Page 79 of Beauty and the Boss Man

Chapter Thirty-four

Romy

The following day, I have every intention of making myself look super cute to make sure I get Aiden’s attention, but when I sleep through my alarm, that becomes impossible. So, my glasses, messy bun, and semi-casual clothes will have to do.

Aiden said he didn’t care what I wore, right?

I fidget my entire way to work but not from nerves. I’m excited to see him. We’ve been apart for a day and a half, and I act like I haven’t seen him in months.

When I pull into the parking lot of the job site, I take a moment to compose myself before walking in. The butterflies in my stomach have officially taken flight.

When I walk inside the small trailer, Aiden is already sitting at his desk, staring at his computer screen.

“Good morning,” I say with a smile.

His eyes glance up at me for the briefest of moments. “Hi,” he replies quietly.

I get settled in at my desk and start trying to get myself organized. There’s a frigid silence between us, and I don’t like it.

“How was the rest of your weekend?” I ask, trying to start some dialogue.

This time, he doesn’t even look at me. “Fine.”

I stare at him, searching for any sign of what might be bothering him.

He’s so cold that maybe silence would be preferable over this awkward song and dance we are doing.

But I’ve come too far to stop now. “Man, I had a crazy weekend. Wait until you hear what happened—”

He cuts me off. “Yeah, maybe later. Did you see this email about the Stevens project?”

My mouth hangs open like a freaking cartoon character. “Uh, no. Not yet,” I stammer.

“It says we lost the contract.”

“What?” I ask, pulling it up on my screen. “What happened? I thought we were good as gold on that.”

“Yeah, me too, but it got snaked right out from under me while we were gone.” He slams his hand down on the table, sending papers flying everywhere. “Fuck!”

I jump at his volume.

“Let me make some calls,” I offer. “I’m sure we can lowball it and get it back.”

Before I can utter another word, he’s storming out. The door to the trailer bangs a few times from the Winter air blowing in. As cool as the air is, though, it’s nothing compared to how cold this room was ten seconds ago.

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The rest of the day carries on about the same. I don’t see much of Aiden since he’s out working with the other guys.

And when I do see him, he’s just as much of a dick as he was this morning.

A major wave of sadness hits me when I realize he’s not wearing the hat I bought him in Key West.

So much for never taking it off.

I try to do my job and not let him see how much this is affecting me.

Before our trip, Aiden was always a little grumpy, but he was never an outright jerk to me. He’s always treated me as more of an equal rather than his assistant. Today is the first time I’ve really felt the definition of my title.

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