“Well, Jason, to be honest right back at you, it’s you I’m worried about.”
“Me? Why?”
William let out a dramatic sigh. “You asked for an assistant who wasn’t going to come on to you. We found you one. You asked for an assistant who is married. We found you one. You basically wanted a completely uncomplicated business companion who had no interest in you personally and yet here you are, attacking Maggie’s personal life. She’s your assistant; she’s nothing to you. Leave her personal life alone, it’s none of your concern.” His tone was mild but his words were meant to provoke.
“What the hell is the matter with you?” Jason snapped. “Maggie’s more than just an assistant to me! She’s…” And then he caught himself and wished that he could take his words back. Dammit.
“Jason,” William said, suddenly serious. “Maggie is just your assistant, right? You haven’t done anything to change that, have you?”
His father knew him too well and Jason knew that lying would be pointless. “It wasn’t supposed to be like this,” he admitted quietly. “I liked her work ethic, I enjoyed our conversations, and then we started this trip and suddenly…I’m getting to know Maggie and I feel…connected to her somehow. I look forward to spending time with her and getting to know her, and then I have to remind myself she’s married and I realize I’m no better than all of those women who’ve worked for me these last months.”
“You are nothing like that, Jace,” his father replied solemnly. “How does Maggie feel?”
Once again, Jason knew it would be pointless to lie. “I think she maybe feels the same way but…she’s married, Dad. I would never, ever do anything to jeopardize her marriage.”
William took a deep breath and slowly let it out. “Talk to Maggie,” he said simply.
“To what end, Dad? She’s married; she’s my assistant. There is no way this can end well.”
William repeated his words. “Trust me.”
If only it were that easy. “It’s getting late,” he finally said, suddenly feeling mentally and physically exhausted.
“Think about what I said, Jace.”
“I will, Dad. Thanks for talking with me. Good night.”
Jason powered down his phone, stripped, and climbed into the king-sized bed. Flipping the lights off, he rested against the pillows and stared into the darkness, wondering just what he was going to do about this situation.
He was a man used to being in control, a man who knew how to overcome every obstacle thrown in his path. Unfortunately, this was not a simple case of overcoming some red tape in a business deal or appeasing a difficult client.
This was about his heart.
This was about Maggie’s marriage.
This was about a situation that would leave somebody hurt. And Jason didn’t want to be responsible for that.
He had to force himself to put his focus back on his business, to remember that Maggie was off-limits no matter how much she tempted him. But most important, Jason had to remember that for the first time possibly in his life, he wasn’t going to get what he wanted.
Chapter 5
Five more days.
Jason stared out his hotel window overlooking the Atlanta skyline and let out a weary sigh. Those first few days immediately following the hockey game had been the hardest of his life. While being a hardass had never been a problem for him before, it was suddenly one now when the one he was being hard on stared back at him with sadness and confusion written in her big brown eyes.
It had taken every ounce of strength he possessed not to cave in.
Not that he had been mean, no; Jason had gone into extreme workaholic mode and spent every waking moment doing nothing that wasn’t directly related to Montgomerys and the expansion project. They could probably go home right now and skip these last few days of meetings—things had gone so well as they’d traveled down the East Coast that Jason didn’t feel they’d be missing out on anything. He had more than enough business to make him happy.
But no, being the ultimate planner and perfectionist, and knowing that he always finished what he started, Jason knew he had to get through these last five days even if it killed him.
And it just might.
To her credit, Maggie never outright questioned Jason on his abrupt change in behavior. When they’d met for breakfast that Sunday morning in New York, he’d made sure that he was deeply entrenched in his agenda for their upcoming meetings. He’d questioned her lack of preparedness and had actually sent her back to her room to get her laptop so that she could get some work done after their day off.
For the nine days that had followed, Jason had worked like a man possessed. He was up before dawn on most days and would utilize the hotel gym before starting work. By the time he met up with Maggie daily, he had already gone through an hour of the only physical release he could manage. He pushed his body to its limits every morning and then did the same to his brain throughout the day until he fell into an exhausted sleep every night.
And still it wasn’t enough to take the edge off of what he was feeling for her.
Jason was careful to keep them from participating in any social settings as they had early on in their trip. Although he had a couple of charitable events on their agenda, he’d managed to exclude Maggie from them under the guise of needing her to prepare contracts and reports that were vital to their project.
Well, he laughed at himself mirthlessly, they weren’t vital to the project quite as much as they were vital to helping him keep his distance. And his sanity. Maggie never argued, and actually seemed relieved not to have to traipse along with him everywhere he went. While Jason knew deep down that he should have taken his father’s advice and actually talked to Maggie, he just couldn’t bring himself to do it.
Five more days.
It might as well be a damn lifetime.
Turning from his view from the top floor of the Loews Atlanta, Jason took a look around the room. It was beautiful; it was luxurious. It was far too big for a man alone. The king-size bed only emphasized that he was sleeping alone and he didn’t like it. If he really wanted to, there was no doubt Jason could go out and find company for the evening.
