and I’ll assign someone new to you. But you don’t get Victoria because she’s twenty-six, a size four, and single. So, you get Alice, who is just as qualified, in her forties, and married with three kids.”
“I didn’t realize that was part of the official qualifications.”
“Well, it is because I don’t need to be distracted all day because I’m worried that the new assistant is trying to get in your pants.”
Now that the storm is passing, I hug her and kiss the hell out of her, just because I can and I’ve missed her.
“Darling, no one gets in my pants but you.”
“You bet your ass,” she says.
“Exactly.”
She laughs now and leans her forehead on mine. “Are we okay now? Because yesterday sucked monkey balls.”
“That’s a vivid image.” I brush my fingers into her hair, soothing us both. “We were always okay. I just had a bruised ego and my feelings hurt.”
“I didn’t mean to hurt you.” She wraps her arms around me tightly. “I promise, hurting you is the last thing I ever want to happen.”
“I know.”
“And I can’t ever do the silent treatment again.” She pulls back and glares at me now. “Ever. Don’t do that. It’s childish, and unfair. Call me into your office and yell at me, anything. Richard used to pull that shit on me, and it killed me.”
“Done. I’m sorry, Nora. I won’t do it again. I think I was thrown, and I didn’t know how to deal with it.”
“Well, any way is better than that way. So stop it.”
“Yes, ma’am. Let me make it up to you.”
“Do you have chocolate in here?”
I grin and walk to my desk, open the drawer, and toss her a Snickers. “It’s my last one, and you’re welcome to it. But that’s not what I had in mind.”
“Sexual favors?”
I laugh now, relieved that my pulse is settling down and all is right with my world again. “Yes, that sounds fun, too, but I was thinking I’d give us both the rest of the day off and we’d go back to the Met. Look at art. Flirt. End up in bed for those sexual favors.”
“Can’t.” She stands, peeling the wrapper of her candy bar. “I have to go tell Sienna I’m officially working for her, and get Alice set up with HR so she can start tomorrow. This also means that I won’t be able to leave on a whim anymore.”
“Fucking hell.”
“But,” she says with a smile, “Sienna works part-time, so I shouldn’t be as tied to my desk as I have been.”
She’s grinning at me, triumphantly. God, is it any wonder that I love her so much? Just look at her. Brown eyes shining, curvy body tucked in a smart red suit, blond hair spilling over her shoulders.
She’s fucking brilliant.
And she’s mine.
“Go get it all settled then,” I say. “And we’ll catch up later over dinner.”
“I’m making spaghetti,” she says as she walks to the door. “Gabby requested it.”
“Sounds perfect to me.”
She walks out, leaving me alone.
Chapter Twelve
~Nora~
“I’ve gotten more done in the week since you came on with me than in the previous two years combined,” Sienna says with a laugh. “Is it wrong that I’m grateful that Carter can’t keep his hands off you?”
“It’s not wrong. I’m happy to be working with you.”
It’s not a lie. Sienna is fantastic, and the past week has gone smoothly. If anything, I run out of things to see to, which has been convenient because I’ve had to bounce back and forth between helping Carter’s new assistant and my position with Sienna.
It’s not been easy to adjust. I’ve done the same work for so long, I didn’t realize that so much of what I did was on autopilot. Gratefully, because Sienna is part-time, I can still help Carter out when it comes to Gabby and her many activities. In that aspect, at least, things haven’t changed.
“Okay,” Sienna continues, “let’s have a look at—” She’s interrupted by the ringing of her phone and picks it up. “Sienna. Hey, Mary.”
She rolls her eyes at me, making me grin.
It’s good that we’re on the same page there.
“Yes, I can come to your office. Nora’s with me.” Sienna’s eyes fly to mine. “Yes, I’ll ask her to join me.”
She hangs up.
“We’ve been called into the principal’s office.”
“Because we have time for this,” I mutter and stand when she does. “She probably has questions about assigning Alice to Carter rather than you.”
“Most likely,” Sienna agrees as we walk to the elevator and go up a floor