It made him angry to think that he would have to have to figure out another plan, because honestly he didn’t know here else to go with it. It made him wonder what was going to happen next, but at the same time, he felt a bit nervous about who to ask next.
He threaded his fingers through his brown hair and sighed. There was no way he could go to this event alone. That was just tacky. You don’t go to charity events as a single man unless you want to look desperate in front of others. And he wasn’t a desperate man.
He worked for this company before taking it over a couple years ago, and as the billionaire CEO, he knew that he had to figure out a means to get someone to work with him that day, or at least someone who could play the part of his date effectively.
Ruby was gone. He missed her, mainly because she knew the ins and outs of the business. He had to pick someone who was single, attractive like her, and knew her shit about the company.
“Where is the database of the company profiles?” he asked himself. He scoured the laptop for the file, and when he found it, he opened it. A list of all the employees in the company came up, and he started to browse through them.
There were a couple options before, but he didn’t really see them as the type that would strike the attention of some of the people that he wanted to impress. That is, until he got to a name on the database that made him curious.
“Jackie Smith…I think I remember her,” he laid out loud. He pondered for a moment, taking a bit to realize she was one of the graphic designers for the company. That’s why he remembered her, he did her interview a while back.
He never talked to her other than that time, usually having Ruby handle all of the grunt work. But based off of her performance, she was very good at her job. And she had been there for what seemed to be forever, so it’s not like she didn’t know what to do.
It made her a promising candidate, and who knows, maybe she would be cool with taking the job of being his assistant as well.
It was strange to even ask this sort of thing out of a woman like that, especially since he never was really the type to go over to random girls, give them a promotion, and ask them to come with him to a charity gala.
But this was one of those rare times when he had to call on help, and he was damn sure that it would be fine as long as it didn’t create anything awkward between them.
“I guess I’ve found her. I’ll have a talk with her tonight after work,” he told himself.
He scribbled down on a piece of paper a note to talk to Jackie once she finished her shift. He didn’t know it, but he could feel something good about this, and he was sure to have a decent conversation with this mysterious woman.
Chapter II
Jackie worked hard that day, but she didn’t expect to see him at the end of the day. Lila was packing up, and she turned to her friend with a smile.
“Going home to see Rick?” she asked.
“Yes, Chris has a play tonight for school, so we’re going to watch him perform. It’s great that he’s able to adapt well to school and such. I’m happy that he’s growing up to be a great kid,” she said with a marveled glance.
Jackie smiled. Lila already had a child, one who was three years old and performing in plays. Lila marred very young and had a kid at a young age.
Jackie wondered what that would be like, or even if she would experience a life like that. A part of her wanted to, but then there was another part that made her happy that it was never the case for her.
Of course, this led to a bit of a puzzle in her face. She saw a figure in the distance, and for a moment, Jackie was stunned. Could it be who she thought it was? She moved her chair out of the cubicle, and Lila turned to her with a glance.
“Did you have a meeting planned with Brandon?” she asked.
“Nope. What the hell is he doing down here?” she asked. Brandon never went to this section of the company. He watched everything from above, like a hawk watching its prey.
It was strange to believe that it was going this way, but she did wonder if maybe there was a reason for it. Maybe there was a reason for his presence in the area.
Of course, after a bit of speculating, the man came over, smiling at her with a grin.
“Hello there ladies,” he said with a smile.
“Hi there sir,” Lila said.
“Hello Brandon. How are you?” Jackie spat out.
“Fine, thanks. I actually had to ask you something. It’s important, and it can’t wait. Would you mind coming with me to my office?” he asked.
She looked at Lila with a worried stare, almost like a deer in headlights. The woman urged her to go, and soon Jackie was following this guy. A feeling of dread washed over her. Was she in trouble? God she hoped not.
She followed him to his office, sitting down in one of the chairs. He popped down across from her, and Jackie took a moment to view the place. There were decorations everywhere, and it was strange for her to view this place.
It made her wonder if maybe there was some sort of hidden secret in this place. It was so pretty and immaculate, with both and old and modern feel to it. But what really made her wonder, was why she was even here in the first place.
“You’re probably wondering why you’re here, aren’t you?” he asked.
“Well that would be nice to know. I hope I’m not being fired,” she spat out. A blush coursed over her cheek, and he laughed.
“Of course not. In fact, just the opposite is happening to you,” he said.
What? No way, this wasn’t true. She pinched herself, wincing at the pain, but it helped reinforce her belief that she wasn’t lying to herself about anything.
“What?” she said with a glance.
“You heard me correct. You actually did something very well, and I noticed it. I actually wanted to talk with you about a proposal that I have for you. Consider it a promotion so to speak,” he offered.
“What do you mean?’ she managed to blurt out. She probably sounded like an idiot, but she didn’t care. She wanted to figure out what the hell this man saw within her.
