18. Daisy
DAISY
On Monday morning, I whistled as I sat behind my desk, going through my emails. It was only eight o’clock, and I already had enough tasks to fill the whole week. This job wasn’t for the fainthearted.
My door was open, and I kept an eye on the corridor, waiting for the boss to arrive. I had no idea how things would be between us after this weekend.
Stop that. You said you weren’t going to think about it anymore.
When ten o’clock passed, I started to get worried. Why was Anthony not here yet? I decided to text him when I realized he already had.
Anthony: I won’t be at the office today. The jazz competition is finishing up, remember?
Daisy: Do you need me there? I can come over quickly.
Anthony: No need. I’ll sort things out here and then head over to talk with Gregory about the next festival.
I bit the inside of my cheek.
Daisy: What happened to shadowing you?
Was there a reason he didn’t want me there? That couldn’t be. I was simply overthinking things .
Anthony: We have to come up with a different system because you shadowing me will only result in my seducing you in all sorts of inappropriate places.
I grinned. He couldn’t keep his hands off me, huh? That was hot, hot, hot but also problematic.
I didn’t want this to get in the way of me doing my job and being the best assistant he’d ever had. So I rolled my shoulders back and cleared my throat as if I was preparing to give a speech.
Daisy: Anthony, we’re consummate professionals.
He replied almost the second I sent it.
Anthony: I have no doubt you can be. I’m just not sure I can.
Well, well, well. I was feeling very full of myself right now.
Anthony: I’ll tell you if I need you.
That was good enough for me. Truth be told, I did have enough to do even without trailing after him. Actually, maybe it was better that he wasn’t here. Knowing he was on the other side of the wall would certainly be a huge temptation. But as it was, I didn’t have any distractions.
That was until the afternoon, when Dorothy came in.
“Hey, Daisy,” she said.
“Hey.”
“You got a delivery.”
I frowned.
She put a cup of coffee in front of me. “This came just now. I figured you ordered it.”
I smiled at her, realizing I had to keep up appearances.
“Thanks a lot for bringing it to me.”
“Sure.” She was also carrying a box under one arm.
“Do you need help with that?”
“Oh no. This is for me.” She grinned. “When I know I’ll be at the office, I order stuff to be delivered here.”
“Great thinking.”
After she left, I immediately took a sip, figuring it was coffee. To my astonishment, it was hot chocolate with a sweet topping—not caramel, though. Was it almond? I took another sip. Yes, it was.
I smiled wide as I checked my phone.
Anthony: Hope that makes the afternoon slump better.
Daisy: This is delicious. Love the almond topping. Do you like it?
Anthony: Hell will freeze over before I drink hot chocolate. Like I said, the only way I’ll taste it is off your body. I already have some very specific things I want to do with it.
I pressed my thighs together, taking a deep breath. We didn’t even need to be in the same place to behave unprofessionally.
I smiled, sipping from my drink, deciding which way to play this. I could encourage him, but I didn’t think that was a good idea. Not in the middle of the day anyway.
As if reading my thoughts, Anthony messaged again.
Anthony: Forget I wrote that. How about this? We’ll only flirt in person.
What? No! That was dangerous. I called him right away.
“Anthony,” I whispered. “That’s playing with fire, don’t you think?”
“Definitely, but I don’t care. I just want to be with you.”
Swoon.
“Will you be at the office today?” I didn’t want him to stay away either. I needed my daily dose of Anthony. How had that happened?
“No, but I promise I’ll drop by tomorrow.”
“Okay.” I wanted to add something more but didn’t know exactly how to phrase it without sounding flirty or needy, so I just went with “I’ll have all those reports you asked for by the end of the day.”
“You truly are the best assistant I’ve had, Daisy.”
Even though it was a compliment, I started to feel uneasy.
I knew Samantha would eventually find me something else, though now I wasn’t too excited about leaving Anthony.
I really liked my job even though I knew this couldn’t go on like it had been.
We couldn’t work together and date. But my boss was flirting the pants off me and sent me hot chocolate, so I wasn’t going to complain about anything.
I was determined to simply savor it for now.
After hanging up, I noticed a message from Samantha.
Samantha: Daisy, I’ve got a last-minute position that popped up as a senior marketing manager in the food industry. The company is Farm&Garden. Job description attached. Let me know if you’re interested, and I can set up an interview for today.
