Page 9 of Donut Overthink It

I stand and face the windows that overlook Chicago, smiling at all the beautiful lights. This town really is gorgeous. I never thought I’d end up here, but I guess that saying is true—there’s no place like home.

Yawning, I place my hand over my mouth and turn around, shutting his light off and walking toward the elevator. While waiting for it to arrive, I reach up and remove my ponytail. It’s been so tight all day it’s given me a headache. I readjust my glasses on my face as well. I need new contacts, but when I went to order them last week, they wouldn’t ship them until the doctor approved my prescription. Well, guess what? I refuse to ask the warden for time off, and I’ve been working through my lunch hour or just eating in my office. So I’ve had to go back to wearing my glasses when my eyes start to bother me. After staring at all those papers for over eight hours, my eyes got the best of me. And they don’t help much because my vision has obviously changed. I need new glasses too.

Looking down at my heels, I hear the ding of the elevator, then the doors opens. Last week, my heel caught and sent me face first into the elevator. I’ve never been graceful, so when I fell flat on my stomach, all I could do was laugh. It wasn’t pretty, but thankfully, it was after everyone else had gone home, and I was alone. Perks of having to work later than anyone else.

Once in, I turn to face the door as they slide closed and it starts to go up. “Shit!” I hiss. I hadn’t been paying attention to see if it was going down.

“Bad day, Miss Burns?”

I spin around to see him standing in the far corner. “Mr. Kyle,” I squeal in surprise, placing a hand on my chest as my heart races. My free hand reaches behind me until I feel the wall, and I sag against it. “Jesus! You scared me.”

“Perhaps if you hadn’t been admiring your shoes, you would have noticed me,” he says flatly, then adds, “You should pay more attention to your surroundings.”

I open my mouth to tell him to fuck off but close it when he arches a dark brow, almost daring me to say something bitchy to him. I know the bastard is just looking for a reason to fire me, but I refuse to give it to him. I deserve this job. After I graduated high school, I wanted out of this town and away from too many bad memories. I had just had enough. I went to school to be a paralegal, but they say life has a way of coming full circle. The small law firm I worked for in Pittsburgh shut their doors, and I had no choice but to come back home. I went to a temp agency, and when they said they had an opening at Kyle and Bakers, I jumped on it. I thought I would be working for his dad, Kenneth Kyle. But nope, God looked down at me and laughed, throwing me to Aiden Kyle—the wolf. And he has made every day here a living hell, but I refuse to show him any fear. Or weakness. I only have two more weeks, and he will evaluate my performance and decide to hire me or send me packing. I’m not sure which one will be best for my sanity just yet.

“How was your day?” I decide to ask, filling the silence.

“Well.” He answers with one word.

An awkward silence falls between us once again in the small space, and I turn my back to him. I look down, allowing my hair to shield half of my face as I look at him in the mirrored door. He’s been running all day nonstop, doing God knows what, and still looks like a million dollars. He has his black suit jacket hanging over his right forearm. His dark purple tie hangs loosely around his neck. And the first two buttons of his crisp white shirt are also undone, showing off his perfectly sculptured chest. His dark hair is a disheveled mess.

“Like what you see, Miss Burns?”

My eyes shoot up to his in the mirrored door, and they’re staring into mine with a look of amusement. “No, uh …” The corner of his lips start to twitch, and I kick myself for thinking he wouldn’t see me. He sees everything. “Just wondering why you didn’t get off on our floor,” I decide to say, heart pounding.

Just press me up against the wall and kiss me!

Whoa! Where did that come from? This isn’t one of your dreams, Hadley. I tighten my legs as that throbbing returns.

“Because I’m not going to the office,” he answers and then looks down at his phone in his hand as it dings.

“Where are you going?” I ask and then clench my teeth. Shut up!

“Curious about my whereabouts, Miss Burns?” he asks but doesn’t bother to look up at me or give me time to mumble a lame excuse. “That’s a new one for you, but if you must know, I live on the top floor.”

I turn to fully face him, surprised by that. “I thought you had a house over in The Ridge?” It’s one of the richest neighborhoods in Chicago. He, Asher, and their father all have houses there.

He sighs as if I’m bothering him. His phone goes off again, and I watch his eyes scan it before he moves to message back. It’s probably a woman already waiting in his apartment for him. The man sleeps with them all the time. Then he moves on to the next one, breaking heart after heart. That I do know. I’m the one who has to deal with them when they call the office because he ignores their calls after they spread their legs for him. God, I would love to be one of those women. Just for one night …

“I do,” he finally says, interrupting my thoughts, blue eyes back on mine. I clear my throat. “But when I work late, sometimes I don’t feel like driving across town to get home.”

Then just like before, he looks back down at his phone when it dings again. The elevator finally comes to a stop, and the door slides open. Without another look or so much as a good night, he walks out. I move to the middle and watch the way his black slacks sit low on his narrow hips and pull against his ass. He works out—runs every morning before work. His body just as lean and strong. The man is so sexy …

He comes to a quick stop in the middle of the hallway and turns to face me. I straighten my shoulders as my eyes go to his. “Did you finish those files?” he asks.

I nod. “Yes, sir.”

He places his phone in the pocket of his dress slacks and says, “Don’t be late tomorrow, Miss Burns,” then turns around and finishes walking toward the big black door at the end of the hall. He opens it up with a keypad and then walks in, letting it slam shut behind him as my elevator doors close as well.

I fall back against the wall and let out a long sigh. My feet hurt. My eyes sting from being half blind, and my ass hurts from sitting on it all day. I just wanna go home and take a hot bubble bath and pass out.

As the elevator doors opens to the lobby, my cell dings with a text.

Nate: I can’t wait to see you!

Shit! I forgot about my date.

AIDEN

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