Chapter 11

What Gwen didn't expect to see when she walked onto the top floor of the impressive granite and steel building on 37th Street and 5th Avenue was Arthur Penn chatting up her real estate agent as if they were old friends. When the agent had changed their meeting site, she didn't know what to make of it. Arthur's presence made it all too clear. When her calls to Merlyn had gone unanswered, she should have known something was up. However, the location had impressed her and she put her doubts aside. Like Arthur's presence, she hadn't expected to walk in on a demolition zone. Instead of a pristine commercial space, she found construction workers, noise, and chaos. She could handle the mess, but Arthur was another matter.

"There she is," A cheerful Arthur said when he saw her. His smile didn't quite reach his eyes. Gwen recognized an unhappy Arthur Penn when she saw one. What had gone wrong now? Didn't they leave the night before in good terms? She approached cautiously.

"Where's Merlyn," she asked tentatively, ignoring the issue of his presence there.

"He's circling the block. Parking is a mess down here," Arthur said. "You know Ms. Combs?"

"Yes, of course," she said, greeting the agent before turning her full attention to Arthur. "Why are you here."

"I was thanking Ms. Combs for her help acquiring this space for Garneau," he said.

"What?" Gwen said in shock and taking in the chaos. Arthur seemed to relish her shock.

"Are you insane?" she asked without thinking.

"Can you excuse us Miss. Comb." He said sweetly to the woman. The agent gave Gwen a concerned look when she expertly read shift in Arthur's mood.

"You can't," she pleaded, knowing Kiera would go ballistic at thought of Arthur selecting Garneau's New York space.

"I can and I did." He said between clenched teeth.

He stood too close. A hint of his cologne, an aroma of citrus and musk made her mind flashed back to the gym and an intense Arthur climbing some imaginary mountain. She felt the familiar pull and shook her head to clear it.

"Why?" The only word she could manage to say as she took a step away from him.

"Luc Chevalier," He said.

It took a moment for her to wrap her mind around the name and was surprised when she came up with an answer. "The designer?"

"Yes, the very French designer."

"What about him? What does that have to do with you and this place?"

"Don't act like you don't know." His brow furrowed as he scrutinized her. Without warning, he pulled out his cell phone, scrolled several times before shoving the phone in his face. She read the web page he pulled up.

"Oh my God." What else could she say about the news of Kiera signing the elusive designer Luc Chevalier to an exclusive three-year contract? Kiera had said nothing about it when they last spoke. Left clueless again, she felt more like a glorified secretary than an executive assistant.

"You didn't know," Arthur said in realization.

She shook her head, trying to hide her embarrassment. Kiera hadn't told her about her trip to Paris. What else had she omitted?

"Another perfect Kiera move." Arthur cursed. "She had my father on her side before I had a chance to react."

"If she got Chevalier it's a great deal. Everybody wants him," she said, offering a weak smile and justification for Kiera's going behind Arthur's back. All of this seemed to be a game of one-upmanship, which defined their relationship.

"Her way of reminding me who's in charge," The furrow in his brow returned, but then he smiled. A smile that once again didn't quite reach his blue eyes.

"I don't think I want to be a part of this." Gwen shook her head and tried to step away. He blocked her.

"Without you, this place will be furnished with folding chairs and tables and a naked light bulb. I'm giving you the option for input." He didn't make it seem like a choice.

"Kiera won't allow it."

He laughed. He seemed to relish the idea of annoying Kiera.

"Selling my father on a contract for some designer is one thing, but the purchase or leasing of building space that would cost Penn millions, who will my father listen to?" He cocked a brow at her.

"You acquire the space and expect me to get it ready for Garneau without her. She'll fire me," she said, not hiding her annoyance. This would put a wedge between her and Kiera and he knew it. She suspected he wanted it.

"Don't worry, she'll find something else to torment me," he said in amusement.

This only annoyed her more, because she knew it to be true. "That's childish."

"What?" he said indignantly. He looked like a petulant child.

"Yes, childish," she said angrily. "What are you twelve?"

He huffed indignantly.

"So Kiera's actions were perfectly fine," he retorted.

"No, but do you have to respond this way?" She gestures to the open space. "She throws a pebble at you and you pull out an assault rifle. It's like a pissing contest between you too."

"Poor analogy, considering Keira's physiology, don't you think," he replied with a quirk of a smile.

"This is funny?" Her tone heavy with resentment.

"I am finding this amusing. Merlyn said you had a sense of humor, but I don't see it."

