Matt checks his laptop. “He’ll be back tomorrow.”
“And… where did Sebastian… find you?”
“Oh! I was Nathan Porter’s PA for the last five years. But he retired and didn’t need anyone full time anymore, so here I am.”
That will teach me to judge a book by its cover. I look at the guy opposite me with new respect. Porter, who is probably pushing seventy now, is a legendary leading man in Hollywood. He was a friend of the Blake family, and I know Sebastian looks up to him, sees him as a mentor of a sort. If Nathan recommended Matt, he must be good.
“When did you start? Puberty?” I joke.
“Oh. Ha. Yeah. I get that a lot.” He gestures to himself. “I have a baby face. I took the job straight out of my MBA. I graduated early.”
So he’s bright-eyed and smart. And not as young as I first thought.
This is good.Training someone who’s competent is much easier.
Yet a knot of something dark and twisty takes up residence in my heart. What if this has something to do with the other night? I was drunk and completely out of line. I mean, I’ve seen Sebastian in much worse scenarios over the years, so I didn’t think he’d be judgy. But he’s my boss and…
This is good.Matt’s being here is proof that Sebastian has accepted that I’m leaving.
It’s proof he’s moved on, with dizzying speed.
The dark knot tangles tighter.
I take a deep breath. I’m the one who took this path. So I need to keep walking it.
If I’m off-balance, it’s because I haven’t taken charge of the situation. I’ll feel better once I take control.
Begin as you mean to go on.
I clear my throat. “Well, I guess we’d better get started. We only have a short time to make you the perfect assistant for Sebastian.” I sit back down and shoot him an appraising look.“Let me show you how his calendar works. And I have to warn you, there area lotof spreadsheets.”
He smiles widely. “Now you’re speaking my language.” His unabashed happiness at the idea of spreadsheets affirms that he’s one of my people.
We grin at each other. And he moves over to the seat next to mine as together we look at my laptop, making our way through spreadsheet after spreadsheet. I explain each one, and he gasps in appreciation at them.
They really are a thing of beauty.
As Matt oohs and aahs over the master calendar that I coded myself, I drain the last of my coffee. And look over at Marie. Damn, I’ll miss her. And her incredible Americanos. And this table. And this house. And…
I shut down that final thought before I can give voice to it.
CHAPTER 15
Emma
Me:
Um. Did you forget to tell me something? Like you’d be out of town? And you hired my replacement without letting me know?
BossMan:
Miss me already?
Matt was right.
Sebastian is back the next day. It’s late morning, and he’s lounging against the kitchen island, downing an espresso.
I’m still annoyed with him for not updating me about his changed schedule and impromptu trip to New York, so I studiously ignore him and focus on Matt, who, as suspected, is an amazing assistant. We’re sitting together as he shows me a new closet-organizer software that is blowing my mind. I’ll definitely use it for my business.
