Page 24 of The Ice Queen in the Corner Office

He turned right and started down the street, heading toward the center of downtown.

I sucked in a deep breath and admired the twinkle lights decorating the street and some of the nearby buildings as we walked together. I tried to ignore his gaze on the side of my face, but he didn’t look away, even though we were walking, and he was risking running into someone or something.

The more time I spent with Alex, the clearer it was becoming that he wasn’t like anyone else, and nothing like what I’d assumed.

I stopped in the middle of the sidewalk and glared at him. “Why are you staring at me?”

He stopped, not shrinking from my glare, though larger men than him had been scared off by it. “I love your smile. Not the plastic smile you use in a business meeting or with staff at work, the real smile you had before you scowled at me.”

I wanted to stomp my foot and growl, to yell at him to stop being so charming and so…So…Damn likable. I could handle him sexy when he was an arrogant jerk, I couldn’t handle him sexy and kind.

“I don’t have a plastic smile.”

“What were you smiling about?”

I huffed and started walking again. Unfortunately, he kept pace.

“Ah,” he said. “It’s okay. You can admit you like spending time with me. Admit my mere presence makes you smile.”

Amusement bubbled up from my chest, but I pushed it back down and reminded myself that a) he was my boss, b) he was an entitled little boy who’d had his previous assistant break up with women for him, and c) if I gave him any hint that I found him charming or amusing, he’d be completely intolerable.

“Christmas,” I said. “I love Christmas.”

He didn’t say anything, just kept walking next to me silently, so I kept talking.

“Growing up, we didn’t have a lot of money, but my parents, especially my mother, always made sure the day was special. It was a day my parents never worked, no matter how badly we needed the money, one day of the year we could count on the whole family being together.”

“Good food?” he asked, his tone tight.

“The best food. Mom is an amazing cook and she just has this way…” God, I missed my mother. I’d never realized until I couldn’t stop in and see her regularly what a big part of my life she was. “She just spreads warmth and love without even trying.”

Alex, who was rarely quiet, rarely without an opinion or a comment of some sort, said nothing. Was he keeping his distance from me, as uncomfortable talking about personal stuff with me as he’d been with his other employees?

“How about you? What were your Christmases like growing up?”

“Here we are.” He stopped and spread his arms wide at the building we faced.

I stepped to the edge of the sidewalk and looked up at the towering, dilapidated monstrosity of a building. It had broken windows and dangling shutters and it appeared to be tilting to one side and on the verge of collapse. It was unclear what style of architecture it might have been with its Victorian turrets and rococo details on the facade, but also with a cinder block, make-shift porch.

“Welcome to the next Owings Leisure resort property.”

I looked over at him, eyebrows high. This didn’t make any sense. Owings Leisure usually built brand-new properties or took over modern resorts. This ancient, decrepit structure was a larger divergence from the norm than the oddest purchase of my father’s company and Alex often complained about the difficulty of making them adhere to the standards of the brand.

He grinned like he didn’t understand my unspoken question. “It was going to be condemned, but I bought it before it could be.”

“Buying a property doesn’t prevent it from being condemned.”

His grin widened. “I had the maintenance crew do the necessary work to make it structurally sound. It gave us the time we need to restore this place to its former glory.”

“Not to question your business acumen, but I’m having a hard time imagining this place was ever glorious.”

“Come on. I’ll show you the interior.” He skipped up the shaky front steps and pulled out a key.

A chuckle bubbled up at the idea of someone using a key to get into this place. It was so ramshackle it seemed like it would be just as easy to take the door off the hinges and walk in.

I followed him inside and he lit up the interior with the flashlight on his cell phone. The front entryway was small and cramped, nothing like the grand foyers of the other properties he owned. Mustiness and the lingering scent of long-dead animals made me long for the dirty city air outside. Alex took a few steps inside, but I held back.

“Has this place been checked for rats and spiders?”

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