“Asia, a word.” I lean against the doorframe, trying to look as loose as a yoga guru when every muscle in my body is tense to the point tendons are about to snap.
My little spitfire turns to me, looking ravishing in a blue dress with a square neckline which highlights her smooth skin. The fabric floats over her body, then lands just above her knees. If she turns around, the freckle on the back of her knee I branded with my tongue will be exposed. She’s curled her hair into big bouncy ringlets. Fucking gorgeous. A blue scarf announcing she’s having a bad day is around her delicate neck.
Tell me about it.
“Starbucks is down the road. I’ve added an app to your phone so you can order ahead going forward. I’ve already ordered for you today.” She glances at the phone in her hand. “It will be ready in five minutes.” She nods and walks past, careful not to brush against me. Electricity spikes the air. My employees scuttle like bugs after lifting a rock. One fucker stares at my assistant/wife like he’d like to bend her over the break room table.
If you’re from marketing, you’re fired.
I’m now shuffling in the line at Starbucks, waiting for my order while texting Cynthia, who texts back she’s reading an erotic novel. I try not to throw up. I’m tapping out a reply when I hear a shock of laughter. I frown, wondering why this is taking so long when I hear, “Order for Mr. You Should Love Yourself. An espresso and two caramel lattes with extra cream and sprinkles.” The woman behind me in the line starts singing the song. My head jerks up. I nod at the amused barista fighting a smile and salute my sassy assistant in my mind.
After snagging the tray, I wander over to the bus stop and Mostly Harmless Pete, and hand him a caramel coffee and a muffin, a bottle of water, and a handful of cereal bars. It’s all I could arrange at short notice. He’s having another spirited conversation with himself.
“Thank you.” Blue soulful eyes look at me, then narrow. “You were here last night with Asia. You wanted her to get in your car.” He rises, and anger pours out of him. The man is part giant. A pissed-off giant, and at the moment, an unpredictable pissed-off giant.
I hold up my hands. “I’m Asia’s boss, I saw her here and was worried about her being in the rain. I wanted to drive her home.”
He studies me for a beat, then sits and tears into a cereal bar with a murmured thanks.
“I wait here to make sure Asia gets on and off the bus okay.” He munches on oaty goodness. “You can’t trust the people around here. Every morning Asia gives me a sandwich she’s made for me and some fruit, so I won’t get scurvy.” His face softens when he says Asia’s name. The force-field around him disappears. “I don’t know what scurvy is, but I eat the fruit so I won’t get it and upset Asia.”
I stuff my hands into my pockets. “Asia called you Mostly Harmless Pete. What does mostly mean?” I ask quietly, not knowing how this conversation is going to go.
“That’s me. Sometimes I harm myself. The voices tell me to.” He looks up at me. “I’d never hurt anyone, especially Asia. She brings me food, blankets for my hut, fixes my glasses, and takes me to the VA when things get bad in my head.”
This is why Asia has no money, she’s feeding the homeless population of cats and people.
“I’d like to keep Asia safe, too. Will you make sure Asia gets off the bus every morning and night? If she doesn’t, could you let me know?”
“What you want with Asia?” Dark brows draw in.
Truthfully, I have no idea.
“Pete, if it gets too cold, wet, or you need to get out of the weather, come into the lobby of the gray building.” I point to my building. “I’ll let security know it’s okay.” I clasp his shoulder. “Let’s keep Asia safe, yeah? And let’s keep this between us?” I pause, taking in his tattered clothes, a woolen cap with a slash across the left side, exposing his head. “Is there somewhere I can take you? A shelter?”
“Nah, I don’t do well in shelters. I like it on my own.”
I notice his feet and make a calculation and squeeze his shoulder. “If you ever change your mind, I’m right over there.”
Smiling, I enter our floor. I place Asia’s coffee on her desk. When I look up at 3:00 p.m., I find her bag gone. Frowning, I go through my phone and find a text from her a while ago requesting this afternoon off to take Blossom to the vet. I mentally roll my eyes at the baby goat and sloths, conceding they are kind of cute. I ignore the love heart.
