Page 71 of Seducing Her Scarred Boss

‘And the manager?’

‘Was found rotten drunk slumped behind the bar this morning by council authorities who were called when the club failed to shut down at the required hour. Music was blaring and then I discovered discrepancies in the till.’

‘And this—’

‘Adds up to one sacked manager.’

Lucy had the feeling that far more minor transgressions would also bear the wrath of this man. He was not the kind of guy to settle for anything less than the best. ‘So you need someone as soon as possible?’

He nodded. ‘It’s Wednesday today. I can get away with keeping the club shut for a night or two but it must be open again on Friday. I want someone in there right away to clean up the mess it’s been left in. There isn’t enough stock to last half a night. I want someone who can walk in and take over.’

‘Why can’t you do it?’

He rolled his eyes. ‘Dressed like this?’

So he could do irony.

He elaborated. ‘I have a day job—one that keeps me busy enough. That’s why need someone responsible to take over so I can forget about it until Lara gets back.’

‘When’s that?’

‘Wouldn’t we all like to know?’ He shrugged. ‘Shouldn’t be more than a couple of weeks.’

There was a silence. She eyed him calmly while her brain worked furiously. She tried to ignore the fact that he was incredibly arresting and that his cool determination was intoxicating. He was bright, blunt and to the point and, frankly, he turned her on. Under that suit lurked a sense of humour. What else was hidden under that remote veneer?

But a suit? Come on. She had never been attracted to a straight A type before and now wasn’t the time to experiment. She was flat broke and needed work—to start immediately. Manager would pay more, even if it was only a week or two. She could puff up the experience for her next job.

She quickly opened the dog-eared satchel and took out a copy of her CV, wishing the other fifteen copies weren’t quite so obvious. She masked her unexpected nervousness by pulling her shoulders back and handing the paper over with an assertive flourish.

He took the CV, not looking at it until he’d held her gaze in a challenging stare for so long that she was finally forced to break it. Looking down and away, she instructed her lungs to inflate. For some reason they didn’t seem to be working on auto anymore. It was as if he knew exactly what he was going to find on the page. And he didn’t think much of it. As if he knew she could do better.

Rebellion burned.

There was a long silence is he read it through. His face gave nothing away but she knew he was less than impressed. Well, who wouldn’t be? Even she could admit it wasn’t great reading.

Finally he spoke. ‘Well, we have one thing in common.’

‘What’s that?’

‘You’re not big on commitment either.’

She blinked.

He looked back at the paper, obviously biting back a smile. He’d shocked her. And he knew it. And he thought it was funny. She gritted her teeth to hold back her sarcastic response. She needed this opportunity and she wasn’t going to lose it by mouthing off at him. She inhaled deeply before inquiring in a voice that screamed frigid politeness. ‘What makes you say that?’

‘You’ve not held a job longer than three months.’

‘I’ve been at university until the end of last year. Student jobs, summer jobs. They never last long.’

‘And this year?’

‘I’ve been traveling about.’

‘Why did you leave your last job?’

Why did she leave any of them? That boredom. That restlessness, that niggling feeling that she wasn’t quite right for it. She tried, genuinely tried and was your average, dependable worker—with a short expiry date.

‘You phone any of my old employers and ask for a reference. I’ve never taken a sick day. I’m happy to work double shifts. I guarantee they will all say nothing but good.’

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