Page 5 of His Temptation
She takes a deep breath, as if garnering enough courage for something, then knocks again—with more force this time.
“Come in,” I shout as I lean back in my chair and fold my arms across my chest.
The door opens, and she walks in slowly. “Mr. Monroe, I have that contract you were looking for.”
For a minute, we stare at each other. I notice her eyes are a deep shade of green with spots of hazel scattered around like glitter. I’m not sure why I noticed such a specific quality, but it irritates me. I don’t pay attention to stuff like that.
When she realizes I’m not going to extend my arm for the contract, she takes the necessary steps in my direction to place it on my desk.
Again, she stands in front of me like she’s waiting for me to do or say something. I raise my eyebrows at her, not sure what she wants from me. Her eyes open wide in panic, and then she starts to back away.
“I’ll go get your lunch now,” she says as her voice cracks.
I roll my eyes. What’s with her? Why does she act like she’s so out of her element?
I grab the contract and begin to go over it to make sure there aren’t any errors before I give it to our legal department to approve.
Miss Ricci interrupts me with my lunch. I begin opening my sandwich when she takes a seat across from me with a pad of paper and pen in her hand. I’m a bit taken aback.
“Can I help you with something?” I ask.
“Oh, um, I figured you’d want to let me know what you want me to do next,” she says softly.
I cock my head to the side as I examine her. “Why would I do that? It’s your job to tell me what’s on my calendar.”
“I just thought since it’s my first day—” she starts.
I interrupt, “Scarlett was supposed to get you set up.”
Her eyebrows turn down. “You dismissed her before she could do anything. I’ll figure it out.”
As she stands up, I notice a bit of moisture pooling in her eyes. I blow out a breath of frustration when she turns her back to me.
“There’s a binder with everything you need to know somewhere at your desk,” I say.
She turns her head and nods. “I’ll go find it and start to study.”
I don’t know what made me help her out. Normally, if an assistant can’t even manage getting herself started, I’m a dick, and I watch them suffer. Maybe it’s the emotion I saw on her face that made me feel slightly bad for her.
Am I getting soft? That’s no good. I can’t have that.
I likely just need to get laid. It’s been months, and it could be starting to mess with me.
A couple of hours later, Miss Ricci appears at my door with a loud knock. When she walks in, she has a more confident demeanor about her. I’m not sure what it is that makes her appear more confident.
“It’s time for your three o’clock meeting,” she says with a small smile.
“I’ll be right there.”
I stand up and grab my suit jacket, then slide my arms into it. After I adjust my sleeves and button it, I look up and see Miss Ricci still at my door.
I walk past her with a bit of annoyance. Is this when the flirting begins? Did she google my net worth and now has decided to attach herself to my ass? Figures that she’s just like the rest of them.
I round the corner and walk into the conference room, where my CFO and COO are laughing.
“Ah, there he is,” Roy, my CFO, says casually as I take a seat at the head of the table.
“We were beginning to think you’d stood us up,” Carson adds.