Back to the problem at hand. Asia doesn’t have a car, so she’s probably on a bus.
I grab my jacket and once again stalk out the building in search of my assistant/wife.
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Asia
“Blossom is officially down to four teeth. She has early-stage kidney disease and will require a special diet and medication for the rest of her life.” Dr. Cathy smooths her hand over Blossom, who purrs her appreciation.
I gulp and run my hand along her skinny back. “Do you know how much it will be?” My throat is dry, and my hand trembles for Blossom and for my dwindling bank account. I’m sure it cost me a hundred bucks to walk in here.
Word in the apartment block is Ona on the top floor is doing it tough, so a bag of groceries for the week is now delivered every Monday. Whoever can pitch in does.
Kind brown eyes regard me. “We’ll keep the cost down as much as possible. We have a payment plan if you’re interested.”
Interested? Considering the pennies in my bank account, I’ll probably be paying in vital organs and plasma. “Yes, I’m interested, and thank you.”
“It’s all right, baby girl, we’ll get you sorted,” Darlene says beside me, scratching Blossom’s favorite spot under her bald chin.
My stray kitty is older than the hills, has no ears, half a tail, and four teeth. I will do everything to make sure she has quality and dignity for however many days she has left.
Tears clog my throat at the thought that one day she won’t be here. With all that’s been going on, she’s been the one constant. Well, her, Darlene, and the rest of the apartment block.
“I’ve been thinking about a fundraiser.” Darlene places Blossom back into the packing box we’d punched holes in. Her favorite blanket is in there, along with a toy mouse who only has one ear and an eye. It’s her favorite toy in the world, but she’s not thrilled about being in the box and lets us know.
“What’re your thoughts?” I’m handed a bottle of pills, a box of expensive-looking canned food. I hold my breath and look upwards, then let the breath out in a whoosh when the machine spits out a receipt.
“What about that fancy-smelling boss of yours? We could ask him to be a gold star donor.”
“No.” The word barks out of me with more force than I meant. I will take nothing from Jason Johnson except for a paycheck until I leave on my terms with a similar paying job. A girl has pride. This girl has pride. There is no way I am going to be indebted to him. Plus, he’d probably tack on an interest rate I could never afford, thus tying me to him longer.
There’s only one thing I can do.
“I’ll sell my dresses at a deeply discounted rate.” I had planned on keeping one dress in particular. What girl didn’t want to keep her wedding dress, albeit from a fake wedding?
“Girl,” Darlene huffs beside me. “You’ve got to keep them for when you open your store.” She huffs out more breaths. We’re sitting at a bus stop on a breezy day. I smile at the dandelion bursting out of a crack in the concrete, its tiny stem bending in the breeze.
“Life will find a way,” I murmur.
The bus doors open, and we tap our cards. Blossom makes herself heard with a mighty meow. What she lacks in body parts, she makes up vocally. The bus driver narrows her eyes at me. I clutch the box tighter.
“Therapy cat.”
I sit next to Darlene, who is practically vibrating next to me. “I’ve got it. We’ll auction you off!” She nudges me.
My eyes widen. I swivel my head. “Darlene, I’m not a cow, this is not the wild w
est. I’m not offering myself up to be offed by some weird stranger who collects women’s nipples in a jar by his bed and fashions handbags from their skin!”
Dear God, how did my life come to this?
She laughs. “No, babe. We’ll vet them. Me and Brutus.”
“When did you take up crack cocaine? This is the stupidest idea you’ve had, and you’ve had a few.” I shoulder bump her. I know we’re both thinking of ‘the incident’.
“Not my fault. I can’t spell, and the DVD box was blank.” She huffs beside me, but she’s smiling. “I thought it was Inspector Gadget, a cute film for the families.”
“Inspect Her Gadget.” I shake my head, laughing. “I thought Jerimiah Collins was going to have a heart attack. He praised be to Jesus four million times, and I caught him trying to sneak the DVD.”
We are now laughing so hard tears are coursing down our faces. We finally make it to our apartment block, where Jason sits in his car, glaring at me.
“That your boss man again?” she asks as Jason climbs from the car and stalks toward us, swinging a cat carrier in his hand. That I will take from him. I hate squishing Blossom into a box.
