Chapter 9

Aurora

I stepped back to admire the sign, rubbing my hands together to rid them of excess chalk. The squat chalkboard, standing only four feet high and with bright orange plastic legs, was now a masterpiece. I thought so, anyway.

A hand on my back startled me and I jumped, swirling to find Jessie at my elbow. She was looking at the sign, which announced a flash sale on hats, approvingly.

"I gotta say, had I known you could draw like that, I would've hired you right off the bat."

I laughed. "Thanks, Jessie. I would have told you if I realized it would come in handy."

The sweeping lines of text were interspersed with tiny drawings of different hat styles, ranging from beanies to top hats. It was a pretty basic job, and the lettering had taken far longer than any of the hats themselves.

"What can I do next?" I asked.

Jessie looked down at the clipboard in her hands. There was always something to do at Lock Knocks' flagship store, and her preferred way of keeping on top of it was a clipboard, a pen, and the determination of a drill sergeant. She was a good boss though, and I enjoyed her enthusiasm for making the store the best it could be. I wanted to do well at this, even if it was temporary. I would move on in a few months to something a little more career-oriented.

"Maybe go give some of the aisles a spruce up again," Jessie said, underlining an item on her list. "Everyone’s been giving it their all, so we're all ready for Mr. Ralston's visit. Now we should just focus on keeping the place as clean as possible." She looked up. "You could tidy up your displays, actually. I think he's really going to like them."

"I hope so."

Jessie left me with a curt wave and headed off in the direction of the back room. I took one last look at my sign and turned toward the toys.

I'd been working at Lock Knocks for two weeks now, and so far things had been going well. Jessie was happy with the fun displays I erected around the store and the chalkboard signs. I was just happy to have a job, especially since it had allowed me to put a deposit down on an apartment in the Bronx. I’d be moving in at the end of the month.

As much as I’d been enjoying spending time with Calypso at the Fox Regent, and as nice as my room and the food there was, I was getting tired of picking up butt plugs off the floor, and working two jobs was exhausting. It was time for me to go out on my own, and moving out would be the last thing I needed to get me on my feet. Then there would be no going back. Not that I wanted to in the first place.

I was still tidying a beach display I made when Jessie found me again. This time she wasn't alone.

When I turned to speak to her, I saw Jessie first and smiled. My gaze then swung to the man I presumed to be the visiting store owner and my smile slipped off my face like jelly.

Apparently, Brendon's last name was Ralston. Good to know, since he was now my boss.

"Aurora, this is Mr. Ralston. And this—" She gestured down to the little boy holding Brendon's giant hand in his own tiny one. "This is Julian."

I swallowed hard. So not only had I slept with my boss, but I'd slept with my likely married boss, and now I was getting to meet his son. Oh dear.

"It's nice to meet you." I tried to keep the tremor from my voice, but I was no professional at holding it together. I didn't stick out my hand for him to shake because I didn't want to remember how nice it felt to touch him. Plus, I didn't think I'd be able to manage it if I did.

"Look at all these toys!" Julian interrupted before Brendon could reply. He pulled out of his father's grip and rushed up to the display, eyes wide with amazement.

"Aurora has been revolutionizing our displays," Jessie chirped proudly. She clearly wasn't picking up on the mood. "We've had loads of compliments from customers, and though there hasn't been enough time to properly track the impact they've had one sales, I've definitely noticed an increase in the purchase of items featured."

I had the grim realization that I was Jessie's crowning jewel right now, and I wondered how the poor girl would react when Brendon inevitably fired me. I was within my probation period. It wouldn't be difficult to do, and it was the smart thing to do. If he didn't, who was to say I wouldn't tell someone that worked there about what happened? He couldn't afford that kind of risk.

Brendon looked over the display and nodded. "It looks good. Should we head up to the office?"

He didn't even look at me. I kept waiting for him to glance over, for our eyes to meet. I thought maybe if I could look pathetic enough, he'd think twice before firing me because of our tryst. I needed this job. Bad. I couldn't afford to move into my new place if I lose it. While staying at the Fox for longer wouldn't be the worst thing in the world, it certainly wasn’t something I would look forward to. Not to mention the fact that I'd lose my deposit.

Jessie gave a bewildered nod and gestured for him to follow her. Brendon grabbed Julian's hand again and they walked off toward the upstairs offices.

As soon as they were out of earshot, I let out a great sigh. That had to be one, if not the most, awkward situations in the history of awkward situations. It might not have been so bad if Brendon weren't so cold. It was a stark contrast to the affectionate, almost loving way he'd held me that night we spent together. It made what happened feel cheaper than I already knew it was, sucking away the only solace I had about the whole thing.

I was an idiot. I should never have let myself romanticize him so much.

Another thought struck me. What if Brendon just didn't recognize me? He'd shown no signs of recognition, and he might just be that rude to all his employees. I found myself wishing for that to be the reason, instead of what I already knew to be true. Brendon was embarrassed that he’d slept with me and would send me out of sight and out of mind as soon as he possibly could.

