Seduced By My Billionaire Boss (The Billionaire Boss Series, #1) (9 page)

I couldn’t help but smile. Sometimes, the only time he and his brother seemed like real people was when they were talking about each other.

“What do you mean?”

He shook his head again as he pulled my spreadsheet from the pile. “It’s a brilliant strategy—putting Hong Kong first. He’s smart. He’s really smart. But I swear, he doesn’t want anyone to know it.”

I smiled to myself. “Why would he? Admitting it only leads to added responsibility, and he’s twenty-seven. I know he wants to impress your father, but it doesn’t seem like this is exactly his cup of tea.”

Thomas looked up for a moment, staring at me like he had never considered that, before returning quickly to the spreadsheet.

“And who wrote this?” he said quickly, changing the subject. “Who went with Viacom instead of sticking to Northwestern?”

“That was me,” I said hesitantly.

He took another scalding sip of coffee. “We’re going to scratch that and go back to the original plan.”

I lifted my hands to type the changes but paused. “May I ask why?”

He frowned down at the papers. “Because in addition to having Senator Coalman’s endorsement with the fishing industry, NW has never dipped below a four point five.”

I ran my fingers back through my hair. “And if we were living in nineteen ninety-nine, I might agree with you. But if you look at the growth patterns for the last five quarters, Viacom has been consistent while NW is flagging in the wake of their new vice president.”

There wasn’t a sound between us as Alicia quietly refilled our cups and then left.

For a moment, I thought I was going to be reprimanded for talking back. But then Thomas suddenly gave me a taste of his first, genuine smile.

“Viacom it is.”

The rest of the evening passed quickly. He was visibly impressed by my tenacity, and I was flat-out blown away by his brilliance. What would have taken a team of people the better part of a month to do, we had halfway finished by nightfall. Not only were we amazing work partners, but we’d already developed a bit of a shorthand that had both of us hiding secret smiles.

“Did you already go over—”

“Done, it’s in the pile.”

“What about—”

“I was debating between the second Wednesday or Thursday of every month.”

“Make it Thursday.”

I typed at the speed of light. “Why Thursday?”

“Wednesday is national karaoke day in Hong Kong.”

I nodded along and kept typing before I suddenly paused. “Wait...what?” I looked up to see him grinning widely over the rim of his mug. “Very funny,” I breathed, deleting the last line.

“Stay sharp, Miss Harks.”

I shot him a sarcastic grin and gulped down half my mug of caffeine before returning to the computer. “I’m actually surprised you’re not grilling me on the price of Chinese milk. You asked me about every other question.”

The air between us chilled a bit as we both remembered his behavior at the presentation the previous morning. For a moment, he looked at me speculatively, then he set down his mug.

“Do you know why I was so hard on you at the meeting?”

Because, like his brother, he got a sadistic thrill out of messing with people?

I kept this opinion to myself and silently shook my head, still looking fixedly at the computer screen.

“Minutes of those meetings get sent to my father. I was impressed, Miss Harks. I knew he would be too.”

My fingers froze mid-word, and I stared at him from across the table. “Is that true?”

“Which part?”

I shook my head quickly and looked down, a bit overwhelmed with the profound compliment I’d received. “Well, I’m...I’m glad that...” After a few seconds, I finally looked up and said plainly, “Thank you for doing that.”

He nodded graciously, fixing me curiously in his gaze. “This job means a lot to you, doesn’t it?”

I sighed softly and returned to my typing. “I’m risking everything to be here. But that’s what you do, isn’t it? When you want something? You risk it all.”

A very strange look passed over his face and he nodded slowly. “Yes. You do.”

Alicia came back up about an hour later to tell us that the shop was closing down. We packed up the table, and Thomas graciously helped me back into my coat as we headed out into the freezing New York air.

“So what are your plans for the rest of the evening?” he said politely.

“Are you kidding?” I smiled, holding up the briefcase. “I’ll be working on this the rest of the weekend.” A cab pulled around the corner at the far end of the street, and I took a step away from the curb, lifting my hand pre-emptively.

“All by yourself?” Thomas asked with a frown. “They assigned you the whole thing?”

