Page 3 of My Boss is a Billionaire

But that’s about to change.

A door to one room opens, and a tall, heavyset black man walks out, heading toward the coffee, when he glances up and sees me. This must be the manager.

He changes direction and heads my way. “Hello, I’m Marty Regent. Can I help you?”

“Hello Mr. Regent. I’m Liam Jacobs. I’ve scheduled a meeting with your staff.”

His eyes widen behind the silver-framed glasses. He struggles to put a polite smile on his face. But he sticks his hand out in greeting. “Right. We weren’t told who was coming, just that there was a staff meeting at four and attendance was mandatory.”

“That’s correct.” I offer no more details. Clearly, the man is confused. I plan to wait until all staff are present before I break the news to them, notably the senior editor. Given the sparse workforce, I’m guessing she’s the only editor.

“I’m just waiting for one more member of the team to arrive. She should be here any minute. Can I get you some coffee?”

“No thank you. Do you have a conference room?”

“Yes, follow me.”

He leads the way to door number two and opens it to reveal a space large enough to accommodate half a dozen adults comfortably. Three women sit around an oblong oak conference table, sipping coffee. They fall silent and glance up as we enter.

“Good afternoon, ladies.” I enter the room and sit at the head of the table, facing the door.

They offer a subdued greeting while checking in with Marty, trying to figure out what’s happening. I watch him shrug.

A commotion coming from the front of the office breaks into the awkward silence, the floorboards screaming as though somebody is running across the open space.

“Sorry I’m late,” a softly lilting female voice calls out. “I grabbed some donuts from the bakery. Figured we could butter up whomever is here with some of Audrey’s sweetness. Let me just get a coffee and I’ll be right there.”

The others are looking back and forth at each other, giving me furtive glances, not sure what’s happening here.

I wait for who I expect is Harper Anderson to make her appearance.

And she does, juggling a box of donuts with a mug of hot coffee. “Oh,” she says when she spots me. She glances around the room. When her eyes land on me again, her cheeks flush. I see recognition in her eyes. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to keep everyone waiting.”

I’m stunned by her long auburn locks, big green eyes, and curvy body. My cock hardens in my pants. I want her.

“No worries, Ms. Anderson. Thank you for joining us.”

She furrows her brows, and I can almost hear the wheels grinding as she chooses an empty chair and sits, pushing the box of baked goods to the center of the table.

Nobody makes a grab for them.

I settle into my chair, place my forearms on the table before me, and clasp my hands together. I lean forward and keep my eyes on her face as the next words leave my mouth. “I’m Liam Jacobs, the new owner of Springdale News.”

Chapter3

Harper

He’s what now?

I’m sure I’m blinking like a fool, but I can’t believe Liam Jacob is sitting at the head of our conference table. The council meeting isn’t scheduled for another couple of weeks. Of course, I recognized him when I entered the room, but I never expected him to show his face in town. He has people to do the dirty work for him.

The man looked handsome in every picture, but in person, he is H.O.T., as in drop-dead, panty-soaking, melt-me-into-a-puddle gorgeous. And yes, as I’d hoped, his eyes are a warm dark chocolate brown. Yummy.

I mean, I’m pretty sure my heart skipped a beat or two. How was I not prepared for this? I saw pictures of him, and sure, I acknowledged his good looks. But I guess in all my research, I never came across a perfect, clear, straight-on image of the man. It’s like he knew cameras were in the vicinity and avoided them by staying out of range, turning his back, raising a hand to block his face, standing behind a tree, or somehow blurring the photo. Google Liam Jacobs and you won’t find a headshot. Seeing him in the flesh is what’s blown my mind. Because now I’m picturing him naked.

He’s not at all what I expected.

He’s much better.

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