“I guess you could say I wanted to get out on my own for the first time ever.” I squirmed in my seat and sat up straight. “What plans do you have for Proprius once it’s complete?”He smiled. “To share it with the world of course.”

“For a tidy profit.”

“To be honest, money doesn’t matter that much to me, but it’s the new religion of the world, so I play the game.” He held up two fingers. “That was two … so I get two of you.”

I tilted my head and shrugged. “Technically, you offered that last bit of information.”

The waiter set our food in front of us. I slid a chunk of chicken off of the wooden skewer and dipped it into the yogurt sauce. The meat almost melted on tongue and filled my mouth waith a subtle spice mixed with a dill creaminess. Mercer’s eyes darkened in the dim light and chuckled as he placed his napkin in his lap.

“All right, I’ll give you that. But it’s your last freebie.” He tapped his chin. “So who did you run away from?”

I coughed on a piece of my chicken and covered my mouth with my napkin. “I’m sorry?”

“Was it your mother or your father you had to get away from?”

“Neither,” I said softly. “I never met my father. And my mother …”

I stared past him and out the giant bay window, not really seeing the outside. Mercer put his hand on top of mine, and I jumped. A tingle spread up my arm. I drew in a long, shuddering breath and pushed down the lump in my throat.

“It’s your question,” he said.

“What is your relationship to Serenity?” I asked.

“We’re blood,” he said. “As much as she wants to deny it, it binds us tightly. I hear you dated James Thorne. What happened there?”

I smirked. “He was a boy.”

His gaze locked with mine. “I hope you’re ready to move onto men now.”

“Why are you so interested?” I asked in a husky voice.

“You can’t tell? There’s something about you that’s fascinating.”

I gave a nervous laugh. “I’m like most college girls. I’m sure you have had other women who are much more interesting than me.”

“Of course there have been plenty of women, all beautiful.” He studied me with a dark, hot gaze. “Not quite like you though. I can’t put my finger on it. You feel almost …”

I raised an eyebrow waiting for him to continue.

“Pardon me for asking, but you said you never met your father. Did he die before you were born?”

“No,” I downed the rest of my wine. “He was a one night stand for my mother.”

A child wailed from the table next to us. His mother leaned down and tickled his stomach, making shusshing sounds that were drowned out by the screaming. Across the table, a little girl colored furiously on a paper placemat. I smiled and returned my gaze to Mercer who was rubbing the ear closet to the racket.

“What about your family? You freely talk about almost every minute of your private life, but not about your roots. There’s got to be more besides you and Serenity. She hinted you’d missed more than a few holiday dinners.”

“My family is an old one that hails from around Europe.” He smirked. “And I’ve never been a fan of turkey. So, you never tried to look for your father?”

I shrugged and pushed the last few bites of my potato around my plate. “I never saw the need to. I think Serenity believes your family is dysfunctional. Is it?”

He leaned back in his chair and tossed his napkin on his empty plate. “We tend to go our separate ways. It’s better for all our sanity.” He chuckled. “You’re probably better off without knowing your dad. Mine’s King Jackass.”

“King Jackass.” I covered my mouth as my laugh turned into a cough..

“So, what happened to your mother that you ran all the way here?”

“I think that’s it for this interview.” I set my glass down. “Thank you for your time.”

His smirk disappeared. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have pressed that. Let’s start again.”

I shook my head and gave him a smile. “It’s all right.”

“Do you want to get dessert?”

“I’m stuffed actually.”

He waved for the check. We drove back to my apartment with nothing but a five string quartet and tension between us. I stepped out of the car and headed for the steps. He caught my wrist before I could take more than a few steps.

“I’d hoped that would go better,” he said.

I gave him a reassuring smile. “It was nice.”

He moved closer, threading his fingers with mine. “I was hoping for more than nice.”

My heart raced. “And what would that be?”

“Tempting.” His hot breath blew against my cheek. “Hot.”

His lips brushed against mine and pressed in for a deeper kiss. I gripped his shirt, pulling him closed. He tasted of oregano and dill with a hint of mint. My blood raced as though it was filled with the bubbles of the sparkling wine I drank. He pulled away, letting his fingers trail from my shoulder and down my arms to linger on my fingertips.

“There’s always next time,” he said.

I stood by the stairs, swaying on my feet as he pulled away. Serenity was right. His words and those lips—oh, those lips—were dangerous. Too bad it was already too late for me.

I pushed through the double doors of the lecture hall and bounced down the steps. Bright overhead lights focused on the podium in the center of the room, leaving the red chairs that lined the circular room in tiered rows in a shadow. Serenity was slouched in one the forth row with her feet propped on the back of another and a tablet braced on her knees. I plopped beside her and rested my head on her shoulder.

“Marshall is the worst,” I said. “I have a paper due on Monday and a test.”

“Mmm.” She brushed her finger across her screen and flipped to the next page.

“How long is this retrospective thing going to be?” I asked.

She shrugged, not looking up. “Depends on what they want to talk about.”

“So I haven’t seen much of you this week. What have you been up to?”

“Writing everyone else’s code. Then having the whole thing screwed up by James when he decides to rewrite it again.”

“Wait, does that mean you’re behind?” I asked.

“Pretty much.” She closed her eyes and rubbed her eyelids with a deep sigh.

“I thought you might be avoiding me after my date with Mercer last week,” I said.

