Chapter 4: A Night Out

*Alistair*

The last several days had been a complete living hell for Alistair Blackwood.

Then again, life always did find a way to challenge him in ways that were utterly unnecessary. Like having fate send him a woman such as Daphne Sullivan.

A young, natural beauty with an eye for art and a true interest in history. But more importantly, she was a woman who was not interested in Alistair’s background as a Blackwood and even less as a wealthy heir.

As a man of forty-two, Alistair knew he had no rightful business even thinking about Daphne in any other way aside from work. Indeed, she was his new secretary and he was enjoying every moment of it thus far.

Much like Erica, she was efficient and always managed to stay on task even if it just meant taking calls and keeping his schedule on track. In just the few short days Daphne had started working for him, she had proven to be reliable and trustworthy.

Unfortunately, the same could not be said for him...

Ever since Alistair had caught a glimpse of her engagement ring, he knew that he had to know her. Of course, her resume was enough to land her the job; however, Blackwood wanted Daphne for a number of reasons.

He found her fire to be enthralling. Having wrongfully accused her of wanting to merely sleep with him was a poor assumption on his part. But hearing her talk back to him with such conviction was enough to make him grow hard inside his pants.

The age difference between them alone should have been a decent indicator that Alistair was way in over his head. For God’s sake, the woman was twenty five years old. Yet, nothing in her behavior suggested her actual age. Daphne was mature and always tried to keep things professional.

Especially when it came to other people practically harassing her around the building...

Alistair’s blood started to simmer when he heard the cackling sound of Estelle Parker’s voice ring out beyond his office. Having heard everything between her and Daphne, he swiftly shot to his feet.

He languidly leaned inside the frame of his door and peered at the other woman.

“That will be quite enough, Miss Parker,” Alistair said firmly.

Both women turned to look at him. Daphne looked as though she was ready to melt away from embarrassment right on the spot. Estelle, on the other hand, tried to play off her inappropriate behavior by leaning against Daphne’s desk.

She offered an innocent smile with a pair of lips that wore the wrong shade of red. “Mr. Blackwood, I was just stopping by to see how Daphne here was getting acclimated with her work,” she drawled.

Alistair narrowed his eyes. “Miss Parker, do yourself and everyone here a favor and return to your department,” he ordered calmly.

Without another word, Estelle carried herself straight to the elevators. Thankfully, that was pretty much the last altercation either of them had to deal with...that was until two days had passed and Blackwood heard muffled voices from outside his office.

He quietly got up from his chair yet again to find Daphne sitting at her desk with her phone huddled to her ear. Her brows were drawn together while her eyes turned glossy.

“No, you know what? I don’t understand,” she bit out angrily. “You’ve been gone for a goddamn week and now you’re telling me that you don’t even know when you’ll be back?”

Alistair couldn’t really hear the person on the other side of the phone. But he had a good enough idea as to who it was.

Daphne’s fiancé. The man that had just about disappeared out of thin air. The man who was almost bringing tears to his secretary’s eyes.

This would not do.

Daphne had become one of Alistair’s main highlights for coming into work. Her smile and adorable blushes were the sole reason why it had become easier for him to forget his past and look forward to the future. But to see her so distraught caused his chest to swell in anger.

“I’ve never held you to any expectation and I guess that’s my own fault,” she went on to say. “You decide when you want to talk to me whenever it's convenient for you. Well, right now, this conversation is not convenient for me. I am at work and you can wait until I’m done for the day.”

‘Good God, does she have any idea how sexy she is when she gets angry like this,’ he asked himself.

Apart from the tears that clung to the corners of her eyes, Daphne was a fierce creature to behold when she wanted to be.

He watched her drop her phone away from her ear and toss it back into her bag. She silently wiped her wet cheeks and tried to resume her business while he stepped out from the archway of his door.

“Are you alright?” Blackwood asked.

Daphne snapped her head up in attention, slightly startled. “Oh. Um...yeah.” She shook her head. “It’s nothing.”

“It’s not nothing,” he countered firmly. “I wasn’t essentially prying in on your private conversation just now, but I know that whatever it was made you terribly upset.”

She tore her eyes from him to stare down at her desk. “It’s just Rowan.”

Alistair’s insides twisted with a burning disdain. He took in a steady breath and struggled to control his tone. “Your fiancé?”

“Yes,” she whispered. “Ever since I took the position here, he’s been distant and almost avoiding me. Granted, I know he’s been away for work but this time it all feels intentional and cold. Like I’m being punished.”

The storm inside of him continued to rage on like an unforgivable hurricane. He secretly clenched his hands into tight fists at his sides while grinding his teeth together. Yet his voice remained gentle and even.