Wow, that was fast. My heart beat furiously as I opened the attachment she’d sent and quickly glanced over it. Sounded interesting enough, and it was located here in New Orleans, which made me a lot more excited about the job.
Daisy: Yes, please. I’m free after 5.
Samantha: Perfect. I’ll set something up.
Samantha: By the way, I’ve got a lead on a job in North Dakota too. Want me to keep you in the loop?
Daisy: Sure, why not?
I wasn’t too into it, though. I’d much rather find something here.
My heart was racing as I put my phone down and went back to my tasks. This could work out. If I changed workplaces, I wouldn’t have to worry about Anthony being my boss.
God, I was already making far too many plans, but I couldn’t help myself. I didn’t like to count my chickens before they hatched, though, so I took a deep breath and got back to work.
The interview with Farm&Garden went surprisingly well.
It was online, so I didn’t even have to leave my apartment for it.
I had a good feeling when we were done. And when I came into the office the next morning, I still had a good feeling.
I’d clicked with the three interviewers, but they said they needed some time to get back to me.
I was so focused on hitting the ground running that I forgot to check if Anthony was here. So, when I got to my desk and heard his voice in the doorway, low and raspy, I startled.
“Good morning, beautiful.”
I turned around, flashing him a lazy smile. He stepped inside and immediately closed the door.
I gasped. “Anthony, what if Dorothy sees us?”
“It doesn’t matter. She works for me, not the other way round.”
“Why did you close the door?”
He turned around, looking at me intently. “Because I never know how fast I’m going to lose control.” He approached me with quick steps. “It’s not even a matter of if anymore, just when .”
I licked my lips. “But won’t all the others know?”
He paused in the act of tilting toward me. “They won’t.”
“Well, then… since you’ve already closed the door…”
We had boundaries, but I didn’t care about them anymore. He covered my mouth, kissing me desperately.
Holy shit! I wasn’t expecting this to be so hot. My entire body vibrated. The edge of the desk cut into my ass as Anthony pressed me against it. I’d melted against his mouth when he suddenly pulled away.
“Fuck. I can’t do this,” he whispered.
“What?”
“Knowing you’re next to me will be my undoing. I’ll come in here all the time.”
I grinned. “That does seem very likely.”
Stepping back, he cleared his throat. “There. We have our boundaries, and I’ll respect them, even if it means putting in extra effort to stay away from you.”
I pouted. “What’s that supposed to mean? You’ll just ignore me? ”
“Stop pouting or I’ll kiss you again.”
I pressed my lips together, and he smiled before leaving my office.
To my astonishment, he didn’t burst in for the rest of the day.
In the afternoon, Dorothy came in again. “Hey, another hot drink for you.”
“Oh my goodness. They’ll have to tell me when I get a delivery so you don’t always have to carry it up for me.”
“Don’t worry. I have a very good rapport with the kitchen staff, and they tell me whenever they’ve got deliveries. I don’t just randomly go downstairs.” She did have another box under her arm. At least she hadn’t gone specifically for me.
“Thanks a lot.” I took the cup from her and debated going into Anthony’s office. But then I remembered his plans about me and the hot chocolate: drinking it off me.
Hmmm…he didn’t mean it, did he? I supposed I could find out.
Oh boy. Of course he’d go through it. This was Anthony LaBlanc.
Instead, I texted him.
Daisy: I got my treat. Thank you so much.
I took a sip and sighed. It had pistachio topping.
Daisy: This one is delicious too.
Anthony: I’m glad you like it.
Daisy: What’s the plan? Have them bring me one with a different flavor every day?
Anthony: That is exactly the plan.
I stared at his message, feeling overwhelmed. He’d really planned that?
I realized at that very moment that this man was climbing into my heart. And it wasn’t quite as scary as I thought.
Only now I wanted to go into his office and thank him for real.
I’d just stood from my desk when my phone beeped with an incoming call from Annelise. That was not typical. Why would she be calling during the day? We both worked .
My heart started to beat a bit faster. What if something bad happened? But I’d just spoken to my mom this morning. Still, she wouldn’t call without a reason. I answered right away.
“Hey,” I said.
“I’ve got some bad news,” Annelise said, and my heart sank.