by Lexy Timms
“You guys should get a room.”
“During lunch?” Alex didn’t look like he minded the idea.
“Go and eat, you two!” Jamie laughed. “I have work to do.” She leaned forward and up on her toes to whisper in Alex’s ear, “I’ll see about the room later” as she walked out of her office and down the hall.
A few of the female accountants were standing by the Coke machine, laughing about something. One of them glanced over and nodded. “Hey, Jamie. How are you feeling? Heard you took a nasty fall on Monday.”
“Yeah. It was dumb, but I'm good. Better.” She pulled her lunch from the freezer and worked on getting it unwrapped. “How is everyone doing?”
“Good, just talking about the new receptionist.” Candace walked over and leaned against the counter next to Jamie. “He's super cute. You did that on purpose, right?”
“What?” Jamie glanced over to her. “No. He's qualified and didn't show any body parts during the interview. Every other candidate did. I guess they thought they were interviewing with Alex.”
“No effing way.” Jasmine walked over to join them. “The chicks who interviewed were dressed inappropriately?”
“Most of them.” Jamie shrugged and popped her food into the microwave. “I guess people think that one way to score a billionaire is to work for him.”
“Worked for you.” Candace squeezed her shoulder softly.
“Right?” Jamie laughed, forgetting how much she enjoyed the two women. They were a little older than her, but people she could see herself hanging out with.
“Hey, we're going to get a drink later tonight. You wanna come with us?” Jasmine popped the top on her Diet Coke and took a quick sip.
“I'd love to, but Alex and I are expecting.” Jamie smiled and rubbed her tummy.
“Oh my goodness!” Candace blurted out. “Does anyone know?”
“No, but we don't care if they find out. Everything looks good and we're done with all the initial testing and stuff. The baby’s healthy and should be here in seven months or so.” Jamie pulled her food out, wincing as it burnt her fingers.
“And you fell?” Candace shook her head. “Jamie, you have crazy good luck.” She laughed.
“You know what this means, right?” Jasmine turned her attention to Candace as Jamie glanced over her shoulder at them.
Candace nodded and smiled. “Baby shower. And a big one!”
Jamie laughed. “Why are you guys so excited about a baby shower? You just love cake or something?”
“Well, there is that, but it means the afternoon off for one, and two, I get to put my catering skills to use.” Candace was beaming. “I swear when I retire from here, I'm going to open my own restaurant.”
“I didn't know you liked to cook.” Jamie grabbed a handful of paper napkins and nestled her small tray of food on top of them. “I love to eat.”
“We should have a girls’ night soon. We can have it at my apartment and I'll cook us something delicious from scratch.” Candace glanced between them.
“Or we could do it at my house. We have a huge kitchen to play around in.” Jamie smiled as the realization that making friends might not be such a bad thing. After having a knife wedged in her back too many times, she'd written off the idea of trying to get close to anyone years before. Maybe things were changing.
“Oh, man. To see the Reid mansion? I would love that.” Jasmine smiled.
“Then it's a date.” Jamie walked to the fridge to grab a bottle of water. “Let me find a day that works and I'll let you know.”
“Awesome. If you change your mind about tonight's happy hour, just come find us. They have White Russians without the liquor, too, you know.”
Jamie chuckled at the thought of drinking a glass of milk while everyone else was getting toasty. Things surely had changed.
*
The day rushed by faster than she wanted it to, and the brilliance of the sunset was painting her office with burnt oranges and reds by the time she glanced up again. A growl left her and she got up, knocking on the door that led from her office to Alex’s.
His muffled voice was all she needed to hear.
“I'm done with my stuff. It took longer than I thought.” She walked in and ran her fingers through her hair before reaching back and putting her long blond locks up into a messy bun. “You ready to get started on your stuff”?”
“Yeah. I think you need something to eat, though. Let's have Justin order something for us before he leaves for the day.” He glanced up from his desk and watched her. “You feeling okay? I don't want you to overdo it. Seriously.”
