by Sam Crescent
“Are you okay?” he asked.
“Yeah, of course. I’m fine. More than fine. There is nothing wrong with me.” She didn’t know how to tell him about her feelings or what to say. This was all new to her.
“When we’re back home, I’m going to go and check on Rebecca. I don’t like her having this many sick days.”
“Doesn’t she get sick?”
“She does but not like this. They’re usually random days, not any real length of time. I remember when she had a nasty cough and was struggling to talk, she still came into work.”
“You care about her?”
“She has been one of the most competent PAs I’ve ever had. I don’t want to lose her. She’s also a friend, and I’m worried.”
She smiled. “That’s nice to know.”
Tucking some hair behind her ear, she looked up at the fancy restaurant.
“I can’t go in there, Nate,” she said.
“Why?”
“I’m not dressed for something so fancy.”
He laughed. “Whenever I come to London, I always have a table here, and believe me, I don’t dress the part. Come on. You’ve got nothing to worry about.”
They entered the restaurant, and Leah stayed close to his side.
The maître d’ didn’t turn them away. He led them toward the back of the restaurant in a small private booth.
There were a few candles secured around them, and it gave a nice glow. She put the bag down between her legs, keeping it close.
“Have you ever been to a restaurant?” Nate asked.
“No. A fast food place, yes, this kind of stuff, no.”
“There ae so many things I want to show you and treat you with.”
“You don’t have to do that.” If he was going to treat her, didn’t that mean he wanted more than some fun?
Don’t get ahead of yourself.
This is a dinner date.
Not an actual date.
You’re having sex.
Sex doesn’t lead to love.
She already knew his stance on love. No matter what happened between them, she had to keep her head in the game, and that meant not hoping for a future.
Lifting up the menu, she noticed there were no prices. “I don’t know how much anything costs.”
“This is all on me.”
“Nate, I don’t want you thinking I’m only here for your money.”
“You’re not?”
“No, of course not.”
“I’m teasing you. I know you’re not. You wouldn’t even let me pay for my veggie burger, remember.”
“It was a good burger.”
“True, it was certainly a new experience for me.”
She smiled.
“What will you have?” he asked.
“I’m thinking pasta with the vegetable Bolognese.”
“Good choice. I’ll have the same with garlic bread. Will you share some, as otherwise I’m going to stink?”
She laughed. “Yes, I’ll share some.”
Leah watched him as he ordered their food. His confidence was intoxicating. Nothing seemed to faze him. He was always in control. Always one step ahead.
She loved watching him.
Don’t fall in love with him.
She licked her dry lips and smiled at the waiter as he turned to leave.
“Thank you so much for bringing me with you,” she said.
Nate reached across the tables, taking her hands within his. “It’s a pleasure to have you here with me. There’s no one else I’d rather be with.”
I think I’m already falling in love with you.
Chapter Eight
The following week, work occupied his every waking moment, and with Rebecca still off work, a lot of the load fell to Leah. She tried, and Nate appreciated all she did. There were a lot of mistakes. She messed up the contracts, got the names wrong on emails. She accidentally sent out a working contract to one of his offices and sent down the wrong information to HR on his decision about an inhouse relationship. She gave the wrong time for meetings, so he was sitting around waiting on the incorrect days. Each time, he knew she worked even harder to try to rectify the problem. He also knew she was new at this, and Rebecca had kind of left her hanging in a role she wasn’t ready for.
By Friday night she had disappeared from his floor. He’d gotten back from a meeting downtown on one of the worksites, to find her being yelled at by one of his CEOs in his companies across state. It pissed him off. He’d fired the man instantly, and told him he better have his desk cleaned out within the hour. Nate had gotten the call from security to say the man had left. Now he had a new CEO position to fill, a sick PA to go and see, and his woman was off somewhere. He’d not seen her all afternoon, and he’d found the resignation letter on his desk when he returned from his private bathroom.
Her jacket and bag were still by her desk, so he knew she hadn’t fled the building just yet. Unless she’d run off and forgotten about them.
He checked his floor, and she wasn’t there. Going to the next floor, he checked each booth before going to the bathroom.
The moment he entered, he heard a sniffle.
There was no one else in the building because it was so late. One door was closed.
“Leah.”
“I’ll be right out.”
“You’re crying.”
“I’ll be fine.”
“You don’t need to cry.”
“It’s okay. I’m not crying.”
“You’re lying to me.” He leaned against the sink, folding his arms across his chest and waited. The door didn’t open.
“You shouldn’t have fired that man. He was really good at his job.”
“Is this why you’ve locked yourself in a bathroom stall and crying?”
He heard her sobbing, and he couldn’t stand it. Stepping up to the stall, he put his palm flat against the door. “Leah, open up.”
“No.”
“Please, don’t cry.”
“Did you get my resignation letter?”
“I got it, but I’m not going to accept it.”
“You can’t do that. You have to accept it.”
