Page 9 of Starting Over with Her Billionaire Boss

“That’s what I wondered, but…” Kinsley wasn’t sure where she was going with this. “I got a job as his personal assistant! At least he’s easy on the eyes.”

“How did you go in for a receptionist position and land a job as a personal assistant?”

“Well, according to the head of human resources, the receptionist position wasn’t really necessary. I guess Lourdes, the lady I met at that diner, was really looking for another receptionist just to cover Laurel—that’s their currentreceptionist—when she goes on vacation, calls in sick, or during hours she isn’t there. Apparently, Lourdes or another one of the ladies that works in the office would have to take Laurel’s spot, and none of them like doing it.” Kinsley felt almost as gossipy as Laurel had been that afternoon.

“Sounds pretty typical for an office,” Brienne said.

“So that’s how I landed this job. Not only that, but I told Tina, the head of human resources, that I’m renovating my house to turn it into a bed-and-breakfast. It turns out that her brother is a semi-retired contractor who still takes up an odd job here or there, so she gave me his number.”

Brienne mumbled something Kinsley couldn’t understand.

“I have no idea what you are saying, Brie.”

“Ugh, sorry. I was holding a paintbrush in my mouth.”

“A paintbrush? You never paint unless you’re mad at someone.” Kinsley straightened up, eager to hear what—or, more accurately,who—was upsetting Brienne.

Brienne sighed. “Well, you remember that guy I started dating a month ago?”

“Which one? The hot resident at the hospital, or the guy that can’t spell in his text messages?” Kinsley tried to scan her memories. Although Brienne wasn’t normally one to date around, she’d been trying to get back into the dating scene again.

“What do you mean which one?” she said through a muffled mouth. “They’re the same one. Oscar.”

“Oh.” Kinsley was trying to rack her brain. “Did Oscar end up being a grouch?” Kinsley was amused at her own joke.

“No, Oscar was actually a Casper because he ghosted me,” Brienne chuckled.

“How do you know he actually ghosted you?” Kinsley grabbed one of the decorative pillows next to her on the sofa and fiddled with a tassel.

“Do you remember how I got two tickets to that playoff game that he really wanted to see?” Brienne asked.

“Yeah, the one last night. But I still don’t understand why you spent so much money on those tickets.”

“I wanted to impress a sexy doctor-to-be.”

“And how did that work out?” It was Kinsley’s turn to be a bit of a smart-ass to Brienne, who so often filled the role herself.

“Oh, it worked out so wonderfully.” Sarcasm dripped in Brienne’s comment. “We went to watch it last night, had a great time, and even kissed when he dropped me off at my house. And then he just…disappeared.”

“You jump to conclusions too much, Brienne. How do you actuallyknow?” Kinsley wasn’t a stranger to how easily Brienne could come up with wild scenarios, despite the lack of any evidence to support them.

“I know I do, but… Look. He never replied to my texts last night. Or this morning.” Frustration threaded through her speech.

“He could just be busy, Brienne. He is a resident in a hospital, after all,” Kinsley suggested.

“I tried calling, and it went straight to voicemail.”

“You might be overthinking this, Brienne.”

Brienne sighed audibly through the phone. “I didn’twantto jump to conclusions, so I checked Facebook. He deleted me.”

“Oh...” Kinsley’s chest tightened as she pressed the phone closer to her ear. All she wanted was to offer Brienne a comforting hug, but her friend was hundreds of miles away. The dating scene was a mess; Kinsley was content to avoid it. Issues with a man were the last thing she needed.

“But he made sure that his profile picture is the one I took of him last night at the game,” she huffed. “I can’t believe I got used just for playoff tickets.”

“I’m sorry, Brie. That’s pretty immature of him.”

“That seems to be the theme: men using me for whatever I can give them. Ugh,” Brienne said in disgust. “Anyway, enough about that disaster. So, the CEO—he’s hot, right?”

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