His eyes trail down past my face and back up to meet my gaze once more. How am I supposed to focus when he looks at me like that? And here I thought I dressed pretty modestly today.
“How much time do you have?” I breathe.Focus, Kylie. Don’t drop your guard.
The question seems to bring him back to his senses, and he looks back at the computer. A calendar pops up on the desktop. I hover over his shoulder as he scrolls through various meetings and calls.
“Shit,” he mumbles. I guess cleaning will have to wait.
“Leaving me alone on my first day,” I muse. “Boss of the year.”
He shakes his head. “I’m sorry. I promise that after this week, I’ll have a better handle of things.”
“You better.”
Johnathan’s eyes quickly search mine in a panic. “I really am sorry.”
“I’m kidding.” I chuckle, and he seems to relax at my playful mood. Was he always this on edge? I settle into my desk as he crosses back toward the window and grabs his bag off his chair.
“I’ll see you later.” He waves as he walks toward the door.
“Good luck.” I wave back. With the way that this place runs, it looks like he is going to need it.
The loud thud of the door confirms I’m alone, and I slump in my chair with a sigh. Not even ten minutes with him and I nearly lost my mind. Am I so deprived of his touch that I’m willing to do it in this wreck of an office? I scroll through the calendar. According to this, Johnathan will be gone for hours. I look back at the mess and can’t help but check it out. Mounds of folders and papers litter the table. There is no way that Johnathan will be able to think straight in this mess. It’s not like he said I can’t help. I shrug off my jacket and toss it across the back of a chair. It may not be real estate, but this is my job now. And, boy, is there work to be done.
CHAPTER13
Johnathan
If another personasks me how I’m doing, I might jump out the window.
My mind buzzes with the babble of various meetings with clients and buyers, each one expressing in detail their sympathies. Once I get back to that office, I’m going to have to change my schedule around. If I can manage to find the computer in that mess. Maybe I’ll just use my old one to save time. I grip the golden handle, the sound of rustling papers coming from the other side of the door. Has my dad come back from the dead to collect a few things?
The smell of mustard hangs in the air as I walk into an empty desk. My heart sinks. Were we robbed?
“Surprise!”
I yelp loudly as Kylie cheers from her desk in the corner. The blur of meetings felt so normal that I forgot she was even here. But oh how glad I am that she is. Her jacket is gone, her once neat bun slightly wilted. She tucks a few stray strands behind her ear. “So, what do you think?”
I scan the room a second time. The cluttered disaster I started my day with now sits neatly stacked and cleaned. In a matter of hours, she managed to do all of this? My eyes fall on a brown leather sofa near the window.
“Where did that come from?” I ask, walking toward it.
“It was under all those papers.” Kylie sighs. “Your dad sure had a weird system.”
I look back at her. “That mess had a system?”
“Apparently.” She motions over to the conference table across the room. “I ordered you lunch based on what was in the calendar. I figured you hadn’t eaten, so I set it up for you.”
I follow the scent of mustard and can’t help but laugh out loud as I notice the overstuffed sub in the distance. Kylie’s face creases with concern. “Did I do something wrong?”
“No.” I laugh, wiping my eyes of a few tears. “Not at all. That lunch order used to be my dad’s. I guess I was so used to seeing it, forgot to delete it from the system.”
“Oh.” Her voice is small. “I’m sorry.”
“Don’t be.” I smile, the weight of the day lifted. “This is just the kind of thing I need after the last few hours I’ve had.”
Her face brightens a little, and she nods. “Okay, good.”
I take in her tired expression and motion her over to follow me. “Come split this with me. There’s no way I can finish this thing all by myself.”