But he didn’t want company, he wanted Maggie.
Dammit.
The bedside clock showed it was nearing midnight and Jason was too keyed up to sleep. He couldn’t wait to get back to Charlotte: back to his own home and his own bed and his own life. Maybe once he was back in his own surroundings this obsession would end. Maybe once they were back to working in the office and not spending so much time with only one another for company, Jason would be free to pick up the phone and call a woman for a date without wishing she were someone else.
Maybe he would lose his mind before they ever got home.
Five more days.
* * *
Maggie was miserable. While Jason was doing exactly what he was supposed to be doing—being her boss—she missed the camaraderie that they had shared early on in the trip. She kicked herself daily for letting her guard down and allowing herself to have feelings for him.
In her own defense, Jason Montgomery was an incredible man. He was kind and funny and intelligent, the type of man who really took an interest in you when he wanted to. And for a couple of days there, he seemed to really want to know Maggie.
Then he didn’t.
She was certain it was her own fault. After all, here she was, a supposedly married woman who couldn’t seem to stop throwing herself at him. She was the exact thing Jason had been trying to avoid on this trip. It was no wonder he barely looked at her. He was probably trying to think of ways to send her home and possibly move her back to the customer service department.
That thought was more than a little depressing, and Maggie let out a sigh. It was late and she was sitting alone in her hotel room curled up in a chair. Not that long ago, if anyo
ne had told her she’d be staying in a luxury hotel and working as an executive assistant for an attractive man, she would have snorted with disbelief. Add the fact that she was the one attracted to the boss and not the other way around, and she would have laughed out loud. And yet here she was.
They had less than a week left on the trip. Three days in Atlanta, two in Miami, and then it was back home. What would happen then? She couldn’t imagine Jason would fire her immediately. No, they still had a lot of work to do on this expansion project once they were back at Montgomerys. But once the project was wrapped up and it was back to business as usual, then what? Could she go to his father and request a transfer back to her old position?
Maggie stood and walked over to her mini fridge, pulling out a bottle of water and taking a long drink. She didn’t want to go back to her old life, not really. The woman she had been before this trip was a scared woman, a shell of a person. She wasn’t living. She’d had no friends. These last weeks with Jason opened her eyes to how much there was to do and see, and she was missing it all because of the actions of one person. Maggie was done letting that bastard have any control over her life.
Placing the water on her nightstand, Maggie went about the task of getting ready for bed. Walking into the bathroom, she turned on the light and then took a long hard look at her reflection. She was too young to hide away from life any longer. While she didn’t have a clue what to do about Jason and her feelings for him, she did know that when they got back home she was going to start getting involved in things. She’d finally accept some of those after-work invitations her co-workers were always extending. Maybe she’d join a gym, take a class or two, and start going out more.
Reaching for her toothbrush, she couldn’t shake the image of the person she wanted to go out with the most.
Jason.
“You have to let that go,” she scolded her reflection. “He’s your boss and that’s all he is ever going to be. He thinks you’re married for crying out loud. How are you going to explain that one?”
She’d really backed herself into a corner. At the time it had made perfect sense, but now that she was ready for a change, Maggie realized one little lie was going to complicate her life in a major way.
For now she had no choice but to continue with the ruse. It had kept her from doing something completely foolish with Jason, and as much as she hated to admit it, it was probably for the best that they hadn’t fallen into bed together on this trip. It would only make things more difficult and confusing when they got home.
Unfortunately, the image of Jason in bed had her heart racing. Maybe it would have been worth the difficulty and confusion—even if it had turned out only to be for one night.
She slipped into her pajamas and turned out the lights as she climbed into bed. It was ridiculously large for one person and although it was a complete luxury, Maggie had a feeling it would even be more decadent to share it with someone.
Rolling onto her side, she couldn’t help but punch her pillow out of frustration before settling in for yet another night filled with dreams of the one man she wanted but couldn’t have.
Chapter 6
They’d made it through the Atlanta meeting and were landing in Miami. Jason spent most of the flight on the phone with his brother Mac while Maggie typed up last-minute contracts at Jason’s request.
They checked into their hotel and rushed up to their rooms without exchanging a word. Maggie had just enough time to freshen up her makeup before Jason knocked on the door to signal that the car was waiting. She sighed with irritation. Did he really think one word from him would have her throwing herself at him? Couldn’t he at least have the common decency to say something to her that wasn’t directly about Montgomerys? It was getting beyond rude and Maggie wasn’t sure if she’d be able to make it through another day like this.
When Maggie stepped out of her room, Jason was already halfway down the hall. She practically had to run to catch up with him at the elevator, and when they stepped on and he hung up the phone, Maggie stamped her hand over the emergency stop button and faced Jason full of fury.
“What the hell?” he snapped.
“You know, Jason, I think I deserve a little more common courtesy than a knock on the door beckoning me to follow you.”
