Chapter 30

**SCARLET **
Of course, I was only going to meet Luke to return the earrings. I asked Katherine not to mention anything to Nate.
Here I was, being cautious again with Nate. He was only my best friend, but what he would say to me always seemed like a big deal. Perhaps it was because he saved me a couple of times in the past. I just didn’t want to disappoint him.
The night after my classes, I received a text from Luke that he would have me picked up by his driver. He asked me if I could come to the office first.
A middle-aged, well-built man in a crisp gray suit approached me as soon as I was at the gate. He was standing next to a limousine, which made me instantly realize he was the driver.
“Good evening, Miss Carter.” He greeted me with a slight nod. “Mr. Alejandro sent me to give you a lift.”
“Good evening, Mister…?”
“Call me Rey, miss.” Rey opened the door of the car. “If you please.” He gestured to hop in.
“Thank you, Rey.” I stepped inside.
The moment I was in, I smelled Luke’s scent again. I closed my eyes and touched the leather of the seats. I must admit that I had missed him and was eager to see his unbelievably handsome face.
We arrived at our destination shortly. We stopped in front of another massive modern building with the Alejandro Technologies name in bold letters on the entrance. Aside from New York’s, this was one of their headquarters in the US. It was a multi-billion-dollar company owned by none other than Thomas Alejandro. One of the top IT and telecommunications companies in the US. It wasn’t my first time seeing one of the buildings of AT, but looking at it reminded me just how powerful they were.
It made me want to back out. What I was doing with Thomas’ son was wrong. He would disown me if he found out I was screwing around with his son. Or worse, he would divorce my mom.
He would hate Luke, but he was still his son—his own blood, and I was just an outsider. I didn’t deserve everything he gave to me the moment I slept with Luke. But what should I do? It was as if my heart had its own life, beating for Luke.
I doubted that I would ever love someone else. It was always him from the very start. I was the most selfish human in the world.
Rey ushered me into the building, and the iciness of the air instantly gave me chills in an odd but good way. As expected, the building’s lobby boasted spacious tiled floors, which made every step echo. Busy people walking back and forth the hall, men, and women in formal office suits. Behind the desk was a beautiful, groomed young woman in a navy-blue suit coat and white dress shirt. She smiled at Rey and me, and he returned the gesture with a nod.
When we arrived on the 83rd floor, the executive’s floor, another desk was in front. Another young woman dressed in the same navy-blue uniform greeted us with a smile.
“Good evening, Mr. Simons, Miss Carter.”
“Good evening,” I greeted back.
“Good evening, Alexia. Is Mr. Alejandro still in a meeting?” he asked.
“The meeting finished ten minutes ago. I’ll inform him of your arrival.” She picked up the telephone and pressed a button. “Mr. Alejandro, Mr. Simons is here with Miss Carter. Yes… Thank you, sir.”
She put the telephone down.
“Miss Carter, he said you could come in,” she informed me in a polite, smooth voice.
“O-okay.” I nodded. “Thank you.”
“You’re welcome, miss.”
“Thank you, Alexia,” Rey acknowledged with a slight nod and guided me. “This way, Miss Carter.”
He walked in first towards an opaque glass door. I watched him tap his keycard at the door lock, and a sound was triggered. Rey pushed the door open for me but didn’t go in.
“You’ll find him inside, miss.”
I took a deep breath. “Thanks,” I answered and finally stepped inside.
What appeared before my eyes were breathtaking. Luke’s office was exquisite and so spacious. A wooden desk and an empty black leather couch were placed in the center. Further than that was a floor-to-ceiling window view of the city skyline. It was so stunning I was fleetingly paralyzed.
Luke was standing by the window with an eyebrow raised at me. The burning feeling in my score came back at the sight of him. He was immaculately dressed in a black designer suit, undershirt, and gray necktie that matched his gorgeous eyes. I watched how his sensual mouth curved into a half-smile. He was perfect… Too perfect to be real.
My knees felt all wobbly as I walked towards his desk. I opened my purse to draw the earrings and placed the box on the table.
“I’m returning this to you.” I pressed my lips together, trying not to show emotion. I expected him to make a fuss, but he moved closer to his desk and stood in front of me.
“I’m sorry if I have to ask you to come over. I had a lot of work to do.”
“It’s fine. We can talk here.”
His eyes peered at me. “No. You will come with me to my apartment tonight, and we will talk.”
My throat dried up. He was asking me to go with him as if nothing had happened.
“But I thought we should—”
“I’m not asking you, Scarlet. I’m telling you.”
I heaved a sigh. “But you said we are only going to talk.”
“Oh, we are.” He flashed out a sexy grin. “Unless you change your mind.”
“I won’t.” I shook my head. “I can’t have sex with a man seeing another woman.”
“I’m not sleeping with anyone else.” He came around his desk and moved towards me, closing the gap between us. He cupped my face in his palms. “I can’t, when all I could think of was your face between my knees, the expression you made when my cock was inside you, and your hair spread across my sheets.” He gently brushed his thumb over my cheek. “I hate to admit it, but I miss you.”
My lips parted in surprise. Did I hear him right?
As far as I knew, Luke Alejandro didn’t just miss a woman. I didn’t know if he was playing with me, but I wanted to believe him. I felt his lips lightly touching mine.
“Wait.” I pressed a palm to his chest.
“What?”
“I can’t. I don’t think this will ever work, Luke. You’re still not saying anything to me—”
He kissed me. “We’ll make this work.”