Leia
The following week disappeared beneath deadlines.
Which was exactly how Leia preferred it.
Work was predictable.
Work made sense.
Work didn't have piercing gray eyes that seemed capable of seeing through carefully crafted lies.
Not that she'd thought much about Jack Garlan since their lunch.
At least that's what she kept telling herself.
Unfortunately, her brain refused to cooperate.
Three separate times she'd caught herself replaying snippets of their conversation.
Twice she'd remembered the way he'd listened when she talked about architecture.
And once...
Much to her annoyance...
She remembered his smile.
That last memory earned herself a scowl.
"Get a grip, Leia."
She flipped to another page of drawings.
Work.
Only work.
The doors of Ben Architecture occupied the eighteenth floor of a newly renovated office building.
Elegant without being flashy.
Successful without looking arrogant.
Much like the image of Benjamin Archibald himself.
The moment Leia entered, voices greeted her.
"Morning, boss."
"Morning."
"Good morning, ma'am."
She smiled at each employee.
One thing she'd sworn early on was that Ben Architecture would never become the kind of place that judged people before knowing them.
Experience had taught her exactly how painful that could be.
Near her office, Colette emerged carrying a tablet.
"There she is."
Leia laughed.
"Good morning to you too."
"You seem happy."
"I'm always happy."
"You're lying."
"I am not."
"You met Mr. Tall, Dark, and Dangerous last week."
Leia narrowed her eyes.
"Mr. What?"
"Jack Garlan."
Colette grinned.
"The entire office knows."
"The entire office needs new hobbies."
Colette followed her inside.
"So?"
"So what?"
"What happened?"
"We had lunch."
"And?"
"And we talked."
"About?"
Leia opened her laptop.
"Architecture."
Colette stared.
"Architecture?"
"Yes."
"You had lunch with one of the richest men in the country and discussed architecture?"
"That's generally what architects do."
Colette threw her hands up dramatically.
"You're impossible."
Leia laughed.
Completely unaware of how much she'd smiled while talking about that lunch.
An hour later her phone rang.
An unknown number.
She answered immediately.
"Leia Clark."
"Good morning, Ms. Clark."
A polished male voice greeted her.
"My name is Victor Blanch. I'm calling on behalf of MMT Developers."
Leia froze.
MMT Developers was one of the country's largest development firms.
Projects with them changed careers.
Changed companies.
Sometimes entire industries.
She quickly sat straighter.
"Of course. How can I help you?"
By the end of the call she was barely containing her excitement.
The moment it ended she shot out of her chair.
"Colette!"
The entire office turned.
"What happened?" Colette asked.
"We've been invited."
"Invited where?"
"MMT's developer bidding event."
Silence.
Three seconds.
Then the office exploded.
Cheers echoed across the floor.
Several architects nearly knocked over chairs.
Someone actually whistled.
Leia laughed openly.
The energy was infectious.
Maybe they wouldn't win anything.
Actually, statistically, they probably wouldn't.
Many of the industry's established giants would be attending.
Including Jack Consulting.
Still.
Just receiving the invitation meant they mattered.
People had started taking them seriously.
For a brief moment she allowed herself to imagine what it would feel like.
Standing beside the biggest firms in the industry.
Competing as equals.
Not Carlson Clark's daughter.
Not society's favorite scandal.
Just an architect.
That evening the project details arrived.
Eight developments.
Mixed use.
High-rise.
Commercial.
Residential.
Massive budgets.
Massive opportunities.
Leia's pulse quickened.
This was huge.
Absolutely huge.
And somewhere amid the excitement another realization surfaced.
Jack would be there.
Her hand paused over the mouse.
Then she immediately rolled her eyes.
The bidding projects were the important thing.
Not Jack Garlan.
Certainly not Jack Garlan.
She closed the file.
And spent the next four hours obsessively preparing.
Across town...
Jack was doing exactly the same thing.
Except unlike Leia, when he saw Ben Architecture's name among the invited firms...
A smile appeared.
Interesting.
Very interesting.