The CEO

by Hazel Parker

  Arabella: And?

  Nora: Too much to text. Can we conference call?

  Audrey: Can’t. I’m on a date.

  Arabella: Why are you texting us? Go!

  Audrey: ttyl. Have fun, Nora!

  Sasha: I’m at an event. Chat tomorrow?

  Nora: Sure, Sasha. Have fun!

  Arabella: I’ll call you in 2.

  In exactly two minutes, Nora’s cell phone lights up with a picture of her and Arabella smiling at a happy hour and toasting their champagne flutes. It was the summer after college when they were twenty-one and just wanted to have fun. Nora sighs wistfully at the many good times she and her best friends had partying in New York, London, and Dubai.

  “Hey!” Nora retells the entire evening to her best friend, minus the secret control room with the questionable hidden cameras. She wants to ask Sebastian to verify that all of the cameras and wires were legitimately installed with all participants’ permission. But she’s afraid that the truth is that the whole spy room is a violation of those citizens’ right to privacy. She doesn’t want to know. But if her client is committing a crime, she may have a legal obligation to stop him...or at least explain to him why he should stop.

  “Whoa, Nora. Breathe.” Arabella asks her, “So, you like him?”

  “Like him? I don’t even know him.” She flops down on the bed.

  “But you’re attracted to him?”

  “Yeah.” Her shoulders slump.

  “This is good.”

  “How? I work for him!”

  “A famous relationship doctor said that most marriages come from coworkers falling in love.”

  “We’re not coworkers.”

  “Well, colleagues—”

  “Same thing. He’s above me.”

  “And you want to be below him?” She giggles.

  “Arabella! Be serious.”

  “Sorry, I couldn’t resist.” She clears her throat. “Listen, you know that internet billionaire who met his wife at work? He interviewed her for her job. They went to the same Ivy League university. She worked in a cubicle next to his. She fell in love with his laugh. He fell in love with her brains and beauty.”

  “And?”

  “They got engaged in three months.”

  “Three months!” Nora sits up straight.

  “Yup. Married a year later. Had their first child shortly thereafter.”

  “How many kids do they have?”

  “Four.”

  Nora sighs. She pictures her dirty-blond haired children having play dates with Arabella’s son. Before that, she sees herself kissing her newborn baby’s feet. Before that, she sees Sebastian getting down on one knee in his tuxedo and proposing to her in his office in front of all of his employees.

  “Nora? You still there?” Arabella yawns.

  “Yes, Sorry. I was just—”

  “Daydreaming about you and the CEO sitting in a tree… k-i-s-s-i-n-g.” She giggles.

  “Really, Arabella?” She giggles. Her friend is not too far off. But she’s not ready to admit how far her fantasies of the CEO have gone.

  “Listen, if the most famous love doctor is a proponent of coworkers getting married, then I’m all for it.”

  “But—”

  “No buts. Let yourself fall in love!”

  “What if—”

  “What if there’s a zombie apocalypse?”

  The two friends giggle.

  “No. That is not what I was going to say. What if it doesn’t work out?”

  “What if it does?”

  Nora sighs.

  “You’re just the eternal optimist.”

  “You’re talking to a matchmaker.” They laugh. “If I don’t believe in love, then who does?”

  After a few more laughs and an I-love-you, the two friends end the call.

  Nora stands, retrieves her luggage, and walks out of the picturesque hotel room. As she walks along the gold and brown hallway with portraits of American presidents, she can finally admit to herself that she is attracted to Sebastian. She wants an ambitious, smart man to be her partner in life. She wants Sebastian Price, CEO.

  Now that she knows that she wants to date Sebastian—or at least, get to know him on a personal level—how does she tell him? Should she tell him? Or should she just let nature take its course?

  *****

  An hour later Nora emerges from yet another black cab. The driver carries her luggage to the non-commercial airport doors where she tips him generously. Then she wheels her bags into the airport and looks around for a tall, sexy blond man. The CEO.