“So. I take it that he’s not coming back from his little trip any time soon?” he questioned.

Daphne shrugged. “Who the hell knows what he’s doing at this point. All I was looking forward to was simply going out to celebrate me getting this job and...”

“And he’s not been very supportive of it,” he finished for her.

All she could do was sink back into her chair and shrug her shoulders again. “Look this isn’t anyone’s issue but my own. I’m sorry if my unexpected phone call disrupted your work—”

“Have dinner with me,” Alistair said.

Daphne swiftly straightened her posture and glared up at the man with bewilderment. Blackwood quickly cleared his throat.

“You are still new here and soon you may be working closely with me on projects,” he explained. “I think the two of us should have some time to get to know each other better.”

Alistair watched the rosiness return to her cheeks as her features took on a look of pure contemplation. But ultimately resulted in Daphne nodding her head in agreement.

Blackwood offered a smile while inwardly feeling the storm in his muscles ease.

. . .

Just before the two were ready to head out of the office for the day, Alistair had instructed Daphne to head home and to change into something more comfortable. She had tried arguing with him that they could simply go out just as they were, but Blackwood would not settle.

Not only had he insisted on making them switch clothes, he went as far as to demand he pick her up at her apartment building. Daphne was almost stammering over her words, mumbling something about this feeling like a date and not so much a work thing.

But as far as anyone was truly aware, Alistair had full intentions of treating it like it was, in fact, a real date.

He quickly rushed home to shower and change before parking outside of Daphne's apartment building. He allowed his smile to overtake his face when he saw her emerge from the front doors. His heart hammered inside of his chest as his eyes drank in her casual, yet elegant appearance.

She had chosen a pair of dark, navy blue jeans along with a light cream colored cashmere sweater. She had touched up her makeup and selected a small pair of diamond drop earrings.

“Perfection,” he hushed under his breath.

Alistair opened the passenger door for her and waited for her to slide in. From there, he took them to one of his favorite, hidden restaurants in the upper side of the city.

Caligari’s was a family owned, Italian place that possessed an exceptional wine cellar and provided the perfect amount of lighting to set an intimate mood. Alistair ushered Daphne inside and the two were instantly seated in one of the small, circular booths in the back.

He rattled off some name of an old vineyard over in Italy and the waiter took to the floor in search of his wine selection. He then gave his undivided attention over to Daphne who proceeded to study the interior of the room with heavy interest.

‘She’s so cute and I bet she doesn’t even know it,’ he thought wondrously to himself.

A smirk played on his lips. “Do you study every place you enter?” he asked lightly.

Her eyes widened, having been caught in the act of scanning the room. She nibbled on her lower lip, making his blood heat up.

“Yes,” she admitted bashfully. “I’ve always been interested in how places are designed and built. I tend to gravitate towards pillars and marble, but I have a soft spot for places like this. The warm colors of the brick in the walls make it feel homey and welcoming.”

Blackwood returned her smile and titled his chin down. “I’m glad you like the place,” he intoned. “I’ve been coming here myself for years.”

The waiter returned with two glasses and a large bottle of Lambrusco. He filled each glass and gave them time to read through the menu. Not knowing what to select, Alistair made the executive decision to forgo any of the entrées and stuck mainly to appetizers.

As they watched their waiter make off with the order, Blackwood picked up his glass and gently clicked it against Daphne's.

“To your first week at Blackwood Inc.,” he said with a devilish grin.

As the hours ticked by and the wine kept on flowing, the two went on to speak about work. Then about their times back at school...And then about their more personal lives.

The respected space he had placed between them had continued to get smaller throughout the evening. Alistair listened intently to everything Daphne had told him as she spoke with dazzling passion about her interests. He learned a great many things about his new secretary.

Her cheeks were now flushed for a whole new reason and her hair had become slightly out of shape. Her eyelids were heavy from the wine but she still managed to carry on a coherent conversation.

“So, this fiancé of yours...I think he’d better get his head out of his a*s if he expects to keep a gem like you,” he stated.

“Believe me, I am far from being considered a gem.” Daphne giggled and shook her head. “There are days where I can’t understand what Rowan even sees in me.”

Again the fire spurred within his lower stomach from hearing the guy’s name on her lips.

“What’s not to see?” She scoffed. “I’m serious. You’re enthusiastically driven. You possess a clear vision of what you want. You’re soft spoken and compassionate about those in your life. And hell if that wasn’t enough, you are obscenely and unnaturally beautiful.”

Her mouth gaped open. “You’re crazy,” she laughed.

The corner of his mouth pulled into a smirk. “Maybe. But I’m sure as hell not blind.”

‘And I’m sure as sh*t not stupid enough to abandon a woman like you for a so-called business trip,’ Alistair snarled to himself.