Page 2 of One Hot Moment

"Whichever you prefer."

"The artist is the safer bet. I wouldn't want you to shoot me if I get too cheeky."

Her smile broadens even more, and she laughs heartily. "I would never shoot a man who's as cute as you are."

Cute? No one has ever called me that. But I have a feeling "cute" means that she has no interest in shagging me. But I won't do that anyway, so it doesn't matter what she thinks. No, I absolutely will not get a leg over with my assistant who I met five minutes ago.

Work is all I care about, anyway. I'm married to my job.

Tabitha is still smiling at me. "You aren't at all what I expected you to be. I'd heard that you were a hard-nosed analyst who volunteers to work overtime and never takes a vacation."

Blimey. Is that what my coworkers back in London think of me?

The beautiful girl sitting across from me taps a rectangular object on her thigh. It's a tablet computer, I suddenly realize as she flips the leather case open and taps rapidly on the touch screen. After a moment, she veers her gaze away from the device and to me instead. "Let's get your orientation started."

"Is it normal for an administrative assistant to do that? I thought you would mostly answer the phone and take messages."

"Yes, I do that. But I'm a full-service assistant. And besides, the company believes that a new executive will flourish if they're given the proper orientation."

"That does make sense." I find myself relaxing, leaning back into my chair. I feel less anxious, and I think that's because of Tabitha. She's a bloody brilliant assistant. "Where do we start the orientation?"

"First, I'd like to show you around your office."

"It isn't that big. I don't think I'll get lost."

She smiles again, and I rather wish she wouldn't. I've never seen anyone smile with such genuine sweetness. It's distracting.

"I know you won't get lost," Tabitha says. "But you might not be able to find the items you need. Let's get up, and I'll show you around your personal executive space."

"That's a wordy way of saying 'office,' isn't it? 'Personal executive space' sounds like a room where we lock up our assistants overnight."

Her laughters tickles my senses. "You're so funny, Spencer. I bet everyone at your old job loved you."

"Not quite. They thought I was a robot. Literally. I was the bloke who worked eighty hours per week."

She bites her upper lip briefly, studying me. "You must have done that so you could get a promotion, right?"

"No. I just prefer to be at work."

"I see." Tabitha gazes at me for another moment or two, then becomes her cheerful self again. "Are you ready now?"

I rise and straighten my suite jacket, my tie too. "Let's begin the tour."

Tabitha rises too and cradles her tablet in one hand as she comes around to my side of the desk. "Okay, let's start with your new tablet."

"Will I need to climb up Mount Sinai to retrieve it?"

"Mount Sinai?" An adorable wrinkle appears above her nose, right between her eyebrows. For a moment, she simply stares at me that way. Then she bursts out laughing. "That was a good one, Spencer. Very clever. I almost didn't get it, but then I realized what you meant. No, you won't need to climb up that mountain to retrieve any tablets. That's Moses's job."

"I don't often get biblical, but I couldn't resist. Wasn't sure you'd grasp my meaning. Most people don't understand my humor."

"Really? I can't believe that."

I set my fingertips on the desktop, gazing down at it. "I don't think I need you to tell me about office supplies. It's bog standard, I assume."

"Yes, what's on your desk is. But we've got some new things that I bet you haven't seen yet."

I move my eyes only to glance at her sideways. "You know what 'bog standard' means?"

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