Her Contract (Romance) by Lara West Page A

I’m sore from all the damn smiling. That’s how clichéd and pathetic I’ve become.
    Tonight Lucas is taking me out to Masa, a Japanese and Sushi restaurant on the fourth floor of the Time Warner Center. The clientele there tends to be of the “cream of the crop” variety, on both a national and international level.
    Billionaires, actors, socialites, models, musicians…
    You name them and chances are they’ve dined at Masa.
    Being a total Sushi nut, I can’t wait. It’s the perfect setting for me and Lucas’s first official date.
    One I finish finalizing the final draft for his itinerary next week, I send it to the printer down the hall. On my way to collect it, I bump into Max, who looks like he’s on his way out.
    “Hey, Max. Finished up for the day?” I ask with a warm smile.
    “Hell yes!” he exclaims, fixing the strap of his suitcase bag so it balances on his shoulder better. “Bring on the weekend!”
    Max’s eyes are the same shape as Lucas’s but are a lighter brown. More Hazel like.
    And also, like Lucas, Max is quite attractive. A Hartz family trait, no doubt.
    “Amen to that,” I chuckle and then notice the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles wrapped present he’s holding in his right hand. “Oh, I completely forgot. It’s Brady’s birthday today, huh? He turned five right?”
    Max nods and peers down at the present. “Yep. His favorite is Raphael so I got him this toy with Raphael on some bike with missiles that fire out or something like that.”
    “Cool, I’m sure he’ll love it. I know I would, and I’m a chick.”
    Max laughs and nudges my arm with the present. “I can order you one for your birthday if you like?”
    “Ha ha. Thanks, but why buy me one when I can just come over and play with Brady’s sometime?!”
    “Hmm, that’s true. You should drop in soon, though. I know Sarah and little Charlotte would love to see you. Sarah’s sick of all the plastic housewives she’s forced to mingle with at the charity events she hosts. She misses you.”
    “Aw, I miss her too. But at least, I’ll see her on Sunday. I take it you, her and the kids are coming to the engagement party?”
    “No, we’re having a kid free night. So it will just be Sarah and me. Gotta love babysitters!”
    I give an agreeable chuckle and then decide to make a timely exit. He’s a family man; he should already be at home with the kids. “Well, see you then, Max.”
    Stepping around him, I gait towards the photocopying room.
    “Oh, Anna. One more thing,” Max calls out after me. He makes up the rest of the steps between us and lowers his voice. “A woman came in a few minutes ago. She said she’s an old friend of Lucas’s and just happened to be in town, so she thought she’d swing by. I told her to wait by reception until you came and showed her through.”
    Creasing my forehead, I bite the inside of my cheek. An old friend? Not likely.
    Lucas doesn’t have female friends. He has lovers.
    “Oh, right. Thanks, Max. I’ll take care of it.”
    After Max walks away, I try to push some unsavory thoughts of Lucas and this unknown woman out of my head.
    Maybe she’s just a business associate? Or better yet, an actual friend?
    It’s a possibility, right?
    Right??

Chapter 16

Lucas
     
     
    When I hear a sharp rap on my office door, I figure it’s just Anna and don’t bother to look up.
    I wait for her to come and stand by the chair so I can fondle that sweet pussy of hers again and then maybe steal her away for another quickie in the stationary room before we head out to Masa.
    But the moment I get a whiff of that perfume – strong, exotic, cheap – I know it’s not Anna.
    As soon as I lift my head up and my lock eyes with her, her husky voice sounds through the office.
    “Well hello there, Mr. Big Apple,” Monique says, staring down at me with that classic sultry smile.
    The only thought running through my mind is what the hell she is doing in New York?!
    Anna going to flip her lid if she finds