Arrogant Boss Read online

“How much have you had to drink tonight?”

  “I fell because my heel snapped, not because I’m drunk.”

  Julian glanced down at the stain on his shirt that appeared to prove otherwise, but I’m quick to correct him. “That was virgin.”

  “Oh?”

  “Um, yes. The drink.”

  “Thanks for clarifying.”

  My cheeks flushed again. This was going all wrong, he was infuriating, and I needed to get home. I pushed my long hair back and saw his eyes follow the movement.

  “I don’t usually fall on strangers.”

  His grin was back. “I’m honored that I was the chosen one tonight, then.”

  The valet boy still hadn’t returned with my car and I tugged my jacket tighter. Julian didn’t seem remotely bothered by our odd interaction or the sudden silence. He looked just as serenely calm as in the photos of him, jawline screaming masculinity and competence and power.

  Arrogant man.

  I was not like him—the uncomfortable silence was unbearable. “Do you come here often?”

  “As a matter of fact, no, I don’t. Only when apps are launching and there’s rowdiness to be had.”

  I bit my lip to keep from smiling, despite myself. “Of course. A favorite past-time, is it?”

  He shrugged, powerful shoulders stretching out a perfectly fitted suit jacket. The man had held me for near on three minutes without a change in his breathing. “It’s practically a national sport in my circles.”

  “Are you heading home now too?”

  He nodded. “Yes. But I’m—“

  A voice called out from across the parking lot. “Julian, my man! Are you coming?”

  A blonde man stood across the parking lot, his arm around a brunette in strappy heels. They were standing next to a Hummer with music blaring.

  “Duty calls?”

  He ran a hand through his thick hair, a faintly embarrassed look on his face. “I don’t go to a lot of launches. This isn’t my scene.”

  “I’m sure it’s not. Just like you don’t have a lot of experience with women fake tripping just to catch your attention.” I rolled my eyes and his lips quirked up again.

  “Because of your shoes,” he said softly and caught a flyaway strand of hair. Gently, he tucked it back in place behind my ear, and I stopped breathing.

  “Can I call you?”

  Definitely not breathing.

  I found myself give a shallow nod. “If you don’t insult me again.”

  The eyebrow quirked again. “I’ll be on my very best behavior. Promise.”

  The sound of an approaching engine cut the intimacy as my car pulled up next to us. It looked small and ordinary suddenly, standing next to the magnificence that was Julian Hunt.

  The valet got out and left the car in idle. "All yours, ma'am."

  “Thank you.” I slipped out of my shoes and handed him a tip. “I guess this is it. I’m sorry about your shirt again.”

  Julian leaned against my car and held the door open for me. “I’ll forgive you if you tell me your name.”

  “Emily.”

  “Emily?”

  "Emily Giordano."

  The mischievous look was back in his eyes. “Is that so?”

  “Yes.”

  “Huh.” Julian bent so that we were eye to eye. “Well, I’ll be in touch, Ace.”

  A shiver ran down my spine. “Ace?”

  “You could have barreled into anyone tonight, but you hit me.” He winked. “You have excellent aim.”

  I opened my mouth to protest the sheer arrogance of his statement, but he shut my door with a grin and took a few steps back. With shaky motions, I put the car in drive and pulled out of the parking lot.

  What the hell had just happened?

  I had met Julian Hunt. He had strong arms and a crooked smile and he smelled amazing. I had probably never been so instantly attracted to a man before in my life.

  And then he asked if he could call me.

  Things like this—meeting men like this—didn’t happen to me. It never did and it never had.

  He likely had no intention of calling me, and I wasn’t even sure I would pick up if he did. He was arrogant and obnoxious… and funny. Besides, he hadn’t even asked for my number!

  I shook my head at my own musings. I would never see Julian Hunt again, and that was probably for the best. I couldn’t start comparing regular men to his standard or I’d be single for life.

  I ignored the small part of my brain that wanted to think of maybe’s and what-if’s.

  Julian Hunt was not for me, and I was certainly not for him.

  2

  Julian

  At every launch, there were two types of assholes.

  The first were the ones who went all-in at every event, who drank as much of the free champagne as they could. They handed out business cards and smiles like currency and stayed until closing, posting the whole thing on their social media. There might even be a live stream sometime during the evening.

  The second type of asshole arrived late, posed for the requisite photos, said hello to everyone with a practiced handshake and left in time to get their sleep and workout in.

  I was in the second category.

  Yesterday’s launch was as standard-mill as they go. I figured Viper would last maybe five to eight months. I saw versions of the same story all the time; poorly developed apps with an innovative interface and a slick promotional campaign. Investors inevitably backed them, like they did anything out of the Valley, despite the software being mediocre at best.

  Nothing I would ever invest in. Hell, Rafe and I had placed bets on how long we thought Viper would last. My press secretary, the one I had left, had correctly pointed out that going to the launch and getting photographed would cause a buzz. With our new launch up and coming, Hunt Industries needed all the buzz it could get—so I went. But for all other intents and purposes, the night had been a bust.

