Lord of Rain (The Dragon Demigods #5) - Charlene Hartnady Page 0,16
She giggles.
I push out a laugh. “This picture doesn’t do him justice.”
She scrolls through a few more. He’s mostly in expensive three-piece suits. There is a gorgeous, model-like woman on his arm in a couple of the pictures of him at various events. I note that it’s never the same woman. Candice pushes out a breath. “Holy mackerel…I might just understand your apprehension about taking this position.” Candice snort-laughs. “Did you really tell him that he could be your daddy if he played his cards right?” She is grinning broadly.
My cheeks instantly heat. “It wasn’t like that.”
“It kind of was.” She laughs some more. “That’s why he hired you. Maybe he wants a PA with benefits.”
“No!” I practically shout the word. “A guy like him does not need to hire someone in order to get benefits. He certainly wouldn’t be interested in someone as plain as me. Did you see the women he hangs out with?”
“You, my friend, are gorgeous. I think he hired you because you weren’t afraid to speak up. He needs someone with tenacity on his team.”
“I’m not that person. I’m grossly under-qualified and lied on my resume. I can’t type a hundred words a minute. I’m debilitatingly shy. I don’t know what I was thinking even applying. You were right,” I groan, covering my face with my hand.
“Did the offer come through already?”
I nod.
“Is it as good as the ad promised?”
I nod again. “Double my current salary. Fantastic benefits…I can’t take it.” I shake my head.
Candice makes a face. “Maybe you can give it a try. You’d have nothing to lose.”
I turn her phone back towards her. Another picture of Steven ‘Wicked’ – I give an internal snigger – Bolt is on the screen. “I can’t be at this man’s,” I use his words, “beck and call for ten or twelve hours a day. It must be against some sort of code to harbor sexual fantasies about your direct boss. I wish I wasn’t this attracted to him, but I am.”
She groans. “You’re right…” She actually looks downtrodden. “You can’t accept the offer, but I think it’s fantastic that you were offered the job so we’re celebrating anyway.” She holds up her glass.
I smile even though I’m feeling down. This would have been perfect if it weren’t for my wayward libido. Oh, and maybe the fact that I’m not personal assistant material. I’m not sure what I was thinking. We chink glasses and drink. Although maybe, just maybe, it could work if—
No!
I put the glass down and pull out my phone.
“What are you doing?” Candice asks.
“I’m turning down the offer before I do something stupid like change my mind.”
She nods once, taking another sip of the sparkling wine. “Probably a good idea.”
I formulate an email where I thank the HR manager and Mr. Bolt for the offer, but then turn down the position. I decide not to give a reason. I keep it short and sweet. I pull in a deep breath, take a sip of my wine, and push send.
“There,” I say, putting down my phone and taking an even bigger glug of my wine. “Done!”
“Yep!” Candice says. “Hopefully, one of the other positions will come through.”
“I hope so,” I sigh. “Maybe I should drop my resume off at all of the local restaurants just in case something comes up.”
“That might be a good idea,” Candice agrees.
My phone alerts me to an incoming email. I look down. “It’s from him!” I gasp. “Why would he answer my email personally. The offer came from HR,” I mumble the last to myself when I realize it’s the same email with my original job offer.
“He must have been blind copied in the correspondence.”
“Blind copied?” I widen my eyes.
She looks at me funny. “Blind, as in, so that you couldn’t see he had been copied in. He obviously saw you turn the offer down. What does he say?” She looks excited.
I open the email. I notice he didn’t CC the HR Manager. This email is direct from him to me. My heart pounds when I read what it says.
Job Offer: Personal Assistant to the CEO
From: Bolt
Why? Was the offer too low?
A man of few words. I can’t believe this. “What?” I push out. I show Candice. “Is he upset?”
My friend laughs, covering her mouth. “He thinks his offer is too low.” She sniggers some more. “He thinks you’re trying to negotiate for more.”
“What should I say?” I shake my head. “This has nothing to do with money.”