Page 165
Story: The Boss Situation
Asher smiles. “You shouldn’t. Not after how he treated you. Not after he stole your designs for years. On the flight over here, I figured out how he’d gained access to your designs.”
I swallow the bite of chicken in my mouth, and it feels as if it’s stuck in my throat. “How?”
“I can’t tell you. But it was Hannah.”
My nostrils flare. “My assistant? Are you sure? Asher, she’s been with me since …” My words trail off.
“Since you and Josh started dating, right? She’s on Lustre’s payroll too,” Asher replies calmly.
I inhale sharply. “Of course she is.”
I pull my phone from my pocket and text Harper. She immediately replies.
Harper
I’M FIRING HER RIGHT NOW!
I let out a heavy sigh. How could Hannah betray me like this? How long has she been spying for Josh? I lean back in my chair, realizing that was the missing piece to my puzzle. It all makes so much sense now.
“I’m so sorry. She sucks for that.”
“I just can’t believe it,” I whisper. “All those years … she was a part of everything. Every fucking fashion show, every design meeting … Asher, she was there.”
“Yeah, but something changed.” His brows lift. “I found recent emails where she was panicking about feeding him information. The designs she did eventually share were so bad, Josh didn’t believe it was legitimate.”
I smile wide, happy I followed my gut. “I sealed our designs tight. The only people with access were me, Harper, and my directors. Nothing was to be sent digitally, except the designs we planted as fakes.”
Asher grins. “So fucking smart, princess. Proud of you, Little Miss CEO.”
“That means a lot to me, Ash.”
We eat until we’re full. I yawn, and so does Asher.
“Tomorrow is a huge day for you,” he says, picking up our plates. “You should get some rest.”
Just as he moves to the kitchen, there’s a knock.
He opens the door to find a bellhop holding a massive bouquet of dark red roses. Asher signs for them, tips the young man, and brings the arrangement to me. A note is attached to it, and I pluck it from the top.
Can’t wait to see you again.
“What the fuck? Who sent these?” Asher asks.
My blood runs cold when I realize they didn’t come from him.
“I want them out of here,” I say, grabbing the flowers and entering the hallway. I set them next to the door.
Brody leans against the wall, scrolling his phone, and looks up at me. He tilts his head. “Harper was sent flowers too.”
“From who?” I ask.
“Micah,” he mutters. His eyes lock on me. “Do you know him?”
“No. They’re probably from Josh. Dispose of them,” I tell him. “Ensure nothing else is delivered to my room while I’m here.”
“Okay,” Brody says.
“Who knows my room number?” I ask.
I swallow the bite of chicken in my mouth, and it feels as if it’s stuck in my throat. “How?”
“I can’t tell you. But it was Hannah.”
My nostrils flare. “My assistant? Are you sure? Asher, she’s been with me since …” My words trail off.
“Since you and Josh started dating, right? She’s on Lustre’s payroll too,” Asher replies calmly.
I inhale sharply. “Of course she is.”
I pull my phone from my pocket and text Harper. She immediately replies.
Harper
I’M FIRING HER RIGHT NOW!
I let out a heavy sigh. How could Hannah betray me like this? How long has she been spying for Josh? I lean back in my chair, realizing that was the missing piece to my puzzle. It all makes so much sense now.
“I’m so sorry. She sucks for that.”
“I just can’t believe it,” I whisper. “All those years … she was a part of everything. Every fucking fashion show, every design meeting … Asher, she was there.”
“Yeah, but something changed.” His brows lift. “I found recent emails where she was panicking about feeding him information. The designs she did eventually share were so bad, Josh didn’t believe it was legitimate.”
I smile wide, happy I followed my gut. “I sealed our designs tight. The only people with access were me, Harper, and my directors. Nothing was to be sent digitally, except the designs we planted as fakes.”
Asher grins. “So fucking smart, princess. Proud of you, Little Miss CEO.”
“That means a lot to me, Ash.”
We eat until we’re full. I yawn, and so does Asher.
“Tomorrow is a huge day for you,” he says, picking up our plates. “You should get some rest.”
Just as he moves to the kitchen, there’s a knock.
He opens the door to find a bellhop holding a massive bouquet of dark red roses. Asher signs for them, tips the young man, and brings the arrangement to me. A note is attached to it, and I pluck it from the top.
Can’t wait to see you again.
“What the fuck? Who sent these?” Asher asks.
My blood runs cold when I realize they didn’t come from him.
“I want them out of here,” I say, grabbing the flowers and entering the hallway. I set them next to the door.
Brody leans against the wall, scrolling his phone, and looks up at me. He tilts his head. “Harper was sent flowers too.”
“From who?” I ask.
“Micah,” he mutters. His eyes lock on me. “Do you know him?”
“No. They’re probably from Josh. Dispose of them,” I tell him. “Ensure nothing else is delivered to my room while I’m here.”
“Okay,” Brody says.
“Who knows my room number?” I ask.
Table of Contents
- Page 1
- Page 2
- Page 3
- Page 4
- Page 5
- Page 6
- Page 7
- Page 8
- Page 9
- Page 10
- Page 11
- Page 12
- Page 13
- Page 14
- Page 15
- Page 16
- Page 17
- Page 18
- Page 19
- Page 20
- Page 21
- Page 22
- Page 23
- Page 24
- Page 25
- Page 26
- Page 27
- Page 28
- Page 29
- Page 30
- Page 31
- Page 32
- Page 33
- Page 34
- Page 35
- Page 36
- Page 37
- Page 38
- Page 39
- Page 40
- Page 41
- Page 42
- Page 43
- Page 44
- Page 45
- Page 46
- Page 47
- Page 48
- Page 49
- Page 50
- Page 51
- Page 52
- Page 53
- Page 54
- Page 55
- Page 56
- Page 57
- Page 58
- Page 59
- Page 60
- Page 61
- Page 62
- Page 63
- Page 64
- Page 65
- Page 66
- Page 67
- Page 68
- Page 69
- Page 70
- Page 71
- Page 72
- Page 73
- Page 74
- Page 75
- Page 76
- Page 77
- Page 78
- Page 79
- Page 80
- Page 81
- Page 82
- Page 83
- Page 84
- Page 85
- Page 86
- Page 87
- Page 88
- Page 89
- Page 90
- Page 91
- Page 92
- Page 93
- Page 94
- Page 95
- Page 96
- Page 97
- Page 98
- Page 99
- Page 100
- Page 101
- Page 102
- Page 103
- Page 104
- Page 105
- Page 106
- Page 107
- Page 108
- Page 109
- Page 110
- Page 111
- Page 112
- Page 113
- Page 114
- Page 115
- Page 116
- Page 117
- Page 118
- Page 119
- Page 120
- Page 121
- Page 122
- Page 123
- Page 124
- Page 125
- Page 126
- Page 127
- Page 128
- Page 129
- Page 130
- Page 131
- Page 132
- Page 133
- Page 134
- Page 135
- Page 136
- Page 137
- Page 138
- Page 139
- Page 140
- Page 141
- Page 142
- Page 143
- Page 144
- Page 145
- Page 146
- Page 147
- Page 148
- Page 149
- Page 150
- Page 151
- Page 152
- Page 153
- Page 154
- Page 155
- Page 156
- Page 157
- Page 158
- Page 159
- Page 160
- Page 161
- Page 162
- Page 163
- Page 164
- Page 165
- Page 166
- Page 167
- Page 168
- Page 169
- Page 170
- Page 171
- Page 172
- Page 173
- Page 174
- Page 175
- Page 176
- Page 177
- Page 178
- Page 179
- Page 180
- Page 181