The Big Boss Read online

  3

  Keenan

  I want to see her again.

  That’s the thought that’s been plaguing my brain ever since she practically sprinted out of my office. Every time my eyes land on that damned bouquet that’s sitting on my desk.

  It’s long past quitting time, but I can’t leave yet. Too much to do, and that’s not being helped by distracting memories. Might as well relax a little at least.

  I cross over to the bar and pour myself a glass of whiskey. Smooth smoke on my tongue. Just the cost of this glass is more than some people’s yearly salary. But I only tolerate the best in everything I do, and I have accomplished that with my business. So now I can afford luxuries like this whiskey.

  The flowers catch my eyes again, especially that broken daisy. Normally I would be furious about the damage, but that mark…it was proof that she was standing here. I sigh as I return to the papers on my desk. Plans for a new development in the city, but there are logjams we have to work through. Permits. Demolition. More permits. Supply chains. More permits. Construction. Not the world’s most exciting evening. But it has to be done.

  I’m sure if she were here it would be much more interesting. She was fire that I wanted to let burn me. She was defiant and open—something that I rarely see every day. I’m not used to anyone showing their authentic feelings to me. I’m the boss. The billionaire. Everyone needs or wants something from me, and disagreeing with me is never the way to get it.

  Or so they think.

  Her obvious disdain for me and my wealth is refreshing. Enticing. I want more of it. To hear the story of why she hates it. Because she must have a reason. Most people do.

  The phone on my desk rings, and I sigh. It’s Brandon, I can guarantee it. One of the only people who would call me right now. He’s looking at the same documents on his desk.

  “Hey Brandon.”

  “You knew it was me?” He sounds amused.

  I chuckle and take a sip of my whiskey as I sit at my desk. “It’s Monday and we’re both workaholics. Of course I knew that it was you.”

  He laughs before clearing his throat. “Just looking over the plans for the development. Do you think we’re going to get pushback?”

  I frown. “Why would we?”

  “There will be some displacement. Losing greenspace. To be clear, I don’t think we should stop or anything, just wondering if you think they’ll put up a fight.”

  I search until I find the paper with the more detailed plans for the development. We’re demolishing an old building. Pre-1900. I’ve seen it, and it’s pretty. We considered converting it, but it would cost more to convert it than it’s worth. Starting fresh is faster. A small park is also going to be taken over. “I think it’s fine,” I say. “The numbers all add up, it will benefit the local community. And the residents were all compensated well.”

  “Some of these preservation groups don’t always listen to that kind of logic.” He sounds worried.

  “What’s going on?”

  Brandon makes a sound of uncertainty. “Nothing for certain. Just some rumors that one of those groups is going to start targeting our projects. Again, not a reason to stop, but it’s something to be aware of.”

  “Fair enough,” I say. “Hopefully this one will be too fast for them to organize anything. Demo is scheduled for two weeks, provided the permits go through. And I’m having Marcy push them through tomorrow.”

  “Good,” Brandon says. “I’ll let you know if I hear anything else.”

  “Please do,” I say, laughing. “Now go the fuck home.”

  “Only if you do.”

  We both know that neither of us is leaving the office anytime soon. But oh, I wish that I could. Because that damned daisy catches my eye again and I’m trapped in the circle of thoughts about the girl. And the fact that I’m an idiot and I didn’t even get her name.

  All I’m left with is the perfect image of her. Soaking wet and looking angry as all hell. I’m not sure why I find it so alluring, but I do. I can’t remember the last time that someone came into my office angry. Usually people appear with masks of perfect pleasantness, hoping to charm me.

  Her thin t-shirt showed every line of her generous curves and the bra I wasn’t sure she meant to be on display. I wished I had been able to see it in more detail.

  I wanted to see every part of her in more detail, from the way her face twisted in disdain to the way her lips parted when she didn’t realize she was staring. I saw the curiosity, desire, and excitement hinted at in those gorgeous green eyes. She seemed to be out of breath, and I could only hope that it had something to do with me.

  Fuck, I’m not getting anything done, and now I’m hard thinking about her. I need to see her again. There’s no question. It should be easy enough, given her employer. My mind is already making the plans.

  My entire life I’ve worked toward what I wanted. Laser focused. The office around me and the house that I own, and all the rich luxury that she seems to loathe are all results of my ambition. I pursue what I want. I reach all my goals. And my current goal is to see her again.

  Because there’s something between us, and feeling that so quickly is a rarity. Yeah, I’m going to see her again. This time I’m going to find out her name. And I’m going to show her that all the things that come with this life aren’t so bad.

  4

  Justine

  I groan as I round the stairway on the fourth floor. These older buildings don’t have elevators, and sometimes the grocery loads we have to carry are a bit too heavy for jogging up so many steps. And I can’t leave the bags sitting on the sidewalk because they’ll get snatched. I made that mistake once. Never again.

  So now if it’s too heavy, I ferry them inside and then do it in parts, half the load up one set of stairs to drop them at the landing. I end up getting a full workout every time I do it, but it’s worth it for my clients. A lot of them are homebound with health problems, and the only way they get groceries is through me.

  It’s worth a little bit of sweat.

