Page 14 of The Shadow

“What? Why?” All color I’m sure has drained from my face.

“Why the fuck didn’t you tell me he was the CEO of the fortune five hundred company you work for, not just your boss?” My mouth falls open in shock but before I can answer, he continues. “In fact, he’s not your boss; he’s your boss’ boss’ boss. So why the fuck would the CEO of your company come to your apartment?”

My hand is still outstretched, holding out the key that’s ready to go in the lock but it begins to shake. I feel like a child, unable to control my emotions. Tears spring to my eyes and my chin begins to tremble.

“Shit.” He steps back, his expression softening. “I’m sorry, I know I came off strong but imagine my surprise when I walk into a client meeting earlier today and come face-to-face with the man who was walking into your apartment with you the other night.”

“I-I…” I begin to stutter, unsure of what to say when he reaches out and takes the keys from my hand.

“May I?” he asks, holding the keys to the lock and I nod. He opens the door, both of us stepping inside. I place my purse on the hook by the door, pulling my pale-pink sweater tighter around my body.

“Aspen.” I like the sound of his gruff voice as he says my name. “Look at me.”

I slowly turn. “I’m sorry. He… yes, he’s not technically my boss anymore, but he was. I was hired on as his assistant.”

I watch his face fall; he’s not an idiot. I’m sure if he met Connor, he met Natalie so he knows damn well the kind of man who keeps hot young assistants on rotation. “We had a fling and he has struggled to let things go between us.”

He stares at me, clearly not buying it, but that’s all I’m giving him. “Why did he hire you? I don’t understand.”

“He said he received threats from his soon-to-be ex-wife’s family and wants to make sure that he has physical protection through his divorce.”

“Look.” My face falls. “It’s not what you think. It wasn’t an affair, at least I-I didn’t know he was married. He said that he wasn’t, that his wife had died. I trusted him; I didn’t know. He had no photos of her in his office, no wedding ring, and she never called, not once.”

My attempts sound selfish, like I’m only worried about how this makes me look and how I’m completely innocent in it. I should have done more research. I should have just googled him but I didn’t. One night it went from a subtle flirting comment to him kissing me in an instant.

“That’s not what I was thinking. We both know damn well that you weren’t the first or the last woman he lied to about his wife and cheated on her with and from the research I did this afternoon, they had been separated, living completely independent lives from each other for the last year.”

It gives me a tiny shred of relief, even if he’s just saying it to make me feel better. I’m not a home-wrecker and if I could take it back I would. I sink down onto the barstool next to me.

“So, what’s this all mean, now that you’re working for him?”

He reaches down and grabs the lip of the barstool, dragging it and me closer to him. I grab the edge of the counter as he places one foot on the footrail and leans in close to me. I’m instantly pulled into the golden-brown pool of his eyes.

“This is how things are going to go with all of this.” He rests one elbow on his knee, his other arm extending out to rest on the back of the stool behind me. “This contract has been signed so that means I can’t back out of this job. If I could, I would, because this piece of shit doesn’t deserve my time or protection, even if he’s paying me. We both know there’s a lot more to the story between you two.”

I open my mouth to protest but he lifts his finger and presses it gently against my lips. He slowly shakes his head. It’s a simple movement, but it’s commanding and bold. He keeps his thick finger pressed against my lips a little longer.

“I’m not asking for you to explain to me now; you will when you’re ready and I’ll be here. But my instincts are never wrong. Neither is my gut, and both of them are screaming at me right now. So while I’ve been hired to protect this man, the same piece of shit who’s giving you trouble, there’s only one way this is going to work.”

“How?” I ask suspiciously.

“He’s going to meet your boyfriend.”

“But I don’t actually have a boy—” I pause, his expression still serious. “Wait, you want me to have someone pretend to my boyfriend?”

“Not someone. Me.”

My face must look like a lobster right now because it feels like it’s on fire. I press my hands against my cheeks. The mere suggestion of him as my boyfriend and I’m behaving like this?

“No, no way. How would that even work when he knows who you are?”

He presses the hand against the back of the stool a little harder, the wood creaking. “He had to look up at me and he’s not a small man. He’s the one who actually pointed it out, said he wanted me specifically to protect him. I intimidate him and he wanted to have the upper hand by calling it out. He also made it a point to show me the hardware he keeps strapped against his ribs.”

“Hardware? A gun?” I feel my eyes bulge when he nods his head. “At work?”

“Yup.”

I swallow down a lump.

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