When the Clock Strikes Read online

  ‘I’m sorry…I think I need to go to the ladies’ room for a minute,’ she muttered, getting up.

  Jennifer looked at her, confusion narrowing her eyes. Her colleague obviously had no idea what was going on.

  ‘Are you okay?’ Jennifer whispered.

  ‘I just need a minute,’ Julia said with a cracking strain in her voice.

  ‘Miss Taylor, please allow me to show you the way,’ I said and got up before she could escape. Everyone in the room looked at me like I was speaking in Chinese. The head of La Caz Corporation escorting some nobody to the restroom? But I didn’t fucking care. I needed to find out why she made me feel so alive.

  ‘No, thank you...I’m fine,’ she mumbled, but I didn’t want to give her a chance to go without me, so I got to her before she could start protesting. She inhaled and every hair on the back of my neck shot straight up.

  ‘Please, Miss Griffiths, continue. Mr. Porter, I trust you to wrap this up quickly. I’ve heard enough. I think I’m ready to work with Paranormal Personnel, so just get us a good margin, so both sides will be satisfied.’ I nodded to Porter, who looked gobsmacked.

  ‘I’m fine, Mr. La Caz. I can get to the restroom myself,’ Julia said, but her voice told me that she was affected by me, or else she was simply scared. She couldn’t expect me to stand in the doorway and argue with her.

  I shut the door and walked with her, holding her by her elbow to make sure she didn’t faint. I could feel and smell magic that embraced both of us. I was excited smelling the danger of her unknown power.

  God, what is she? She is irresistible.

  The receptionist jumped off her seat when she saw us, but I waved her away. I didn’t want her to disturb us.

  ‘No, Miss Taylor, I need to make sure that you won’t pass out in my lobby,’ I said and took her to the nearest restroom behind Emily’s desk. Her skin was smooth and static, and I couldn’t quite the shake off the feeling that she was here for a reason. I’d slept with a lot of women since Isabelle, but none of these women ever had any affect on me. Who was this girl named Julia?

  I stood in the ladies’ room watching her. There was something odd going on with her body. I noticed her sharp breaths and sparkling fingertips.

  ‘Are you all right, Miss Taylor?’ I asked, adding softness to my voice, hoping that I could comfort her in some way. I was concerned because she looked ill, like she was just about to collapse in front of me.

  ‘I need a minute alone, if you don’t mind, Mr. La Caz,’ she stammered.

  ‘Call me Nathaniel,’ I said.

  ‘Okay, Nathaniel. You’re not aware, but you are in the ladies’ room,’ she hissed. ‘I don’t think any other female would be happy if she walked in here right now.’

  ‘No one comes here except the receptionist,’ I said.

  Then more thoughts surfaced that I couldn’t control. I just want to have her here and now. To make love to her and sink my teeth into her delicious neck. She will probably taste divine.

  I shook my head.

  What are you even thinking? Control your urges!

  ‘Don’t you touch me!’ she yelled, stepping away from me and losing her balance for several seconds. Her pupils dilated and she stepped back slightly, staring at my hands.

  ‘I can assure you, Julia, that I’ve no intention of hurting you,’ I said in a businesslike tone.

  What the fuck? Did she just read my thoughts?

  ‘Don’t give me that bullshit. I just read your thoughts,’ she said, smirking.

  I didn’t really know how to react, but I was shocked that she could just read me like that. Fuck, so now she knew that I wanted her. I definitely didn’t see that coming.

  She wiped the sweat off her forehead and turned around to face me. Her fingers were inflamed with some kind of magic and I had to admit that her power and her smart mouth amazed me.

  ‘What are you, Julia?’ I asked, stepping closer to her, encroaching on her space with an intimidating posture. ‘I can most certainly say you are not a witch or a vampire.’

  Then I took yet another step forward and felt her breath on my cheek. My face was only couple of inches away from hers, and holy fuck, my cock was hard again. There was no way that I could admit that I wanted to take her here and now, but fucking hell, I did. My heart was pounding fast, and she was the cause of my distress.

  ‘My father is an elf and I have some of his abilities,’ she whispered.