  Especially for Rose.

  Finally, I drag the last of the of the bags to her door and knock.

  “It’s already open, honey.”

  Rose is in the kitchen when I open the door. Her walker is next to her, and she’s got a cup of tea for each of us ready to go. Like the badass she is. “How are you doing, Rose?”

  “I’m fine—” She looks at me. “Maybe I should have made iced tea today, looking at that load.”

  I smile. “Nah. That looks great. It’s just a little hot out there. The weather can’t make up its mind.”

  Lugging the rest of the bags in to blessed air conditioning, I get started putting the cold stuff away before it all completely melts. And then the rest of it. “You sure you don’t need help?” Rose asks, already sitting down at the table. She says it sarcastically because every time she asks me, I vehemently tell her no, that this is what I get paid for. She still asks now, but with a smirk on her face because she already knows what’s going to happen and what I’m going to say.

  “What tea do we have today?”

  “Mint. I felt like something lighter was in order.”

  “Sounds yummy.”

  I finish putting the groceries away just the way that she likes them and then flop into the chair across from her.

  “You work too hard, you know that?”

  “On the contrary,” I smile. “I think I work the exact right amount.”

  Rose rolls her eyes. “You say that now, but you’ll get to be my age and think that you should have worked a little less and lived a little more. You’re still doing all that activism stuff?”

  I raise an eyebrow and add a little sugar to my tea. “Well, for now I’m fine. And yeah, got some of that coming up this week.”

  Rose looks at me closely. The woman misses nothing, and is sharper than any ten people that I’ve met put together. She’s my favorite, but all my clients are like her. Hidden gems forgotten by the busy bustle of
a city increasingly obsessed with luxury and money and everything that’s new.

  It makes me sad. What are we all missing by just continually going to the next thing and the next thing and the next instead of slowing down and enjoying the world a little bit? The stories I’ve heard from Rose and my other clients are worth far more than I could earn with a much larger paycheck at some corporate job.

  I’ve always known that I wouldn’t be happy in those circles. Helping people and standing up for what matters is where I’ve always been the happiest. And I’m pretty sure that it always will be.

  “You’re different today,” Rose says.

  I tilt my head. “Why do you say that? I don’t feel different.”

  “No, you are,” she says. “Your energy has shifted.” There’s a long pause, and then her eyes go wide. “You met someone.”

  “What?” My response is way more shrill than I would like. “No, I didn’t. I mean, yes, I did. But trust me when I say that he’s not the type of man that you would approve of.”

  Rose smirks. “Try me.”

  So I do. I tell her all about the encounter with Keenan in his office and his frustrating wealth and ridiculous attraction and the fucking chemistry that still bothers me. I shouldn’t have any chemistry with someone like that. And how I don’t understand why he would give me that kind of tip as anything other than an insult.

  When I’m done, my friend is just looking at me and sipping her tea. After a moment, she says, “You should fuck him.”

  I nearly choke on the sip of mint I’d just taken. “Oh my god, Rose. You’re trying to kill me. What? No!”

  “Why not? You said it yourself that you’re attracted to him.”

  I make a face. “He’s everything that I stand against. I met him for five minutes, and I’ll never see him again. Was he hot? Yes. But I don’t need anything more than that. There are plenty of hot men in the world that aren’t him.”

  “But chemistry like that is hard to come by, trust me. I’m not saying you have to date him, but if there are that many sparks flying between you, do yourself a favor and fuck him out of your system.”

  I sit there for a moment, completely stunned. Rose is witty and sharp and fierce, and I have never seen this side of her before. It takes a few moments of me frozen in utter shock before she starts laughing. “My god, Justine, don’t act like I’m a sexless nun. I’ve got children. How do you think I got them?”

  I laugh. “I know, I just wasn’t expecting you to tell me to fuck someone today.”

  “No matter your principals, Justine, there is a shortage of truly excellent cock in this world. If you have the chance for it, take it and don’t look back. You won’t regret it later.”

  Taking another sip of my tea, I laugh again. “I’ll keep that in mind. Though I’m dying to know what story you’re going to drop on me that proves the point.”

  “A lady never kisses and tells,” she says with a grin. “But she does swallow and spill. There are more than I think you have time for today, dear. But I remember once upon at a time at one of those parties that everyone talks about—you know, ballgowns and tiaras and all that—I was invited, who knows why.” She stands and takes her cup to the sink slowly, another tradition of ours because she won’t let me do it for her.

  This isn’t the first time that Rose has hinted at the fact that she had a glamourous life. It makes me wonder what her real story is and how she ended up here. She seems happy with where she is, and every time I try to ask her directly about her past, she shuts me down. But there are hints. Despite the age of this building, it’s beautiful and vintage and I have no doubt that it costs an absolute shit-ton to live here. Not to mention the services she pays for, like me.

  “Anyway,” she continues, “we were dancing and drinking, and I saw this man across the room. Tall and blond and built—you know the type. And I swear that that man’s eyes set me on fire. It only took a few minutes before he was crawling under my skirt and giving me one of the best orgasms of my life. We left the party and didn’t look back. A night of some of the best cock I’ve ever had was well worth some dancing,” she chuckled to herself. “I didn’t find out till later that he was royalty. If I’d known, maybe I would have kept him another night.”

