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“Oh goodness, no. I’m too scared to touch it.” She takes a few pictures, then we continue the tour, finally winding our way down the last hallway.
“These are mostly bedrooms I don’t use.”
“How big is this place?”
“I think just under 10,000 square feet. Way too big.” I shake my head in embarrassment. I bought this place when I was twenty-eight. I had just become CEO after my father’s untimely death and felt I needed to emulate ostentatious lifestyle he once had. Something I now realize I don’t want or need. I’ve called my realtor to put it on the market twice, but both times he insisted I keep it a while longer because the market wasn’t ideal. He insisted I could make a killing if I rode out the dip.
“And this”—I open my bedroom door—“is my room, which you saw earlier.”
Her face goes red, her hands coming up to cup her cheeks.
“I—I’m so—”
“Don’t apologize. Trust me, no man will ever be angry about having a beautiful woman barge into his bedroom and end up on her knees in front of him.”
I probably shouldn’t have said it, but I’m almost certain I see a flash of lust in her eyes, making me glad I did. Call me crazy, but her pupils are dilated, her nostrils flaring a bit, and her throat constricts as she swallows.
She’s intrigued…maybe even turned on. Is timid little Miss Emmert secretly a naughty girl, desperate to escape her buttoned-up shell?
I step aside, giving her space to enter the room. She heads to the same stretch of windows that wrap around the entire building but suddenly stops in her tracks and turns back to face me.
“I’m sorry, this is so weird. I’m realizing how I literally barged into your home, my boss’s…er—my boss’s boss’s boss? Whatever. You’re the owner of a massive company, we’ve never even had a conversation, and now I’m walking around your twenty-million-dollar penthouse? This is all so strange. I’m sorry.”
“You’re overthinking it, Sadie. Just think of me as Alex, a guy from your office.” I take a few steps toward her.
“Just a guy from my office,” she repeats slowly. “How do you know my name?”
“Well, like you said, I own the company you’ve worked for the past two years.” I flash her a smile.
“Yes, but I didn’t think you noticed or knew who I was.” She pretends to smack her forehead. “Oh, Beth told you I was coming, duh!” I don’t say anything, just casually cross my arms over my chest. “I guess you won’t ever be forgetting the first time we met now.” She bursts into nervous laughter.
“Today isn’t the first time we met; and no, Beth didn’t give me your name.”
Her laughter falters. “You remember meeting me before?”
I step closer to her now.
“Of course I do. When you were hired two years ago, you were in a new employee orientation, and I came in to introduce myself and give a welcome speech.”
“Yes.”
I take a final step to close the remaining distance between us, sliding my hands back into my pockets for fear I won’t be able to stop myself from reaching out and pulling her body against mine.
“You told me you were honored to work for my company and that you wouldn’t let me down.”
Her mouth falls open. “I said that? It’s so…dorky. Like I’m heading out on a mission.” Her laughter fills the room, her shoulders bouncing with mirth.
“For what it’s worth, you didn’t let me down. In fact, you’ve consistently been a top performer since you were hired.”
She shrugs. “I do enjoy sales, which is odd considering I’m a pretty big introvert.”
“Well, whatever you’re doing, keep it up.” I smile and her eyes shift from mine down to her knotted fingers. “One question I’ve had for the better part of a year now…why didn’t you go on the trip to Rio last year? I saw your name listed as one of the President’s Club winners for sales. That was an all-inclusive trip, not a lot of people would pass that up.”
“Yeah.” Her countenance falters, and I’m hoping she isn’t going to tell me something horribly tragic happened, which would make me feel like an ass for bringing it up. “My boyfriend was slammed at work and couldn’t go, so I had to decline. But Marsha went in my place and had an amazing time, so it all worked out.”
“This the nowex-boyfriend?” She nods. “Makes sense.”
I glance at my watch. “I should let you go. I have a meeting across town that I need to finish getting ready for. Thanks again for stopping by with the contracts.”
