by Mia Madison
“Are you talking to me?”
I jumped and clutched my heart, spinning to face the confused woman who was cleaning the floor nearby. I’d been so caught up in my thoughts that I didn’t even realize she was there and the woman was staring at me like I’d lost my damn mind.
Which—let’s be real—was a totally fair assessment.
“I’m sorry. No—I need to…” I trailed off and pointed to the door, spinning on my heel and rushing out of the ladies room and charging right into Charles’ lurking form.
“You okay?” he asked as he reached out to steady me.
“The cleaning lady thinks I’m crazy,” I whispered, glancing around to check if anyone else was nearby that I didn’t notice.
“I can’t imagine why.”
It wasn’t until he chuckled and I felt his chest rumble that I realized how closely we were standing together. I took a step back and he pulled his hands from my upper arms, bashfully shoving them into the pockets of his slacks.
“Shall we?”
I nodded and followed behind, giving him a hesitant smile when he pulled open the door and held it for me. It was certainly a far cry from the day I started working for him.
“Wait,” he said, reaching out to put a hand on my shoulder before I got too far out of reach. “Would you be more comfortable if I rode in the front with Frank?”
“That’s not necessary,” I said, waving off his obvious concern. “It’s fine.”
“But it’s not,” he argued, taking a step closer and forcing me to take a step back out of instinct. “See? It’s obviously not fine.”
“It’s not you. Well, not entirely. It’s nothing you’ve done—it’s me. But it’s fine.”
“If you say the word ‘fine’ one more time, I will fire you.”
“Understood,” I confirmed with a nod, biting my lip to keep from testing his promise.
His narrowed eyes surveyed my face before he lightly laughed and gestured to the waiting car.
“Let’s go. Just promise to tell me if you want me to ride up front. We can stop again.”
“I promise,” I agreed with a forced smile, knowing I wouldn’t take him up on the offer.
Maybe I was a masochist, but I wanted to soak up his scent for as long as possible. More fuel for my inappropriate nighttime fantasies.
9
“Finley. Finley, your phone is vibrating.”
I groaned and forced my eyes open, feeling them widen when I realized I had fallen asleep at some point during the ride and used Charles as a pillow. Thankfully I hadn’t drooled on the man, but I couldn’t imagine the awkward position he had been twisted into was very comfortable.
“I’m so sorry,” I said as I straightened up in the seat, watching him wince as he did the same. I dug in my purse for my phone and swiped to answer as soon as I had it. “Hello?”
“Hey! You almost here?”
“I’m not sure—I fell asleep. Where are we?”
“The GPS says we’re only five minutes away, miss,” Frank replied from the front.
I relayed the information to Brooke and tugged the phone from my ear when she let out an excited squeak.
“I’m so happy—I don’t know how much longer I can deal with my mother on my own.”
“I’ll do my best to distract her,” I said with a chuckle. “Hey, have you heard from Charlie?”
“She’s here. Well—not at the dress shop. But she’s in town.”
“Good. I was kind of expecting Dad to change his mind at the last minute about letting her fly up alone.”
“I think he almost did. She didn’t outright say it, but she called me a few days ago and asked if she could bring a friend.”
“Ava?”
“Her name’s Layla? She seems nice.”
I groaned. “Layla? I pray you didn’t leave your fiancé alone with her.”
Brooke laughed. “I’m not worried about her.”
Maybe Brooke wasn’t, but I was. If there was one of Charlie’s friends that I always worried about—it was Layla. Our parents liked her well enough, but I knew how she was when adults weren’t around.
To say she wasn’t a good influence would be an understatement.
Charles pointed the shop out to Frank and I glanced over, wondering who was going to hit on my date more—Layla or Brooke’s mom.
Kind of a toss-up.
“I’m here and ready for maid of honor duties.”
“Are you bringing your plus one inside?” Brooke teasingly asked.
I turned to ask but Charles was already shaking his head. The speaker volume of my cell was apparently loud enough for him to hear. That was slightly embarrassing.
“I’ll be checking in to my hotel after dropping you off. I figured I’d spend the day roaming around while you do your dress fitting and attend the rehearsal. Just call me if you need a ride.”
Brooke’s voice in my ear told me that she could hear him as well. I held the phone between Charles and myself so I didn’t have to needlessly play the middle-man.
“I’ll give her a ride after the dinner. Where are you staying?”
“The Pavilion Grand.”
“Oooh, fancy. We’ll drop her there this evening.”
“Wait, what?” I asked, pulling the phone back to my ear. “I’m not staying there.”
“What do you mean?” Brooke asked, her voice laced with confusion.
“I thought I was staying with you!”
“When you said you had a plus one I thought… oh shit.”
“Please tell me you still have a free bed somewhere,” I begged.
I might have been making more money than ever with my new job, but that didn’t mean I could afford to book a last minute room at a four-star hotel.
“I gave your room to Layla. I’m so sorry, Finley.”
Just as I was about to give in to the urge to curse at anyone who would listen, the phone was pulled out of my hand and Charles spoke crisply into it.