Alex absently rubbed his chest, and Jamie couldn't help but notice that his face was slightly flushed.
“Me overdo it? Never.” She walked to his closed door and reached for the handle. “What do you want for dinner, handsome?”
“Anything Lilliana wants will work”,” he chuckled, but didn't look back up as his fingers flew over his keyboard.
“Chinese it is.” Jamie walked across the hall to the foyer. Jason was packing up, from what she could tell.
“Hey, Jamie. How are you?” He smiled.
“I'm good. Can you give me the dinner menu file from your desk drawer? We're staying late tonight.”
“You want me to stay, too? I don't mind.” He bent over and grabbed the file.
Jamie could see why the other girls in the office thought he was attractive. He was handsome, but in a studious way. He could have easy been head of the chess club, and yet without his glasses and a little bit of sprucing up, would have looked good on the front of GQ, too.
“Nope. We're good.” She took the folder from him. “Everything okay with you?”
“Couldn't be better, actually. I love it here.” He smiled and picked up his bag. “I'm heading out, but if you need me—”
“I'll call. See you tomorrow.” She made her way back to Alex's office and set the folder down.
“Did he call it in?” Alex mumbled.
“No, but I will.” She pulled the menu out and walked to close the door. “Is your chest okay? You look a tad upset and your rubbing it nonstop is starting to worry me.”
He let out a short sigh and turned in his chair as she walked toward him. “Am I rubbing it a lot?”
“Enough for me to notice.” She set the menu down on his desk as he reached for her.
“I'm sorry. I probably need to talk to the doc about blood pressure medication or start running an hour a day. It’s just stress. This shit never used to bother me.”
She sat down in his lap and snuggled against him as he ran his hand down her back and cupped her butt. “Or just start making love to your wife more often.” Jamie wagged her eyebrows before leaning down and kissing him. The kiss moved from sweet and friendly to hungry within a few seconds.
Alex slid his hand up into her hair, undoing the bun and running his fingers through the long silky strands as he worked his tongue in and out of her mouth.
Jamie groaned and tightened her hold on him. “I wanna taste you.”
“Later tonight, baby. I need us to get through this, or my stress is just going to continue to get worse.” He popped her rear softly. “Order us dinner, woman. Then we'll get busy.”
“Watch it.” She nipped at him, grabbed the menu, and got up to place the order. “And why is it when you say we're going to get busy it sounds sexy, but somehow that's not what you mean”?”
“I'm a tease?” He laughed as she rolled her eyes and walked toward her office.
“I couldn't agree more.” She undid a button on her blouse. “And I love it. It’s such a turn-on. Food and work...it’s all foreplay for later.”
Chapter 6
Jamie stood up from the small table she and Alex were hovered over, and stretched. It was almost ten, and she was beyond tired. The work seemed endless and she could see why Alex was stressing out. Reid Enterprises was doing incredibly well, but there were just enough hits against it to have the rest of the world waiting in anticip
ation for someone to come in and scoop them up.
“I gotta go home, Alex.” She bent over and pressed her lips on the top of his head, kissing him again as he lifted his chin toward the ceiling and ran his hands up the back of her thighs.
“I'm sorry I kept you here so late. I'll be home soon.” He used his other hand to pull her down for another kiss. “Don't wait up for me though, okay?”
“I never do, handsome.” She pulled from him and walked to her office as another loud yawn left her.
Alex wasn't going to change or try to find some way to spend more time away from the office just yet, but something told her that when the baby came, everything would change. She just had to bide her time until then, and hope like hell that he wouldn't have many more chest pains. If nothing else, she would force him to go to the doctor that next week.
She gathered her things and walked down the hall, turning off lights before stopping by his office for one more quick kiss. He was already knee-deep in figuring out another problem and barely paid her any attention. Whereas that would have hurt her feelings before, she'd come to realize that it had nothing to do with her. He was a driven man who had found success through being determined. It was attractive, and yet she figured over time things would shift, or hoped they would. It wasn’t a battle. She wasn’t fighting against Reid Enterprise for his attention. It just was the way things were. She grinned. He had a good way of making up for it.
