A Billionaire Boyfriend For Christmas - Holly Rayner Page 0,6
for the day, she and Corinne were going shopping for curtains and rugs for the new apartment. Adison already had a used couch that Corinne’s neighbor had given her. As far as a bed, she would have to make do on an air mattress until she got hold of the real deal.
When she’d moved in with Danny, she’d sold all her furniture. That meant she now had to go back to furnishing a home from the bottom up.
It was a rocky start, but it was also a fresh one.
She walked back to her cubicle, surveying the open space for any signs of Mr. Montoya. The double doors that led to his assistants’ desks, and then his offices, were closed; he was nowhere to be seen.
She felt a little more than disappointed over his disappearance. She wished she’d made more of an effort at their conversation. Despite her personal issues, she wanted to make a good impression on the new job.
Oh, well. There was always next time.
As Adison settled into her work, she found herself hoping next time came sooner rather than later.
Chapter 4
Ken
Something had to be wrong with him.
Not enough sleep? Had he forgotten to put his vitamin mix in his smoothie that morning? Sometimes that messed with his head.
No, it was none of those things, Ken decided as he squeezed a stress ball in his palm and stared out the windows situated behind his desk.
He’d spent part of the weekend regretting his inability to give Adison Hale a warm welcome the week before. In between getting a head start on the foundation’s yearly report, endless emails, and a shift at the food bank, Adison had been on his mind.
She was a pretty young woman, with strawberry-blond hair, big blue eyes, and a smattering of freckles across her nose, but it hadn’t been her looks that cemented her presence in his mind. Rather, it was his behavior around her.
Ken was far from what you would call a people person, but he usually managed to put on an act when it came to business. Adison’s decorations had shocked him, though. Not until he saw her bright ornamentation had he realized there hadn’t been holiday decorations at the Montoya Foundation in…
Years.
Wait. Maybe never?
When asked, he didn’t keep his distaste of the holidays a secret, but it wasn’t until he saw Adison’s cheer that he realized other staff members probably would have liked to decorate the office. They weren’t, though. Because they were trying to appease him?
Ken sighed. The last thing he wanted to be was a ruthless dictator. Still, he liked keeping things standard around the office, with nothing to upset the regular routine. Life was more predictable that way, and a man such as himself thrived on predictability.
And so he’d done what he could to extend an olive branch. Adison, for her part, hadn’t seemed to notice. He’d glimpsed bags under her eyes and a slouch in her shoulders that hadn’t been there the week before.
Something was bothering her, and even though it had been twenty minutes since their run-in in the break room, he found he couldn’t stop wondering just what it was.
His desk phone rang, startling him.
“Yes?” he answered on speaker.
“Mr. Montoya,” Aaron, one of his assistants, said. “Ms. Sorentis is here.”
Shoot. Ken had nearly forgotten about his eleven o’clock meeting.
“Thank you,” he said. “Send her directly in, please.”
He only had to wait a few seconds before the door to his office opened and a lithe woman with a short black bob and red lipstick entered the office.
Ken stood, going around his desk to shake her hand. “Miss Sorentis. It’s a pleasure to meet you.”
“The same here.” She smiled, but her eyes were calculating, studying him and taking him in.
“Please, have a seat.” He gestured at the plush chairs in the corner, which were much more comfortable than the ones situated at his desk.
“Thank you.” She settled in, crossing her legs and sitting with her back ramrod straight.
Thea Sorentis worked for one of the largest medical supply distributors on the East Coast. Ken had gotten in touch about their possibly donating some supplies to his foundation. Instead of a direct and prompt yes or no, they’d sent Thea over.
“I hope you found the offices all right,” he said. “Can I get you anything? Water? Coffee?”
Coffee made him think of Adison, sitting in the break room cradling a cup of joe like it was her lifeline. He blinked, pushing away thoughts of her just in time to catch Thea’s response.
“No,