“Well, Jamie and Patti are working on different parts—and of course, legal and PR has their say as well—but yeah...I’ll be writing the rest of it.”

And on that note... I turned back to him as the cab pulled up to the sidewalk.

“Thank you very much for helping me out today,” I said sincerely. “I might actually get a little sleep tonight.”

“Any time,” he replied, as I threw my things into the cab. “I only wish I could help you with the rest. I know how much more there is to do.”

“Hey,” I laughed as I climbed into the car, “if you want to come to my apartment, be my guest. I could always use an extra set of hands to help me finish.”

Oh my gosh.

I could always use an extra set of hands to help me finish?!

Was there a way that could have sounded more
sexual
?!

A little smile froze on his face as he lifted his eyebrows. Even the cab driver glanced back in the mirror and gave me a low whistle.

“I’m sorry,” I stammered, “of course that’s not what I—”

“In that case, yes, I think I’d better come along.”

Before I could make heads or tails of what was happening, he slid onto the seat next to me and double tapped the outside of the cab. We eased away into traffic as I leaned forward and whispered my address to the driver. In the midst of a Larchwood, East 60
^th
Street didn’t fill me with as much pride as it normally did.

Ten minutes later, we were pulling up in front of my house. We hadn’t said a single word on the ride. The last embarrassing thing I said was still ringing in the air between us, and while Thomas seemed to find this greatly amusing, I wanted to shrivel up and die.

“This is a nice building,” he said politely as I fumbled with my keys.

I glanced at him sideways. He was probably used to going home with girls who owned the whole thing.

“Yeah, I’ve lived here for a couple of years now. It feels like home.”

“A couple of years?” he asked as we stepped inside and headed down the hall. “I thought you’d just moved here from California.”

My heart froze in my chest, and I mentally pummeled myself for my obvious mistake. Choosing to go the mature route, I pretended not to have heard and smiled politely as I opened the door and gestured him inside.

What followed was a hasty, four-second cleanup effort on my part, as I speed walked in ahead of him and grabbed the empty vodka bottles and candy wrappers off the floor. I dropped the whole lot of them behind the television and turned around with a smile just as he entered.

“Well, this is it,” I gestured around unenthusiastically. I had always liked it, but after seeing Michael’s apartment, I was thoroughly convinced the Starbucks was more comfortable.

Thomas, on the other hand, seemed to like it a lot. He glanced around curiously, eyes soaking in every detail as I hurried to put on more coffee and clear away a space in the kitchen for us to work.

“We can set up in here if you like,” I called, placing the two chairs at opposite ends of the long table. No need to give him the wrong impression after my slip-up earlier.

He stuck his head inside, but after seeing the sterile place I’d prepared, he glanced back out at the big sofa in the living room. “Actually, all we really need is the computer. What would you say to working somewhere a little more comfortable?”

I froze in place, before reminding myself to play it cool. “That would be great.”

I followed him out to the living room, automatically slipping off my uncomfortable shoes and jacket as I settled onto the couch. The lighting was much dimmer in here, just two softly lit lamps that gave everything a rather intimate glow. I nervously tucked my hair behind my ears and pulled the laptop out of my bag, but he took it gently from my hands and set it up himself, opening up the document as he balanced it on his legs.

“So,” he began, as he started typing, “you’ve lived here for a few years...?” 

I bit my lip nervously, but his eyes merely twinkled as he finished up a page. “Check the company records,” I said innocently. “I think you’ll find I’m exactly where I’m supposed to be.”

He actually chuckled under his breath. “Well, there’s no doubt about that. This is some first class writing, Miss Harks.”

“Please,” I said, feeling a little embarrassed, “it’s Jenna.”

There was a pause as he stopped typing and looked up at me over the computer. Our eyes met, and for the second time that night, he gave me a genuine smile.

“Jenna.” He held out a hand. “Tom.”

Laughing softly, we shook hands before dropping our eyes quickly back to our work.

Rather, he returned to our work, and I sat idly on the couch, wondering why he’d purposely taken only the laptop and left our papers behind. It didn’t give me any way to help—placing the entire impossible job on his shoulders. I was about to sneak back to the kitchen on a ‘coffee break’ to grab my briefcase when the computer screen caught my attention.

