Page 18 of Leo

“The one where you wanted to know if I was sleeping with my flight attendant?”

“That one, yes,” She leaned against the doorjamb and looked so endearing, he was having a challenging time hiding his yearning. It was one of the reasons he had left her to come into the office. But his mind was not on work.

“I should not have taken it so personally.” He shrugged. “I don’t sleep with my employees.” He repeated. “It is a recipe for disaster and a lawsuit waiting to happen. Not to mention that if the love affair comes to an end, the strain and discomfort is not worth it.”

“You are right. I once had a college kid working the summer with us and he propositioned me.”

His thick brows lifted. “How old was this kid?”

“Nineteen.” She grinned at him and made him smile. “It happened just last year and as you know I am all of thirty.”

“What did you say to him?”

“I told him that I was flattered as hell, but he’s too young and Ingrid frowns on relationships between employees.”

“Aren’t you an employer?”

She nodded, her smile widening. “He mentioned that to me, and I told him that it was even worse if the employer got involved with an employee.”

“And? Did he back off?”

“Nope.” She strolled further into the office and wandered around, touching the small bookcase, before going over to the refreshment table. “He followed me around like a lost puppy and we had to let him go.” She touched the coffee pot, realizing that it was hot. “Want some?”

“Thanks.” He swiveled the chair so that he could delight himself by watching her. She was a bundle of energy and life. She had changed into the blue dress pants and paired them with a cream-colored sweater. He had reminded her that they were going to Europe where the weather was decidedly colder than the States.

She brought the coffee over and placed it in front of him. her hair was still loose and flowed around her face and shoulders with her movements. Taking her cup with her, she went to sit on the wide chair in front of the desk.

Chapter 5

“Am I disturbing you?” She nodded to the pile of documents on his desk.

“You’re not, no!”

She sipped the excellent coffee and savored the taste and kick of it for a moment. “How did you get started?”

He lifted a brow. “At what?”

“Business.”

Leaning back in the chair, he picked up his cup and took a sip, his expression thoughtful. “I do believe they have an entire section in Business Forum written about my meteoric rise to fame and fortune.” His derisive tone had her laughing.

“I prefer to hear it from you,” her dark brown eyes were twinkling, and he felt himself relaxing in her company.

“Very well.” He put the cup down and steepled his fingers. “It all started with a small loan from my father. I used that to buy my first piece of real estate - a rundown building in the heart of the city. Everyone thought I was mad, but I saw potential. After months of hard work and renovations, I sold it for more than double the purchase price.”

She leaned forward, fascinated. “And you just kept going from there?”

He nodded. “Exactly. Each success gave me the capital and the confidence to tackle bigger projects. But it was not all smooth sailing. There were plenty of setbacks and challenges along the way.”

“Like what?” She asked, genuinely curious.

He smiled wryly. “Oh, the usual - market crashes, bad investments, partnerships that went sour. But each failure taught me something valuable and made me more resilient.”

She tilted her head, considering his words. “So, you believe in learning from mistakes?”

“Absolutely. In fact, I would say that has been one of the keys to my success. That, and surrounding myself with people who are smarter than I am.”

She laughed. “You don’t strike me as the type to admit that readily.”

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