I Do the Boss (Managing the Bosses Series, #5)(6)

Jamie bit back the need to respond and closed the door behind the two men. She started to walk over to Kristen's desk in the far corner to lament over having to be the soon-to-be-Mrs. Reid, but stopped in her tracks.

Paul was leaning over her desk, laughing softly. The look on Kristen's pretty face said that she was enjoying his attention a little more than maybe was appropriate for the office.

Weren't she and Mark starting to talk about dating?

"Just come out for one drink. We'll have a good time. I promise." Paul moved back and slipped his hands into his pockets, smiling like a tomcat.

"I don't know. I really don't like the idea of dating anyone at work. It's kind of a policy I keep." Kristen stood up and shrugged.

Jamie turned and barreled into Mark, not seeing him there.

His strong hands gripped her shoulders. "Whoa. Watch it there, bulldozer." He smiled and released her before turning and glancing over at Paul and Kristen. His watched them for a minute before turning back to Jamie. "What's up with them?"

"No clue. Come on. Walk with me down to my office." She slipped her arm into his and turned, walking them down the hall. "Are you still trying to see her?"

"I was, kind of, I guess." He walked into her office and dropped down in the chair nearest the door. "I swear women are the biggest mystery in the universe. I'm glad I'm not married anymore, but dating is almost an equal hell. You guys say one thing and mean the other. We say what the hell we mean."

"Do you?" Jamie turned and put her hands on her hips. "If you told me that you thought I was beautiful... you'd mean it? Like you're totally, one-hundred-percent being honest that you think I'm beautiful."

"That or I'm trying to sleep with you." He shrugged. "What's your point?"

Jamie rolled her eyes and walked around to her chair, sitting down in it. "I don't have one, and if I did, you just proved it right. I’m a damn Cinderella. I need a drink."





Chapter 3


"What? Mark turned his attention to her. "Cinderella? I don't get it."

"Yeah, me either." She typed in her password and glanced over at him. "Can you grab me a copy of the paper from the bin downstairs? Would you mind? Alex mentioned something about the press being here causing our stock price to rise. I want to document the occasion for him. You know he'll want to reflect on it later."

Mark stood. "Yeah, sure, but tell me something... was Paul hitting on Kristen?"

Alex's handsome younger brother ran his fingers over his chin and watched her closely. He was such a great guy from all she had seen. Why he couldn't find someone to complement his personality and love him the way he needed to be loved was beyond her.

"I think so." Jamie let out a sigh. "Are you and she dating, or was it just a few times out to dinner and that's it?"

"We're not dating, or I don't think we are." He chuckled sardonically. "Hell, I don't know. Like I said, dating is the freaking pits. I have no clue how to do this anymore."

"You'll figure it out. I think Kristen isn’t the one you'll be figuring it out with, though."

"I guess you're right." He walked to the door and paused. "It's these pants. They make me look bloated, right?"

The smirk on his handsome face left her lip turning up.

"It's all those donuts you eat in the morning." She turned back to her computer. "You look great. She's just not the one. You'll find her."

"Maybe." He walked out as his voice softened, leaving Jamie to analyze his true feelings over the matter. If there were someone she knew that she could set him up with, she'd not hesitate to do it, but she really didn't have many friends.

Gina was about it, and the woman had sworn off men after the debacle with Nicholas. The * deserved to rot in jail for all he'd done. Not only for his attacks against Alex, but for breaking Gina's heart. To see hope die in the older woman was almost too much. Her new job wasn't what she'd hoped it would be, but there was no way around her willingness to commit fraud and steal from Alex.

Jamie had no doubt that her guy wanted to hire his long-term secretary back and get things back to the way they used to be, but it wasn't a possibility. Trust was broken, and in business there were no real second chances.

After plowing through her e-mail, Jamie picked up the phone to listen to her messages, finally finding a groove to settle in for the day. Sex with Alex was a great way to start the day, but having the press unnerve her and remind her of her unworthiness of his attention had worked to diminish any glow she might have felt before coming into the office.

"Hey." Mark's voice was deadpan, and his complexion washed out.

Panic raced through the center of Jamie as she stood. "What's wrong? Is Alex okay?"

"Yeah. It's nothing like that." He lifted the paper as he walked toward her desk. "It's this. I swear people have no sense of moral decency."

"Oh, good. You scared me." She picked up the paper and walked around to the small round table that sat in the middle of her office. Not having Paul and Mark in her office was great for getting more done, but truth be told it was a little lonely at times.

"Yeah, well, you haven't read it. Thank goodness it's just the National Enquirer, but still." He sat down in the chair beside her as she fingered through the various pages.