Page 6 of My Demon Assistant

Lux called out something from the background, and Archer chuckled. "Lux says to bring some dessert from that bakery near your place, and your cute butt."

I smirked, though I wondered how Lux had heard me. Phone must've been on speaker, I realized, then shook my head. "I think your man is putting the moves on me, Archer. You sure you want me to come over?"

"Yeah, yeah. I trust both of you."

I smiled, ignoring the way my heart went all gooey at his simple statement. I would die—and maybe even kill, depending on the circumstances—for Archer or Kat, and it was nice to know the sentiment was returned.

We ended the call shortly after, and later, I went over with Tom and a box of Lux's favorite lava cakes.

Lux and Gunner instantly fell in love with Tom, and Gunner never even tried to tug at his fur, the little jerk. Not that I wanted him to rip out my dog's fur, of course.

Archer, on the other hand, spent the whole meal amused about the fact that I'd adopted a little dog named Tom.

"We should call him Tommy, no?" he asked with a smile, and I scoffed.

"His name is Tom. We'll call him Tom."

Then, Archer called Kat, put it on speaker, and the two of them spent the next fifteen minutes roasting me until I was crispier than the chicken we'd eaten.

It felt like old times, and I loved every minute of it.

Three

Jerry

"Thisisnotgoingwell," I said as I threw the file onto the conference table and leaned back into my chair with a sigh.

Carol tsked as she adjusted her glasses, then picked up the résumé. We had five minutes between interviews because Carol did not believe in wasting time, and I was so tired I wanted to take a power nap. I wanted to just tell her to pick someone like she'd picked a good doggy daycare for Tom—they even did pick-ups and drop-offs!—but I had a feeling she wouldn't let me get away with it.

All the interviews we'd done so far—I'd lost count after the third one—had been a total bust. People were either not experienced enough, had the personality of a sloth, or had no professionalism to speak of. Seriously, who in their right mind thought it was a good idea to hit on your prospective boss at a job interview? Did he think he'd get a job by charming me?

"Patience, Jerry. We'll find someone. You found me once, remember?" she teased, and I smiled, then leaned over to kiss her cheek.

There was nothing romantic between Carol and me, but I did love her. When Kat, Archer, and I started this company in our mid-twenties, she'd been exactly what we'd needed. She had a decade on us in age and experience, and I honestly believed we would have crashed and burned without her support. It was why I hated seeing her go.

"You're one of a kind, Carol. We'll never find someone like you again."

Carol smiled at me, her blue eyes twinkling with amusement. "Well, luckily for you, you don't need someone like me now. You, Archer, and Kat have done an amazing job building up this company."

"Couldn't have done it without you," I interjected, and she smiled.

"Be that as it may, you don't need that kind of support now. Instead, you need someone who will keep track of your appointments, make sure you eat on time, and stop you from overworking."

"I take days off," I protested, and all she did was raise a brow at me. God, I was going to miss her so much.

Clearing my throat, I picked up the file and flicked to the next applicant, scanning the résumé. Good experience, despite his young age, great qualifications and references—Carol had already called and checked references of all applicants, which had gotten a few thrown off the list for fake references—and there was Carol's 'star of potential' on the corner of the page.

"You like this one?" I asked, and she smiled.

"He's in my top three, yes. I talked to him on the phone a bit, and I liked his...energy. There he is now," she said before I could comment on the fact that Ms. Practical liked someone because of their 'energy.'

I glanced up as the applicant—Eshim Smith—walked in, and...wow. I didn't know about his energy, but he was definitely a looker. He was tall, maybe an inch or two taller than me, and muscular. His résumé hadn't mentioned it, but he must've played sports in school. He had that build. He also had big, soulful blue eyes that latched onto me the moment he stepped into the room, his blond hair styled back perfectly. He wore navy blue dress pants, a white button-down shirt, and a navy vest. He looked...delectable. Fuck.

"Hello, Mr. Smith. Please take a seat," Carol said, and he nodded, quickly sliding into a chair that suddenly looked too small.

"Eshim, please," he said in a warm, deep voice, and nope, I wasnotgoing to react. This guy could potentially be my employee, myassistant, and I did not need to be eyeing him up.

Carol did the interview like she had with all the others, and Eshim answered all her questions just the way she wanted him to. With all the previous interviewees, I'd found something I didn't like within minutes, but Eshim? He was good.

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