Chapter 6
Ellie
Isit back down at my desk and take some deep breaths. Is he the world’s biggest asshole, or am I the one being unreasonable here?
That was, like, the fifth time I’ve seen him in this building.
I go without setting eyes on the man for years, and suddenly it feels like every time I turn a corner, he’s there.
Lurking. Filling the space with all his muscle, his bulk.
All his mind-melting physical perfection.
It’s not just the body either, though it is pretty distracting.
It’s the smile. The deep brown eyes. The way he gazes right at me, like I’m the only person in the entire fucking world. It was just the same in Morocco.
But look how that turned out. I wasn’t special to him at all. It’s obviously just a trick. Like the vampires in my beloved True Blood books, who can charm and glamor people by staring deep into their eyes.
Today, on top of everything else, he’d obviously been to the man-salon. He smelled divine, of cypress and cedar. His beard was freshly trimmed, his hair still damp. He looked amazing as he stood there, nose buried in my herb garden. A phrase that makes me blush even thinking it.
While I, of course, look like a car wreck.
I was working late on a new project, getting carried away with my research, and I barely noticed it was three a.m before I went to bed.
I forced myself to the gym for my reformer Pilates class, but it left me like a zombie the whole morning.
My hair’s a mess, I have no makeup on, and my ass looks enormous in this skirt.
It was the first clean thing I shoved into my gym bag.
Why, for once, can’t I bump into him when I look good?
You’re being silly, I tell myself. Get a grip, girl. You do look good, and anyway, it doesn’t matter. You don’t have to impress Maddox James. He is not the boss of you—his brothers are.
Speaking of, I was so startled when he offered to talk to them for me. Was he joking? Or did he think it was something I actually wanted him to do? Shit, do I come across as a helpless maiden in distress?
I grab my phone. Message Katy.
He was here again. There’s no escape.
I stare at the screen, waiting for her to reply. Katy has a great job at a New York publishing company, and like me she is devoted to her career, but she always makes time for me. She replies right away.
Have you considered hiring a hitman?
I snigger. Funnily enough, I do know a few of those. And I’d get family rates too.
I send some laughing face emojis interspersed with machine guns and go back to work. Mason has given me the lead on the fitness app project, and I’m determined not to let him down. It’s why I was up so late last night. It’s a product I believe in, and I want to do it justice.
Not everybody has the time or the spare cash to join a gym or have a personal trainer.
My classes feel like an essential, but I know they’re really a luxury.
There are lots of fitness apps on the market, but this one is great.
It’s different, more intuitive, and it can be personalized in so many different ways.
Users will be able to access fitness advice from experts, nutrition tips from the leading professionals, recipe ideas that cover all budgets.
It doesn’t matter if you’re shopping at Walmart or Wegmans, there’s something for everyone.
I love its inclusivity, the way it could fit into so many different lifestyles.
It has so much potential, and now I get to work on it, to be part of its success.
I’m getting myself fired up again. Putting my encounter with Maddox behind me and focusing.
Which feels great, right up until there’s a knock on the door and he pokes his irritatingly handsome face around it.
My nostrils flare and I feel like throwing my stapler at his head.
This man is not good for my inner peace.
“Yes?” I ask, coldly. I remind myself that he’s part of the James family and I need to control my inner bitch. “Can I help you, Maddox?”
He appears uncomfortable, hovering in the doorway, his substantial body crammed against the doorframe. Maybe he’s waiting for me to invite him in. I don’t.
“Yeah. I…uh. Well, I wanted to apologize. I came off as a bit of a misogynistic dickwad back there. It’s not what I intended, not who I am. I’d like to assure you that I don’t see you as weak, or as someone who needs my help, or any man’s help.”
Huh. Well, that’s not what I was expecting.
“Okay. Well, thank you for clarifying. Is that all?”
I appreciate a man who can pivot. Who can make an apology when he needs to. I also appreciate a man who can use the words ‘misogynistic dickwad’ without choking on them. But for some reason, I can’t quite unclench enough to express that.
I sound as warm as a polar bear’s ass.
He nods. I force myself to smile, even though it feels fake. He’s earned the effort at least.
“Thanks again then Maddox. It was good of you to explain. Now, I really do have work to do.”
He looks awkward, like he wants to say something else, but doesn’t. Then he slips out of my office, leaving me to stare at the finest ass I have ever seen in my life.