In Love With My Personal Assistant(27)

However, after confessing the one thing that was eating away at her  heart, those well-earned titles didn't seem to hold weight against the  feelings that suddenly racked her body.

She was crying. Actually crying. Nicole moved in quickly like a good  friend goddess and cradled Jennifer's upper body. Although Jennifer's  cries were silent, the tears were many.

"Don't ruin your makeup," Nicole whispered urgently. That made Jennifer laugh. "Your mascara will run," her friend reminded.

That was the prompting Jennifer needed. She tried to pull herself  together and reached for a napkin to dab into the corners of her eyes.  She hated it when her mascara ran. It was so difficult to put on.  Nailing the "Smoky Eye" look was a feat she felt accomplished for, but  in less than a minute, she had ruined it all.

"I have some makeup wipes," Jennifer muttered. She reached for her purse to retrieve the moist wipes. Nicole looked around.

"I sure hope that bozo doesn't show up now, of all the times."

"Bozo?" Jennifer sniffed.

Nicole nodded with attitude. "Yeah, that's right, I said it. Bozo."

Frowning, Jennifer raised her head and looked around at the other  patrons sharing the outdoor lounge with them. No one seemed aware of her  second or two of breakdown.

"You've worked with this guy for five years, Jenn. This is the same guy  you were fawning over before I left right?" Jennifer chuckled and nodded  sheepishly.

"Was I really that obvious?" Nicole's response was a facial expression  that made Jennifer laugh, easing the pain she felt in her chest.

"Anyway, you got a picture of this Andrew guy?" Nicole wet her lips. "I want to see Superman."

With a giggle, Jennifer slipped her fingers into her purse and retrieved  her phone. Her face paled when she saw she had missed a call. There was  also another new email. Swiping at her screen, she frowned, eyebrows  bunching together with concern.

"What is it?" Nicole asked, waiting patiently at Jennifer's side.

Erasing the notifications, Jennifer forced a smile and shook her head. She added on a few extra blinks for good measure.

"It's nothing. I have a shot of the two of us," she reached for her  phone's photo album. "He took me on a horse ride downtown for lunch one  day," she was grinning. "That was fun. A little gross, seeing those  horses use the bathroom, but," she grinned. Andrew took care of that  sight for her and kissed her instead.

"It was a great lunch," Jennifer turned the phone to Nicole to let her  see the selfie they had taken as they huddled in the carriage. They had  taken several different shots, being playful and acting like two  teenagers in a photo booth. The next image was Andrew kissing her cheek.

"Oh man," Nicole whispered. "These guys are hot!"

Jennifer giggled, "I know right?" They cackled together. Nicole straightened herself and eyed Jennifer cautiously.

"Why?" She asked softly. With a falling smile, Jennifer frowned.

"Why what?" She half chuckled at the question.

"Well," Nicole hesitated; her eyes darted around the lounge. After a moment, she sighed. "That's just not you," she said softly.

"Oh," Jennifer pressed her lips together and directed her focus to her  purse. Inside, her fingers found her compact mirror. She pulled it out  and checked her reflection. She had a naturally clear complexion and  rarely used concealers or heavy creams. Blessed is what most women  called her. Others said she didn't even need makeup, but she still used  it on hot days for the SPF protection.         

     



 

"I'm sorry. I'm not judging," Nicole added quickly. "I've been there, worse than a kiss too. You know that."

Jennifer smiled. "Yes. I was there for you then too," she responded with  a soft sigh, and then shrugged her shoulders. "I don't know why. He's  just been so," she chuckled and forced her eyes to widen. "I've always  had a thing for him and today," she tried to explain herself again. She  found she couldn't. There were no words for flirting back, for batting  her lashing or touching James at every opportunity.

His touch felt good. The way he watched her, the way he smiled at her.  She loved it and wanted more. That's why she kept giving him the go  ahead. It was something she had wanted for years. Did that make her a  bad girl?

