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And then, while she was still in the office, barely separated from Frost, she’d received a call from Sylvia, her previous boss.
Sylvia had accepted a position at a leading oil and gas firm and was planning to hire several of her own managers in the coming year. She asked Kaylee to think about joining her team. More responsibility. And more money.
She promised to think about accepting a job there.
That she hadn’t immediately seized the opportunity bothered her. After all, she wanted to get away from her bosshole.
If Sylvia had called even a week ago, Kaylee would have immediately turned in her notice.
So why the reluctance to leave Frost?
Maybe because of the way he’d turned her inside out.
After talking to Sylvia, Frost’s announcement that he intended to close Christoff for a week—and pay the employees for the time off—stunned Kaylee so much that her resistance to him began to melt away.
When he’d invited her to join him after work, she would have been smart to refuse. But as always, Frost knew how to get what he wanted. Picking up a gift for his grandmother was something she couldn’t resist.
To justify her actions to herself, she rationalized that she needed to finish her shopping too. The fact he was going to the Maison Sterling was an added bonus. She’d heard of the hotel and had always wanted to visit, but even grabbing a happy-hour cocktail there would seriously strain her budget.
Knowing the lobby would be decorated for the holidays was tinsel on the tree for her, and she’d ignored common sense in favor of spending time with her fake fiancé.
Which had, once again, been a mistake.
By the time he dropped her off at home, she had to rebuild the walls around her heart and remind herself she was doing this to go to her sister’s wedding.
Thankfully, in twenty-four hours, she could put this behind her and forget everything she’d shared with Frost.
The timer on the oven buzzed, shaking her from her reverie and dragging her back into reality.
After removing the cheesecake she was baking for tomorrow, she turned off the stove and hurried to her bedroom to finish dressing.
Three dresses lay on the bedspread. Even though she’d tried each of them on, she still didn’t know which to choose. She could have called Frost for his opinion before his arrival, but even the sound of his rich, masculine voice would send skitters of awareness through her. She needed to do everything she could to insulate herself from him, even if it would be short-lived.
Finally, aware of the minutes ticking away, she slipped into a form-fitting blue dress that was too fancy for work but wasn’t showy enough for a cocktail party.
It was a good compromise. She hoped.
At three twenty, well before she was ready, he rang the bell. Twice.
Pulling back her shoulders, she responded to his insistent summons.
As always, at the sight of him, her heart rate surged.
He stood there with his suit coat casually slung over one shoulder and a box in his other hand. “May I come in?”
“Uhm…I’m almost ready. Just give me a minute?”
“I can wait.”
Her boss clearly didn’t know how to accept a politeno.
Relenting, she stepped aside.
Without waiting for a second invitation, he closed the door behind him. “You look beautiful.”
She met his gaze, and heat smoldered in the depths of his blue eyes, making them smoky. Nervously, she smoothed the front of her skirt, reminding herself she was nothing more than a means to an end for him.
As if they’d been lovers forever, he placed a casual kiss on her forehead.
