Read Online Back to the Drawing Board by L.L. Collins - Free Book Online Page A

concealer out of my purse, I applied a few more dots to the dark circles under my eyes. I smoothed my hands down my navy pantsuit and ran my fingers through my long hair. I knew I was good looking. I’d always had the attention of many guys, including the ones who worked here. They all knew where the line was drawn, however, because they wouldn’t dare cross the bosses’ daughter. Since both of my parents were the head honchos here, guys tended to steer clear of asking me out.
    I walked out of the bathroom, saying hello to my assistant Paige and another architect, Zeke. They stopped talking as I approached, and I smiled at them. They thought they were being sly by not announcing they were seeing each other, but I knew it the first day. Not only was Paige not a good liar, but also she practically beamed every time he was near and his eyes followed her everywhere she went. I wished that could be as easy for me. Paige was my same age and had become a great friend of mine over the last few years.
    My dad’s office door was open, it still being rather early. “Hey, Dad,” I said, forcing a smile on my face. He looked up from his computer and smiled back at me.
    “Hey, sweetie. Good morning. Everything okay?”
    “Great,” I lied, settling myself in the chair across from him. “I just had a question for you.”
    He sat back in his seat, crossing his arms in front of him. “You look tired, Jules. Are you sure you’re okay?” Of course he would choose today to notice personal things about me.
    “I’m fine, really. I wondered if you made a choice on the new intern yet.” I tried to ask him without much emotion in my voice, but when he leaned forward, a smile on his lips, I wasn’t sure I’d succeeded.
    “Why? Did you have some further input on one of them?” The way he said it made my mouth dry out and my heart start pounding. Did he know something about us? Did someone see us at the bar and tell him?
    My hands started shaking, so I tucked them under my legs to stop me from wringing them. “No,” I forced myself to say. “I’m going to start the Adams project within the next few weeks, though, and wanted to wait to work on it with whoever the new intern is going to be. That’s an epic project for them to start with. It’ll give them great experience. No rush. I can start it and they can catch up.”
    “You’re right,” he agreed, steepling his fingers. “That project is a great way for the new person to get their feet wet in our business and be able to see where I’d like to take things. It’s local, which means less travel, and it’s groundbreaking energy efficient technology. Can you hold off and start the process in two weeks? I’d like to have our new hire here by then as long as he’s able to get here that fast.”
    If it’s Carter, I’m sure he’d get on a plane today to be here, I thought. “Sure! I’ll make sure everything is in line to start then. Do you know who you’re choosing, or are you still going over their portfolios?”
    He shook his head. “No, I already know. You probably could guess who I’m going to hire.” I stared at my handsome father, his dark hair styled perfectly to the side and his eyes bright. Everyone called me his ‘mini-me’, and I guessed that was true. The only part of me that looked like my mother was my size.
    Satisfied that I’d taken long enough of a pause before jumping in with the suggestion that had been on my lips for two days, I took a deep breath. “Is it Carter McIntyre?”
    He slapped his hands on his desk, his booming voice making me jump. “That’s my girl!” he shouted. “I knew you had an eye in this business. You’re so young but so talented. Absolutely. That kid is the one , Jules. He’s the future me. I can feel it oozing out of his pores. He will live and breathe this job. Best of all, he’ll bring more innovation and ideas to the company than we already have. He’ll never settle for being second best.”
    My heart rattled