Tell Me Something (The "Something" Series Book 1) (5 page)

“Actually, I need to step out maybe when you get back and set up a PO box for my mail.” I was glad that he didn’t ask where I was staying, and then I realized he might already know.

“Not a problem, my dear. I won’t be long.”

The scanning only took a few minutes longer and then I sat back down at my desk, creating my files and then checking my email.

Might as well get the sexual harassment training over and done, I decided, as I clicked on the provided link. I was brought to a cheesy interactive video. Rolling my eyes and putting my chin in my hand, I was ten minutes in when Josh came off the elevator.

“Streaming movies already? I wouldn’t have thought you’d be that bored your first day. Where is Nigel?”

Good to know he had a sense of humor in the office. “I wish, but it’s just the sexual harassment thing I have to complete. Nigel stepped out. He said you had a lunch engagement.” As soon as I mentioned sexual harassment, I knew that my face heated.

Smiling, he leaned over my shoulder to watch, too. His closeness was unsettling as was the delicious smell of him: a mix of soap, cologne and, well, just pure virile man.

“And are you learning anything, Haylee?” he questioned.

That buttery voice of his did things to me. Damn. “Well, it’s kind of cheesy and frankly a little annoying at what they think constitutes harassment.”

I was pretty sure that we were crossing a line currently with the proximity of him next to my ear but I was hard pressed to move a muscle.

“Show me.”

When I clicked on the next slide, the character of Jose was asking Carmen, a co-worker, out on a date for the first time. She told him that she had other plans. He then asked her out a second time the subsequent week. She proceeded to tell him that she had to wash her hair, and then she complained to another co-worker that he wasn’t getting the hint. The question presented was whether or not the co-worker should report it.

“And the correct answer is?” He baited me.

Turning towards him, I realized our faces were inches from one another. “That Carmen should have just told him she’s just not interested instead of making up some lame excuse, because as far as Jose knows she did have other plans the first time. And the second time maybe she was just in dire need of a hair wash. He’s clueless and maybe didn’t mean to harass her in the least, but now it’s escalating to HR, and that’s crap.”

His gaze slid to mine and he gave me an amused smile. “Maybe Carmen doesn’t want to hurt his feelings by telling him that she’s not interested. What then?”

My stomach dropped and I swallowed hard. He’d moved to lean back onto my desk so that I had to swivel my chair to look up at his face. Now I wondered if I was misreading the situation entirely. I didn’t exactly have a lot of experience with men, especially older powerful ones who-could-have-any-woman-in-the-world kind of men. All of a sudden, every ounce of my self-confidence was on the brink.

“She could just tell him that she has a boyfriend. That would keep him from asking again, and it makes him feel like it was nothing personal.”

“So she should lie?” The question was posed innocently enough, but I could feel an edge to it.

“I guess it depends on how close she is with him. If she sees him often and is a friend, I guess you’re right. She shouldn’t lie. If he’s some random guy she has met on a work trip or only sees sometimes, then…”

“It’s not a lie if she doesn’t know him?”

Uh, oh. I was failing whatever test he was giving me. “I didn’t say that. What I’m saying is sometimes a white lie to someone who would never know the difference but can walk away without the sting of rejection is better than hurt feelings.”

He seemed to acknowledge the difference but pressed on. “And if he is someone she is going to see every day? What then?”

“Well, I guess maybe Carmen needs to figure out if she’s been giving Jose mixed signals or not first.”

His brow arched and I felt like a foolish teenage girl. Perhaps I had misunderstood him when I’d been drunk.

“Or maybe Jose figures out that Carmen was just being nice and he was misinterpreting the situation. In that case, Jose just needed a reality check.” My voice had gotten soft, and I couldn’t maintain eye contact as I laid out that depressing scenario.

“Haylee, I didn’t mean—”

Thankfully, he couldn’t finish his thought as Nigel came in.

God, I was humiliated. I would not cry, I would not cry. “Mr. Singer, can I pick you up anything for lunch since you’re back early?” I was on my feet, gathering my purse and trying to act nonchalant.

Josh gave little indication that he heard me, and Nigel just looked between us.

“A sandwich would be fine, Haylee, thank you. Nigel, if you would call Alan from accounting up here, I’d like a few minutes with him.”

“Yes of course,” Nigel said and Josh went back behind closed doors.

“I guess I should ask you what kind of sandwich he likes.” I turned towards Nigel, hoping he wouldn’t read anything into the awkwardness.

