Chapter 2

“Nope.” I took another bite of my sandwich and kept on reading.

“He transferred over here from the Memphis office. I saw him briefly. Totally hot, man. Tall dude, about six-three, African-American, built like a god. His name is Malcolm Jones. I wonder if he’s gay.”

I almost choked on my sandwich. “Don’t even go there,” I said severely.

“Relax, man. I’m just fantasizing.”

“Yeah, that’s the problem.”

John just smiled at me and took another sip of soda.

I shook my head and went back to reading. Or at least, I tried to. My mind started to wander. The new VP sounded absolutely scrumptious, though I’d never say that out loud. I liked tall, solidly built men. But even if I were interested, it wasn’t worth my job or a promotion to pursue anything, and the man was probably straight anyway. I guess I really did need to get laid.

“He’s called a meeting of all the associates in the department to talk about that junior analyst job.” There was a listing of open positions tacked to a bulletin board on the wall next to the table.

“One o’clock in the fourth floor conference room. I’m going to sit in the front row,” John said, a lascivious expression on his face.

“Of course you are,” I replied with a smirk. “Remember to wipe the drool off your chin or it’ll give you away.”

“Ha, ha.”

I noted the time on my e-reader. It was ten minutes to one.

“Thanks for the heads-up.” I finished my sandwich and cleaned up.

“See you in there,” John said as I left the room.

When I got to the conference room, it was one o’clock on the dot. There were twenty associates in my department. Everyone but me sat in the first two rows. I chose a seat in the third.

Carly, the administrator for the department, walked briskly into the room and handed out a packet to each one of us. I scanned mine quickly and noted the information about the position and expectations. All of a sudden, the buzzing of voices in the room faded. I looked up and my heart skipped a beat.

The man who entered the room was even hotter than John had described. His expensive gray suit was tailored perfectly to fit his tall, muscular frame. The peach-colored shirt he wore was a stunning contrast against his dark brown skin, also offset by his light gray and orange striped tie. He had mesmerizing brown eyes. And his high cheekbones begged to be kissed. Handsome was too mild a word to even describe him. I wanted to drop to my knees on the spot. Madre de Dios.

“Good afternoon, everyone.”

I felt my cock harden at the smooth bass of his voice. Mierda.

“I’m Malcolm Jones, but please, call me Mal. I look forward to getting to know each and every one of you. Carly will set up meetings with you according to my availability this week so we can discuss your work here and what your plans are for your future at EnerGen. As you know, the department is looking to fill a junior analyst position. All the information you need is in the documents you received from Carly.

“Here is what you reallyneed to know. The junior analyst will be reporting directly to me. I’m a fair boss, but I have very, very exacting standards. You should jump before you ask me how high. You will work even later hours than you do now. You will have to prove yourself in this position. If you’re chosen, it doesn’t mean you’ll keep the job. Many have tried and failed in similar positions across the company.

“There will be a grace period where I will treat you like absolute crap, just so you understand the reality of this step up in the corporate world. This is not a cakewalk, people. This is the real deal, and you may not cut it.” No one made a sound.

“Carly will send out emails this afternoon. I look forward to working closely with each of you.” Mal gave everyone a smile that was at once intimidating and charming, and then left the room. All I could think was wow.I loved a man who knew how to take charge.

On the heels of that thought, though, I realized that this attraction could definitely get in the way of my better judgment. I would need to be really careful and as professional as possible around Mal Jones, because he was everything I never knew I wanted.

* * * *

Carly scheduled a meeting for me with Mal on Wednesday afternoon at three o’clock. When the time came, I knocked on Mal’s door.