"Here, hold this." She took his hand and put it over the tissues. "I'm going to get your coat. If you get dizzy, find a chair."
"I'm fine."
She wasn't sure about that because he was still smiling.
Chloe ran to the corner office, which she'd coveted, and found his coat hanging on the rack by the door. Looking around, she didn't see a pair of boots, and she could feel his gloves in the pockets of the coat.
She hurried back to where he now sat on the edge of a desk. Chloe searched for blood that might have gotten on the floor, or on the desk. The woman who sat there would pass out if she saw even a drop of dried blood anywhere around her workspace.
"Let's get this on you." She held out the coat so he could slip his arms in easily, and she noted the scent of cologne that lingered in the fabric. It was intoxicating, she thought as he shrugged it on, always with one hand on the tissue on his head.
"I'll get my coat and we'll head out. There's an urgent care around the corner," she said as she hurried into her office and pulled out her cap from the pocket of her coat.
"When did they decide every corner needed an urgent care like a 7-11? I mean, do people get hurt that often?"
She listened to him ramble as she put on her coat and gloves. "Maybe workers are always throwing things at their bosses' heads."
He laughed at that, but she didn't think it was funny. If William was trying to push her out by hiring someone else, her attacking him was probably going to seal the deal. And, even worse, now she wasn't going to get the contracts to Gloria on time if they didn't get his head stitched up and get back to the office. But really, how many people could be at urgent care on a Sunday afternoon?
* * *
Jason was sure that he'd bleed out before they could take him back and stitch up his head. A nurse had given him a gauze pad to replace the tissue that had dried to his skin.
Chloe sat next to him frantically filling out his medical record in her beautiful penmanship.
"Address?"
He gave it to her and watched as she made perfect fours.
"Phone number?"
She wrote it down.
"I'm a Pisces. My favorite color is red. I like my pizza with just sausage, and I'm sensitive to gluten, but I can't keep away from it."
She stopped writing and looked up at him. "I don't think I need all that. But thanks," she snapped, but it only made it funnier to him.
"I just thought it was a good time to get to know each other. My turn, why don't you answer those questions for me?" He tried to smile, but each time he did it hurt his head.
"Everything you need to know about me is in my employee file. You can ask H.R. if you need to see it since you're my boss."
She directed her attention right back to the form, but he got the message loud and clear. She wasn't happy about his new position.
Chloe continued to ask pertinent information to finish the form, and he obliged with serious answers now. They could talk about her attitude toward him later when they went back to the office. He wasn't going to let some stitches and time away from his tasks at hand keep him from being productive.
Although he hadn't expected it to take them three and a half hours to finally be seen. He was sure his forehead was healed by the time the doctor came in and the nurse began to clean out the wound.
He'd seen Chloe's face go white when the doctor asked how the accident had happened. There was some relief when he told the doctor that he had a new job and was moving into his office when the box fell off a shelf and the stapler hit him in the head. He wasn't sure if he believed it, but it seemed to suffice, and helped to return color to Chloe's face.
Once the three stitches were secured, the nurse left the room to file the paperwork, which he was sure would cost him over a thousand dollars. He'd hate to admit it aloud, but it was worth a thousand dollars to get to know Chloe, even just a little bit.
* * *
"I'm so sorry for all of this," Chloe said as she sat in the chair next to the bed, her hands folded tightly in her lap. "I'll pay the bill, too. This was all my fault."
"I spooked you. I deserve it."
She figured he deserved it. He was the S.O.B. who was taking her job after all, but she wasn't one to hurt people on purpose. Well, not since she'd gotten revenge on her friend Cat for pushing her in the mud in fifth grade.
"Wait till William finds out what I did. He'll have me searching for a job by noon," she said shaking her head.
Jason swung his legs over the side of the bed and caught her attention.
"This has nothing to do with William. He doesn't need to know what happened. This is between you and me. Someday, when I walk into your office, and you're stapling something, we'll both laugh. Some friendships start off rocky.”
What the hell was that all about, she wondered as she sat back in her chair. "Friendships?"
"Sure. I don't have any friends at Mason Arts. It would be nice to show up to work on Monday and know a name, a face, have a laugh."
Crap! He wasn't the asshole she was pegging him to be. It would be much easier if she hated him, but she was finding out that the Pisces that liked the color red and ate pizza when it made him sick was an okay guy.
"Thanks," she said softly, trying to keep her composure. "You'll be very happy at the firm. They're wonderful to work for."
"And you're quite the producer. Pop! Cosmetics? How on earth did you land that for a firm as small as ours?"
Chloe wasn't sure he qualified to call the firm ours since he hadn't even started yet. But, then again, he was further up the ladder than she was now.
"I met Gloria Vandenberg at a networking event. We're close in age, and we hit it off. She wanted to give Pop! a fresh voice, and a small firm could do that."
"Genius. I didn't see the contracts on it yet, though."
Okay, maybe he was an asshole. He'd gotten her talking while they sat in the quiet, sterile room, and he dove right into business and what she was doing to earn her position.
