Olive sucks in a breath and then walks away. I watch her ass sway in her dress. I watch her toned, tan legs move, and then I see that she is still wearing her snow-covered boots. She’s adorable and a tiny bit sexy. And a giant mess.
I could have her in my bed as many times as I want while I’m here. Or I could fire her because, if she is this incompetent in how she dresses, she can’t be much more competent as an assistant. It’s a tough decision—think with my dick or my business sense.
Jamie walks over to me as I pull a shirt out of my suitcase and begin to put it on.
“That wasn’t very nice—what you said about Olive,” she says.
I roll my eyes. “I was being truthful, and you know it. I don’t want to talk about Olive right now. If I do, it will be to suggest firing her. There are a million assistants out there who are better than Olive.”
She raises an eyebrow. “Wow. For once, you don’t want to fuck my assistant. I thought Olive was just your type.”
I laugh. “A complete mess isn’t my type.”
“Olive is anything but a mess. In fact, she might be the most put-together person in this office.”
“So, that’s why you pay her so well then?”
“I have my reasons for not paying her as well as I should.”
“Yeah. Greed?”
She shakes her head. “Well, I’m glad that you don’t want to sleep with Olive.”
“Why?”
“Because, as you have already guessed, I brought you here to run the company for me for a few months—a year at most.”
“A year? What the hell, Jamie? I can’t stay here for a year! I have my own fucking company to worry about.”
“Which is doing just fine. And, if I recall, last time we were together, you said the company could run itself.”
I frown.
“Anyway, the doctor said I needed to be on bed rest, starting, like, now. I shouldn’t even have come into work today. I just wanted you to get settled and to let you know that Olive is the woman you should go to for advice. She’s the smartest person at the company. She’s more than just an assistant. She is the only person I trust.”
“So then, why isn’t she running the company?”
She sighs. “You’ll understand soon enough. You aren’t going to fire Olive. Olive is my assistant, and I expect her to still be here when I get back. Plus, she’ll be reporting to me about everything that is going on. So, you’d better not fuck up.”
“And what if I do fuck up? It’s not like it matters anymore. I came here to try to get you back, but you have clearly moved on. What motivation do I have to do the right thing?”
She smiles and moves her lips close to my ear. “Because I know you, Sean Burrows. I know you still love me and will do anything I ask. And I know you’ve always wanted to own your own real estate company. That’s your next venture. I’ll make you a fifty-fifty partner after this year.”
“It would be easier to just start my own company than do this for a year.”
Jamie shrugs and spots Olive out of the corner of her eye. “Maybe. But maybe you wouldn’t find something better, something you’d never experienced before.”
“And what’s that?”
She glances at Olive, and I do, too.
“Real love.”
I laugh.
Jamie is crazy. She didn’t bring me here to run the company for her, although she definitely needs the help. She didn’t bring me here to entice me with an offer to own half of the company. She brought me here to play matchmaker.
She thinks Olive is the woman for me. She couldn’t be further from the trut