“What about the photos?” I asked, hating that they were going to be spread out all over the world. I tried to remember that it was my fault that she’d been hired, but I could have let my father’s company be sued and I just snag up my future wife.
“Claude will have them to the office by Monday morning, so don’t worry.” She patted my forearm.
“Good. Wait—what office?” She quickly grabbed the coffee before I tipped it onto the reports I just ran.
“Probably the ad agency since it’s all over the documentation we had them sign.” She shook her head and set the coffee on the credenza behind me.
“Damn it. I wanted to see them first,” I said, running my hands through my hair. I’d never been so careless, out of control, or clumsy.
“Yes, but they have the team that have to prepare for the ad campaign. Not us.”
“I know that, but that doesn’t mean I appreciate it. I didn’t sign a release of my image, so if I don’t like the video, I won’t allow them to share it,” I lied. It had nothing to do with why I hadn’t wanted the photos or clips released and everything to do with my luscious Ava.
She patted me on the shoulder as if I were a child instead of an adult and her damn boss. “That’s good. It’s your money, sir. You can demand it from them.” She looked around my desk, which had gone from semi-neat to completely destroyed in thepast twenty-four hours, and sighed, “Now, what do you need me to do here?”
I dug through the piles, found the file folder needed, and handed her the reports for the IRS to record for tax season.
“Read through them and make sure there’s no discrepancy. I don’t want any lawsuits on my hands, claiming any fiduciary misrepresentation.” Paying for the model on behalf of my father’s company might be considered illegal, given where I sourced the funds, so I had to be careful. It was from my personal accounts, but I didn’t want any suspicions or accusations.
“Of course.” She read through it and filed them. We worked through the rest of the evening.
“So are you planning on delivering the payment directly to her?”
“The check will come from the ad agency so I can’t give it to her unless I pick it up, but I plan on showing her the photos and video before they go live.”
“Good. I think that’s a great idea.” She smirked suspiciously.
“What’s that about?”
“I saw the shoot too, you know.”
“And?”
“I’m just wondering if I will be asked to be the godmother when those pretty little babies start popping out.” I laughed hard. “What? Are you trying to tell me that we were imagining the raw chemistry burning up the sheets? I swear I was fanning myself and had to leave the room for a moment. You’re my boss, after all.”
There was no point in denying the chemistry or anything between Ava and myself. I planned on plenty of babies. I hopedmy little sugary Ava was up for it because as soon as the thought landed in my brain, it took root. “Stop. And the whole godmother thing will have to be up to Ava too.”
“Oh, I’m sure she’ll say yes.” She winked and then got out of her chair and walked back over to her desk, smiling like she won when I was the one who really won.
When I finally got home, I tossed a pizza in the oven and then jumped in the shower. My local spot packed frozen pizzas for me to toss in the oven. I kept two in my freezer at all times, just in case. There were many nights that I worked late and needed a quick meal, and they did the trick.
By the time I went to bed, it was well after midnight, and I had to be back in the office early to check on my systems and meet with my staff.
Chapter Six
Ava
The entire weekend passed by in a blur, and I hadn’t heard a peep out of James. I supposed I should have expected it. I was just a silly girl who got a taste of a rich guy’s desire. Monday morning had been shit, and I worked for a truly cranky boss. Seriously, he was more on edge than before. I was home long enough to change into a pair of leggings, leaving my button-up on and was rolling up the sleeves when the doorbell rang.
When I checked it, a man in a suit stood there, fixing his cuffs and then running his hand through his hair. He looked familiar, but I wasn’t sure who he was. I opened the door slightly, and he smiled and said, “Hello. You must be Ava Kelly, correct?”
My eyes narrowed. “I am. Do I know you?”
“I apologize. My name is Henry Keaton. You did the photo shoot with my ad agency. You must have worked with my brother, James.” That explained the familiarity, the family resemblance, although James was insanely better looking than his brother. There was something about Henry that gave me pause.
“Oh. Yes, yes.”
He lifted up an envelope with my name on it. “I came to drop off your check and show you the photos. Do you have some time to go over them?”
