Beyond 10 Nights (9 page)

“Now that you’ve seen the place, and
what we do here, how would you like to come and work for me?” Alex asked once
they were in his office, and they had been supplied with coffee by his
secretary.

“I’d like that a lot,” Leah told
him. “It seems like a great place, and everyone is very friendly. I’m sure I
could really grow here.”

“I’m glad to hear that, I think the
experience would be monumental, and you would undoubtedly be an asset to the
company, whatever department you ended up working in." She was a very
bright woman, he thought respectfully, and not just the pretty face that some
women with her beauty could only claim. “Now, though, we need to discuss your
salary, not to mention all the other details.” 

She hadn't been expecting such a
generous starting wage as an intern, and it was several long moments before
Leah found herself able to speak after hearing his offer. Part of her research
while applying for internships had been in what level of salary to expect or
consider, nothing she had found had suggested she would receive an offer
anywhere close to Alex’s. A small doubt filled her mind that he might be
offering her more than he normally would because of her relationship with Rhett.

“That sounds amazing and I don't
mean to question you, but,” she nibbled on her lip as she thought how to
express her concern, "is that what you would offer anyone else?"

Alex smiled at her concern and found
her even more delightful for not being willing to abuse their small connection.
“I believe in paying people what they’re worth, even interns; it encourages
loyalty and hard work, and believe me when I tell you you’ll earn that money.

"To answer your question
though, yes, any person with your academic record I would start at that salary.
You must never undervalue yourself." Again he was struck by how little
self-confidence the woman before him had.   

“Your hours will vary, and will be
subject to confirmation by the head of whatever department you are working for
at the time. Some departments work more regular hours than others, and of
course there will be times when deadlines require you to work different hours
to usual.”

Leah nodded, after her time at college,
both studying and working; she was used to putting in whatever hours it took to
get something finished. In the euphoria of the moment she forgot about her
promise to Rhett that she would not take a job that might require her to work
weekends or evenings. As the thought came to her, she realized that it was a
confrontation with him she was willing to have if needed to get this job.

“We do offer full medical and dental
cover, paid holidays and bonuses.” Alex wasn’t sure if Leah actually knew what
the usual benefits were, but that was something she could learn about at a
later time. “Is there anything you would like to ask me about?”

"I think everything seems in
order Alex, and I think I'll really love working here." Was he crazy, she
was dying to start working for his company, she thought with a grin.

 “I’m glad to hear you’re happy
with the offer, do I take it you are prepared to accept?”

Leah nodded again excitedly. “Yes,
I’d love to come and work for you.”

“I’m pleased to hear it. I’ll just
get my secretary to run you down to HR so the details can be finalized and you
can sign on the dotted line, so to speak, and then we’ll find you something to
do to keep you occupied while I get on with some work. Unless of course you
would rather go on home, I can arrange for someone to take you if you wish.”

“No, it’s fine, I’m happy to stay
here and keep occupied, it will be better than staying around the house trying
to find something to do.”  True to his word, Alex settled her with Human
Resources and when that was dealt with she was taken around again to get
acquainted with all the department heads by one of his many assistants. The day
sped by entirely too fast in her opinion and she told Alex so as he drove her
back to Rhett's mansion that evening. 

“Where the hell have you been?”
Rhett demanded to know, striding down the steps to Leah as she climbed out of
Alex’s sports car. He had been close to panic when Leah hadn’t answered her
phone despite repeated calls, a state made worse when his servants had only been
able to tell him she had left with Alex, and had no idea where they had gone.

The moment the words left his mouth
he knew they were not the right thing to say, but at the moment he wasn’t
capable of thinking clearly. His mood was darker than it had ever been, brought
on by a confused mix of fear that something might have happened to her, and
worry about what she might be doing. It was a combination that had led to him
leaving work early because he simply couldn’t concentrate.

All the joy she had felt during the
day, since Alex had first made his offer, evaporated in an instant, leaving
Leah staring at Rhett in astonishment. “Excuse me!” The thought of calling him
Sir was about as far from her mind as anything could be just then. She couldn’t
believe he was angry with her, especially when she had no idea why he was
angry.

Her failure to use his title fueled
his ire. “I asked you where you’ve been! And I expect you to show me more
respect than that.” He was beyond rational thinking; the last four hours had been
terrible for him as he imagined innumerable things that could have happened
with her, or to her; worst of all she wasn’t showing the slightest hint of
remorse for having caused him such worry.

“First of all, you didn’t ask me
where I’ve been, you demanded to know, and secondly, I don’t have to tell you
where I am every second of the day.” She had no idea what had set him off but
she found his attitude infuriating.

Closing the distance between them
Rhett attempted, not very successfully, to control the rage he was feeling. “I
have been phoning you for hours; you might not have to tell me where you are
every minute, but you damn well will respect me enough to not cause me
worry!"

His caveman persona did not sit well
with her at the best of times, and she certainly wasn’t happy to see it just
then. “I must have left my phone here.” She glared at him as she gave an
explanation she didn’t feel his attitude deserved.

“We are going to talk, now!” Without
thinking he grabbed her arm and began pulling her toward the steps.

“Let go of me!” She pulled back,
snatching her arm from his grasp, outraged at his high-handed attitude. “Until
you calm down I’m not going anywhere with you.”

“Like hell you aren’t.” He grabbed
her arm again, becoming more enraged as she fought him.

“Rhett, you need to back off.” Alex
had never seen his friend act so out of control before and he quickly moved
between him and Leah, breaking the grasp his friend had on his fiancé.

