Total pages in book: 42
Estimated words: 40867 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 204(@200wpm)___ 163(@250wpm)___ 136(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 40867 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 204(@200wpm)___ 163(@250wpm)___ 136(@300wpm)
• • •
I stood in the full-length mirror and smiled. I had to admit, I looked good. All those hours of hitting the pavement running and yoga class three times a week had paid off.
The silver, off-the-shoulder gown hugged my body, and my push-up bra was probably giving me too much cleavage, but what the hell. I smiled when I saw the thigh-high slit up the front. If I had it, hell, I was gonna flaunt it.
Slipping on my over-priced silver heels, I grabbed my clutch and tossed my cell phone and keys into it.
Once downstairs, the doorman called to have a car pick me up. The event wasn’t far from where I lived, and if traffic wasn’t too bad, I’d show up right on time.
My phone buzzed in my purse, but I chose to wait until I was in the car and on my way before I checked it. I pulled it out and saw it was from Mason.
Mason: Get those new ads for the energy bar on my desk by tomorrow morning.
I frowned then laughed. Hitting his number, I waited for him to answer. When he did, I could tell he was in a large crowd.
“This is Mason.”
“Tomorrow morning, Mason? You do realize tomorrow’s Saturday.”
“Yes,” he answered with a sharp tone in his voice.
All I could hear were muffled voices in the background. Then a female voice came through loud and clear.
“Mason, darling, get me a gin and tonic.”
My heart stopped, and I felt like I was having a panic attack. Okay, maybe not a panic attack, but it was getting hard as hell to breathe.
“One second, Annie.”
I swallowed hard. My chest rose and fell as I was hit with the thought of Mason out on a date. Ugh. I hated that he made me feel this way. I didn’t want a relationship. I’d left Seattle to get away from the last one that went wrong. Nothing about Mason screamed that he wanted anything serious. And again…I couldn’t forget that he was my boss.
“Is there going to be a problem with that, Ms. Night?”
My mouth dropped open to form an O as I narrowed my eyes. When he was with his date, I was Ms. Night. Any other time, I was Saylor.
“Yes.”
Silence.
My angry face turned into a smile as I pictured him looking shellshocked by my response.
“Excuse me?” he asked. He must be moving away from the crowd. The car pulled up and parked. Much to my surprise, Joshua was waiting outside for me. When the driver got out and opened my door, our eyes met and we both smiled.
“I said no. It’s the weekend, and if you needed it earlier than you originally said, you should have told me.”
Joshua walked up and kissed me on the cheek. “You look stunning,” he said.
“Who’s that?” Mason asked.
“No one. I need to go, Mason. I’m heading into a dinner.”
“Ms. Night. I think you seem to forget who you’re talking to. I want the files tomorrow morning, so I suggest you cut your date short and get your ass working on the goddamn ad you said you could do.”
Now I was pissed. I was beginning to think taking the job at Maxwell and Locke had been a mistake.
“Mr. Quinn, I’m sorry, but I am unable to get you those ads tomorrow morning. I’d be more than happy to work on them this weekend in an attempt to deliver them to you on Sunday, but I cannot possibly guarantee they’ll be ready before Monday morning. Again, this is the weekend. And the last time I checked, I wasn’t required to work weekends.”
I could hear him breathing heavily on the other line, and I couldn’t help but smile. Joshua slid his arm around my waist and chuckled.
Turning to him, I raised an eyebrow, and he held up his other hand as if to say he’d behave.
“You’re really honestly telling me no right now, Saylor?”
“Yes, Mr. Quinn. I’m not the receptionist you think you can control any time of the day or night. Yes, I’m your employee, but only Monday through Friday from eight AM to five PM. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’m being rude.”
I hit ‘End’ and dropped my phone into my bag. It wasn’t lost on me that my hand was shaking.
Shit. Why did I push the limits with Mason? One of these days I was going to get myself fired.
Laughing next to me, Joshua said, “Damn girl, if I hadn’t promised this was a business dinner, I’d say something about my dick getting hard from listening to you put your boss in his place.”
Stopping, I stared at Joshua. “Seriously? You promised.”
He held up his hands again and motioned for me to start walking. Placing his hand on the small of my back, he led me into the grand ballroom. Twinkle lights hung down from the ceiling and cast shadows all around the room, creating a magical feel. Gorgeous fresh flowers in giant vases were peppered throughout the room. The smell alone made me smile. “I’m sorry. You’re right, Joshua said. “Let’s head on in and mingle. You may even see some people from Maxwell and Locke here.”