Monday
Abby struggled with whether or not she should wear her hair down.
If she wore it in a twist-out as she had for the interview, would it trigger Peter Howard and make him want to take back the job offer? Or had it actually turned him on to be chided and swatted like a fly?
Was he, in fact, looking forward to being reminded of the incident, perhaps hoping for more sexy disrespect in the future?
In the end, she decided to pull her hair back into a low bun—it made her look like she meant business the most, and she certainly did; she had no time for shenanigans—Peter’s or anyone else’s.
Abby took her time choosing her first outfit, reminding herself how important first impressions were. Red and animal prints and other ‘loud’ pieces were out immediately. Black was too somber, while green and yellow were terrible colors for the mature impression she wanted to make.
She ended up playing it safe with a crisp white blouse that offered no cleavage, although it did flatter her B-cups, and a navy-blue skirt that hugged her curves but hit her below the knees—a conservative yet flattering look vaguely hinting military.
She wore plain black pumps and brought along a navy-blue blazer in case it got cold or she needed to feel even more business-like and in control. Small diamond studs decorated her ears, but no other jewelry. She kept her makeup fairly light, skipping eyeshadow but lining her eyes and lengthening and darkening her eyelashes with mascara, topping off her look with a red-brown lipstick.
Blush got skipped for the same reason she wasn’t wearing yellow and green clothing—she didn’t want to look too young. Even though she was over a quarter of a century—nearly twenty-seven, in fact—she still looked like a college student.
The makeup she applied hadn’t helped age her much, as usual, but she knew that putting on more would only give her an evening look—one that certainly wouldn’t help her get taken more seriously.
She considered wearing fake glasses but decided against it—depending on how things went on day one, and after seeing what everyone else was wearing, she’d adjust as needed for the following day.
“Abigail,” a masculine voice intoned, jolting her out of her thoughts.
She turned toward the voice and stood from her seat in the reception area. “Hello, Peter,” she said with a smile—one not too big but also not too subtle.
“Nice to see you again,” the older man said with an unreadable look in his eyes and a slight smile, his hand reaching out for hers.
She took it and shook it briefly, “You too.”
Peter was probably in his fifties, though most of his hair was still brown with just a few streaks of gray. When she saw him last, he had a stressed look about him, but at this moment, he seemed to be holding back amusement.
She wondered why he’d be so amused—because she was in front of him again after telling him off two weeks ago? Or did she have lipstick on her teeth? She ran her tongue over the top row just in case.
“I’m so glad you were able to start right away,” he said. “Follow me—we have a few things to go over in my office.”
Abby did as told, keeping her resting face soft and pleasant. She didn’t really know what was going on—she sensed all sorts of strange vibes between the interview and now, and she figured she was about to find out what was simmering beneath the surface—at least, she hoped she was.
The building felt weird, and Peter struck her as shifty. They entered an office and he directed her to a seat before heading behind his desk and plopping himself down in the brown leather chair.
“Please close the door,” he said as she was about to sit down.
She did as told, then sat in the chair opposite him.
“As you know you’ll be working directly and very closely with a top executive,” Peter began.
Abby nodded, remembering the job description.
“A bit more history: when the CEO died, his son, Dan, wasn’t quite ready to step up, so I’m here until he is. I am the interim CEO.”
Abby felt struck; all this time she’d thought she’d been interviewing and meeting with someone from HR!
“Dan has learned most of the ropes but he’s having trouble in a few key areas. That’s where you come in. He finally has a solid executive assistant—we’ve had trouble keeping previous ones due to certain…tendencies… of his. He seems to resent positions such as yours, rejecting the idea of a ‘babysitter,’ as he called it, so he’s been acting out since. But we need someone to keep a close eye on him and more.” He paused, taking a deep breath. “I can’t say you don’t have your work cut out for you, Ms. Brennan,” he said soberly, his blue eyes unblinking.
Abby felt her calm resting face drop a little but didn’t bother fighting it, her mind working furiously. What was really going on here? Why all the drama?
“And what am I keeping an eye out for?” she asked evenly.
