Chapter 10
I sit silently for the rest of the car ride back to Manhattan. I liked Rayne from our interview, but I hadn’t thought much about that initial impression. Now, I can’t help feeling like there is something more to her.
Aside from being her boss, she doesn’t seem to care about who I am, and I love that. I can feel myself letting my guard down when I’m around her, and
that’s such a rare occurrence for me. But, truthfully, I enjoy being around her, which is odd for me.
She even opened up to me about her experience with acting, and I respect her so much for it. It’s a tough industry, and accepting that your dreams might
not come true must be very difficult. But I think she is wrong. She mentioned not standing out, and that is far from the truth.
When I return to my penthouse, I sit down on the couch for a few minutes, flipping through the channels to find something to watch. I take a deep breath
and stare at a painting hanging over the TV stand. It’s a natural landscape with plenty of greens and a warm sunset shining through. I didn’t paint it, and I don’t think I could ever have that level of skill. But after talking to Rayne, I feel inspired.
I dig out my paints and a canvas from the hallway closet and start mixing colors. When the first brush stroke hits the blank white, my mind is completely
transfixed on what’s in front of me. Blues and greens mix with a soft peach color, and my hands follow some invisible outline as they bring my vision to life.
Everything else around me fades away. It’s just me, the canvas, and the brushes. My mind is blank and completely serene for the first time in ages. I’m not
worried about the business, relationships, or lack of tabloids – anything.
I pull away from the canvas after some time and look over what I’ve created. The painting is a pair of eyes. A woman’s eyes. Bright blue with specks of
green inside of them, there’s happiness inside of them that is magnetizing. I recognize the eyes immediately.
They’re Rayne’s eyes.
I set my brushes down and sit across from the painting. For the first time, I’m actually proud of what I’ve made. Of course, the eyes in the painting are
nowhere near as beautiful and vibrant as Rayne’s actual eyes, but I feel like I’ve done a pretty good job capturing them. I could stare at them all night.
I have to catch myself as my mind wanders. I’m her boss. Even if I do think she’s attractive and fun to be around, nothing can ever happen between us. It
would be extremely inappropriate, and the last thing I want is to have a scandal hovering over me like every other CEO.
I can see the headlines now: “Kapino Homes playboy CEO has a secret love affair with his assistant.” I can’t let something like that happen, not now when
my father trusts me to run the business in his steed.
I take a deep breath and exhale as I take one last look at her eyes before I pack up the canvas and put it back in my hall closet.