The drive home was done with the radio blaring and the windows down. She wouldn't be staying at work this late again. Trying to keep her eyes open after her nearly thirteen-hour day was a bit much. Getting on the top of a ladder seemed less dangerous.
She parked the car in the garage and walked into the house to the sound of Jake barking his head off.
“Hey, buddy. Come here.” She knelt in the front foyer and scratched the dog’s ears before standing and walking to the kitchen. “You need me to get you some dinner? Want some din-dins?”
He jumped all around her legs, nipping at her pants and barking to get her attention. It was nice having someone waiting for her at home, seeing that Alex was rarely there at night. With the alarm system in place, and Jake having grown up quite a bit, she was completely at ease. The drama from the break-ins a few months before was a thing of the past. MacBane, their chef, and the maid services had grown used to Jake as well. They let him out regularly. Jamie had a feeling Jake loved MacBane because the chef saved bits of meat for the pooch.
After taking care of the dog, Jamie stripped down and had almost gotten her pajamas on when her phone buzzed. She picked it up and answered it without looking at who it might be. No one would be calling this late except Alex, probably checking on her to make sure she’d made it home safely.
“Jamie. It's Christine.” Her sister's voice was shrill and tight, as if she were in the middle of a panic attack.
“What's going on?” Jamie dropped her tank top and turned to sit down on the edge of the bed.
“It's Dad. Mom's in the ambulance with him. He's having a heart attack, we think. I'm going to the hospital now. Mom said to call you.” Christine's voice broke as she started to cry. “Hurry.”
“I'll be right there.” Jamie dropped the call and scooped up her clothes, getting dressed as quickly as she could and grabbing her keys as she rushed back out the door.
Numbness settled over her as she drove in stony silence to the hospital. She needed to call Alex, but didn't want to overreact just yet. Her sister and mother had a way of blowing a cold into meningitis. Whereas she was worried like hell about her dad, she wanted to validate the situation before overreacting.
She parked at the ER and jogged toward the opening. Her mother and sister were over to the side, her mother yelling at some poor nurse.
“Hey.” Jamie moved up beside them, but didn't reach out. Her relationship with her mom and sister was tumultuous at best, and trying to figure out if they were in good times or bad times had gotten old fast. Best to just test the waters by being there and doing nothing else that might gain her attention.
“Oh, Jamie!” Christine wrapped her in a hug and let out a long sob.
It took everything inside of her not to roll her eyes and let out an exasperated sigh.
Forever the drama queen. This is why I'd never in a million years mention you to Mark. Never.
“It's going to be okay.” Jamie ran her hand over the back of her sister's head as she tried to catch bits and pieces of what her mother was yelling about. Oddly enough, it seemed to be about the number of blankets they put on her dad after the surgery.
“Surgery?” Jamie muttered and pulled back from Christine a little. “What's going on? Was it a heart attack?”
Jamie's mother whipped around. “Of course it was a heart attack. Do you think we'd have called an ambulance over gas bubbles?”
“Of course not, Mom. I was just trying to catch up.” Jamie offered an apology as best she knew how, by shutting up. Nothing she said would be taken right anyway.
“It was horrible. He was in the kitchen talking about his latest golf game, and then leaned over the counter and fell to the floor. I tried to catch him.” Christine let out a hiccup in the middle of her sobbing. “I did, Mom. I promise.”
“Shut up. Don't talk to me. Worthless. Both of you.” Their mother turned on her heel and walked down the hall, leaving them standing there.
Christine started to cry harder, and as much as she didn't want to do it Jamie moved closer and pulled her into another hug.
“It's going to be fine. She's just upset over Dad.” Jamie glanced around, trying to find someone that she could ask some questions of. Her mom wasn't going to give up any information. She wasn't the sharing type.