“I’m the boss. I don’t have to accept shit. Open the door.” He had to hold her, to stop her from being miserable.
“I’m useless.”
He heard the sadness in her voice, and all he wanted to do was protect her, to hold her.
“Open the door or I’ll break it.” He really didn’t want to do that. He could risk hurting her, and it was the last thing he wanted to do.
“Please, Nate, just go.”
“Not going to happen. One … two…”
The lock clicked, and the door slid open. Her face was a mess. She hadn’t worn any makeup, and her eyes were red and puffy as well as her cheeks.
He pulled her into his arms, and she broke down sobbing even more. “You’re not supposed to cry when I hold you.”
“I can’t help it. I messed up so much this week.”
“Leah, it’s not your job.”
“Rebecca’s sick, and she has taught me so much already.”
“She has taught you the basics but not all of this. It’s not your job to remember clients, meetings, and other stuff. You’re supposed to be learning from the both of us.”
“I messed everything up. I cost that man his job.”
“No, you didn’t.”
“He’s a CEO!”
“And an asshole. I was going to have to deal with him sooner or later.”
“Why?”
“He had several sexual harassment complaints that I was going to have to deal with. He’s been abusing his position of power for the last few months. Rebecca and I had scheduled a meeting for the end of next month. She was going to interview the women to get their full statements.”
“Oh.”
“When I came into my office just now and saw the way he was treating you, I saw fucking red. No one, and I mean no one, treats you like that. Not on m
y fucking watch.”
The bun she had her hair in had come loose, and he worked his fingers through the strands as she cried against his shoulder.
“You should fire me.”
“I’m not going to. People make mistakes all the time. I’ve told you, this was not perfection. This was … one mistake after another. Happy ones, bad ones, necessary ones. I learned on the job, and you will as well.” He tilted her head back and dropped a kiss to her lips. “There’s no way I’m letting you go.”
“I’m just your employee.”
“You’re more important to me than that. Now, I want to take you back to my apartment. You’re not going home tonight. I won’t have it.”
“Nate, I’ve stayed at your place every single day this week. My food is going to go off. I have to return home soon.”
“Nah, you don’t. You don’t need to do anything unless I tell you to.” He dropped another kiss to her lips. “Now, let’s see. Ah, yes, I’m taking you home, and then I’m going to go and see Rebecca.” He held her face, stroking her cheek. “How are you feeling?”
“Really crappy.”
“I’ll pick up ice cream on my way home, and it’ll make you feel so much better.” He kissed her again because he couldn’t deny himself the pleasure of her lips. “We’re not coming in to the office tomorrow.”
“It’s Saturday, you always come in the office.”
“Not tomorrow. I’m going to spend the day with you. You need a break.”
She groaned. “I don’t. I don’t want you to think I’m weak.”
“You’re not weak. I’m being selfish. I want you all to myself.” He slammed his lips down on hers, kissing her hard, knowing deep in his heart, he didn’t want to ever let her go.
****
After taking Leah home and demanding she have a nice long shower and relax for his return, Nate made his way across town, going toward Rebecca’s home. He rarely visited his PA at home. She didn’t like any interruptions, especially when she was sick. Seeing as he’d never known her to take so many sick days in a row, he was worried, and wanted to make sure she was doing okay. He didn’t like her being this sick and couldn’t help but worry something more sinister was happening.
Knocking on her door at seven, he knew she’d be pissed, and when his PA opened the door looking like death, he wasn’t mistaken.
“Nate, what are you doing here?”
“I know, is your husband going to be pissed?”
“He’s taken the kids out for ice cream.” Rebecca sighed. She wore a robe and her hair was down, and she looked pale. “Is everything okay?”
“Everything is fine with me. I brought flowers.” He moved them from behind his back so she could see.”
“Lovely,” she said. “To what do I owe the pleasure?”
“You’ve been my PA for some time now. In all that time, I’ve never known you to take this long. A day here or there. This is really unusual for you, and yes, I have a heart and I’m worried. Do I need to be worried?” he asked. “Is everything okay?”
“Everything is fine. Come on. Come in. I’ll make you a coffee.”
He followed her through to the kitchen, but urged her to take a seat at the bar while he made his own coffee.
“I don’t think I’ve ever seen you get your own coffee before,” Rebecca said.
“There are a lot of things you don’t know I’m capable of.” He winked at her. “So, everything is okay? You’re not hiding anything?”
“Nate, I’m sick, that is all. I did end up in the hospital for a couple of days. I wasn’t holding down any food or fluid, and I was severely dehydrated. I’ve been home a couple of days. It’s a really bad bug, and I had the ‘flu as well. If you want, I can get all colorful with you and tell you everything, but I didn’t feel comfortable being in the office. I’ll be back, fingers crossed, Monday. I have never felt this bad before, believe me. I’d take more sick days if I ever feel like this again. Leah called me. She was so upset. How is she doing?”
At the mention of Leah, Nate put the hot coffee down in front of his PA and sighed.
