Jace   fking snow everywhere. Why the hll did I have to open my tech business in Denver, Colorado? Oh, that’s right, because it was cheaper than California.   I dodged a graying mass of melted snow on the ground, trying not to slip on my bottom, as I walked past a mother laden down with what looked like a hundred shopping bags. The Christmas season was the worst. Everyone out on the icy roads, not paying attention and causing accidents, because they don’t know how to drive in winter. People walking the sidewalks, shopping for presents, for ungrateful children to open on Christmas morning. Christmas decorations were all over the place, and every shop I passed I could hear cheery Christmas music. Bah, I hated it all.   I was happy I didn’t have any family that I had to act all cheerful for during the holidays. I grew up in the system. My mother got pregnant at fourteen, her parents made her give me up. My father was her fifteen-year-old boyfriend and didn’t want me either. So into the system I went. They say people want to adopt newborns, but I didn’t experience that. In fact, I went from foster home to foster home, until I was put in a group home when I was ten, and that’s where I stayed until I aged out at eighteen. I went from there, to a Marine recruiter, and into the military until I got out after twenty years. My last tour was brutal.   Enemy combatants had a family on their knees. A father, mother and their three young children. They were going to execute them for helping the Americans hide from them, except they targeted the wrong family. As one of the men lifted his gun to shoot the ten-year-old little girl, I ran out of the hut we were hiding in. I started shooting, first him, and then the others. My men laid down cover fire as I scooped two of the children up and yelled at the family to follow me. We were almost to safety when a bullet entered my left side, missing my protection and missing my heart, by millimeters. But I didn’t stop from getting the family to safety. Then I kept engaging with the enemy until I got the family and my men out of danger. I didn’t know how I stayed on my feet as I bled from my wound.   I was awarded a Purple Heart and the Medal of Honor. After I healed, I decided to retire. The nightmares were too much for me. I needed counseling and I made sure I never missed appointments in the two years that I’ve been out.   Without the military as my career, I did what I knew best. I put the money that I had saved over the years into opening my own tech company. It is the fastest growing tech company in the country at the moment. We invented a paper thin translucent translation device that you put behind your ear. It can translate fifty different languages that you can understand. I had contracts with the military and foreign countries that we provided the devices to. We recently invented a listening device that couldn’t be detected and that was so small you could put it anywhere, and it would pick up any conversation you wanted to hear, in whatever room you had it in, or the person you had it on.   Right now, I wasn’t in a good mood. My current personal assistant was leaving me for retirement. I didn’t know how I was going to get on without Miles. He did everything for me so I could concentrate on my business. I was very upset with him.   I finally got to my therapist's office and waited at the elevator impatiently. I only had an hour before I had to be back at the office. When the doors opened, a stunning long-haired brunette, with honey-colored eyes, and luscious curves, almost bowled me over in her haste to leave the elevator.   “Oh, I’m so sorry, sir. I’m almost late for my interview.”   “It’s no problem, but maybe next time don’t be in such a rush,” I said to her, as I stepped into the elevator, and hit the second floor. I swear I heard her mutter the word rude as the doors closed. I just shrugged.   After my session, I felt a little drained. I took out a tin from my inner pocket and popped two tylenol for the small headache that was forming behind my eyes.   My driver was waiting for me right outside the building's doors. Thank God. He had to drop me off a block over before, because of traffic.   “Back to the office, Jace?” Sly asked.   “Yes, Sly, and please hurry. I have a meeting in thirty minutes.”   “Yes sir.”   I closed my eyes and leaned my head back. A pair of honey colored eyes popped into my head. She was beautiful. She was in a red sweater that didn’t hide her ample cIeevage and a black pencil skirt. She had worn black and white high heels. Her legs were amazing. With her heels on, the top of her head was at the bridge of my nose. I was 6ft exactly, so my guess was she was 5 ‘5 without shoes. She smelled delicious. Like warm sugar. I noticed she had a great a*s as I watched her walk away before the elevator doors closed. Big and round. Her skirt fabric had strained at her h**s. My c**k stirred at the memory. f**k it's been a while since I had go'tten lаid. Maybe I should remedy that. I had a number of women I could call for a quick f**k. No, I'm too fking busy right now. We had to get ready to launch the listening device. I had a month to test them in various places and on various people. I wanted to launch the devices right after the New Year.   Sly drove into the underground parking lot. I thanked him as he dropped me off at my private elevator. When I stepped off of the elevator at the top floor of my building, a flurry of activity assaulted me.   Phones rang, people talked, papers were shuffled. As I walked by desks that contained twenty of the most brilliant minds, people avoided eye contact with me. I was fine with that. I wasn’t their friend, I was their boss. I rounded the corner that would take me to my office and, again for the second time that day, I was almost bowled over. To my surprise, it was by the same brunette.   “What are you doing here?” We both said at the same time.   “This is my business, I am Jace Williams and you?” I asked.   “Oh, I’m Ashlynn Walker. I just interviewed to be your temporary assistant."   “Absolutely not,” I hissed. I would not get any work done with this woman being around me.   “Excuse me? I’ll let you know I am highly qualified. I’m multilingual. I can also read and write in the languages I know. I know how to get whatever you need with the connections I have around this city. And I have no responsibilities, so I would be at your beck and call.”   Again, my c**k twitched at that. My c**k was very twitchy today, especially when it came to this woman.   My eyes narrowed. She was highly qualified. I looked over her shoulder and I saw Miles staring at us. He was nodding his head, letting me know that she was hired. I rolled my eyes and looked back at her.   “Fine, get to HR and give them your information and get your badge. I expect you to be here tomorrow morning at six a.m.”   She smiled a brilliant smile at me. I stopped breathing. Holy f**k her smile was dazzling, and she had a dimple on her right cheek.   “Thank you, Mr. Williams, I won’t disappoint you. Miles has already given me all the information I need on you. I promise, I will be the best personal assistant. See you tomorrow morning.”   She didn’t wait for me to acknowledge her statement. She walked away in those impossibly high heels and I couldn’t take my eyes off her a*s. A throat cleared and I turned my head. Miles was now standing right next to me.   “You hired a woman.”   “I did. She’s brilliant, sweet, organized, tech-savvy and multilingual. Some of the languages she mentioned speaking were Spanish, Mandarin, and Korean to name a few. But she said she could speak more. She’s also got an impressive list of connections. She’s perfect,” Miles said.   “She’s too beautiful,” I snapped, as I made my way into my office and he followed.   “Are you telling me you won’t be able to concentrate because of a pretty girl?” He smirked at me, and I scowled at him. He may be a father figure in my life, but he didn’t have to be so insolent.   “Of course, I’ll be able to concentrate. But she might be a distraction for others in the office.”   “Well, I’m sure you’ll be able to handle that. Now, on to business. I will be training her over the next week. I honestly don’t foresee any problems with her. You have an eleven am call with Germany in ten minutes. Then at two you have a meeting with the shareholders, and at six you have a meeting with Mr. Gray Knight. He is the gentleman who is interested in two hundred thousand listening devices for his personal security firm.”   “Okay, thank you. What scent do you think she wears?”   “Her scent?”   “Yes, it smelled sweet and delicious. She made me hungry. Tell her not to wear it again.”   “Mmhmm, I’ll do that. Anything else?”   “Have Maggie type up the contracts I’ve outlined for Mr. Knight and then I need some coffee and something to eat, please.”   “Right away, Jace. You know I’ll miss you. You’ve been the son I never had. If you weren’t such a grump I’d let you pursue Vivian, but my sweet girl would eat you alive, so maybe not.”   I chuckled, he was not wrong. His daughter was a ball-buster. Any man that gets together with her will have to have a strong will.   I waved him off to do his duties. I was going to miss the old man.