“You go ahead.” I hand her Blossom. “Thanks for coming with me today.” It’s her day off, and she usually sleeps, catches up on laundry, and hangs in my apartment when I get back because she’s lonely. After more failed Tinder dates than she can count, she’s giving the whole dating scene a break. I swear I’m going to help her find a decent guy who doesn’t lie about his age, height, or social status. Sorry guys who are nudging sixty-five, five foot, and wear an ankle bracelet.
“Darl,” I call her. “The answer is no. Got it?” She shoots me her impish smile, and I know I’m screwed.
“You know when I’m on a mission you’ve got no chance. We’ll find you a nice man.” She gives me a huge smile. “I’m going to talk to the landlord about that place you saw for your boutique. I’ll lay on the Darlene charm. You know I want to be working with you hustling your sweet dresses.”
Jason’s head whips so hard he should be wearing a neck brace.
“What’s she talking about?” His hands are on his hips, and he scowls down at me, steam coming out of his ears.
“Nothing to do with you.” I go to walk around him, but since he’s ten-foot five and I’m five-foot-one, he’s a big unit.
“I don’t think we should date other people.” Stormy, menacing eyes catch mine. “What building? Maybe I know the owner.”
Finally, I make it past him. “You don’t date. You go on trysts with the swipers.” I’m up the stairs and heading toward my apartment. “I will date whoever and whenever I want.” The key is in the door. “I’m not beholden to you or you to me.” My resolve hardens. “Stay away from my dreams, Jason. My boutique is something you’re not going to take away from me.” I heave in a breath. “I don’t want or need your help.”
After taking my heart out with a spoon in his office, his hot and cold routine is wearing thin. He wants me physically. His predatory eyes brand me. If I’m in the break room hanging, he finds me and invents a reason for me to be back at my desk.
His breath ghosts the back of my neck, and I fight the goosebumps I know are sweeping across my heated skin.
“You want me as much as I want you.” His lips press against the back of my neck. “Why fight this?” His tongue touches behind my ear, and I hiss in a breath.
But fight I do. “Because this is all you want, and I want more. I want a man who wants all of me,” I whisper.
I know the instant he’s gone. The air isn’t crackling with electricity, my heart isn’t doing its pitter-patter when he’s near, my hormones aren’t sending urgent mating signals.
My heart slumps a little, but I gird my loins. There is a man out there for me, who will guard my heart, love me until our eyes are filmy with old age, and will spontaneously kiss me in public even when we’re ninety and lose our false teeth.
The next morning I’m a little surprised not to see Jason, but Gabriel, who waves at me, then frowns when I make my way to the bus stop. I’ll never take Jason’s offer for a ride.
“Asia, please, he’ll have my balls,” he pleads through the window of some flash throaty-sounding car.
“It’s never going to happen.” I stare down the road waiting for the early morning bus. I pull my cardigan around my shoulders when a cool breeze whips my hair.
Gabriel shakes his head. “Man, you’re stubborn.”
“Tell that to your boss.” I smile at him. Gabriel’s a lovely guy. “Gabe, as you know, I’m okay to catch the bus. I’ve been catching buses my entire life.” I make a shooing motion with my hand. “I’ll see you at work. Want me to get your usual coffee?”
He shakes his head. The bus lurches at our stop, and we all rise like the judge has arrived.
I carry my PBJ in a paper lunch sack along with a single Cutie. I’ve popped a cheese sandwich for Pete and five Cuties along with a bottle of soda I know he likes. I find my friend at the bus stop eating a cereal bar. My eyebrows shoot up at the brand spanking new shoes on his feet. I have tried, unsuccessfully, to buy him shoes, but he refuses to give me his size, insisting no woman, especially a woman who wears altered Goodwill proudly (I do), will buy him shoes.
“You win the lottery?” I hand over his lunch. “Look at you in your fancy new shoes.”
“Made myself a new friend.” He takes the lunch sack with a nod of thanks. Well, at least this one isn’t in his head.
“Good for you. We need all the friends we can get.” I squeeze his shoulder.