The day dragged on. Only an hour had passed between my car-crash meeting with Brendon, and my nerves couldn't handle the thought that he was in the building and might come around the corner at any minute. Worse, Jessie could come around the corner at any minute and fire me at his behest.

I was working on a new arts and crafts display to help promote a new brand of mess-free pens and markers that we'd just gotten in. Technically I'd been hired as a stock associate, but as soon as Jessie saw what I could do with the displays and how much people liked them, she basically gave me free rein to do as I wanted when I wasn't busy restocking the shelves. It was a quiet day, and the shelves were full to the brim. I wished they weren't though, as I would give anything to go hide in the back room for the next four hours and pretend that I was looking for a case of teddy bears.

I put all my focus into the project at hand, determined to absorb myself in it to the point of not worrying about Brendon or what he was doing. Or about whether he was going to fire me.

The store was empty enough that I could hear the footsteps approaching me from behind and I turned, thinking it was a customer who needed help finding something.

Brendon stood behind me, hands thrust casually in the pocket of his tailored charcoal suit. His hair was a little messier than when I'd seen him earlier, but those eyes were every bit as dark and smoky as they had been when he'd been pointedly avoiding looking at me. He seemed to have no problem meeting my eye now. His gaze made my stomach flutter with anticipation and anxiety. Was he going to fire me himself?

Julian wasn't with him. I figured the kid was probably playing somewhere. He didn't need to see his daddy taking out the trash.

"How long have you been working here?" he asked.

I knitted my brow. "About two weeks now."

"Do you like it?"

I rose from where I'd been crouched closer to the display and brushed my hands against my pants. "Yeah. It's been fun so far."

"Good." He rubbed a hand over his jaw, like he was relieving some tension. "The displays look great. I'm sorry for being so abrupt earlier. I guess I was just a little..." He smiled, and I'd forgotten how dazzling it was. "Surprised."

So he was acknowledging that we'd met. Good. That put me more at ease, as did the smile.

"Surprised is a good way of putting it," I agreed.

He sobered again. "I'm very sorry if I upset you on the night that we met," he said. "It was a misunderstanding, and I was too embarrassed to deal with it properly. I shouldn't have just run out on you like that."

I looked around but there was nobody near enough to hear. Our encounter was not the kind of thing that should be discussed in a children's store, but I suppose if the boss was cool with it then what harm could it do?

"It's okay." I offered up what I hoped would be a forgiving smile. "It was a shock for both of us."

Brendon stepped closer, stopping only a foot away from me. I stared up at him. My breath caught in my throat at the sheer sincerity in his eyes when he spoke, his low baritone sending a shiver down my spine.

"I can't stop think about you, Aurora."

My mouth went dry. I wanted to pinch myself to see if I was dreaming, since this was about the last thing I'd expected to happen after coming to the abrupt realization earlier today that I now worked for the man who'd rocked my universe and left without a trace.

"I know that you probably want nothing to do with me, but the fact that chance brought us into each other's orbits again means I need to try."

His scent filled my nostrils, earthy with a little spice that enticed me closer. I stayed put, anchoring my feet to the ground even though they begged me to take just one more step.

"Your...your son," was all I managed to stammer.

Brendon's thick eyebrows furrowed briefly, and then he relaxed and laughed. "Julian's not my son. He's my nephew."

A gust of relief washed over me me. "You're not married?"

"No." He shook his head. "Not married. Not engaged. Not anything."

I nodded slowly, absorbing the information as it came. So, Brendon, the guy who gave out orgasms like candy, was not married, didn't despise me, and actually wanted to spend time with me again? Yep, I was dreaming. This didn't happen to people. Not seasoned New Yorkers, and certainly not small town transplants who lived in a glorified brothel.

As much as I wanted to jump into his arms and ride off into the sunset, something was holding me back. A whole lotta somethings. If nothing else, I'd only just gotten out of a seriously long term relationship and I had no idea what I was doing with my life.

I looked up at Brendon, frowning. "Are you gonna fire me?"

He cocked a brow. "Fire you? Why would I do that?"

"Cause we..." I slammed my two fists together. "You know."

He seemed amused by my answer, and shook his head. "I'm not going to fire you. Whether you get fired or not is up to Jessie, and she thinks you're doing a great job."

A small, satisfactory smile slipped onto my mouth.

"Uncle Brendon!" a little voice called in the distance. "Where'd you go?"

Brendon turned to look behind him, then turned back to me with an apologetic smile. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a business card and a pen. As I watched he wrote something on the back of the card, then handed it to me.

"My personal cell," he said by way of explanation. "I hope to hear from you, Aurora."

The way he said my name should have been a crime. It sent sparks of pleasurable shivers running up and down the length of my body, and I practically swayed on the spot as I reached for the proffered card.

Julian wheeled around the corner and raced toward his uncle, his little face lit up in a giant grin. Brendon turned to leave, and I watched him go without even saying goodbye.

We had a habit of that, I supposed.