Thankfully, he just smiled and handed me a three-page typed-up document. “Everything personal is in here, but do me a favor and don’t let Josh see it, all right?”

Nodding, I tucked it into my purse.

***

After making my way a block down the street to the post office, I had to wait in line. By the time I was done setting up my PO box, half my lunch hour was gone. At least I had some interesting reading as I glanced over the personal document Nigel had handed me. I skimmed over the basics and honed in on the surprises.

No soda. Cigarette brand was Marlboro Red Box. Holy crap, he was a smoker. I hadn’t noticed, so he must take care with the scent. I was disappointed, but moving on I read that he worked out three times per week with a trainer, doing mixed martial arts. His various charities were listed as well as his personal properties, which included the condo in New York and a house in Charlotte, North Carolina.

The second page listed his pet peeves. Laziness, gossip, insincerity, rudeness, pettiness and dishonesty. I could talk with the man for ten minutes and figure that out. Musical tastes included country music. Huh, I didn’t see that one coming. Did not like dance clubs or loud music. DOES NOT DANCE. Okay that was in all shouty-capital letters so it must be nonnegotiable.

The final page was a number of topics not to bring up. Marriage, dating and relationships in general. Well, I had only flirted and not actually brought up any of that. Money and finances. Well, at least I hadn’t done that. His smoking. Ah, so it was a don’t-ask-don’t-tell policy, then.

Quickly scanning the rest of it, I found food preferences. Accordingly, I ordered him a club sandwich and iced tea while getting myself a soup and Diet Coke.

After I arrived back, Nigel motioned that I could just go into Josh’s office since our boss was busy on the phone.

I walked in quietly noting his back was turned and he was looking out the window. When I set his lunch down, he turned around.

His eyes met mine. “Chelsea, I will call you right back.”

Just like that I was front and center and wishing I wasn’t.

“Did you get your PO box established?” As always he asked a question that wasn’t on my mind.

“Yes, it’s set up.”

“Good, Haylee. Look, there is a lot—”

“Sir, Mr. Hines on the line for you. He said it’s quite urgent.” Nigel’s voice cut through.

Josh’s eyes reflected his frustration. “God dammit, I have to take this.” He looked apologetic.

I felt bad about adding drama to his already busy day. “Yes, certainly.” Walking out, I was relieved.

***

The remainder of the week was spent getting into a routine and learning how to plan travel as well as all of the other details of Josh’s schedule. I was comforted that he had a private travel person named Maria who took care of the actual flight and hotel itineraries.

On Friday I was invited out by Zach, the IT guy who was around my age. He indicated there would be a group, including his sister and roommates, and that I should come over to Jersey City to have a drink or two.

Considering I didn’t have any friends in the city and it was in fact a Friday night, without any indication from Josh that he wanted to spend a minute in my company, I traveled via subway across the river to Jersey City. It was a short walk from the third stop and I was pleased to see Zach’s friendly face towards the back of the bar, along with a table of other twenty-something-year-olds.

“Hey, you made it. Fantastic. Everyone, this is Haylee. She works in my office. Haylee, this is Jason and Kyle, my roommates. Debbie is Kyle’s girlfriend, and that’s her friend, Natasha.”

Smiling, I took a seat, happy to get off my feet as Jason ordered a round of shots.

Oh shit, I wasn’t a lightweight, but shots were definitely going to set me over the edge if I didn’t get some food in me. After taking the first one, I requested a menu and ordered some French fries. “Sorry, I’m starving,” I admitted.

Talking with each of them, I was having a good time, but by midnight I was drunk. Not fall-down-stupid drunk but silly-fun drunk. So were all of my companions for the evening. I reached into my purse to check the time on my phone and noticed the three missed calls and two text messages all from
Carmen,
which I thought was a clever way to put Josh’s cell phone information into my phone.

I thought about calling, but realized it would only break the good mood I was in, so instead I sent a text.
“I’m fine, just out with friends, see u Sunday.”

The response back was immediate.
“Where are you?”

Why did he make me feel like I was breaking curfew?
“Jersey City.”

No response back.

He was probably either seething or tracking my phone about now. Crap, he would know how to do it, too. How ironic would it be if he called Zach to do that very thing? Smiling at the thought, I told everyone I needed to go. It would take an hour, at least, to get back to my place.

“I’ll walk with you to the subway,” Zach offered.

It was tempting to say no, but I wasn’t sure I could find it again from this direction and with all the alcohol in my system.

“So, I hope you had a good time,” he hedged.

