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Ignoring Leila, he asked, “What happened to Monica?”
“You know what happened to Monica.”
“I really don’t.”
Jo-Ann maintained a firm silence during which Leila tried to connect the dots. Had Jo-Ann switched out his assistant without him knowing? Did she think he wouldn’t notice? His frustration with the woman was clear. Leila wanted to grab him by the shoulders and force him to acknowledge her. But when he did turn his gaze to her, she wasn’t prepared, and very nearly stumbled backward.
“I’m sorry,” he said. “I don’t mean to be rude.”
Maybe this was her way out. “If there’s a problem, I can go.”
“No!” the two cried in unison, finally agreeing on something.
“There’s no problem. It’s all sorted out,” Jo-Ann said. “You wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t.”
“Leila, it’s nothing personal,” he said. “I’m sure we’ll get along.”
He said her name as if he’d always known her. And she knew his type. Nicolas Adrian was a flirt—a gorgeous, blue-eyed flirt.
“Go ahead and get settled,” Jo-Ann said. “You’ll be in training most of the day.”
Leila scurried off to her desk, adjusted the seat and found a cubby for her purse. The top drawer was stocked with office supplies. She grabbed a pen and a pad with the agency’s uninspiring logo: a Welcome Home mat.
Note to self, she wrote. That man is trouble.
* * *
After that initial five-minute meeting, she didn’t see much of her new boss. Jo-Ann had her shadow a few other assistants for quick one-on-one training sessions. That whirlwind desk tour gave her insights into the office dynamics. Jo-Ann was treacherous. Emilia, the receptionist, was a gossip... Nick, Tony and Greg were the youngest and coolest associates—the Big Three... A female associate? She quit... Greg gave the best holiday gifts... Tony was cheap, but worked hard.
“What about Mr. Adrian?” Leila worked up the courage to ask during the two o’clock coffee break. While one woman stirred a small amount of espresso into a whole lot of sugar, they all responded. The opinion was mixed, ranging from high praise to the down and dirty.
“You mean Nick? He can do no wrong in my book. He’s a saint. Saint Nicolas!”
“He’s no saint, and I’m willing to prove it. All I need is five minutes alone with that man. Make it ten.”
Still others had an ax to grind. “How would I know? Monica kept him all to herself.”
Late in the afternoon, she was at the reception desk learning the complexities of the telephone system—“...and to transfer calls press 7”—when her earlier fears returned. Would her plan work? Was she staring down a future based on how aptly she could transfer a call?
Then he showed up. For all his lauded virtues, he looked like the devil in a bespoke suit. Saint Nicolas, my ass! There was something about him that magically erased her emotional browser history. Ex-boyfriends, old crushes, broken hearts: delete. There was just him standing there, looking squarely at her.
Emilia, true to her reputation, was hanging on his every word. Not that he said much.
“Leila?”
“Yes.”
“I’m heading out. See you in the morning.”
“Good night, Mr. Adrian.”
A pause. “Okay. Don’t call me that.”
And then he was gone, out the double-glass doors heading toward the elevators. Emilia tugged on Leila’s sleeve. “Girl, you lucked out.”
* * *
On the drive home, Leila didn’t feel so lucky. Had she won the lottery of bosses or inherited a colossal clusterfuck? What was the deal with Monica, anyway? No one would say. Nicolas Adrian couldn’t be any more attractive. Just thinking about him made her hot. So much so, she switched off the struggling AC and rolled down the windows of her Mazda roadster for much needed fresh air.
As she pulled into her building’s parking lot, Leila caught sight of her roommate, Alicia. A few months ago, Leila had confidently responded to her Craigslist ad, figuring a female college student was a safe bet. She hadn’t been wrong. Working on a graduate degree in social work at Barry University, Alicia spent most of her time there. Leila knew she was heading to class now and wouldn’t be back until late.
“Hey,” Alicia said. “How was your first day on the job? Learn anything?”
Leila stepped out of the car. “I learned how to transfer calls. I’m an ace at it.”
Alicia snickered.
A firm believer that women in general, and women of color in particular, should stay in school and earn every degree possible, she’d practically begged Leila to go back to college. “You’re too smart,” she’d said. “There are dumber people than you working on PhDs.” But Leila had been convinced that she’d strayed off the conventional path and was too far along to find her way back. Besides, she owed it to herself to follow her instincts.
“And how’s the boss? The typical jerk?”
“Oh, no,” she said without thinking. “He’s butter on toast.”
Alicia shifted under the weight of her backpack. “High in carbs and trans fat?”
They shared a laugh before Leila said, “Warm and delicious.”
