Page 104 of Assistant to the Billionaire CEO

The merger, the one thing he, the workaholic with the impossible schedule, wanted and needed the most.

Even if Ace decided—for whatever crazy reason—that he did want a relationship with me, it still wouldn’t be possible.

I couldn’t be the reason why the life he’d worked so hard for fell through.

I might have been able to make peace with the fact that I’d never be more than a little fun to Ace, even if it hurt, but I couldn’t reconcile myself with the thought of prying him and my brother and the guys apart. Especially not while I sat there, confronted with photographic evidence of their bond. In no way did I want to be the woman who was pressuring him into a relationship that he didn’t really want or wasn’t ready for, nor did I want to be the woman he had to give up his hopes, and dreams, and friendships for.

What it boiled down to—we weren’t meant to be. It was a dead-end situation that would lead to heartbreak, for him and me both. I wouldn’t stand in his way.

I knew exactly what I needed to do.

I knew what Ihadto do.

* * *

The next morning, I woke up feeling the way I imagined I would if I were a soldier being sent off to war. A horrible sense of doom, fear, and trepidation filled my bedroom like helium filled a balloon, entirely and invisibly. You wouldn’t know it was there, except if you came into contact with it, and boy, was it suffocating. Worst hair day ever. I know I’ve said it before, but there was no salvation this time.

Jay and I were both quiet as he ferried me off to work. He tried to start up a conversation once or twice, but eventually gave up. “I can tell there’s something bothering you, love.” I felt bad for not chatting with him like I usually did, but I was too busy planning my next move. But Jay understood, and the silence between us was a comfortable one, like the silence that lingered between old friends.

He dropped me off in front of Windsor Architects’ office building. “You know, I’m here for you if you do want to talk about it.”

“Thank you, Jay.” I opened the cab door. “You’re a good friend. I’ll tell you all about it once I’ve had some time to process.” I closed the door and smiled at him through the window.

He waved as he drove off. I returned the gesture and then staggered with heavier legs than ever up the stairs leading toward the building’s front door. It was cloudy and humid. The sun didn’t peek through the thick gray clouds for more than a second at a time, and when it did, it only did so to stir up the sticky heat that hung in the air like a question mark. The birds that usually sat on the branches of the tree were silent. I couldn’t blame them. I wouldn’t sing on a day like today either.

Even Glenda seemed less on edge than usual as I stepped through the large double doors.

“Good morning, Stella,” she politely greeted me, lifting her head momentarily to watch me make my way across the foyer, likely surprised by my quieter-than-usual demeanor. “Are you okay? You seem a little reserved today.”

“Good morning, Glenda,” I greeted. “Yeah, no, of course I’m okay. How about you?”

“I’m fine. It’s this damn heat. It makes me groggy,” she replied. A small desk fan next to her keyboard did its best to stir up a cool breeze, but failed.

It did feel warmer here than usual. “It’ll cool down once it rains. The weather report said that should be sometime tonight.”

“We’re all essentially living in hell until then,” she said, dramatically placing the fan directly in front of her face.

“No air-conditioning today?” I asked, walking past her toward the elevator.

“They’re busy doing maintenance on it. They said they’ll only be done at noon, so I have to suffer until then.”

“Maybe they’ll surprise you and finish up before then.”

“I wouldn’t bet on it,” she replied dishearteningly.

“I’m sorry. I wish I could help.”

“There’s no need to apologize. You’re not in charge of the maintenance schedule.”

“I’m not,” I agreed.

“But maybe you could suggest to Mr. Windsor that the A/C maintenance schedule should be based on the weather prediction,” she said almost hopefully. “He seems to take your input seriously, or so I’ve heard.”

I stopped in my tracks. “Who’d you hear that from?”

“Just around the office.”

“Well, it’s not true. I don’t think he listens to me more than he listens to anyone else,” I replied somberly. Glenda frowned. I couldn’t tell what she was thinking, but I suspected she assumed I was just being modest. “I’ll see you around.”

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