Chapter 9
Chapter Nine
LOLA
Yesterday was an utter whirlwind, what with the change in CEO and the fact that my new boss has not only seen my naked ass but is someone I know.
And loathe.
I used to worship him. I remember vividly the euphoria that swept through me when I was a kid and Enzo walked into a room.
He wasn't like the adults or other older kids who would sometimes turn up with their parents when Dad or someone had a meeting, a party, a get-together.
..it wouldn't matter what. He would be there.
He always had a genuine smile for me. And he always lit up the room as he made time for me, made me feel so special and seen.
And then... then he stopped.
Not just him, to be fair, but his family.
He was older then, when our parents fell out. So, he would have been working with his father. That was the thing I heard, how Enzo made his dad proud, how Enzo was learning the ropes and would take over.
Then the two of them set out to ruin Dad's life. And that light he made burn in me went out.
And now...
I hate him.
Every bone in me vibrates with that hate. More than hate, I don't trust him. Is he pretending to be CEO to finish me off the way they did Dad?
Okay, that part makes no sense. Louie Bradley wouldn't just stand back and let someone destroy his business to get to me.
It's not like people couldn't find me if they looked.
I'm not really a social media person, so tracking me that way might be hard. But Dad never found it hard to find people he needed to find, so why would anyone else?
Enzo wouldn't need to pretend to be a CEO.
And he wouldn't need to do that just to get to me.
He could buy out the street I'm living on in Brooklyn, an edge of Bushwick that isn't yet trendy for hipsters. And though the apartment is mine, the building it sits on top of, the bodega could probably be bought and rezoned. Anything is possible.
His family was loaded. In Chicago, we went to their mansion in Oak Brook, so maybe he doesn't need to pretend. Maybe Enzo does this on the side—buy companies.
I scoff. "And it's not something you will solve by pondering, Lola. Just get to work and don't give him a reason to focus on you."
I have a small corner cubicle where I work with a view of buildings and busy New York traffic, so since I can't leave—not until the PI, Silas, gets back to me—I get down to work.
The day passes as it usually does, with me working hard and diligently. But I start to notice more of an excited note in the air, people hurrying with smiles on their faces and some of the females with flushed cheeks.
Then I hear the low, sexy tones of Enzo's voice and laughter from one of the women in advertising, which isn't located far from me.
It is a big place for a startup, but Louie never struck me as poor. Besides, I'm sure some of the other floors where people work belong to other enterprises.
But Louie didn't flirt with his staff. He dated a lot of women. I know that because he would often have them meet him here and then lead them out in a cloying cloud of mega-expensive perfume.
But just as it wasn't my business what Louie did with whom, it is also not my business what Enzo does, so I lower my head and work.
The problem is, I can't tune him down as he is making the rounds, asking questions that don't sound like flirting at all. And when I go on my break, there are a few more people in there than usual, like everyone wants to gush over the new CEO.
He is sexy, apparently.
Open and friendly.
He is interested in how people are doing with their work, and he listens to complaints and questions. More than that, he holds actual conversations.
It makes my teeth set on edge like someone is scraping fingernails down my own personal chalkboard.
Enzo, it seems, likes to circulate when he can. He likes to chat.
And honestly, something like that would soothe the perfectionist in me—how the new boss wants to get up to speed with what people are doing and how they are doing it.
If only it wasn't Enzo Marino.
The people-pleaser persona isn't something I would put him down as, but he really seems to want to put people at ease and know about everything.
I think the hands-on boss thing would have made me happy when I started. But now? Not with the hands-on boss being Enzo, the man I'm still so angry with, the man I hate.
So much so that I cut the break early and go back to my cubicle to work.
I'm half an hour in when there is a knock on the low outside wall of the cubicle.
Gritting my teeth, I prep myself with as much cold steel as I can find and turn to face Enzo.
Only it is not him.
Ruby smiles dreamily at me, and she is even more of a knockout than usual. Her hair tumbles down, and she is wearing a red dress today that shows off her curves and makes her lips redder. The blush on her cheeks just adds to the attractive-o-meter.
I frown. "What's that look for?"
She doesn't even seem to register any note of harshness from me.
"Enzo, the new CEO. Isn't he amazing? He's so fucking sexy that I'm honestly not sure how to get work done.
