Billionaire Under the Mistletoe

by Hannah Jo Abbott

  “Hi, I’m Abigail Williams, Abi,” she reached out to shake his hand, “I don’t think I introduced myself before.”

  “No, I don’t think so,” Stewart raised his eyebrows waiting to see what she wanted. “What can I do for you, Ms. Williams?”

  “I couldn’t help thinking about how you lost your assistant. And I’m sure you’re very busy and finding a new assistant could be time consuming. So I thought I could help save you the trouble, and offer to take on the job myself.”

  “Really?” Stewart’s face was something between a smile and a smirk. “You want to offer yourself a job?”

  Abi’s smile held steady. “I guess you could put it that way. But really I’m doing you a favor. You could spend weeks advertising the position, interviewing, and choosing between candidates. But then you would still be without an assistant all that time. So the way I see it, you would be better off to hire me for the job, and I can start right away. Today even. You can catch me up to speed and I could do anything you need.”

  “And you think you could handle the job?”

  “Sure. I’m good with a computer, and with people, and I could help with whatever. I’m a fast learner.”

  “But you don’t even know what I need an assistant to do.”

  Abi shrugged. “I can learn.”

  Stewart furrowed his eyebrows looking her over. “What about the coffee shop? You would just quit there today? I already had an assistant walk out today, I don’t need someone who isn’t committed to their job.”

  Abi bit her lip. “Well that’s something I wanted to tell you. You were mistaken when you came in the coffee shop this morning. I don’t work there, I just happened to be at the counter when you came in.”

  “What?” Stewart raised his voice, “You said you were practicing.”

  “I was. I was actually trying to get a job there this morning, and I was practicing to talk to the manager.”

  “So then you lied to me?”

  “No, no, I didn’t.” Abi held her hand up in the air to emphasize her point. “You never asked if I worked there. You just said you needed coffee and said you would pay me to bring coffee to your office.”

  “Yes, but I said that because I thought you worked at the coffee shop. I wouldn’t have asked a strange woman to deliver coffee to my office out of the blue.”

  Abi shrugged. “Well I don’t know that. You asked if I could do it, and I said yes. And I followed through with what you asked. Which just goes to show I would make a great employee.” She smiled.

  Stewart squinted his eyes and fell into the nearest chair. “I guess you’ve got me there.” He leaned back and stroked his chin. “The position is very time consuming. I need someone who can be available twenty-four seven. I work all hours, so I need someone who will be available when I’m working.”

  Abi nodded slowly, seeming to take it in. “Alright.”

  “But there is some flexibility, when I’m traveling. And the pay is extremely good.” Suddenly he found himself trying to make the position desirable to her. He wasn’t sure why.

  “How good?” she asked. He named an amount and her jar dropped open. She closed it again quickly. “That sounds reasonable,” she said.

  Stewart couldn’t help himself, he laughed out loud at the look on her face. He had been holding in that laugh since the face she made when she realized she had thrown a coffee cup at him. “Have you ever used a scheduling software?”

  “Yes, as a matter of fact, I worked in the scheduling department of a major hospital. I worked with several clinics and doctors’ schedules for appointments and procedure scheduling.”

  “Hmm, that’s good,” Stewart said. “And I see that you can handle delivering coffee. Are you proficient with email and typing?”

  “Yes, I am.”

  “And how would you feel about personal errands like ordering lunch and picking up dry cleaning?”

  “I have no problem with that.”

  Stewart stared at her again. She was younger than his former assistant to be sure. He guessed she was a few years younger than him. This might be a terrible mistake. But he could make a terrible mistake after interviewing for weeks too. He couldn’t believe he was even considering this. He told himself it had nothing to do with the adorable dimple every time she smiled, and the way she tried to appear confident, but she was nervously twirling a piece of hair without even noticing. “And if I run a background check I won’t find a criminal record?”

  Abi laughed now and it surprised him how much the sound delighted him. “Nope, no criminal record here. Thankfully they don’t arrest people for accidentally, sort of impersonating a coffee shop employee.”

  Stewart smiled. “Alright, I tell you what. I’ll hire you on a trial basis. You’re right that it would take me weeks to find someone, and we’re too busy during the holidays to go through that. So I’ll give you until New Year’s, and if it’s working out, you can stay. And if one or both of us feels like it isn’t the right fit, that will be it.”

  Abi’s smile lit up the room. “Fair enough,” she said. She reached out and shook his hand. “Thank you, Mr. Vincent. I promise, you won’t regret this.”

  Stewart stood as she shook his hand with vigor. “I hope not.”

  CHAPTER THREE

  The next morning, Abi took the elevator to the seventh floor. She had tried her best to look the part of assistant and had pulled out her best work attire. She wore a dark pencil skirt and fitted blazer with peep-toe heals to top it off. She bit her lip to fight back the nerves as she reached the seventh floor and walked to Mr. Vincent’s office. When he had agreed to hire her the day before, he had her come back to his office and fill out some paperwork. He really was going to run that background check. She had offered to stay and get started that afternoon, but he told her to come in ready to work first thing in the morning.

