Chapter Three

Carter's secretary showed me to my new office when I arrived the morning. Her name was Cindy and she wasn't particularly friendly. I guess I couldn't blame her, though. I had this feeling that she had probably been trying to get a job like this for most of her career and I just showed up and stole it right in front of her eyes. On the one hand, I felt bad about it. At the same time, I couldn't help but beam with excitement.

Still, I couldn't get rid of the feeling that it was all just some kind of fluke. Maybe the stars aligned or something. How was it, that just a few days into my career, I was already sitting in a corner office with a great view? I ran my fingers over the surface of my smooth mahogany desk, which wrapped around me in a half circle. The walls of the office were covered in book shelves. I planned on filling them up with books on stocks, bonds, mathematics and maybe even hide a romance novel or two in there for days when I wasn't busy.

This is the beginning of something very, very good, I thought. If nothing else, this office beats the hell out of that tiny cubicle.

I still hadn't seen Carter yet, but I had also gotten to work a little early. I wanted to make the best impression possible. It was only a few minutes, though, before he stepped through the door.

Once again, I was struck by his masculinity and power. He didn't just walk into a room. He controlled the room. Even if it was just me in it.

“Good morning,” he said, with a warm smile. “I didn't expect you here so early. Nobody is ever here before me. Besides Cindy of course.”

“I just wanted to get a running start.” I smiled back. “I hope that's okay.”

“Of course,” he said.

His eyes stayed locked with mine for just a moment too long. I glanced down, feeling my face turn warm as I blushed. When I looked back up, he walked toward my desk. He placed his hands down onto the top of it, shifting his weight to one side. When he did, it pulled his slacks tight in just the right way so that I could see a slight bump in the front. The outline of his package became apparent. My face flushed a little with arousal.

“Jane,” he said. “I'm up here.”

I lifted my gaze, and felt a rush of blood seep into my cheeks. He'd just caught me staring.

God, I'm such an idiot, I thought.

Carter chuckled, but didn't comment on it any further. Instead, he began talking business. He spoke quickly and covered a lot of ground. I jotted down notes as fast as I could so that I could research later. There was so much I didn't know about this company and I was suddenly in the deep end of it.

He told me the ins and outs of Winthrow Financial. He explained how much market share the company had and the importance of attention to detail in a business like this.

“A single decimal is all it takes to make or break an entire empire,” he said, his green eyes lighting up as he spoke. “Most people don't realize that. They paint with broad strokes, thinking that pennies don't matter. Pennies make millionaires, though. Sometimes billionaires.”

I was completely in awe as he paced back and forth in front of my desk. It was like watching some kind of motivational speaker. He was energetic and positive. He carried himself with the kind of charisma that I had never seen in real life before. There was such confidence in everything he said and every movement he made. I had to wonder if the reason he was like this was because he was rich, or if he was rich because he was like this. Chicken or the egg.

At one point, he stopped in his tracks and turned to face me. “I've been talking your head off for a while now. I'm guessing you probably want to actually know what your job will be. I want you to look over my investments. I want you to check my numbers and give me your opinion on them.”

My eyes widened. “But Mr. Winthrow, I don't know that I have the experience to tell you what to invest in. I don't really have the experience to even call your stockbroker.”

“Please, Jane, call me Carter,” he said with a gentle wave of his hand. “The only people who call me Mr. Winthrow are lawyers and I'd like to keep it that way.”

I flashed a quick nervous smile. “Okay, Carter.”

“As far as your concerns, I think you should put them to the side,” he explained. “I have a lot of experience and I won't make an investment unless I really think it will perform. The reason I want to hear your opinions, is so that I can see what you know and teach you what you don't. With your numbers ability, you have a gift for this stuff, I can feel it.”

My body filled with excitement. This was the opportunity of a lifetime. To learn stocks from one of the best investors in the world? How many girls get a chance like that?

“I'm excited for the challenge,” I said, deciding to go for this with everything I had. “Where should I start?”

“I'll send over a few things today,” he replied, locking eyes with me. “We'll go from there. Please come get me if you have any questions at all. My office is right around the corner. However, if the door is closed then just come back a little later. I'm often in online meetings.”

“Okay, that sounds great,” I said. “Thanks, Mr Win- Carter.”

He smiled. “No, thank you, Jane. I've got a really good feeling about you and I don't always feel that way about new hires.”

“I've got a good feeling, too.” As I spoke, I realized that my eyes had once again dropped down his body and were focused on the front of his pants. Luckily, this time I looked away before getting caught.

“We'll touch base later today,” Carter said, spinning around to leave the room. He closed my office door behind him as he left.

My God, that man is hot, I thought, my body still tingling from his presence. I'm starting to see what Maddy was talking about.

I was going to have to really focus on my numbers so I wouldn't get caught staring at him again.