Millionaire Romance: In Love With My Boss - A Contemporary Romance (Millionaire Romance, Contemporary Romance, Comedy Romance Book 1) (13 page)

“Why can’t you give me a straight answer?”

“I did.”

Jennifer started to pull her hands away. She sighed and glanced towards her unfinished dinner. She had no idea what time it was, but she knew that their reservation was at nine o clock. It was getting late. She started to step back to the table, but Andrew resisted.

“Hey, I didn’t mean to upset you,” he said quickly.

Jennifer looked back to him. He was still holding onto her waist. She met his eyes and saw a desire she didn’t quite understand.

“I don’t have time,” Jennifer managed. She let her hands slip from Andrew’s body. He released her waist.

“Don’t have time for what?” He asked, joining her at the table.

Jennifer took her seat and replaced the napkin over her lap. She took a deep breath.

“Relationships.” That was a lie.

Andrew frowned. He began to open his mouth, but stopped and reached for his wine instead. That seemed like an excellent idea. Jennifer reached for hers and tipped it back. She saw Andrew’s eyes and held the connection until her glass was drained.

They sat their glasses down, a faint smile on each of their lips. She liked Andrew. She really did. There was something different about him and she had no idea how to put her finger on it, nor could she even begin to tell herself that she understood. Whenever she was with him, she felt different. It was a feeling she liked, a feeling she didn’t remember knowing before. But just because she liked it didn’t mean it was good for her.

“You should take a break sometime,” Andrew said softly.

Jennifer pursed her lips. “I wouldn’t know what to do.” She responded honestly.

He smiled at her kindly. “You could make a handbag.”

Jennifer chuckled. Suddenly, she felt emotional. Andrew seemed like a nice guy. They had a few things in common; but, she was taken. Right? Well, not really. She knew that, but she had been saving herself. That’s right. Saving her heart, really, because her virginity had been lost years previously, but that had nothing to do with the price of tea in China on this Wednesday night.

Her eyes had been set on James Melone for years. Three actually; and this particular year was
the
year she might finally get to make her move. The very month even! She needed to stay focused and Andrew was only throwing her off. She knew Melone, or at least she thought she did. While she might not have ever seen him outside of work, she had undoubtedly seen him
at
work, and it was pretty much the same thing. How much different could he be outside the office?

He didn’t hire escorts, smoke, or do drugs. He was just a pretty straightforward businessman who was building an empire. Since she had known him, he had been able to amass nearly ten million. It didn’t happen overnight, and it wasn’t easy. Jennifer had been there for him and helped him through every step of the way—surely James saw that for what it was. And Andrew?

Well, he had to know that she simply couldn’t take her eyes off the goal after so many years. He seemed like a man who understood commitment and long term goals. Melone was her goal. She loved him too, through and through, even if he had been a jerk about the interview and the benefit.

They finished their dinner with little serious talk and Andrew drove them back to the Courtyard. It was nearly 11:30pm by the time they arrived back. They walked in silence through the parking garage. Andrew stuffed his hands in his pockets, deep in thought.

Jennifer didn’t notice, a bit too preoccupied with her own internal dialogue. She wondered if Andrew would still help her with the work, or if he was just disappointed she had shot him down. She thought about Melone. He had her make an early appointment with him and another, he refused to say who, for the next day. As far as she knew, he was still in Jersey, so when exactly did he intend to make a flight to Denver? And did he really have a private plane? Why hadn’t she seen it? Anger bit at her thoughts. How much did she really know about him? Did she even know enough?

“I think I’ll go to the lobby for a bit,” Jennifer said softly once they made it to the elevator.

Andrew nodded but pressed the button for the fourth floor. Soft elevator jazz cooed through the speakers. When Jennifer stopped to listen, she realized it was playing the same song they had danced to. She pointed up with a smile.

“Hey, it’s the same song.”

Andrew glanced up nonchalantly and then smiled weakly. “It’s pretty well known.”

After another second or two of silence, Jennifer said, “You know, Andrew. If I had met you several years ago, I think you and I could have been something,” she hesitated and took a short breath. She had his full attention. “I think we could have been good friends.”

