Her first week working for Russell Newport had been one full of ups and downs, but as the weekend arrived, Amanda knew she had done the right thing by sticking by Russell’s side.

She had spent the latter part of the week rising to the challenge that Regina had set for her, and she had landed Russell an awesome apartment in the city, looking out across the river and the warehouses where he would be spending so much of his time. She had seen the place when she had been going toward her interview on that very first day when the Newport’s burst into her life and started to turn it upside down. The building was new and had a doorman, but it was in an up and coming hip part of town, something she knew would appeal to Russell’s wayward spirit. The fact that it had an awesome view over the river and toward the land he owned and would be developing only added to the big list of ticks that the apartment was getting.

Now it was Saturday, and Amanda knew she was going to have to say goodbye to Madison and Grace as they went to spend the night with their father, and Amanda was feeling wound up like a coiled spring. As she waited for him to show, she paced the living area nervously and kept checking her watch to make sure he wasn’t late.

The girls knew he was coming. So if he didn’t show this time, it was going to cause them a huge amount of heartache.

When she heard the car heading down the street, she breathed a sigh of relief, even though she knew this meant she was going to have to face him. Maddy and Grace were bouncing around on the couch, helping each other put on their backpacks before they ran over to Amanda and cuddled into her legs.

“Are you coming too, Mommy?” Grace asked with wide innocent eyes, and Amanda had to hold back the tears as she shook her head and told her no.

“This is a special day for you two and your daddy,” she smiled. “I’ll be here tomorrow when he brings you home, and then we can spend the afternoon together doing whatever you want. How does that sound?”

Grace hugged her legs a little tighter and Amanda could tell that as the youngest was struggling the most with being separated from her mother. It broke Amanda’s heart to have to spend time away from her children, but how else was she to make the break they so desperately needed. She couldn’t stay with Rob and be miserable, it would only lead to a toxic home life that wouldn’t be good for the girls.

“Hi, Rob,” Amanda said as she opened the door and he stared back at her. He looked sullen and bitter, as if he were holding back his acid tongue.

“Daddy!” Madison said cheerfully as she ran to him and he picked her up and hugged her tight.

Grace stayed hidden behind her mother’s legs and Amanda shrugged nervously. She didn’t want her ex to think she was the cause of Grace’s apprehension.

“Hey, Gracey,” Rob said as he bent down on his knee and tried to coax her to go toward him. “How you doing? Are you ready for a fun day?”

Grace nodded her head slowly and seemed to lose a bit of her worry. She looked up at Amanda and Amanda smiled down at her warmly, before she started to walk toward Rob and he swept her up into a hug too.

“Have a lovely time, you guys,” Amanda said with a wide smile on her face, even though, inside, she felt as if she was dying. “I’ll see you tomorrow. I love you.”

The girls blew kisses and Rob walked with them toward his car. She watched as they were buckled into the back seats, and Rob flashed her an angry glance as he climbed into the driver’s side. It was one of the hardest things she had ever done, because it felt different this time. Now his stuff was well and truly gone from the house, this was how things were going to be going forward, and she just hoped that they could stay amicable for the children, but she had the feeling that it wasn’t going to happen.

As the car disappeared at the end of the street, she breathed a huge sigh and pulled herself together. The girls were just spending the night with their dad, and she was going to get herself to work and help the disaster that was Russell Newport move into his new penthouse apartment on the other side of the river.

She grabbed her purse and the cellphone and she locked up her front door. It was showtime. And it was going to be a very busy day indeed.

 

At the apartment, Russell was already there, standing outside and smoking furiously as he paced around the parking lot with his phone clamped to his ear. Amanda waved to him and gave him a weak smile as she arrived, and she went straight over to the removal men and looked at the inventory they had listed on their notes.

“Has he given you any instruction?” she asked them.

The men shook their heads and breathed out with irritation.

“Okay,” Amanda said as she started to take over. “Here’s a set of keys, the apartment is the entire top floor. You can access it with this key and via the elevator.”

She gave them the keys and then she turned back to face Russell. The more time she was spending with him, the more she was seeing that he was determined to just live life on his own terms and he didn’t give a shit about anyone else.

She felt a surge of anger bubble up within her and she scowled at him from across the parking lot. He inhaled on his cigarette and looked back at her with his head cocked to the side and he smirked. Amanda could tell he knew he had annoyed her.

