Page 18 of Untroubled Heart

She purses her lips as she throws a tea towel at me. “Bet your new boss knows what he’s doing.”

“Five-star Yelp rating confirms.”

“He does not have a Yelp rating.”

“I truly hate myself for how far I dug into him.” He doesn’t have a rating, but there was no shortage of comments online from women losing themselves over his looks and verifying his abilities in the sack. We’ll never know how many are fact or wishful thinking.

“Jealous?” Liv smirks.

“As if. I have plenty of toys, and I know where my clit is.”

“Well, that’s good. It would definitely be harder to work for someone you find attractive and get jealous of the many females around him.”

“Neither of those applies to me." I stick my nose in the air. "We have a strictly professional relationship.”

I’m not jealous. All I need to do is keep reminding myself that I’m there to work, to do what I need to do to support my family. Everything I saw online confirmed he’s the exact kind of man I promised to never put my faith in again. Uncommitted. Placating.

I refuse to waste time on a man like my dad, who never backed up his words with actions, the epitome of empty promises. Never again would I give my heart to someone like Derek, who didn’t handle it with care, gaslighting me every time I suspected he’d been unfaithful. All four times, I was right.

Soon, I’ll forget that the first time I met Mason, I thought he was the most gorgeous man I’d ever laid eyes on. Pretty people can still break hearts, and he won’t get to mine.

I give it a week, tops, before all I see him as is my boss.

Chapter nine

“I always give Mason a twenty- and ten-minute warning before meetings—as I mentioned last week, he tends to get distracted,” says Steven as he walks me through Mason’s calendar. “On Mondays, I’ll give him his weekly schedule, and then every morning I’ll give him the schedule for that particular day.”

Steven gave me a tour when I arrived at Two Hearts Homes this morning, before we dived into the specifics of my new job. He showed me around the workshop on the ground floor, plus the design showroom where Beth and the other designers meet with clients. On the second floor, he introduced me to thirty or so people who milled about. The desks were arranged in small clusters around fresh greenery, plush lounges, and communal tables, giving the place a collaborative and inviting feel.

“He also doesn’t like when you call him Mr Heart, so I only do it when he’s annoying me,” Steven continues, making me laugh, and I’m reminded of when Mason insisted I call him by his first name.

“Okay, noted.”

“Good morning.” Beth practically floats through the room. All grace, and poise, and not a single strand of sleek, chocolate-brown hair out of place. She’s flawless. “How’s everything going in here?”

“I’m confident Callie will pick everything up in no time.” I’m thankful for Steven’s confidence in my ability to take on everything he does, and I’m hoping I prove him right. There are a lot more moving parts in keeping Mason’s work life organised compared to what I’m used to from my years working at the tattoo shop, but I’m also looking forward to the challenge. It’s been a while since I’ve found something to really sink my teeth into, and I love to learn new things. I think that’s why I could never settle on a single career aspiration. Life’s too short, and I want to experience it all while I can.

“Excellent.” Beth smiles just as Mason strolls into the room, scrolling on his phone.

When Steven was explaining a typical week of Mason’s schedule to me earlier, I learned that some days, he’s the billionaire businessman, in the office or meetings all day, and on other days, he’s inspecting sites and working on the tools. Today, he’s Mr Manager.

A deep blue button-up shirt stretches across his chest, the sleeves rolled halfway up his rippling forearms. The kind of forearms you’d expect from a guy who spends a lot of his time working outdoors—golden and veiny.

Perhaps I’ll need longer than a week for the idea to settle that I don’t find him attractive.

“Morning, Steven.” Mason smiles as he looks up before his mismatched eyes fly to mine. “Callie.”

“Mr Heart.” I nod at him, professional on the outside, swooning on the inside at the way he says my name. Get it together, girl.

His eyebrows pinch together. “Mason.”

“No, it’s Callie. You had it right the first time.” I place a palm to my chest, faking a nervous chuckle.

The corner of his mouth ticks up in amusement, while Steven barks out a laugh. “That’s right, Callie. Show him who’s boss.”

“I’m the boss,” Mason says with a frown.

“Of course, sir,” Steven says playfully.