“I know. I'm upset, too. I hope he's okay. He's the only good man in the world.” Christine pulled back and dropped down in a chair, crying louder than she needed to.
Jamie pressed her teeth into her bottom lip and pulled out her phone. “I'm going to step outside for a minute to call Alex. I'll be right back.”
“Don't leave me here alone.” Christine glanced up with panic on her pretty face.
“Just sit here and chill out. It's going to be okay. I'll be right back. I promise.” She touched her sister’s shoulder. There was no way she would ever let herself get emotionally invested in her mother or sister again. They were vipers with manipulation powers like nothing Jamie had ever seen. She wouldn't be falling for their shit ever again.
Sadness rolled through her as she walked back out into the cool night air. Over Christmas things seemed to be changing, to be getting better, but it was a façade, a ruse. Her sister was hurting over fighting with Stephen, and her mother was grateful for getting back together with Jamie's dad. It had nothing to do with either of them turning a new leaf, or being better people.
They were in need of attention, and knew just what to do in order to get it.
“Alex?” Jamie spoke before he could.
“Where are you, baby? You still up?” A twinge of panic laced his sexy voice.
“I'm at the hospital with my family. My dad's had a heart attack, or that's what my mother is telling me anyway. I've yet to talk to anyone with sense in their heads, so I don't know.”
“Oh no. That's horrible. Let me lock up and I'll head that way.”
“No. You don't need to.” She pressed her fingers to her eyes as tears blurred her vision. The numbness was subsiding and fear caged her for a few minutes. Her dad was the only good thing about her family. Without him, there would be nothing left to hold on to. They would be over. Done.
“Jamie. You're my wife. I'm not letting you sit at the hospital by yourself, honey. I'm heading up there. I'll find you in the ER.”
She sniffled. “Okay. Hurry.”
“Of course. It's going to be okay. Your dad is a strong guy. Just hang in there.”
She nodded and dropped the call as tears rolled down her cheeks. She wasn't the type to freak out and throw a dramatic fit, but finding a quiet
place to cry sounded like a good idea.
“He's going into surgery in ten minutes.” Her mother's voice broke. Jamie turned in time to see her mom press her hands to her face and let out a short sob a few feet behind her. “I can't lose him. No one else will put up with me.”
Jamie stifled her comment and moved to wrap her mom in a tight hug. “He's going to be okay. He'll pull through this. He's the toughest guy I know, Mom.”
Her mom nodded and continued to cry until Christine joined them. Jamie moved back to let the two of them hug and cry together.
“I'm going to find a bathroom. I'll be right back. Alex should be here any minute, too.” Jamie turned and walked down the hall, taking note of the sounds and smells which only dragged her deeper into worry. She hated hospitals and had been at or in one far too much lately. It seemed that becoming the wife of a billionaire who was in the media’s eye at all times wasn't going to be a quiet life, but one filled with twists and turns every minute. The thought of having to keep up left her weary.
She stopped by the nurses’ desk on her way back and gave the nurse working at one of the many computers a quick smile. “Hi. My dad got brought in here tonight with a heart attack. How long is the surgery that he's going to undergo? His name is David Connors.”
“Let me check for you, sweetie.” The woman turned and it seemed to take forever to pull up the information. By the time she turned back, Jamie was antsy to get back to the lobby. Leaving her mom and sister with Alex wasn't a good idea at all. They were needy for attention, and he wasn't the one Jamie wanted giving it to them. They were bad enough as it was.
“It's about a four-hour surgery if everything goes well.” The lady shook her head. “Looks like he’s very lucky.”
“What do you mean?”
“It's the widow-maker vein that was clogged. Getting him here when you did saved his life.”
Wow. Is that professional to say. “Uh, thank you.” Jamie nodded.
The nurse stared at her a moment before covering her mouth with her hand. “I’m so sorry! I was speaking with your, uh, mother, a few moments ago. She referred to it as that. I assumed... I am so sorry.”