I did lie to get this job. Though, they saw through it immediately.
I nod. “So, administrative stuff?”
Another three heartbeats pass and then he moves past me and back toward the dining table and his coffee cup. I sense his demeanor shifting back to a more professional one. “And personal assistant help, too. I dragged a guy out of bed last night at midnight to dry-clean my suit because I didn’t get a chance to bring it down earlier. I need someone who’s going to be on top of those kinds of things for me.”
On top of dressing Henry? What about undressing Henry... I grit my teeth to keep the smile at bay. “That, I think I can do.”
His hand waves through the area. “And keeping this place in order, clean. I don’t let staff in here. I have too many confidential and private things lying around.”
“You don’t trust your staff?”
“No.” Not a moment’s hesitation answering that.
“But, why hire people you don’t trust?”
“I have my reasons,” he says, and I can tell he’s not going to elaborate. “But I do trust you.”
“Why?”
“Because my gut tells me that I can, and I make decisions based on my gut.” He pauses, his eyes dipping down over my outfit again, that thick fringe of lash a thing of beauty. “I’m your boss, and you’re my employee, and I know you won’t cross any lines. While you’re sober, anyway.”
So, again, it all comes down to sex. And women wanting him, perhaps. Spoken by any other man, I’d write him off as an egotistical douchebag. But it’s this man standing in front of me, and I’ve already seen and heard firsthand how his employees talk about him, like he’s a piece of meat they’ll do anything to sink their teeth into.
“This job means spending a lot of time with me. Being in my living space with me while I’m rushing in and out, getting ready for meetings and events. Putting up with me while things are stressful. Do you think you can handle that?”
I can’t ignore how my heart hasn’t stopped racing since he opened the door, or how the flutters of excitement have only increased with every word out of his mouth. Or how I keep inhaling deeply, to absorb the fresh, clean smell of him. Or how I keep replaying the feel of his arms around my body and his erection against my ass.
Is this a good idea? Am I setting myself up for constant frustration? I’ll probably become a champion masturbator by the end of the summer.
What’s worse, the way he asks it, it’s like he knows exactly what’s going through my head right now. I don’t want my boss to know that I’m attracted to him in a major way. A way I didn’t believe I could be. A way that has all but shoved Jed from my thoughts.
I have to clear my throat, afraid my words will come out shaky. “Exactly how much time?”
He levels me with a look. “I want you available to me day and night, unless I say otherwise. Some days will require more than others. Some early mornings, some late nights. You’ll be paid a flat salary that more than covers an hourly wage plus overtime.”
I frown. “But...” Day and night? “How will that work?” It dawns on me. There is no staff shift trade-off.
Henry frowns. “You look worried.”
“I’m just taking it all in. Will I have to stay in there?” I glance back toward the staff quarters, to the little hobbit room. I’m not sure how I feel about that. On the one hand, it’s my own room. On the other, I won’t get any sleep knowing Henry is so close.
He smiles. “I’m not a tyrant. I will give you time off, Abbi.” He strolls over to the desk that sits in one corner, overlooking the water, and collects paper and pen. “Before we go any further, I need you to sign this confidentiality agreement.” He sets it on the table in front of me. “It’s pretty standard.”
“I’ve never signed one of these,” I admit, picking it up.
“No?” His fingers move absently over his shirt, fastening his buttons. “I’ve signed a thousand in my lifetime already. Take your time and read through it. I need to finish getting dressed now.” He disappears into his bedroom, leaving me to the paperwork.
It’s pretty easy to understand. Basically, I’m not to talk about Henry—anything he says or does—or he can sue my ass.
“I do require that you not drink while you’re working for me,” he calls out from his room. “Given what I saw the other night, it’s too risky.”
“I think we’ve already covered that I won’t ever be drinking again.” I scroll my name along the bottom, set the pen down gingerly and take a deep breath. This feels somehow monumental.
“Done?”
“Yes.”
“Good. I need you in here.”
My heart skips a beat. He needs me in his bedroom. “Coming,” I say, my voice shaky. All kinds of visions float through my head that I didn’t even know I could conjure up, but that make blood rush through my body. Henry stripped down. Henry, lying on his bed, waiting for me.
I find him standing in front of the dresser mirror, holding two ties in his hands. “Which one should I wear?”
I sigh with relief. “I like the charcoal-and-silver one with that suit.”
“This one?” He holds the navy one up and I frown, earning his laugh and swap. “I’m color-blind,” he admits, looping the one I chose around his neck, tossing the other onto the bed. “So don’t be surprised if I ask you to help me match my socks and ties on occasion.” He pauses. “Are you good with tying ties?”
“I think so.” I tied Jed’s ties all through high school and into college. I make my way over, slowing to take in the wall of glass and the water beyond, hyperaware that I’m about to help Henry get dressed. “What a view to wake up to every day,” I mumble, trying to diffuse my nerves.
“It’s something, all right.” I feel him staring at my face as my fingers begin flying, making quick work of the silk, all while my heart feels like it’s going to leap out of my chest at any moment.
My hands are trembling.
“You have freckles,” he murmurs. “I never noticed them before.”
I scrunch my nose with the reminder. The light smattering across the bridge has always bothered me. “My glasses usually cover them.”
“I’d offer to get my wetsuit on and dive for them, but I don’t think I want to. You should keep wearing contacts. They suit you better.”
I don’t know what to say to that, so I say nothing, focusing instead on pulling the end of the tie through, only to find that I’ve made it way too short. “Hold on, I have to redo.”
He waits quietly, as I loosen and adjust, and then go through the steps again, my fingers grazing against his body occasionally. Each swipe makes my skin tingle and my breathing more uneven.
“There. I think that’s perfect,” I whisper, taking a step back to admire him. God, he is stunning. I honestly can’t tell which look I like more: the businessman or the lumberjack. Both are equally hot.
But I’ll bet neither can complete with Henry Wolf, naked.
I’ve never even seen a man naked and I’m thinking about that right now? Ten minutes in to being his assistant? How on earth am I going to work alongside him for the next four months and maintain my composure?
“Good?”
I duck my head, smiling shyly. “Yes. You’re definitely ready for... whatever you’re doing today.”
He laughs. “Exactly how I expect the person managing my calendar to answer. Come.” His fingertips brush the small of my back, the heat from them searing my skin, as he ushers me past his rumpled sheets. “You can make my bed for me later.” There’s amusement in his voice.
Now the comment he made in the truck yesterday after I admitted to not being able to properly make a bed makes sense.
Henry leads me to the desk. He digs out an iPhone from the drawer. “So I can reach you at all times. It works everywhere on the property. And here are my passwords to my e-mail accounts and my voice mail. Save them in your phone and then shred this note. You can access my e-mail with my computer. Feel free to open any e-mail that comes in unless it’s marked confidential in the subject line. Those are not to be opened. Belinda will be by with a laptop and I believe she has already given you an iPad.”