She made a sound of disgust.

"What about the people at Garneau. Do you think they care about your little battles with Kiera? Million dollar jokes that affect everyone around you, not just Garneau, the real estate agent down to the guys who take out the trash. Everything is riding on this for them and you think it's some game. You hold their livelihood you hold in your hands."

"And yours," he added snidely.

She couldn't believe he said that. Was he that arrogant? She laughed derisively.

"I guess it's good to be king." She threw up her hands. This caught the attention of the agent, who discreetly put some distance between them. "I forgot my place."

With that, she made a show of bowing low before him, like some 1600-century courtesan. She stayed in that position waiting for him to say something. He didn't. She stood up to find a look of shock and embarrassment on Arthur's face. She also noticed that the busy site had gone deadly quiet. They were watching. All the while, Arthur held her gaze like some stone statue. The tension growing between them with each heartbeat. Realizing how foolish she'd made him, she regretted it immediately.

Without warning, he took her by the forearm and guided her into what looked to be an empty office. One of the few places that still had a door. She didn't resist, knowing she had crossed the line. Keira's assistant or not, he was still her superior at work. She'd made a fool of him in front of others and she had only herself to blame. She didn't protest when he slammed the door, shutting out the rest of the world and those eyes that had condemned his behavior. He began to pace before her, unable to form words.

"I'm sorry…" She could barely look at him.

He stopped finally, his chest heaving; his anger scarcely contained and said nothing.

When she finally had the nerve to face him fully, the storm, she expected to see in his eyes wasn't there. Instead, she saw confusion and uncertainty. She hadn't expected that.

"You're not sorry," he said, breaking his silence.

"I am. I shouldn't have said those things." She said softly and waited for him to calm down.

"I regret my words. My annoyance with Kiera shouldn't affect you. I don't want that." When he seemed to calm, he spoke.

She sensed his sincerity.

"I should have held by tongue, it's not my place…" She found the words difficult as well.

"Please… just shut up." He sighed as he rubbed his temple as still filled with some unknown conflict.

She blanched at his command for quiet but said nothing. She'd already cross the line. An apologetic Arthur was better than an angry one. Her ease evaporated at the sight of him and the way he looked at her.

"Arthur?" she said with apprehension, as he appeared to come to some resolution. Before she had a chance to step away, leave the office and get as far away from him as she could, he grabbed her around her waist, pulled her close, and hesitated only a heartbeat before kissing her.

Her body tensed at the contact and the kiss felt forced until he found the small of her back and pressed her closer. As if against her will, her lips parted inviting him to take more. He responded. The kiss grew both familiar and strange. She knew the landscape of his body, the strength of his arms and the reaction he would give when she moaned her pleasure. She knew this man. She'd wrapped her arms around his neck, because she wanted more contact – needing it. When they broke apart, each inhaling deeply, each lost in an emotional overload that made them cling to the other. She trembled on unsteady legs. The only thing holding her up was Arthur.

As the fog lifted from her head, Cassandra's words pushed forward in her mind. This Arthur of flesh and blood, her Arthur held her in his arms in the here and now.

"You're like this song I heard long ago, that I can't get out of my head." He'd pressed his temple to hers. "I find myself humming the melody, the words evade me," he confessed.

"I…. I," She needed to think. Before she could continue the office door swung open. The sight of a stunned Merlyn silenced her. His mouth stood open, his eyes dancing between Arthur and her and their embrace. Behind him, Gwen saw the crowd of workmen and Ms. Combs. Merlyn must have realized it as well, before stepping inside and shutting the door.

"Sorry," he said, slightly bemused by the circumstance.

Gwen pushed away from Arthur, much to his dismay. She put some distance between them as she touched her swollen mouth. She flushed from embarrassment and averted her eyes from the two men staring at her.

"I found a parking space," Merlyn said to no one in particular. Arthur glowered at him.

"Sometimes Merlyn…"Arthur cursed.

"Sorry, they thought you were in here killing her." Merlyn said, pointing to workers on the other side of the door. "It was either me or several angry men with power tools."

Arthur's brow furrowed, possibly realizing the implications of his previous actions. "I wouldn't hurt her."

Merlyn laughed. "They know that now."

Gwen groaned and wanted to disappear. When Arthur came towards her, she stepped away. If he touched her, she'd shatter into a thousand pieces. Her past and her present destroyed into tiny shards she wouldn't be able to assemble. She held it together long enough to push past them, out the office, past judging eyes and away from the building on 37th and 5th Avenue.