Page 29 of Business or Pleasure

Shit. It was him.

“Harlee Sumpter, meet Baylen McFann and his assistant, Brigh Flitton.”

My boss – the fucking CEO of the entire company – was talking, but all I could think was that I had the worst luck ever. What were the chances that my Saturday night fling would be in my boss’s office on my first day of work? Probably the same as flopping a royal straight flush in Texas Hold’em.

Then my brain finished processing the rest of what Mr. McCrae had said.

Mr. McFann’s account was going to be mine. My first assignment was going to be for a man who’d seen every inch of me naked. This was so bad.

Mr. McCrae seemed to be waiting for me to say something. “Thank you, Mr. McCrae.”

“As we speak, Ms. Boswell is emailing you the notes from my meeting with Mr. McFann. I apologize that I didn’t get them to you earlier, but this was last minute.” Mr. McCrae glanced at Baylen – at Mr. McFann – and then continued, “Baylen here is an old friend from university, so of course I made the time for him.”

Mother. Fucking. Shit.

Not only was my one-night stand now my first client, he was also my boss’s friend. A good friend, I’d bet since MIRI wasn’t exactly the sort of place that accepts walk-ins.

If I fucked this up, I was done.

“If you have any questions, Ms. Sumpter, or want a second opinion, feel free to reach out to the others on your team, or to Ms. Boswell,” Mr. McCrae continued. “The work you do will provide direction for the marketing department and if they have any questions or need more information, they’ll come to you.”

My years of working with the public had taught me how to hide what I was thinking, making it possible for me to nod at my boss and then turn to my client and smile. And then I saw the woman standing next to him. I got a better look than I did yesterday morning, but I had no doubt she was the woman who saw me coming out of Baylen’s room.

Not his sister, but his assistant.

Fortunately, I didn’t see any recognition in her eyes. I remembered all too well the part in the company policy that forbade any sort of entanglements with clients. Even if Baylen and I kept our mouths shut – and what little I knew about him made me believe he would – one word from Brigh could ruin everything.

I was suddenly extremely thankful that Jin convinced me to wear temporary black dye streaked into my hair Saturday night. Between that and the different way I was dressed, she didn’t seem to be connecting me to the person she saw at the hotel, and hopefully, she never would.

I couldn’t dwell on that too long though. Mr. McCrae thinking I was a little flustered over getting my first client was one thing. Him having to wonder why I completely froze was something else.

“I will need a few minutes to read through everything, but if you’d like to wait in one of the conference rooms, I’ll join you shortly.” I was pleased with how professional I sounded.

“I’ll have Ms. Boswell bring in a few breakfast foods, as well as refills for everyone’s drinks,” Mr. McCrae said. “Conference room three?”

I nodded, hoping I was thinking of the correct one. “That would be perfect.”

And then I realized I had absolutely no idea what to do next. Did I take them to the conference room myself and then leave them there to go back to my office? Would Ms. Boswell bring them to the room when she came with the drinks and food? I’d never thought to ask about any of that the previous two days. Then again, it wasn’t as if I knew what would happen today.

“I’ll show them to the conference room,” Mr. McCrae said.

“Thank you, sir.” Those two words seemed inadequate for the faith he was placing in me, but I hoped he could tell that I meant them wholeheartedly. I couldn’t, however, work up the courage to meet Baylen’s eye when I said, “I’ll meet you there shortly.”

“Aye.”

I swallowed hard. This was going to suck.

Less than fifteen minutes later, I gathered the notes I just took and headed for what I hoped was the right conference room. I breathed a sigh of relief when I spotted Baylen and Ms. Flitton through the glass and fixed a confident smile on my face. I knew how to fake things better than anyone. I could handle a single meeting.

“Do either of you need anything before we get started?” I asked as I tried to figure out the best place to sit.

“Ms. Boswell took care of us.” Baylen’s voice was slightly stilted, and I wondered if that meant he was as affected as I was. “Thank you.”

He and Brigh were sitting next to each other near the head of the table, so I went to the chair that was nearest them and took a seat. As I settled in, I lifted my chin, striving to appear confident. “I read through the files Mr. McCrae sent me, and first, let me say that I think the concept is a solid one. In most cases, people are more concerned with how sexy a bra is rather than any sort of practicalities.”

I felt heat rising to my cheeks and cursed myself for not realizing that the subject matter was going to make this even more difficult. But, if Baylen could get through it, so could I.

I just couldn’t seem to think about him as Mr. McFann though. Not when I’d spent time screaming his name.

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