“Well, let me put it frank Jackie. You’re getting promoted. I want you to be my assistant. I assessed your work performance, and you’re capable of what I need. I need someone who can help me out with getting things inside the office, along with tending to some of the other aspects that come with running a company,” he explained.
She nodded, taking all this in. A promotion? No freaking way! This was getting almost way too real for her, but she took it all in, smiling at him.
“Well thank you sir. I will be glad to take it,” she admitted.
“Thank you. But that’s not the only thing I’m wanting to speak with you about. The other thing is a tad bit embarrassing, but please hear me out,” he admitted.
He was blushing, and Jackie wondered what Brandon was going to say. It was hard to not focus on those beautiful green eyes, and the way his fingers threaded through his hair was orgasmic in a way.
She shook a tiny bit, jolting herself out of the fantasy that she was thinking about, and instead she was looking at the reality of the situation and everything that went along with it.
“Well, what is it?” she asked.
“It’s about an event that I have going on next Friday. It’ll be in ten days, and I need someone who can come with me as a person to this event. It’s a charity gala, and normally I hate these things. But I was wondering if you could come with me as a sort of representative of the company, and my assistant,” he said.
She was shocked by this. She always thought that Ruby and her would always be working together, but she knew that something was up. Did he fire her? Was there something wrong? She felt like there was a secret that was failing to be exposed here.
“Are you sure about this?’ she asked.
“Damn sure. I need someone like you working for me Jackie, and I want you as my assistant. The gala is a bit of a stupid little thing that I get invited to every year, but I’m willing to give you a great nig
ht if you’re willing to come with me,” he said.
She blushed at those words, even though they probably didn’t have any sort of undertone to them like how she was thinking. It was hard to not have her mind in the gutter when it was involving him, and the fact that he was asking her of all people was pretty impressive in it of itself.
“Are you sure?” she asked.
“Sure as sunshine. Please come with me to this event,” he pleaded. He almost sounded desperate. Was Brandon really that bad with women? Maybe that was the catch with him.
He might have all the looks and money in the world, but he’s shit with romance. But this was an offer that she couldn’t refuse, and immediately Jackie nodded.
“I would love that,” she said.
“Good. Then that settles it. I’ll be giving you some money to help you buy a dress. You can bring that Lila girl to help you out. It seemed like you two were friends, and I know that girls like to flock together to choose outfits and such.
We’ll be leaving next Friday around five to get there before six, and plan to stay out most of the night. But trust me, it’ll be a ton of fun,” he said.
She nodded. “Thank you so much Brandon,” she said.
“Not a problem. You can clean out your desk tomorrow. You will be taking over Ruby’s spot in the office next door,” he stated.
She knew where it was. It was where the workers would meet with her and she would tell them if there is anything awry about what they’re doing. But now she was the one on top, and she was the one who would be calling all the shots.
It seemed almost surreal in a way, and she didn’t know what else to say other than holy shit at the fact that she would be working as his assistant and as an executive in the company.
She walked out feeling like a giant weight on her chest had been lifted. This all seemed too amazing, and she wondered if there would be anything else that would go in conjunction with this.
She would only have to wait and see, but she had a great feeling about this. This was the start of a new and unexpected job that she would probably excel at, but little did she know that the tensions that were between them would start to arise, and she would learn something about the boss that she had.
The grin that was plastered on her face didn’t even leave until she got home, but she still felt giddy inside. She called Lila, and thankfully, it was after her son’s play. She picked up, and she immediately fired questions at Jackie.
“So what happened?” she asked.
“Well, I got promoted. And I’m going to a gala next Friday,” she said.
“Holy shit, that’s amazing!” her friend said. Jackie could tell that she was genuinely happy. After all, this was kind of the one thing she wanted more than anything.
She wanted to have the experience of dressing up all pretty and going to fancy events. She missed the prospect of that, and it seemed like it was something that she would be good at.
“Well I’m happy as hell to have this job, that’s for sure,” she said.
“I am too Jackie. So do you need help picking out a dress? I actually am off tomorrow because I asked for it, and if you want to go in the afternoon, I’m game,” she offered.
“That would be amazing. Thank you so much,” she admitted.
“You’re very welcome Jackie. I’m glad you’re happy,” her friend said.
“Thank you so much. I hope this works out. I need this,” she admitted.
“I know that you do. Just stay strong and follow your heart,” her best friend said.
Jackie felt happy by those words. She knew that she would, and she had her best friend by her side. The phone clicked off, but now this left Jackie with a million questions.
How would this all go? Would everything be fine? And what was going to happen next?
The only thing to do now would be to wait and see, and she hoped more than anything that this would be as magical as her mind foreshadowed it.
Chapter III
The start of the new job was strange. She cleared out her office and apparently everything from Ruby’s office was already gone. She wondered why Ruby left so suddenly, and there was an obvious feeling of remorse there.
