Chapter Seven
CHAPTER SEVEN
Stella
T he next morning, my heart’s beating like crazy. I push through the revolving doors of Maddox Industries expecting to be told I no longer have a reason to be in the building, but the security guard scans my badge, x-rays my purse, and waves me through. I still have a job, but that’s small consolation. I could be Elmer’s assistant, scrubbing toilets while he walks around outside on his smoke breaks.
I reach the basement, and Connie’s already sitting in our corner. Meeting my gaze, she raises her eyebrows.
Wearing his usual dress shirt, tie, and dress slacks, Simon pokes his head around the doorjamb of his office. He’s grinning from ear to ear as he beckons to me across the floor full of cubicles. I don’t slip off my coat. Maybe I’ll still need it.
“Stella! Good morning! Sit down, sit down.”
I want his excitement to rub off on me, but I can’t let it. “What’s going on?” I ask, perching on the edge of one of his chairs.
“I have excellent news. You’ve been promoted, and so have I.”
I blink. I never applied for a promotion. “What?”
“This morning I received an email from HR. You were promoted—all the way up to the top. Mr. Maddox, well, Zane, requested that you be his new executive assistant.”
Stunned, my mouth drops open.
Anger and joy fight inside me. The pay increase will be significant, but the position isn’t stable. Obviously, it’s contingent on how well Zane and I get along. Executive assistants know their bosses inside and out. They need to have a camaraderie.
A trust.
Does Zane trust me enough to let me handle, or have a hand in, everything he does at the company?
I don’t feel qualified for a position of that magnitude.
“You must have impressed Zarah on Friday,” Simon prods, hoping I’ll say something.
“I...guess so.” There’s no way I’m going to admit I partied with them over the weekend, though my picture outside Temptations will come out soon enough. Maybe it already has. “What about you? You seem pretty happy, too.”
“The promotion I applied for last year finally went through. As much as I adore all you lovely ladies down here, I’m moving up to the Finance department effective today. My last duty in the dungeon is having you sign the transfer slip.”
Simon pushes an iPad toward me and offers me a stylus. If I sign, I’ll be Zane’s assistant. My desk will sit outside his office on the twenty-fifth floor. Quite a step up from payroll in the “garden level.”
I don’t know Zane well enough to trust him, but he hasn’t tried to seduce me and that gives him points.
He had a nightmare as the sun came up, and to quiet him, I gave him a blowjob, trailing kisses over his belly to his erection. He fell right back to sleep after he found his release between my lips. I wondered all day yesterday if he remembered, but he didn’t text or call.
I scrawl my name on the screen, my hand shaking so terribly it doesn’t look like my signature at all.
This job is going to require parties, meetings, dinners, even business trips, and I’m not ready.
My stomach churns as I clean out my cubby. I tell Connie I was promoted and she gives me the stink eye. She’s not stupid, and she immediately puts two and two together.
“You and Zarah Maddox are besties now,” she says, scorn dripping from her words.
“She doesn’t have anything to do with it.”
That’s not a lie. This is all Zane.
Connie doesn’t believe me, and she snorts. “Take care of yourself.”
There won’t be any reason for me to come down here to see her.
I hug Simon goodbye. Unless we meet up to have coffee and chat or bump into each other in the elevator, I won’t be seeing him again, either.
“Good luck, Stella. You got this.”
My smile wobbles. I hope so.
Juggling my purse, coat, and a small cardboard box carrying my few things, I ride the elevator to the executive floor. The car lets me out into a huge lobby where four receptionists answer phones.
Tall white letters hanging behind them on a black wall spell out Maddox Industries .
If payroll is the dirt of the company, the twenty-fifth floor is the flower, what the public sees, what the clients see. I wonder if I’ll have a clothing allowance—I can’t be Zane’s assistant dressed like this.
“Miss Mayfair?” A glamazon approaches me, her arm stretched out in welcome. I can’t shake her hand, and I lift my box instead.
She laughs. “I’m so sorry. My name is Harper. I’m Mr. Denton’s assistant.”
I don’t know who Mr. Denton is. Someone involved with running the company, but Harper speaks as if I should know him. It reminds me of how far removed from reality I am. I want to see Zane and thank him for the opportunity, but I also want to kill him.
