Page 2 of My Jealous Boss

He nods, his eyes flitting behind me. “Close the door.”

I do as he says as a fleeting thought strikes me. What if I’m getting fired? I can’t come up with any other reason he’d want this conversation to be private. After the door clicks, I turn around and look at him expectantly.

“I just wanted to let you know that flirting with customers isn’t appropriate,” he says, his eyes burning through me.

“What?” I ask, not bothering to hide my confusion. “I wasn’t flirting.”

“I saw you talking to Leo,” Simon mutters, clearly unamused by my denial.

“I didn’t think that was flirting,” I reply honestly. Then, because his face remains unmoving, I add, “I don’t really know how to flirt. I’ve never done it before. At least not on purpose.”

“Pretty thing like you,” he says to himself, the compliment making me feel warm all over, “I find that hard to believe.”

“It’s the truth,” I say as my face gets hot at the admission. “I don’t really have a lot of experience with guys.”

Simon hums thoughtfully, his gaze shifting over all of my features. I can tell he’s thinking, but I can’t read him. Even if I knew him inside and out, I doubt I’d be able to read his facial expressions. His stoicism is both enigmatic and irresistible.

“What?” I ask finally when the silence gets too heavy.

He sighs, leaning forward to rest his elbows on his knees. After another long, almost insufferable pause, he says, “If you want to practice, you can do it with me.”

“Uh,” I start, blinking a few times in quick succession. “What?”

“I understand that the customers seem like a safe place for you to learn how to talk to men,” he says, steepling his fingers and resting his chin on them. “It’s just imperative that things here remain professional. If you want to flirt, practice with me. Not the guests.”

“Right,” I say in disbelief at his offer. If I were to flirt with anyone on purpose, it’d be him. I know he’s over ten years my senior and my boss, but he’s undeniably attractive. “That… I might have to take you up on that offer. Thank you.”

“Don’t mention it,” he tells me, sitting up straight again. “Just mind how you’re talking to the guests. I don’t want to get any complaints about inappropriate behavior.”

“Have there been complaints?” I ask, suddenly worried that this meeting might have been prompted by something other than my interaction with Leo.

“Not yet,” he says, something that could be a playful smile settling on his lips. “Let’s keep it that way, yeah?”

“Yeah,” I say, bouncing on the balls of my feet as I buzz with excitement. “Am I good to get back on the floor?”

“You are,” he confirms.

When I turn around and leave the office, I can still feel the weight of his eyes on me. I’m excited to practice on Simon – so excited that I spend the rest of my shift trying to figure out how to approach him. And, when I check out and leave for the night, I decide that I’ll ask my roommate if she has any words of wisdom or advice on coming onto a man.

Chapter 2

Simon

Asking Miranda to practice flirting with me was a stupid, impulsive decision. Since I bought Lucky’s Bar and Grill, I swore to myself that I wouldn’t date any of the employees. When I was first starting out in restaurants, I saw things get messy more times than I care to mention. It’s best for everyone involved that the boss maintain his distance from the people he’s managing.

And yet, all it took was one look at Miranda for my resolve to start crumbling. Her long, black hair that stretches halfway down her back even when she has it in a ponytail and her bright, ocean-blue eyes drew me in. Then yesterday, I saw the way she was talking to Leo, the way he was smiling at her and the way she was smiling in return, and I couldn’t stop myself. Calling her into my office was a reflex, something that I did on impulse. I was so jealous that I couldn’t control myself.

I don’t think it’ll be a big deal. Flirting and dating are two very different things. Plus, she doesn’t have any experience. Giving her the green light to flirt with me probably takes some pressure off her while she’s learning to take control of her love life. It might be self-indulgent on my end, but as long as I keep things innocent, there won’t be any problems. It should be easy enough.

At least, I think that going into the closing shift tonight.

“You’re looking nice tonight, Boss Man,” Miranda says as soon as I walk past her.

The compliment throws me for a loop. I wasn’t expecting her to take me up on my offer so soon. Not only that, but her compliment sounds so genuine that my mind completely stops. I recover pretty quickly, though.

“Likewise,” I say easily, my eyes catching on her light pink lips. “I like that lipstick. The color looks nice on you.”

Her cheeks turn bright red, and she ducks her head. The reaction emboldens me, making me want to say more. I remember my rule, though. As much as I want to push this further, I know I shouldn’t. She’s just practicing and this doesn’t mean anything.

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