Page 8 of Hers to Love
“Right? Still a jerk. A free trip to the Maldives? What was he, jealous? He’s the CEO! He could’ve gone any time.”
“He’s a control freak.”
“I know. You couldn’t go to the bathroom without his okay.”
Kori sighed. She didn’t want to discuss Brigham. She’d sent a quick text to her attorney to tell her where she was and that she would be earning money to pay for the legal fees. Her attorney had said when they won the suit, the compensation would be enough to cover the attorney’s cost and not to worry. Kori wasn’t sure they would win, but she appreciated having an attorney who thought they could. Either way, she was going to keep working and paying her way so she wouldn’t lose representation.
“I think I’m still going to leave,” Kori stated. “I had enough trouble with Brigham. I don’t want to work for another boss whose morals are so opposite my own.”
“Give me a break, Kori. He’s obviously still grieving. Would you deny the man that?”
“If it interferes with work…yes. And I don’t come to that conclusion lightly.”
“You’ve worked for amaniacso long your compassion chip is missing. Or empathy chip. Whatever. Give my dad chance. He’s good at his job—obviously—and he needs someone to keep him on track. After all, he took the breakup hard, and then his last assistant ran off with some Italian model. He’s pretty busy with some changes at the company, and he needs a rudder. Steer him right.”
“I’m not a babysitter.”
“I’m not asking you to be one,” Sabrina said with annoyance. “He’s a grown man.”
“Who needs someone to handle his dry cleaning,” Kori muttered.
Sabrina harrumphed. “That’s part of the job, and you know it. High achievers have to delegate tasks that take them away from their goals.”
True. Kori couldn’t argue with that. Admittedly, she was still a little embarrassed that she had inferred Marshall had wanted her to physically wash his clothes. Like, pick them up every day and throw them into the machines. There was a laundry service at this hotel. How could she have sounded so dumb?
“Okay, okay. I’ll give him…a week.”
“Wow. Beggars sure can be choosers,” Sabrina said sarcastically.
“You know I’m grateful for this job, Rina. But I can’t go from one bad situation to another. After five years, I…I need a break. I need the Maldives.”
“Well, you are closer to the Maldives. And Italy isn’t too bad. Get some vacation time while you’re over there. My dad’s pretty laid-back—”
“It’s kinda weird thinking about him as your dad. He looks so young and everything.”
Sabrina snorted again. “I know, I know. But he was really great when I needed someone steady in my life, so Marshall will always be my dad. Don’t fall for him because that reallywillbe weird.”
Kori laughed lightly. “No chance of that happening.”
“Good. He’ll let you take a few days to get acclimated. He’s not like Brigham. He’s not a taskmaster.”
Kori blew out a breath. “Okay, okay.”
“Okay, you’ll stay? Or okay, you’ll think about it?”
Kori still wasn’t sure. Her head screamed to leave, but her gut told her she should stick it out. The last time she listened to her gut, she went against her deceased father’s wishes and decided to become an executive assistant. Her father had shouted she had basically resigned herself to a life of being a servant. Told her she was embarrassing herself, him, and their entire ancestral tree. He was so upset and demeaning that Kori had cried her heart out. It had been one of the most devastating moments of her life. She had never really had her father’s support—none of the Kaye sisters did—but that memory overshadowed any remotely positive one she had about her father.
Listening to her gut also put her on a direct collision course with Brigham. When offered the job of his assistant, she went with her head because her gut had been so overwhelmed and uncertain about the opportunity. Money and the chance to travel around the world; but, the number of hours she’d have to work and the proximity to her job had brought her back down to earth. If she had went with her gut, she might not have gotten as good a job as she did nor have been able to travel to some of the places that were on her wish list.
She also wouldn’t have met Brigham, and she could’ve been spared that experience.
“I’ll think about it,” Kori said softly, her gut churning more and more the longer she thought about Brigham.
“Yeah, okay. Sleep on it. You haven’t even been there twelve hours. Give yourself some time and give my dad a break. Promise?”
“I promise.”
She hung up the phone, showered all the day’s gunk off, and settled into the softest sheets she’d felt since leaving the hotel she lived in while employed by Brigham. She could definitely get used to being here in Italy. The hotel was quiet, the food amazing, and her boss—if Sabrina was right—wouldn’t be half as bad as Brigham.