  I’d been more than ready to head out and leave the polite small talk behind when a young woman quite literally tripped into my arms.

  She’d come out of nowhere.

  I grinned just thinking about it. As soon as I saw her, I knew she would fit me perfectly—I could imagine pulling her close, bending my head down, having her reach up. Her body had been soft when she crashed into me.

  I had replayed the image of her flushed cheeks the entire morning, wondering if I could get her like that by other means. Long black hair, shiny down her back. Eyes that had seemed just as captured by me as I had been by her.

  And when I carried her… she smelled divine. If my body had called the shots rather than my brain, I would have carried her straight past the valet and to my car, taking her home and making her mine.

  She had seemed sweet and shy—until I made the comment about the her attempts at entrapment.

  She’d been so angry at me, her eyes flashing as she scolded me for my presumption. Pushing her buttons was surprisingly amusing. I wanted to see her flash like that again—call me out and tease me.

  Emily Giordano.

  The name had been familiar, but it had taken me nearly an hour until I’d made the connection. That was just my luck, wasn’t it? She just happened to be Emily Giordano.

  As in, the brother of Turner Giordano.

  The boy genius my HR rep was meeting with today to discuss a potential starting contract. He'd sent over information, and I was well aware of the young man's talents. It was why I wanted to hire him in the first place. David had made it clear, though, that the way to the boy was through his older sister.

  A very beautiful, very feisty older sister. An older sister that might or might not despise me.

  This could be very fun.

  I called David and he answered on the first signal. “Mr. Hunt, what can I do for you?”

  “I want an update on the meeting with Giordano.”

  “I’m preparing for the meeting now.” I heard the sound of rustling paper in the background. “They’ll be here at
ten o’clock.”

  “They? Is his sister accompanying him to the meeting?”

  “Yes. She was his legal guardian for several years and Turner made it clear that he wanted her to participate in the negotiation.”

  I thought of her flashing eyes and her outrage. “The older sister can’t be bought.”

  He was quiet for a moment. “Have you been reading the information I sent over?”

  "Yes." I hadn't, but I would the second I hung up. "I'll be at the meeting too."

  This time David’s silence was incredulous. “I didn’t think you had the time, but of course. The CEO being here when they arrive shows just how seriously we take Turner’s potential. We need to charm them into accepting this.”

  I tapped my fingers against the desk. “We need to meet their demands and make them an offer they’ll feel happy about.”

  “That too. I think one of his mentors at MIT wants a word with us too. It might be the key to convincing him; the opinions of those he respects.”

  “And his own opinion.”

  “Yes, yes, of course.”

  "Text me the location and time."

  “Will do.”

  I hung up. Pressing down the buzzer on my desk, I phoned my secretary.

  “Yes?”

  “Clear my schedule for the coming hour.”

  Tim’s silence was also shocked. “Okay. Absolutely.”

  I leaned back in my chair and pulled up the file David had prepared on Turner Giordano and his family.

  I skimmed the section I knew by heart—about the coding prodigy. The things Turner could do had already made it possible for him to attend online classes by MIT, professors taking a special interest in him. It was only a matter of time before one of the big tech companies snapped him up with the promise of a big salary and unlimited bandwidth.

  I was damn lucky that I was still friendly with a high school buddy who was on the faculty, and that we’d heard of Turner’s potential first. My friend had spoken excitedly about a quiet kid who could write legions of code that magically sped up nearly the entire system of course registry.

  In his spare time.

  Coding like that could make my company millions. It could change the technology landscape entirely, if properly harnessed.

  But it was the section labeled Family that I focused on most.

  All of Turner’s communication goes through his former legal guardian and older sister, Emily. Age twenty-five, educated media strategist with a major in marketing. Currently works for Pet and Co.

  Attached was Emily’s resume. I grinned as I read through it. Straight A’s, community college. Had risen quickly in the ranks. I saw her flashing green eyes in front of me again and the way she’d protested when I’d lifted her up. Hell, I couldn’t remember the last time I’d carried a woman like that. There was just something about her…

  Below her dossier, David had added a hand-written caveat. Emily will likely need to be convinced that her brother should bypass college and begin working for us.

  College… I remembered what a hell that had been for me, when all I wanted was to be let out of the gates and try my own hand at the world. To be misunderstood. Expected to behave one way and failing to live up to that. To want to test your wings right away. From reading Turner's bio, I had a feeling that might be what he needed.

  I wasn’t so certain, however, that Emily Giordano would be as easily convinced—particularly when she realized who owned Tech José.

  Hunt Industries.

  And who owned Hunt Industries?

  I did.

  I made sure to arrive at the meeting a few minutes late, giving David time to butter them up with small talk. I grinned at the thought of seeing her blush again.

  The conference door was half open when I arrived, and I heard clear voices coming from inside.

  I paused and waited for a cue. Anticipation curled in my stomach at the thought of seeing her eyes flash in agitation.

  “I was led to understand we would only interview with you,” a familiar voice said.

  David spoke. “Yes, well, I will also be here. But the CEO has expressed a particular interest in Mr. Giordano and wanted to be here himself as well.”

