Page 20 of Tell Me Something

Looking up, I met his agitated eyes. “Maybe you don’t remember, but I’m a grown woman. You quite obviously are only my boss, and I’m off the clock.” I was being petty but didn’t care at the moment.

“That’s right, I am your boss, and I’m ordering you to go back to your room.”

Downing my drink in one last gulp, I stood up a little unsteadily.

“Jesus,” he muttered.

Defiant, I responded, “As you wish, Mr. Singer.”

I was about to walk away when he tugged my arm back, and suddenly his mouth was crushing down on mine. The taste of smoke was strong, but my desire was stronger as his tongue expertly explored my mouth. My tongue shyly met his while his hands grasped either side of my face, holding me in place. I was completely at his mercy and lost in the moment until he pulled away suddenly.

“I know you don’t understand, but you need to go back to your room. We can’t do this.”

My emotions were heightened, which made the rejection sting all that much more. To make matters worse, he spoke to me like I was a child. “Obviously, it’s my inability to understand. What an incredibly condescending asshole thing to say.”

“You’ve been drinking.”

“Yes, I have, and maybe that’s what’s giving me the courage to put it out there.” I fished through my purse and held out my hotel key card. “Here’s my extra room key. I’m going to bed and wish you’d join me. If you don’t, then we go back to merely professional in the morning. If you do, well, we’ll figure it out. Just do me a favor and brush your teeth first because the cigarette thing is a real turn-off for me.”

I turned on my heel, my heart beating double time in my chest the entire way up to my room. I’d never done anything remotely like this in my life.

When I got to my room, I wasn’t sure what to do. I started with brushing my teeth and then my hair, leaving the latter soft and down. I gulped down a bottle of water and, after pacing fifteen minutes, took a quick shower. All the while I listened for the door. I turned off the lights, turned them on, turned them back off, and took a deep breath.

An hour had passed, and reality was hitting me smack in the face. He wasn’t coming.

After donning my luxurious hotel robe, I lay down on the bed, willing myself not to cry. Rejection cut deep, and knowing I’d have to return to normal with him as my boss tomorrow wasn’t making it any easier.

I heard the sound of a key slide in before the door opened. My breath held. When I rolled over on the bed, I saw Josh in my doorway. He was still dressed as I had left him, but now had his laptop and cell phone in his hands.

This wasn’t exactly what I’d envisioned. Sitting up, I raised a brow. Was he coming in because he wanted me—or was he looking for his assistant?

“If we do this, we do it my way, which I’ll warn you is complicated. First thing’s first, you talk to my attorney.”

I was too stunned for words.

“A nondisclosure agreement protects me in the business world. But in my private one, having a sexual relationship, especially with someone I employ and who essentially lives in my apartment, is not the smartest idea. It gets complicated and requires an even stricter version of a privacy agreement. My attorney is the only one who knows the, uh, circumstances, by the way, and that I’m here right now. Here’s the document, and here’s my laptop ready to dial Mark Hines in a video conference. If we’re going to do this, then you’ll need to follow without reservation everything he asks of you.”

“Okay, I’m going to get dressed first.” I got up and grabbed a T-shirt and shorts out of my suitcase. If I was doing a video conference with his attorney at—shit, twelve-thirty—I needed to be clothed properly.

When I came out of the bathroom, I saw that Josh had taken a seat next to the window in one of the hotel chairs. His eyes and expression were unreadable.

The laptop was on the desk with the document laid out in front of it. Had this been what he was doing over the last hour, composing this with his lawyer?

I sat down and pressed the button. A man’s face, presumably that of the attorney, immediately came up on the screen. He must have been wakened from sleep and appeared to be in his home office. He was younger than I’d supposed, maybe the same age as Josh.

He greeted me with a sincere smile. “Ms. Holloway, my name is Mark Hines. I’m Mr. Singer’s personal attorney. I take it that Mr. Singer has informed you of the nature of this call.”

Glancing over at Josh, who still was revealing nothing, I found that I was suddenly nervous. Unfortunately, I was also not entirely sober. “Um, yes, Mr. Hines, and please call me Haylee.” I sensed his hesitation and then blurted out, “It’s all very personal, so calling me Ms. Holloway sounds really formal.”

His eyes sympathized. “Okay, Haylee, call me Mark. The document is in front of you, correct?”

I nodded.

Josh seemed to be fixated on me, still not giving anything away with his silence.

Then it dawned on me. This was a test. His world meant potential lawsuits and risk when it came to everything. Gold diggers were probably the norm. Given my position working for him, not to mention his past, it was no wonder he was cautious. Right now he was throwing down a challenge to see if I was willing to go through with it.

What should have been a turn-off instantly became a turn-on when I realized how desperately he must want me that, after midnight in Mexico, he’d dragged his attorney out of bed and come up with this agreement.