“Reckless behavior. Don’t get me wrong—Dan’s quite professional for the most part, but his extracurricular activities make the board nervous. I’ve been charged with making sure he’s ready to take over, and I’m hoping you’re the final piece to click everything in place.”
Peter leaned back and put his hands behind his head. “I must say, I was very impressed by your experience and credentials, but even more so with the way you handled yourself during the interview. You have the sort of strength and grit needed for this job. I really hope you’re as no-nonsense as you seemed. To be honest with you, the reaching-out-to-touch-your-hair thing at the interview—that was a test. And obviously, you passed.”
“But if I hadn’t swatted your hand away?”
“No way was I actually going to touch—can’t risk even something like that these days. I probably would have pulled back and played it off.” He leaned forward again. “Now before we get you started, I need to emphasize a few things, particularly that office romances are strictly forbidden here,” he said with another harsh, unblinking look.
Abby nodded, thinking, As usual.
“It’s pretty much the general policy in most working circumstances, but, of course, things happen with human beings working in close quarters and seeing each other almost every day. This is one place where we enforce that policy strictly—termination of one or both parties if found out. Of course, in this case, that means just you.”
So that’s what the weirdness was about—Peter wanted to make sure she promised not to throw herself at the guy!
Ha! No problem.
For one, she’d been celibate for over two years now. She saw no need to break it for some rich, entitled dude who could easily satisfy his needs whenever he wanted as many times as he wanted; she had no interest in being added to his long list of conquests.
And two, she actually firmly believed in keeping romance and work separate herself. Business and pleasure absolutely should not mix—unless that was one’s specific kink, and it wasn’t hers.
And three... well, she’d never been tempted to date a white guy. She’d found many attractive, but her mind soon went to all the potential problems for such a relationship.
Did the guy see her as a person or an exotic thing to try? Did he have racist friends or family members who’d make things difficult for them? Would he stare at her like she’d sprouted a second head the first time he spotted her hair before she styled it? How many preconceived notions would she have to disabuse him of?
“I can assure you of my professionalism in every aspect,” she told Peter confidently.
“Good,” he said, his mouth turning up a bit in one corner—but his hard blue eyes said, “We’ll see about that.”
She’d show him.
“The last woman in your position had the nerve to ask for a reference after breaking that cardinal rule,” Peter continued. “Can you believe that? Of course, I had little positive to say about such an unprofessional person. Ultimately, she didn’t quite get what she was hoping for out of me or Daniel Crawford.”
Abby didn’t miss the second threat.
“Anyway, you’ll learn more about Dan’s issues as time goes on, but for now, I’ll walk you to HR—we need you to sign some paperwork before you meet Dan. When you do meet him, don’t let him fool you or seduce you, one way or another; he’s quite slick. Got it?”
“Got it.”
“Good. Well, that’s it for now. Let’s go,” he said, rising from his comfortable-looking seat.
At least smile, girl. Are you smiling?
Abby couldn’t tell what her face was doing—all she knew was that she had been struck dumb and could no longer move. It was as if the man in front of her—Daniel Crawford—had become her puppet master, and when he was ready to tug at her strings, she’d be able to walk and talk again.
When her eyes had initially rested on Mr. Crawford sitting behind his desk, and he greeted her with a smile, all warnings and fortitude melted away. She’d never been caught off guard like that—struck by another human being in a way that made her feel as if time had stopped.
The man was unexpectedly gorgeous—broad shoulders, and a handsome, chiseled, tan face with piercing gray eyes. Dark hair that looked immaculately styled except for one wayward section, and a business look he wore so well, his crisp white shirt rolled up a little at the sleeves and exposing muscular forearms.
Daniel Crawford exuded confidence—so much so that it almost felt as if she could reach her hand out and touch the edge of it.
Abby cleared her throat. Or had that been Peter? She’d just remembered he was still there.
“I’ll leave you two to get acquainted,” Peter said neutrally, but she felt his eyes on her—a sharp, focused gaze that felt like a glare and helped bring her out of her stunned state.
She didn’t dare look at him, wasn’t even sure she could’ve if she’d wanted to.
“Until later, Peter,” she managed to say, her eyes still glued to Daniel Crawford who was now wearing a devilishly sexy smile as he rose to stand behind his desk.
