Page 31 of Boss On Notice
“I’m leaving now,” I had said. And then that’s what happened.
Last night before bed I drank a cup of chamomile tea and ate a tuna sandwich. Usually that’s the elixir to help me get to sleep and it worked. But as soon as I woke up, I was anxious again. Today is the day I serve Orion notice.
I left for the office early and now here I am sitting at my desk, waiting for him to show up late or maybe not at all. If he so happens to behave like a serious boss and comes in today, then I’ll hand in my two weeks’ notice, which is already printed, signed, folded neatly, and sitting on his desk.
To distract myself from thinking about the inevitable, I got right to work. So many times I wanted to race across the office and feed my letter through the shredder. But I couldn’t do it. No matter how great my weekend was, Orion Lord is still a shitty boss. Inviting me to the wedding was all tactic on his part. Despite my fancy room, his fun friends, his airplane’s delicious biscuits, and seeing a side of him I never knew existed, I will not continue working for him.
“Morning,” Orion says, gusting into the office like an unforeseen tornado.
“Oh, you’re early,” I say for lack of better words.
My gaze moves up and down his physique. Orion looks absolutely, undeniably, and heart-stoppingly delicious this morning. The burgundy pants he has on hugs him in all the right places and so does his black polo shirt. And, as usual, he smells like temptation if temptation had a scent.
“Lynx Grove, huh?” He drops down in his large chair; his perfectly tight buttocks makes a loud thud.
For a second, I catch him glancing at the notice I put on his desk. Instead of picking it up and dealing with it, Orion’s chair squeaks as he leans back and stacks his hands behind his head. He’s waiting for me to respond to his comment about Lynx.
I sigh, recalling how we ended our third back-to-back dance on Saturday night.
“What about him?” I ask.
“The two of you were getting along well.”
I shrug indifferently. “He’s nice.”
“And…”
“And nothing.”
He pins me with a curious gaze. Yes, I absolutely want to blurt out that by the end of our final dance, Lynx revealed that he likes me and if his circumstances were different, he would want to get to know me better. But he thinks he’s falling in love with someone, an old friend. Then I did something that surprised even me. I kissed him on his gorgeous cheek and told him he was a classy guy and that I liked him too. The song ended, he bowed, escorted me off the dance floor, and then we parted ways. When I saw him next, he and Treasure were dancing together. Everybody watched as Treasure tried her best to lead him in a dance routine they had made up when they were kids. It was fun watching them. They were cute. I’m not going to lie—I envy the lucky girl who ends up marrying into the Grove clan. It would be fantastic ifshewas me, but I’m pretty sure that will never be the case.
My shoulders feel jittery when I shrug again, trying to appear even more indifferent than the first time. “He’s in love with somebody else. I guess unlike somebody we both know, he can have sex with only one woman at a time.” I would’ve saidfuckbut we’re at the office where I endeavor to keep things professional.
We glare at each other in silence. However, I can’t play the whoever speaks first loses game with him,at leastnot right now. I’ve got too much on my mind.
I fold my arms across my chest. “But you and Heather were making up for lost time?” My accusatory tone doesn’t get past my own ears.
Orion’s eyebrows ruffle and then even out. “Heather?”
“You disappeared together.”
There’s my least favorite cocky smirk. “Where do you think we went?”
“I don’t know. You tell me.”
He taps his finger on top of my notice as he studies me for several seconds. I wonder what he’s thinking. He’s definitely pondering something that has to do with my inquiry about Heather and him. He must see through me. He knows I’m jealous which is why I smile big enough, attempting to wipe the evidence of how I really feel of my face.
“I didn’t spend the night with Heather,” he admits, still grinning.
I toss my head into a curious tilt. I actually believe him. “Why not?”
“Because I was tired, Lila.”
“Lilly.”
He picks up the letter and continues staring at me as he unfolds it. “Lilly, I know what this is and I don’t accept it.”
I drop my arms and sit up straighter. Okay, it’s time—the moment has arrived.