  “Good morning,” she said as she entered the door and found him at what would be her desk.

  “Morning,” he said gruffly. “I don’t have a lot of time to train you right now. But I’ve opened up the scheduling software and set you up with email. It’s all here on the computer.” He motioned to the screen as he stood up from the desk.

  Abi approached the desk and came around to see the computer. She moved near him to see where he pointed and noticed his cologne. He smelled a little bit like spice and pine trees, and it reminded Abi of a Christmas tree. She cleared her throat and reminded herself she was here to work. “So these are your appointments for the day here?”She pointed to the screen.

  “Yes. I have them on my computer and my phone, but if anything changes you need to update it in the calendar and send me a text letting me know. He handed her a phone. “This is yours, for work. I’ve programmed your number in my phone already and connected it with the computer so everything will sync.”

  Abi nodded. “Alright, so what else should I do? Answer phones or anything?”

  “No, not really. There are other secretaries for that. Almost no one gets through to my office. And anyone who really needs to speak with me has my number. Mostly just the higher level leadership and board of directors. I visit the development teams, product teams, and sales departments on a rotating basis.”

  “Gotcha.”

  “I’ve routed Joyce’s email to your new address, so you will start getting those emails. We can go over that more later. I have an opening in my schedule at eleven. So why don’t you order lunch and we can go over more details of the day-to-day then.”

  “Alright, sounds good.”

  “There’s also this.” He opened the bottom desk drawer and pulled out a large, three-ring-binder, and dropped it on the desk with a loud thud. “Joyce apparently was kind enough to leave this information to help with the transition, which is great since she left me on a moment’s notice. Start working your way through this and it should explain at least some of what she did.”

  Abi tried to hide her eyes that were as big as saucers. “Perfect, thanks.”

&nbs
p; “See you at lunch.” Stewart turned and walked through the large wooden door to his own office and shut it.

  Abi let out the breath she didn’t know she was holding. She stared at the computer and thought, what have I gotten myself into? I have no idea what I’m doing. She opened the binder and flipped through the first couple of pages. She felt her spirits lift a little when she found Joyce’s list of daily activities and instructions for basic tasks. Very kind, indeed, Abi thought.

  She sipped her coffee and spent the next two hours pouring over the binder. It was chock full of information and Abi was so grateful. She hadn’t known what to expect when she agreed to come to work for such a wealthy and powerful man. She remembered the night before when she had Googled him looking for information. There were several articles about how quickly he had grown the business in his twenties, and how the company was big on charitable donations. But for Joyce to have put this much work in to helping her former boss with a new assistant, then she must have respected him. And that said a lot.

  Abi kept an eye on the schedule and checked the notes Joyce had left about various people. She followed the directions and sent Mr. Vincent a text ten minutes before each phone call to remind him and give him the info on each person. At ten-thirty she checked the back of the binder for the list of restaurants in the area with Mr. Vincent’s usual orders and called to place a lunch order to be delivered at ten-fifty-five.

  When the food arrived, she checked that everything was correct and then gathered the bags and carried them to Mr. Vincent’s office where she knocked on the door and waited.

  “Come in,” he called out.

  Abi entered and heard him talking on the phone. She waved in greeting and then began setting up the food on his desk, careful not to disturb his computer or his papers. Within a couple of minutes, Mr. Vincent wrapped up the phone call and hung up. He took off the headset and tossed it on the desk and then looked wide-eyed at the food in front of him. “Wow. How in the world did you know what to order?”

  “How do you think?” Abi had laid out her own food on the other side of the desk. She popped a french fry in her mouth and settled back in the chair.

  “Joyce?” He asked.

  “Yep. That binder is amazing.”

  “Unbelievable.”

  “You’re not kidding. She thought of everything. I’m grateful for it, but it’s pretty intimidating. I can see how she’s going to be a hard act to follow.”

  “Yeah, she is.” Stewart said, then he looked at Abi long and hard. “But you have definitely stepped up to the plate. So I’ll give you credit for that.”

  “Thanks,” Abi said around a mouthful of food.

  “It’s a good thing. I told you, I don’t have a lot of time to watch over you, so you need to be a self-starter, and I think you’ve shown that today.”

  Abi beamed, proud to be getting good feedback in only a few hours. “I told you, I’m a fast learner. And I’m not afraid to jump in and get my hands dirty.”

  Stewart nodded. “Not too dirty though. I did get your background check back and looks like you’re pretty clean there.”

  Abi shrugged. “I told you.”

  “So what you’re saying is, what you tell me is who you are?”

  “Yep. With me, what you see if what you get. So if you don’t like what you see, just move on.”

  Stewart didn’t respond. He looked at her for a few moments before picking up his food and starting to eat.

  “So what did you want to discuss?” Abi asked.

  Stewart waved his hand at her, “We’ll get to that in a minute. But a rule Joyce might not have mentioned, but that you definitely should know. Don’t mess with me while I’m enjoying my favorite meatball sub.”

  Abi laughed and the sound lifted all the way up to the high ceiling of the office. “Fair enough. You just let me know when you’re ready boss man. I’m ready when you are.” Abi settled back and ate her lunch. But she couldn’t help admire the handsome man sitting across from her. He might be a big fancy business man in an expensive suit. But deep down he was a regular man enjoying his lunch.