Jason pinched the bridge of his nose and inhaled sharply. “We don’t have time for this right now. We have an appointment to get to.”
“Oh, I get that, Jason; believe me, I do. What I don’t get is why I’m being treated like some sort of leper or something! I’ve been working my butt off for you on this trip and in the last week you have been impossible!”
His eyes finally met hers. “Rude? Look, I don’t know what you were expecting on this trip, but I’ve been treating you like an employee. We are on this trip to work. I’ll admit that I got a little sidetracked back in New York but then I realized it was a mistake. I hired you to be my assistant; not my date, not my friend. You are an employee of Montgomerys and you were chosen for this position because you meet certain criteria.”
“Because I’m married?” she said snidely, wanting nothing more than to smack his face and make him stop using that condescending tone on her.
“That was partially it. You were qualified for the job that I needed done. I told you from the get-go this wasn’t a pleasure trip and I think for a while there the lines were getting blurry.” It was the most honest statement he’d ever made to her and the look of horror on her face had him wanting to take it back.
Maggie took a step back from Jason and lowered her eyes to the ground. “I see,” she said quietly. Reaching beyond him, she gently hit the button for the lobby and was relieved when they started moving. “I’m sorry if I did anything to make you uncomfortable, Jason. That was never my intention.”
With a growl of frustration, Jason reached out and hit the stop button himself and then caught Maggie by the arms when the elevator car jerked to a halt. “Maggie, look at me,” he said gently. When her eyes met his, they were wary and sad, and Jason felt like a school yard bully. “It wasn’t you, okay? I just think it’s better for us to stay focused on the project because when I let my guard down…”
Maggie couldn’t help it, she leaned into him. “What?” she whispered.
Jason was only human. The feel of her, the smell of her perfume, and those big brown eyes looking up at him were his undoing. “I find it hard to forget that I shouldn’t do things like this.” And he lowered his mouth to hers. Maggie responded to him instantly and Jason thought he was going to lose his mind. Her lips were so soft, so pliant, and when she let out a sigh and relaxed into him, he took a step forward and pressed her back against the wall of the elevator.
He feasted on her lips like he’d been dying to for weeks as Maggie ran her hands up his neck and into his hair, anchoring him to her. Jason’s tongue teased at Maggie’s bottom lip and when she opened for him and touched her tongue to his, he thought he’d go up in flames. Jason wanted to tell her how much he wanted her, how much he’d been thinking about her and how he wanted nothing more than to cancel their meetings for today and go back upstairs when…
“Is everyone okay in there?” A voice was speaking to them through an intercom in the elevator and they broke apart instantly.
“Um…yes,” Jason stammered. “We’re fine.” He reached over and set the elevator in motion again. “Thank you,” he said out loud to whoever was speaking to them, knowing there was probably a camera that caught all of that on tape. There was no way to claim a mechanical issue. They’d just have to step out into the lobby and pray that no one said anything.
They arrived on the main floor of the hotel and walked out to the waiting car. As they pulled away from the curb, Jason spoke without looking directly at Maggie. “I’m not going to apologize for that,” he said simply.
“I’m not asking you to,” she replied. There was so much that she wanted to say a
nd that she wanted to ask, but now was completely not the time. They were wrapping up this trip and had two important clients to meet with today. The timing of all this really sucked.
“So,” she began, getting her head back where it belonged, “Dennis Caprese is up first this morning. I’ve talked to his assistant several times in the last couple of days and per all of your preliminary talks with him, I’ve prepared the contracts already so that should everything go our way, he can sign today.”
Jason nodded. He didn’t give a damn about business and meetings right now. All he could think about was that kiss. Shouldn’t she be outraged? Shouldn’t she be demanding he not touch her again? He had been speculating for far too long about her marriage, and it just didn’t sit right with him that Maggie wasn’t putting up more of a fight. It didn’t fit. The woman he had come to know had morals and was pretty traditional in her views and beliefs. It didn’t match up with the image of her as a married woman. Jason had no doubt that she wasn’t the kind of woman who would have an affair.
Then why did she kiss him with such urgency?
Why did it feel like she would gladly have let him take her right there in the elevator, and to hell with the consequences?
And why did he want to tell the driver to turn the car around so that he could test that theory out?
“Here we are, sir,” the driver said, interrupting his thoughts. “I’ll stay close by so you can call me when you’re done.”
Jason mumbled a word of thanks and exited the car, Maggie close behind him. All of his wonderings and naughty thoughts would have to wait. They had meetings to get through. But once business was done, so was all of the tippy-toeing he’d been doing.
Jason was going to get some answers.
Tonight.
* * *
Their second meeting was over by four, but Alan Cummings, the CEO of AC Industries, invited them out for dinner. Jason had wanted to refuse, but Cummings wasn’t one hundred percent on board yet and he figured that a few more hours in the man’s company could only help their situation.
Wait for Me / Trust in Me Page 22