Page 46 of Stuck with Mr. Grump

Lisa opens her mouth to protest but Sterling raises a hand to silence her.

“That’ll be all, Lisa. I’ll call you in here again if I require your presence.”

Lisa shoots me a withering glare before storming out. Damn, I thought we were friends. She acted friendly to my face. I guess that just goes to show you can’t trust people.

The door closes behind her with a soft thud, leaving me alone with Sterling. Something I need to get used to. Because I’m going to be alone with him a lot from now on. I think.

He gestures to one of the leather chairs. “Please, have a seat.”

His gaze lingers on me, a faint smile playing at the corners of his lips.

“You look nice,” he adds.

Heat washes over me, but I pretend to be unaffected by the compliment.

“Thanks. You look good, too,” I say a little awkwardly.

He chuckles softly, leaning back in his chair. The air between us thickens with tension. I clear my throat, breaking the silence.

“So, shall we begin?”

He nods, his expression shifting to one of businesslike focus.

“Of course. After you sign the contracts for the sale, you’ll need to go to HR and the legal department. I’ve already spoken to them and your employment contract has been prepared as well. You can discuss it with whoever attends to you at the legal department.”

“Okay, no problem.”

“Now let’s discuss your role and how to integrate you into your position. I think it should be fairly easy. I’m having a desk prepared for you outside my office. It should be done in a few hours. It’s nothing much, just a cubicle-esque space that offers you with a direct line into my office. As my assistant, you’ll be taking all my calls and managing my schedule. You’d also haveto take care of the little things as well, like buying me coffee or lunch if I request it.”

My nose wrinkles.

“Yeah, I had a feeling you’d hate it,” Sterling says, his eyes soft as they study me. “This is going to be fun. Just remember, you asked me for this job.”

I roll my eyes. “It’s okay. I can do all of that with a smile on my face,” I tell him.

“Oh yeah?” Sterling asks, a playful glint in his eyes that has my heart racing in my chest.

“We can’t do this,” I blurt out.

He pauses, clearly taken aback. “Do what?”

“Nothing,” I reply. “This. We need to keep things professional.”

“Ah, of course. Professionalism is important, Ms. Cameron. I don’t think it’ll be hard for us to display it.”

Turns out, it’s really hard. Throughout the day, I slip up and call him Tin Man about three times, and I can feel his eyes on me anytime I’m in his vicinity, his heated gaze feeling like he’s trying to crawl into me. By the time it’s time to leave, I’m almost glad to be out of his presence. Of course it’s not that easy to escape him, though.

“I’ll give you a ride,” he informs me as I stand in front of his desk.

He’s just finished filling me on his schedule and making sure I’m up to date on any important events coming up. I’ve got every meeting of his ticked in my calendar and I’ve taken note of the meager free time he has going forward with the development underway.

“No,” I protest, a little too quickly. “I mean… you’re my boss. Do bosses really drive their assistants home?”

“I didn’t realize there was a rulebook we had to follow,” he states gruffly.

“There isn’t, but…” I trial off and the glint in his eyes tells me he’s won.

“We’re going to be spending a lot of time together, Emilia. And we’ll be leaving work at the same time each day so it makes sense for you to just let me drive you home. Plus, your house is on my way.”

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