sexy fireman

J&H Monday Morning

It was Monday morning and Cara was staring at her computer screen without really seeing. Her mind spun with too many thoughts. She could barely sleep last night, worried about her mother. And selfishly, she couldn't stop wondering why Mark had never called. Even Jay was out of the office for a breakfast meeting so she had yet to find out why he had called. Her calls to him last night had gone unreturned.

She pulled her cell phone out of her bag, once again checking for missed calls. None. Cara then went to her call history, still not believing Mark wouldn't call. There it was:  a call from an unknown number at 7:50 PM. But it appears that it had been answered. How could that be? Cara's heart beat with excitement.

Just then the phone rang on her desk rang, Cara jumped. She looked at the caller ID and saw Ruth Johansson's name. Her heart stopped. Ruth was Mr. Jamison's personal assistant; getting a call from her was like getting a call from Jamison himself.

"Hi, Ruth. Cara Redmond here," Cara said in her most professional voice.

"Cara, Mr. Jamison would like to see you," Ruth's polished German accent made this simple statement a command.

"Of course," Cara tried to sound casual but her heart was beating wildly.

Cara heard the click as Ruth ended the call. She looked around her desk in a panic. What could Jamison want? She grabbed a slim note pad and the Mont Blanc pen her sister had given her as a graduation present, and thought for a moment about grabbing her Mac.

She knew she was wasting time so she decided against to laptop and bolted for the elevator. Once inside, she glanced at her reflection in the mirrored walls. She smoothed her dark hair, checked her teeth and wished she had put a little lip color on as all the color had drained from her face.

"Shit!" she exclaimed. She had forgotten to put on her jacket, but there was no time to go back.

As the elevated raced smoothly to the executive level on the 33rd floor she took several deep calming breaths and said a quick prayer, "Please don't let it be anything bad."

She had never been to 33, so she had no idea what to expect. The elevator doors opened and Cara let out a small gasp. The lobby looked like a museum. It was opulently decorated with enormous modern paintings in shining wood frames. Cara knew little about art but she was sure she recognized a Kandinsky that could have easily hung in the Met.

She stood frozen in the lobby unsure of where to go. Her mild panic was becoming full blown as seconds ticked by.

Out of nowhere Ruth appeared. She was close to six feet tall, a European beauty. Her hair was platinum blonde and perfectly straight, falling midway to her back. Only the crow's feet around her icy blue eyes belied her age, but they too seemed to add to her beauty rather than detract. She had on an elegant jewel green wrap dress whose neckline plunged deeply, accentuating her stunning figure. Cara gazed at her in awe.

Ruth spoke with a hint of impatience, "This way, Miss Raymond." She led Cara down a hallway to her desk which was positioned outside of Mr. Jamison's office. Cara had to walk quickly to keep up with Ruth's stride.

Ruth stopped at her desk, turned and looked disapprovingly at Cara. She leaned over and opened the bottom drawer of her desk. She pulled out a neatly folded gray cashmere wrap and handed it to Cara. Cara looked at her dumbly, not understanding. "Oh, thanks!" she said, finally getting the fact that Ruth was saving her ass. Cara flung the wrap around her shoulders and looked at Ruth for approval. Ruth gave her the smallest of nods. Cara gave her a grateful smile.

Ruth picked up her phone and spoke to Mr. Jamison in French. Cara caught only her name. Ruth replaced the receiver and said, "Mr. Jamison will see you now." She glanced in the direction of the office behind her, to indicate Cara should go in. Cara took a deep breath and strode over to the door, and tapped lightly.