Page 24 of The Boss and the Wedding Mess

"Okay. Thank you so much..." London sighs with relief and then says goodbye: "Um, see you later then. I'll give you back to Alex." She hands me the phone.

“Bye,” I say flatly and hang up. Her brows shoot up at my bluntness, but I’m already taking the food out of the two bags and place it between us.

“You tricked me,” she growls, immediately snatching a wrap away from me.

“Yes,” I admit, smiling and amused.

“That wasn’t nice.”

“Neither was storming a church and causing chaos.”

“Are you going to hold that over me forever?”

“For a while longer. At least until you stop getting so worked up about it.” I bite into the wrap, which is absolutely delicious. I think I’ll have lunch there more often. The cute server wasn’t bad either and could keep me company for an evening.

“Are you always this hot-tempered?” I ask.

"It's hard to stay calm in certain situations, especially when it involves my friends or people I care about," she admits. However: "I'm not like that at work."

“Just a few hours ago you were threatening me with war.” I remind her, amused. Her ears and cheeks flame again.

“You provoked me.”

“You let yourself be provoked.”

“It’s a tough situation. You’re my boss’s son, and…” She drops her gaze, staring at her barely-touched wrap. “If I hadn’t stormed into that church, if I’d just listened to my friend, then…” She trails off, breath hitching.

“Then what?”

"We would have met under normal circumstances. You would’ve gotten a good impression of me, and I’d still have my job—a job I honestly love more than anything. One mistake, and my career’s ruined."

Oh, is she angling for sympathy? I can’t tell how serious she is.

"If Stephanie forgives you, then I will too. It was her wedding. I was just the best man."

As I say this, her gaze immediately shifts to me. Her large dark brown eyes shimmer as if tears are forming.

"Really?" she breathes in disbelief. I think she's just putting on an act. Women like to do that to stir up sympathy, to trigger a man’s protective instinct. That’s what she’d be doing—if I were falling for it. Still, I do feel a little sorry for her. If Marc andStephanie aren’t angry anymore, then I’ll forgive her too. Maybe she could be useful as my assistant after all?

"Yes," I assure her, which leads her to breathe a sigh of relief before smiling and then enjoying her wrap. Hmm. I don't know. Maybe she’s sincere after all.

Chapter 9

London

I think he’s falling for it. Though, honestly, not everything I said was an act. Maybe a genuine fresh start wouldn’t be such a bad idea. Of course, I’ll apologize to Stephanie properly and hope she’s not angry still.

I sneak glances at Alexander every now and then. The fact that he knows about my favorite spot makes me uneasy. I suspect he’ll show up here often now, which means I won’t have my breaks to myself anymore.

We enjoy our meal until it's time to head back to the office. We leave the roof and take the elevator one floor down to the eighth floor.

"By the way, you can move into your office now," I tell him as we step out. "If you need anything, just press one on your phone and you’ll be connected to me. If I don’t answer, after six rings it’ll go to the main switchboard. You can also call my cell anytime."

"Anytime?" he asks with a smug smile.

"Half an hour before work starts and half an hour after it ends. Outside those times, only if it’s an absolute emergency." I try to remain calm and polite, even though I suspect he's hinting at something more specific. He’s probably testing if I’m available for… that kind of thing. Not happening. Especially not with him.

"I’ll keep that in mind," he says, which is a relief.