My Mystery Hook-Up

Chapter 5 - The Client Meeting

The next morning, I’m in Carter’s office straightening up his desk after delivering his iced coffee. I am OCD so everything needs to be straight and neat.

I stare out of his window for a while at the stunning view of Darling Harbour. He must really like living around here to have a view like this both at home and at work.

I’m still undecided on what to do about him. On one hand, he’s my boss. On the other hand, he made me feel so alive, sexy, and free to be myself. Jasper would never have wanted me to act the way I did that night. Everything was so vanilla with him. Why did I waste 5 years of my life with him? Scarlett was right, I deserve better than him.

I shake my head to snap myself out of it and turn to leave Carter’s office before he arrives. I’m startled to see him leaning against the door frame. My hand flies up to cover my heart.

“Good morning Mr Wilson. Sorry I didn't mean to linger, I was just leaving.” I say while looking at the floor.

“It’s ok, I was just admiring the view.” He replies. I look up to see him staring at my body. I feel my cheeks flush as I step around him. My breasts brush up against his arm. He totally didn’t move on purpose.

“Miss Hudson?” Carter calls out to me from behind his desk.

“Yes Mr Wilson?”

“You’ll join me for my client meeting at lunch today.”

“Umm … okay.” I’m a little nervous about having a meal together but it’s a client meeting so he needs to be professional around me. I can do this.

* * *

I’ve kept my head down burying myself in work all morning, taking calls for Carter and doing his paperwork. The last thing I needed to think about was being in my bosses bed. Admittedly, that’s all I could think about in my bed last night.

“Ready to go?” Carter says loudly in my ear.

“Oh my god! You scared the s**t out of me.” I blurt out flinching in fright, clutching my beating heart again. He is going to give me a heart attack one day.

“Sorry.” He flashes me one of his heart stopping grins. I gather my belongings and follow him down to the car waiting for us.

It’s a beautiful day and I feel the warmth in my bones when we emerge from the car. Carter leads me with his hand on the small of my back towards a table in a seafood restaurant with a stunning view of the water.

He whispers in my ear, “Did I mention how stunning you look today?”

A flush immediately finds its way to my cheeks and it has nothing to do with the warm weather. I opted for Scarlett’s light grey fitted pantsuit today with a sleeveless white blouse, my hair pulled into a slick high ponytail. I knew the snugness of the pants would drive him crazy but I wore it intentionally anyway. I’m probably just fishing for complements from him but who cares, right?

Ignoring his comment, I say, “I’m allergic to shellfish.” I walk ahead of him to show off my ass and extend my hand to greet our clients. We all shake hands, exchanging pleasantries. A waiter comes over to take our food and beverage orders. Carter immediately talks business with his older client Mr Albert Jones and I move my attention to his assistant Ruby sitting across from me. She seems around my age of twenty five and she’s quite petite and beautiful. She has platinum blonde hair, brown eyes and plump pink lips.

She leans across the table to whisper, “What’s it like to work for a man like him?” She raises her eyebrows in Carter’s direction, obviously checking him out. A pang of jealously hits me out of no where.

Sipping my pink moscato, I lean towards her and quietly say, “Let me tell you. it is very difficult especially when all he wants to do is get in my pants.” I give her a small wink.

“Oh I envy you.” She swoons.

The rest of the lunch flies by and I am subconsciously aware of Carter’s muscly arm over the back of my chair. I listen in on his conversation with Mr Jones while getting to know Ruby and I realise many things about Carter. He’s confident and almost cocky. He definitely knows how to get what he wants; the man has a way with words. He’s smart as hell and his laugh is infectious.

I rest my chin on my hand as my eyes ping pong back and forth between him and Mr Jones as they continues talk business. Occasionally he sneaks a glance in my direction, ensuring he has my attention. The corner of his lip tips up each time.

I finish my third glass of wine as we all say our goodbyes. Ruby leans in to kiss me on the cheek and she slips something into my palm. “Call me for a drink sometime. I want to hear all about you and Mr Carter Wilson.” She whispers in my ear.

“It was so nice to meet you too.” I reply out loud, grinning from ear to ear.

