Now, Please(36)

Half an hour later, the woman walked back out with stars in her eyes. She took a long look at me before thanking Brenda and strolling toward the elevator.

I hunched closer to my desk, trying harder to get lost in Bruce’s new game. My heart hurt so bad that concentration was not just difficult, it was nonexistent.



The next day was the same, but thankfully, there were no interviewees. Four were scheduled for the day after, though.

I spent the whole day working on Bruce’s stuff, communicating with him freely via email, and sneaking out once for a phone call. That was when Kimberly caught me, having tried to get a hold of me since Sunday night.

“Livy? Is everything okay? I heard that Hunter Carlisle is looking for another admin.”

“I don’t really want to talk about it, but yeah. He is. I’ll probably go somewhere else in the company.”

“What happened?”

“Nothing. It’s just better this way. Anyway, I have to go. I’ll talk to you soon, okay?”

“Okay, but call me. I’m worried about you!”

“Okay, bye.” I hung up and faced the breeze, willing the tears to stop running. Willing the hurt to subside so I could focus on something else besides this terrible ache in my chest.



When Wednesday rolled around, I was a nervous wreck. I knew the real applicants would come in, and I’d glanced at a few résumés. These women weren’t just overqualified, they were spectacular. Experienced and already high-powered, these women were probably taking pay cuts to work for Hunter. He had the pick of the litter, and I was positive they’d all be beauties.

I slunk in, with my hair down and partially draped over my eyes. Brenda wandered to my desk, a little later than usual, set the cup of coffee down, and stood idle. I didn’t bother looking up—I looked worse than I had for the last two days. I’d even had a stranger stop me on the way in and ask if I needed help.

When perfect strangers spoke up, things were not going well.

“You’re in the home stretch, Olivia,” Brenda said softly. “He can’t hold out for much longer. He looks just as bad as you do.”

I couldn’t stop myself from glancing up then. Her expression was pure pity, her usually snarky visage softened with concern. It sounded strangely like she knew what was going on. What was really going on.

“What are you talking about?” I said. It was a bad cover, but I didn’t know what else to say.

She tilted her head and gave a small pout before moving away to her desk. “I know what love looks like. And I know much more than you think. You’ve put that man on his toes. You’ve made him uncomfortable, you’ve made him bend, and now you’re breaking him. His first reaction to things he can’t control is to force them away. And now here you are, coming in every day when most women wouldn’t, taunting him with your presence. And you look like hell, girl. He is a caring man underneath—he won’t like to see his handiwork on the face of someone he cares about. Home stretch.”

Tears leaked down my face as I cried softly toward my desk.

“You must think I’m daft not to know what a weird setup he has with all these hoity-toity idiots. Useless, the lot of them.” Brenda sniffed. “Finally he gets someone who won’t fall into that ridiculousness, and he tries to chase her away? Well, I gave him a piece of my mind. Bert did, too.” Brenda tsked. “I don’t even care if he follows through and does fire me. Let’s see him fill this spot, the spoiled little brat.”

I took a deep breath and wiped my face, trying to tune out Brenda’s muttering. It was naive to think she didn’t know about Hunter’s setup. I didn’t even know if I had thought she had been oblivious to it. But discovering that she did know, and was on my side, made me feel better, if a little embarrassed. At least I wasn’t alone.

I slouched the whole way into his office, staring at the ground. I put his coffee in the usual spot and turned. Before I’d made it to the door, though, he stopped me. “You don’t need to come in for the rest of the week. I’ll pay you for it, but it might be best if you stayed at home…”

Each word was a dagger into my heart. He’d probably be giving the second interviews, bringing in fresh girls, and sending them back out with a flush and a satisfied smile. Claws of pain raked down my middle as more tears dripped out. I nodded mutely, unable to utter a word.

Back at my desk, I opened my program again and just went to work, numbing my mind. Trying to block out the pain.

Ding.

I looked up with wary eyes as another blond bombshell walked into the room. Her hair was shorter and her eyes were hazel, but she could’ve been cut from the same cloth. The knockout cloth.