Free Echoes in Eternity (The Pella Series Book 1) by Emine Fougner

local place to hang your hat in, or, perhaps store your lovely Louboutins away?” I ask looking down at her feet.
    Her face falls.
    “Uhm... Actually, no. I was going to crash, I mean, stay with a couple of my friends until I’ve landed a job and actually worked a month or two,” she says swallowing. That concerns me more. How would she go overseas if she had no money? What is concerning her so much?
    “You’re in luck, then. I provide a place for my assistants. Not a very big place, but a safe and secure one bedroom apartment in the   Centurion. ”
    “ The Centurion ?” she gasps.
    “Yes, unless they built another one,” I reply smiling.
    “I can’t afford it! It’s got to be one of the most expensive apartment buildings on the entire west coast!”
    “That would be part of your benefits package. I don’t like worrying about the safety of those who work for me,” I say and walk to the bar.
    “Now that you agreed to the one week trial, would you like a drink?” I ask effectively changing the topic before she refuses the apartment.
    “Diet Pepsi, if you have it, or ginger ale, please,” she replies politely.
    “Well, I’m fresh out of Diet Pepsi. You sure you don’t want wine?”
    “I have to drive back to Montecito,” she says by the way of explanation.
    “Ginger Ale it is then. Can you be ready to travel tomorrow?” I ask casually, hoping she’d say yes.
    “Tomorrow? Yes, I, uhm...” she pauses, then nods having made up her mind, “yes, I can travel. Where are we traveling to?” she asks curiously.
    “Marana, Arizona. I have aircrafts which are scheduled to be auctioned for a week starting tomorrow. This will give you a chance to meet the kind of people I deal with, but on our home turf.”
    “Marana?” she asks. “I’ve never heard of the place.”
    “It’s a town in southern Arizona, close to Tucson. When you’re coming tomorrow, pack clothes for riding, hiking, golfing, and also take sunblock and boots; that is aside from what you would normally pack.”
    When I see her puzzled eyes I say, “business can be done outside of the offices,” but I also want to do some excursions with her alone. Show her some of the ruins; help jog her memory without coercing her.
    “What time do I need to be here?” she asks.
    “9:30 a.m. would be perfect.”
    I hand her the ginger ale, and my finger barely brushes the tips of hers. I feel the usual burn on my marks, but since  they've come alive, it’s a pleasant tingling burn, arousing even. I notice her eyes widen. She tries to shallow her breaths, and close her eyes to lower the intensity of our magnetic pull. Slowly making her way to the bar, she places the glass which she took just two sips of.
    “I had better drive back to Montecito since I have packing to do, and...” she lowers her voice to a level she thinks only she can hear, but my acute hearing never misses anything, “deal with the household reaction.”
    She picks up her clutch, and hesitantly but intentionally and with a hidden want extends her hand. When I take her small hand into mine, her breath hitches as if she just experienced the most passionate pleasure in her life, and she closes her eyes. When she opens them back up again her pupils are dilated, she’s taking a step to be on her way. I rush to the door, and hold my hand in place over the doorknob without opening.
     
    “Be on time... Ellie,” I say with darkening eyes.
    “Alex,” she says in acknowledgement.
    “I’ll see you to the elevators,” I say opening the door, showing her the way. Both James and Melissa jump to their feet, surprised to see me sending off anyone out the door, they first look at each other and then quickly look away. I walk her to the elevators, and press the call button.
    Elissa shifts uneasily next to me. Our proximity is too intoxicating for both of us, and she feels it too. Thank God for that! The elevator door dings open. Henry walks out, and she takes a look at him gaping, but,