  Warning mention of abuse, physical, s*xual, mental and emotional.   Ashlynn   What a grump. I can’t believe that’s what I am going to have to deal with for the next few months until the company can find a permanent solution. I can’t let his negativity get me down. No, I was the new and improved Ashlynn Walker. I was no longer a doormat, I was no longer someone that would be beat down physically, mentally or emotionally. Nope not anymore.   Keep telling yourself that girl and maybe it will stick one day. Daily affirmations, remember what your therapist said. Speak it into truth. Sighing, I kicked off my shoes as I entered my one-bedroom apartment, which wasn’t too shabby. It was on the top floor of the Bently apartment complex. It had its own balcony that I had decorated with Christmas lights, and it had the most important thing during a Colorado winter. Heating.   I walked to the kitchen and started on making some homemade hot chocolate. I also got ingredients out to make some Italian Wedding cookies and Chocolate Chip cookies. For the next hour, I baked and filled four thermoses with hot chocolate. As I baked the cookies I thought about how long it had taken me to get to where I am at today.   Three years ago I was newly married to who I thought was the love of my life. Ben, who I had met at the hotel I was working at. I was working at the front desk at Hotel Lemonde. An upscale hotel that catered to the very rich.   Ben was the assistant to Harry Kilmore, one of the richest men in Colorado. He owned almost all the commercial real estate in Aurora and Englewood. He was trying to conquer Denver at the moment, which was why he was at Hotel Lemonde.   While Ben worked during the day, he would stop by the front desk and f***t with me. I was twenty-two and he was a sophisticated thirty-five. He was truly smooth with his flattery. I fell hard and fast. He wined and dined me while he was at the Lemonde. We both caught feelings, and we married down at city hall. It was dumb on his part because he made massive amounts more money than I did, and he never made me sign a prenup. It was dumb on my part, because I didn’t know the real Ben Newsome. Right away he wanted me to quit my job and stay home. His reasoning was he wanted to get me pregnant right away, and he wanted a housewife. I refused at first, which started our first fight, but then I relented, because I loved him.   Home for him was in Boulder, Colorado, so I packed up my stuff and moved to my father's consternation. He didn’t like Ben, especially because of the way we married. He felt it was sneaky. We didn’t tell anyone. Our witnesses were two people we pulled off of the street before we walked into City Hall.   It didn’t last six months before I found the phone numbers on napkins. Lipstick marks on his work shirt collars, and open protection wrappers in his car, and jacket pockets.   I confronted him and he said I was delusional. That those wrappers could have been there from before we got married, or from us. That the lipstick marks were just from friends that he had hugged. The phone numbers he said he ignored. Then why keep them?   I secretly stayed on birth control because I couldn’t bring myself to have a child with him, if he was going to cheat on me. I needed a way out, so I started gathering evidence. I took video of me cleaning out his jacket pockets and, low and behold, more protection wrappers and numbers. I took pictures of his stained shirt collars. I followed him for two days and took pictures of him making out with different women in dance clubs and restaurants. I rigged the house with tiny cameras in case he brought his bimbos home while I was out. And he did. It hurt at first, but as time went on I became numb to the pain.   The first time he hit me was when I first tried to leave. I stupidly waited for him to come home o*******t because I just had to give him my piece of mind. He walked through the door, saw my packed bags and looked at me with an angry expression.   “What’s all this?”   “I can’t do this anymore. I can’t be the wife that gets cheated on. I want someone faithful, someone that only wants me,” I had yelled with tears streaming down my face. I wanted him to see how hurt I was.   He laughed. He fking laughed.   “You really think someone is going to want your dumpy fat a*s? You’re lucky I even looked twice at you. But you were just so fking easy and eager to please. I’ll admit you give great fking head, especially since I am the one that showed you what I liked, but anything else, you’re like a dead fish that just lays there.”   That confused me, because I always rode him, he liked to watch my t**s bounce. I was the one that suggested different positions, but he refused.   “No, you aren’t going anywhere. Now go make me some fking dinner. And make sure it’s edible, because the s**t you’ve been cooking lately has no flavor.”   Total fking lie on his part. Every meal I cooked he praised how delicious it was. And I know my food is good. I was raised by my father who was a chef that worked at a five-star restaurant. He taught me everything I knew.   “No, Ben. I am leaving. You don’t love me like you said you did, and I deserve to be loved.”   He backhanded me for that comment.   “I have given you everything. This house, your car, the clothes on your fking back.”   “I’ll give you the clothes. You’re right. You bought most of those, but the house is yours, and so is the car. It’s in your name. I left every piece of jewelry you ever gave me, including my wedding and engagement rings in our room. I am only taking the clothes I came with, the jewelry I came with and all my important papers,” I gritted out. My l*p was swollen from his hit. I refused to cry anymore.   “You aren’t going fking anywhere.”   He charged me, grabbed me, and threw me over his shoulder. He stomped to our bedroom where he forced himself on me. He smacked me a couple of times while fighting him until I was dazed and laid there like he accused me of before. He tied me to the bed for three days. He took my phone and every other electronic that was in the house, so I couldn’t reach out to anyone. I was defeated. For the next year, I was his slave. He changed all the locks on the doors so they only opened from the outside. He put bars on the windows. He truly made our home into a prison.   He didn’t hide his affairs anymore. No, he brought them home and made me watch them. I never forgot about the tiny cameras. I knew they backed up to my cloud every twelve hours, because that was how I had scheduled it. And I made sure the batteries still worked every three months. So while he did everything to me for a year, I had the evidence I needed for divorce and to put him behind bars.   One day he had forgotten to take his phone to work. I called the police immediately. And finally, after a year of torture, I was saved. I turned over all the evidence, the videos, the recordings. It took another year of trial, and now he is in jail. I was granted a divorce and I got half of everything. I didn’t live off that money though. No, I had it in a trust for my future children. Later, when I have them, I will add them to the trust.   Because of the exposure I had gotten from the trial, I made a lot of friends, most of them women, and a lot of them had very influential husbands.   I was even a personal assistant for one of those wives for six months before they left for the winter to go to Florida. So, when I heard about the CEO of Jtech needing a personal assistant, I jumped on that chance. I first moved back to Denver, got my little luxury apartment and put in my resume. I had only been back for two weeks before I got the call for an interview. I had asked if I could come in after my therapist appointment since I would already be close. It worked out great. I wish I would have known what а'jerk the boss was though. But it was okay. I have obviously dealt with worse, and I was going to kill him with kindness, hot chocolate, cookies, and holiday cheer.  