" Ruby drops her voice. "I'm also not sure if I should play stupid and pretend I'm struggling just to get some one-on-one time with him. "
"Ruby!"
She shrugs. "It used to work in high school. Pretend I'm dumber than the guy and have him ask me out after puffing out. Of course, the guys would always be wrong, but whatever...my grades never suffered. I didn't want them for their brains. I just wanted a boyfriend, or at least a date."
I can't see anyone not falling over themselves to date her. Sometimes, men stop her on the street when we walk to ask her out. It is eye-opening.
And she is now contemplating pretending to be inept to have some one-on-one with Enzo?
She sighs. "He's amazing, isn't he?"
I press my lips together and bite my tongue to stop myself from saying he most definitely isn't amazing.
She fans herself. "And hot, right?"
That one might be true, but hot doesn't mean good.
So, I go for the generic nod, and then I make a sound. "Mhmmm."
Ruby arches her brow, coming out of her dreamy mode. "So, you agree?"
"I said mhmm. It is a yes."
"Okay. So, why do you look like you gargled with industrial-strength cleaner?"
I smile. "Did you know mouthwash was floor cleaner put to another use?"
She looks at me uncertainly. "I don't think—" She stops and shakes her head. "Do not distract me. And answer my question."
Fuck.
I try to think of something that won't make me admit his hotness but also won't make me sound like a fawning fan.
"Ruby," a low, sexy voice says behind her as shivers slip down my spine.
I don't have a door on my cubicle, it is an open-plan floor.
And Enzo is now towering over her.
He stops me from having to answer, and it is a gray area on whether I should thank him or curse him.
"Enzo," she says, basically purring. "How are you? Anything I can help you with?"
I'm shocked when he doesn't melt in a puddle of flaming lust.
"Do you mind if I speak to Lola?" he asks, with nothing more than a polite and friendly smile.
I do not want to be alone with him.
And I try to convey that to her through telepathy.
Ruby, the traitor, turns and flutters her eyelashes at him. "You can. She's all yours."
His pleasant smile doesn't slip an inch as he glances between us. His gaze finally settles on me. "In my office, Lola, before the end of the day, please."
Somehow, I manage to stammer out, "Very well."
And then he turns and walks off, and I pin my smile on hard, right as Ruby spins back to face me down.
Her eyes narrow as she points in the air back at him and then to me. "What was that about?"
"I don't know." I keep it breezy, ignoring the scrabbling in my stomach and veins. I itch all over. I'm hot and cold and don't know what to do. "Maybe he wants to tell me what a good job I have been doing?"
Or maybe he noticed the death stares and avoidance tactics I have rolled out in his direction. Because I have done that—usually when I figured no one was looking, when I thought he wasn't, but...
Maybe he caught me.
The thought makes my stomach plummet and slam into my feet.
Oh, hell, maybe it is a reprimand—or worse.
He is firing me.
I can't afford to lose this job.
And while I know that if I have to, I will quit, use the last straw thing up my sleeve, I understand what being fired means.
Quitting is one thing. Getting canned is another entirely. Because getting fired means people won't want to even look at my CV.
I try not to hyperventilate.
Ruby is standing there, staring, so I brighten that fake smile.
It is clear she is trying to work out why he wants to see me.
"Sooo...you and him..."
"There's no me and anyone, Ruby."
"Not what I meant." Ruby claps her hands. "He wants to see you. Maybe a date?"
"He's the CEO. Not a date."
She sniffs. "It happens all the time."
"Nope, not that."
"Well, he's noticed your work ethic. Whatever it is, he's impressed. Lucky you!" Her grin is real.
I can't help it. I roll my eyes. "In that case, I'm anything but lucky, Ruby."
She is too busy looking wistfully after him to notice my sour comment. "Maybe he will call me in for some alone time, too. I can share. And boy, does that man know how to wear a suit."
"I hope so. Otherwise, he'd be incompetent."
"So damn hot." She sighs. "No ring, but he's probably got a girlfriend. I'm going to Google him!"
With that, she takes off, and I blow out a shaky breath.
I want to get up and go to his office now, but I make myself wait.
The project I was working on is done and has been done for the past twenty minutes. I have been doing busy work, but finally I can't take it anymore.