A beautiful grin snaked across his face. “Just good friends?”

Jennifer nearly choked on the breath in her throat. Andrew watched her attentively. The elevator crawled to a stop. With a cranking, the doors pulled back and opened, but he didn’t move.

“Would you like my help with the reports tomorrow?”

Still recovering from breathlessness, Jennifer could only stare. After a moment, the doors closed. Andrew waited, unconcerned. She gulped back a breath and nodded slightly.

“Yes, please.”

Another soft smile. “Okay. I’ll be at your room around eight.” He took a step towards Jennifer, hesitating as he watched her body stiffen and grow rigid. He lowered his head and let his lips caress her cheek in a gentle kiss. Jennifer closed her eyes; she was sure she wasn’t breathing. She smelled the scent of a cologne clinging to him that she wasn’t familiar with. It was manly and warmed her from the tip of her toes to the top of her head. Her heart rattled.

She turned slightly towards him, but he was already pulling away. He stopped, his lips lingering just inches from Jennifer’s cherry painted mouth. She took a deep breath and tilted her head back, looking up into his eyes. The elevator began to move again.

Andrew took a full step away from Jennifer and looked to the elevator buttons.

“Guess we’re going to the lobby,” he said, his voice breaking the silence.

Jennifer could care less about the lobby. She needed to know what exactly was happening between them. Was there something between them? Andrew was beyond attractive; that much was given. She didn’t understand why she kept going back to that—the man was gorgeous. He knew it too.

Still, occasionally, as luck would have it, there were men in the millionaire business who were equally as impressive as they were cunning and skillful at managing and growing their wealth. She took a deep breath. Andrew was just like the others. Right? And Melone? Was he like the others too?

The elevator whined as it slowed to a stop. The doors opened. Andrew nodded towards the lobby floor as a waiting group poured in. Jennifer didn’t notice any of them. Her eyes were locked with Andrew’s.

Are you going to go?
His stare seemed to ask. Jennifer heard the sudden rush of conversation from the other individuals moving into the elevator. Some were older, most were young. Perhaps just old enough to be traveling on their own.

Jennifer nodded and stepped out the elevator. She looked back to Andrew, their eyes snagging for the last time before the doors closed. She felt a little raw. Like a piece of her heart had been shaved. She didn’t know Andrew and had really only met him four nights ago. That was too soon to feel something like this, wasn’t it? Still, as she moved away from the elevator, her heart dragged in her chest.

She scanned the lobby, eyes moving past the front desk, and found the joined seating area. It was fixed with a hearth and large cushioned couches, loveseats, and recliners. She approached a comfy light brown leather chair and sunk into the seat with a sigh. The lobby would have been empty, but across the opposite end a single businessman typed continuously at the keyboard of his laptop. Jennifer found herself wondering if he was secretly a millionaire too.

Five years ago, before she started working for James Melone, she would have thought that there couldn’t possibly be that many wealthy people in the world. Working beside him helped her realize that there was an incredible amount of wealthy individuals all over the city, state, and the entire United States. She had met plenty of the tycoons inhabiting Chicago. Working alongside Melone had opened her world up to something she hadn’t even thought was possible, and all just from being his executive assistant. That’s why her family thought she had chosen a good field. She knew people who knew people. People that could make things happen.

She had two brothers. One was a family law attorney and the other was an actor living in Hollywood, or somewhere near it filming a small TV series. By far, her job seemed to be the least stable in her family, but no one seemed to care because her boss was a millionaire. Jennifer had long since decided that it couldn’t be the money that attracted her to Melone. He just seemed different. Was it a different like Andrew was
different
? She paused to think about that. No. Andrew was special. Wait—what?

Jennifer frowned. Melone was supposed to be special. That’s right. Even when he was worth so much, he had a unique way of looking at the world that she had seen in no other man before him. Until Andrew, of course.

Jennifer felt her brows pinching together even more on her forehead. She was starting to get a headache. She felt like she had two voices raging within her head. One was clearly fond of Andrew while she was still keen on Melone.

