Deceiving Her Boss (19 page)

 
"Do you want me to pick you up in the morning?" he asked quietly.

 
"No.  Thank you, but I think I'd like to stick to my routine."

 
"Then I'll see you in the office, sweetheart.  Sleep well tonight,"
he added as he kissed her again on the cheek.

 
"You too," she echoed.  "See you tomorrow."

 
Back at his house, Sean sat in his darkened den, a glass of scotch on the table
beside him.  Allie had thrown him tonight, he realized.  When he had insisted
on this marriage, he had done it for one main reason -- to quell the gossip
that was sure to come as a result of the published photo.  But if he were
honest with himself, he knew that his motives included more than that.  He
wanted Allie.  In a way that he had never wanted any woman before.  And that
included more than just sleeping with her -- it included making sure that she
slept with nobody else but him.

 
But he had never stopped to consider his own sexual habits.  It was true that
he had never committed to a woman, and had never wanted to.  It was also true
that no woman had ever asked him to.  They all knew who he was when they began
a relationship with him, and they knew better than to push him for anything
that he wasn't himself offering.  And Allie had.  Not in so many words -- she
had never told him that she expected monogamy.  But her expectation that he may
not give it to her had bothered him.  A lot.  It had made him feel like less
than a man.  Like he had turned into someone that his father could not be proud
of.

 
He knew that his parents were proud of him in most things in life.  But he also
knew that his mother avoided asking him about his private life, mostly because
she didn't want to hear his answers.  His dad had been a family man -- loving
and faithful to his wife all his life, and neither of his parents could
understand why he avoided settling down.  And in truth, he didn't know himself.

 
Taking a sip of scotch, he thought back to the women he had dated over the past
year -- since he had first hired Allie.  All of them were model-beautiful.  A
couple of them had substance, but weren't interested in settling down, even with
a very wealthy man.  But most of them were with him for what he could do for
them.  And they looked good on his arm and in his bed, so it was a fair trade.

 
But it wasn't who he was.  Not deep inside, where his parents had instilled a
sense of family, home, honor.  It was what he had wanted for a while, to show
everyone that he had made it.  His teachers had expected that he would follow
in the footsteps of his father, and hadn't invested a lot of time in him, but
he had excelled in college, gone on to business school, and made something of
himself.   But in the process, he'd hardened.  While he still had a moral
compass that was stronger than most, he had lost part of himself along the
way.  And he hadn't started finding it again until Allie.

THIRTEEN

 
By the end of the day on Monday, Allie was drained, but absolutely amazed by
the reaction of the people that she and Sean worked with.  In the early
morning, it seemed like people were avoiding her, and staying clear of Sean's
office, and Allie was nearly in tears at the thought that she might have
completely messed up any friendships she had within the company.  But when
Debra, her friend from HR who had initially helped her get the job, came up to
ask her what the heck was going on, she immediately spotted the ring.

 
"Oh my God.  You're engaged.  When did that happen?" she asked,
holding Allie's hand and gazing at the ring in awe.

 
"This weekend," Allie grinned.

 
"Well aren't you the dark horse?" Debra exclaimed.  "It's
beautiful, and it couldn't happen to two nicer people.  I'm very happy for both
of you.  You know, when I saw your picture in the paper on Sunday morning, I
was prepared to come in here this morning and ream you out for not only having
an affair with your boss, but so blatantly advertising it, but this changes
everything.  I'm happy for you, Allie."

 
"Thank you," Allie managed to respond.  "You know that this is
largely thanks to you, right?  If you hadn't helped me get the job in the first
place..."

 
"Yeah, but as I remember, we were trying to keep him from noticing you at
all," Debra grinned.  "I mean, come on.  Three secretaries before
you, all vying for his attention, and you are the one he falls for.  The girl
in the absolutely revolting wardrobe.  I think that's why everyone in this building
is going to be thrilled to hear about your engagement -- you're like a modern
day Cinderella.  The good girl getting the prince."

 
Allie laughed then.  "Oh geez.  Don't let Sean hear you say that.  I'll
never live it down."

 
"Live what down?" Sean asked, leaning in the doorway, watching the
two women laughing.  "Hi Debra."

 
"Hey, Mr. Greyson.  Congratulations," she said with a smile. 
"You've gotten yourself an amazing woman here."

 
"I'm very aware of that," Sean said with an easy smile, looking over
at Allie with a warm gaze.  "Thanks, Debra."

 
"Well, I'd better go and spread the news.  Gossip is all over this place
this morning, and I think some of it needs to be stopped.  I hope you two
aren't planning to get any work done this morning."

 
And she had been right.  Within ten minutes of her departure, staff members
from around the building came into the office suite to congratulate her and
Sean.  Many of them said similar things to what Debra had -- they had felt
uncomfortable with the idea of the boss sleeping with his assistant, but
marriage?  That changed everything.  People were genuinely happy for them both.

 
But now, as 5:00 loomed closer, Allie found herself watching the clock and
longing for escape.  Sean had been right, she thought.  This would never have
just blown over, not in this company.  Not with the people that Sean had hired
to work for him.  She would have been ostracized among the staff, and Sean
would have lost their respect.  As it was, people were reading all sorts of
things into what they thought they
should
have seen over the past few
months, and some people went so far as to say that they knew this would happen.

 
Allie's face ached from smiling so much, and Sean had shaken so many hands
today that he figured he knew what candidates for public office felt like.  For
much of the day, he had kept his arm circled around her waist, and they played
the part of a loving couple for hours.  Allie was tired.  She wanted dinner, a
bath, and a long talk with both Anna and her sister.  And she supposed that she
needed to call her parents at some point too.  Sean was a well-known
businessman, and a photogenic guy -- this could make the papers, even in her
hometown.

