Page 74 of Royal Deception

Only, it turns out “replacing Clary” isn’t as easy as I told myself it would be.

I lean back in my chair, rubbing at the tension in my temples as my new assistant, Aaron, steps into my office.

“Got your coffee,” he says, setting the cup down with a loud thunk.

I don’t even have to take a sip to know it’s wrong. The smell alone is enough. Too sweet. Too much milk. Definitely not black.

I stare at it, then at him. “What is this?”

Aaron glances at the cup. “Uh… coffee?”

I inhale sharply. “What kind of coffee?”

“Caramel macchiato. Thought you could use something fun, Boss.” He grins like he's done me a favor.

I pinch the bridge of my nose. “I don’t do fun coffee, Aaron. I drink it black.”

Aaron shrugs. “Could’ve fooled me. The guy at the shop said your usual was some oat milk nonsense.” He laughs, the sound awkward.

I blink. “Oat milk nonsense?”

“Yeah, I dunno. Something about how the lady who used to pick up your order always got a splash of oat milk and a double shot. Figured that was your thing.”

Clary.

I exhale slowly. “That was her coffee order, not mine.”

Aaron grimaces. “Oh. Well, your previous assistant must’ve had weird taste.”

I say nothing, just push the coffee aside.

“Did you confirm my lunch reservation?” I ask instead.

Aaron frowns. “Lunch reservation?"

"Yes, the one I asked you to make this morning. With Senator Burns.”

“Oh.” He runs a hand through his hair. “Um. No. I didn’t know I was supposed to confirm it. I mean, I booked it, so I figured it was fine.”

I close my eyes for a second. Clary always confirmed reservations. I never had to remind her.

“And the expense reports?” I ask, already dreading the answer.

Aaron makes a face. “Yeah, so… I took a look, but, man, those things are a mess. No offense, but it’s kinda your own fault. Your system’s all over the place.”

I drop my hands onto my desk, my patience thinning. “My system?”

"Yeah,” he says, giving me a nervous smile. “You know, there’s software to manage that kind of thing now. Maybe your old assistant was just a dinosaur. I’m hip with the times, though. Don’t worry.” He chuckles like he just told the funniest joke in the world.

I don’t laugh.

Because he’s right. They have fancy software now, but Clary had a special system of her own and things got done just as quickly and efficiently.

She knew how to handle every aspect of my life.

Now I realize she wasn’t just an amazing assistant. She was practically running my life.

And she did it flawlessly.