  Ashlynn   I got to work at five forty-five a.m. I had four tins of cookies to lay out in the break room along with my hot chocolate. I had two thermoses of peppermint hot chocolate and two regular. I made sure to label them and put out the mugs. I had festive Christmas paper platters to put all the cookies on. I put four cookies on a small festive plate and made coffee just the way Mr. Williams liked it per Miles' instructions. I took the cookies and coffee and walked into Mr. Williams office and set the items on his desk right where he would sit. By the time he gets there, the coffee should be at perfect temperature. I checked his schedule and then printed it out and laid it next to the cookies. I then grabbed the dirty clothes he had in the office bathroom and brought them to my desk where I had a bag waiting to put them in. I would take them to the cleaners once Miles got in and talked to me about today's agenda.   I looked around the office as I sat in my chair. My desk was next to the secretary’s desk. I remembered her name was Maggie. She was fifty-two with three grandchildren. She had a daughter, Suzy. Who was married to Billy, her high school sweetheart. Maggie was a widow. Her husband was mugged and shot three years ago. I had felt bad for her when Miles told me. He said the only reason he told me was, so I wouldn’t ask if she was married or had children. He said it was best to let her bring it up. Which she would, because Maggie liked to gossip, even about her own life. That had me giggling. I was the complete opposite. I only talked about growing up with a military dad who became a sought-after top chef.   Miles tried to pry, but all I gave him was that I was single and had no children. I had a father who used to be in the military and now was a top chef. I had no responsibilities, no pets. I could be at Mr. Williams' beck and call. Miles told me to call Mr. Williams Jace. I couldn’t bring myself to do that, unless I heard it from the man himself.   I looked at the time on my phone. I was still the only person here. My brows furrowed. It was six fifteen. I was sure Mr. Williams told me to be here at six a.m. I went to his office and checked his coffee. It was still hot, so I went back to my desk. I booted up my computer, maybe he emailed me. Miles surely gave him my email. Nope nothing. I decided to read and wait until someone showed up. By six-forty, I was a little bit mad. I checked the coffee, it was lukewarm, so I picked it up and went to the break room and dumped it. I made him another cup, it was going to be scalding hot if he showed up now.   I took the coffee back to his desk and really looked at it. There was nothing personal about it. No pictures of his parents, or girlfriend or friends or even a boyfriend if he swung that way. It was just his computer monitor, computer mouse and keyboard, the coffee and cookies and the print out of his schedule. I looked around his office. It was so b**e, it was just charcoal and beige. I scrunch my nose at how boring it all was.   I heard the elevator ding and I quickly left the office. I looked at my phone and saw it was seven. Maggie came around the corner and beamed at me.   “Hi, Ashlynn right? I’m Maggie, Jace’s secretary. Why are you here so early?”   “Oh, um, Mr. Williams told me to be here at six sharp.”   “That’s odd. He doesn’t come in until nine.”   What? Nine? Seriously?   “Oh, maybe I misheard him.” I knew I didn’t. jger'erk.   “Well, Miles should be here any minute. Would you like some coffee, or tea?”   “Oh, no, thank you. I brought homemade cookies and hot chocolate. They are in the break room.”   “You brought homemade cookies and hot chocolate?” Maggie asked. I nodded and smiled at her. At least someone was going to enjoy my culinary work early in the morning.   Miles showed up ten minutes later shocked to see me.   “Why are you here? You don’t need to be here until eight thirty.”   “I know you told me that, but Mr. Williams told me he wanted me here at six a.m.”   “He did?”   I nodded, and he looked confused.   Maggie came back with a plate full of Italian wedding cookies and a mug of hot chocolate. It was peppermint, I could smell it and I smiled.   “Where did you get all that?” Miles asked.   “In the break room, Ashlynn made all this and brought it.”   I was nodding as Miles went to the break room. I followed him. He looked shocked.   “This is wonderful, thank you so much, Ashlynn.”   “You’re welcome. I thought some holiday cheer would help all of us work better. I have my canvas bag with me and have little decorations. Do you think I could put some up?”     Miles stared at me and I watched as a little twinkle in his eye sparkled.   “How about just the break room for now?”   “Okay.”   I went to my canvas bag and got out a couple of three-inch Christmas trees and put them around the break room along with some colorful tinsel. I had a tree on top of the microwave and the employee fridge and one next to the cookies and hot chocolate.   I had four little snowmen and two snowmen magnets. I stuck a snowman on the fridge and one on the side of the microwave. I put a snowman by each tree. It looked a little less boring in the break room. I went back to Mr. Williams' office and grabbed the coffee. I took it to the break room and dumped it again. I didn’t make him another yet.   Miles asked if I had grabbed the dirty clothes and I said yes. We then decided to walk together down to the dry cleaners. There was a light dusting of snow. I had on black fleece leggings, under my white sweater dress. I had put on my puffy coat and a red scarf with my red gloves, and I was nice and toasty.   “I don’t know how you can walk in this weather in those boots,” Miles said.   I had on black high-heeled lace-up boots that went to the knee.   “I’ve been in heels my whole teen and adult life. I have worked in hospitality since I was fifteen. I’ve worked with high society women, and had to look the part, and I even worked in a high-end department store for a year when I was twenty, when I worked two jobs. I’ve always worn heels. The only time I don’t is when I go to the gym or at home.”   “Don’t your feet hurt after a while?”   “They used to, now I think my nerves are just numb,” I said, chuckling as he opened the door to the cleaners.   The dry cleaner looked at us and smiled. Miles talked to her, but he was going slow so she would understand everything Mr. Williams wanted done to his clothes.   “Miles, do you need help?”   He looked at me confused.   “What exactly does Mr. Williams want done?”   “He’s allergic to starch so they need to find an alternative. Last time they put some in his collars and he broke out in a rash. I tell them this every time I come in. This place just opened up three months ago. So I am still trying them out before I have to go across town to our regular place. Also, he doesn’t like it when they pin the cuffs of his pants and shirts.”   In fluent Korean, I told the lady behind the counter. At first, she was shocked, but then we started a conversation and by the end, she was nodding and smiling. She even offered to introduce me to her grandson. I politely declined.   “You are amazing. I'm so glad you decided to interview for me,” Miles said. “Where did you learn to speak Korean?”   “Well, my dad was in the military. We traveled a lot wherever he was assigned every two to four years. It was easy for me to pick up the languages wherever we went. I started working young in some of the foreign places at their hotels and department stores. When we came back to the states, I sent out resumes and got hired right away at Hotel Lemonde and worked there until I didn’t. We had a lot of foreigners come through Hotel Lemonde. So I was a huge help to them.”   “I bet you were. I am more and more impressed with you and I just know you are the right fit for Jace. Maybe he’ll even keep you on after the holidays.”   “I don’t know, he doesn’t seem to like me. Both times I’ve encountered him, he’s been rude, and he told me to be here at six, when he doesn't even come in until nine.”   “Both encounters?”   “Oh, I bumped into him coming out of an appointment I had before the interview.”   “Okay, well, he doesn't know you, so he can’t have an opinion on whether he likes you or not yet. As for him telling you to be here at six, I will find out what that’s all about.”   “Okay.”   We walked into JTECH and I noticed a lot more people were in the lobby. When we got back to the offices, everyone seemed to be at their desks and I was happy to see everyone had cookies and hot chocolate.   I was introduced as Jace’s new PA for now, and I got a lot of smiles and welcomes. Also, a thank you for the treats.   Miles went over Mr. Williams schedule with me. What he would need during the meetings. He told me he ate lunch in his office unless he had a lunch meeting.   “Sometimes you will have to go with him. Make sure you take meticulous notes. He will have you dictate the meeting back to him when you guys get back. You will go on business trips with him, so make sure your passport is up-to-date. Always have a bag ready to go at home and I recommend you have one ready to go here also. You are literally at his beck and call, you do whatever he asks. Your job is to make sure his personal life goes smoothly so he can concentrate on his work life. It would help if you could memorize clients' dossiers. I have a folder on your computer with everyone we have contracts with and everyone that we could potentially have a contract with. If someone new comes along, find out all the information you can on them. I am going to give you my little black book that has all the names and numbers you might need to help make Jace’s life more comfortable. Some of the numbers I have you may already have with your connections. Any questions so far?” Miles asked.   “Um, does he date? Is there a special store he likes to use for his girlfriend’s presents? Will I be breaking things off for him with women? I have had to do that before for my father,” I said.   Miles chuckled, “No, Jace doesn’t date. In fact, you will most likely become his plus one at events. It’s the whole reason I hired a woman. It'd be easier for him so he doesn't find some clingy woman that won’t leave him alone or reads too much into him taking them to an event.”   “Got it, not a problem.”   I looked at my phone and saw it was a quarter to nine.   “I need to go make his coffee. I’ll be right back.”   I went to the break room and made his coffee. I brought it to his office and put it on his desk.   The elevator pinged and I took a shaky deep breath. Here we go.  

