Jimmy

“Jimmy?”

“Yes, Margaret?”

“I’m leaving for the day.”

“Have a good day. Tell Dan and the kids I said ‘hello.’ ”

“I’ll let them know. One last thing, though.”

“A receptionist’s job is never done,” I said with a grin.

“Miss Ternbeau is in the waiting room for you,” she said.

I whipped my head up and looked at the clock on my computer. Shit. It was already six o’clock. I looked around my desk and saw a folder with her name on it, and I opened it up to find the contracts of her promotion nestled in there nicely. I whipped my gaze to Margaret, my loyal receptionist of eight years.

She was the longest-reigning employee here next to Ross.

“Send her on in,” I said. “I let time get away from me.”

“A boss’s work is never done,” Margaret said. “I’ll let her know.”

I set my pen down and got up from my seat. I grabbed the folder of paperwork for Ashley to sign as I sat on the edge of my desk. She walked into my office with a massive smile on her face, her emerald eyes sparkling in the setting sun behind my back. My eyes scanned her, taking in the swell of her hips beneath the skirt that ruffled around her legs.

She could use a wardrobe update, but she was still very beautiful.

“Apologies. Time got away from me,” I said.

“It’s not a problem. I was only sitting out there for a few minutes anyway,” Ashley said.

“I have your papers for you to sign. I want you to take time to read them. Your salary hike and when that is due to take place is all in there. If you have any questions, feel free to ask.”

I handed the folder to her as she stood in front of me. She opened the documents and scanned them quickly, flipping at lightning speed through the pages. Wow. She really was a speed reader. I took all of her in as the folder came up in front of her face. Her blouse hung loosely against the swell of her breasts. The lewd dip in her waist was concealed with her clothes. I wondered if she dressed like that because she didn’t know another way or if she dressed like that because she knew every man from here to Timbuktu would stare if she didn’t.

“Can I say something?” Ashley asked.

“Of course, you can,” I said. “What is it?”

“I just want to say I’m really glad things between us aren’t so ... awkward after the party.”

The folder lowered from her face, and my eyes connected with her lips. That swollen pout. She had these broad lips that reminded me of Julia Roberts’s smile. I grinned at her just to watch her reaction. Just to see her memorable smile slide across her cheeks. Her smile was so wide that it shut her eyes whenever it was in full bloom.

Cutting my view of those emerald eyes.

“I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have said anything.”

“No, no. It’s fine. If we’re going to be working alongside one another more, we have to learn to communicate,” I said.

“I also saw Nina this afternoon. She really is a gorgeous woman,” Ashley said.

“I’m sorry if she was rude to you.”

“Why would she have been rude to me?”

I breathed a sigh of relief. I didn’t have to do any damage control with her, which was good. Nina’s tongue could really get her into trouble if she tried, and I was relieved she hadn’t approached Ashley in anyway.

Especially because of the night we had shared.

“Do you have a pen?” she asked.

“I do. Which color would you like?” I asked.

“Any and all colors are fine with me.”

I slid a red pen into her hand, and she began to sign the documents. I watched her hand maneuver across the folder, her touch light and quick as she flipped through all the pages. She slapped the folder closed, handed it to me, and then dropped the pen to my desk.

“It is done,” she said.

“It is done,” I said with a nod.

“You won’t regret this, Mr. Sheldon. Thank you so much for this opportunity. And whenever you need NDAs signed, let me know. I’ll sign them anytime.”

“I’m sure you will, Ashley.”

Her eyes whipped up to mine at the sound of her name. I watched the light drain from them, her smile fading from her lips. I stood up from the edge of my desk and walked to her, my body drawn to her like it had been that night. Then I slipped my arm around her and pulled her close, ready to address the concern she’d had in the beginning.

“Mr. Sheldon?” she asked.

“That night we shared, Ashley, was the best night of my life.”

“What?” she asked.

“I’ve never felt more drawn to a woman than I do you. And I’m thankful I got to spend that time with you.”