"Does he know how you felt about him?" Nicole asked after a few seconds  of silence had elapsed. Jennifer shrugged and brought out a light  powder. Something to make her tone a little more even since she had  wiped the drama from her eyes. With a short brush, she dusted around her  nose and across her cheeks.

"I don't think so."

Nicole scoffed. "He knew."

"What?" Jennifer lowered the brush to meet her friend's gaze. "What makes you so sure?"

"If you had a crush on him for the past five years-"

"Three. It got really bad after Dick and I broke up."

Rolling her eyes, Nicole continued where she left off, "the past five  years," she stressed, and then pointed a finger at Jennifer, "You may  have been with Dick for those first two years, but you were hurting for  him bad then too, I remember," Nicole stated thickly.

Jennifer ignored Nicole's jab and remained silent. Nicole continued,  "Anyway, my point is that I'm sure your boss man knew. Hot or not-he  ain't stupid." After a moment, she paused, "Is he the millionaire?"

The question nearly made Jennifer's sadness go away. She laughed hard  and clutched at her stomach. When she could breathe again, she put her  brush and compact mirror away and caught her breath.

"Yes," she chuckled, "yes, he's the millionaire."

"Is he still a millionaire?"

"I sure hope so," a dark, tempting voice that sounded behind them. A  deep chuckle accompanied the words, and the women jumped, at the sound.

"I'm sorry ladies, I didn't mean to scare you," James rounded the  loveseat and sat across from them lazily. He relaxed into an arm chair  comfortably and smiled easily.

"I figured you've had more than enough time to catch up," he chuckled,  "Plus I'm feeling pretty good and I'm no longer starving. I wanted to  meet your friend at a time while I could still talk."

Nicole smirked. "Lush much?" She challenged in a flat tone. Jennifer pushed her friend in her side, a prod that Nicole ignored.

James shrugged. "Well, my usual crowd tends to force you to push your  limits," he grinned at Nicole, who only narrowed her eyes at him.

"So you're a millionaire?"

James paused at the question. He glanced at Jennifer, and then looked to Nicole. "Is that problem?"

She smiled, and shook her head politely. "Not at all," she swallowed and  reached for her glass. "So does that mean you have millions? Like a  literal million dollars in your bank? Or on you? Do you even carry  cash?"

Her questioning made James laugh heartily. He relaxed and wet his lips,  casting another glance in Jennifer's direction. She knew her friend was  only stealing the show to keep the air light. She loved Nicole for that.  She was the protector in their group.

When a man broke their hearts, she made sure stupid actions and drunk  thoughts never put them in a position to allow it to happen again. She  was effortlessly doing what Jennifer really needed a girlfriend to do:  cockblock. She breathed a sigh of relief. Nicole was doing an exquisite  job, a master at the art.

"Okay," James leaned on his knees and used his hands to gesticulate for  emphasis, "so I'm a millionaire," he stressed. "That doesn't mean I have  millions in my accounts. It means I'm worth millions."

Nicole nodded. "And what does it mean to be worth that kind of cheddar?"

He reeked of sexy like it was a special cologne he had bottled and  shipped from an exotic foreign island. He lazily let his head slump to  the side.

"My stock portfolio, company investments, acquisitions, they're worth  millions. In my personal accounts I never keep more than the max insured  by FDIC."

After a moment, Nicole asked, "What's the max?"         

     



 

"$250,000."

Her mouth dropped and Nicole whipped her head to Jennifer. "Is he serious?"

Jennifer watched James. He was soaking up the attention with the smug  and poise his type were known for. Hesitantly, Jennifer nodded.

"Yes."

Nicole's eyes spoke for her, and the look made Jennifer and James double  over with laughter. Nicole rolled her eyes with flair and flipped her  hair back with sass.

"Whatever," she said confidently. "That's a lot of money."

"Jennifer told me you were in a rehearsal earlier," James segued smoothly. "Are you on Broadway?"

Suddenly, the flashy sass and hard demeanor vanished and Nicole gushed. She giggled and nodded enthusiastically.

"Which one?" James questioned.

"Aladdin," Nicole responded eagerly.