  Jace   I smelled her the moment I got off the elevator. I took a deep inhale and almost hummed with the delicious scent that surrounded me.   I walked through towards my office. I noticed everyone had a plate of something on their desks. I didn’t mind that they ate at their desks, just as long as no mess was left behind.   When I turned the corner towards my office, my eyes found her right away. She was standing by my door with a tablet and a couple of folders in her hands. She was so d**n beautiful.   “Good morning, Mr. Williams. Your coffee is on your desk along with your schedule for today. Here are the Knight and McPherson contract proposals. You have a meeting with Mr. Knight at ten and Mr. and Mrs. McPherson at three. I just need to know what you would like for lunch?”   I stopped at my desk and saw a plate of cookies there.   “What’s this?”   “Cookies, sir. Italian wedding cookies and chocolate chip. Your coffee is fresh and just how you like it. There is some hot chocolate with and without peppermint if you would like some.”   “I don’t eat or drink sweets.”   “Oh, well, that was not in the information I was given. I’m so sorry. I will take them away,” she said. She looked a little dejected.   She stepped to the desk to take the plate and I grabbed her wrist. I paused, why did I just do that? Her skin was so soft, I couldn’t help rubbing my thumb on her delicate skin, just a single swipe.   “Where did they come from?”   “I made them. I like to bake.”   “You may leave them. I can offer them to Mr. Knight.” I said, reluctantly letting her go.   “Very well. Lunch?”   “What are you eating?”   “I brought some homemade lasagna from home.”   “I like lasagna.”   “Okay, I will run home and get you some.”   I nodded at her. Was I really going to make her run home to get me lasagna?   “Wait, no, you don’t have to do that, it’s too cold.”   “I don’t mind, I can take a cab or an uber and be back in a jiffy,” she said cheerily. She smiled, and my eyes zeroed in on her dimple.   Would it pop out if she suked my c**k. Stop it Jace, concentrate. What were we talking about? Right, lasagna.   “No, really. Just order me some Chinese. You should know my preferences.”   “Yes, it was in the information I was given. If that’s all, I will get to work.”   I nodded to her like the freaking bobble head that I was, and I couldn’t help watching her bottom as she walked away once again. d**n that’s a fine bottom.   “Miles,” I called out.   Miles stepped in, and I motioned him to shut the door.   “Cookies? Hot chocolate?”   “Don’t go to the break room. I didn’t have the heart to tell her she couldn’t put some decorations up. You never go in there anyway. You don’t have to eat the cookies or drink the hot chocolate, but the staff sure has been enjoying it. They all seem pretty cheerful and working efficiently.”   “You know, I despise anything holiday-related,” I said, becoming irritated.   “Then tell her that.”   I looked at him like he was crazy.   “I will not tell her that. You do it.”   “Why? So I could be the one to watch the light leave her eyes? Absolutely not.”   “Miles,” I growled.   “Jace,” he mocked me. That reminded me.   “Why does she call me Mr. Williams? Didn’t you tell her to call me Jace?”   “I did. I think she feels more comfortable with Mr. Williams.”   “That needs to change.”   “Then make her feel more comfortable. Stop scowling around her. She already thinks you hate her.”   “What? Why?”   “Oh, I don’t know. Maybe it was because you’ve been rude to her both of the times you’ve bumped into her, and then you told her to be here at six a.m.? What were you thinking?”   I wasn’t, her beauty took me off guard, and it was the first time that popped into my head.   “Slip of the tongue, I meant eight thirty.”   “Well, you better tell her that, or I am afraid she will be here at six every morning.”   “Why can’t you?”   “Because I’m not her boss. Why are you so afraid to talk to her? She’s your new PA, you’re going to be spending a lot of time with her.”   Because she makes me nervous. She makes my palms sweat. Every time she turns around, I want to grab her by the h**s, bend her over, rip her clothes off and f**k her until she c*ms all over my c**k. f**k! Now I have a*******n.   Scooting my chair in closer, so Miles couldn’t see the tent in my slacks, I looked at him.   “I’m not afraid to talk to her. Fine, I’ll tell her.”   Miles nods at me and raises an eyebrow. I just wave him off and he leaves.   I grab the Knight file and open it. The contract is in order, all the tabs are in the right place. I look at the price we negotiated at dinner the other night. I smile, another quarter of a billion in the company's account as long as he signs. The listening devices are ready. I am personally going to test them for a month before we launch them to the public. Only a few of my contacts had early access. Knight was one of them. He gave me a generous six months before he wanted shipment.   A knock on my door grabs my attention.   “Enter,” I call out.   “Mr. Gray Knight to see you sir,” Ashlynn says, as she opens the door. I caught Gray looking at her bottom and I had to grit my teeth.   “Thank you sweetheart,” he says, and she blushes and nods before asking if he'd like any coffee, or hot chocolate.   “There’s peppermint or regular and some cookies. Which Mr. Williams has on his desk for you.”   They’re mine, she gave them to me.   “No cookies, but I’ll have a black coffee, please.”   She nods and leaves to get his coffee.   “She is very beautiful, how are you not distracted?”   I am.   “She’s new, today is her first day.”   “Well, good luck to you. I’d get zero work done with her around.”   Good thing she’s with me then. I mean, works with me.   “Here is the contract. Everything we talked about is in it. You can have your lawyer go over it and then fax it back after you sign.”   “No need. I can see everything is in order. There’s nothing hidden,” he said, as he continued to read the contract.   “Is speed reading your hidden talent?” I asked, chuckling.   Before he answers, the door opens and Ashlynn walks in with coffee for Gray. I watch as he looks up at her and he winks. She blushes and then walks out. I glare at him as he goes back to reading the contract. He needs to leave and get back to Florida.   “I have been able to read fast since I was a kid. I also have an eidetic memory, which is why I was so good at the military, why I went into the security business, and why my company is very sought after. I hire the best of the best. I still work in the field sometimes to make sure I stay sharp.”   “You’re that Gray Knight? You were in special ops, weren’t you? I was in the Marines, you’re still whispered about.”   “I have no idea what you are talking about.”   “Sure you don’t. Are you a genius?” I was curious. I've heard about this man.   “Not by a long shot. But you seem to be. Your translation device and this listening device. It’s genius.”   “I just like technology and numbers.”   “This looks to be everything we talked about. I’ll sign,” Gray tells me, changing the subject smoothly. Fine I won’t pry. But I do want to fist pump the air, but I restrain myself. I hand him a pen and watched him sign. Then I take the pen and contract and sign my name also.   “Thank you, Gray, you won’t be disappointed in my product. I have a few that I plan to test myself. I just have to find the right opportunity."   “I have no doubt everything will work out well. I’m not leaving until tomorrow. Maybe I’ll go ask your little PA to show me around town,” he said with a smirk.   I clenched my jaw and fisted my hands under my desk.   “I have a better idea. There’s a club I am a member of. It has a great nightlife atmosphere, and plenty of beautiful women.”   “Excellent, sounds like a plan.”   “Great, where are you staying? I'll pick you up at ten,” I said, relieved that I seemed to get Ashlynn off of his mind.   “I’m at the Hotel Lemonde. See you at ten.”   I followed him out. I was relieved to see Ashlynn was not at her desk, although I wondered where she would have gotten to. We rounded the corner and I almost snarled when I saw Derek, one of my office managers talking with her. He was leaning a little too close to her. She was looking up to him with a smile and big innocent eyes. He said something, and she threw back her head and laughed.   “Stunning,” Gray mumbled.   I watched as he quickened his steps and stood next to Derek and Ashlynn.   “Hello, I don’t think I got your name earlier,” Gray said to her, totally cutting off Derek mid-sentence. It made me smirk.   “Oh, it’s okay, Mr. Knight. I'm Ashlynn Walker.”   I stood stiffly watching him grab the hand she held out and slowly bring it to his l**s. She blushed, her eyelashes fluttered, and I heard him chuckle.   “Ashlynn, such a beautiful name. Jace and I are going out tonight to celebrate our recent transaction. Why don’t you come with us? We can all meet in the lobby where I am staying, at Hotel Lemonde.”   “I used to work there. I really miss that place.”   “Then have dinner with me, and you can reminisce about old times there. We can wait for Jace to pick us up. Say eight o’clock?”   She looked astonished and all I could think was, you smooth b*****d. I willed her to say no. She had yet to look at me, I didn’t think she knew I was even there. That irked. Before I could say anything to discourage her, she smiled that dazzling smile that made me breathless and agreed.   “I’d love to. I can get your opinion on the Lemonde and maybe make some recommendations of the hotel's amenities.”   “I would love that. I will see you at eight in the lobby then, Ashlynn.” He lifted her hand and kissed it again. I missed that he still held it.   Her eyes finally looked at me. I couldn’t bring myself to move. When Gray came over to me with a s**t eating grin on his face, I wanted to punch him. I didn’t know why I was so irritated at him asking her out, but I was.   I gestured towards the elevator and looked away from her. I shook Gray’s hand and told him I’d see him tonight. When I turned around she was nowhere to be seen. I walked back to my office and almost g*****d out loud. She was on her hands and knees picking up napkins that had scattered. I cleared my throat and she looked behind her.   “I’m so sorry. The napkins from your lunch fell as I was taking out the cartons.”   “That’s alright, just please hurry and leave.”   I saw her brows furrow and I didn’t mean to be so blunt, but her on all fours, and her delectable bottom taunting me was a bit too much for me right now.   She hastily scrambled to her feet. She took the bag that the Chinese came in and told me to enjoy my lunch. Shutting the door behind her, I inhaled and savored her sweet scent.  

Ashlynn I ran to the restroom, I was just about to lose my s**t and there was no way I was going to let everyone see it. Why was he such an bottom? Hurry and leave, ugh! Sorry I dropped all the napkins, Mr. Grumpy. I slammed into the bathroom. I looked in all the stalls to make sure I was alone. This bathroom has wash cloths to dry your hands. Because paper towels were obviously too low class for Mr. Grumpy’s bottom. I grabbed a handful and brought them to my face and screamed into them, muffling the sound. Stay positive Ash, don’t let his attitude ruin your day. You have this girl. Fake it until you make it. Smile, it’ll make you feel better. I looked into the mirror and smiled. I looked fking deranged. My cheeks were flushed, my eyes looked wild. I was breathing heavily. I turned on the water and got it as cold as possible. I ran my wrists under the cool water and took deep breaths. “It’s just one day. You can get through one day. Grin and bear it girl, you’ve gone through worse. Granted not in over a year, but this is nothing.” I took another deep breath and used the wash cloths I screamed in to dry my hands and wrists. A knock on the door had me frowning. Why was someone knocking? I opened it and there stood Miles. “Hi. Bad moment?” “No,” I lied. “We heard screaming,” he said. “We?” He stepped back, and the whole floor was staring at me. Almost every one of them had a sympathetic look on their faces. I wanted the floor under me to open up and let me fall the thirty stories to the ground floor. Miles chuckled, “I didn’t know a face could get that red.” “Oh, you,” I said, slapping his arm, making him grin wider. “I’m fine. Sometimes negativity and rudeness get to me, and I need to take a minute. I didn’t think anyone heard me. I stuffed my face into some cloths.” “Yeah, well, the door wasn’t closed all the way, or else we wouldn’t have heard you.” I closed my eyes, of course. “Did he hear me?” “No, your breakdown is safe from him.” I let out a relieved breath. “You know what, I need a cookie and hot chocolate. I’ll be right as rain after that.” Miles chuckled again and nodded. We both went to the break room and munched on a cookie. “Is he always grumpy?” I asked. Miles tilted his head. “He’s just a no-nonsense type of individual. He isn’t really into all the holiday cheer. He works a lot, he never has any real downtime. I am actually surprised he’s going out tonight. Did I overhear you are going too?” “Yes, Mr. Knight invited me. I am having dinner with him first, and then we are meeting up with Mr. Williams.” “Jace, he wants you to call him Jace.” “I haven’t heard that from him yet. I feel like it would be rude of me to call him that without his express permission. Also, why didn’t you tell me he doesn’t like sweets?” “He doesn’t? Who says?” “He did. When he saw my cookies on his desk.” “Well, maybe he was mistaken. He loves sweets. In fact, crème brûlée is his favorite dessert. Also, he didn’t mean to say six a.m. You don’t have to be here until eight thirty.” “Oh, okay. That’s great then. I can make him some lunch. He said he liked lasagna. I’ll make another pan tonight and put it in the oven in the morning. I’ll also make him some garlic knots and crème brûlée for dessert.” I couldn’t help but smile. That should make him happy. I think maybe his office needs some cheer. I’ll get a little tree with little ornaments and silver garland. “Don’t let his attitude get to you, okay. He doesn’t really mean it.” “Thanks Miles,” I said, as we rounded the corner. Jace was standing there with his trash in his hands. “You are supposed to be at your desk, take this trash, and I need more coffee.” I bit my tongue from giving him a nasty retort. I nodded once and grabbed the three cartons he had in his hand and made my way to the break room. I threw everything away and made him a fresh cup of coffee. As I was making my way back, Derek, one of the office managers, came around the corner and bumped into me, making the coffee spill all over my hands. I let out a loud yelp because the coffee scalded my wrists and the cup went crashing to the ground. “Ashlynn, I am so sorry,” Derek said. “MOVE!” We both heard the roar, and we looked over his shoulder. All of a sudden, Derek was shoved aside, and I was swept up into strong arms. Jace ran back to his office and into his bathroom. He turned on the water in the sink, plugged it, and yelled at Miles to bring him some ice. “It’s okay, you’ll be okay,” he muttered, as he held my hands under the water. Miles came running in and dumped the ice in the water, making it colder. I could only stare at Jace. He looked frantic. “Hey, it’s okay, I’m fine.” “No, you’re hurt, look how red your hands are.” He sounded so upset. “I’m okay,” I whispered. He took a deep ragged breath. He stood up to his full height and looked at me, his cold