I’m sorry...did I say
impossible
job?

His hands were flying along at a speed that put both Michael and me to shame, blowing through page after page as he pulled facts and dates from memory, barely even paying attention. My eyes widened in astonishment, and I instantly understood the reason behind all the articles, all the Wall Street gossip that claimed he was a genius.

There was a chance he really was.

He glanced at me self-consciously, oblivious to the reason behind my expression, and shifted on the couch, so we were facing each other. “Do you stare at all of your house guests with such
unnerving
attention?” he teased.

I blushed and looked down at my knees. “Only the encyclopedic ones who can write mergers from memory. At this rate, I’ll have enough time to go to the gym tomorrow.”

“If you’d like a hand there as well...I’d love to help you finish.”

My head jerked up as he flashed me a mischievous grin, but before I could say anything back, the door pushed open, and Rose breezed inside.

“What an
unending
day!” she called as she shed her jacket in the hallway. “Jen, break out the vodka, because I swear, if I hear the word Larchwood again I’m just going to—”

She stopped dead when she entered the living room. Tom looked up with a bemused smile as I paled behind him and made the ‘you’re dead’ gesture behind his head.

“Mr. Larchwood,” she said pleasantly, “it’s a pleasure to officially meet you.”

He jumped to his feet, and she swept her long hair behind her as they shook hands. For whatever reason, the sight of it tightened my stomach. I realized I didn’t want Tom and Rose to be in the same room together. Everyone who laid eyes on Rose had the unfortunate tendency to fall in love...

Tom, however, seemed totally nonplussed. “You must be the coffee drinker,” he said in a surprisingly friendly tone. She faltered for a moment and glanced back at me for an explanation.

“He owns our Starbucks,” I explained.

She cocked her head with an ironic grin. “Of course you do.” The coffee in the kitchen
dinged
right on cue, and she gestured down the hall. “Jen, can I speak to you for a moment?”

He continued typing as I got up from the couch and followed her into the kitchen. The second we were alone, she grabbed my arms in gleeful surprise.

“Oh my gosh—what the hell is he doing here? Are you two sleeping together?!”

I closed my eyes with a painful grimace. “Rose,
please
remember how thin these walls are and lower your voice!” I cast a nervous glance to the living room. “And no—we’re not sleeping together. Although...I kind of accidently asked him to before we headed over.”

“What?!”

“It’s a long story.”

She cocked her hips impatiently. “I thought you were working with Michael today.”

“I was—I just left in a hurry after he kissed me.”

“WHAT?!”

“It’s a long story. For goodness sake—lower your voice!”

She leaned back, looking impressed. “You work fast. Both brothers in only a week of working there. That has to be some sort of record.”

“Okay, you’ve had your fun.” I steered her—giggling away—down the hall and deposited her in her room. Once the sound of her laughing had died down, I headed nervously back down the hall and re-settled on the couch.

Tom didn’t look up as I joined him, but the hint of a smile was playing about his lips.

“Is everything okay?”

I blushed, wondering how much he’d been able to hear. “Oh...yes, um, she just...she just had a very long day. Sleep deprivation, and all that...”

“I see,” he said with mock seriousness. “Well on that note, we should really get cracking or we’ll be up all night ourselves.” He tilted the screen to me. “Now what do you think of the Kensington proposition...?”

Hours flew past at a speed that seemed impossible. We laughed and talked and typed, and before I knew it, it was three in the morning. The merger, however, was complete.

“I can’t believe this got finished in a day,” I said in sheer amazement, as my printer fired out page after page.

Tom stood up and stretched out his stiff arms. “Looks like you have time to go to the gym after all.”

My heart sped up as I remembered his teasing offer. “Listen, Tom, earlier on—when I invited you to come over here—I didn’t mean to—”

My voice trailed off, as all of a sudden, he was standing right behind me.

“You didn’t mean to...what?”

I could feel my heart pounding in my chest. His already gorgeous face was even more beautiful in the soft lamp light. It softened all the tension and lines I saw at the office. Or maybe, that was just because he was looking at me.