Chapter 3

"Interesting." Lucas murmured, thoroughly enjoying her discomfort. He made a steeple with his fingertips and studied her, a wry smile playing across his mouth. The other board members watched them with varying mixtures of fascination and intrigue but no one tried to butt in. "Must have been a splendid lover to make you forget your responsibilities."

She gaped at him in shock. "I beg your pardon?"

"Perhaps we should carry on with the meeting." A short balding man leaned forward and leveled a stern look at them both. "We are already behind schedule as it is."

Lucas glanced at the man who had spoken. James Miller, manager of the Chicago branch of the hotel, one of the the few people who had refused to sell out his shares. The man stared back at Lucas defiantly, as if daring him to say otherwise. Lucas decided to hold his peace...for now.

"Very well." He said with a shrug, flipping open his laptop.

"Excuse me." Evelyn's voice cut in. "We are not starting until Mr. Martin leaves." She lifted her chin and glared at Lucas. "This is an executive meeting and as far as I know, Mr. Martin does not belong here."

Lucas smirked and raked her with his gaze. "On the contrary Ms. Smith, I have every right to be here."

Evelyn looked at the other members, seeking support. Her eyes landed on Lilly Fredric, her mother's sister. "Correct me if I'm wrong Lilly, but this is a management meeting isn't it?"

Lilly shifted uncomfortably and lowered her gaze to the glossy surface of the table. "It was, but Mr. Martin put forward a very convincing argument. He now has a controlling interest and to all intents and purposes..."

"What Lilly is trying to say is this." Lucas cut in, his patience at an end. "I now have a Say in the running of Smith Hotels and if you have a problem with that Ms. Smith, I suggest you leave now so we can carry on with more important matters."

There was silence and Lucas watched the play of expressions on Evelyn's face. Anger, hatred, and indecision passed and finally she sat down with a sigh.

"Good." Lucas allowed his gaze to sweep over the group once more. "Does anyone else have any objections?"

Silence reigned. "Now let's get started."

Evelyn drummed her fingertips on the table and fought the urge to storm out of the room. Just seeing him there, taking charge of the proceedings rankled her no end and she wondered how it had come to this. Her plan to use this meeting as a means to discuss how they could buy back the shares from Lucas had not taken into account that he would actually appear at this meeting.

She glared at Lucas, hating the cool confident air he exuded as he listened to James, the lazy way he seemed to lean back against the chair, handsome face expressionless, the jacket of the deep blue suit emphasizing impossibly wide shoulders.

Her eyes traveled up to his hair and even from her place across the table, Evelyn could see it's smooth glossy texture that made her want to reach out and run her fingers through that thick mane, feeling the strands slide through her fingers as their mouths tangled in the sweetest of kisses, warm naked bodies moving together in a rhythm.....

Whoa! Where had that come from? Evelyn felt her face heat up in embarrassment. She shook her head in confusion, suddenly aware of how warm the room had become...or was it just her? A quick glance around confirmed she was probably the only person feeling warm in the air conditioned room. She reached for an unopened bottle of water and drank deeply, grateful for the cool liquid pouring down her throat, her temperature returning to normal. She dismissed the brief fantasy as the manifestations of an empty stomach and nothing more.

As Evelyn lowered the bottle, she caught Lucas looking at her with an intensity that set her blood on fire again. A drop of water escaped her lips and ran down her chin and her tongue darted out to lick it up. His eyes followed the action, the blue orbs darkening in something unidentifiable burning into her skin and igniting fires Evelyn had not experienced in a long time.

She tore her gaze away and focused her attention on the pile of papers in front of her, unwilling to let her mind dwell on what had just happened.

"Evelyn?" Lilly's voice cut into her thoughts and she started, looking up at her aunt in confusion.

"Yes?"

"Well? What do you think about the proposal for the new menu plans?"

What new plans? Evelyn thought, mortified to be caught day dreaming in the presence of her arch enemy. She frantically scanned through her papers, praying that there would be something to give her a clue as to what her aunt was talking about.

"Would you like some time to catch up?" Lucas's mocking voice riled her already frayed temper again but she bit her lip and held back the scathing retort.

"No, thank you." Evelyn replied instead, her tone as cold as she could make it. Just then she found what she was searching for and scanned through the document quickly. Her lips pursed in disapproval at the proposal to cut out a large portion of the foreign dishes and replace them with local delicacies.

Her head snapped up and she scowled at Lilly. "No. No, I don't approve of this. A large number of our clients come from outside the US and we have always sought to cater to their needs by providing meals they are familiar with already."

"An unnecessary venture." Lucas replied smoothly. "American dishes are just as good as whatever else is out there..."

"We aim to provide a wide variety of choices." Evelyn cut in. "Limiting our menu to just American meals will seriously affect out clientele." She was angry at him for presuming to know more than she did. Who the hell gave him the right to waltz in and start proposing changes?

"The Smith spends about three million dollars a year on these so-called foreign dishes. Money that can be channeled towards infrastructure and maintenance."

"That figure has been approved and been in effect for the better part of four years. As far as I know, that expenditure has not in any way caused a fall in profits."

Lucas glanced at his laptop, reading something off the screen then looked up with a mocking smile. "Ah yes, four years ago will be when you took over from the vice president?"

"Yes." Evelyn ground out, getting even more frustrated at his mockery of her abilities. "And in that time, we have had more profit than at any other time in the history of Smiths."

His mouth twisted in a wry smile. "Kudos to you then Ms. Smith. Still, it stands to reason that we consider a few changes for the future of this company."

Evelyn shot to her feet, thoroughly pissed now. "That decision is not yours to take Ethan." She spat at him. "My father remains the president of this establishment and you are merely an interloper." She had the satisfaction of seeing Lucas stiffen at the insult and joy ran through her. She took her seat, folding her arms across her chest and stared at him with a smug smile.

A muscle worked in his jaw and his eyes turned to ice. "You always have a way with words Evelyn." He said, so quiet she had to strain to hear him. "Opportunist, Interloper...I wonder what you will come up with next."

"Stick around long enough, and you'll find out."

"Oh I intend to stick around for a long, long time." Lucas replied. There was a beep and he glanced the screen of his laptop then grimaced and shut it. He rose, buttoning up his jacket. "Much as I would love to spend time trading insults with you Ms. Smith, I must leave now." He bid them all good day and strode out, leaving them all in a flutter of varying reactions.

"Well!" Jamed exclaimed, looking around the room. "What do you all think of this new development?"

Evelyn tore her gaze from the open door and faced the group. "We have to put a stop to this." She announced. "That man put my father in hospital, and now he's trying to make ridiculous changes? We can't let him do what he likes with our source of income."

"What do you suggest?" Jules Robinson, head of human resources asked.

"I will think of something. In the meanwhile, we need to keep our heads properly screwed on tight." She shoved papers into her briefcase and hurried out. She had to see her father in the hospital.

In the lobby, her heart sank at the sight that met her eyes. Just outside, Lucas stood by the huge artificial waterfall talking to a familiar blonde. Stacy's back was to Evelyn, but she could see the impassive expression on Lucas's face as Stacy spoke to him. A sleek black limo waited nearby and as Evelyn watched in horror, Lucas opened the door and Stacy stepped into the vehicle.

"Oh no!" Evelyn groaned, quickening her pace, frantic to stop Stacy before she made the biggest mistake of her life. Just as she reached the revolving doors, her gaze met Lucas's. He shot her an inscrutable look and climbed into the dark interior. The limo pulled away just as Evelyn reached the curb and she could only stare helpless as the vehicle joined the busy traffic.