  ***

  Stewart heard the door close as Abi left his office, then he leaned back in his office chair and closed his eyes for just a moment. He couldn’t believe how well the morning had gone. Honestly, he had expected to struggle through a couple of months of having Abi as an assistant, and go through the hiring process after the first of the year. He hadn’t expected her to be so good at the job. Incredibly good, he thought to himself.

  He smiled when he thought about how she had dropped her shoes in the floor and tucked her feet underneath her in the chair. Joyce never would have done that. Part of him thought he should tell her it was unprofessional. But something else in him found it a little endearing. And besides, it was lunch in his office. His favorite lunch at that. So he decided to overlook it. For now. What he couldn’t overlook was how her curly blonde hair bounced when she moved. It hadn’t been curly yesterday when they met, so the look surprised him. It made her seem fun and carefree. She was a surprise so far, that much he knew. But most importantly she was handling things, which allowed him to do his job. Which is what he did now. He opened the computer to look at the third quarter sales figures. He had a meeting with the Vice President in charge of sales in just thirty minutes. He made some notes on a pad on his desk with a few final thoughts. He had told Abi to be ready to go to the meeting with him in fifteen minutes. He wanted her to meet everyone this week so she could get the lay of the land. He heard himself in his mind practicing saying, “This is my new assistant, Abi.” He stopped to wonder if he should say “Abi” or “Abigail”. Abigail seemed more professional. But she called herself Abi. Maybe I should ask her how she would like to be introduced, he thought. But a second later he knew without another thought. I’ve spent enough time with her to know that without a doubt, she’s Abi.

  CHAPTER FOUR

  Abi walked back to her office opening and closing her hand. It was sore and cramping from writing so much during the meeting. Next time I’ll take the laptop and type notes, she thought. Plus she could keep a note open for the story ideas that came to her in the middle of the meetings. Maybe, she thought. She didn’t know if that would work since Mr. Vincent’s would be able to see her computer screen. Maybe she could sit across from him. When she walked in to the meeting today, she hadn’t been sure where she should sit. But Mr. Vincent had offered her a chair, so she took it, then he sat next to her. Right next to me, she thought. She could smell his cologne again and several times he bumped her arm as he talked or motioned for something. And every time Abi’s heartbeat picked up the pace just a little.

  Now back in her office she opened her computer to type up the notes from the meeting. Before getting to work she connected to the wireless speakers in the office and turned on some Christmas music. She opened the email and clicked Mr. Vincent’s contact info and his picture appeared in a small box. She looked around as if someone might see her before she clicked the box that made the picture open larger on the screen. He was the picture of professionalism in his dark suit, his brown hair cut short and not a bit out of place. But his eyes. A tiny sigh escaped Abi’s lips. His eyes were clear blue. In the picture they were full of confidence and the power of his position. But when he talked, they were bright with possibility. He spoke of the future of the company like a true dreamer. And he should of course. He had built his own company in his twenties and grown it to the multi-billionaire dollar empire that it was now. He was someone who could take an idea and run with it.

  The main office door opened in front of Abi and she closed the image immediately when she saw Mr. Vincent in front of her.

  “Will you send me the notes from the meeting?” he asked.

  Abi pointed at her computer. “I’m doing that now,” she said.

  “Good.” He walked towards his office, but stopped in the doorway and turned around, tilting his head to listen. “Did you turn this music on?”


  “Yes,” Abi said without turning around. “I love Christmas music, don’t you?”

  “Hmm. Joyce usually played classical instrumental pieces.”

  Abi turned and smiled at him. “Well, I’m not Joyce.”

  Stewart chuckled as a smile broke out on his face. “No, you’re definitely not.”

  Abi watched him go and could only hope that was a good thing. She finished typing the notes and clicked his email again to send it. There it was again, that picture with him staring right at her. She wanted to get lost in his eyes, but she shook her head and told herself to focus on the work. I need this job, she told herself. I need to pay rent, I need my parents to believe I can take care of myself, and I need to build up the money to make a go at writing my books. She hit send on the email and sighed. I won’t let anything get in the way of me doing a good job here. Not even…no especially not a super attractive boss.

  ***

  Stewart could hear the sound of Christmas music leaking into his office. It was a little distracting, but he was enjoying it. He carefully checked over the report on his desk. He had been so focused on the black and white numbers that it was several minutes before he realized he was actually humming along. He stopped and cleared his throat. He didn’t mind Christmas, and he definitely wasn’t a grinch, but he wouldn’t be a man who sat at his desk and hummed “Santa Claus is Coming to Town.” He looked up when there was a knock at the door. “Come in,” he said. He looked up to see Abi open the door.

  “Hey,” she said casually.

  “Hey,” his response sounded more like a question than a greeting.

  “I had an idea and wanted to run it past you.”

  “Alright.” Stewart hid a grin. He couldn’t wait to hear this.

  “Could we get a Christmas tree for the office?”

  “A Christmas tree?”