  I gave her a smile, relaxing my shoulders and giving her the space that she needed.

  She looked at me again, taking a while. I could see she was thinking hard about something. ‘Nathaniel, normally I don’t behave like that in a business meeting. Can you just leave me alone so I can start thinking what I’m going to tell my regional manager?’

  ‘You have me on board, so don’t worry. Your regional manager should be happy with you today, Miss Taylor. I’m sure your colleague will negotiate a good deal for both of us,’ I said, putting my hands in my pockets. ‘And I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to scare you, but I have to admit you do smell unbelievable.’

  ‘Just give me a second, Nathaniel,’ she snapped, with a short intake of breath. I gazed at her lips again, but after a moment, I nodded and left her alone.

  Outside the door I exhaled a sigh, trying to calm down. I didn’t fucking understand what just happened to me inside that bathroom. I felt like she put a spell on me and I couldn’t fucking breathe. No one had ever made me feel this out of control, not even Isabelle. I paced up and down; my heart was racing, pumping too much blood into my veins.

  Julia Taylor. Who would have thought? I had to tell Porter to find out everything he could about this woman. Half elf; no wonder she smelled so great. Blood of elves was the purest, the most intoxicating.

  After a moment, she emerged from the bathroom looking better. ‘Do you want to work with us?’ she asked, looking directly into my eyes.

  I swallowed hard and gave her a smile. ‘Of course, I’ve had a few other offers, but no one was as persistent as you, Julia. I think we will make an excellent team.’

  ‘That’s great. Shall we go back to the room? I need to check whether Jennifer negotiated the right margin,’ she said and started walking away from me. God that arse was even more incredible.

  What the hell was wrong with me? I needed to get a grip.

  Chapter three

  Why do I need to think about her right now!

  The receptionist didn’t look happy with Julia, but she gave me a smile when I passed. We walked back to the meeting room, and I tried to get rid of my hard-on, which was almost impossible.

  ‘So, Mr. Porter, Mr. Carter, is it all wrapped up? Have we agreed on the margin?’ I asked my two subordinates, hoping that we could cut to the chase.

  ‘Yes, Miss Griffiths has agreed to twenty percent on top of the hourly rate for temporary workers. We will negotiate the rest later on,’ explained Porter, and Jennifer nodded.

  ‘Fantastic. I think the ladies need to go to the HR department and sort all the paperwork. You both need to be introduced to our HR director,’ said Carter.

  Julia was doing everything she could to avoid looking at me. I liked that she was pretending that she wasn’t affected by me.

  ‘I sincerely apologise that I had to leave,’ she said, like she was breathless.

  ‘Not to worry, Julia. I’m sure everything will go smoothly next time,’ I said with a hint of amusement in my tone. I wanted to laugh, but I couldn’t offend her. I was a fucking professional. Her colleague Jennifer was shifting her eyes from me to Julia in confusion, probably wondering how we were already on a first name basis.

  Then Julia looked at me again and flushed, probably because I was staring at her so intensely, as if I was ready to make love to her in front of everyone here.

  ‘We are looking forward to working with you,’ Jennifer said.

  ‘It was nice meeting you, Miss Griffiths and you Miss Taylor,’ I said and lifted my hand to shake hers. I could tell that J
ulia hesitated for a split second, but she didn’t have a choice. She had to touch my hand. When our skin connected, my heart jerked again, which frankly petrified me. Our eyes locked for several seconds, and I was sure she also felt how we reacted to each other.

  She pulled away and left the meeting room without turning around. I was sure that Carter and Porter noticed what went on between me and Julia. I sat down, running my hand thought my hair, feeling electrified and still pretty horny.

  ‘What the hell did you do to her, Nate? She looked like she was just about to collapse.’ Porter asked, while Carter left to complete the paperwork with Lucinda and the rest of the party.

  ‘I was just being a gentleman.’ I shrugged, trying to keep a straight face, but my heart was still thumping inside my chest.

  ‘You just want to get in her pants. She’s a bit too skinny for my liking. And she’s an elf, so you should stay away from her.’