“She can stay with me. It’s no trouble.”
Oh, but it was trouble. The very tempting kind of trouble that I wasn’t sure I could resist.
“Of course,” he continued, Brooke’s end of the conversation too muffled for me to make out. “I’ll text her the room number after I check in. Yes, that’s us outside. All right.”
He ended the call and handed the phone back to me, gesturing outside where I could see Brooke rushing to the window of the store and waving. I grabbed my purse and opened the door, pausing with one foot out the door.
“This is a really bad idea,” I whispered.
“Really? You wouldn’t say that it’s fine?”
His joke was followed by a grin and I rolled my eyes.
A really bad idea, I thought as I got out of the car and sprinted toward my best friend. I heard rather than saw the car pull away from the curb as I hugged Brooke for the first time in months, grateful for the temporary reprieve from Charles.
“It’s been way too long,” I said as I hugged Brooke fiercely. “Seriously—I’m nostalgic for the good old days.”
“Really? I thought you’d be glad to get out of college.”
“I thought I would be, too, but the real world sucks.”
Brooke pulled away and gave me a strange look that I couldn’t quite put a name to. When she finished looking me up and down, she gave me a smile that instantly reminded me of all the good times we had while living together.
“It’s not so bad, you know. Just takes some getting used to.”
“Here’s hoping I get used to it soon. It’s starting to feel like I’m falling into a pit so deep that I’ll never find my way out.”
Brooke frowned and I felt bad for spoiling her mood on such a huge day for her. The wedding might not have been until the next day, but still.
“This isn’t about Ben, is it?”
“No. Honestly, I think breaking up with Ben was the one smart move I’ve made so far. Well, that and calling Ava to land this job.”
; “So it’s going well?” Brooke asked in surprise, her eyebrows raising. “I thought your boss was the devil.”
I laughed and wrapped an arm around her shoulders, leading her back into the store when I saw her mom hovering near the entrance.
“It’s funny that you mentioned him. There’s something I should probably tell you about my date…”
10
Trying on my bridesmaid dress with Brooke and the rest of the wedding party reminded me of back when we used to try on almost everything in our closets while sipping champagne before dates in college. They were happy memories without question, but ones that made me long for those days once again.
Who would have known how much I’d miss college? I never could have predicted it. Being an adult kind of sucked.
“You sure about this?” Brooke asked, interrupting my inner monologue as we pulled up beside the hotel. “I’m sure we can find somewhere for you to sleep at the bed and breakfast. I don’t think your sister would mind sharing.”
If I asked, I was sure that Charlie would readily agree to let me share her bed for two nights. The thought had even crossed my mind in the car when Brooke first mentioned that my room had been given to Layla. And yet…
“Don’t worry about it. I’ve been looking for a way to get to know Mr. King better. This opportunity is too good to pass up.”
Brooke smirked. “I think I know how that’s going to end.”
“Not what I meant.”
“If you say so.”
“I’m serious. He’s way too old for me.”
“If you’re looking for someone to agree so you can talk yourself out of it—you’ve got the wrong girl.”
I groaned and covered my face with my hands. Brooke laughed and gave my shoulder a push, prompting me to open the door and face the music.
“See you in the morning! Try to get some sleep,” she teasingly called before I slammed the door behind me.
Charles had left word at the front desk that I was to be given a key, so I was thankfully able to take my time going up to the room alone.
Because I might have paced back and forth in front of the door for a few minutes, trying to psych myself up before facing him. At least until a door opened down the hall and I was forced to stop my frantic behavior.
I ducked into the room and slid the door lock into place, watching through the peephole as the intruder walked past the door with his ice bucket.
“How was the rehearsal dinner?”
“Jesus!” I exclaimed before spinning around, my heart beating wildly from the scare. “You scared the shit out of me.”
Charles said nothing, but he did cock his head to the side and grin, obviously pleased with himself. I took a long moment to glare at him in the hopes of letting the adrenaline wear off, but the more I stared, the faster my heart beat.
“You shaved,” I dumbly noted, gesturing to his clean-shaven jaw.
I wondered how quickly his facial hair grew back. I’d never seen him with anything more than a five o’clock shadow, which was always gone by the next morning.
“I shave every evening,” he said as he scrubbed a hand over his jaw. “I like to look presentable.”
My eyes roamed over him unabashedly, taking in his casual appearance. His black frames were still on his face, but they looked a lot different when paired with a plain white t-shirt. He was wearing dark blue flannel pants, giving me the impression he was about to call it a night. His bare feet said the same.
“What time is it?” I muttered as heat rose to my cheeks. I forced myself to look away as I rummaged in my purse for my phone, shocked when I realized it was almost ten. “Wow. I had no idea it was this late. Guess I lost track of time.”
Charles nodded and turned around, speaking over his shoulder as he asked, “Did you have a good time?”
“Yeah, I did. I haven’t seen Brooke or Joshua in a few months now. After the rehearsal, we had a few drinks and got caught up,” I explained as I followed him into the main living area of his suite.
“Did you see your sister?”
