“Oh, god,” Danielle said. She narrowed her eyes and set her magazine down. “Something happened, didn’t it?”
“No,” I lied. I took off my coat and kicked off my snow boots onto the mat by the corner of the door. They were wet and dripping with slush and ice, but I didn’t care. I felt too exhausted and confused to do anything but flop down on the couch and close my eyes.
“You’re lying,” Danielle said with a smug expression. She poured another glass of wine and walked over to the couch where she held it out to me. I accepted gratefully and took a long drink.
“No, I’m not,” I said, looking down so she wouldn’t see my red cheeks. “I just had a long day, that’s all.”
“Well, when he took your shirt off, you buttoned it up wrong,” Danielle said, smirking.
Looking down, I saw that she was right. In my hasty attempt to run away from James – and the janitor – I’d missed a button, and my shirt was crumpled and gaping open, exposing the middle of my lacy bra.
“That was an accident,” I said defensively.
Danielle sighed. She took a long sip of her wine and gave me a sympathetic look. “Hanna, you know I’m not trying to bust your balls,” she said. “But I can’t help you if you don’t tell me what’s going on.”
I pulled a pillow from the couch and held it in front of my face, groaning into the material. Danielle yanked it away and tossed it to the side. “I’m being serious,” she said. “Hanna, I’m your best friend, girl. What the hell is the matter? Is he a real jerk of a boss? Did someone attack you?”
“No,” I said, heaving a sigh before launching into the story of my day. “It was so weird, Danielle. I felt…I felt so close to him, just sitting there and talking like that. It was almost like, you know…”
“A year ago? Right before you had sex?” Danielle gave me a knowing grin.
“No,” I lied again. “But you know just…normal. Just like, we had met in a bar or something, or at a party.”
“On equal footing,” Danielle suggested.
“Yeah,” I agreed. “On equal footing.”
“Well, I think he obviously likes you – a lot,” Danielle said. “I mean, he’s been drooling over you since you got there. You think he does that with all his secretaries?”
I flashed back to my interview with Linda, the head of Human Resources at Magnate. A shiver ran down my back.
“What?” Danielle frowned. “Tell me.”
“Nothing,” I said. I bit my lip. “It’s just, when I was interviewing for the position, the lady interviewing me said something about lack of professional conduct. I assumed she’d meant me – you know, like don’t hit on the boss, even if he is super-hot and also mega-rich. But what if she meant him? What if he has a history of trying to sleep with everyone who works for him?”
“I don’t think that’s it,” Danielle countered. “It sounds like he really likes you. I mean, he took you to the hospital, for god’s sake! Don’t you think that means anything?”
“Danielle, he only took me to the hospital because he felt guilty. I mean, he’s the reason I spilled that stupid coffee in the first place!”
“Well, he ordered a truckload of Indian food,” Danielle said. She raised an eyebrow. “And anyone who’s talked to you for five seconds knows that the clear way to your heart is through your stomach.”
“He’s rich, he could’ve ordered four times that for just himself and thrown away the leftovers,” I said morosely. “I don’t think it means anything. I think he’s just horny. And I think he’s being so persistent because I haven’t caved and slept with him again.”
“You know it’s going to happen,” Danielle said with a sly grin. “I mean, it has to.”
“No, it doesn’t,” I argued. “I’m not losing my job over this!”
“Whoa, calm down,” Danielle said. “I never said you would. But it’s clear that you both like each other. What happens when you find a new job?”
I eyed her. “I’m not even looking,” I said truthfully. “I don’t have time. They keep me too busy.”
Danielle shrugged. “Well, still,” she said. “I know you want him, Hanna. And he wants you. What’s keeping you from it?”
I bit my lip. “Everything,” I said slowly. “For one thing, he’d never want to date a person like me for too long – we have nothing in common! And for another, he’s my boss…and one of the most powerful people in Boston!”
“So, take advantage of that,” Danielle said. She smirked at me. “Why not?”
I sighed. As we sat there on the couch, I made a vow that I wasn’t going to cave. I was going to go into work the next day and ignore James West…no matter how difficult it became.
***
In the morning, I got up feeling refreshed. Today was a new day, and I was determined to avoid temptation, also known as James West. I took a quick shower and dressed in a designer suit I’d bought from a secondhand shop back when I’d first been interviewing for jobs.
Danielle was in the kitchen, frying up a pan full of bacon. When she saw me, she cocked her head to the side and grinned.
“Look at you, Miss Boss Lady,” Danielle said. “You look like you’re about to go in there kicking ass and taking names.”
I grinned. “That’s the idea, at least,” I replied.
Danielle took a piece of bacon from the plate next to the stove and handed it over to me with great gusto.
“Go forth and conquer,” she said as I took the bacon from her hands and chewed rapidly. It was so good that I reached for another piece and scarfed it down before washing my hands and pulling my coat, hat, and gloves on.
Outside, the snow had finally stopped but it was still blustery and frigid. I shivered as I made my way downtown, to the looming building of Magnate Group. As soon as I was inside, I tried to act like nothing had happened between James and me the night before, like everything was totally normal. It was fine until I got to his office. When I saw him through the glass paneling, a rush of feelings came over me and I gripped the edge of my desk to steady himself. He was sitting at his desk, typing away at his computer with his forehead creased and his pouty lips pressed together. His dark hair was as unruly as ever, and a ripple of lust went through me as I watched his bulging, muscular arms through the thin material of his shirt.
James’s head snapped up. When he saw me staring at him, he grinned and got to his feet. I blushed and kept my head down as I scurried over to my desk and sat down, hastily pulling a folder out of my bag.
“Here’s what I was working on yesterday,” I said, handing it over to James. “I’m sorry I didn’t finish up last night.”
“Not a problem,” James said. His face seemed to be twisted in a perpetual blend of a grin and a smirk. It made me feel close to him and distant at the same time – was he like this with everyone? Did he always wear that mask of perfection?
“Is there anything else I can do for you?” I asked, shifting my weight in my chair and looking up. From a seated position, James looked even more intimidating, and the way he was standing so close to my desk sent shivers running down my spine.