“It was really nice of you to invite me. Thank you.” We stood in front of the subway entrance and I noticed him getting nervous. “It’s good to have a friend in the office, Zach. I’ll talk to you when I get back from my trip. Thanks again.” I wasn’t taking any chances and was down the stairs before he could try to kiss me or say something that would make it weird.

He was a super nice guy and I could pick up on the flirtation, but I didn’t want to date someone I worked with.

Yeah, right. Evidently, the exception would be my boss and the owner of the whole damn company. I wanted to kick my own butt for being so naïve.

My phone buzzed and realized I had another text.

“How are you getting back?”

“I’m about to get on the subway,”
I responded.

***

It took an hour, but I was finally in familiar territory again and waved hello to Rafael as I came into the building. Coming off the elevator onto my floor, I rummaged for my key. Then I glanced up to see Josh’s door open and him standing in the doorway.

The vision he made in lounge pants and a white T-shirt with bare feet made me swallow hard. His jet black hair was unkempt enough that he might have just woken up.

“Do you have any idea how worried I was?” His voice was quiet.

I took a deep breath and commented, “Josh, I’m a grown woman, I assure you.”

He ran a hand through his hair, and we just stood there looking at one another. “Who were you with?” he questioned.

“Zach in IT and his roommates and their friends. It was a large group of people.” I’m not sure why I didn’t take the opportunity to make him jealous, but he didn’t seem in the mood for it.

“I see. And you had to go all the way to Jersey to get drunk with Zach?”

“I’m not drunk, and it was a group. I wasn’t there with him. He just happened to issue the invite.”

“So he didn’t try to kiss you?”

Before I could second-guess what I was doing, I took him off guard by marching up and grasping both side of his face, bringing it down to mine, and putting my lips on his.

His initial surprise shifted to desire in about two seconds. He tangled his hands in my hair and met my now-insistent mouth with his own.

“Jesus, Haylee,” he managed a minute later, pulling back.

I could only stare. How could a simple kiss cause so much desire?

“You need to get some sleep. Make sure you drink some water before you go to bed.” His voice sounded regretful.

I didn’t trust myself to speak, so I only nodded and walked on shaky legs to my door. I had been unprepared for how that one kiss would leave me hungry for more.

The flight to Cancun was on a commercial jet, so there wasn’t any alone-time with Josh. I was surprised to be in first class with him and thought Warren definitely would have stuck me back in coach. It was my first official business trip, and I looked forward to seeing both his properties: his current resort and the site for which he was building his newest one.

There had been absolutely no mention of what had happened in the hall on Friday night. It was as if we were both pretending it hadn’t occurred. Yet I couldn’t stop thinking about it and wondered if he was similarly afflicted.

We made our way to his resort, which was midway down what was known as the strip. This resort I would learn was a little over five years old and catered to an all-inclusive vacation. In the afternoon daylight, it didn’t look like a spring break mecca. But considering it was off season and the middle of the day, perhaps looks were deceiving.

Getting checked into the hotel definitely had its benefits when you were the owner. We were shown to a spacious suite, and I went about setting up Josh’s computer in the office. I ordered up a fruit and cheese plate and was pleased when it came in time for his next appointment. He had meetings with both the hotel manager and the head contractor for the new resort being built further down the strip.

“Haylee, this is Hector, the hotel manager. Hector, this is Haylee, my assistant,” Josh introduced.

“
Encantada de conocerte
. Nice to meet you,” Hector greeted in both Spanish and then English.

My response took them both aback. “
Estoy encantado de conocerte también
. Nice to meet you, too.”

“
Ah, usted habla español
?”

“
Si
,” I replied.

“
Ah, muy bien
. I will see you later Haylee and if you need anything during your stay, please do not hesitate to contact me,” Hector offered and then went into Josh’s office.

After their meeting Josh came out and found me staring at the view off the balcony. “I didn’t know that you spoke Spanish,” Josh said, regarding me.

“I like to keep you on your toes with my many talents, Mr. Singer,” I teased in a cheesy seductive voice. I was tempted to reveal that it was one of four languages that I knew, but I figured some things were better left demonstrated.

“What do you think of the view?”

“Beautiful. The water is so blue. Makes me wish I could ditch the job and lay by the pool all day long with a margarita in hand.”

He smiled and then exhaled. “So I need to warn you about Roberto, my head contractor. He is a little over the top and very into your personal space. I think he thinks he’s being suave with the ladies, but with too much cologne, a bad hair piece, and being in his fifties— Well, he can be a bit much.”

“Here is hoping he isn’t handsy.”

