Five Star Desire. Jacquelin Thomas
at Blaze and Livi’s wedding. Amy and Livi were close friends. “Harold, it’s good to see you.”
Harold and Amy were getting married in a couple of weeks. Kellen was initially surprised that he was engaged to an African American woman—especially after the way he reacted when his uncle left everything to his biological son—Malcolm Alexander. Kellen thought him a racist because of his initial reaction concerning his uncle’s relationship with an African American woman. However, he and many of the DePaul relatives had come to look past skin color. “Congratulations on your surviving grad school. I bought you a gift.”
“Thank you.”
He and Amy moved on to talk with Barbara and Malcolm.
“Harold looks very happy,” Zaire whispered.
Kellen agreed. “I never expected those two to hook up, but I can tell that they are crazy over one another. Talk about irony.”
“I’m glad he’s found someone,” Zaire responded. “William’s illness has been very hard on him.”
“I can’t imagine losing a brother...or a sister.”
“I know.”
Just then Livi walked into the room and made her way over to Harold and Amy. “Hey, you two...I’m glad you made it.”
Kellen walked over to his father and said, “Dad, I applied for the Special Projects Director position a couple of weeks ago. I think the job is perfect for me, but I didn’t get an interview for it. I did have a telephone interview with talent acquisitions, but it was for another position. Do you know what happened? I think they made a mistake.”
“Son, there was no mistake,” Malcolm said. “The director position has already been filled. Someone in-house was promoted. However, the architectural engineer position is yours. You’ll start in a couple of weeks.”
A shred of disappointment snaked down Kellen’s spine. “I really wanted the special projects position. I feel I’m qualified for management.”
“The person selected was more qualified for the position. You don’t have seven-plus years in experience.”
“I’m your son. Surely, you can override the decision to hire someone else.”
Malcolm met his son’s gaze. “What would you have me do, Kellen?”
“I have all of this education and you want me to work in a position that—”
“Let me stop you right there, son,” Malcolm quickly interjected as he held up his hand. “Kellen, you do have the education, but you are lacking when it comes to hands-on experience. There is nothing wrong with starting in an entry-level position and working your way up.”
Exasperated, Kellen argued, “Ari, Blaze and Sage didn’t have to do anything like that. As for experience, I’ve interned and worked with the largest architectural firm in Atlanta.”
“They didn’t just come to their positions with education—they also came with years of work experience.”
“I can’t believe this,” Kellen uttered in frustration.
“Honey, you can’t expect your father to just give you a position,” Barbara remarked blandly. “You have to earn it in the same manner as everyone else.”
“Dad can do whatever he wants,” Kellen responded. “The Alexander-DePaul Design Group is his company.”
“You are not ready, son.” His father gave him a reassuring smile. “Starting in an entry-level position is what you can expect from any company. It’s not a bad place to be—the salary is competitive and you will be able to work on some exciting projects.”
Kellen did not respond. He had come to Los Angeles fully expecting to be awarded the position. It had never occurred to him that his father would not give him the job.
“Dad’s right, little brother,” Dreyden interjected.
“You have your own firm and Zaire started her own company. Maybe I should do my own thing.”
“You can do that, Kellen, but what real experience do you have?” Dreyden questioned. “What can you really offer a client coming to you?”
There was tightening around his mouth, but he didn’t speak.
“I know this isn’t what you want to hear, but it’s what you need to hear. Learn your craft and then move up.”
“Why does everyone think I’m so incompetent?”
Dreyden released a small sigh. “I don’t think of you as incompetent, Kellen. You’re impulsive and you want things to happen immediately.”
“I can’t deny that,” Kellen stated.
“No point. I know you, little brother.”
“I’m ambitious.”
“There’s nothing wrong with being ambitious,” Dreyden said. “You need to recognize that your position is not exactly an entry-level one. You should be thankful because you could have ended up in the mail room.”
“I do have a job and I am grateful for that. It’s not exactly on the management track, but I guess I’ll have my chance to impress my new boss in a couple of weeks.”
* * *
Wisps of cirrus clouds played peekaboo with the early June sun. A steady wind, blowing in from the east, brought warming temperatures, and Addison Evans was looking forward to the summer. But for now, she needed to complete preparations for her new hires that were starting today.
She paced back and forth in her office. Why was she so nervous? Kellen Alexander was just another employee. He was on her team. The fact that she was anticipating his arrival with such emotion came as a complete surprise.
“You’re going to wear a hole in the rug,” her assistant said. She walked into the office with a stack of documents. “This is what you’ve been waiting for. They arrived late yesterday after you’d gone home.”
“Thank you, Devin.”
“I have everything set up in the conference room for the new-hire orientation. Samantha from human resources should be arriving any moment. She called from the car.”
“Great,” Addison murmured. “Thanks for getting everything ready.”
She sat down at her desk. “Let me know when the new hires arrive.”
“Will do,” Devin responded with a smile.
Kellen was the first to arrive.
“I’m Addison Evans.” She smiled and extended her hand, which quickly disappeared into his large one. She made a point of keeping her grip firm and looking Kellen in the eye, a habit she’d acquired early in her career, and one that had always alerted her about what kind of man she was dealing with. “Welcome aboard.”
“Thank you,” he responded politely.
Kellen held her gaze and didn’t seem surprised by the firmness of her grip. More important, he didn’t try to grind her hand into dust with his superior strength.
Both marks in his favor.
Addison studied him, poised there so straight and tall in his sharply tailored, black, designer business suit. He was devastatingly handsome, but she crushed that thought as soon as it entered her mind. His dark-eyed gaze made the already hot day sizzle.
She forced herself to look away from Kellen. The man had broad shoulders, slender hips and long legs that would easily turn a woman’s head in his direction. Addison released a soft breath of air before turning her attention back to him.
He was easily the sexiest man she had ever met, but it wasn’t just his looks that attracted her to him; it was the mystery and the intrigue that she found intoxicating.
She