“So, it’s a date now?”

Damn, that was a Freudian slip if I ever had one. “Interview.”

Two rows in front of us, three of Serenity’s teammates burst into laughter. One of them glanced at us then turned back to his friends. The doors banged open, and James tromped down the stairs with his hands full of folders. He gave us a quick glare as he passed and continued to the front row.

“You’d think he’d have a laptop or at least a tablet,” I said.

Serenity rolled her eyes. “That’s too much like right.”

Sheridan and Mercer entered through the door near the lecturer’s podium. She was smiling up at him with her lips parted in laughter at something he’d said. I sat up straight as my tiredness evaporated.

Mercer looked crisp in his freshly pressed shirt and slacks. A small lock of hair had strayed from the rest and curled at his temple, pointed toward his eye. I shuddered, remembering the spicy scent of cardamom, patchouli, and cocoa that permeated from him.

Serenity stiffened beside me and tapped her fingers against her tablet. Sheridan wheeled a white erase board from the back of the room to the podium. She stood next to it, marker in hand, as Mercer stepped up to the podium. I pulled out my recorder and turned it on.

“Afternoon, sensibility team.” His smile passed over the six of us in the seats. “Good to see everyone could make it.”

My stomach fluttered as his gaze lingered on me.

“So, I had a meeting with the design team,” he continued. “I’m proud to say we have approved a final design for the prototype. We’re about ready to send it to Panamec Global, but we need your team to work with them on a few of the details. How are things coming with integrating the senses?”

James cleared his throat. “We just finished up on visual programming.”

Mercer gave a soft whistle. “A little behind. I expected this team to be capable of more. At least to have sound complete.”

“We would be father along if more people pulled their weight.” Serenity’s voice traveled through the room, though she didn’t look up from her tablet.

A thick silence filled the room. James shoulders stiffened, and he remained still. His back was turned, but I could imagine the frozen look of panic and anger he always got when he was put on the spot. The three on the second row cast hooded glares in our direction. Mercer raised an eye brow as her gaze traveled from James to Serenity.

“Someone’s not doing their job?” Mercer asked.

Serenity shrugged. “A lot of time has been spent having to rewrite what was supposed already be done because it was sloppy.”

“I assure you,” James said, “we’re all working as a team to complete this.”

“Some more than others,” Serenity said.

James shot her a dirty look. “Some people should stop trying to be stars.”

“Because you only think there’s enough room on this team for one star?” Serenity crossed her arms. “Is that why you rewrote everything I had on sound? That’s why we’re behind, isn’t it?”

I gave a soft whistle and touched Serenity’s arm. She jumped slightly and glanced at me before her body relaxed. Sheridan stood in front of the board with her eyes wide and mouth slightly open. She had forgotten her duty of writing key points. Mercer studied James and Serenity with an increasingly stony look.

“James, it’s your responsibility to make sure the team is functioning properly. As for the rest, I’ll speak with the two of you privately after.” Mercer’s voice had taken a hard commanding tone. “For now, I want the team to focus on finishing up with sound. Also, I want you to schedule sessions with the design team and the consultants they are working with. We need to start getting ideas for smell, taste, and touch.”

“How is that even possible?” one of the guys in front of us whispered to his friend.

“If you feel that way, then there’s always the next candidate on the list.” Mercer’s gaze froze him in his seat. “If you aren’t confident in this, I don’t need you here.”

The boy slumped in his chair along with his friend. I smirked. Serenity trembled in the seat beside me with her hands gripping the armrest. He skin had taken a reddish tone, and her jaw was locked. I shifted in my seat and glanced at my recorder. It was still going. Who knew a tech meeting could be as interesting as a soap opera?

Mercer cast his gaze over the room. “Are there any questions?”

The room remained silent, and no one moved. This was a side of Mercer I hadn’t seen or even predicted. To accomplish anything in the short amount of time he did, there had to be an unyielding part of him. How much of it was his true self? Was the charismatic smile just a mask?

“All right then.” His smile reappeared. “Let’s have a productive two weeks.”

He waved to James and Serenity while everyone else filed out. With a sigh, Serenity stood and pushed past me. I put my recorder away and scooted out into the aisle behind her.

“I wait outside for you,” I said. “You still want a ride, right?”

“Yeah,” she said.

Outside the building, I leaned against the wall and flipped through Instafriend as I waited. Ten minutes later, James came out, managing to slam the glass door behind him. I raised an eyebrow, but he sneered at me and stalked off. With a shrug, I went back to my phone. He wasn’t my problem anymore.

Ten more minutes passed, and there was no sign of Serenity. She wouldn’t have stayed with Mercer by herself, unless the two of them were having it out. I stepped back inside and crept to the doors of the lecture hall. One little peek wouldn’t hurt. Mercer leaned against the podium with his hands in his pockets and his head tilted down. Serenity stood in front of him, her fists clenched at her sides.

“You’re only making things worse.” Serenity’s voice traveled up the stairs. “As usual, you’re only thinking of you.”

“That’s not true,” Mercer said. “This is your chance to shine. After this, nothing will be out of your grasp.”

“I don’t need your help. I can get there on my own.”

“But I want to. Isn’t that what family is for?”

“You never cared about family,” Serenity yelled. “Where were you when Mom had to go to the institution?”

Mercer opened his mouth to say something and glanced up in my direction. He gave me a strained smile.