Total pages in book: 77
Estimated words: 75929 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 380(@200wpm)___ 304(@250wpm)___ 253(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 75929 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 380(@200wpm)___ 304(@250wpm)___ 253(@300wpm)
“Of course,” Teresa said, nodding.
“Miss Amato,” Soren said, reaching around behind my back, his arm grazing me in the process, so he could push the elevator button. “I am looking forward to working with you.” His words were said close to my neck, his breath teasing across my skin, making a shudder move through me. Luckily, only on the inside.
Thankfully, the elevator doors slid open just then, allowing me to move inside and put some much-needed distance between us.
“Of course,” I said, not even knowing if it was the appropriate response. It didn’t matter. Bass was beside me and the doors were closing.
But Soren’s gaze was on me until the doors blocked me from view.
I sank back against the wall of the elevator, letting out a shaky breath.
“Want to stop and wring out your panties now, or are you gonna wait until you get home?” Bass asked, shooting me a knowing grin.
“Shut up,” I said, whacking him across the chest.
“You looked like you were ready to strip naked right there in the glass room and offer yourself up as a gift of purchase.”
“What part of ‘shut up’ don’t you get?” I grumbled as we moved out into the lobby. “Nothing like that happened. You’re clearly seeing what you want to see. Maybe you want to fuck Soren.”
“It’s Soren now, is it?”
“That is his name.”
“Indeed it is, Miss Amato,” he said pointedly.
“I’m taking Serano with me Monday, not you.” At least I could count on him to keep his opinions to himself. The man rarely spoke.
“You already established me as your assistant, I’m afraid. You’re stuck with me now.”
“Somehow I doubt Teresa is going to be there Monday. So I think you should be back at ‘the office’ too.”
“Yeah, speaking of that. I was texting Renzo—”
“Behind my back?”
“Down, tiger,” Bass said, holding his hands up, palms out. “I’m working this job too.”
“If you put some asinine ideas in his head about—”
“Relax. I want this to go well just as much as you do. More, since I don’t have the respect in the family yet that you do. We weren’t even talking about you. Not directly.”
“What were you talking about then?”
“That we need to rent you an office somewhere. There might be a situation where Vale wants to see you at your office. We need somewhere to take him.”
“Right,” I agreed. “Well, I guess I can trust you to handle that.”
“Your faith in me,” he said, pressing a hand dramatically to his chest as we finally saw Serano pulling up out front of the building, “is touching. Truly.”
“Just make sure it’s fully functional, even if we don’t use any of it. Printers, paper, coffee machines, mugs, everything.”
“Yeah, I got it,” Bass said as we slid into the car. “I’ll go get that sorted today. You need to go get… freshened up,” he said, shooting me a smirk over his shoulder.
“Shut it.”
I glanced over at Serano, but he didn’t even seem to be paying us any attention.
But, damn Bastian, he wasn’t wrong.
And I had the weekend to try to build some defenses against Soren Vale.
I had a sinking feeling that it wouldn’t be long enough.
CHAPTER FIVE
Soren
The large rectangular plastic container dropped down on the desk in front of me.
“What the hell is this?”
“Naked pictures of me making pierogi,” Teresa said, deadpan. “It’s a salad; what does it look like?”
“It could feed a family of seven.”
“Yeah, well, me and Marty had a little Sunday afternoon date. Emptied out the trunk of the car and went to Costco.”
“You went to Costco on a date?”
“Hey, don’t knock it. Three blissful hours all alone, stocking up on essentials, then getting some cheap hot dogs at the food court? Bliss. Anyway, eat your salad. You don’t eat enough green.”
“I do when I cook.”
“What’s that, once a month? You’re never home.”
She wasn’t exactly wrong about that. I made it home just to sleep and shower most days. It just seemed pointless to be there when I could be at the office getting something accomplished.
“Get anything else good?” I asked, breaking off the plastic seal, then splitting half of the salad onto the inverted top to give to Teresa.
“A slice of meat as thick as my thigh,” she declared. “Marty’s gonna cook it off tonight. Which is why I’m glad to hear I’m getting outta work early for a change.”
She said it a bit pointedly. In a very ‘You better not back out on me’ kind of way.
“No, you’re free to go home and enjoy the steak as big as your thigh as soon as you’re done with whatever you’re doing.”
Teresa was always fiddling around in my office. Going through drawers, putting shit in the supply cabinet. This was no exception. She’d pulled a box out of the supply closet.
“Here it is,” she said, putting the white box down a few inches from my hand. “Came in this morning. I still think you’re an idiot for spending that much money to get it shipped here so fast, considering you’re going to be seeing this woman for months while you work on this project.”