mask back in place on his face. “You will call me Jace, no more Mr. Williams. You will not show up earlier than eight thirty unless I specify. You may take the rest of the day off. Put some burn cream on your wrists and hands, I will see you tonight when I pick you and Gray up.” He then left the bathroom. I stood there, stunned. My mind was in a whirl of confusion, as I wiped my hands off. I looked at my wrists. They were perfectly fine, just really red. Miles grabbed them, looked at them and nodded his head. “You’ll be fine,” he declared with a smile. “What just happened, Miles? He was frantic and then cold. I didn’t mean to drop the cup on the ground.” “Oh, no dear. That had nothing to do with his behavior. Jace suffers honey. He was in the military and he’s seen some things. His cold demeanor is a coping mechanism. It’s a way to not be vulnerable. Don’t mind him. Now, I want you to do as he says, and go home. I’ll see you tomorrow.” I nodded, still a little confused and left the bathroom. I looked at Jace’s desk, he had his head down as he looked at his cell. “Goodbye, Mr. Wi…” I stopped, his head snapped up, and he glared at me. I cleared my throat. “Goodbye Jace, see you tonight.” He nodded and looked back at his phone. I sighed and left his office. I gathered my things. I rode the elevator down still in deep thought as to why he was so concerned. When the doors opened, I gasped. A giant decorated Christmas tree was in the middle of the lobby with wrapped presents all around it. High in the ceilings were red and green garland and giant ornaments hanging from them. On a huge erected wall, what looked like five hundred stockings were hanging, and each had an employee name. None of this was here this morning. “Isn’t it fantastic?” I turned to the girl that was at the front desk. “Hi, I’m Ashlynn,” I said to her. “I’m Nicole. This is my second year here. I love it here at JTECH. Mr. Williams is a fantastic CEO. Did you know that every year at the company Christmas party, those stockings are filled with the yearly bonus? Even the cleaning crew gets a bonus. Last year I got a thousand dollars,” she squealed. My eyebrows lifted, that was impressive. “How many stockings are on the wall?” I asked. “Three hundred. That’s all the employees for the building except for the ones on the top floor. They have their own stocking wall, I hear. Where do you work?” “Oh, I am Mr. William’s PA.” She gasped and got stars in her eyes. “You are so lucky. He is so handsome. I would love to work on the top floor just so I could see him every day.” Yeah, but he can be a real jger'erk face. I thought, but then felt horrible, because he was really concerned when my wrists got burned. “Well, it was nice talking to you. I hope to see you around.” She waved as I walked away. I went through the glass door and pulled up my Uber app. I ordered an Uber and then looked up to people watch while I waited. It wasn’t snowing, thank God, but it was chilly. I heard a noise behind me and my jaw dropped. “Derek, what happened?” I asked. He was holding a cardboard box with all his office supplies in it. “I got fired,” he mumbled. “What? Why?” “I was told it was because I haven’t been using my work time efficiently. My reports have been sloppy and are missing information. Also, I was caught with top secret information on a thumb drive. I knew I shouldn’t have done it. But I was offered a lot of money by one of JTECH's competitors. The only reason I’m not going to jail is because I haven’t given any secrets away yet,” he said, looking down. “Oh, Derek, I don’t know what to say. That wasn't a very smart thing to do.” “Do you know the funniest thing? That all happened six months ago, I was already talked to about it all. But me bumping into you and burning your wrists, I guess, was the catalyst.” “Are you saying, I’m the reason you got fired?” I was taken aback at that. “You are. You must have a golden p***y to bring Jace Williams to heel.” I gasped, my hand flashed out and I slapped him. “You have no right to say something like that to me. None. I am not that type of person you a*****e. I’m glad you got fired now.” My Uber pulled up. I stomped to it and yanked open the door. After closing it I looked back at Derek and he was staring at me coldly. f**k him. I flipped him off as the Uber drove away.

Ashlynn Having so much time before eight, I decided to make some sugar cookies in the shapes of ornaments, Christmas trees, gingerbread men and stars. I made homemade frosting and divided it into five different bowls. I then dyed the frosting different colors. I had sprinkles, red hots, crushed candy canes, little colored edible chocolate balls and chocolate chips for decoration. For the next two hours, I decorated two hundred sugar cookies. I made another pan of lasagna and garlic knots and then made crème brûlée. I had Doordash get me a small fake Christmas tree with small ornaments and tinsel. I put the cookies in containers and put them in a cardboard box to make things easier to carry for tomorrow. I made three gallons of my father’s homemade apple cider and poured it into three one-gallon jugs. I was probably going to have to find someone to help me carry everything to the top floor tomorrow. I took an hour nap, got up, showered and shaved. I got ready for my dinner with Mr. Knight and then I called an Uber to take me to the Lemonde Hotel. I was excited to step into the grand place after being away for three years. I walked into the lobby and smiled. There was a beautiful fully decorated Christmas tree in the center of the lobby. Giant nutcrackers and toy soldiers were scattered about. Mr. Knight was standing next to the tree when I walked in. He smiled at me as I walked up to him. Grabbing my hand, he kissed it. I couldn’t help smiling wider. He was such a gentleman. “You look gorgeous,” he said, looking me up and down. I was dressed in a green velvet long-sleeved dress that was slightly off the shoulder and ended just above the knee. I had black stockings on and black t***h-high, high-heeled laced boots on. My black hair was piled on top of my head in a loose curled bun. I have silver dangling earrings in my ears and a black choker with a metal hollowed out silver heart in the center. My l**s were a bold red, and I only had black eyeliner and mascara on. “Thank you, you look very handsome. I was expecting another suit, but I really like the black satin dress shirt with the two buttons unbuttoned at the top, and the fitted black slacks with black dress shoes. You look very Italian Mafia.” He threw back his head and laughed. “Beautiful and funny, a dangerous combination. So my beautiful Ashlynn, what restaurant do you recommend we eat at?” “Well, Mr. Knight, I am in the mood for some steak smothered in Parmesan sauce and shrimp. So, how about we go to The Brand Steakhouse? It’s down the hall and to the left.” “Please Ashlynn, call me Gray and I love steak, let’s go.” He held his elbow out to me and I slipped my hand into the crook of his arm. We walked over, and the hostess sat us immediately. We gave our orders to the waiter and I sipped on a pink lemonade as we waited for our food. “So, Ashlynn, tell me a little about yourself.” “I’m a military brat. My father used to be a top chef for this hotel, but he is now a personal chef for the Mayor. I am twenty-five, single, and as you know, the PA to Jace Williams.” He narrowed his eyes and studied me. “That was very practiced. You said just enough to sound interesting, but there was nothing really too personal. I am the CEO of Knight Security. Any time I do business with someone, I look into the company. You being new, I had no information on you, so I did a little digging when I got back here after my meeting earlier. I know you were married to Ben