Owen

“Um…” Sienna’s brow furrowed adorably. “Are we still talking about a job?”

My grin widened as I thought about my answer. Honesty wasn’t always the best policy, and I figured if I told her she was now mine and I would be getting her in my bed and knocked up as soon as possible, it might send her running. Not that I wouldn’t enjoy the chase, but I wanted to skip that part and go right to the good stuff that came when I caught her. Masking my intentions with a “job” seemed like my best bet.

“Of course. I have an opening that I think would be a much better fit than waitressing.” I stood up and stepped back, fighting every instinct I had to kiss away the wrinkles on her forehead. She was so fucking gorgeous it made my head spin. Even more than that though, her eyes showed an intelligence and wit that I’d seen glimpses of in our short time together.

“Well, you don’t want me cooking, believe me,” she stated with a smirk, and my head flew back in laughter.

“Noted,” I chuckled. “No, I’m in need of a personal assistant. Someone who will be with me and help me with the day to day. The pay is exponentially higher.” She leaned back in the chair, a contemplative expression on her face. When she crossed one slender leg over the other, causing her skirt to inch up, I blurted out, “It’s a full-time position and since you’ll need to be constantly available, room and board is included. You’ll live with me.”

“Oh.” Her perfect lips formed a cute little O and pink bloomed on her cheeks. “That’s not necessary, I have a place and—”

“It’s non-negotiable, Sienna.” My tone was hard, and her eyes narrowed.

“I’m not sure this is the right job for me, Mr. Walker. I waitress because I’m in school all day and it works with my schedule. So, if you aren’t interested in hiring me on to your wait staff—”

“I’ll work with your school schedule, baby,” I interrupted her, adopting a soothing tone. “But, the rest of your time will be taken up by me. And, my name is Owen, not Mr. Walker.” I quoted an absurd salary too, and her chocolate eyes practically bugged out before turning suspicious. I might have gone a little overboard with that number, but I was determined to make sure there was no way she would turn me down because I wasn’t taking no for an answer.

She opened her mouth to say something else—to argue, most likely—so I bent and took hold of her hands, pulling her quickly to her feet. “Let me show you around and introduce you to everyone.” Unable to resist, I ran my finger down her soft cheek and smirked when her eyes glazed for a moment. I loved that she was obviously as affected by me as I was by her.

Sienna sputtered for moment, but didn’t resist when I took her hand and guided her to the door of my office. I pulled it open and stepped out, keeping her hand firmly grasped in mine. “If I were to agree to this ridiculous offer”—I raised an eyebrow at her description, and she mirrored my expression making me want to laugh—“If I did, what would my responsibilities include, exactly?”

It took all of my will power not to sweep my eyes over her delectable little body before answering. “You’ll be assisting me on the business side of things.” I kept the explanation vague and changed the subject as we continued down the hallway. “What are you studying, baby?”

“I’m working on dual majors in Biology and Chemistry.” She cocked her head and her eyes narrowed, studying me. “I always wanted to be a mad scientist. Working for you might get me closer to my goal.”

I laughed at her retort and the smile that slid over my face was full of pride as I stepped into the kitchen with my woman in tow. I’d known she was smart after just a few seconds of being with her. But, Sienna was more than that, she was fucking perfect.

“Owen! Get this lunatic out of my kitchen!” Andy screeched, jumping out of James’ embrace the moment we entered the room. Her face was bright red, matching the flaming braids hanging over her shoulders from under her chef’s hat. The blush accentuated her freckles even more and made her look like she was a teenager rather than a woman in her late twenties.

James grinned wickedly and reached for her again but she tossed a spatula at him and he retreated, laughing heartily when it bounced off his forehead.

I’d gotten incredibly lucky with these two. I’d met them at a chef’s conference in L.A. and we’d immediately hit it off. I’d been in the first stages of planning Saphyre and after one day with them, learning their backgrounds and experience, I offered Andy the job as head chef. They were both unhappy with their current jobs and sick of L.A. So, they jumped at the chance to move, however, Andy wouldn’t accept the position unless I was willing to hire James as well. I wasn’t as confident in him, but he quickly proved himself and now I wouldn’t trust my baby in anyone else’s hands.