I dipped my lips to hers and felt her hands press into my chest. She curled her fingers into the collar of my coat, just like she had that night. I pulled her deeper into me, my tongue parting her lips. I could taste her sweetness and feel her curves pressing into the muscles of my body.

Then, I felt her shake her head.

“I can’t do this,” she whispered.

Her hands released my coat and pushed me away from her body. I looked down at her, my brow furrowing in confusion as my hand fell from her back. I watched Ashley back away from me as fear rose in her eyes.

Fear.

Something about me frightened her.

“I can’t do this,” Ashley said.

“Then we don’t have to,” I said.

“No, no, no. I mean, yes, we can’t. Because of Nina and ... shit.”

I took a step toward her, but she practically jumped back from me.

“I can’t take that promotion,” she said.

“What?” I asked.

“I can’t believe Cassidy was right,” she said in a whisper.

“Who’s Cassidy?” I asked.

“Nobody. Jim—Mr. Sheldon. I ... this can’t. Um.”

I watched her flounder. I watched her hands twirl in the excess fabric of the cardigan over her shoulders. The confident and timid woman from the party had all but fallen away, and I was watching another side of her emerge, an anxious and debilitated side. One that was too stressed and hadn’t gotten enough sleep. I wanted to reach out to her and pull her to me. I wanted to tell her to go home and get some rest and to sleep on it.

But her eyes whipped over to mine before I could get anything out of my mouth.

“I worked for this position,” Ashley said.

“I know. That's why I’m giving it to you. Because you’re qualified,” I said.

“Then why did you kiss me?”

I understood where she was going with this, and I had to try and stop her train of thought.

“Miss Ternbeau, I didn’t give you this position because of our night spent together. I gave you this position because you’re an asset to this company. You have an incredible mind and the ability to do things I’ve never encountered before. You’re perfect for this position, and it comes with an incredible salary hike.”

“I don’t want to feel like everything I thought I worked for was only given to me because I’m your ... your side woman,” she said.

“Then you can rest assured that you have this job because of your skill set. Not your abilities in bed. Which are fantastic, but that’s another story.”

I watched her cringe as I tried to diffuse the tension between us.

“Come on. Sit down and let me get you some water,” I said.

“I can’t take this job, Mr. Sheldon. I’m sorry,” Ashley said.

“Sit and take a breath. Then we can talk about it rationally,” I said.

“I’m sorry. I can’t take the job, and I can’t be the other woman in your relationship.”

I reached out for her as she slipped through my grasp. She threw my office door open, reached for her purse, and disappeared quickly around the corner. I rushed into the hallway in time to see her run around the corner, and then I heard the slam of the door as she headed for the stairs.

Was that woman going to run down twenty-seven flights of steps?

I jogged down the hallway and made my way to the staircase. I opened the door and looked over the stairwell, trying to see if I could catch her. But there was no wafting of red hair and no pattering of feet. There was only silence and confusion as I leaned against the railing.

As much as I hated it, I understood how she felt. I didn’t like the fact that she was going home with the notion that she had gotten this promotion because she screwed me. That was not the case. She was the only person I’d ever come across who was as good with numbers as Ross was, and she apparently could speed read like a demon. She was efficient in her work and more than willing to go above and beyond in order to get a task done.

I’d made a promise to myself to surround myself with people like that if I was going to reach the heights of success that I wanted.

I pushed off the railing and made my way back to my office. I had to find a way to get her to take this promotion. The papers were signed and dated. The only thing I would have to do was file them.

And even though I could technically bind her to the documents she’d already signed, I didn’t want to do that to her. I liked Ashley more than that, but I respected her more than that as well. I wanted her to enjoy this position because we would be working in one another’s space more frequently. It didn’t do us any good to have bad blood between us if we were going to be successful.

I sat on the edge of my desk and picked up the folder, flipping through the signed documents.

I was so close to having the perfect person for this position.

I simply needed another way to convince her to take the job.