Page 55 of Business Casual

He followed me to the elevator and pressed the call button.

“Get a good night’s sleep tonight,” he advised. “Tomorrow’s the big day.”

“I will. You do the same,” I returned. “Tomorrow is the first step to your world takeover.”

With a chuckle, he folded his arms over his chest. “More like a city-wide takeover.”

“A takeover nonetheless.”

The elevator doors opened, and I smiled at him. “Until tomorrow, Mr. Franklin.”

“Until tomorrow.”

I entered the elevator car and then turned to face him. Just before the door closed, our eyes locked. “Have a goodnight, Tre,” I whispered.

There wasn’t enough time for him to respond, but the way he looked at me was going to get me through the night.

And it did.

I woke up the next morning feeling refreshed and excited. I dressed in a sexy yet professional black dress with five-inch stiletto heels. My makeup looked natural, and my twist out came out perfectly.

I even got an excellent parking spot right up front.

Today is going to be a good day!

As I approached the glass doors of the building, I noticed how good my hair looked. “Today is going to be areallygood day,” I said for the fourth time that morning.

I didn’t need to go upstairs for anything. Instead, I went to the large first floor conference room early. I wanted to spend time getting comfortable in the space.

“I see we had the same idea,” I stated from the doorway.

Tre looked up and smiled. Wearing a grey suit with a black button-up shirt, he looked sexy as hell. His haircut looked fresh, and I could see the waves from across the room. “Imani,” he uttered my name and it felt like more than a hello.

“You look great,” I blurted out, slowly walking toward the front of the room.

He licked his lips. “So do you.”

Heat flamed my cheeks. I looked away from him and around the huge table. “Did you personalize each portfolio?” I gasped, noticing the name of First Bank on the folder closest to me.

“I had Josephine create these yesterday and she bound each one this morning.”

“Wow.” I was truly impressed.

“Yeah. Trying to earn style points early.” He pointed to the back of the room where a caterer was setting up. “And food points.”

“Didn’t they already agree to this?”

“It’s easy for the CEOs to agree to stuff that other people will be doing. There’s value in going the extra mile for the people who will be doing the work.”

I nodded. “It’s smart to get the workers to buy into the vision.”

“Exactly.”

We spent time reviewing our notes and time flew by. Before I knew it, forty to fifty men and women sat around the table.

“Good morning. I’m Alex Franklin and on behalf of Franklin Financial, I want to welcome you to the meeting that will change the landscape for financial freedom in our community…”

He had my full undivided attention, yet I was able to maintain professionalism. But every now and again, I caught myself checking him out. I prayed no one noticed.

The conference room door opened, and I shifted my focus momentarily.

And then did a double take.

You have got to be kidding me.

*****

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