Page 40 of The Bargain

I miss you.

On Sunday, I had a few of my own obligations to deal with—namely visiting with my sister and her family. It was good to see my niece, but I couldn’t deny that I very much wanted to escape to see Byron.

But in the blink of an eye, the weekend was over, and I was back to being the boss. Normally, that wasn’t a bad thing. I enjoyed being the CEO of Courtland Enterprises, leading us to bigger and better things. The problem was that I couldn’t be the bossandByron’s boyfriend. Or rather, I couldn’t behisboss and his boyfriend.

Things appeared to be progressing in the right direction. It wasn’t just me initiating things. He’d taken the time to text me first on Sunday, sending along some playful, non-work-related memes. Maybe Declan was right in that I needed to start takingsteps to protect Byron in the event we decided that dating and being in an actual relationship was in the cards for us.

Unfortunately, that next step was preparing for him to no longer be my assistant, which I dreaded both personally and professionally. He was my rock. He was the one who steadied me on those crazy, frantic days. Byron was the one who made me smile first thing in the morning, and it wasn’t just because I was hopelessly infatuated with him.

Not to mention, the man was a mind reader. He always seemed to know what I wanted before I asked for it. He was fast, efficient, and professional. As far as I knew, all the managers and executives loved him. He’d be a rock star no matter where in the company he ended up.

“You don’t have any managers scheduled for a lunch meeting. Is there anyone you’d like me to reach out to and see if they’re available?” Byron’s gentle but firm voice broke through my mental meandering, pulling me back to what we were doing.

My schedule. Meetings. Planning.

“Can’t I have you for lunch?”

Byron narrowed his eyes at me over the edge of his tablet in a look that was half warning and half hunger, like he couldn’t decide whether to punish or devour me. I was happy to enjoy either option. “I need to run a brief errand during my lunch hour today. If you don’t want to have a specific lunch meeting, is there something you’d like me to have delivered today?”

I waved my hand, my gaze wandering to my calendar on one screen. “Nah. I’ll figure it out later.”

“You have a lengthy break following lunch, and I’ve marked that as time to review the Paris contracts.”

“Already done. I have one more thing to check; then they’ll be ready to be turned in to legal.”

“The leisure division’s cost-cutting plan?”

I nodded. “Yes, that’ll be this afternoon, along with the Canadian marketing plan for the new winter gear.”

“Got it.” Byron stood, tucking his tablet under his arm. “If there’s nothing else, I’ll go finish my final preparations for this morning’s meetings and?—”

“Actually, I was thinking,” I said, as an idea formed. “I want Kaylan to accompany me to the meetings during the first half of my day and handle the note-taking.”

I glanced up to see Byron wobble and reach back as if to catch himself on the chair he’d risen from, but he remained standing. His eyes were wide, and new lines of strain snaked across his brow and bracketed his mouth.

“I’m sorry, sir. Is there a problem?”

“No problem.”

Byron swallowed hard, and I frowned. “But if I’ve done something to make you dissatisfied with my performance…”

“I didn’t say that. I think that it’s time we gave Kaylan some more experience in tackling other tasks. This will also give him a better understanding of the company. Besides, I’m sure you have plenty of other tasks that are demanding your attention. The break from meetings will be nice for you.”

Except Byron didn’t look grateful for the break. I couldn’t quite explain what his mood was. Strangled? Confused? That had to be it. Byron wasn’t a fan of changing the schedule, but Kaylan needed more experience. Especially if he was going to one day replace Byron as my assistant. There was no time like the present to get that training in.

“Of-of course, I…I will talk to him?—”

“Wait a second.” I held up my hand, cutting him off. I didn’t want to, but I also didn’t want to brush this under the rug. Something was wrong. Was it that I was including Kayan, or was there something else that was bothering him? “Talk to me. You have a problem with this, but I don’t understand. We talkedabout it, right? If we’re going to date, you’ll need to move to another position within the company. I’m still going to need an assistant. Kaylan would be the best choice to slide into that role, right?”

Byron’s eyes became so wide while his pale cheeks turned pink. “That’s what you’re thinking?” he demanded in a harsh whisper.

“Yes, what were you thinking?”

“That you were mad at me. That you were disappointed in my work and wanted Kaylan to handle it because you had more confidence in his work.”

My mouth just hung open. The thought had never crossed my mind. “Never. The quality of your work has never wavered. And if it did, I’d talk to you about it. I wouldn’t just replace you.”

Byron scrubbed a hand across his face before just staring down at his tablet. “I’m sorry, sir. I-I don’t know what’s come over me.”

---