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She takes the last few steps to her car.

“I talked to Grayson.”

She freezes with her hand on the door handle. “Did you?—”

Anger rises in me. “Don’t worry, princess. I’m still your dirty little secret.”

Her jaw tightens, and she gets into her car, speeding off as I stand there, staring after her.

Well, that went just swell. She hates my guts.

I wish I could hate her, too, but that’s clearly not in the cards for me.

Maybe buying this business wasn’t the genius move I thought it was.

ChapterFive

MEREDITH

I’m hopingthat after he gets settled, Logan will be a hands-off owner. After all, the first two weeks he was barely here. But now that construction is underway, I’m at the office alone with him.

“Quick question, Mr. Matthews.”

Logan looks at me curiously. “What’s that, Miss Whitlock?”

He’s been nothing but polite since that first day, but it still makes my nerves raw to just be around him.

“Why am I here? I can’t exactly manage an office with no other employees while construction is going on.”

“Do you need some time off?”

I huff out a breath. “No, but…”

“I need someone to help out with paperwork. I also invited Dina to come in today, she should be here in a few minutes.”

“Paperwork?”

“Inputting all the new pay rates into the system. That’s what an office manager does, right?”

“I mean, I guess that’s part of it?—”

“You’ll be handling payroll from now on.”

“Dean always liked to do it himself.”

“I’m not Dean.” His voice is low, and I hate how it affects my body.

His hair has gotten so long he pulls it back into a low ponytail, and it only accents his handsome face.

“So, you’re giving me more responsibility?”

“Is that a problem? You’re making five times your past pay rate. Do you need an increase?”

“That’s not…” I take a deep breath.

This is my workplace, and I have to be professional. I am a grown woman. I can do this. I can act detached and aloof and still be the most competent employee he has.

But most of all, I can’t let it show that I hate him.