Lost & Found
Page 9

Very quietly, Eduardo spoke, “Don’t start.”
Christian laughed and pulled the parking stub from his chest pocket. “Validate this before I go.”
Eduardo snatched it from his hand. “I’m sure your mother taught you to say please.”
“Pleeeease,” Christian mimicked, and Eduardo shook his head as he signed the ticket.
Then at the same time, both men turned to look at her.
Darcy was already nervous enough, but when both sets of dark eyes were staring into her, she didn’t know what to think. She was simply mesmerized.
Eduardo was professional, even in his dismantled business suit and mussed up hair. Christian was nearly a spitting image of his brother, only a bit shorter, more defined, laid back, and sporting a goatee. There was something to this duo. A girl could certainly get caught up in those eyes. And to run her fingers through…
What was she doing?
She worked for Eduardo Keller. To even have a momentary lapse of judgment and think thoughts like that was certainly unprofessional. And Christian? She dropped her shoulders. Aside from the fact that they lived in the same house—perhaps he was fair game.
Again, this wasn’t why she was here!
Eduardo walked back around his desk and shuffled a few papers together. “Chris, will you take her down to personnel?”
“I got her to work and now you want me to get her all hired?”
Eduardo huffed out a breath and sat down in his chair. “I’m busy. Will you help me out?”
Darcy could feel that same anger creeping into her veins as she had when she’d met Eduardo Keller.
“I could find personnel myself,” she said, lifting her chin in defiance.
Eduardo only nodded. “He’ll take you. And when you’re done, get back up here as soon as possible. I’ll have Charlie start training you.”
Christian started toward her. “Well, if Charlie is going to train…”
Eduardo’s head shot up. “Do not come back here, Chris. I’m warning you.”
Christian laughed. “Chill out, bro.” He took Darcy by the arm and led her down the hall.
“Is he really this temperamental?”
“Ed?” Christian shrugged his shoulders. “Yes.”
“Great.”
Christian laughed again. “He’s about doing business right. He’s always been that way. But I think he has a soft spot for you, so don’t get too panicked over what you saw.”
“Soft spot?”
“Yeah.” Christian pushed the button on the elevator. “He’s been interviewing for an assistant for a long time. It’s a bit too much of a commitment for him to actually hire one. If he has a temp, he can call and fire them through the agency and never have to deal with them. You on the other hand…” The door opened and they stepped into the elevator. When the doors closed, Christian pushed the button. “You got the job after he just met you. He set you up in Arianna’s basement. And…” The door opened and he continued, “He didn’t kick you out when he started giving Valerie a hard time.”
She wasn’t sure all of that lead to him having a soft spot for her.
Christian led her to an office that had a much different feel than the offices upstairs. This one reminded her more of a government office, perhaps even the DMV.
“See that man over there?” He pointed to a corner office. “He’ll get you squared away.”
Darcy nodded.
Christian pulled a card out of his pocket and handed it to her. “This is my cell phone number. Call me if you need anything.”
“Okay. Thank you.”
He turned and gave her a small wave. “Oh, and when you see Charlie, say hi for me.”
Darcy nodded again and headed toward the office Christian had pointed her to.
An hour later, Darcy was back upstairs. An official BBH badge was dangled from her neck with her picture on it. And again, she’d forgotten to go down and get a cup of coffee.
Eduardo’s office door was closed when she arrived. The desk outside his office was no doubt hers, so she sat down, opened a drawer, and set her purse in it.
Just as she closed the drawer, the door behind her opened, and Eduardo was escorting a very sexy blonde out of his office. His hand was placed on the small of her back, the woman was laughing seductively, and the sight made Darcy nauseous.
This must be Valerie. No wonder he wanted to take her to lunch. She wondered what else they would do on their lunch break.
The very thought infuriated her. This man was disgusting. What was she doing in this job?
However, as the woman walked right past her and down the hall, Eduardo leaned against the doorjamb and scrubbed his hands over his face.
“Do you have any Tylenol?”
Darcy clenched her jaw, opened the drawer with her purse in it, and found him a bottle of Tylenol. She poured out two into her hand and handed them to him.
“Thank you.” He put them in his mouth and swallowed them dry. “That woman makes my skin crawl.”
Darcy looked down the hall where the woman still sauntered past all the offices and then looked back at him.
“Wasn’t that Valerie? Aren’t you having lunch?”
Eduardo laughed. “That? Valerie?” He leaned against the jamb again and crossed his arms over his chest. “No, that was Charlie.”
“Oh,” her voice cracked.
“I decided I’d train you. I like you too much to force you to spend time with that woman.”
That woman. Wasn’t that woman the ideal to every man? Hour glass figure, blond flowy hair, and ample busts almost popping out of the neckline of her blouse.
It was then that Christian’s words flashed back at her. He has a soft spot for you.
She looked up at the man standing in the doorway. He flashed a smile, and her heart rate took off in the upward direction. His dark eyes grew soft as she looked at him. Every bit of her tightened, and she realized, at that very moment, how attracted to him she was.
This was not good.
She was on a mission. She had something to do, and she couldn’t get involved with a man who gave her the slightest bit of attention.
But then again, if she felt out this soft spot, maybe she could get the information she was looking for even faster.
Ed had started Darcy on projects that he figured would take her most of the day. It usually took a temp two days, but he was quickly learning that Darcy wasn’t like other temps or employees. She’d returned with the purchase orders he’d asked her to fill out within an hour.