  ‘Whatever. Stay out of my business. I’m off for the rest of the day. Make sure that Carter doesn’t mess this up. I think that deal could be our ass saver.’

  Porter was still laughing when I walked out of the office shutting the door behind me. I went to splash some water over my face, but that didn’t help because I needed a cold shower. I took the lift up to my office.

  ‘I’ll be leaving. If anyone calls, make something up, would you?’ I ordered Emily.

  ‘Of course, Mr. La Caz.’

  I took my jacket and went downstairs. Julia Taylor was still in the building probably trying to get through an afternoon with Lucinda. God that woman would talk. I had no idea why I hired her.

  Porter was right: Julia was an elf and everyone knew that vampires and elves didn’t mix. At the same time, I was partly human like Julia and I wanted not only to get to know her but also to taste her. No other woman had that kind of effect of me. Well, maybe my ex-fiancé, but that was a long time ago. When Julia looked at me in that meeting, I felt like I was back in my life before I met Isabelle. Like I was able to fall in love and be happy again.

  I jumped in my Aston Martin and drove straight home. My apartment in Canary Wharf was way too big for one person and I’d considered getting rid of it, but we were in the middle of a recession and the property market was in pieces. I took all my clothes off and took a cold shower, going over the meeting again.

  It was after six when I was ready to go out. This time I went for casual clothes, ditching the Rolex and designer wear. I had to fuck someone tonight to forget about delicious Julia. She conjured my mind, flew into my body, penetrating every cell, drinking away the self- control. It was time to put a stop to my delusional thoughts about some fucking elf that I just met. I had to get back to my usual self and do what I could do best. Enjoy casual sex, run my business, and stop worrying about this emotional crap.

  Roberto, my driver, was waiting for me outside. He never asked any questions and that was why I liked him. He dropped me off at one of the Paranormal Clubs. Many of my friends were out tonight, but I wasn’t in the mood to join them. I had to find a classy woman who understood that I was only interested in sex, no strings attached. William, the bouncer, nodded to me and let me straight through. It was Wednesday night and it was obviously quiet.

  A few vampires nodded when I entered and a few witches turned in my direction.

  ‘Whisky, please, the best that you’ve got,’ I ordered, checking my phone. Porter called, but I knew that it probably was nothing important, so I decided to listen to his message later on. I scanned the space around me. There was a group of fairies in the corner eyeing me with curiosity. They were out of the question, plus there were too many of them. A mermaid was sitting on the other side of the bar drinking a glass of wine. She gave me a smile, but I ignored her.

  The barman put my drink in front of me, and I gave him twenty quid and told him to keep the change. For about half an hour nothing was happening. I drank my whisky slowly, enjoying its woody taste in my mouth. Images of Julia kept coming back to me, but I tried to think about something else.

  Then I heard a voice next to me. ‘Martini and lemonade.’

  I turned to face a beautiful tall paranormal in her thirties. She had amazing legs, which she showed off wearing a tight black dress. She had a round ass, not too big, and breasts about D cup. I licked my lips imagining sucking of those beautiful things. Her long wavy dark hair was shining in the dim light. She had red lipstick on. I didn’t care what she was; I already knew that she would be the woman I’d fuck tonight. I could tell she was older than me and had style. I also assumed she wouldn’t dress like that if she wasn’t looking for anything tonight. No one made an effort like that on a work night.

  I finished my whisky and approached her while she was sipping her drink. Her red lipstick left a mark on her glass. I glanced back at the room and saw that the fairies were staring at me intensely, probably watching my every move.

  ‘Excuse me, may I sit next to you?’ I asked, giving her one of my sexiest smiles. She turned to look at me, and for a moment she studied me like she was measuring if I was worth her time. She obviously liked what she saw because she smiled lightly. Her eyes were blue, deep and hypnotic, but they were so different from Julia’s.

  Why do I need to think about her right now!

  ‘Of course,’ she replied. I nodded to the waiter to get me another whisky and decided to cut to the chase and behave like a real gentleman, being honest with her about what I wanted.

