Broken Wings (A Romantic Suspense)(17)

It opens into an old-world kind of feel, wood paneling and thick carpets, all offices. No cubicles up here. Frank leads the way and opens the door into my office for me. My name is freshly stenciled onto the frosted glass, above Vice President of Acquisitions. Whatever the f*ck that is.

“You stay here and be good,” Frank says in an exasperated tone. “I’ll come collect you at six.”

“What’ll I do until then?”

“I don’t know, look busy.”

He pulls the door shut.

I walk around my office. It’s richly appointed with built-in bookcases and a massive slab of a desk, just standing in here makes me feel old. The only concession to modernity is a computer on the desk, a swanky iMac. I sit down and turn it on, and there’s a knock at the door.

“Come in.”

A woman strides in and closes the door and makes me forget myself for a minute. She’s sex on legs. Tall, with a model’s gait, she has more curves than a mountain highway, several days of legs, a chest that sets the standard for voluptuous, and jet-black hair as rich and thick as silk. The way her top is unbuttoned, I can see a bit of black silk bra beneath her crimson blouse.

“Hi. I’m Melissa. I’m your assistant.”

Her voice is buttery smooth, and she’s giving me a look that would bring the coldest man to attention. I rise from my desk.

“Hi, can I ask you something?”

“Sure.”

“Did my father tell you to sleep with me?”

Her eyes widen.

Then she slaps me.

“How dare you…”

I sigh. “Just tell me the truth. Nobody here but us.”

She sneers at me, but it turns into a frown. “He didn’t say I had to, but… I got the impression if you make a move and I go with it, it’ll be good for my advancement in the company.”

“Okay, cool, I’m making a move.”

I grab her shoulders and, holding her at arm’s length, push her around the desk and then sit her into my chair. Then I step back.

“Um,” she says, “is this going to be weird? I don’t do weird.”

“No. Well, probably. Okay, here’s what I want you to do. You’re my assistant, right?”

“Yes.”

“So you take all my calls?”

“Yes.” She nods.

“Set things up for me?”

“Yes.”

“Okay, good. I want you to pretend you’re me while I’m gone. Just tell whoever calls or emails to do what I’d tell them to do.”

She blinks a few times. “What? I can’t do that, I—”

“Sure you can. How long have you been with the company?”

“Nine years, I started right out of college—”

“Great, Dad thinks I want some cougar action.”

She sputters in the chair. “What did you call me—”

“A cougar. I’d call you a MILF but I don’t want to presume you have kids. Do you?”

“No, I’m not married—”

“Right, good, though I wouldn’t put it past Dad to send a married woman in here with instructions to suck my dick so I don’t leave.”

She starts to turn red. “He wasn’t that specific—”

I grab the arms of the chair and lean over her.

“Look at me.”

She looks me in the eye.

“You’re hot,” I say. “Really hot. If I was that type of guy I’d have you on the desk already, I mean if you were down, but I’m not and there’s somebody else. Let me ask you something. How long have you worked in this department?”

“Since the beginning.”

“Do you think you could do my job?”

She sighs. “Is this a test?”

“No, just be honest. My dad is an *. I’m not going to rat you out to him.”

“Yes, I do,” she says firmly. “I worked under your predecessor for six years, shadowing her every day. I did most of the work anyway. I talked to your father about a lateral move. He once told me I was too valuable to promote, unless we discussed it over dinner.”

“See, everybody here is an *! Except I’m not. I’m going to give it to you straight. I want you to button up your blouse and start wearing something comfortable instead of showing leg, beginning tomorrow. Except the blouse thing, do that now.”

Without taking her eyes off me, she starts doing up the stray buttons.

“Okay, next thing. I have way more important shit to do than…whatever this is. I need you to cover for me while I’m out of the office.”

She blinks. “For what? Look, this is my career—”

“If I don’t tell you, you can’t get in trouble. This is acquisitions. I’m going to go acquire something.”

“I could lose my job. I can’t lose this job.”

“I won’t let you,” I sigh. “Look, you got this. Just do everything on my behalf. I’ll be back. Eventually. If Frank shows up and I’m not here, tell him I left and I threatened to fire you if you didn’t cooperate. Cry. He’s a sensitive guy, he’ll buy it.”

“Um. Okay?”

“Good. I’ll be back, good luck.”