  Nora sees the familiar tailored black pants that she remembers meeting Sebastian in yesterday. She can’t believe it’s only been a day. His back is turned to her. She takes in the way his broad shoulders fill in the black jacket. Why does he wear so much black? Is it a billionaire quirk where he doesn’t have to waste time thinking about what he’s wearing? What else does a ridiculously hot billionaire do with his time?

  She is relieved that his back is turned to her. She can drink in those shoulders that hours ago she rested her arms on. She’s both nervous and excited to be alone with him on a private jet. She’s never had sex on a plane before. Not that she’s going to have sex with Sebastian. She loves the idea of it. The idea of joining the Mile High Club through the ridiculously sexy CEO’s initiation. But she shushes her internal dialogue. She must stop thinking about having sex with her boss.

  As he turns around, probably sensing her naughty thoughts, her phone rings. Nora jumps. Her mom usually calls her on her landline at home. Her mom…

  “Mom?” Nora waits for the usual greeting.

  “Darling, how are you?”

  “I’m fine. How are you?” She knows better than to try to rush her mother off the phone. The last time she did that her mother took a half hour to describe her latest cooking lessons and foray into fish.

  As Nora wheels her luggage to Sebastian, he motions for a man to come take her bags. She mouths thank you to him while she listens to her mom go on about the many ways to cook fish. She mouths my mom to Sebastian who smiles softly at her. Her heart flutters. She hopes she’s not blushing.

  “Mom—” Nora attempts to interrupt as she notices Sebastian gestures for her to follow him out onto the tarmac.

  “Yes, darling?”

  They cross the tarmac and reach a steel staircase leading to an impressive white jet with the black letters S.P. on the tail. A female pilot dressed in a white uniform with a small silver-wings pin on her chest awaits at the top of the steps to greet them. Sebastian salutes her warmly. He climbs the steps and introduces Nora.

  “Hold on, mom.” Nora places the phone to her chest and shakes the pilot’s hand. They exchange pleasantries.

  Overhead, a plane is taking off. The steel bird soars with a roar into the dark night. Countless stars dapple the blue-black sky. The fumes from the truck driving off after refueling make Nora cough.

  The pilot, Captain Alma Cruz, chats pleasantly with Sebastian as they step inside the wood-paneled interior. It smells like a new car. A single row of cream leather chairs line one side of the jet. On the other side, a tall, dark-haired flight attendant stows their luggage.

  Sebastian introduces the flight attendant, Tiffany Jones, who asks them what they would like to drink. Sebastian requests an iced water. Nora says:

  “I’ll have a warm milk.”

  “Nora?” Her mother’s tinny voice comes loudly through the cell phone resting on Nora’s chest.

  “Warm milk?” Sebastian tilts his head to the right and regards Nora as if seeing her for the first time.

  “Who is that, Nora?” Her mother calls.

  “Mom?” Nora wants to get her mom off the phone, quickly. She doesn’t want to talk about her new job in front of her new boss. She wants to hide her enthusiasm. He doesn’t need to know how much she’s been wanting to leave her old firm. She likes to play her cards close. The less he knows, the better. In the past she’s given her trust away so freel
y. She wants him to earn her trust.

  “Darling, who is that man?”

  “I can’t talk right now.” She tries to think of an excuse to get off the phone.

  Just then Pilot Cruz announces the flight time: thirty fiveminutes. Tiffany asks them to take a seat and to buckle up. Sebastian sits in the seat on the right side. Nora sits across from him.

  “Nora, where are you?”

  “I’m on a plane. We’re about to take off. I have to go, mom.”

  “Where are you going?”

  Nora sighs. Her mother is so persistent.

  “Atlanta.” Nora tries to keep the annoyance out of her voice while she buckles her seatbelt. She tries to ignore Sebastian’s smile as Tiffany brings his cold water and her warm milk.

  “Isn’t that where you live?”

  “Yes, mom, I gotta go. I’ll call you tomorrow. Love you.”

  “Alright. Alright. Love you too. Your daddy sends his love too.”

  Nora’s lower back muscles stiffen at the pronouncement of the word, daddy. She is sure that he does not send his love. He probably sends the opposite.

  “I’m sure.” The bitterness in her words causes Sebastian to raise his eyebrows. She wonders why is he listening to her conversation? “Good night, mom.”

