Behind the Scenes(37)

He looks at me but doesn’t make any move to touch me. “Yes, you do. I could tell from the first day. You were as attracted to me as I am to you.”

Hearing him blatantly say he’s turned on by me makes my head spin and limbs ache.

I clutch at some of my hair. “That doesn’t change things.”

He blinks.

Is he expecting me to spell this out for him?

“You’re my boss… among other things…”

Realization passes over his face. He turns and stares out over the steering wheel. The painful moment stretches on until he rolls the windows up and buckles his seat belt. My hands shaking, I strap myself in.

He got the meaning behind the “other things” part. He had to have. It was harsh, but I needed to say it. I close my eyes and press my hands together in my lap. Next to me, there’s only the sound of his shallow breathing.

Not a word is spoken the entire way to the studio. When we get to his parking spot, he doesn’t kill the engine. Leaving the car going, he turns and looks at me.

“This won’t change anything about our working relationship. Your job is secure no matter what.”

I open my mouth to respond, though I don’t know quite what to say. Thank you? I wait too long to speak because he’s climbing out of the car. I do the same, following him through the front door and down the hall.

Dana is the only one in the outer office. She looks up from her computer when we walk in. Mr. Mulroney heads for his office and slams the door behind himself. I stand in the outer doorway, staring at the wood he’s just disappeared behind.

“Where are his bags?”

I twitch at the startling sound of her voice. “Huh?”

“His bags.”

“In the car,” I mumble.

“Oh.” She goes back to her work.

I still don’t move. I can’t move. I can’t think. Can’t comprehend or make any sense of the last two hours.

All I can do is stand there and observe the swirling hurricane that is my life.





CHAPTER SIX


I chop the carrots faster, intent on getting the pieces as small as possible. Poppy folk music drifts from the living room, the song’s cheesy chorus annoying me for the third time.

Everything has been annoying me tonight.

“Watch it,” Crystal says from next to me. “Are you trying to cut off a finger?”

“Yes.”

“Huh?”

“Nothing. Here.” I slide the cutting board down the counter to her. She takes it and pushes the carrots into the frying pan. They mix in with the onions there and sizzle, letting off a bit of smoke.

I wonder what Mr. Mulroney is doing for dinner. Does he eat alone at his home, or is every meal spent out in the company of a woman? If so, is it a different woman each night, or does he go out with each of them a few times? And when was the last time he had a girlfriend? Suppose he’s never had one.

Stop thinking about him.

But I can’t.

He wasn’t in the office today. Since it’s Friday, his absence was typical, of course, and the other three assistants thought nothing of it. Chuck and Daniel left early like they often do while Dana and I waited till five to slip out.

But what will happen on Monday? Mr. Mulroney said my job was secure no matter what, but can he be counted on to be good to his promises? I shot him down — and not for the first time. Surely he’s not used to women saying no to him. His ego must be at least slightly bruised.

Furthermore, what will it be like between us now?

Even more difficult, no doubt.

I close my eyes and lean my back against the wall. I can’t believe I kissed a man whose first name I don’t even use. This is like something out of a porno.

“Sydney,” Crystal says.

I open my eyes back up. She stares at me, the spatula hovering in her hand above the stove. “Are you okay?”

“I made out with Mr. Mulroney.”

Her mouth drops open. “Shut up!”

“I wish I could shut my whore lips. Ugh!” I rake my fingers over my face.

“So there was tongue?”

“How is that important?”

“You kissed him in the office?”

“No. At the water cooler.”

Somehow her eyes grow even bigger. “What?!”

“Kidding,” I dryly say.

I push off from the counter and go to the fridge to grab a bottle of sparkling water. “It happened at Bronson Caves.”

“When?”

“Yesterday afternoon.” I wave the bottle around while I talk. “He came back from his trip early and told this lie saying he needed to go back to the airport to pick up some bags he left there. He said he needed my help but get this. Once we got in the car, he told me there were no bags. He said he wanted to apologize to me for the way he’s been acting since I started there.”