We leave the restaurant and my head spins a little. Carter notices and snakes his arm around my waist. I let him lead me towards the water and we sit down along the edge.

“Why don’t you take the rest of the afternoon off?” He says casually.

“What? No way, it’s only my second day!” I argue.

He shrugs. “So what? I'm the boss and I don’t have any more work for you to do today. Besides, don’t think I didn’t notice how much you had to drink.”

“You’re the one who kept ordering them for me!”

“And you hardly ate any of your lunch.” He states, ignoring my comment.

“Then don’t take me to fancy seafood restaurants in future when I can hardly eat anything on the menu.” I roll my eyes and poke my tongue out at him.

He grabs my chin in his strong hand, his face inches from mine. “Noted.” He drops his hand and a comfortable silence falls between us as close my eyes, soaking in the glorious sunshine. “So what are you going to do for the rest of the day?” He asks.

“Honestly, I might just go take a nap.” I answer truthfully as he laughs at me.

“I insist on walking you home then.” He stands and holds his hand out to help me up. I place my hand in his. I have forgotten so quickly how his touch affects me. We stand face to face for a brief moment and he glances down at my lips. I need to snap myself out of it before he kisses me. God knows I want him to but I can’t cross that line again. I reluctantly turn my back on him and head towards my apartment.

“Have you thought any more about my proposal?” He asks when he catches up to me.

“Truthfully, it is all I think about but I think I need more time to make the right decision.”

“I understand. Tell me more about the life of the mysterious Isabelle Hudson.”

I laugh at his use of the word mysterious. This is forever going to be an ongoing joke between us.

“Well, I’m twenty five years old. I was born on New Years Day. My parents live in Wollongong with my two younger sisters. I love romance and reading books. My favourite food is doughnuts. I like to workout. My favourite colour is lilac. I absolutely love the beach and I wish I could have a pet meerkat one day.” He laughs at my honesty. “I moved up to Sydney for work and love …” I trail off into my own thoughts of Jasper. Do I really want to open up about my train wreck of a love life to him? My heart aches in my chest.

“So what happened?” He presses for more information, seeming invested in my story.

I stop walking and I blow out a breath I didn’t realise I was holding. He steps in front of me, blocking my path. Tears threaten to well up in my eyes.

“He cheated on me.” I spit out, disgusted. “We lived and worked together. I wasted five f*****g years of my life on someone who disrespected me and betrayed me. I had to quit my job and move in with my best friend Scarlett.” I feel so ashamed. I feel a tear spill from the corner of my eye. I hate feeling vulnerable, especially in front of my new boss. He places his hands on my cheeks, his pale blue eyes searching mine as he wipes away my tears with his thumbs.

“Is that why you’re so adamant about pursuing this thing between us?” He demands. I nod, unable to form any words. I squeeze my eyes closed. “Listen to me Isabelle. Don’t you ever settle for anyone that doesn’t treat you like a queen. You deserve to be cherished and loved. Your ex is a f*****g loser for letting someone as incredible as you slip away.”

My eyes snap open and before I can even consider the consequences of my actions, I press my lips to Carter’s. He kisses me back and it is a passionate and desperate kiss, one I’ve been dreaming about for days. I wrap my arms around his waist and press my body to his as he deepens the kiss.

“GET A ROOM!” Someone shouts as they walk by us. We spring apart instantly. I grab his hand and storm towards my apartment, not saying a word.

We walk up the five flights of stairs to my apartment – yeah I don’t have an elevator, shut up. I unlock the door and swing the door open to see Scarlett curled up on the lounge watching TV in a T-shirt and short shorts.

“Hey Belle, you’re home early – oh, hi Mr Wilson!” She grins and waves at Carter, wiggling her fingers. Her black bob sticking out in different directions. I forgot she would be home. I think she just saved me from doing something I’ll regret later. I spin on my heel to face Carter.

“Hello Scarlett.” He replies.

“Thanks for walking me home. I’ll see you tomorrow morning.” I close the door before he can say anything else. I kick off my shoes and retreat into my bedroom without saying a word to Scarlett. I curl up in my bed and weep.