  “Nite, darling.”

  Nora clicks off the call, puts her phone in airplane mode, and drops her phone into her purse.

  “How’s mom?” Sebastian asks.

  “Fine.” She swivels her comfortable seat to face Sebastian. “Why—”

  Tiffany brings cream cashmere blankets. The air conditioner is blasting through the vents. Nora is so annoyed with her mother’s poor timing that she doesn’t feel cold. Now, facing the CEO’s beautiful face, looking at those pink lips, Nora forgets her annoyance. Her heart flutters.

  She picks up her warm milk and sips.

  “Mmmmmm.”

  “So, warm milk?” Sebastian nods at her beverage.

  “So, cold water?” She nods at his drink.

  A standoff ensues. Nora feels like she’s back in high school sitting across from her crush. It’s lunchtime. She’s got vanilla milk, he’s got bottled water. He makes fun of her. She lets him because she likes him. But this isn’t high school. She’s twenty-six-years-old. She’s tired, and she’s, frankly, horny.

  She knows it’s not that time of the month. Her period hasn’t arrived yet. Her body must be reacting to Sebastian’s pheromones. His cologne and woodsy, masculine scent drifts her way on the air conditioner. Her heart flutters. Her skin warms to his smell.

  Maybe it’s his time of the month. Maybe he’s in heat. She hopes he’s in heat. She wants him to lean across the aisle and pull her into his lap. But she also wants to keep her job.

  So, she sips her warm milk.

  A smile tugs at Sebastian’s mouth. Nora tries not to stare. She sips more milk. It calms her nerves. Reminds her of when she was a little girl and afraid of monsters living under her bed at night. Her dad made her warm milk and tucked her in at night. She always felt safe after drinking warm milk. She misses the father who protected her from monsters, who read her bedtime stories, who tucked her in at night. Maybe the calming effect of the warm milk is psychosomatic. She doesn’t care. She feels calmer already.

  “Get some sleep. We have a long day tomorrow.” Sebastian gulps down his water.

  “Is that the CEO or the driver or the pilot talking?” Nora hopes it comes across as a joke.

  But Sebastian regards her thoughtfully. He steeples his fingers in front of his mouth and rests the index fingers against his pink lips.

  Nora imagines his lips are soft. They’re moist from the water. She tries to focus. Her breath shortens. She sips some more warm milk.

  “Good question, counselor. That’s something my therapist would ask me.”

  Nora raises her eyebrows at the mention of his therapist.

  “It’s the pilot talking.” He taps his index finger against his lips.

  “Good.” She’s about to put her white ceramic mug down when the flight attendant appears soundlessly and whisks it away.

  “Why?”

  “Because a CEO who cares so much about his employees would need...boundaries.” Nora licks her lips, reaching for the last of the sweet milk.

  Sebastian’s eyes watch Nora’s pink tongue flick around her still red lips. He marvels at how lipstick really does stay on all day...or night...like all of those commercials he sees claim.

  The sight of Nora’s tongue sends an electric shock straight to his groin. He shifts in his chair. Hot blood courses through his body. He can feel himself stiffening...and he seeks a thought to halt the impending erection.

  He thinks about his childhood. He remembers all of those neighborhood kids sitting in his living room, sitting on his pillows—floral pillows his mom sewed by hand out of old drapes—and watching PBS with him. He remembers how the little redheaded boy named Danny used to grab Sebastian’s yellow truck and not give it back. He remembers the anger and resentment and sadness he felt when his mom told him that he had to share his toy cars and trucks and LEGOs with Danny and all of the other neighborhood kids.

  It was then, when Sebastian was only five-years-old, that he decided that when he grew up, he wouldn’t let the neighborhood kids into his home and play with his toys. He’d have his own toys. He’d do whatever he wants. He wouldn’t wait for his mom or his dad—or anyone—to give him permission. He’d be his own boss.

  Nora watches a storm of emotions pass over Sebastian’s face. From the faraway look in his eyes, she sees that he’s thinking about another time, another place, another person.

  Sebastian is looking at her, but not seeing her.