I smooth my pants, and then I make my way to the elevator, feeling like a hundred eyes are poking me in the back as I go.
Since no one decides to use the elevator, the ride is short to the top floor where his office is, and I step out into the lush foyer. A forbidding personal assistant sits behind a desk.
He eyes me with a death stare, making me pause and stop.
"I'm Lola Carino-Winters. Mr. Marino asked to see me."
He somehow manages to look down his nose at me from his sitting position. "Take a seat. I will check if his schedule's free and if he's in."
"You do that."
"I will. Who knows how long it will take or even if Mr. Marino has time."
Somehow, I manage not to roll my eyes. I sit on one of the beige chairs, ignoring the sofa, and pick up a magazine from the coffee table. I have no idea what it is, I'm not reading it, just flicking through to give me something to do.
The minutes stretch until suddenly the assistant puts down the phone he has been murmuring into and steps out from behind his desk. "Mr. Marino will see you now."
He leads the way.
"Close the doors behind you, Luke," Enzo doesn't lift his head from over the computer.
The doors click, and I stand there.
Slowly, he raises his head, and our eyes meet.
The silence stretches taut.
"You're all grown up." He takes me in like he is cataloguing every inch of me, and it is very disconcerting how it makes my insides flutter.
"So are you." My words come out a little breathy.
Enzo gestures to a seat. "Sorry about your dad."
I just bet you are.
I bite my tongue as I remain standing. "I'm sorry if I have been less than professional dealing with you. Please don't fire me. I can—"
"Lola."
The quiet sound of my name somehow soothes, and I close my mouth.
"This isn't about your attitude or who you are. I have been looking at the files, seeing the work output."
Oh, fuck. Is he firing me and blaming it on poor performance?
He closes the file. "You know there's a promotion for someone in data analysis."
I frown and nod. "I haven't been here long enough for that."
"Thing is, you more than qualify." He makes another gesture to the seat on the opposite side of his desk. "Your work, your degree— all of it. But I have got a conundrum."
"Well, I'm not a businessperson, so—"
"Louie wants Luke to come with him. They have worked together for years, so I was wondering, for a big pay raise, if you'd take on the promotion and the task of managing my office."
I gape at him.
After a few seconds, I clear my throat. "That's...a lot."
"It sounds like it, yes. But I handle most of my stuff myself. It is just the odd call and seating people in the waiting area on occasion."
"But you're the CEO..."
He smiles. "I run things differently. Trust me, I won't have many visitors, and you can treat the reception desk as your own office. I will pay for both jobs, obviously. What do you say?"
And then he tells me the amount of the pay raise.
The word astronomical wanders through my head, making me reel.
I'm gobsmacked. That is what I say. I mean, I don't say it, but I would if it didn't get me out on the street. Or if I could find my voice.
But all that extra pay is like a godsend. And it doesn't sound like more work. Probably some extra hours each week, but...
It means I would be answering directly to him.
Eagerness surges up and fills me until it is slammed down into dust by reality.
He is offering a hell of a lot of pay for a nice promotion that is not nearly worth even a quarter of the number, and a seat in a room next to his.
Is this so I can, what? Do his bidding when he wants it?
It is not a deserved promotion. I haven't been picked for the reasons he is saying.
A smart boss would give the promotion a couple of weeks before settling on a candidate, especially a smart, new boss...and that boss would hire a replacement for Luke, not get a data analyst to do reception duty. Even if that duty is, as he claims, very much on the low side.
It all makes depressing sense.
All of it.
I haven't worked for this, and I don't deserve it.
He either wants to control me or placate me, or something like that.
Maybe they are both the same thing.
I don't know, and I don't fucking care.
"What's the catch? Because we both know it is too much money, and I haven't been here long enough to get that kind of promotion."
"As your boss, I do things my way, on my schedule, not Louie's."
It makes surface sense, but I'm not convinced. "Maybe. But it is still too much, even with reception duties thrown in."
"He's a personal assistant."
"So?" I swallow.
I have an idea of what he might want. And I'm about to voice the worst thing ever to my boss, a man I have secretly known for years. A man who could crush me down and any future with one word.
And I don't care.
I glare at him. "Is this your way to toy with me? Or maybe of getting me into bed?"