She wondered if something happened between Brandon and her. Maybe so, but that wasn’t her drama. So she thought.
But right now, the only thing that was on her mind was this gala. Working as an assistant to Brandon was a piece of cake. The job consisted of literally getting him coffee and snacks when needed, being someone to shoot ideas off of, and grabbing crap that he needed.
He honestly rarely worked, and it was probably because he was at the head of the company. It made her wonder why she never took this job before but that was because there had never been an offer like this before.
Time passed, and that afternoon, she went with Lila to one of the dress shops to get a dress. He entrusted her with a thousand dollars, which was pocket change to him, but it felt almost wrong for her to take it.
“You’ve got to be shitting me,” Lila said.
“I know. It seems so strange,” she admitted.
“Well maybe he’s the type who likes to have a bit of extra money with him. Maybe he doesn’t expect you to spend all that money and plans on ensuring that you give it back to him when you’re done,” Lila admonished.
Jackie wanted to think that, but she doubted it. Of course the place he told her to check out dresses at wasn’t really the most inexpensive store in the world either. It had dresses that were probably some of the most expensive things she had ever seen, but she settled for a dress that was about 300 dollars.
She also got a bag for 100 and shoes for 200. Maybe it was good that she didn’t try to spend it all. It felt almost wrong that she was. She came on back that evening, with Lila in tow and waiting for her.
“Did you get the dress?” he asked.
“Yes sir. Here is your money back,” she offered.
She was about to give him the four hundred dollars back, but he stopped her.
“Don’t do that Jackie. That’s for you. You’re my assistant, and if you’ve spent enough on the outfit, you can keep the rest. Besides, it’s a bonus for your hard work,” he said.
No, way. This totally was not happening. She felt like the queen of the world at the words that were uttered, and she felt excited that he was giving her this. She immediately put it back, smiling at him.
“Thank you so much,” she said.
“No problem. Just make sure that you look good for Friday night. You have that day off too. I don’t really need you all that much that day. I just have like one meeting, and then after that I’ll be getting ready myself,” he said.
It was strange hearing how rich people operated, but now she was a lot richer than she was before. It’s not that she was poor; it’s more of the fact that she was now a whole lot richer than she expected, and it was a nice surprise.
“Will do, thank you very much,” she replied.
“You’re very welcome. I have to say, you also look great in that uniform. I’m glad it fits,’ he said.
She nodded, walking out and smiling from ear to ear. This was better than anything she ever expected, and when she got out, she immediately booked a hair and makeup appointment for that Friday.
When Friday came, she slept in, got up, and went to the beauty salon. There, they put her hair up in a nice up do that looked almost ethereal. She also had her makeup done, and she had to admit, she looked stunning.
She also did something that she hadn’t done in a very long time, something that she knew he would enjoy and like more than he expected. That was the fact that she switched out her glasses for contacts, and soon her hazel eyes shone through.
She rarely wore contacts, but this was one of those moments where she would, and she had to admit, that made her look even better. Maybe she should invest in contacts more often.
She then got to the office, heading over to her area to change into the dress. Lila came over to help, and after putting it o
n, Lila took a step back, looking at her.
“Holy shit you look great,” she said.
She wore a black strapless dress that hugged her body, but it had a flowing feel to it as well. There were rhinestones all over it, and in the middle of it was a blue accent. It was gorgeous, and it really made her look stunning.
“Thank you Lila. Do you think it’s enough?” she asked.
“Hell yes. He’s going to love it. And I know you’ll rock this party,” her friend said.
She blushed with a sheepish grin, realizing that her dream was coming true. She was going to this party, and she would be one of the best-dressed women there. It was almost too good to be true, and she really didn’t know what else to think.
She made her way over to the office and when she got inside, she stared at Brandon.
Holy hell he was gorgeous.
He had on a tailored suit, one that hugged his body perfectly. She could see the outline of his legs, but it wasn’t so tight that it looked awkward. He had a black bowtie with it, and his brown hair was neatly cut.
He also didn’t have a trace of facial hair, and she had to admit, the smile on his face made his eyes stand out even more, and she looked like she was staring into two pools of beauty.
“Well hello there,” he said with a sultry glance. He immediately felt his pants tighten a bit looking at the beauty.
“Hello there Brandon, are you ready to go?” she asked.
“Very ready, so I take it that you and Lila found this? I know she came with you, but I didn’t know the details if she picked it out herself or if you found it and got her seal of approval. Because it looks marvelous on you,” he said.
“Yep, Lila came with me. I was the one that found it, but she did try to find a few other options and was the final say on the dress. I really appreciated her help, and I’m amazed at how good this looks,” she admitted.
Billionaire Boss Series: ALLURE, DESIRE AND TEMPTATION Page 6