“Nice to meet you.” Hopefully, I’m making a good impression. The ladies who work on this floor will be my mentors, my allies, until I can fit in and do the job on my own. If any of them take a dislike to me, my position will become miserable very quickly.
“Zane, Mr. Maddox, asked me to show you where your desk is located and to give you a tour of the floor. He’s in a meeting right now, but he said he would join you for a coffee break at ten-thirty to speak with you about your duties.”
Harper leads me to a massive desk, a state-of-the-art Mac desktop sitting on the gleaming surface. A phone that has too many buttons to count is positioned next to it, lights blinking and dimming at an alarming rate.
She notices my dismay, opens the top drawer, and lifts out a white box containing a sleek, brand new iPhone. “Don’t worry about the phone. The receptionists handle most of that. Zane prefers you use a cell. We’re all so pleased he came into the office this morning. These last six months have been so hard on everyone.” Resting a hand on my shoulder, she continues, “When he asked me to show you around, he was almost smiling—you must have blown him away during your interview. Whatever you need from me, ask. I’ll do whatever it takes to keep that smile on his face.”
“Thank you,” I murmur.
Is Zane really that happy I’m going to be his assistant?
Ash’s warning rings through my brain. What will this look like? Zane will defend me, won’t he? It isn’t any of Ash’s business what I do, but he’s made it his business to protect his friends.
I follow Harper around the executive floor, and she shows me where the restrooms are, where the breakroom and coffeemakers are located if Zane ever asks me to fetch a mug for him or if I need to serve it during a meeting. The luxurious conference rooms are equipped with flat screen TVs, leather chairs, and long, shining tables that look like they cost as much as a car.
She introduces me to more people than I can keep track of, but everyone seems to know me. By the time we’re done, my head is whirling, but I feel welcome.
“I’ll leave you alone to get settled. Check your email. HR will have sent your sign-on package. If you have any questions, email them or you can ask me. Welcome aboard, Stella. We hope you like it here.”
“Thank you,” I say, sinking into my chair and jiggling the smooth white wireless mouse to wake my computer. There’s already a plaque on my desk that has my name engraved on it, and a small stack of business cards sits next to it. Black, they have the Maddox Industries logo in the corner.
Stella Mayfair. Executive Assistant.
The title is followed by a cell number, my work email, and a landline that must be connected to the phone on my desk.
Either Zane has been planning this since the moment we met or he has a very efficient staff.
Ten-thirty comes quickly, and I’m finishing writing down a message for Zane when a door opens down the hallway and he and two older men step into the corridor. He sees me and brightens. It’s difficult to stay annoyed, but I remind myself that my position is safe for only as long as I capture his fancy.
“Stella,” he says, approaching my desk.
One of the men slaps him on the shoulder, but Zane doesn’t acknowledge him. He’s staring at me, a dopey smile on his face, and I need all my willpower not to smile back.
“We need to talk,” I say.
His smile falls and I kick myself, but Maryanne’s words surface and triggers what little common sense I have left. Take care of yourself.
Zane doesn’t need to work. No matter what he does, he’ll have food, somewhere to live. If something happens to my job, I may not be so lucky. I’m only one or two paychecks away from not being able to pay rent or falling behind on other bills. The world is a cruel place, and I learned that a long time ago.
“Okay. I was hoping you weren’t going to be mad about this.”
I follow him into his office, and I look out the wall of windows. The view is amazing. I walk across the carpet, my heels sinking into the thick piling, and I rest my hand against the cool glass. My entire apartment could fit inside this room. Twice.
Zane hugs me from behind, holding me close to his hard chest. He whispers in my ear, “Please don’t be mad.”
I can’t be angry, not the way he asks, but my needs come first. “You know I need this job,” I say, trying to think of how I can describe how much I depend on my salary to someone who’s never had to worry about money.
He turns me so we face each other. He’s extremely handsome wearing a black suit and black and silver tie, but it’s the look in his eyes that steals my breath. Tender. Sensitive. He touches my cheek. “I know you do, and I know how you would feel if you thought our relationship got you this promotion. It did, kind of—”
“I don’t want to be accused of sleeping my way up the Maddox Industries ladder,” I bite out.