“Sienna, you’ve met James and this is my head chef, Andy.” I gave James a warning look before speaking again. “Sienna is going to be my new personal assistant.” His eyebrows shot up to his hairline, but he wisely kept quiet.

“Well, I haven’t—”

“I’m going to show her around, see you later.” I tightened my grip on her hand and strode from the kitchen, headed for the dining room. I felt a finger poking my shoulder and slowed my pace, turning my head to glance back at Sienna. She didn’t say anything, and I stopped to face her fully. “What is it, baby?”

She raised a single eyebrow. “Oh, am I allowed to speak now?” I grinned and motioned with my hand for her to continue. “Are you always going to be this bossy?”

“Probably,” I answered immediately with a shrug.

Sienna rolled her eyes to the ceiling and sighed. “At least you’re honest about it,” she muttered. Damn, she was cute. I couldn’t remember the last time I’d smiled so much. “Well,” she continued, “cut the ventriloquism act. I’m not a puppet and can speak for myself.”

Something inside me burst with warmth and before I could check the instinct, I tugged her forward until she fell into my chest. My arms went around her and I lowered my head to brush my lips over hers. “Fuck, you’re as soft and sweet as you look,” I murmured. I allowed myself one more touch of our lips and enjoyed the sight of her brown eyes darkening with desire and a sweet blush gracing her cheeks.

The fog cleared, and she quickly took a step back. I let her leave my embrace but once again, took her hand firmly in mine.

“Is kissing you in the job description?”

I smirked and tapped the end of her nose. “Nope, just a perk.”

Her eyes dropped to my lips for a second before she seemed to realize what she was doing. She huffed and muttered something as she marched past me, entering the seating area of the restaurant. My eyes followed her example and dropped down, except they were glued to her ass as she walked ahead of me.

I showed her around the rest of the space and introduced her to the staff on duty. Her eyes sparkled, and it was easy to see her falling in love with the place. I was extremely pleased with her reaction as I always hoped my wife would be as passionate about Saphyre as I was.

Wife.

Fuck, that sounded good. I couldn’t wait to put my ring on her finger and my baby in her belly. However, for the moment, I kept those thoughts to myself.

Saphyre was just opening their doors for lunch when we finished, so I commandeered a small table in a secluded corner and ordered lunch. She asked me about my plans now that my show was done and I told her about my goal to open another restaurant, as well as a guest spot I’d agreed to. I was going to be a judge on a reality cooking show.

I asked her questions about her classes as well as her family. Her parents apparently lived in a small town a couple of hours away, and she had a brother who was a pilot and lived in Chicago.

“Do you have class tonight, baby?” I asked when we finished eating. She shook her head as she sipped from a glass of sparkling water.

“I go to school in the mornings and twice a week I have labs at two in the afternoon.”

I stood and held my hand out to help her up. “Great. I can take you to your new home, and we’ll get you moved in this weekend.”

She placed her napkin on the table before allowing me to help her stand. Straightening her shoulders and spine, clearly attempting to close as much of the gap in our height difference as possible. She looked me square in the eye with a determined glint. Part of me wanted to laugh at her effort to be intimidating, the other was wary of what she had to say.

“I told you before, Owen. I’m fine with my current living arrangements. You don’t even have to add the cost that you would have paid in room and board to my salary.” I was about to steam roll over her and demand that she move in with me, but then I saw a shadow pass over her face as she mentioned her place. I decided to dig into that a little later, while taking the bees and honey route for a moment.

“Let me at least show it to you and then you can decide.” I smiled hopefully and in the next breath, her shoulders sagged and she agreed. We headed to my office to gather my things and while she was a few steps ahead, I pulled out my phone to text a friend of mine. He owned a security company, and I wanted him to run a check on Sienna. I needed as much information about her living arrangements as possible so I could come up with leverage to move her in with me as quickly as possible.