He was devastatingly handsome, with a perfect tan, white teeth, and a five-hundred-dollar haircut.
“Jay! What are you doing hiding down here? Everyone on the MRT floor is trying to organize a team lunch to welcome the new staff,” the younger man said, and Jay gave him a small smile and a shrug.
“Duty calls. I was just working with Milo here on the prototype.”
“Milo? Milo Murphy?” the man asked, his blue eyes shining as he gave me an appraising look.
I nodded, doing my best to calm the anxious flutter of my heart.
“I read your application essay.Veryimpressive. We’re super excited to have you here,” the man said, and my entire face turned tomato red.
“I would love to shake your hand, if that’s okay,” he said, and I nodded, sliding my hand into his and shaking it briefly.
“I’m Sebastian, Sebastian Stevens; this is my father, Luke.”
“Ohmygosh…” I said, feeling a little starstruck. “S-so nice to meet you. I’m honored and excited to be here, too.”
Sebastian gave me a handsome smile, and I found myself nearly swooning at how attractive he was.
Jay stepped slightly closer to me, and I glanced up at him, frowning at his uncharacteristically tight expression.
“What does Jay have you doing down here, Milo?” Luke asked. He was smiling as well, but there was something slightly more calculating in his expression, and it made me nervous. Like I was being tested somehow.
“We were just working on optimizing the memory gripping technology in the NeuroManipulator,” I explained, unsure how in-depth I was expected to go on the specifics.
Luke’s expression remained professional and cordial, his eyes flashing.
“That’s highly classified work that Jay has you working on for your first day. Have you signed the appropriate NDAs?”
“Uhm—”
Jay discreetly tugged my sleeve and positioned himself slightly in front of me, though he had his usual easy smile on his face. He waved a lazy hand at Luke, laughing.
“Don’t worry, I’ll have him sign everything he needs to sign before end of day. Milo already had some great ideas. We’ve been able to get a lot farther than I would have on my own. I’m really optimistic about our deadline.”
Sebastian’s eyebrows rose in surprise at the way Jay had casually touched me, but Luke looked intrigued.
“Is that so?” he asked, his deep voice rolling through the lab. It was slightly ominous, like the rumble of thunder before the sky opened up in a storm.
His ice-cold blue eyes met mine, and I resisted the urge to audibly squeak in fear.
“Y-yes, sir. We were just about to test it out.”
Jay glanced at me, his smile tightening slightly at the corners.
“Yeah, maybe we’ll test it later since everyone’s trying to go to lunch.”
“Good call, no need to burn him out on his first day. We don’t want him thinking life at Neurovance is all work and no play.” Sebastian winked at me, his blue eyes considerably warmer than his father’s.
Luke glanced at his son, raising a perfectly manicured eyebrow.
“And that’s why you’re in comms and not research, Sebastian,” Luke said sternly. I didn’t miss the way Sebastian flinched at the clear reprimand, and I frowned.
Luke made it seem like heading up one of the most renowned marketing departments in the world wasn’t the accomplishment that it was.
It made me not like him.
I was used to having my own accomplishments belittled. Seeing Luke do it to Sebastian triggered me, and I suddenly wanted to get away from the tall, well-dressed man with the cold blue eyes.