  “David, what company owns Tech José?”

  I grinned and stepped forward.

  3

  Emily

  Ten minutes earlier

  “He should be here by now.”

  I glanced at my watch. “It’s exactly ten o’clock. Let’s give him a few minutes.”

  Turner twisted his ring around his finger, a habit to calm himself, and gave me a short nod. The lobby we were seated in was huge. Vast expanses of glass and white marble floors, tall palm-trees in massive pots. No receptionist, however, and no names. It all seemed to be done with key cards. Probably some fancy new prototype.

  I’d lived in Palo Alto for twenty-five years, but this was the first time I’d really come face to face with these giant billion-dollar companies.

  A man with a pleasant smile and short blond hair hurried towards us from the elevators. "Hello, and welcome! You must be the Giordanos. It's a pleasure to finally meet the both of you in person. I trust you've not had to wait long?"

  “We arrived ten minutes ago,” Turner said in his usual blunt fashion. He didn’t look David in the eyes, focused instead on the sharp lines of his shirt.

  “Ah. Great. Well, my name is David and I’m the head of recruitment here.” He extended a hand to Turner.

  My brother hesitated only a moment before he grasped Davids hand in a firm grip. “Hello.”

  “Hi. And this must be your sister? Emily, is it?”

  I shook David’s hand. “Yes. I’m his older sister.”

  And you’re going to have to go through me.

  “Let’s head upstairs, this way.”

  Turner and I followed David through the blindingly white lobby. This place was easily as big as our entire house, and we were only on the first floor. David used his keycard to call down one of the sleek, chrome elevators.

  “I like how this place looks,” Turner told me.

  I smiled at him. “Of course you do. It’s all clean lines and free from clutter. Exactly your style.”

  He shot me a small smile without looking at me. He was turning his ring around and around again.

  “You know exactly what you are going to say,” I told him quietly. “You’ve rehearsed this.”

  He nodded and while the fidgeting didn’t stop, I thought it mellowed slightly.

  The elevator arrived and we followed David into the space. He attempted some small talk on the way and I handled it for us. No, it hadn’t been difficult to find parking. Yes, it was unusually warm today.

  We walked down an open hallway. Windows opened up into wide landscapes of desks with people working at computers. A large tree grew in the middle of a courtyard surrounded by white desks. People didn’t look up as we passed. I saw energy drinks and at least two Rubrik’s Cubes. Good God.

  Turner would fit right in.

  David gestured to the office. “These are some of our coders and software engineers. They’re junior associates.”

  Turner cleared his throat. “Would I also receive a desk out here?”

  “Potentially, yes. But it might be possible to get you your own office.”

  Turner’s shoulders relaxed somewhat. I knew that was on his list of demands.

  The rows just continued. “Tech José looks like a big company. I was under the impression that it didn’t have more than forty employees.”

  “You’re quite right. But we are a subsidiary of a bigger company, with holdings in several industries.”

  We were shown to a beautiful meeting room, with bottled water and muffins displayed on the table. They had really pulled out the big guns for this meeting—but then again, I knew Turner was considered valuable in their eyes.

  Turner and I took a seat as David opened his folder. “As I was saying, we are a subsidiary company. That gives us a lot
of the resources we need but also allows us considerable freedom in terms of direction. We function like an in-house incubator, to use jargon.” He gave a small laugh, but neither Turner nor I joined him. “Our mother company recognizes your potential just as much as we at Tech José do, Turner, and what you could accomplish here. The CEO of Industries will actually join us here today as well. He should be here in a minute or two.” He smiled at us like this was a brilliant revelation.

  I frowned. “I was led to understand we would only interview with you.”

  David looked taken aback by my lack of thanks. “Yes, well, I will also be here, of course. But the CEO has expressed a particular interest in Mr. Giordano and wanted to join us himself.”

  I leaned forward. “David, what company owns Tech José?”

  But it wasn’t David who replied.

  “That would be Hunt Industries,” a voice said from the doorway.

  And leaning against it, an infuriating smile on his face, was Julian Hunt.

  I just stared at him in shock.

  If he’d looked mysteriously handsome last night in the dark, he was blinding in daylight. Thick hair, a smirk, a perfectly fitted suit. No tie.

  Damn it, Emily.

  I should have done better research. How had I never realized that Tech José was a subsidiary branch of Hunt Industries? There was no way I would have come along today if I had known. After yesterday… my cheeks flushed with humiliation. He had known. He had known right away, as soon as I had said my name.

  I shut out the small part of me that was thrilled at seeing Julian in the doorway. It couldn’t be helped—he was an intensely attractive man, objectively speaking, and I wasn’t blind.

  He stepped into the room. “I’m Julian Hunt. You must be Turner Giordano?”

  “I am, yes.”

  Julian moved around the table and extended a hand to my brother, who looked at me briefly before shaking his hand. If Julian was curious as to why Turner didn’t meet his eyes, he didn’t show it.

  I cleared my throat. “I’m Emily. His sister.”

  Julian clasped my hand and I looked straight into his dancing green eyes. “Emily. What a beautiful name.”