The French Billionaire(41)

“If this is the last time…” she said, uncertainly.

“It won’t be,” he replied. “But if it is, we better make it good, then.”



***

Mia woke up sometime later that evening, noticing that it was pouring rain outside. She decided that when she got back to the city, she would call Lillian and cancel the revenge plan. It wasn’t fair to Xander, or to her. She didn’t want to break his heart, no matter what horrible things he’d done in the past. After all, it wasn’t like she’d never made a mistake in her life, and she certainly wouldn’t like to be punished in the way that Lillian wanted her to punish Xander. She also thought it might be a good idea for her to resign from her job. Even if Xander thought it wouldn’t be a problem, she was sure that sleeping with the boss might get her in trouble with Jayden. She also didn’t want to be the subject of office gossip. She wanted the connection between her and Xander to be something that stayed private and special, just for them to enjoy.

No matter how much she tried to deny it to herself, she was completely falling head over heels for Xander.

She sat up and started looking for her clothes, but then she noticed that Xander was already dressed, with a very somber look on his face. “I think maybe you were right after all. This wasn’t a good idea,” he said.

“Wait, Xander, where is this coming from?” Mia’s stomach dropped. How could this be happening? What had changed? “I know this won’t be easy, but we’ll work it out. I’ll resign from Will Golden. I want to be with you. This weekend was so amazing. We can’t give up this easily!”

“Yes, we can,” Xander said, his eyes devoid of any emotion. He wasn’t making eye contact with her either, but rather looking past her out the window at the pouring rain. “In fact, I’ve written you a check for your service. Thank you for your… company this weekend.”

Mia noticed that there was a check for $25,000 on the nightstand next to her. “I hope you’ll be discreet about this whole affair,” Xander said. “I like to keep these things private.”

Mia stood up in an outrage. “Are you kidding me!? I don’t need your money! I thought you were genuinely interested in me and wanted to be with me. What about all of that stuff you said about me being one of the few people you could open up to? It really didn’t seem like you were making all of that up.”

“You were just what I wanted this weekend. I would really prefer it if you would just take the payment, as a thank you from me, and we’ll keep everything between us. I really shouldn’t be sleeping with secretaries, anyway.”

“Fine,” Mia said. “I’ll leave. And I’ll stay quiet. But I’m not taking your money. I’m not some sort of prostitute,” she hissed. “I deserve to be treated better than that.”

She put her dress back on, and grabbed all of her things, and without another word, or a glance back at Xander, she walked straight out of the motel.

“Where’s the nearest bus station?” she asked the concierge. A cab back to Manhattan from here would be way too expensive. She would wait for hours in the pouring rain if she had to.

***





Chapter 8


Mia woke up the next morning feeling completely exhausted. She had waited forty five minutes in the rain for the bus, and then the bus ride itself had taken almost three hours. She had been crying the entire time, and the other passengers kept asking her if she was okay, and handing her tissues. When she got home, she was completely drained that she passed out right away.

She still hadn’t resigned from her job at Will Golden, so she still had to go into the office. She decided to put on a brave face and tough it out for another week or two. She would feel bad leaving Jayden hanging after he’d searched so hard to find a new secretary. She put on her favorite blouse and pencil skirt, put her hair up in a bun, and went to catch the train.

When she got into the office, the first thing she noticed was that there was an enormous bouquet of flowers on her desk. In fact, it was so big it was covering up everything else on the desk, and you couldn’t even see in the window to Jayden’s office, which was right behind it.

Mia was so excited. Xander must have had a change of heart after all, she thought.

She was still angry with him, of course, but she knew he struggled with relationships, and decided immediately that she would give him a second chance. They would work everything out, she knew they could do it.

Mia’s coworkers were crowding around her desk now, asking her who the flowers were from, and what the occasion was.

“I don’t know,” Mia said, trying to be coy. “Let’s find out.” She opened the card attached to the vase, expecting to see a heartfelt note from Xander, but instead they were from.. Jayden?