Page 19 of Forbidden Grumpy Boss

Here it comes. Harvey’s “ideas” are always something, usually bordering on ridiculous, but they tend to work in the end. He gestures with his cigar like he’s unveiling some brilliant plan.

“Fake engagement.”

I blink at him. “What?”

Harvey grins. “It’s simple. Get engaged to someone. Make it public, sell the story, and the works. They want a family man? Give ’em a family man. Once you’ve closed the deal, you can break it off. Hell, I’ve done it three times for film releases. People eat that shit up.”

I stare at him, wondering if the cigar smoke is getting to his brain. “You’re serious?”

“Dead serious.” Harvey blows another puff of smoke. “Think about it. The Caldwells want family values and stability. You give them that, and they’ll hand you the company on a silver platter.”

I lean back in my chair, crossing my arms. The idea sounds insane. But at the same time, it’s not the worst plan I’ve ever heard. And let’s be honest. I’m desperate here. Kane crosses my mind.

He did the same thing.

He was fake-engaged to Tamara to solve some business issue, and look where it got him—married to the woman he got fake-engaged to. Not like that’s gonna be the case with me. I’m way too busy to fall in love. But still.

Harvey leans forward, sensing my hesitation. “I can even recommend a few candidates for you. You know, someone polished. Classy. We’ll make it look real for the press. Hell, with the way Amy was looking at you right now, I’m sure she’d do it for nothing at all.”

I’m about to respond when my phone buzzes. Leah’s name flashes on the screen.

“Hold that thought,” I tell Harvey, answering the call. “Leah? What’s up?”

Her voice is tight, like she’s trying to keep it together. “Caleb’s been brought to the office. He got into a fight at school.”

My stomach drops. “Is he okay?”

“He’s fine, just, well, bothered. The school wants you to come in.”

“Drive him back to the school. I’ll meet you there.”

I hang up, shoving the phone back into my pocket. Harvey raises an eyebrow. “Your new assistant?”

“Yeah.”

A smirk tugs at the corner of his mouth. “Why don’t you just make the fake engagement proposal to her?”

I shoot him a look. “You’ve lost your mind.”

But as I step into the elevator, heading down to meet Caleb, the thought sticks with me. And the more I think about it, the more irritatingly appealing it becomes.

Chapter seven

Leah

The inside of thecompany car I’m driving smells faintly like pine, and I can’t help but wonder if it’s intentional or just a result of too many air fresheners. Either way, it’s distracting, but not distracting enough to cut the tension in the car.

Caleb is sitting beside me, staring out the window as if the passing buildings are more interesting than engaging with me. The silence feels as thick as the fog of my mind right now. What do you even say to a teenage boy who clearly doesn’t want to talk to you?

Maybe something neutral, something that doesn’t screamawkward adult in a rom-com. I clutch the steering wheel a little tighter, my mind racing for something—anything. But before I can come up with a brilliantly boring topic, Caleb cuts through the quiet.

“Dad’s been riding me about these exams coming up. Like, it’s all he talks about.”

His voice is low, almost a mumble. But the frustration’s there, clear as day. The corner of my mouth twitches in what I think could be a smile, but probably looks more like a grimace. Ah, academic pressure. An old, familiar tune.

“What exams?”

“He wants me to go to Livingston High,” he says, keeping his tone as casual as possible to seem unbothered.

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