Newsome. He was a complete and utter a*****e for what he did to you. I find you strong and courageous. And the cheery personality you have after everything you have been through proves that. You are very special. Now the little personal things are what I’d like to know. What do you like to do for fun?” I stared at him. He had caught me off guard with his background check. My marriage wasn’t something I hid, it was just something I’d rather forget. I took a sip of my lemonade. “I love to cook and bake and craft. It calms me, keeps me focused from intrusive thoughts. I normally don’t talk about myself, but I am a little miffed, so my sassy side is about to come out. So, you better brace yourself. Did your little research into me show you that I go to therapy three times a week because I suffer from PTSD and I have horrible nightmares, or that I am constantly trying to talk myself out of self harm. I don’t appreciate you digging into my past. What knowledge did you hope to gain by doing that?” He stared at me for a long time. The longer he stared, the more pissed I was getting. I was about to get up and walk out, but then he spoke. “I am sorry, Ashlynn. I have a dirty habit of doing background checks on everyone I meet. I am constantly looking for potential threats. It’s a product of my horrid upbringing. I’ll give you bosom-for-tat. My father was an abusive son of a beаch. Every time my mother gave birth to a girl, he beat my mother. My father gave every girl up for adoption. I have two older sisters and three younger ones out in this world. I have only found two. My youngest sister Brittney is skittish around me. I met her four years ago. I don’t know much about her upbringing, she doesn’t tell me much. She has a partner that she loves very much, and he treats her like a queen, so I am happy for her. The other sister I met is only two years younger than I am. She has a teenaged boy and a little girl that I adore. They are the lights of my life. I got to meet them a year ago. She’s currently pregnant with twins, and is due next month. She is marrying a biker that I wanted to hate, but he’s a really good man, and my sister is utterly in love with him. The adoptions my father did weren’t legal. He sold them to couples who wanted children desperately. I was the only boy my mother gave him. She finally killed herself after Brittney was born. I was ten, that was twenty-six years ago. So every girl I meet I do a background check on. Thankfully, you are not my sister.” “Thankfully?” “I am very attracted to you.” I could feel the blush that engulfed my face. He chuckled. “I’m flattered, Gray, but I don’t do h*****s. I am a relationship type of woman and I don’t do long distance.” “You devastate me. I could fall in love with you.” “You couldn’t possibly. You don’t even know me.” “You don’t believe in love at first sight?” “No,” I said, scoffing. He chuckled again, “Well, how about friends then?” “I would love that.” Our food came and I enjoyed myself. The food was delicious, Gray was funny. And smart. I could tell he cares deeply for his employees. He told me about each and every one of them. I was fascinated by two of them. “Wait, you’re telling me that two of your employees have multiple partners. One has two wives, and one has a wife that he shares with his adoptive brothers. Do he and his brothers,” I wiggled my eyebrows. He laughed. “No, they just share Nicole. They have a little girl named Aspen and twins, a girl named Illyanna and a boy DJ, and a newborn named Morris. Darius and his wives have a little boy named Nico and a baby girl named Josie. ” “Fascinating. I could never share like that. I am extremely jealous. Why aren’t you married with children? You’re thirty-six, I’ve read your profile. Is it something you are interested in?” “Deeply. I just haven’t met the right person yet. I like both men and women. I had a partner for ten years, but he died in a car accident. I just haven’t met anyone else I would consider to be with long term, but I like to f***t.” he said with a wicked grin. I grinned back. He was really harmless. We finished our dinner and decided on coffee for dessert. After we were done, we walked out to the lobby area to wait for Jace. We weren’t waiting long. He walked into the lobby in a charcoal gray dress shirt with the top two buttons undone. His sleeves were rolled up showing off his muscular forearms, his shirt was tucked into black dress slacks and he wore black dress shoes. His black hair was styled with the top slicked back, his sides short with a fade. His face was clean cut, and I was trying my hardest not to fking drool when his ocean blue eyes landed on me. I could feel myself becoming aroused just at the sight of him. A deep chuckle sounded from beside me. “I see now,” Gray said. “I’m sorry what?” He just shook his head, picked up my hand and kissed it. “Did you two have a good dinner?” Jace’s cold voice whipped out. I looked at him with a raised eyebrow. He was looking at me and not Gray. “I definitely did, the food was wonderful as I remembered it and the company was delightful,” I said, smiling over at Gray. “Yes, both the food and the company were to my liking.” He flashed me a flirty smile and I giggled and shook my head. He’d make a great best friend. Jace growled low in his throat and my head snapped to him. “Let’s get going, shall we?” he asked. I was shocked when he grabbed me by the hand and tugged me behind him. Gray let out another chuckle. What is so funny? When we got outside. The driver had the car door opened for us. Jace let me go first, and then he came in after me. That left the front passenger seat for Gray. “Oh, I can sit upfront,” I said. “No,” Jace snapped out. He picked up my hand and examined my wrist. He ran his finger over the skin. Shivers went up my arm. “Good, no burn. You look very beautiful,” he said, quietly to me. “Thank you,” I whispered. He was still caressing the skin at my wrist, I felt like I was going to combust. Thirty minutes later, we pulled up to a building with blacked out windows and concrete brick walls. There was a line around the building but Jace, with my hand still in his, walked us straight to the bouncer. “Jace, nice to see you tonight. Table for three?” “Yes, Tyson, and a bottle of peach champagne with one glass and two whiskeys.” Tyson nodded, “They heard everything.” “Excellent.” Tyson let us through the door to the g****s of the people in line. The club was unique. People danced, it wasn’t extremely crowded. The music wasn’t overly loud. The lighting was dim and flattering. There were no harsh white lights, or colorful strobes. I looked at the dancers. Everything looked sensual. A woman met us as we walked in, and she escorted us to a rounded booth. There was a stage in front of the dance floor. “Wait, is this a burlesque club?” I asked. “It is.” Jace said. Just then the music changed, the dance floor cleared, and the curtain on the stage started to clear. Seven scantily clad women were on stage in fishnet, lace and silk. Their hair and makeup were overly done, and they were in various poses. I squealed. “I’ve always wanted to come to a burlesque show. I tried to see one in France when I snuck out once with a bunch of friends. We couldn’t get into the club because we were too young. But I saw some of the dancers behind the building having a smoke, and I was in awe. I wanted to be one of those dancers.” “Well, I’m glad I am able to pop your burlesque cherry,” Jace whispered into my ear. I turned to him wide-eyed and he chuckled. Did he just make a dirty joke? The beat of the music started, and the girls sang and danced. The smile on my face felt like it was permanently glued there. Tonight something on my bucket list was crossed off, and it was all thanks to my grumpy boss.

