Total pages in book: 49
Estimated words: 46967 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 235(@200wpm)___ 188(@250wpm)___ 157(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 46967 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 235(@200wpm)___ 188(@250wpm)___ 157(@300wpm)
Austin opens his arms for a hug, and Lilian smacks him on the chest. “Stop. I see you every day, and Ford is just so happy to have Hudson home.”
Austin laughs. “What the hell? I’m home too.”
I’m ignoring their banter because my eyes are on the woman standing frozen not five feet from me. She has long brown hair that curls over her shoulders. She has her arms crossed over her middle, and she’s looking at me as if I may pounce on her at any minute. Her clothes are big on her, hiding her figure. She looks as if she may be in her early thirties. Something sparks inside of me. There’s real fear on her face, and I want to pull her to the side and have her tell me why. I soften my stance and try to appear smaller, but at six foot four inches, that’s a hard feat.
Lilian moves, putting herself between me and Austin and the woman. “Oh, Hudson, this is Elle. She’s Lucas’ assistant. Elle, this is Hudson. I’m sure you’ve heard about him coming home. He’s the second oldest Blaze brother.”
Elle’s face is white, and the fear doesn’t fade, but she does force a tight smile onto her lips.
Every protective instinct I have kicks in, and I want to make sure she’s okay. I take a step toward her, and she shrinks back with a flinch.
I put my hands up to show her I’m not a threat, but she moves behind her chair, holding it out between us.
Lilian goes to stand beside her and puts an arm around her shoulder. She points down the hall and waves for us to go. “The guys are probably already in the conference room. Go on, Austin, you know where it is.”
I don’t want to leave, but Austin forces me out of the room and down the hall. It’s not until I’m a safe distance away that I turn to look at Elle. She’s still standing there listening to Lilian talk, but her eyes are on me. There’s a reason she reacted to me the way she did. I should ignore it. Lord knows I’ve got enough shit to deal with, but even as I pass through the door of the conference room, I can’t get the image of her blue eyes filled with fear out of my head.
Chapter 2
Elle
I watch Hudson as he walks down the long hallway. Before he goes through the door, he turns to look at me. He is not smiling. His look is more curious than anything.
Lilian is talking to me, but it’s like I’m in a tunnel. Hudson’s eyes never leave mine until Austin forcibly pushes him through the conference room door. What just happened?
I thought I was doing better about being around men I don’t know, but obviously not. Not that he’s an ordinary man. Heck, there’s nothing ordinary about him. He’s tall, so tall, and at five foot four inches, I know I’d have to rest my head all the way back to look up at him. Plus, that beard, those tattoos and uh, that body. He’s just a lot of man. I groan as I think about the way I reacted to him. He’s an owner in the company—hell, he’s probably going to have me fired. And I’m not sure I can blame him because who wants someone working for them when she can’t even appear normal around someone new?
I take in a deep breath and let it out slowly, all while counting to ten. Lilian is still patting me on the back.
Finally, I snap out of it and turn to Lilian, my mouth falling open. “Oh my God!”
Lilian is rubbing my arm. “It’s okay. You’re okay.”
I walk around my seat and fall down into it. “He’s going to think I’m a lunatic. Oh my God, Lilian, I acted like he was breaking in and trying to rob the place or something. He’s going to have me fired, isn’t he?”
“No!” she says and then gives me a worried look. “I mean, I don’t think so.”
My mouth drops. “You don’t think so?”
She shakes her head. “No, he’s not going to have you fired. I only met him this week, but from what everyone says about him, no, there’s no way he’s going to want you fired. I’m sure someone will explain…”
Her voice trails off, and I know exactly what she’s thinking. Someone will explain to him that I’m nuts. That I have no chill about me. That I jump at loud noises and freeze up when strange men come around. All of it.
I put my face in my hands and hunch over my desk. Why can’t I be normal? I know I’ve been through some shit, but I’m working through it. Having a semi-panic attack when I meet one of my new bosses is not ideal.