"They're educational, luckily." I sip my drink and set down my glass, twisting the stem. "I might be entertained, but unlike Charles, who has a doting wife, I’m sent on pointless errands: dry cleaning, power bar restocking." Elodie smirks at my list, then gulps down the rest of her drink. "He hates bagels, so at least I don’t have to remember that. I swear, if he could, he’d probably ask me to get on my knees and shine his shoes."
Elodie nearly spits out the last of her wine, and her eyes drift over my shoulder.
“Well, you aremy personalassistant.” The familiar smooth voice has a hint of swelter, and everything inside of me sinks.
A long moment of stiff silence casts over us before Elodie croaks as she stands. “This is probably my cue to leave and wish you both happy tidings. Bye.” She swipes her jacket off the back of the chair. “Mr. Haven,” she greets him politely before fleeing.
I can’t protest or say goodbye—she leaves too quickly. I feel embarrassed and uneasy knowing Julian won’t let this go. When he takes Elodie’s seat, his smug look confirms it.
“On your knees? Hmm, highly inappropriate, Ms. May.” He indicates to the barman, and I’m not sure why.
My eyes set on him, doing my best to show that I’m unaffected by whatever taunt he is about to throw my way. “And what brings you here, dear boss?”
“You’re a smart cookie. Many people from the office come here after hours.”
I raise my brows at him. “You mean for happy hour? That’s what normal people call it. I’m not sure happy is in your vocabulary, though. And you most certainly are not like us normal people.”
He leans his elbow on the bar. I notice he ditched his suit, blazer, and cufflinks at the office. The casual style suits him too well. My body instantly reacts—which is a damn problem.
“Happy is very much part of my vocab. I’m just waiting for the moment to use it. And to answer your question, I’m here because I ordered food to take home.”
“Didn’t want me to do that for you?” I flippantly wonder.
A whiskey is set before him. I might ask how the barman knew, but it's Julian—he’s likely friends with the owner, or aregular, brooding in his corner, plotting how to scorch the earth.
“What? Place the order or cook for me?”
We are going to go in circles with our tit-for-tat, it seems, and I accept that, which is why I grab my drink and lift it to my mouth. “I’m positive my cooking wouldn’t be up to your standards.”
“Why? You’re a bad cook?”
I swallow, pleased by the perfect vodka-to-coffee ratio. “No. I prefer family-style meals, right down to the meatloaf and mashed potatoes.”
He leans back and doesn’t hide that he appraises me up and down. “You don’t seem like someone who lives off of meatloaf.”
My face warms; that was his way of giving a compliment. It's not so bad that it's about my looks, especially when he could have any model on his arm—and, more importantly, has already seen me naked.
“No, I don’t.” Right on cue to dodge the past indiscretion, the universe delivers my appetizer. Crap, with Elodie gone, how will I eat all this? “Instead, I eat vegetables covered in a cheese nobody knows.”
“You’re going to eat all of that alone?” He appears skeptical.
“I was sharing, but my boss scared away my friend.”
Julian leans back on the stool, taking his drink with him. “I’ll help you finish that.”
I freeze, and my eyes meet the dare in his. “That would mean you have to stay and be blessed with my company.”
He shrugs. “And? I promise not to bring up work.”
I slam my hand on the counter and pretend to search. “Who is this? What have you done with my boss?”
A natural smirk hits a little different on the sexy front.It’s… soft and honest. “Give me a break. I’m starving, and I was forced to look at photos of a baby’s birthday party when I was done with a meeting.”
“Yeah, that is rough,” I reply dryly and stab a mushroom with my fork before moving the plate in his direction.
“I knew you were studying, but Charles mentioned once that you’re almost done with your degree in business administration.”
I’m surprised he’s bringing it up, actually astonished. Mostly because he sounds genuinely interested. “Uh, yeah.” Suddenly, it dawns on me. “I guess you know that Charles, in his desperation, told me that the company will pay off any of my student debt.”