My joke clearly missed its mark when Josh gave me a dark look. “If he touches you inappropriately, I’ll break his hand.”

A shiver moved through me because I didn’t doubt it. “Uh, okay, tiger. Look, I’m pretty sure if he is handsy I can take care of it myself without any broken bones, but I appreciate the offer of assistance.”

Roberto arrived right on time. When the door opened, I immediately smelled his cologne. Gold chains, chest hair, a bad comb-over, and a very large midsection made up Roberto.

“Oh, my, Josh, she is lovely. How do you keep your hands off her?” He kissed my hand and then both cheeks.

I felt myself blush, and Josh met my eyes as if to say I told you so.

“It’s nice to meet you, Mr. Velas.”

“Oh, no, the pleasure is all mine, and you must call me Roberto. And you are?”

Josh answered for me, clearly done with the fawning. “This is Haylee, and she has a boyfriend.”

Meeting his eyes, I had to bite my lip to keep from laughing out loud. He was using my sexual harassment lie.

“Undoubtedly, you would, a woman as lovely as you. Now then, you must join us for dinner tonight. Josh is an amazing man, but I can only talk so much business.”

I was a little stunned that he took such a familiar tone with Josh and looked to him for guidance.

“Maybe you could add one to the reservation, Haylee. I believe we are going to the Argentinian steakhouse that you love so much, Roberto.”

***

Dinner was very entertaining. Not surprisingly Roberto was the complete polar opposite from Josh and I became the buffer between them. Roberto was very animated in his story telling and in the midst an anecdote about his housekeeper becoming his latest love.

“Sometimes I think a woman has to put it out there for a man. I mean men, we don’t do subtlety. So I come home from work, and there she is vacuuming my house, completely naked. I mean that sends a message, don’t you think, Haylee?”

I about choked on my drink. “Uh, yeah, I’d say so.” I stole quick look at Josh who didn’t seem as amused as I was.

Roberto went on, changing the subject with talk of his daughter who was now in the states going to college.

I was happy to call it a night right after dinner, but not as much as Josh appeared to be. He looked like he’d gone four rounds.

“The man is exhausting but also happens to be the best general contractor in Cancun,” he commented.

We got into the car, which was better than a cab at this hour, and drove in silence back to the hotel. We were seated with our legs touching, and I could feel the heat between us. Wordlessly, we made our way up to our floor, and I waited for an invitation to his room.

“You should get some sleep, Haylee. I’ll see you in the morning. We’ll plan on touring the construction site and then be off for Hong Kong tomorrow afternoon.”

I tried to hide my hurt feelings at the rejection and decided to go for it. “I’m not tired, Josh.” As I moved closer, he stood his ground, looking down at me. I could feel his breath catch when I put my hand on his chest.

He closed his eyes, and I could almost feel his inner turmoil. “Haylee, there are somethings you don’t understand.”

He was right. “Enlighten me, then,” I pleaded with my eyes.

He was on the verge, I could feel it, but then he backtracked, putting his hands in his pockets as if to keep himself from touching me. “Good night.” He turned away.

Watching him go to his door, my tears threatened. Rather than take a chance that he would see them, I turned on my heel and went back into the elevator.

Hearing him call after me, I purposefully ignored it. I wasn’t stupid enough to go traipsing around Mexico by myself, but I needed to clear my head.

Once I got to the lobby bar, I ordered a margarita and then took it to the balcony. I sat in a lounge chair, thankful that I was alone with the night. The sound of the ocean was peaceful, and I kept thinking about what Roberto had said. There was no way I was being too subtle. I had practically thrown myself at the man. How much more aggressive could I possibly be? Clearly he wasn’t interested, I concluded.

“Haylee, what are you doing?” Josh’s voice came from behind me. I heard the distinct sound of the lighter and saw the puff of smoke as he walked towards the railing.

“Please don’t smoke around me.” My voice was flat and I didn’t bother to meet his eyes.

“Haylee, you don’t need anything more to drink.”

Looking up, I met his agitated eyes. “Maybe you don’t remember; I’m a grown woman. You quite obviously are only my boss and I’m off the clock.” I was being petty but didn’t care at the moment.

“That’s right, I am your boss, and I’m ordering you to go back to your room.”

Downing my drink in one last gulp, I stood up a little unsteadily.

“Jesus,” he muttered.

Looking at him defiantly, I responded, “As you wish, Mr. Singer.”

