Betrayed 2(115)

I settled onto my couch, folding my legs and staring blankly at the TV. It was weird having one of those again. I’d spent a lot of time in countries where the average family didn’t have a TV. Besides, I was often too busy running around exploring to stop and watch TV. Things were going to be different now that I was back in the States.

I sipped at my coffee and picked a book up off my coffee table, thumbing through it and humming softly to myself. Soon I was so engrossed in my reading and had tuned the world out completely. It was just me and my book. So, when my phone suddenly rang I jumped, spilling my coffee all over my lap and book.

“Fuck!” I picked the book up, trying to shake the access coffee off the pages, even though I was only making it worse.

I grabbed my phone and held it to my ear, sounding more annoyed than I meant to. “Yes?”

“Bad time?” It was Miguel.

I sighed and sat the book down on the coffee table, trying to blot the liquid off the pages. “No. The phone ringing surprised me and I spilled coffee all over myself.”

“You okay?”

“Yeah. I’m fine. What’s up?” I asked, settling back on the couch after setting my book on the windowsill to dry.

“Well, I think I got some of your mail.”

“Some of my mail? Who the hell is sending me mail? I haven’t been here for a month yet! Are they already trying to send my credit cards? I swear, some people just—“

“It’s not credit cards. It’s flowers.”

That took me by surprise. I hummed softly and cocked a brow, leaning against the wall. “Flowers? Who the hell is sending me flowers?”

“Beats me. Just thought I’d let you know.”

“There’s no name?” I asked, brows furrowing together as I tried to think of who might send my flowers.

“There’s a note, but it just says ‘looking forward to a very long, happy working relationship’.”

“Oh God.”

“What?” he asked.

“They’re from Jami.”

“Why is he sending you flowers?”

I grunted and leaned back against the couch. “Because he’s delusional and he thinks I’m going to go on a date with him or something.”

“Ahhh…Is he trying to butter you up?”

“I guess he is, but it isn’t going to work.”

“Good for you, girl. I’ll just throw these away.”

I struggled to keep my mouth shut when he said that. I didn’t want him to throw them away, if we were being honest. I wanted to see them. No one had ever sent me flowers before. I hadn’t stayed in one place long enough for someone to want to send me flowers. Most of my relationships up until this point had been one night stands. I was over with one night stands. That’s why I was avoiding my new boss at all costs, even if he was gorgeous and just my type.

“Sure.” I said, shrugging and silently hoping it might make me sound disinterested.

“Keep fighting the good fight, Lena. He’s not going to give up until he’s bored or until you say yes.”

“I’m always up for a good fight.”

“Atta girl. I’ll see you later, yeah?”

“Absolutely.”

The line went silent and once I knew he was gone, I groaned softly and ran my hand over my face, shaking my head and sighing. This was not good. I was already starting to feel him tugging at me. I already wanted him. Now, my feelings were far from romantic, but they were physical. I wanted to feel his strong hands on my hips, tangling in my hair as his hand came down on my ass…

My cheeks went red and my eyes widened as the thoughts came into my head. What in the world was I thinking? Why was I suddenly wanting him so badly? I’d managed to push these thoughts away up to this point and now they were coming in strong.

I slammed my book closed and jumped to my feet, walking towards the bathroom. I needed a cold shower…



__________



It was finally opening night and I was ready to do what Jami had hired me to do. I was going to cook some really good food for a bunch of rich people who had no appreciation for the food I was cooking. I’d done that a million times before and it went just as well as it had all the other times. The food we put out was the best damn southern comfort food this town had ever seen, and by the time it was over, I was left feeling tired and satisfied. It was almost as good as sex.

I could have left clean up to my staff, but once the majority of it was done, I sent them home and decided to finish it myself. My fingers were sore and my ankles popped with every step, but I was used to it by now. The kitchen was still hot from all the cooking so I’d taken off my uniform, leaving me in a black tank top and the leggings I always wore underneath for situations like this.