 
"Can I take you to dinner tonight, Allie?" Sean asked as they both
gathered their things and prepared to leave that evening.

 
"I honestly just want a quiet night to myself," she responded
softly.  "I need to talk to my family and let them know what's happening. 
Have you talked to your family yet?"

 
"Not yet.  I'll do that tonight as well.  Are you doing OK?  You look
tired."

 
Allie sighed.  "I am tired.  But I'm OK.  I'll be better once we can get
back to a normal routine," she acknowledged.  "I'd rather have you
bark orders at me any day than to have to lie to so many people."

 
Sean bent down and kissed her forehead.  "We didn't lie to most of
them," he pointed out.  "And I don't bark."

 
Allie laughed then.  "Yeah, you do.  But I don't mind it.  I'll see you
tomorrow, Sean."

 
"Drive safely, sweetheart.  I'll see you in the morning."

 
Allie's phone calls to her family were more difficult than she expected,
particularly since she was essentially announcing that she and Sean were
eloping.   By the time she got off the phone, she badly needed a long talk with
Anna.

 
"You what?" Anna asked, after Allie broke the news to her.

 
"You heard me," Allie said.

 
"You're both idiots.  For God's sake, Allie.  Read the writing on the
wall.  The man is in love with you, you're in love with him....  If you need
this crazy charade in order to make the relationship official, then do it.  But
I think you need to really think about what you're doing and saying, and then
talk to him."

 
"Anna, it's not like that.  He isn't in love with me, not by a long
shot."

 
"But you're in love with him?"

 
Allie sighed.

 
"Aw geez, Allie," Anna said quietly.  "You're setting yourself
up to get badly hurt."

 
"I don't think I have a choice, Anna.  I'm not willing to hang him out to
dry over this, and I don't want him feeling sorry for me, so I can't tell him
how I feel.  Do you see any other way forward?"

 
It was Anna's turn to sigh.  "OK, sweetie.  What do you need me to do to
help?"

 
"Shop with me?"

 
The next day in the office was better, and the day after that.  People were
slowly getting used to the fact that Allie and Sean were a couple, and after a
few days, the company was easily returning to business as usual.  It helped
that Sean was out of the office on Wednesday and Thursday on a business trip,
only returning mid-day Friday.

 
"How did it go?" Allie asked when Sean appeared in the office after
his flight landed on Friday.

 
"It went well," he responded.  "Thanks for responding so quickly
when I needed those files yesterday."

 
"That's what I'm here for," she smiled.  "Speaking of which, I'm
going to start training a new secretary for you on Monday.  She'll cover while
we're gone for a couple of weeks, and if all goes well, she can continue on
with you after that."

 
Sean looked up from sorting through his mail.  "Are you sure I can't
convince you to stay?"

 
"I don't know yet, Sean," she said politely.  "I have a few
interviews lined up next week.  I assume you will be fine with me taking a few
hours off here and there?"

 
Sean nodded curtly.  "Whatever you need, Allie.  Are you set with
everything you need for the wedding?"

 
"Anna and I are shopping tomorrow.  So yes, I should be fine."

 
"Good.  Can I take you to dinner tomorrow night?"

 
Allie looked surprised.  "Sean, you don't need to..."

 
He interrupted her.  "I want to, Allie.  If you're in agreement, I'll pick
you up at 7:00."

 
She nodded.  "That's fine.  Thank you."

 
"Good.  I'll make reservations.  I'll be in my office for the rest of the
afternoon if you need anything," he added as he turned to head back to his
desk.  Allie watched him go.  For all her worries about telling him that she
was working on leaving the company, it went far smoother than she had expected.

 
Shopping with Anna was fun.  Allie insisted that she did not want to pay a
fortune for a wedding dress, and since she would need to find something that fit
now, and not ask for any alterations, the two women had an appointment at a
local bridal shop that specialized in off-the-rack dresses.

 
"I want simple and elegant," Allie insisted.  "No full skirt, no
lace, no beads, no tulle.  I think I want the dress that I wore to your
wedding, but in ivory."

 
Within ten minutes, Anna had pulled the perfect dress out for her.  "Here,
you crazy woman.  Try this on.  It's screaming your name.  And it's really
similar to the dress you wore when you were maid of honor."

 
"Are you upset that we're eloping, Anna?  That you're not going to be
there with me?"

 
"Honey, I'd love to see you get married.  But under these circumstances, I
just want to see you happy.  Go try this on."

 
By the time Allie got home that night, she had a wedding dress and shoes, both
of which would pack easily into her suitcase, and any resulting wrinkles would
hang out easily over night.  She and Anna had shared a really nice lunch, and
they had spent the afternoon getting manicures and pedicures at their favorite
nail place.   Allie felt the most relaxed that she'd felt in days when she
opened the door to her apartment that afternoon.

 
After hanging the dress in her closet, Allie took a quick shower and changed
into a sleeveless navy dress.  She slid into a pair of matching sandals with a
low heel, and added a light sweater to the outfit in case it got chilly later
in the evening.  By the time Sean arrived at her door, she was rested and
hungry.

 
"You look gorgeous, as always," Sean said when he came to her door. 
"And punctual," he added with a grin.

 
"Punctual is because I'm starving," Allie smiled.  "Anna wore me
out today."

 
"Did you find everything you need?" he asked.

 
"I did.  And some things I didn't need," she laughed, thinking of the
matching lingerie that Anna had pushed her to buy.