I was about to walk away when he tugged my arm back, and suddenly his mouth was crushing down on mine. The taste of smoke was strong, but my desire was stronger as his tongue expertly explored my mouth. My tongue shyly met his and his hands grasped either side of my face, holding me in place. I was completely at his mercy and lost in the moment until he pulled away.

“Haylee, you need to go back to your room. We can’t do this. I know you don’t understand.”

My emotions were heightened and I felt the sting of rejection. To make matters worse, he was speaking to me like a child. “Obviously, it is
my
inability to understand. What an incredibly condescending asshole thing to say to me.”

“You’ve been drinking.”

“That’s right, I have, and maybe that is going to give me the courage to put it out there.” I fished through my purse and held out my hotel key card. “Here is my extra room key. I’m going to bed. I wish you’d join me. If you don’t, then we go back to merely professional in the morning. If you do, well, we’ll figure it out. Just do me a favor and brush your teeth first. The cigarette thing is a real turn-off for me.”

Turning on my heel, my heart beat double time in my chest the entire way up to my room. I had never done anything remotely like that in my life.

When I got to my room, I wasn’t sure what to do but started with brushing my teeth and then my hair, leaving the latter soft and down. I gulped down a bottle of water and, after pacing fifteen minutes, I took a quick shower. All the while I listened for the door. I turned off the lights, turned them on, turned them back off, and took a deep breath.

It had been an hour, and reality was hitting me smack in the face. He wasn’t coming.

After donning my luxurious hotel robe, I lay down on the bed, willing myself not to cry. Denial cut deep, and knowing I was going to have to go back to normal with him as my boss tomorrow was not making it any easier.

Hearing the door open, I held my breath. Turning on the bed, I saw Josh in my doorway. He was still dressed as I had left him and had his laptop and cell phone in his hand.

This was not exactly what I had envisioned. Sitting up, I raised a brow. Was he coming in because he wanted me—or his assistant?

“If we do this, we do it my way, which I’ll warn you is complicated. First thing’s first, you talk to my attorney.”

I was too stunned for words.

“A non-disclosure agreement is one thing to protect me in the business world, but in my private world having a sexual relationship, especially one with someone I not only employ, but who is living essentially in my apartment, is not the smartest idea. It gets complicated, and requires an even stricter version of a privacy agreement. You should know that it is against the advice of my attorney. He is the only one who knows the, uh, circumstances by the way and that I’m here right now. Here is the document, and here is my laptop with the video conference ready to dial Mark Hines. If we are going to do this, then you’re going to need to follow without reservation everything he asks of you.”

“Okay, I’m going to get dressed first.” I got up, grabbing a T-shirt and shorts out of my suitcase because if I was going to video conference with his attorney at—shit, twelve-thirty—I needed to be clothed properly.

When I came out, I saw that Josh had taken a seat next to the window in one of the hotel chairs. His eyes and expression were unreadable.

The laptop was on the desk, and I sat down and pressed the button. The document was laid out in front of me. Had this been what he was doing over the last hour, composing this with his attorney?

Mark’s face came up on the screen. He must have been awakened and appeared to be in his home office. He was younger than I had presumed, maybe the same age as Josh. He greeted me with a sincere smile. “Ms. Holloway, my name is Mark Hines. I’m Mr. Singer’s personal attorney. I take it that Mr. Singer has informed you of the nature of this call.”

Looking over at Josh, who still was revealing nothing, I found that I was suddenly nervous. Unfortunately, I was also not entirely sober. “Um, yes, Mr. Hines, and please call my Haylee.” I sensed his hesitation and then blurted out. “It’s all very personal, so calling me Ms. Holloway sounds really formal.”

His eyes sympathized. “Right, Haylee, call me Mark. The document is in front of you, correct?”

Nodding, I glanced over at Josh who seemed to be fixated on me. But again, he wasn’t saying or giving away anything.

Then it dawned on me. This was a test. His world meant potential lawsuits and risk when it came to everything. Gold diggers were probably the norm. With my position working for him, not to mention his past, it’s no wonder he was cautious. Right now he was testing me to see if I was going to go through with it.

What should have been a turn-off instantly became a turn-on when I realized how desperately he must want me that, after midnight in Mexico, he’d dragged his attorney out of bed and come up with this agreement.

“So I’m going to read the document, sign, and then verbally agree?” I questioned.

Mark appeared hesitant. “Actually, I’m going to read each paragraph to you, and then you will verbally agree.”

I was instantly annoyed. “I don’t need to be read to like a three-year-old. I can read it myself, sign it, and then verbally agree while recorded.”

Josh come up behind me and he and Mark shared a look.