"Malfunction with the shredder. I'm taking a new copy to her in the morning at eight-thirty. I'll be a little late getting to work in the morning."
"Nothing like a hand-delivered contract. Is there anything I can help you with when we get back to the office?"
No, she didn't want his help. She didn't want to like him, and she was more comfortable wishing the stitches caused him some pain.
"I should have it ready to print within an hour."
He smiled, though she noticed it only reached his cheeks. She had to assume his forehead was still numb, and it made her chuckle.
"What kind of coffee do you drink?" Jason asked as he watched her muse to herself.
"Me? I don't drink coffee. Not a lot. Well, I do, but I prefer hot chocolate."
He considered her for a moment. "That has a lot of sugar."
"So do half the drinks people carry around in those white cups with that green mermaid on it."
"You think it's a mermaid?"
"I don't know," she said with a bite, growing irritated with the conversation. "None of this is relevant. I will be late in the morning because I'm delivering contracts. As soon as they let us out of here, I'm going back to the office to finish the contract and then I'm going home. I've had a long weekend, and I've driven for hours. I'm exhausted."
"Where did you drive from?" The corner of his mouth curled up when he asked.
"That won't be in my file."
Luckily the door opened and the stone faced nurse handed him a stack of papers and a bill for one-thousand, two-hundred and fifty dollars.
Even though guilt punched at her stomach, she felt as though he deserved it when he handed the woman taking payments his credit card.
Chapter 8
She didn't like him, Jason decided as they rode the elevator in silence, and Chloe shut her office door without another word.
It wouldn't be the first time he had a woman in his office despise him just for having a penis. Then, on the other hand, Deborah King thought th
at was a reason to chase after him. He never claimed to understand women, and he supposed he never would.
He did, however, want Chloe Richardson to like him—as a human. Above all else, he was that—human. He might have moved in on her job, but he didn't know that when he'd talked to William about it. Neither Byron nor William Mason had mentioned that there was anyone in-house that was qualified or in line for the job.
Screw her if she harbored resentment against him. He was there to do a job, and damnit he was going to do the best job possible—but he'd need Chloe on his team.
She hadn't said she was going to quit or anything of the sort. There was no need to worry that she would take her talent for landing clients and move on. And even though she was very attractive, and he knew deep down she had a nice streak too, he was all business. He had to remind himself of that when he'd caught sight of her through her office window, head down working on the contract that had originally had a shredder incident. He'd want to know more about that.
For the time being, he was going to go back to his office, shut his door, turn up his music, and move in. T-minus fifteen hours and he was going to have a lot of new faces looking at him and whispering behind his back. It wasn't new to him, and he'd learned how to handle it. It would be interesting to see how Chloe Richardson handled it too.
Monday morning, with contract in hand, Chloe rode the glass elevator to the twenty-eighth floor and marveled when the doors opened to the bright pink wall that said Pop! Cosmetics. The genius behind the interior decor, and the bustling office gave her chills. She loved the energy. She loved the atmosphere. Even just being the smallest part of what could be the company's continued success fueled her.
She'd been in the offices numerous times, but she stopped by reception, signed in and awaited her pink name tag that alerted everyone that she was a visitor. After a ten minute wait in the lobby, and a hand-crafted latte from the barista in the corner, she was escorted back to Gloria Vandenberg's office by her assistant John-Paul.
"Can I get you anything while you wait? She'll be just a minute."
"I'm good," she said as she sat down.
He left her in the office with the door cracked open just a bit. It reminded her of a move her own mother would make when she was a child and she wanted to hear what was going on in the other room.
As usual, Gloria entered from another door. She was dressed in head-to-toe pink, which was bright and brilliant, and in stark contrast to Chloe's head-to-toe black suit.
"Chloe!" Gloria squealed as she moved toward her. Chloe stood and was enveloped in a hug, and was sure she'd smell Gloria's perfume the rest of the day.
"It's nice to see you, Gloria."
"Sit, sit. Did John-Paul offer you something to drink? He's supposed to."
Chloe sat back down. "I had a latte in the lobby."
"Fantastic, isn't it? I have to watch my weight working in this office."
"I have the contracts for you," Chloe offered, hoping to move the meeting right along. She pulled them from her bag and set them on Gloria's desk. "I have multiple copies if you want a set for legal."
Gloria's lips pursed. "I'll take them. Here's the deal, sweetheart. You know, if it was only me, I'd sign it in a minute. But, since I have VCs, they get some say."
"Right. As is expected."
"Well, there's more. Had I signed these on Friday, I would have stepped all over the VCs." She waved her hand in the air. "But this morning they had me meet with Deborah King from Stockton Advertising. Do you know Deb?"
Deb? That seemed a bit personal to Chloe, but she shook her head. "No, I don't know her."
"She's a feisty thing. Anyway, she just got promoted at the agency when some tool left. She has some solid ideas though. I do like your ideas, but, honey…"
It was all she had to say. Chloe's heart was in her throat and she did everything she could to not let the tears surface that desperately wanted to bust through.
