Page 17 of Second Chance at Love (Chance At Love Duet 1)

I felt like he’d pulled the rug out from under my feet. That really took some nerve. This bastard didn’t even bother making up some bullshit story why Rick’s company is retracting the offer. I took a deep breath, then another, and another, before I spoke up.

“Does it ever occur to you that you are an asshole?” My words were low, and I knew nobody could hear us. But my body language said it all. “That you are playing with other people’s lives. What’s the matter, Mr. Baldwin? Nobody ever saidNOto you before? You should get used to it… you might discover a thing or two!”

I was so mad I was shaking. His eyes were hooded so I couldn’t tell what he was thinking or if I’d upset him. Not that I cared!

“That was a dick move, Kristoff. If working for you is so desirable, why don’t you hire the next girl? If my memory serves me well, there were few candidates on that first interview. Go get them. How many times do I have to refuse the job?”

I felt my phone buzzing, and I went for my purse, pulling it out to look at the screen. It was my daughter. More than anything else, I wanted to walk away from Kristoff but I had no way of getting back home.

I slid the answer button. “Hello, Sienna,” I answered to my oldest daughter. I was smoothing a non-existent wrinkle in the table cloth trying to calm myself.

“No, nothing is wrong. What’s going on?” Sienna was trying to push my buttons lately, her teenage hormones coming in late. She constantly tried to go out, or sneak out. Always an excuse why to meet a boyfriend, or girlfriend, anyone else just to not stay home.

I felt Kristoff's eyes on me, and I looked at him with the challenge in my eyes while I was listening to Sienna’s standard excuse to go out.

“We talked about that last night, Sienna,” I mumbled into the phone. “My answer is still no.”

I waited a few seconds listening to her outburst and then cut in. “Whatever the reason, I don’t care. Unless the house is burning down, you are staying in.”

And another string of outburst.

“The answer is still no, Sienna. I’ll come by in a bit and pick you up.” I sighed. “Yes, I know you are mad. A month will be gone before you know it. Hmmm, well if he does that, he is not that great of a guy anyhow, right? Ok, I have to go. I’ll talk to you when I get home. I love you.” I waited for the click and hung up.

She will be the death of me. I heard boys are much easier. They are just assholes. Speaking of assholes, I looked back at Kristoff.

“I’m sorry about that,” I apologized. Although he pissed me off, there was no reason to throw my manners to the wind.

“No worries,” he replied, his voice calm. “Everything ok?”

“Yep,” I answered tightly.

He was looking at me, and it was hard for me to remain calm and not fidget. I was ready to ask him to take me back to where my car was parked at the Starbucks’ parking lot, when he started talking.

“Gemma, I want to offer you a trial period of two months to work for me.” He was looking at me calculatively. I felt like he was negotiating to win, and I was the prize. “Pay will be the same as my last offer, but I won’t be asking for any personal contact from you at all. It will be a professional relationship. At the end of the trial period, you can decide whether this job is worth the personal contract. If it is not, I’m prepared to find you an appropriate position elsewhere in my company, whatever position interests you.”

I was shocked by his offer. I looked at him suspiciously, wondering what changed in the span of five minutes.

Kristoff sensed my hesitance to trust him and added in a hard voice. “Make no mistake! I want you. And I want you to scream my name in ecstasy and beg me to fuck you. But I can wait. If you’ll give this job a try, I’ll wait. This job could be good for both of us.”

My body heated up to his words, damn this traitorous body. “If this is some kind of trap, Kristoff… or if you try something, I should forewarn you, I won’t hesitate to kick your ass.”

He smiled. “That is a fair warning, Gemma… but I never had to force myself on anyone. And I would never force myself on you or hurt you.”

He paused; his eyes hot on me. He leaned over the table and whispered, “When I take your sweet pussy, you’ll want no other man.” I noticed he said when, not if.

I was desperate. I needed a job, and this seemed to be my last option. But I was aware this was a dangerous route to get on, considering my body responded to his like a violin to a bow.

He interrupted my thoughts and asked, “Will you work for me?”

I could smell his cologne, he leaned so close to me, and heat rushed between my legs.

“Yes,” I answered quietly. Because really, what other options were there?

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