Page 21 of Boss of Her

So why did it send a thrill through her body?

She stripped off her clothes from the day before, picked up the dress, and slipped into it. The plum-colored sheath dress ended just above the knee, with a wide boat neck and a subtle diamond pattern to the fabric. It was nothing risqué. Nothing that would look out of place in the office. But when Jade looked at herself in the full-length mirror in the corner of the room?

Wow.

Where had Simone found a dress like this? Most of the clothes Jade could find in her size were shapeless and unflattering or looked like something her grandma would wear.

But this dress? It fit her body as if it were tailored for it, showing off her every curve, giving her the hourglass silhouette of a 50s pinup model. And while the dress wasn’t at all revealing, the low, wide neck framed her shoulders and collarbones in an almost flirtatious way. She looked sexy.Feltsexy.

Would Simone feel the same when she saw Jade wearing the dress?

Would she want to tear it off?

Jade pulled herself together. She had far too much to do to waste time fantasizing. And she needed to get out of Simone’s mansion before she lost her mind completely.

Packing everything Simone had bought her into the duffel bag, she left the room, returning downstairs to find Simone sitting in a leather armchair. She’d gotten dressed for work and was finishing off her coffee.

As Jade set the duffel bag next to her purse by the front door, Simone looked up at her, her gaze skimming over Jade’s body and up to her eyes.

Jade’s breath caught in her chest. There was a hunger in Simone’s gaze, a satisfaction, adesire. Had Jade been right? Had Simone laid out the dress for her to wear for her own pleasure?

Simone rose to her feet, beckoning Jade with a finger. “Come here.”

Jade’s body obeyed before her mind did, moving to stand before her. Leaning in close, Simone reached up and took a stray strand of Jade’s hair, brushing it behind her ear.

“Perfect,” Simone whispered, tracing her thumb down Jade’s cheek with a feather-light touch. “You’re perfection.”

Jade trembled, heat flaring inside her. Simone’s ruby-red lips were only inches from Jade’s own. And her eyes, they drew Jade even closer, their magnetic pull impossible to resist, until she could feel Simone’s breath on her cheek—

Suddenly, Simone pulled her hand back, as if shocked by electricity.

Jade’s stomach sank, the sting of rejection stabbing inside her chest. She took a step back, then another.

“I need to go,” she stammered.

Simone didn’t try to stop her. She didn’t say a word. She only offered Jade a silent nod.

Her pulse thundering in her ears, Jade walked over to her bags and picked them up. And as she opened the front door and left the mansion, she didn’t dare look back.

It wasn’t until she was out on the street that she allowed herself to breathe. She looked around, cursing to herself. She’d lost her chance at getting a ride back to her car.

But spending what little money she had on a rideshare was better than spending another moment in Simone’s presence. Because in that one brief moment Simone had touched her? That single moment when they’d stepped over the line they’d drawn, let the forbidden spark between them ignite? She’d nearly lost herself.

It excited her. And it scared her.

Because Jade had lost herself in someone else before. And it had almost cost her everything.

CHAPTER 9

Jade stepped into Simone’s office, a bag of Chinese takeout in her hand. Simone sat behind her desk, a phone held to her ear.

Taking care not to disturb her, Jade set the bag of takeout on her desk and began unpacking it, her stomach rumbling. She hadn’t eaten since lunch, and it was getting late.

“Send it to me as soon as you can,” Simone said into the phone. “I’ll take a look at it later.”

Jade finished setting out the food and turned to leave. But as she did, Simone held up a finger.

“I need to go. We’ll speak tomorrow.” She hung up the phone, then pushed one of the takeout boxes and a pair of chopsticks across the desk toward Jade. “This is for you.”

---