Page 54 of The Don’s Virgin Obsession

“Bitch!” She started laughing. “Wait, hold on. You really like him?”

I looked down at my coffee for a second before shrugging. “I think I do. I was distracted on our first date because Vaughn came to the table acting all… Vaughn. But after our date at my office, I actually started liking him.”

Laila smiled at me genuinely. “I’m happy for you.”

“Thank you.”

“You gon’ finally let somebody tap that?”

I laughed. “I ain’t say all that.”

“You kissed him. That’s step one.”

I shook my head, still smiling. “You’re annoying.”

“No, you’re scary. That’s what you are.”

I looked toward the building. “Speaking of scary… should I apologize to Vaughn for having an attitude yesterday?”

“Fuck no,” Laila said immediately. “That attitude gon’ get the job done.”

I laughed again. “I was kinda mean.”

“And he was kinda irritating. Y’all even.”

I checked the time on the dashboard.

9:00 AM.

“A’ight. Let’s go.”

We got out of the car and headed inside.

The energy already felt different.

Usually, Vaughn acknowledged me immediately, even if it was just some smart comment or long stare, but this morning, he was occupied. He stood near the back of the space on the phone, pacing slowly while his personal assistant, Vanessa, walked behind him with a tablet in her hand.

He barely glanced at me.

I didn’t think much of it.

Probably stressed.

“Morning,” I said while passing.

He looked over for half a second. “Morning.”

That was it.

No smirk.

No slick comment.

Nothing.

I frowned a little but kept walking.

The day started moving fast after that. My crew and I got straight into work while Vaughn stayed tied up with calls and meetings for most of the morning. Instead of dealing with him directly, I ended up talking mainly to his site assistant.