Page 34 of Breaking Point
Which, speaking of…
I go to grab the closest shirt I can find, only to pause at the tidiness of my living room. I wave a hand around the room. “I take it this is your doing?”
She lifts her chin. “Yes.”
“Thank you. I usually hire cleaners if I trash the place.”
She shrugs. “It’s part of my job description. I don’t mind.”
Job.
Assistant.
Not mine.
Shaking my head, I try to clear my thoughts but all I can seem to focus on is the smattering of freckles along the bridge of her nose. I’ve counted seventeen so far.
I wonder if I’ll reach my lucky number.
She truly is the most beautiful woman I have ever seen, and that’s saying something as an NHL player. Whether I welcome it or not, women approach me, yetnonelike her.
I can hear the pounding of my rapid heartbeat in my ears.
Are my hands still clammy? What’s wrong with me?
“Are you going to stand there staring at me all day or are you going to put on some clothes and tell me what you need from me?”
A choked burst of laughter escapes me. “I don’t think a woman has ever asked me that before.”
Her brow arches. “Maybe you need to reevaluate who you surround yourself with then.”
“Bit of a harsh assessment from our short five minutes.”
Despite the brashness of her words, I find myself fighting a smile.
“Am I wrong?”
After a beat I fail, my smile stretching. “Not entirely.”
“You’ll be more certain of your answer when you hear what happened in your living room this morning.”
It isn’t until I’m clothed in gray sweats and a white T-shirt does Bella finally explain what happened this morning, or what exactly shestoppedfrom happening. I can’t help but groan and hide my face in my hands, but I’m sure she can still see the heat climbing up my neck to my cheeks.
I’m giving this woman the worst impression possible. No doubt the worst first day at a job as well.
“I’m not sure what to say other than thank you,” I say gruffly after a weighted pause.
“No need to thank me. It’s part of my job.”
I chuckle humorlessly. “I know the contracts Lucy sends over are monstrous but I’m pretty sure being my bouncer and internet security savior aren’t part of your job description.”
“Well…no, but I take it from the large NDA you like your privacy.”
“Usually yes.”When my head is screwed on.
Bella gnaws on her lower lip and I find I can’t pull my gaze away. “What are the chances those girls come back and rip out my hair?”
I pause to consider. With some girls, I would say yes, but my memory is so hazy from last night I don’t even remember them. But I don’t need to go bury myself in a deeper hole with her. If I can rectify the shabby impression she has on me, I’ll do it, so I decide to settle on, “Honestly, it could be a possibility.”
