"I'm assigning someone new to that position, so I'd appreciate any comments that will help me find the perfect person for it," he said as he pushed a sheet of paper toward me.
My chest hurt at the idea of another woman working for Mark, and as I scanned the questions in front of me, the only answer I had was me. I should have been still working for Mark.
I looked up and sighed. "Mr. DeVille, would it be possible for me to go back to working there? I really liked it, and even though I left a day early, I don't think there would be any problems since Mr. Tanchen's partner is usually out of town."
He shook his head. "No, I'm sorry, Miss Cooper. While Mr. Tanchen also made that same request, I'm afraid I can't go against the contract."
Disappointed, I filled out his questionnaire and pushed the paper back toward him. "Here you go. Thanks again."
As he filed the form away in my folder and stuffed it into his briefcase, he said, "You can come in first thing in the morning and we'll get you another position that pays even better than the one with Mr. Tanchen and his partner."
"A position that pays even better?" I asked, suddenly feeling hopeful.
Mr. DeVille smiled in a way that was nothing less than wicked. "Oh, yes. You've shown yourself to be a real go-getter, Emma. We at DeVille Staffing believe that should be rewarded. So I'll see you tomorrow morning? Let's make it ten o'clock."
He stood to leave and I followed him to the door. "Okay, ten it is. Thank you so much."
Turning his head, he looked back at me as he began walking down the hallway. "My pleasure, Emma."
I closed the door and couldn't help but smile. Things had gone horribly off the rails with Mark and my position at his company, but now I'd be getting a better paying job somewhere else. If there was something else that would make me feel better about everything that had happened, I didn't know what it could be.
But then that ache in my chest reminded me that only my money situation had been improved. I still wished Mark and I hadn't crashed and burned. He had done me that favor with the contract, and he had said wonderful things in his reference for me to Mr. DeVille.
Was there a chance at all he cared for me other than as an employee?
Chapter Eight
Mark
Halfway through my day,I looked out across the hall for at least the tenth time and felt like shit every time I didn't see Emma. It was like my brain has some malfunction and kept thinking that if I thought about her enough she'd be there.
My shoulders sagged from the disappointment of not having her in the office anymore. The guy from the staffing agency was scheduled to come in to talk to me right before lunch, so that made me think of her even more.
Not that she hadn't been on my mind every minute since she walked out. I thought about how she smiled at me whenever I told her a stupid story or how her big blue eyes looked when she walked out of my life. They'd lost their innocence and instead were filled with anger at me.
Not Josh. Not anyone but me.
Fuck. I'd never felt this about any woman. I didn't know when it happened, but Emma changed from someone I couldn't fuck enough to someone I couldn't live without. I'd never been this miserable after breaking up with anyone. That wasn't my style. I fucked and moved on. I didn't have time for a relationship because my work life came first until the business became as successful as I’d always dreamed it could be.
That hadn't happened yet, at least not like I'd planned, so why the hell was I pining over Emma?
I knew the answer. Because she wasn't just another lay. She made me want to tell her about my idiot uncle who always showed up drunk to every family affair and all my plans for the future of the business. And with each story and goal I told her about, she listened like it meant something to her.
She made me realize that what Steve said was true. All work and no play did make me fucking boring.
With Emma I had it all. She helped me with work, and she filled the hours I usually spent alone in ways I'd never dreamed I'd want.
And now she was gone because Josh had that DeVille guy put in a clause in her contract that she couldn't work for me for more than a month. What kind of bullshit was that?
While my brain conjured up half a dozen ways a decent lawyer could find loopholes in that asinine clause, it began to dawn on me that the contract wasn't the only reason she was gone.
Emma was right. I didn't do what I had to do to keep her in my life. My pride had kept me silent when I should have punched Josh in the head for kissing her. My fear of getting too attached to anyone had kept me from explaining to her that even though I loved when I was inside her, sex wasn't all I gave a damn about when it came to her.
All she'd wanted to know was that I didn't consider her bought and paid for, and yet, I couldn't say the words I had to so she'd stay. Whether it was pride or fear, I fucked up. So she left.
I needed to find a way to show her I wanted her in my life—all of it, not just the part that included her naked under me. I stood from my desk and grabbed my phone, saying into it, "What's Emma's home address?"
As my phone rattled off where she lived, I hurried toward the front door but found Mr. DeVille standing there for our appointment. Fuck. The last thing I wanted to discuss was Emma's replacement. No one could replace her. I knew that now.