Page 29 of The Wrong Boss

Then she jerked her head around again and walked out, closing the door behind her.

I watched the shadow of their bodies move across the frosted glass wall of my office. Once they were out of sight, I knew one thing to be true: I was so screwed.

ELEVEN

CARRIE

Mufflednoises pierced the daze that overtook me as I walked toward the elevator bank. Kaia’s voice floated somewhere to the left of me, but I couldn’t make out the words. I knew I needed to snap out of it, to pretend that nothing was wrong.

But somethingwaswrong.

My new boss was my child’s father. And he had no idea.

Turmoil rose up within me, whipping up the debris of my past decisions like a hurricane making devastating landfall. I focused on my breathing and made noises that I hoped would satisfy Kaia until I could get my bearings again.

The elevator doors closed, and my ears popped.

“…and I’ve never seen him like that before,” Kaia marveled. “It almost looked like he recognized you from somewhere?”

I forced a smile, and my distorted reflection in thestainless steel elevator doors told me it was a grimace. “I’ve got one of those faces,” I explained, which was no explanation at all.

“I know what you mean,” Kaia agreed, clearly unconvinced. “Still… You two don’t know each other?”

“Know each other?” I repeated, shaking my head. “No. I don’t exactly run in billionaires’ circles.”

Kaia snorted. “Unless you’re working for one of them.”

“Exactly.”

The doors opened onto the assistant pool floor, and Kaia’s shoes clipped out a quick staccato as she made her way across to her desk. “I’ll send over the details for those wedding invitations,” she said. “The printers said they can finish them today, but our regular couriers are screwing us around. You’ll have to pick them up and hand-deliver them to the residence.”

“Of course,” I answered robotically, making my way to my desk.

The little overwatered succulent plant sat puffy and discolored on the windowsill, clinging to its existence with the last gasps of desperation. I could relate.

Not only was I working for my child’s father, but now I had to facilitate his wedding to another woman. Why did that sting? It wasn’t like I could blame him. We’d had a few memorable hours together and never saw each other again. Seven years had passed. Was I expecting him to look for me? Did I think he could sense the fact that his progeny had come into the world and was waiting to meet him?

I wasn’t delusional. I knew I had no claim over Cole Christianson. I knew our time together had been brief and intense and it meant nothing in the long run.

But the reality was we had a child together. Sooner or later, I’d have to tell him.

And then what?

Did Iwanthim to meet Evie?

The rational part of me—the part that wanted to be a good mother—said yes. Of course. I wanted Evie to know her father, to give her a chance to build a relationship with the man whose genes she shared. That was something I’d never had. Hell, that was somethingColehad never had. There was a gap in my childhood that wanted a father. All I had to do to save Evie that same pain was march back upstairs and tell Cole the truth.

But the selfish, terrified part of me looked at the walls of the office tower around me, the money and the glitz and the power, and all I wanted to do was hide her away and keep her for myself.

What if he fought for custody? What if hewon?

Or—what if he rejected her entirely? Crushed her little heart and caused permanent damage to the girl who made my entire life worth living?

As my throat tightened with panic, I grabbed my phone and hurried to the washroom. Thankfully, it was a lockable, individual room, so I was able to close the door while I fumbled with my phone to find Hailey’s number.

She answered on the second ring. “Don’t tell me you’ve been fired already.”

I sucked in a trembling breath.

---