Not like this. Not so powerful. It would be perfect if Hank felt it, too.
He heard the buzzer go off on his desk just as Marcy showed up to replace Adel for the time being. He picked up the phone and answered.
“Yes,” he said as he watched the two women exchange pleasantries. Marcy was a redhead, all dolled up, wearing more revealing clothing and less classy than Adel.
“I just pulled into the parking lot. Give me five,” Will said, sounding out of breath.
Of course he was late. He’d left Spencer’s last night with a redhead on his side and his hand on her ass. Will had a different way of dealing with his attraction to Adel. He tried screwing her out of his head, but pretty damn soon he’d realize it didn’t work. Hell, Leo realized that months ago. He hadn’t had sex in quite some time. No one got him aroused like Adel and he couldn’t even touch her.
Annoyed, he stood up, exhaled, and felt the sick feeling in his gut. Leo consciously made a promise to himself to not sleep with any other women. He would wait for Adel to be ready. Will was on board but dealing with his own ways of ignoring the attraction and trying to find an outlet. Hank? Well, Hank needed to realize there was no fighting the attraction they had with Adel. Hank never dated, rarely screwed around, and was a workaholic. Adel made his eyes light up. She affected him and it would take something major to get him to admit to that attraction and act on it. Leo had to be patient a little longer.
* * * *
Adel showed Marcy some of the paperwork that needed to be filed and calls that were most important to take care of. She felt uneasy about leaving her workstation for many reasons. She didn’t like other people doing her job. She also was a bit intimidated by Hank, Leo, and Will. She wished their fathers Harold and William would be present. They made her feel at ease. Probably because it was Harold that talked Hank into giving her this job. He’d known her uncle, Lenny McKinley, for years. They went to college together at Ole Miss. Harold knew what her family did and he knew about her father and dealings with Ross Bentley and his family. Harold didn’t care for either man and never had. He especially seemed disgusted with what Bentley had done to her and what her own father had. Her Uncle Lenny asked Harold to keep watch over her and he did. Of course she begged for him not to tell anyone about her past. Harold did. He promised her and she trusted him. It was his sons that she didn’t trust or want to get too friendly with. In a lot of ways, Hank reminded her of Bentley and her father. Business came first out of everything, including family.
“Adel, are you ready?” Leo asked, interrupting her thoughts. She had already gathered her laptop and iPad plus her notes and a bottle of water.
“Yes, Mr. Ferguson,” she replied and held his gaze. His deep brown eyes seemed to darken at her response to him and then he motioned for her to walk in front of him as he ushered her through the hall to the meeting room. She wondered if he were checking out her ass. She could practically feel his eyes burning her skin and she felt flush. How could she react to him in this way? It wasn’t normal. It was like she lusted for the man, for his brothers, yet knew they could be just like Bentley. Besides, her heart couldn’t take any more pain and betrayal. Trusting anyone other than herself right now would be too risky.
She locked gazes with Hank, who was already sitting and laying out papers and blueprints.
He glanced at her. His eyes roamed over her breasts and she pressed her palm down the front to ensure nothing was showing. The blouse was a little big. Her nerves and melancholy over the last week were weighing their toll on her figure. Mom called twice and Bentley called three times, including once drunk and with some bimbo giggling in the background telling him to hang up the phone and fuck her already.
She swallowed the bile in her throat, seemingly giving Hank a dirty look before she placed her things down on the table and sat.
“Are you okay, Adel?” Hank asked.
Hank? The silent, brooding, angry boss of a man asked her if she were okay?
“Of course I am. Is Will coming?” she asked.
“Will is here,” Will said, entering the office with a laptop and looking rushed but handsome as usual. His brown hair was slicked back, and appeared to be wet as if he just took a shower. The thought made her heart race a little faster.
When he came closer she could smell the soap he used. A cologne-type that had an appealing scent that made her inhale a little deeper. He was sporting a polo shirt today, in black, along with a pair of dress pants. He was into designer clothes and liked to look his best. So did Leo and Hank.
She swallowed hard and opened up her laptop as they exchanged pleasantries.