actually submitted my application this afternoon—before I realized you’d be at this event—and I was hoping if I got a chance to speak with you, maybe you could put in a good word for me.”
Son of a bitch.
She wanted a job, not a night in my hotel room.
I narrowed my eyes and studied her: delicate features, bee-stung lips. She was practically lethal.
“What position did you apply for?”
Her back straightened as she replied, “Executive assistant. I think it would be for Lorena, but the job description didn’t specify.”
Of course.
I stared out at the party, trying to regroup for a moment before glancing back to her. This was dangerous territory. The feeling of being near her in public was tempting enough; would I really want her working alongside me every day?
When I glanced back, the glimmer of hope hadn’t faded from her eyes. God, she was so young. Couldn’t have been a day over twenty-five. Was I willing to dash her dreams just because I found her attractive?
I cleared my throat.
“Actually, the position isn’t with Lorena. It’s with me. Lorena is ill and I’m stepping in to help with the company for the time being. I’m hiring an assistant to help me for a few weeks.”
I was feeding her a lie, but the truth was too personal to explain at the moment. The paparazzi were already hounding Lorena’s every move and it was my job to protect her as much as possible.
Josephine’s red lips formed a small “o”.
“I’m sorry to hear that,” she said, nodding and brushing a strand of light brown hair away from her face.
Was she disappointed she wouldn’t be working with Lorena? I couldn’t tell.
“You can retract your application if you’ve changed your mind,” I offered with a quirked brow.
Her eyes widened and she reached out to touch my forearm. I ignored the desire to wrap my hand around hers.
“No! No. I would still like to be considered for the position,” she reiterated. She stared down at her hand on my forearm as if to nail the point home, then quickly pulled it away, clasping it with her other hand in front of her trim waist.
“But now that I have to interview with you this just seems…”
She hesitated and I smiled.
“A bit awkward?”
She laughed. “Well, yes.”
I watched her try to collect her thoughts. The light tan covering her clear complexion made her bright eyes stand out even more. The freckles dotting the tops of her cheeks were a refreshing sight.
I smiled. “Don’t worry about it. I can hardly fault someone for showing initiative when opportunity strikes.”
“Okay well, um, I hope to hear from you about an interview,” she smiled. “But y’know, don’t feel like you have to give me one because of tonight, and me now practically begging for it.”
I choked back a laugh.
Her eyes widened.
“That didn’t sound right, I admit,” she laughed and covered her face for a moment.
I wanted to bail her out of the hole she was digging, but it was too damn cute to watch her squirm.
“Let’s just ignore the fact that I’ve made a fool of myself, all right? I’ll just walk away and you can pretend that I was very charming and put together.”
I bent to catch her eyes and smiled.
“I assure you that there won’t be any favoritism during the interviews. I’ll evaluate everyone with a clean slate.”
She smiled. “Okay good!”
Her gaze darted out to the party and then back to me. “Well, it was a pleasure to meet you, Mr. Lefray, and I really hope your sister gets well soon.”
She backed up a step, taking her sweet scent with her.
“I look forward to the possibility of maybe hearing from you about the interview,” she said coyly.
With that, she nodded and spun on her heels. She was swallowed up by the crowd within a few moments, and it wasn’t until she fully disappeared that I realized I’d been watching her walk away, focused on the curve of her hips in her red gown.
Chapter Four
Josephine
An hour after I’d returned to my apartment, I was still wearing my rented designer gown as I browsed Facebook on my computer. My hair had mostly fallen out of my up-do (it was more of an up-don’t by that point) and my thrifted Jimmy Choos were lying on the floor beside my coffee table after I’d haphazardly kicked them off when I’d gotten home.
Josephine: I made such a fool of myself tonight.
Lily: Spill. It’s probably worse than you think it is.
Josephine: I told my could-be-future-boss that he didn’t