“Yeah,” Alicia said. “But really, really bad for you at the end of the day.”
We’ll see, Leila thought, skipping up the stairs leading to their third-floor apartment.
* * *
A half hour later she woke from a dream where Don’t Call Me Mr. Adrian had her naked on his desk and she was purring, “All I need is ten minutes.”
Heart racing and covered in sweat, she sat up on the couch where she’d dozed off fully dressed. She brushed her hair out of her face and absently unbuttoned her blouse, tossing it on the carpet floor. Am I going to be able to work with this man?
The answer came swiftly. You can and you will.
Really, what choice did she have? If she quit one more thing, she’d officially be crowned Ms. Quitsville USA.
Chapter 2 (#u5db82b87-8f37-574d-898a-5d97bf0c8aa5)
That evening Nick met with Monica for dinner. Losing her had been a blow—a blow from which he’d fully recovered once Leila had shown up. Had he gained something better? That question left stones of guilt in his gut and kept him from relaxing in Monica’s company.
They’d chosen a sushi restaurant close to the office. Monica had put some care in her appearance. Her red hair was styled in crafty spiral curls. She was proud and wouldn’t want him to feel sorry for her.
“Listen,” he said, cutting through the small talk. “I made a few calls. I might’ve found you something.”
He placed a business card on the empty square plate before her. She snatched it up. “A nonprofit?”
“I know, it’s not—”
“No. It’s great.”
“Lower pay.”
“Better hours, typically.”
“Okay, then.” Since having her twins, time was more valuable than currency. “Give them a call. They’re expecting you.”
“Thanks, Nick,” she said. “I’m going to miss you.”
Her green eyes were glassy with tears. Feeling unsettled, he asked, “Sake or beer?”
“You know me. Beer.”
When their waiter came around, Nick placed their orders, happy for the distraction. Then she asked, “Are you going to miss me?”
“How can you ask me that?”
For all intents and purposes, Monica had been his partner in crime. And it bothered him that, consciously or not, he’d shelved her in the past.
The waiter returned with their beers and a wooden bowl of edamame. Monica reached for a pod and sucked on it, murmuring something about sea salt. He sipped from the bottle as a new silence settled between them.
“I heard the new girl started today.”
He nodded. “I gave Jo-Ann hell.”
“I heard she’s pretty enough.”
“Who are you talking to?”
“Just answer the question.”
“You didn’t ask one.”
The waiter returned with Miso soup as Monica glared at Nick from across the table. “I’ll admit it. I don’t like to be replaced. And to hear that you’re gushing—”
“Come on, Money...”
The pet name worked like magic. She relaxed and dropped the subject.
“I’ve got to get back to work.” She picked up the large soup spoon. “Daytime TV is the worst. One court show after another. I didn’t pull the kids out of day care, you know. I figured—”
Nick ignored his soup. He couldn’t drop it. “Who said anything about gushing? I’m being nice. She’s a sweet girl.”
Monica looked confused for a while and then dropped her spoon and exploded. “Oh crap, you’re crushing on her!”
Now he knew she really needed to get back to work. She was making this into a soap opera. “I don’t know what they told you—”
“I can’t say too much without revealing my sources.”
He already knew her sources. “Don’t bother. It’s all bull.”
“I don’t work for you anymore, so I’m going to go ahead and be honest.”
“When have you ever held back?”
“You’d be surprised.”
He laughed. “What’s your take? You think I fell in love in a day or something?”
Monica’s gaze narrowed on his face. “Who’s talking about love?”
She had him there. “No one.”
“But you think she’s beautiful.”
Nick didn’t think it. It was a fact. His thoughts ran to the moment he’d opened his door and found her there, packaged like a gift in that flirty skirt and heels. Arguably, it was an odd choice for a first day on the job, but he’d loved it. Those legs, that skin... He wished they’d met under different circumstances. He’d have enjoyed getting her out of those silly clothes.
Monica cleared her throat. She was still waiting for an answer.
“I think she’s gorgeous.”
Monica shot up, raising her fist in victory. “I knew it!”
Nick tapped his foot against the metal leg of the table, waiting for her to settle down.
She took a sip of beer and composed herself.
“Monica, it doesn’t mean anything.”
“Want to know what I think?”
He looked at her, unguarded, waiting.
“I knew you’d fall hard for someone someday. You’re not the player you think you are.”
“That day is not today, babe.”
“I hope so,” she said. “Chasing some girl around a desk is not your style. Plus, you need more than an office wife.”
“You mean a second office wife. My first wife walked out on me and married a nice guy.”
“I was fired. Don’t rewrite history.”
“More romantic my way.”
