messages were sent, he’d read up on his e-mails tomorrow. Before going into Alexa’s employee evaluation. He just prayed his sister wouldn’t screw it up at that evaluation since all senior members of the firm would be evaluating her. He needed Alexa for the account. She was the only person who he could trust to head it up and do a wicked job. Her track record at TLC was unimpeachable. What could possibly go wrong at her evaluation meeting tomorrow?
CHAPTER 3
The next morning, Alexa dashed through the parking lot of Hope’s Plaza toward the glass building that housed TLC Advertising. The early morning sun peaked through the clouds and the humidity moistened her skin. She breathed in the air as her nostrils took a cool whiff of fragrance from the fresh flowers blooming in the flowerbed near the entrance to the building. Oh, she wished life were a bed of roses right now, but it was far from it. She could feel her heart pound hard and fast in her throat. That damned e-mail! She swallowed hard. A sense of urgency raced through her as she quickened her steps toward the building. Her shoes made a tapping noise on the pavement. She wore her pink-colored knee-length summer dress and a professional looking cream-colored blazer. A fashionable scarf tied around her neck to polish her look. Neat. Sophisticated. Business-like. Yet relaxed for the artistic company she worked for. She really didn’t want to risk perspiration before her big evaluation this morning. But she just had to beat Jess into the office to somehow delete the X-rated e-mail she accidently sent to him, with the help of the I.T. department, of course. She had to do all this before he arrived into the office. She couldn’t risk him getting the e-mail she sent to him in error. Alexa stopped just a few steps shy of the entrance. There, over by the reserved parking section her eyes caught Jess’s silver Ford SUV. Shit . He was in the office already. She peered down at her watch. It read 7:33 a.m. “What the hell is he doing here so early?” she frowned, panic scrawled on her face. God, he’s a workaholic! Please tell me he did not read that e-mail. The sound of a car door slamming caused Alexa to jolt. She whipped her head to the direction of the noise. An executive from one of the other offices in the building had slammed his car door shut incredibly hard. He appeared with gym pants and t-shirt as he scuttled into the building, briefcase in hand, garment bag swung over his shoulder—probably his suit in the bag. Alexa slapped her forehead and laughed. “Of course! Jess always works out first thing in the morning at the gym in the basement. Silly me.” That meant she didn’t have much time. But there was still some hope. Luckily, Brett, the cute, young geeky I.T. guy who she later found out had a crush on her when she first worked for the company, wasusually in the office first thing. Surely, he’d do her the favor and somehow find a way to delete one of Jess’s incoming e-mails. If there was some way. If it were ever possible. Brett would know how to do it, for sure. Alexa counted on it. Depended on it. Needed it badly. She hit the elevator button going to the top floor of the building and rushed right in and pressed the ‘close door’ button repeatedly as if the door would close faster. She then pressed hard on the floor number as if that would send her quicker to her destination. She tapped on her handbag as her heart still raced, pacing in the elevator. God, if the security could see me now on the hidden camera in the elevator, they’d think I’m nuts. Or about to go crazy. Alexa thought she might just go crazy if Jess ever got hold of that e-mail. She froze. Another thought just struck her. Lee had access to his e-mails. Oh, crap. This is just getting worse. Apparently, Lee, who used to be Jess’s executive assistant often received some of his e-mails forwarded to him so that she could handle most business