  “Rose, oh my god. Talk about burying the lede here. Royalty from where?”

  She waves a hand. “That doesn’t matter. The point is that you should enjoy yourself. Now come here, I have something for you.”

  “That’s all you’re going to give me?” I ask, pouting. “Really?”

  “I could give you more details about the sex and the fact that his tongue was like a goddamn hurricane, but I don’t think you want to hear about an old woman’s love life.”

  I’m still tripping over the fact that she had a one-night stand with someone royal. That’s so cool. And I’m sure she’s concealing a lot of the juicy details. But if she thinks that I’m going to forget and not ask again, she’s dead wrong. I down the rest of my tea and load my cup into the dishwasher before following her over to her guest room.

  “One of my downstairs neighbors passed,” she says. “And they were giving away her things. I thought of your friend with the flower shop, thought she could use them.”

  “I’m sorry,” I say. I didn’t realize she’d had a neighbor that died.

  Rose waves a hand. “She lived a long life, and we all knew it was coming. Went peacefully, and you would have liked her. But she would have smacked us both for being sad about it. I’m sorry I can’t lift this.”

  I step around her and find a box on the floor. It’s filled with absolutely stunning flower pots. Some hand crafted and painted, and immediately I know that Rose is right. Lila will love these. “Are you sure? These are really beautiful. I could help you plant some herbs in your window.”

  “No, thank you. I’ve got enough hobbies, and the flowers you bring me are as much as I can handle keeping alive.”

  “Fair enough,” I say, laughing. The box is pretty heavy, but I can lift it. I’m glad I have my car with me today. On days with lighter loads, I’ll sometimes take my bike. But I wasn’t sure if Lila was going to need me to make deliveries today, and I had plenty to deliver to Rose anyway. Glancing at my phone, I wince. “I wish I could stay a little longer and make you tell me more about Mr. Royal, but I actually promised Lila that I would help her out at the store today.”

  “Oh, don’t worry about me, honey. It’s just nice to see you every week.”

  “Call me if you need anything, okay?”

  “I will.” She’s never called me though, even though the post-it note with my cell number is still stuck on the fridge where I can see it. I would stay longer if I hadn’t promised Lila. Maybe I’ll drop by later this week and make sure that she’s doing okay.

  Carrying the pots down the stairs make me incredibly grateful that Lila’s shop is on the ground floor. She must have had whoever was helping clean her friend’s apartment carry them up to hers.

  It’s not that far of a drive to the flower shop, and I’m right on time. It’s only ten-thirty. Perfectly mid-morning. But when I walk in, I hear a shriek. “Oh thank fuck you’re here,” Lila says, running over to me and grabbing my arm, which nearly makes me drop the pots.

  “Holy shit, slow down woman. What’s going on?”

  “I need your help,” she says. “What are those?”

  “Rose gave them to me for you.”

  Her eyes go huge and round. “They’re beautiful!”

  She tries to take them from me and I stop her. “You’re still barely recovered. I’ve got them. Tell me why you’re screaming?”

  Jess—Lila’s part-time employee—sticks her head out of the back. “She’s freaking out about Mr. Silverman.”

  I put the pots down in a corner and turn to face my best friend. “What the hell did he do now?”

  She presses her lips together and looks nervous. Her hands are fidgeting. “Really, Lila, is it that bad?”

  “It’s just w
eird, okay? He didn’t order flowers. Normally he orders flowers. Big bouquets like the one you took over yesterday. But today he ordered…a cactus. Just one. Like…that’s it. Just a cactus plant.”

  Oh shit.

  “And it’s not just that,” she says. “He wants you to deliver it. Based on his note, it seems like he wants you to do all his deliveries from now on. I guess he thinks you work here? I had a small panic attack about the cactus because it was so different, but if he wants more deliveries, that means he’s not just buying the cactus as a farewell purchase.”

  That fucking asshole. He didn’t have enough playtime with me yesterday so now he wants more? And to think that he can just demand my time like he owns it makes me want to slap his stupidly handsome face. In fact, maybe I’ll do just that after I give him a piece of my mind.

  But on the other hand, he did take my advice. So he was listening to me. It was a small thing, but it was something.

  “The cactus is my fault,” I say. “Not yours. I suggested that he get something sharp so that he could deflate his ego.”

  Behind me, Jess bursts out laughing. “Oh my god, that’s fucking hilarious. I would have paid money to see the look on his face.”

  Lila looks amused too. “I guess that’s better than him just being tired of my arrangements,” she says. “I’ll get the cactus ready.”

  “Yeah,” I say. “Give it to me. I’ll take it to him as his lordship demands and tell him that he can’t just assume everyone who walks into his office is a servant. I can’t believe he just assumed who I was and where I worked.”

  Lila’s face falls, and my stomach clenches. Fuck.

  “Because working for me would be so terrible?”

  “Jesus, Lila, that’s not what I meant at all. You know I love being here and helping you, this is about a man who has too much money for his own damn good assuming that everyone else is beneath him. It has nothing to do with you.”