Raine (Gods of the Fifth Floor #2) - M.V. Ellis Page 0,4

had her arms folded. If we’d been in a cartoon, there would have been heat rising from her head, and flames coming from her nose. She was mad, and didn’t even try to hide it. Not that I could blame her. I wouldn’t either, in the same situation.

“Sorry you wasted your time—I’ll make sure you get paid for the day, but you need to leave. And not that it’s any of my concern, but in the future, when you start a new job, it would probably be better not to turn up at the crack of dawn. There’s keen, and then there’s downright crazy. Seeming like a stalker isn’t a good look.”

“It’s 8 a.m. That’s what time the agency told me to be here.”

“Okay well, anyway. This isn’t happening, so it really doesn’t matter who told you to be where, and when, you need to leave. Call the agency and tell them there’s been a fuck up, but like I said, I’ll pay you for the day.”

“I was booked for a month. I...”

“Okay, I’ll pay you for the month.”

“I’m sorry, what? That wasn’t my point. I want to work.”

“And you can. Just not here. Take the month’s pay, and you can use the time to look for something else. Have Arianne call me.”

“Really?”

“Yes, really. It’s only fair. That and I just want to get you off my threshold right now. So, if there’s nothing else…?” She opened her mouth, and I was fairly certain that as far as she was concerned, there was plenty else. However, I was totally done so I closed the door. Not before I saw the look of shock on her face. Absolutely priceless.

I backed away from the door laughing to myself.

“What’s so funny, babe?”

The voice seemed to come from nowhere, and it took me a few moments before I remembered that I wasn’t alone, and I’d been mid-fuck when the door had been knocked with Mary Poppins on the other side.

“Nothing. And hey, I don’t mean to be rude, but I’ve got to get on. I have a busy day ahead. Empires to build and all that.”

“Oh sure, no, of course, don’t let me keep you.” After my earlier instruction it appeared that she’d spruced herself up a little after I pushed her off my dick. She’d pulled down her skirt and fixed her hair. Brushed it, even. And I wasn’t the most observant when it came to this kind of thing, but she had definitely reapplied her lipstick—that much I was sure of.

“That was fun, maybe we could have a repeat performance sometime soon?”

I gave her a wan smile. “Sure. Sounds good.” And by good, I meant I’d rather eat ball sweat on a graham cracker. I opened the door. “You can find your own way out, right? James will call you a taxi, or Uber, or whatever. On me.”

She looked confused and somewhat hesitant, but I ignored that fact and stared out into the empty space outside my office, hoping she’d take the hint. She did, and scooted out of the room seconds later, stopping to give me a brief peck on the cheek. Ugh. Just let it be over, already.

I headed back to my desk and called James’ number, to tell him to send the other guys in for Confession—if he wasn’t at his desk, he had his phone on him at all times, even when he peed. It rang about ten times, and I was just about to epically lose my shit when I remembered that there was no James. That’s what the fiasco with the temp had been about, of course. Jesus. I needed to get my head straight. The whole thing had only happened moments earlier, and already I’d more or less forgotten.

James had resigned two months previously, and the idea had been to find his replacement and have him trained and ready to take over before James finished up.

Unfortunately, the pool of male PAs was pitifully small. Even smaller when I factored in the reality that most of them were of less use than a chocolate condom. I didn’t know how many unsuitable Simons and Jacks we’d been through in those two weeks, but it was enough for James and me to worry that I’d never find anyone to replace him.

In the end, his last day had come and we’d found nobody. A male temp was supposed to have been a stopgap until I could find a permanent person, yet somehow that had devolved into some kind of