  Nora shakes her head. She feels the plane speed up, forcing her to sit back in her super comfortable leather seat. She drapes the cashmere blanket around her shoulders. The soft fabric hugs her. The plane picks up speed. As it takes flight, Nora allows it to lift her feet off the ground. She giggles, like she did when she was in the chopper. She loves flying. She loves lift-offs. She loves landings. She loves defying gravity.

  At the sound of her giggle and the sight of the glee on her face, Sebastian’s heart tumbles in her direction. He wants to hear her giggle every time his jet takes off. He’s tired of the lonely flights. Tired of the solo-business trips. Tired of traipsing across the world with no one to share it with.

  Maybe, he thinks. Maybe he can share it with Nora.

  But how?

  She works for him. He’s her employer. It would be illegal—at worst—and awkward—at best.

  He leans back in the leather chairs that he designed down to the seams.

  “Good night, Nora.”

  The tenderness in his tone surprises her. She covers her shock with a yawn.

  “Good night, pilot.”

  *****

  The next month is a blur of flights, meetings, and tours. Nora spends her free time reading annual reports. She and Sebastian discuss which companies are a waste of time and which are suitable for investment. They debate over a few, agree on most. Nora steers him clear of grocery stores. She manages to get him to focus on companies similar to the ones he acquired in the past. But every time they pass a grocery chain, Sebastian argues the merits of acquiring it. Nora manages to talk him down...or so she thinks.

  On the last night of a month of hopping from Germany to England to France to Spain and sleeping in the best luxury hotels, Sebastian is feeling stir crazy. He’s tired of wearing business suits with ties that choke him more and more each day. He wants to get out and have fun. He glances over at Nora sitting in the posh hotel conference room. Her hair cascading down her shoulders. Her brown eyes focused on a report. She has the librarian look going on, and he loves it.

  “Nora, how old are you?” He pulls on his golden tie and unbuttons the top two buttons on his shirt.

  “Twenty-six. Why? How old are you?” She knows that he’s thirty, but she needs to say something to distract herself from the
way his Adam’s apple moves when he talks. Her gut clenches.

  “Thirty.” He grabs a glass, gulps down the water, and crunches on some ice.

  She watches his tongue push the ice around his mouth. She wonders what she did to deserve this tortuous show of his skillful tongue. She has managed to keep her thoughts off of the CEO’s tantalizing athletic body and gorgeous face by digging deep into work.

  “I was thinking,” he checks the time on his solid gold watch with a diamond on the black face, “it’s after midnight. We have been working for thirty days straight. No days off. It’s our last night. Let’s have some fun.”

  He flashes that smile that reminds of her when he flew the helicopter. Her heart skips a beat. Her blood warms her cheeks. She hates that she’s blushing. She lunges for her glass of water but knocks it over in her haste. Sebastian reaches for the annual reports piled on the desk. But several get wet.

  “Ugh, I’m so sorry.”

  “We definitely need a break.” He waves for the attendant standing outside of the glass conference doors to come clean up the water. The silent man scurries in with a towel and wipes up the water.

  “What do you say, Miss Thomas?”

  Sebastian wants Nora to say yes. He hopes she’ll say no. He longs to see her smile again. He misses her giggle.

  He hates that he loves the way her eyes light up when they debate about the economic viability of a company.

  He hates that every time he looks at her, he wants to wrap his arms around her.

  He hates that he notices her red lipstick stays on all day.

  He hates that he’s the boss and she’s his employee.

  He wishes they met under different circumstances.

  But how else would they have met?

  He spends all of his free time researching companies to buy. She practices law. She practically lives in law libraries and conference rooms. Their paths never would’ve crossed. Only at work would they have ever met. Now that they’ve been working side-by-side for a month doing what he loves best—looking for businesses to buy—Sebastian knows he’s falling for her. He’s afraid of falling in love. But Nora is a smart woman. A resourceful woman. She knows business and law. She can help him build his empire.

  She is the first woman he has pictured himself working with during the day, making love to at night, and moving in with. He can’t imagine himself traveling without her. He can’t imagine himself hunting for companies without her. He doesn’t want to live his life without Nora Thomas by his side.