“Stella, will you let me explain?”
I cross my arms against my chest.
Zane paces, rubbing the back of his neck. “I need you here. You ground me.”
I want to scoff, but the pain shooting through his eyes stops me.
“This morning was rough. Getting ready for work, coming downstairs. Knowing I’d be working without my father. Knowing I’d have to make choices, give directions I’m not ready to give. And while I was knotting my tie, putting on my shoes, I thought, I can do this because Stella will be there. She’ll be my strength. And you are. I came out of that meeting, and it was like everything fell into place, seeing you sitting there.”
My throat burns. I had no idea he was thinking all that, but his voice rings true and I believe him.
“Please don’t be mad,” he murmurs. “Don’t be mad I need you.”
When he phrases it like that, it’d be stupid to be angry, but no matter how he feels, my security has to come before his. “If we don’t get along, or something happens...”
“You didn’t read the transfer packet HR sent you, did you?”
I shake my head. I didn’t have time.
“If, for any reason, your position is terminated, either by you or by us, your end-of-employment package includes a one million dollar severance payout. It doesn’t matter if you decide to work at a competing company. It doesn’t matter if you get caught embezzling. No one can deny you that severance pay.”
A million dollars. I would never have to work again, if I was very careful. But... “I don’t want you to think I’m in it for the money. I only want to be able to support myself, and this is hard for me, risking my financial security for you.”
“I know, that’s why I did it. No one else receives that big of a severance package. I knew you’d feel like this, and I wanted to take that risk away. I wanted you to be comfortable accepting this promotion. You’re one of the kindest, sincerest people I know. Give this a chance. Please.”
Zane fixed it so I can’t lose.
“Okay.”
He lets out a huge sigh, and he rests his forehead against mine. “Thank you.”
“I should be thanking you ,” I say.
“No need. Trust me, I’m getting a lot more out of this than you are.”
I don’t agree, but I don’t argue. “Then I guess I should get back to work.”
These first few months will feel awkward and strange. I’ll have to ask Harper about some training because there’s software on my computer I have no idea how to use.
“There’s something I need you to do first,” Zane asks.
I wait for him to tell me he wants a good fuck over his desk in exchange for promoting me.
Nothing ever comes free.
He loosens his tie and tips his head back. “I’ve asked the FBI to give me an update on my parents’ plane crash. It would mean a lot if you could sit in on the meeting with me.”
That’s the last thing I thought he would say, but I’m honored he asked and feel like shit I expected his worst behavior. I need to give him a chance, or I’ll be the one to sabotage this new position...and our relationship. “Of course I will.”
“Thank you. It’s hard for me to hear—” He stops abruptly, trying not to cry. He clears his throat, finding control. “It’s hard for me to hear they don’t have any new information, but we have to keep searching. I have to know what caused the crash.”
I let him nudge me toward a leather loveseat, and I sink next to him and rest my head on his shoulder. He links our fingers together, and we sit in silence, the sun blazing through the floor-to-ceiling windows.
“I should—”
“Kiss me,” he says, and he covers my mouth with his.
His lips are firm and soft, and his tongue slips between my lips. Only moments later I’m slick and aroused, and mist covers my skin. Zane can do that to me. It’s scary how fast he can turn me on.
He does nothing more than kiss me, even though I widen my knees in invitation. I want him touching me. His fingers teasing me to orgasm. He leans away and unbiddingly, I groan. He chuckles, and I revel in the low, gravelly sound.
He’s lost so much in his life. I want to replace some of it—if I can.
Zane tugs me to my feet. “They should be here any minute.”
“Zane, I...” I don’t know what to say, how to comfort him without making promises I may not be able to keep. I’m twenty years old and have no family, no breeding, no skills besides being able to adjust a worksheet full of messed up debits and credits to make them match.
I feel woefully ill-equipped to give what a man like Zane Maddox needs to be whole.
“I’m falling in love with you, Stella,” he says.
My heart chills, even as it soars.
I don’t know how I can be enough, but maybe Zane doesn’t need me to be anything more than what I am.