The man was tall—at least six foot three. “Hi,” she finally responded to his greeting.
Nice, a nasty voice said inside her. Super smooth and well-timed. He only said hi, what, a minute ago?
But she couldn’t help it—the man was absolutely breathtaking.
She’d seen handsome men before and well-built men who almost made her drool, but this guy, standing there in his suit and emanating a confounding mix of recklessness and stability shoved her off-kilter.
“You must be Abigail,” Daniel Crawford said in a voice that seemed to slither across the room, somehow entering both her ears and the sensitive spot between her legs.
There was no doubt about it—whether this guy had been loaded or not, he’d have women eating out of his palms daily.
She was disturbed by the intensity of what she felt and how much control it seemed this stranger suddenly had over her.
What the hell was his power exactly? The intoxicating cologne and striking good looks and the way he looked in his business attire all at once? The knowledge of his massive wealth buoying his natural physical assets?
Abby mentally shook herself, reminding herself why she was there and what she had promised both Peter and her own damn self.
“Yes. I’m Abigail Brennan.”
“Come closer, Abigail. I won’t bite.”
His words were accompanied by another beautifully wicked smile, so she immediately doubted them. Still, she forced herself to move a little closer.
“Why don’t you have a seat,” he said, indicating a chair at the side of the room.
She dragged it over, ignoring what felt like his eyes on her behind. She placed the chair dead center opposite him, about a foot away from his desk, and plopped down in it.
Good. There’s a whole desk between you—at least five feet of distance. You’re fine. Suddenly, she was thinking of a much better use for his desk than holding up papers and pens and a computer.
Daniel sat down again, leaning back a little in his chair, his gorgeous eyes sparkling with a bit of humor as he regarded her silently for a few seconds. She couldn’t take the direct scrutiny, so she averted her gaze while mentally working on getting herself together.
To her horror, Daniel rose from his seat again and quickly joined her on the other side of the desk so that he was standing right next to her as he leaned against it. His masculine aroma and intimidating presence made her lightheaded, and she realized with great shame that her panties were damp.
Just when she thought things couldn’t get worse, he leaned down, his mouth suddenly at her ear and sending unending tingles through her body, from her sensitive ear to her wide-awake core. “What do you say we get out of here and go for a spin?”
As much as her lady parts screamed “yes,” her brain finally decided to make a comeback.
Daniel Crawford had said just the right thing to bring her back to her senses. She pivoted away from him, almost falling back over the chair as she did so, but she recovered gracefully and faced him from behind it—a flimsy barrier, but still.
“Sir, I’m not some wet-behind-the-ears recent grad.” She ignored his sly grin. “I’m not looking to be another notch on your belt, and I’m certainly not desperate or greedy enough to endure being hit on to pay my rent or student loans. So I need you to purge all naughty thoughts from your head and focus; help me do my job here. First of all, can you bring me up to speed on what you do so I have a better sense of what my actual job requirements are?”
Daniel smiled a different sort of smile this time, one without all of the wicked implications of the previous ones. “Good girl,” he said in a slightly different voice.
She wondered how many times he immediately bedded a new assistant; from what she’d gathered, the company had kept going through them for the past several months.
How many women managed to say no to him the first day? How many of those who managed to resist the first time said no the second time?
Not many, if any at all, she guessed. This guy was about as irresistible as she’d ever met. Even if the women knew they’d be fired, how many could resist one night with such a specimen? Look how close she’d gotten to yes, considering how adamant she was about keeping work and dating separate!
Pretty much any straight woman assigned to Daniel Crawford was doomed. But not her—she’d be the exception. The sexy multimillionaire wasn’t worth the risk to her for a number of reasons—enough to keep her head on straight. She had serious responsibilities to consider, among other things.
Peter Howard would learn quickly how right he’d been to hire her—she was definitely the best person for the job.
Don’t let him fool you or seduce you, one way or another; he’s quite slick, Peter’s words echoed.
Abby wondered what else was lurking beneath Daniel Crawford’s handsome surface, getting ready to clobber her unexpectedly now that she’d signed all the required paperwork.