  ‘I won’t be introducing myself and I won’t flirt, but I’ll tell you exactly what I’m looking for tonight. You are beautiful and I want to have sex with you, so why don’t we leave the bar and go to the hotel up the road so I can fuck your brains out?’ I said and held my breath, letting her absorb what I just told her.

  For a split second I thought that she would slap me, but then she put her drink down and raised her left eyebrow, smiling. ‘What makes you so sure that I came here looking for a quick fuck?’ she asked with a note of amusement in her tone, tossing her beautiful shiny hair behind her.

  I smirked and took a generous gulp of my whisky. The woman was definitely paranormal, but it didn’t matter what kind of creature she was. ‘Trust me, I can always tell. Shall we?’ I asked, firmly aware that she was going to walk away with me.

  ‘We shall,’ she replied and nodded for the bill.

  ‘Let me take care of that.’ I flopped a fifty-pound note on the bar after finishing my second whisky. My mind was corrupted by Julia, but not for long, because within a few moments I’d be thinking about the woman in front of me, the nameless creature. In a few minutes I could prove to myself that I didn’t need to be thinking about love. Julia was just another creature that I was attracted to.

  We didn’t talk as we walked across the road to the stylish hotel mostly run by paranormals. I booked the best room and in the lift I was wondering why my Johnson has gone flat all of the sudden. It was hard a few minutes ago and now my heart wasn’t even beating abnormally.

  ‘Do you do that often?’ she asked me, raising her left eyebrow and smiling. Maybe she was just a very expensive call girl. At that moment in time I didn’t fucking care, I had to release my tension. I’d had sex with many beautiful women, but in the past few weeks I had been busy with work, so I had no chance to meet anyone. Maybe that was why I’d been so distracted by Julia.

  I opened the room, let her in, and turned the key. I didn’t give her a chance to hesitate and started unzipping her tight dress. She giggled, looking completely relaxed. My mind was cloudy, the alcohol saturating my system, and I was also thirsty for blood.

  ‘Wait, don’t you want to know what am I?’ she whispered.

  ‘I don’t care. Don’t worry, I won’t hurt you. I’ll only pleasure you,’ I said, kissing her shoulder. Her skin was silky and she smelled divine. She accepted my answer, so I continued running my hand down below her back, stopping on her firm arse. Then my hand moved down between her legs and she let go of a soft moan. I turned her around abruptly, looking strai
ght into her eyes. Then the images started flowing back to me as if I were back at the meeting. I was seeing Julia’s lips, and she was running her hand down my back. I imagined taking a romantic walk with her; we were holding hands.

  I pushed the woman away, taking short breaths, sweat running down my back.

  No. I’m fucking pissed. Julia is still in my head and my Johnson is flat as asphalt.

  ‘I apologize, but something came up and I have to leave,’ I told her, struggling to keep the tension out of my voice. She was half naked, her breasts were thrilling, but I felt nothing, just an odd numbness like I was dead. She looked disappointed, and the air became dense, filling up fast with the crispy power of magic. I suspected that she was a witch. She wouldn’t be a fairy or an elf, because they all smelled unbelievable.

  Instead of talking to her, I took my jacket and left the room, feeling like a piece of trash.

  Inside the elevator, I knew that I had to see that half-elf again. She did something to me, and my intuition was telling me that our connection was going to take us further. My muscles tensed and I kept thinking that I had to have her in my bed sooner rather than later. I didn’t want to hurt Julia. I couldn’t risk an emotional attachment. We only just met, but I couldn’t get her out of my head. Maybe she was my next Isabelle?

  ***

  Next day I wasn’t myself and kept shouting at Emily all day long. In the end I went home early again, irritated about everything and everyone.

  Later on, I checked the website of Paranormal Personnel. They were based in Croydon. I wanted to show up there today and pay a visit to sweet Julia, but then I realised that I would look desperate.

  Instead of spying on her like some lame loser, I made a few calls to some of my business associates and made a connection with Rufus Humphries, the regional manager of Paranormal Personnel. I decided to phone him in the morning, pretending that I was interested in seeing the office and at the same time Julia, who was assigned to handle my account. From what my source told me, I was their the best client, so he would be eating out of my hand.