“I’m in love with her.”
“Now I wasn’t expecting that.” Rebecca had a smile to her lips.
“What’s that look?”
“What look?”
“You’re trying to act all innocent. I’m not buying it.”
“Look, I saw the way Leah drew your attention.”
“You’ve barely been at work.”
“And you barely know Leah, but when it comes to the heart, you know, you know?”
“No, I don’t know.” He paced the small kitchen. “I don’t get involved with colleagues. I don’t believe in falling in love, and I don’t do this. I’m not this guy.”
“You’ve not been this guy because you’ve not found the right woman. For the right person in your life, you’re willing to do whatever it takes for them. Believe me, I know.”
“She’s my employee. Bad at her job as well.”
“She needs more training. She was so upset with how much she messed up this week. I know. I tried to help, but if I’m not there, and with all the sickness, I wasn’t able to. I can train her.”
“I told her I didn’t do love. Not too long ago.”
“Then you’re going to have to tell her how stupid you were. Love is everything, Nate. It gives us purpose and meaning. For too long, you’ve only had your work, and it’s not healthy.”
“And falling in love is?”
“It’s everything. I love my Richard more than anything in the world, and our kids.”
“Kids, fuck! I didn’t even use a condom.”
“Nate, I care about you and all, but that is an overshare even for me.”
He ran fingers through his hair, and felt the panic beginning to rise up.
“You ever been scared in your business meetings?”
“Of course.”
“With love you put your heart and soul out there. You’re always at risk of it being crushed. It’s just the way life is.” She took his hand. “But you don’t want to waste a moment of that amazing connection to a person. I didn’t want to. It’s why I told Richard first, and he asked me to marry him, so long ago. It was the best decision I ever made. Don’t let someone go because you’re afraid. Love is love, and if you’re able to find it, hold onto it.”
Nate nodded. “I’ve got to go.”
“Tell Leah I’ll be in to train her properly on Monday, or Tuesday.”
Nate kissed Rebecca’s head. “I hope I don’t get sick.”
He rushed out of her house and climbed into his car. He had a woman to go and claim.
Chapter Nine
Leah sat watching some chick flick on the television after her shower. She was hungry, but Nate had also promised to bring home food. His fridge was empty, so she had nothing to snack on. When the movie got boring, she changed the channel, going up and down, finding nothing of any interest to watch.
Pursing her lips, she stopped on some music and leaned back, closing her eyes. Her head was hurting really bad.
Rubbing at her temples, she tried not to think about Nate or how hopeless she felt. In such a short time, he’d gotten under her skin and into her heart, and she truly didn’t know how to keep him out, if she even wanted to.
He didn’t believe in love.
She knew she loved him with her whole heart.
Their time together was pointless.
Useless.
But she couldn’t walk away.
The door of the apartment opened, and she got to her feet, seeing Nate rush toward her. She offered him a smile, and before she knew what was happening, she was in his arms, and he kissed her passionately.
“Nate, what is it?” she asked when he broke the kiss.
He cupped her face, his thumbs stroking each of her cheeks.
“I lied.”
“What?”
“I lied to you.”
“When?”
“Not too long ago. I told yo
u I didn’t believe in love.”
“I know. You don’t believe it exists.”
“I’m in love with you.”
She opened her mouth. Closed it. Opened it. “You’re in love with me.”
“I know it sounds crazy.”
“No, it doesn’t sound crazy at all, but … how is this possible?”
“All of my life I’ve never known love. I’ve known greed and power. People who want to exploit others to get more. I didn’t have a loving family. I know you didn’t as well, but building my empire, I had to harden everything. There were people who would destroy me. They didn’t like what I was building, and because of their anger and pain, I had no choice but to push everyone away. I don’t do love. I’ve never loved anyone or anything. My company has been my drive.”
“Why are you telling me this?”
“Then one day I saw a cute blonde woman delivering mail. She was so absorbed in what she was doing, she didn’t notice I was watching her. I saw her. Every single day, I’d see her, delivering mail, working hard. Not once did she try to flirt with me, or gain my attention. Then my PA had this crazy idea of training an intern, and she picked the same blonde woman I loved to watch. I didn’t think I’d fall for her. I knew I liked looking at her, and still she didn’t fall all over herself wanting me. Trying to tease me into her bed. She was a virgin when I took her. And I lied to her because I am totally, one hundred percent, in love with her.”
Tears filled her eyes. “You’re in love with me?”
“Yes. I didn’t think it was possible for me to love anyone or anything. It is. Believe me, it is. I love you more than anything.”
There were no words.
She stared into his eyes, and it was like she could see all of his true feelings and it was beautiful. Gripping the back of his head, she kissed him hard, moaning as he kissed her back. His tongue slid across her lips, and she gasped, laughing.
“I love you, Nate,” she said. “I do, and it’s not because of your money.”
“I know.” He laughed. “I know. I love you so much. Marry me.”
“What?” She didn’t know if she was dreaming anymore.