Five years ago, Melone was a little different than he was today. He lost quite a bit in a bad investment and it was enough to put him on edge. He wasn’t the nicest back then to many people who had long since turned over in his office, but he always seemed to go out of his way to show kindness to her. And so she started working late to provide him with more than she knew he would ever ask for. Because a good assistant didn’t need to wait to be asked to do things, right?

Things around the firm improved, and before she knew it, she was dreaming about him most nights during the weeks. That part was a little creepy, but the dreams had stopped well over two years ago, about the time he started dating Katie. That was a blow. She was certain he would ask her out any moment, after all, she did so much for him. Didn’t guys like that kind of thing?

“Have you ever been around him outside of work?”
Never, actually. Jennifer sucked in a deep breath and leaned her head back. Was it possible that Melone could be two entirely different people? She marveled silently at the thought. Not likely. The real him would slip out eventually, wouldn’t it?

She felt warm flesh cover her eyes. It happened in an instant, but she knew someone was covering both her eyes with their hands. She covered the hands with her own. They were man hands. Andrew’s hands? She felt along the knuckles until she reached the wrists. There was a deep, gutteral sound, an uneasy chuckle. That was
not
Andrew.

Turning around, she grabbed at her mouth and gasped. “Melone?!”

Chapter Thirteen

Second Guessing

“WHO ELSE WOULD it be?” James asked with a forced snicker.

Jennifer looked around. She had hoped it was Andrew. Facing her boss, she looked him over from the top of his head to his torso, the rest of him was covered by the chair. He looked fresh and fabulous.

“Did you just get here?” He nodded and rounded the chair to sit in one just opposite her, facing the blackened hearth. She wondered if the hotel used the fireplace in the winter time. She doubted it.

“Arrived 30 minutes ago. My luggage is on a cart. Do you have a room key?”

Jennifer nodded. It was upstairs. She would need to go back to her room to get it. James was staying on the same floor but at the end of the hall in a conference suite. No doubt they were going to use that for a game plan the next day.

She stood. “I had no idea you were coming in tonight. Why didn’t you tell me?”

James shrugged his shoulders and then faced Jennifer. “I felt bad.”

“Bad?” She raised an eyebrow. “What for?”

James laughed and gestured to her. “Are you kidding me? I completely ditched you at the last minute. I should never have done that.”

Jennifer felt her heart soften. She had nearly forgotten about how selfishly he had left her with Andrew Monday night. Even as she thought the words to herself, she knew it was a lie. She’d never forget something like that. “Yeah, about that…” her voice drifted.

“I heard you gave one hell of a speech, though,” he smiled brightly. After a moment, it dipped in sincerity. “I need to make it up to you.”

Jennifer nodded, searching James's face. He meant every word of it. Perhaps this was a good thing after all. She spied the luggage cart behind him and pointed towards it.

“Let’s get going to your room.”

“Where’s Andrew?”

“Upstairs,” Jennifer moved to the cart and began to push, but James stopped her.

“I can get my own bags. I’d like to speak with him. Do you think he’s asleep?”

Jennifer forced a smile. “I’m pretty sure he’s still up. Would you like me to email him?”

Andrew rubbed his chin and shook his head. “No, that’s okay. I’ll take care of it. You’ve been working hard to cover for me.”

Jennifer couldn’t help the smile that snaked onto her face. He noticed what she did for him. Surely that had to count for something. Her stomach eased from the tightening knots, and she found herself managing a deep breath. James maneuvered the cart towards the elevator, and when the doors opened, they were both relieved that no one was inside.

“How’s Melony?” Jennifer asked, trying to sound casual.

“Oh, she’s just great. Really great.” James waited for her to press the button for their floor before he let himself lean against the wall to ceiling glass panels. “I was going to propose to her.”

Jennifer snapped her eyes to James. Propose to Melony? Or to Katie? He couldn’t mean Melony. He barely saw her during the year but one or twice every quarter and even those estimates were pushing it. He must have meant Katie. Jennifer found herself relieved. Yes, he meant Katie. James wasn’t looking at Jennifer anymore. Instead, he seemed to fixate on one of his luggage pieces resting on the carrier. Now everything made sense.