“I think you’ve caused enough
problems for the day, Alex, if you know what’s good for you, you’ll stay out of
this.” His friend’s interference made Rhett see red. Leah had been with Alex
all day and his mind couldn’t help but conjure up images of what they had been
doing together; images that made his muscles twitch and his fingers clench.

“Have you lost your mind?” Leah
stared at Rhett, shaking her head in disbelief at his behavior as she struggled
to free herself from his grasp again. “You need to calm down and stop this
caveman attitude right now!”

“She’s right, Rhett, you’re acting
completely out of line.” Alex’s voice remained calm but he was astonished by
his friend’s behavior. It was not the way a Master acted, or a gentleman, he
thought. A Master was not supposed to act like a bully, which was what Rhett
was doing at that moment. Moving between them, Alex pulled Leah away from his
friend and held out a hand to keep Rhett from grabbing her again. Until his
friend had his emotions under control he thought it was a good idea for the two
of them to remain apart.

Rhett knew he was being irrational
and he fought to stem the anger that demanded he take his woman and drag her
inside. “Leah, we need to talk.” His voice was calmer, but only fractionally as
he fought his emotions.

“I don’t want to talk to you right
now.” Leah knew if she spoke with him in anger she would say things she would
end up regretting, and she was determined not to do that. “I’m going to take a
drive and try to remember why I agreed to married to you.”

She couldn’t have calmed him down
quicker if she had knocked him unconscious. All the fight left him in an
instant as he realized he might just lose her if he didn’t get himself under
control. “You shouldn’t drive when you’re angry,” he told her, his voice filled
with concern. What the fuck was wrong with him, he wondered, he wasn’t the
asshole he became when she defied him or did something to upset him.

“Rhett’s right, Leah, I’ll take you
to get something to eat and then we’ll come back after everyone has had some
time to calm down.” It made sense to Alex, separating the two of them before
they could say or do anything that would be unforgiveable. He could only hope
that his friend would quickly realize how much of an ass he was acting like and
do something about it.

The idea of her driving off with
Alex again did not sit well with Rhett, but he knew what his friend had said
made sense, and if he voiced what he was thinking it would only make things
worse. “That sounds reasonable.” He forced himself to speak calmly, though in
his mind he was imagining beating the shit out of Alex.

Leah walked back to the car and slid
into the passenger’s seat, trembling in anger. She loved Rhett, but if this was
how he was going to react to the slightest little thing, she wasn’t sure she
could live with it, with him. Fighting back tears she found herself wondering
if Janie had been right.

Not sure what to say to the young
woman in the passenger’s seat, Alex slid into the driver’s seat, started the
engine and quickly shifted into gear. Within moments they were out of the
grounds and on the road, which seemed to be some sort of trigger for Leah for
she burst into tears almost the second they passed beyond the gates.

“Everything is going to be fine,
Leah,” Alex said, knowing he had to do something, though even to his ears his
words sounded lame. He simply didn’t know her well enough to have the slightest
clue what would work to calm her down. “Maybe we should go back,” he suggested
uncertainly.

“I can’t.” Leah attempted to calm
down. “I just think maybe I was wrong to believe this could work.” She hated
saying the words, but Rhett was proving he still had some major issues that
needed to be dealt with. “I don’t have anywhere else to go though.” The tears
started again and she found herself wondering how the hell she had managed to get
herself into the mess she found herself in right then. No best friend and
things were a mess with her fiancé.

Silent, Alex thought long and hard
about the situation he had managed to find himself in the middle of. “You’re
going to come stay with me until you’ve decided what you want to do.” Even as
he said the words he found himself hoping he wasn’t getting in over his head.
He’d just met Leah, while Rhett had been his friend for most of his life, he
didn’t want to do anything that would alienate his friend, but felt he had to
do what his instincts told him to.

She wanted to refuse, it didn’t seem
right for her to stay with him when she barely knew him, but she couldn’t go
back to Janie’s condo. That left her with few choices, and none of them were
all that great; sleep on the streets, go back to Mississippi, or accept his
offer. “Thank you.” She couldn’t manage to force any other words through her
lips, and again she made herself a promise that when she got out of the mess
she was in she would never again depend on anyone.

The drive to his hotel passed in
silence. Leah was too humiliated at having to accept the hospitality of a
virtual stranger, not that she wasn’t appreciative of his generosity, to say
anything. Alex on the other hand was wondering what it was about the young
woman next to him that made people react the way they did. His friend had
proposed after knowing her for just a couple of weeks, and in the space of a
day he had both offered her a job and a place to stay.

Still in silence the two of them
rode the lift up to the penthouse suite Alex was using, where Leah was pleased
to see that there were three bedrooms, alleviating at least one of her
concerns.

Realizing that Leah was probably as
uncomfortable with the situation as he was, Alex decided to give her a little
space. “I’m going to drive over and pick up your car, one of the servants can
follow me back in mine.” Her smile of appreciation, barely more than a twitch
of the lips, was enough to cause an unexpected skip in his heart, forcing him
to remember that she was another man’s fiancé, not someone he could take in his
arms to comfort.

Leah was grateful he was willing to
put himself out to get her car, especially since it meant she would have a bit
of time to herself, to think and reflect on everything. She would have to speak
to Janie in the morning, she knew, if only so she could collect her clothes;
she certainly couldn’t take everything she had at the condo while she was
sharing Alex’s hotel suite.

Thinking about her clothes reminded
her that she didn’t any nightclothes with her, she didn’t care just then
though, she was prepared to sleep in what she had on, or nothing, if necessary.