Fantasy-romance. Jules, a shy young woman, who owns a small publishing company in Seattle, meets a gorgeous CEO in her office building. There's more to him than she realizes. Alexander has a secret that he has kept from everyone, that he wants Ju...
I enter my office building on a cloudy, soon to be rainy Seattle Monday morning. Alexander Edwards is waiting for the elevator and I go to stand beside him with my Earl Grey tea and cinnamon raisin bagel. I have seen this beyond gorgeous man in the building and at the coffee shop across the street, but I usually avoid him, too shy to talk to him. Alexander's office is on the twelve floor of our building and he is the CEO of his security firm. I work in a small publishing company that I own with my best friend, Nicole. We also live together in a two-bedroom condo in Coupeville, a small town on Whidbey Island, away from the big city. The commute isn't too bad, I normally ride in with Nicole and use the time to catch up on work. This morning I drove my Volvo, since she spent the weekend in the city. I don't mind working with her, we have the same passion for books and have known each other since high school. Our office building sits along larger ones, in the business district of Seattle and happens to close to some of my favorite places.
When I first laid eyes on Mr. CEO, I was thankful that I had started working with Nicole, after she begged me to come work with her. Making small talk, I ask how his weekend was and he replies with a crooked smile, "Well, thank you. I went camping and hiking with my brother." He turns the question to me, "Ms. Davis, how was yours? I reply shyly, "nice, I read one of my favorite books, Wuthering Heights and went for a walk along the beach." Thank you for asking, have a wonderful day, Mr. Edwards." Taking my hand in his, "Ms. Davis, it was a pleasure to finally meet you. I do hope that you enjoy your day, and if you're not doing anything for lunch, Wednesday, I'd like to get to know you." He releases my hand as the elevator door opens, I walk in and stand next to him. I feel dizzy, I'm speechless and can only smile back at him. Alexander seems pleased with himself and just stands next to me, until the elevator reaches my floor. I exit, trying not to trip over my own feet like I usually do, when I'm not paying attention.
I walk to my office in a daze after the long-awaited conversation, with Mr. CEO. I feel like a fool, I should have told him that I'd love to have lunch with him and have wanted to meet him since I moved into the office three floors away from his. As I open the door to the office, Nicole is already there and on the phone with a client. I can tell she's going to be on the phone for a while, so I continue to my small office down the hall from hers. I put my tea and bagel on my desk next to my computer, along with stacks of manuscripts and mail waiting to be read. I should at least look through the stacks and attempt to read one of the five waiting manuscripts or opening my mail. What I should be doing and what I'm actually doing is so unlike me on a Monday. That man is so un-nerving and dazzling.
I sit there, not touching my tea or my bagel, replaying the conversation and I'm some-what relieved that I finally talked to Alexander Edwards. Nicole has been the pushy best friend telling me I should just talk to him and get it over with. I can hear her now, "Jules, he's just a hot guy who happens to be a CEO." My given name is Julia, but very few people call me that other than family. She's the exact opposite of me and has no problem meeting guys, let alone talking to them. Nicole has been with the same guy Mark, since our second year in college and he shares our condo with us.
My office door is open, so I can hear that Nicole is still on the phone, I start flipping through the piles of mail and manuscripts. I'm not really in the mood to read anything and still haven't touched my tea and decide to take sip, realizing it's cold, I toss it in the trash along with the bagel. I consider taking the elevator up the three floors, to tell Alexander I'd love to join him for lunch. But, I can't make myself get out of the chair and walk to the elevator. That's the problem, I can't seem to get passed the shy part of myself when talking to guys, especially Alexander, even though I'm 24 years old and talk to clients all day.
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