"Business is business. I get that," she offered easing herself to the edge of her seat. "But you know we work well together. You'll have my one-on-one, undivided attention. Mason Arts can handle your needs, and where else will you get the personal attention?"
"I know. I know." Gloria sat back in her chair and picked up her smartphone. "I'll let you know when legal is done with the contract. I'll talk you up, girl. You know I will."
And just like that, Chloe was dismissed.
Jason tried to scan the small group in the conference room and remember everyone's names. He'd been introduced as they all came in for complimentary coffee and donuts. William Mason boasted about Jason’s reputation in the industry, but Byron Mason acted as if they'd never met. He wondered if the elder Mason's health was slipping and that was why his son was taking the lead on so many projects.
He had noticed that Chloe still hadn't arrived at ten o'clock, but her meeting had been at eight-thirty. He was going to take it as a good sign that her meeting had run long. At least that’s what he kept telling himself until he saw her come in off the elevator and go straight to her office, shutting the door behind her.
What he witnessed wasn't someone who had had a great and successful morning. No, she looked much as she had the day before when they'd returned from urgent care.
As everyone made their way back to their desks, Jason answered a few more questions and continued to walk down the hall toward Chloe's door.
A fiery redhead crossed in front of him and into the office before he could knock, and shut the door behind her.
Perhaps a later time, he thought as he continued to walk through the office attempting not to attract too much attention to himself.
By lunch time he hadn't seen Chloe emerge from her office, and the redhead had been in and out multiple times. A few conference calls, and a meeting dragged the day into afternoon, and he'd yet to see her come out of her office even once. Didn't the woman eat?
At five-thirty, the redheaded protector, whose name he thought was Kim or Kate or Allison, finally went home. The office began to empty and even both Byron and William had stopped by his door to say goodbye. By six-thirty, he thought he'd knock on her door.
He'd have hoped she'd bring him back signed contracts, but since the day had passed by and she hadn't even spoken to him, he was sure that was part of her hiding out. Well, there was no need for that. They'd been friendly the day before, they could be friendly again. Maybe he could use sympathy to get her attention. After all, the three dark knots of string on his forehead were all because of her.
Chapter 9
The blinds were drawn on the window, but the light from her office spilled out into the hallway, which was now dark, but for the emergency lights.
Jason stayed alert, listening carefully to see if he could hear her, not wanting another set of stitches. Just as he lifted his hand to knock, the door flew open and Chloe ran right into him, knocking him back into the cubicle wall behind him.
"Do you freaking have a death wish?" she hollered as she stumbled back. "Dear, God! What the hell are you doing?"
"I came to say hello."
"Hello? It's six-thirty at night."
"And you haven't been out of your office all day," he reminded her as he fixed his suit jacket. "So, hello. How was your day?"
He didn't like the tone in his voice, but it seemed to match the scowl on her face.
"It's fine. Are we done here? I still have some work to do."
"Like you said, it's six-thirty. Don't you think you should call it a day? Get some dinner? Relax?"
Chloe fisted her hands and set them on her hips. "I don't work that way. I'll work until I'm done."
"And that's why you're an asset, but seriously, what's with the attitude? I haven't bothered you all day."
He watched as her shoulders dropped and she rested her hand on her stomach, which he was sure he'd heard growl.
"I'm sorry. I'm just a little punchy." She turned back to her office, walked back to her desk, and sat down behind it.
Jas
on followed. "How did your meeting go with Pop! Cosmetics? Or do I assume it didn't go well?"
Chloe dropped her head into her hands, her elbows rested on her desk. "I should have had them to her Friday, but it didn't work out just right."
"Problem with the shredder," he reminded her of her words.
"Something like that. Anyway, she would have signed them without another thought had I gotten them to her on Friday. But in the meantime, someone named Deborah King," she said with her hand waving in the air angrily, "had a meeting with her and has a lot to offer. I killed myself for this account. It didn't get me anywhere. I didn't get the promotion and I didn't land the client," she bit out the words.
Jason replayed her words in his head and decided it had shaken him enough he thought he'd sit down too.
"Deborah King moved in on this account?"
"Deb, Gloria called her." She let out a groan. "Yes, that's what I'm saying. I don't know who the hell she is, but she swooped right in."
"I'll bet she did."
He noticed Chloe perk right up when he said that. "So you know Deb?"
"You could say that."
"Ah, you know her well?"
He didn't like the insinuation, but it came with the territory as far as Deb was concerned.
"I know her well enough to have left a cushy six-figure job over her."
Humor lit in Chloe's eyes as she eased back in her chair. "Oh, do tell. I'd like someone else to fume over her too. I've spent some of my day googling her and can't get the image of her mug out of my head."
Jason couldn't help but laugh at that. "Why torture yourself like that?"
"Because it pissed me off." She pressed her hand to her stomach again.
"I'll tell you what. I'll spill all I know on Deb if you'll let me feed you. Have you eaten anything today?"
"Latte in the lobby of Pop! Cosmetics."
"That was early this morning."
"Yeah. Jody brought me a donut and tried to feed me half of her turkey sandwich, but I just couldn't stomach it."
Corporate Christmas Page 4
