Page 13 of Never Bed the Boss
“For you? In a heartbeat.”
Lilah walks toward me slowly. “Gorgeous,” I mutter under my breath, but the blush blooming on Lilah cheeks means it was just loud enough. Good. I want her to know how sexy I find her. How irresistible she is to me.
She pauses in front of me, and when I take a deep breath, her scent fills my lungs and sends my body into overdrive. It feels like I’ve been set ablaze when she reaches toward me, leaning in. But she pulls back and hands me a sheet of paper.
“There’s the list,” she says. “If you sign off on it, I’ll give you your week.”
I don’t even look at it, signing it immediately.
Her mouth drops and I smile.
“I told you there wasn’t anything I wouldn’t do for you.”
“I know, but I thought you might want to negotiate that last term.”
I scan the list, noting the hefty salary and lump sum she’s requesting upfront. Nothing I wasn’t ready to pay. She could’ve doubled it and I wouldn’t have blinked an eye. I keep going until I read the last line. I shouldn’t have agreed to this.
Fuck.Me.
5
LILAH
Day 1 ofAsher’s 30 Days of Abstinence
Dear Diary,
I hope you don’t mind calling you that. I can’t remember the last time I kept a diary. But you’re not going to be like the diary I kept during my teenage years. You’re not going to be filled with angst. No doodles or names of boys decorated in hearts. Not an ounce of drama whatsoever.
You’re going to be different. You’ll be my daily log to track my interactions with Asher and whether he holds his side of our deal.
I can’t believe he agreed to everything. He didn’t balk at the amount of money I asked for, including the advance I wanted to pay off my rent. I’m not swimming in cash or anything but it feels like I am now that I can afford to buy more than ramen, bread, and peanut butter at the store.
I can’t wait to repay Josie for all those times she knocked on my door, a casserole or plate of cookies in her hand. I’ll forever be grateful for my wonderful neighbor. Remind me to order her flowers, Diary. The biggest bouquet ever.
Today will be my first day working with Asher and I don’t know what to expect. Will our dynamic change? It has to, right? He’s contractually obligated to keep his hands off me. Keep everything professional. Even though every bone in my body wants something else. A… different kind of bone. In my body.Whew.
It had to happen, though. A relationship with Asher would complicate everything and threaten my newfound financial stability. I can’t risk it. But only time will tell if I made the right choice. It’s strange how much I’ve been drawn to Asher.
He seems to feel the same way, but I don’t know if it’s real or an act. If it’s something he tries on every woman. I find it hard to believe that a man like him hasn’t been with a woman in nearly a decade.
He’s too skilled. Too practiced. Everything he does… Well, I’m not ready to divulge everything quite yet. There’s still a long way to go until these thirty days are up.
I hope I made the right choice.
Day3
Asher’s taking this seriously. A little too seriously if you ask me.
It’s as though someone erected an invisible barrier around me that repels him when I get close. This is exactly what I wanted though, right? I wanted to make sure that we could maintain a professional relationship. That I could work with him without working under him…
However, I’m beginning to realize my mistake. I thought Asher was going to be the one having difficulties keeping his hands off me, and I’d have to remind him of the rules and repercussions. But instead, I’m the one begging for it. I’m the one aching for him to break the rules I set up so I can finally feelhis hands on me again. It’s torture and it’s only been three days. THREE. DAYS. I might go mad before this month is over, and it will be all my fault.
Get this. He apologized after his fingers grazed mine when I passed him a pen to sign off on some documents. It was sincere too. And I felt bad because I was the one who made it happen. I wanted him to feel his fingers brush my skin for the briefest of moments. A small taste. It felt so good and my fingers still tingle hours later.
I should probably get that checked out. BlackeThorne Entertainment has excellent healthcare coverage but I’ll wait until morning to see if it’s gone.
Tomorrow is a new day. And even though I’ll be cloistered inside Asher’s office again, I’ll make it through. This is the first time I’ve had a job that I enjoy. There’s a special kind of energy here.
