A Moment Like You (The Baker’s Creek Billionaire Brothers #2) - Claudia Burgoa Page 0,26
primary caregiver. She supports them. None of her siblings have the means to help, not the way she does. We, meaning Aldry’s Sweets, can’t afford to match the salary and benefits she earns. She has to stay on my payroll so I can justify her salary.”
He glances at me, and his mouth opens wide. “You are actually taking care of her and to cover the gesture you are a major asshole to her. Fuck, I think I’ve seen everything.”
He runs a hand through his hair and before he speaks, I order, “Don’t tell anyone.”
“Because god forbid anyone finds out that you have a heart,” he concludes and rubs his face with one hand in desperation. “I won’t lie to you, Henry, this is fucked up.”
“More than you can imagine,” I agree. “Being my assistant is the only way I can justify her salary and benefits. Any other position within the company has a determined package that can’t be changed just for one person. Everyone else will demand to be compensated equally. Merkel is one of the few places where we work hard to pay fairly and according to the position, not the gender, race, or any other factor.”
“You’re giving your assistant more than you give to any other assistant,” he counteracts.
“Yes, but she’s the CEO’s assistant. Plus, I have other ways to pay her salary,” I claim, not disclosing what I do to keep everything under wraps. “No one is like her, you know. She could do my job, and yes, for a second I thought she could be the interim CEO. I didn’t give a fuck about the backlash I’d get from some of my executives. But then Aldry’s came into the picture and… Her dream is to have her own company.”
“You want to make her dream come true?”
I nod once and finish my beer. “Before she became my assistant, she was working three jobs and living in Queens with her parents. With the raise she got, she was able to afford to quit one of the jobs. She was bone tired. Still, she was never late and worked her ass off like no one else I’ve ever seen.” I smile as I remember Sophia’s first weeks with me. She was terrified, and yet she wouldn’t take any crap from me. “She stood her own ground, even when she knew I fired assistants on a daily basis. It was refreshing to have someone confident, doing her job without waiting for my approval. Once I learned she had a second job, I raised her salary so she could quit. That’s when I found out about her mother’s bills. I got her the special insurance and a spending account that she can use to buy everything she needs. I moved her to the presidential suite of Merkel's Ambassador Hotel and have a car service for her.”
Hayes tilts his head toward the main house. “Blaire, Leyla, and our brothers would be a lot less judgmental with you if you explained that to them.”
“But I won’t do it, and neither will you,” I say with a warning tone. “This stays between us. I trust that even when you swear not to keep any secrets from Blaire, you won’t tell her about this.”
“It’s your story to tell, not mine.”
“Just help me with her parents, please,” I request, running a hand through my hair. “She needs them around. The last thing I want is for her to suffer, and maybe this might help her relax.”
“Being close to you makes relaxing impossible,” he states. “You have to calm the fuck down. Try to sleep more. Maybe learn how to fish.”
“You mean, sit on the dock and wait like an idiot until I get bored?”
He laughs. “There are other hobbies if fishing is not your thing,” he states. “You work too much.”
“It’s impossible while there’s still a lot to do around here. The Lodge is starting to look better than it did when we arrived. The guests are happier, and so are the employees,” I say, trying to explain why I can’t just sit back and smell the fucking roses. “We have a lot more to do, but it’s the beginning. I’m thinking about buying the bed and breakfast down in Happy Springs.”
“Why would you do that?” He asks with a worried expression. “Sometimes I feel like you’re trying to develop both towns and create some modern metropolis.”
“Not exactly,” I say, taking another beer from the case. “Just think about the possibilities. You expand both towns, make