When he hung up the phone, he threw the cigarette onto the ground and came striding over to her.

“What have I done now?” he asked her with mock disdain.

“Nothing,” Amanda said, biting her tongue. “But the removal men were just standing around, they could have been getting things in for you.”

“I was on a call,” he said coldly, and then he turned and looked at the two huge vans that were being unloaded next to them.

“Did you have a chance to check out the place?” Amanda asked him.

Russell nodded his head slowly and then he turned back to face her. “I did,” he smiled. “And I have to say, I’m impressed, I didn’t think you had it in you.”

“I’m full of surprises,” she mused as she tucked a pen behind her ear and looked through her own notes that she had correlated on a clipboard.

“Would you like me to head up and make sure everything is going in the right place, or would you prefer me to keep an eye on things down here?” she asked, looking up into his eyes and forgetting for a moment, all over again, that this man was her boss.

He was so good looking, it still took her by surprise sometimes when she really looked at him. It was as if, for the majority of time they had already spent together, she had been in total denial and had done anything but acknowledge his looks.

“I’m keeping you close,” Russell said sternly. “I want us both upstairs.”

The words sent a tingle down her spine and she tried not to smile. She didn’t know if he had said them innocently or if there had been something suggestive behind them, but she liked it all the same. He had softened over the past few days and his behavior had begun to calm down. After Amanda had started her quest to find him somewhere to live and had come good almost immediately, it was as if a weight had been lifted from his shoulders.

“I appreciate this,” he said as they stood in the elevator and it rose to the top of the building. “I didn’t think you’d come through for me on this one, but you’ve done a fucking good job.”

Amanda smiled and looked at him out of the corner of her eye. He was staring down at his cellphone and it looked as if he were replying to an email. He was constantly on the go, nothing ever seemed to calm with him, and although it was exhausting to watch, Amanda was kind of becoming addicted to it too. Now, sitting alone and silent didn’t hold the same appeal as it once had. In fact, she hadn’t even needed to be there for the moving in, Russell had told her he could handle it on his own and she had insisted that she be there. With the girls gone for the night, what else was she going to do with herself?

Inside the apartment, the sun streamed through the back windows and an amazing view greeted them the moment they stepped out of the elevator.

“Imagine, as the warehouses and other side of the river begins to take shape, how incredible it’s going to be to live here.”

Russell smiled as he crossed his arms over his chest and looked out at the land and buildings opposite. It was his empire. He was building something and creating something from the beginning.

Every time Amanda looked at him, she could tell he had a brilliant mind, it seemed such a shame that it had been so troubled. Russell clicked his fingers and whistled as he pointed to the table that had been set up in the kitchen area.

“Take a seat,” he said with authority, and Amanda did as she was told.

He moved around a pile of stacked up boxes and opened the refrigerator and pulled out two bottles of spring water. He threw one in her direction and Amanda caught it just in time.

“Nice work,” he said with a smirk, and then he sat down at the table opposite her and twisted the cap from his bottle and took a deep swig.

“Thank you,” she said as she did the same.

“So, what’s the story?” he asked her as he narrowed his eyes.

Around them, the removal men were working away silently and were busy bringing in boxes and large pieces of furniture, which occasionally, Russell or Amanda would help them find a place for by turning and pointing to various rooms off the main living area.

“What do you mean?” she asked him.

He was looking at her intently and she could feel that something had changed between them. As he had calmed down over the past few days, something had seemed to shift in his brain and he was no longer as difficult as he had been. His strength appeared to be coming back, he was no longer as erratic, and he was turning into a different person before her very eyes.

He was the Russell that she knew he could be if only his demons stayed well away from the surface. And as she was seeing more and more of him, she was determined to help him fight them and keep it that way. It was clear he could be quite brilliant if he focused his mind and attention to something, it was only the fact he also clearly had a self-destruct button that could ruin things for him again.

“I mean, what’s the story?” he repeated. “With you… I’m pretty good at reading people and I can tell something is going on.”

Amanda swallowed nervously and her mind began to spin. She hadn’t wanted to admit to Russell that she had children because she didn’t want him to think she was vulnerable or potentially going to flake out on him. But as she sat there and he looked into her eyes, she knew there was no way she was going to hide them any longer. It had killed her not being able to talk of them all week.