“Briefly. She’s not part of the wedding party, so she only stopped in to say hi before going off to do God knows what with her friend.”
Charles grunted as he reached into the minibar and pulled out a bottle of scotch. He lifted the bottle toward me in offering, but I shook my head. I had no intention of risking a hangover on Brooke’s wedding day.
“What’d you do today?” I asked after he poured himself a glass and took a sip.
“Explored the area,” he replied with a shrug.
“That’s… vague. Are you sure you didn’t spend the day holed up in this room working?”
The glass paused just as he pressed the rim to his lips and he shot me an annoyed look before tipping it back and swallowing down the rest.
“Guilty as charged,” he finally admitted.
“I thought the point of you coming along was to take time off,” I said with a laugh.
“It’s a hard habit to break.”
“I’m not going to give you shit for it since I wasn’t here today, but promise me no more work this weekend. You really do need a break.”
“Why do you care?”
That wasn’t something I wanted to admit to myself, let alone to him. But thinking on the fly was a strong suit of mine.
“Maybe I’m hoping that getting you to relax means I’ll have a more enjoyable time at work.”
Charles frowned. “Work isn’t meant to be enjoyable. It’s work.”
“Semantics,” I argued with a roll of my eyes. “Okay, enjoyable was the wrong choice of word. How about less stressful? That works.”
“If you can’t handle it—”
“I can handle the work,” I interrupted, not wanting to give him even the slightest reason to consider letting me go. “I’m just joking around.”
“Maybe so, but you’re not entirely wrong. I am… tense,” he muttered.
“Isn’t there a spa here? You should’ve gotten a massage or something.”
“That isn’t necessary.”
“Have you ever had a massage? Seriously—weeks of tension gone in an instant. At least with a good masseuse. You should really consider it.”
He let out a bark of forced laughter, shaking his head as he poured another bit of scotch into his glass.
“The idea of a stranger feeling me up doesn’t appeal to me, but thanks for trying.”
Don’t do it. Don’t think it, don’t say it, just don’t—
“It doesn’t have to be a stranger,” I said, my voice so low that it bordered on a whisper. “I-I mean… haven’t you ever had a girlfriend do it for you?”
“I don’t have girlfriends. Haven’t we covered that already?”
“A lover, then. I don’t care what you call it—someone who sees you naked.”
Charles side-eyed me for a long time and I could see that he was warring with himself on what to say next. When he finally made the decision on what to say, I felt my body flush.
“Getting naked usually leads to a far better kind of tension relief.”
I swallowed hard and choked out, “How would you know it’s better if you’ve never had one?”
I might as well have just stood up and volunteered for the job. Dancing around like this was making me nervous, but we both knew that the invitation was open.
God help me, I’m really going to do this. And tomorrow, I’ll blame Brooke for enabling me.
Charles left his glass near the minibar, the remainder of the scotch forgotten as he stepped close to the couch I had chosen to sit on. I kept my eyes on his face even when he got in my personal bubble, too afraid of how I might react if I looked down at his pajama bottoms and saw what I was hoping to see.
“Are you propositioning me?” he asked, tilting his head to the side.
Well phrasing it like that certainly put a damper on my growing arousal.
I cleared my throat and shook my head, staring at the floor as I said, “No. I’m just…
I’m offering to give you a massage. If you want one.”
The silence stretched on so long that I was damn near certain he was going to either become enraged and fire me or laugh and reject me.
“Where do you want me?”
A lot of things ran through my mind, none of them appropriate to say to my boss. I spluttered for a minute, looking around the room frantically in search of a more appropriate venue for a massage than his bed.
“Here is fine,” I said, patting the couch cushion before standing up. “Just, uh… Just sit down?”
Charles eyes never left me even as I walked around the back of the couch. He hesitated before breaking the eye contact and sitting down in my vacated spot.
“Lean back,” I directed him, sighing when I put my hands on his shoulders and felt how ramrod straight they were. “You have to relax. Otherwise it’s not going to feel good.”
Charles grunted, but I felt a bit of the tension leave. I tried not to look at the way his muscles stretched out the arms of his t-shirt as I started to massage his shoulders and neck, but it was too difficult to ignore.
What else had he been hiding beneath those damn suits of his? I sucked in a breath and held it as my mind summoned images of the rest of his body.
Charles let out a hiss and I immediately pulled away and apologized, shaking my head to myself in a vain attempt to keep my mind on the task at hand.
The task of draining my incredibly attractive boss of tension by putting my hands on his body.
Thinking like that will not get me out of this alive, I chided myself as I resumed my work.
After a few more minutes of just barely managing to keep my thoughts from turning wildly inappropriate, I noticed that Charles had relaxed fully against the back of the couch. I smiled when I peeked over his shoulder and saw that his eyes had slid shut, his mouth just barely parted as he breathed deeply.
“How’s it feel?” I asked quietly, hoping that it wouldn’t disturb him.
“Very good,” he whispered, his tongue darting out to moisten his lips. “Better than I expected.”
“Do you want me to do your back?” I asked after a brief moment of hesitation.