The Billionaire Wins the Game(3)

His hair was dark brown and looked as if he’d been running his hand through it all morning. In the next moment he finally looked up and his deep azure blue eyes met her startled green ones.

“I’m sorry, Esther. I didn’t realize you had someone in here.”

“Hello, I’m Lucas Anderson,” he finished and held his hand out to her.

Lucas was known for his ability to read a person. It was how he was so successful in the corporate world. The woman seemed to be going through a myriad of emotions, from nervousness to desire and everything in between as she gazed at him. She was sparking his curiosity.

When she remained silent, he raised his eyebrows at her questioningly. Her face turned a nice shade of red and then she finally broke eye contact.

She snapped out of her trance, realizing he was waiting for her to introduce herself, so she stood up and gave him her hand, “Hello, I’m Amy Harper.”

The moment her fingers touched his, Lucas felt like a bolt of lightning went racing through their joined fingers, straight to his groin. She was beautiful, sure, but so were many other women he was in contact with each day, though none had the power to electrify him with a simple touch.

Lucas turned toward Esther, releasing Amy’s hand at the same time. “When your guest leaves can you come into the office to take care of a few things?” he asked and then turned away.

“Has your father not spoken with you yet, Lucas?” Esther asked, stopping him.

“Talked to me about what?”

“I sent you my notice last month and told you your father would be hiring a new assistant,” she stated.

“I told you then, I needed you to stay longer. I assumed the matter was settled,” he said a bit too harshly.

“Lucas, don’t you dare use that tone of voice with me. Don’t forget, I’ve seen you running around in nothing but a diaper. You knew when your father retired I’d be leaving as soon as you got settled in. I stayed on to make sure you had a smooth transition, but now it’s my turn for retirement. I love this company, but like your father, sometimes it’s best to get on with things and bring in a new generation.”

“I’m sorry about the misunderstanding. Can you work one more month so I can find an appropriate replacement to take your position? I’ll double your salary, knowing it’s an inconvenience,” he pled, trying to forget Amy was in the room.

“Your father already conducted the interviews and Amy’s your new assistant. I’ve been training her all morning and she’s doing a remarkable job,” Esther finished and patted Amy on the hand.

Suddenly Amy had his undivided attention once again. The minute he turned those eyes back on her, she felt her stomach drop. The man had enough heat packed in his eyes to be considered a fire hazard. She’d never reacted so strongly to anyone before and wasn’t happy about the unfamiliar feelings flooding through her.

“I’ll speak to my father about this, but I should’ve been informed about the interviews. Don’t get too comfortable in your new position, Ms. Harper,” he spoke with the upmost authority, then stormed through the doorway, shutting it a little bit harder than necessary.

“I thought he knew I’d been hired. He didn’t even know you were leaving,” Amy said with apprehension in her voice. She could be losing her dream job before it even started.

“Now, don’t you worry about anything, Amy. Everything will be just fine.” They got absorbed in their work and the incident was placed on the back burner, still there, but put away for the moment.





“Dad, how do you expect me to run this company when you’re stepping in and doing things without letting me know?” Lucas was pacing in front of his father, back and forth across the parlor at his parents’ home.

“Now son, I told you when I left, Esther would be retiring once you got settled in. I also said I’d take care of her replacement. It’s not my fault you forgot. And it’s not Esther’s fault you didn’t take her resignation seriously,” his father said.

“Dad, I know you’re up to something. I just can’t figure out what it is this time, but I’m capable of hiring my own staff,” he spoke with frustration. It was so much harder to argue with the man when he was being reasonable. “It doesn’t exactly look good when the President of the company doesn’t know what’s going on in his own offices,” he finished.

“Son, I interviewed about thirty people and Ms. Harper was, by far, the most qualified candidate. Believe me, you won’t have any problems with her. I checked her out extensively before sending her to you.” Little did his son know he was actually checking her out as his future daughter-in-law and could care less about her qualifications as an executive assistant, although she’d done very well in school and would most likely do an extraordinary job at the office.