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I missed her as soon as I heard the elevator doors close, leaving me in a solitude that had been filled for the last three days. I knew I would see her tomorrow, but it wouldn’t be like the Bahamas. We would have to go back to pretending I was just her boss and she was just my assistant. I didn’t know if I could pretend.
As I lay there, still smelling the jasmine that lingered on my sheet, I realized I had let the lines blur between us. This wasn’t my normal affair with my personal assistant. Usually, things were so black and white. There was business and fucking. There wasn’t anything in between. There were no feelings. There was no relationship.
But now…
Things weren’t black and white. They were in living color and every single shade told me that I had developed feelings for this woman. I groaned as I realized the predicament I was in, and pulled the sheets over my head.
My phone pinged on my nightstand and I quickly dug myself out of the covers in hopes it was Monica. Maybe she had changed her mind and would stay the night. I grabbed my phone and frowned. It wasn’t Monica. It was Veronica. I just realized how similar their names sound. I rolled my eyes as I opened her text.
Veronica:I miss you.
I was about to toss my phone aside, but three bouncing dots appeared. She still had more nonsense to say.
A moment later, a photo came through.
She stood in front of a mirror completely naked with her legs crossed carefully and her arm draped over her overflowing breasts, so not to show anything. Another photo came through. She was kneeling on the shag carpet of her bedroom, one hand on the mirror and one hand holding the phone, her breasts front and center. Another photo came through. This time she sat in front of the mirror, her knees bent and her legs spread.
I quickly deleted them.
She would stop at nothing. I wondered when she would ever get the hint. I texted back.
Me:You need to stop. I’ve moved on. You should too. Please don’t contact me again.
I didn’t wait for a response before turning off my phone. I placed it on my nightstand, settling back under the covers and welcoming sleep.
The next morning, I actually got to work on time. Well, almost. Thirty minutes late was pretty on time for me. Of course, Monica was already there at her desk in a sharp black blazer and a maroon lip. I smiled at her as I approached, but she didn’t return it. Instead, she looked nervous as her eyes quickly darted to my office.
My smile fell off my face and felt like it landed on the floor, along with my stomach, as I saw my father sitting in my office.Shit. He knows.That had to be why he was here. I wondered who told him.
“Dad?” I asked, as I walked into the room.
“Close the door,” he said.
His arms were crossed and his lips were pressed tightly together. I did as he said and closed the door before taking a seat across from him.
“What’s this about?” I asked casually.
“What the hell do you think you’re doing taking work off and going to the Bahamas?” His voice rose as he spoke.
“I just needed some time away. After Veronica showed up at Aunt Ruth’s party, she has been relentless. I couldn’t handle it.”
“Oh, come off it,” he said, shaking his head. “A woman is infatuated with you. Boo hoo.”
“You know how she can be, Dad.”
He seemed to think about that for a second before laying into me again.
“I’m no fan of your ex-wife either, but you can’t just run away when shit gets hard. Especially when it’s shit that doesn’t matter. You’re going to drop the ball on your company because you can’t handle an annoying woman?”
“I didn’t drop the ball. There was nothing pressing on Friday, so I thought I would leave early. I haven’t been on a vacation in a while.” I shrugged.
“Bigtime businessmen don’t take vacations,” he said. “At least not on a whim. When I leave, the rare times I do, I make sure everything is in order. If everything cannot run to a T while I’m gone, then I don’t go at all. You just left without saying a fucking word.”
“I’m sorry—” I started.
“There are responsibilities to uphold. Responsibilities that I’m not sure you can handle.”
“I can,” I said firmly.