Jace Watching her, I was mesmerized. Her eyes shone, and her smile was huge. I was on the side of her dimple and I wanted to stick my tongue into it. I’ve been hard from the moment I stepped into the lobby at Lemonde Hotel. She was stunning. Her dress clung to her curves and her br*asts looked like they were going to burst from the material. I just wanted to bury my face in her cIeevage. Gray couldn’t take his eyes off of her, and it irritated the hll out of me. Why? I didn’t know, but most likely because I didn’t like the way he was looking at her. I could see the pure want in his eyes. The f*cker better stop before I pluck his eyeballs out with my fingers. F*ck Jace, get a grip. I hadn’t meant to snap at her, but I was trying to control my temper. I wanted to choke Gray until he stopped looking at her. And he had better stop kissing her hand. That hand was mine. Okay, well, I mean, f**k who was I kidding, it was mine. I am fking obsessed with her. From the moment she bumped into me the first time at the therapist's office, she’s been on my mind. And having her around constantly, she isn’t leaving. I want her badly. I should probably call one of the women on my f**k list and ge't lаid. That was it, I just needed to ge't lаid. Ashlynn was wiggling in her seat to the music, she was mimicking some of the arm and head movements of the dancers. She was really into this. The performance was over and she clapped and yelled the loudest. I thoroughly enjoyed her enthusiasm. The slow sounds of White Christmas came on. I rolled my eyes. fking Christmas music in a burlesque club, really? “Would you like to dance?” Gray asked Ashlynn. Before I could snap out a no, she said yes, and they were off to the dance floor. I glowered at the two of them. One hand was low on her back, his pinky right at her bottom crack, the other held hers against his chest. They talked and smiled at each other and I hated it. She looked so happy. He looked like he wanted to lay her right on the floor and rut inside of her, not that I can blame him. She was stunning. I noticed other men looking at her and I wanted to go to each of them and snap their necks. “Baby it’s cold outside…” NOOOOOO. If I had known there would be Christmas music tonight, I would never have suggested this club tonight. I signaled for another whiskey, a woman in a red dress walked over to me. She smiled seductively and l****d her l**s. Her dress was cut so low, I could practically see the tops of her n*****s. It was long, but there was a slit up to her h*p. “Hello, handsome. Would you like to dance?” I looked at her, she was beautiful, her dark brown hair was styled long in an old fifties' hairstyle, her l**s were a bold red, and I could see them wrapped around my c**k except the image wasn’t doing anything for me. “No, thank you,” I said, finishing off the last of my whiskey, where was that other glass? “Oh, come on, you’re sitting here all alone, let me entertain you.” “No,” I said, uninterested. “How about this? You give me one dance, and if you don’t have any fun, I’ll leave you alone for the rest of the night.” “Look, I’m sure, with your looks, you can get any man in here to do as you wish. I, however, am not interested. You are now starting to sound desperate, and I’m bored. Now, if you’ll excuse me,” I said, getting up and walking out onto the dance floor. I tapped Gray on the shoulder, he looked at me and smirked. He turned back to Ashlynn and kissed her cheek, then walked off. I grabbed her around the w***t with one hand, and took her hand with the other and waltzed her around the dance floor. She stared at me, she didn’t say one word. I stared at her, devouring her face with my eyes. “Are you having fun?” She smiled, and my heart rate picked up. “Yes, very much. Thank you for bringing me to this club.” “Well, Gray was actually the one to ask you to come.” Her smile faltered and I could have kicked myself. “Yes, I’ll have to show him my gratitude.” “I think you flirting, smiling, and dancing with him has shown him how grateful you are.” She stiffened in my arms. The music ended. She stepped back from me and quietly walked away. I followed behind her. “I’m going to go. Thank you both for a lovely evening.” “What, why? "Ashlynn, let me call an Uber, and I’ll take you home,” Gray said. “No, I need to be by myself.” “I’ll take you home,” I said. “No,” she snapped. I froze, her eyes widened. “Remember, you’re my PA, keep your work phone on,” I gritted out. She nodded and grabbed her bag. Gray and I watched as she left. “You are a complete i***t,” he said to me, drinking his whiskey. “Excuse me?” “That woman is phenomenal. She is sweet, smart, capable, according to your staff, and bakes like a dream. She’s funny and charming. If she’s your PA, she obviously has great connections. If I were you, I would snatch her up and marry her. god, I’m half in love with her already.” “Well, become un-inlove with her,” I growled. “Is that even a word?” he smirked. “Stop lusting after my PA, she’s mine!” “Yours? Does she know this?” “I mean, she’s my PA, that’s it. Go get your own.” I left him at the table and texted Sly that I was ready to leave. I sighed, what is wrong with me? Why does she drive me to lose my temper? She doesn’t even do anything wrong. Sly pulled up and I got in. “Home, please,” I said to him. I didn’t mean to be so harsh with her tonight. Seeing her in Gray’s arms did something to me, it made me feel out of control. That woman coming up to me only made me realize that I just wanted to dance with Ashlynn. I wanted her, I’ll admit it, but I couldn’t do anything about it. She was my PA. I couldn’t complicate things between us. I pulled out my phone and scrolled through my contacts. I clicked on a number and waited for it to connect. “Well, hello there, I haven’t heard from you in a while,” said a sultry voice. “Are you available?” “Always for you,” she said. “I’ll be there in ten.” I hung up the phone and gave Sly an address to go to instead of home. I knocked on the door and it opened. Standing in front of me was a stunning blonde. She was all legs, standing at 5’ 10 in b**e feet. Her body was slender, her fake br*asts were high and perky, not too big, a good size for a man to hold on to. She was wearing a baby pink négligée that was lacy and see through. “Hi,” she said, stepping back. “How are you Harlow?” “Better now that you’re here. It’s been so long.” “I’ve been busy.” “Would you like a drink?” “No,” I said, unbuttoning my shirt. “Straight to it then,” she chuckled. I sat on her couch, my shirt halfway unbuttoned. She walked over to a shelf and picked up a remote control. Music stemmed out of hidden speakers. The music was slow and sultry, its beat full of promise. She stood in front of me and started swaying. She ran her hands up her sides and covered her br*asts, squeezing them. I sat back and watched her dance for me. She was beautiful and s*xy, and I couldn’t stop thinking of my dark-haired, honey-colored-eyed PA and her ample curves and bosom. I pictured her in front of me, sliding her hands all over her body, peeling off her dress for me. My c**k became instantly hard, and I had to adjust myself. Harlow m****d but I saw Ashlynn. I grabbed her by the w***t and brought her onto my l*p. She straddled me. “I want my c**k inside you. I’ve been wanting inside of you for days.” “All you had to do was call,” Harlow said, bursting the image of Ashlynn in front of me. I blinked my eyes rapidly. My c**k deflated. She leaned in to k**s me, and I turned my face. “This was a mistake,” I said as I pushed her aside and stood up. “What? What do you mean?” “I mean, I shouldn’t have come here, I don’t want this.” “You called me.” “Yeah, sorry about that. Maybe another time.” I opened her door and walked out rebuttoning my shirt. f**k! Sly was downstairs waiting for me. I got into the vehicle, startling him. “Sorry sir, I didn’t think you’d come out so soon.” “It’s okay Sly, take me home.” I stood under the shower, my hand around my c**k pumping furiously as I pictured Ashlynn on her knees, bottom up gathering napkins. I roared my release when she looked behind her with her big innocent eyes. f**k.