When I arrive, the office is yawning into life. Coffee on my desk announces Jason has been to Starbucks. I picture his face when an order for Mr. ‘Best Thing I Never Had’ is yelled across the busy Starbucks. God Bless Beyoncé.
It is now lunch, and my cling-wrapped sandwich sits on my desk along with one lone Cutie like a soldier standing guard. It’s not like I can’t afford to lose a few pounds. Like, say twenty would be great, but there are people in my apartment block, and cats with failing teeth, and Mostly Harmless Pete who needs the money and food more than me.
My phone pings.
DARLENE: Girl, working on the bra for that cute dress of yours.
I pull up my favorite fabric shop’s website and start searching bolts of fabric. I’m stressing, and panic buying fabric soothes me. My heart seizes when I spot the fabric I must have. With one click it is being express-delivered to me today.
The whole building is all in for the ‘Saving Asia’s Pussies’ fundraiser. I’d inhaled my box wine when I saw the email headline. That’s going to bring out all the crazies.
I tap out a reply.
ASIAAMAZER: It better not be nipple-less. We’ve had this discussion.
“Nipple-less?”
Shit. I forgot Jason is part Stealth Bomber and panther. I didn’t hear him sneak up behind me.
“Nothing.” I slam my phone on my desk, my face on fire. He spins the chair until I face him. He’s so tall I’ll have a crick in my neck. He frowns down at me, then looks behind me and pokes my sandwich with his Montblanc pen.
“What’s this?”
I’m sure if the Cutie could roll away, it would by the glare directed at it.
I fake beam up at him. “It’s called a sandwich. Fun fact. It was named after John Montagu, the fourth Earl of Sandwich, in England. I did a project on him in elementary school. Got a gold star.”
He leans in and sniffs the offending article. “Peanut butter?”
“P, B, and J. The finest sandwich in the history of sandwiches.”
It isn’t my favorite, but faced with feeding Blossom or me, I went with Bloss. So, it’s a couple of days’ old bread, brand name chunky peanut butter (smooth is blah), and generic jelly. A girl could feast on this for a week, and I plan to. Okay, so it’s not the smoked chicken, sun-dried tomato, caper-fest encased in a fluffy white roll I had in Montana.
“All you’re having is a shrunken orange and a sandwich?�
�� He glares down at me.
“I’m on a diet,” I lie. Well, to be fair, I do think about going on a diet a lot, and last week I thought of doing a star jump. That’s got to burn at least five calories right there.
My stomach rumbles loud enough to wake zombies.
Great. Just great.
I didn’t have time for breakfast, and the thought of two PBJs in a day makes me feel a little nauseous.
Jason storms away and I sigh in relief.
Twenty minutes later, I’m surprised to see a catering cart being wheeled into his office.
There’s nothing in his calendar. Weird.
“Asia,” he yells from his plush walls.
I swallow the last of the Cutie and walk into his office.
My mouth waters at the wraps, sandwiches, and what smells like my favorite Popeyes chicken sandwich.
Damn.
My stomach growls into life.
“That’s a lot of food. I didn’t know you were expecting anyone.” I smooth my hand down my pink skirt.
“Please sit and help yourself.”
My jaw drops open. “Sit here with you and eat lunch?” Have I dropped into an alternate universe? Jason doesn’t do lunch that isn’t a working lunch, and never would he have lunch with me, let alone any of his staff.
“Yes.” He nudges a roll as if it might explode.
I cross my arms. “Always taking the easy way out and throwing money at what you perceive as a problem.”
One side of his mouth smirks. “It’s the Johnson way.”
“No, thank you. I’m sure your staff in the break room will enjoy lunch.” He growls when I walk out the door.
Something thumps against the wall.
Twenty minutes later, I’m in his office, adding a folder for a meeting tomorrow when I spy a familiar broad back in a black suit hurrying toward my bus stop. My soon-to-be ex, in fact. He crouches down and has an animated conversation with Pete, who nods, smiles, and takes the bag of food.
Bound to her Fake Fiancé Boss: A Fun Sexy Feel Good Billionaire Office Romance Page 20