“I’m getting divorced,” she said finally as she breathed a sigh of relief as the words came out of her mouth. “And my two girls, well, currently I’m just trying to do the best by them.”

His eyes opened wide, his pupils were big and dark, and he smiled at her warmly. So warmly she could actually feel it. There was a lot of affection there in that moment, something she had never seen come from him before. He had spent so much time being arrogant or offensive, it was a surprise, but she could also tell that it was who he truly was when all the bullshit melted away.

“I’ve been there,” he said as he leaned forward. “And I know how tough it is.”

Amanda had to try not to let her emotions get the better of her, but she felt so grateful for his compassion.

“We didn’t have kids, and thank fucking god because we almost destroyed each other,” he snorted with laughter and rolled his eyes. “It knocked me right back. But now, I’m over it. And you will be too.”

Amanda smiled and nodded her head in agreement.

“Oh, I’m over it,” she said. “I just hate the way he keeps trying to hold onto control of us. That’s why I’ve taken this job, if I’m honest, so I don’t have to accept any extra money for him and I can support the three of us on my own. I don’t want him to ever have the power to be able to try and disrupt our lives again.”

Russell looked stunned, as if he was completely taken aback and he looked at her with admiration.

“Well, then I’m glad I asked,” he said. “Because the entitled, stupid girls I’ve had through the door trying to do this job have got nothing on you and now I can see why. You’ve got life experience, you’re mature, and you’re a decent fucking person.” 

Amanda felt her cheeks burn with a blush and she smiled meekly.

“Things don’t always stay difficult,” he said as he reached out and put his hand on top of hers.

When his skin connected with hers and their body heat began to mix, Amanda’s heartrate began to rise, and she felt her skin prickling with anticipation. She looked up into his eyes and he held her there for a moment; the way he was looking at her told her that he was feeling it too. Something big was happening between them. They were bonding, but their souls were also connecting on another level. They had the common ground of a shared experience, and Russell had clearly not had someone to talk to in a long time either.

He smiled at her and she smiled back. Her heart was racing and she could feel the power between the two of them growing, and she honestly didn’t know what to do with it.

Russell’s big hand didn’t move, it stayed there on top of hers and she swallowed as she held his gaze. He was so tall and muscular, but she had been trying to avoid acknowledging how powerful a presence he was before now, because she honestly thought she was going to run away. 

“You’re going to be okay, kid,” he said with a smile and she nodded her head, feeling completely indebted to him for this small act of kindness when she had been so used to him being a complete jerk. “I promise you.”

She nodded her head and returned his warm smile.

“And if that ex of yours gives you any trouble,” he said sternly as he leaned in closer to her so the workmen couldn’t hear. “Just fucking tell me,” he raised his eyebrows. “And I’ll sort that shit out for you in no time.”

Amanda’s face cracked into a wide grin and she blinked away a tear.

“I can’t be having my assistant feeling low or harassed,” he said. “In fact, I’ve got a good mind to go and give him a good talking to now.”

“No!” Amanda said as she slapped him playfully on the arm. “You can’t do that. Honestly, I’m fine. Don’t worry.”

He looked at her knowingly and then he nodded in agreement. He crossed his big, tattooed arms over his chest and breathed out deeply.

“So, tell me about the girls…” he said as he took another swig of his water and raised his eyebrows.

Amanda grinned from ear to ear and felt warm inside all over again. Her favorite topic was always going to be Madeleine and Grace, and now she had someone in front of her who wanted to know all about them, someone who was powerful and important, and completely intimidating but also shaping up to be a really decent person.

Amanda took a deep breath and laughed.

“Well, I’d get comfortable,” she said as she cracked her knuckles and sat back in her chair. “Because I could talk about this for hours.”

“I’m all ears,” Russell said as he cocked his head to the side and grinned. “I mean, we’ve got nothing to do except sit here and watch these guys bring boxes in, so shoot.”

Amanda smiled and looked into his eyes again, knowing that, from now on, things were going to be okay.

Somehow, against all odds, she had won Russell Newport over. She had helped him find a new home, she had helped him pull himself together, and now it looked as if he was going to stop giving her a rough time and let her do her job.

It had only been a week, but things were already on the up.

She could see the sun peaking over the horizon, and now she knew she just had to keep moving that same way toward it until she finally felt its warmth.