Page 23 of The Bad Boy's Good Girl

Working with Bronx might be hard but she’d lived through worse. Hell, she currently dealt with worse every day. Though her morning sickness hadn’t lessened, she did have it under control thanks to ginger tablets from the homeopathic shop on the main drag in town. Drop two tablets in water and nibble butter crackers all day long and she could make it through most of her workday without tossing her cookies. Even the scent of bland soup made her sick so she lived on sandwiches. Cold, boring sandwiches. She felt awful from the time she woke up and went to bed so adding him to the mix couldn’t make things worse.

“Nola, I’m here if you ever want to talk. Despite what you think now, you are my friend and I do care about you.”

She tried for a smile but she knew she failed. “Thank you, Brooks.” He felt bad that’s all, so she wouldn’t burden him with her problems. Nola returned to her desk with a renewed focus on work. If she only worried about the task at hand nothing else would seep into her thoughts to distract her, to make her emotional. With emails answered and tasks scratched off her to do list, she grabbed her tablet, notebook filled with notes and a pen and went to tangle with the devil. “I need to see Bronx,” she told Gabriella who laughed into the phone while filing her nails, an absolute cliché.

She looked up and frowned. “Not looking so good Nola, maybe you ought to enjoy more beauty rest,” she flashed a sickly grin.

I will not let her get to me. “Just tell him I’m here.”

“Sorry, he’s busy,” she answered, not sounding sorry at all.

She’d been about to open her mouth and tear the damn woman apart when the door to Bronx’s office opened, revealing a leggy brown-skinned woman in skintight jeans and a crop top. In winter! She stuck close to Bronx, so close they might have been conjoined. And he ate it up, looking at her like she was a chocolate sundae drenched in caramel. “Thanks for stopping by, Jasmine. We’ll talk soon.”

She, Jasmine, kissed the corner of his mouth slowly. Very slowly and pulled back with bedroom eyes. “Very soon, I hope.”

Give me a damn break!She wanted to puke, and for once it had nothing to do with the life growing inside of her. The man had no damn scruples, sleeping with anything that walks. Why do you care? That question brought her up short and she realized her conscience was right. She didn’t care. Didn’t give a damn. Mostly. Bronx could sleep with whomever he wanted. She’d never had any control over it and there was no reason for that to change, especially when he had no reason to.

Finally, he tore his gaze from Jasmine’s firm round backside and glared at her. “What is it?”

She stood, stiff and formal. “Bronx said I’m to coordinate with you on the GW release.”

“Right. Come on, then.” She followed him inside the office and took a seat, pushing the chair further away from his desk at the sight of the giant sub with onions spilling over. Her belly flipped at the smell and she held her breath for as long as she could.

“I have already sent you a spreadsheet of what tasks have been done and which ones still need to be done. If you tell me what you want me to handle, I’ll get started.”

He frowned but didn’t look at her. “Gabriela can do it.”

Of course, she couldn’t and they both knew it but Nola didn’t bother saying so. She would be gone soon and much of the work would fall on Gabriela’s shoulders. She would fail or succeed on her own. “All right.” She stood and smoothed her skirt. “You have everything you’ll need to complete the tasks.” One less task and less time with Bronx, it was all a win in her book.

“That’s it?” His words were angry, dark and confused. When she turned to him in confusion, his look darkened. “You constantly object to Gabriela doing anything but now you don’t seem to give a damn.”

It wasn’t a question but she answered anyway. “It doesn’t matter what I think. I’m just an assistant.”

“That’s bullshit and you know it Nola! I don’t know what the hell is going on with you and honestly I don’t give a shit, but you need to get over yourself. Brooks is worried and your selfishness is hurting him. I don’t take too well to people hurting my family.”

She heard the threat and stared at his features, twisted in a dark hateful scowl and wondered, why had her body, her heart chosen him and not Brooks? Why did it have to be him who made her heart race, her body sing? Why had she stupidly had sex with him thinking she could keep it casual when she’d never felt casual towards him? Because I’m an idiot.That had to be it because it was the only reasonable explanation. Spine stiff, she clenched her jaws so he wouldn’t see how his words had split her apart. If he had even an inkling of how she felt about him, how much she loved him, Bronx would skewer her and her heart. “Got it. You don’t give a shit. Anything else?”

Bronx dismissed her with a wave of his hand and she turned, quickly exiting the office, biting down on the inside of her cheek to stop the tears she felt stinging the back of her eyes. She wanted to leave B&B which would probably mean leaving Serendipity but she had to be realistic. She was pregnant and alone, and leaving a good paying job was stupid. Her grandma hadn’t raised her to be stupid, she raised her to be strong, independent and that’s what she had to be.

So she wouldn’t leave town or her home but she would start looking for a new job as soon as she got home. Suck it up, she told herself. She wasn’t the first woman to have to deal with former lovers and friends at the workplace and she wouldn’t be the last.

With that loving pep talk, Nola settled in and got back to work. The day would be over soon enough.

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