Page 20 of The Boss’s Obsession
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I rolled around at home in self-pity for another hour and then got a grip. I got to work a half hour after that, and went directly to my desk, outside Ronan’s office on the top floor. Ok, sure, I’d made a mistake, but I was human. It happened.
As I sat down at my computer, I blinked at a book sitting on top of my keyboard. It was a self-help career aspirations book. How to figure out what you really want to do in life. I flipped through it. A post-it on the front told me it was from Lucy, my friend in HR.
I’m so proud of you for taking a leap after what you really want. Don’t let anyone scare you from going for it! Lucy
What I really wanted? That was a confusing and at times terrifying idea. I had no idea what I really wanted. Zero. I enjoyed the work I did for Ronan. I liked being important to him, and I liked keeping him organized, but I needed more free time. What else did I want to do? I sank back in the chair, and flipped through the book, noticing a question section. Should I fill it out?
After going through my usual work tasks, I went back to the book, took a pen, and went for it. Some of the questions were harder than others, like having to think of particular times you felt very inspired and worked more than you needed to. I recalled a project I’d helped Ronan on where he consulted with marketing to rebrand an entire product line. That had been interesting as hell, and I still got a kick out of seeing the marketing for those products in shops and online. Would I like to work in marketing? I had no idea. Just then, as I tried to imagine a workday where I didn’t see Ronan every day, an email popped up. It was from the man himself.
Cold swept through me as I read it. It was short and to the point, like all of Ronan’s emails. This one included HR in it. He’d chosen a shortlist of candidates to interview from the résumés I’d sent him yesterday. It was a kick to the gut. Somehow, in the span of twenty-four hours, he’d gone from being insistent that I didn’t quit, and could never be replaced, to choosing my replacement with urgency. Oh, and add in last night, the best, hottest experience of my life, and then my spectacular ball drop with his schedule this morning, and it made for the most confusing day and night of my life.
My phone rang while I was still wallowing in despair about my life choices, and I answered half-heartedly.
“What is up with you?” Robbie asked, immediately detecting my low mood.
“Nothing, I’m just realizing that I have no idea what to do with my life, and can’t stay at my current job as an option because I just slept with my boss,” I muttered. Robbie was quiet for a heartbeat and then exploded with excitement. It took a full five minutes for him to calm down enough to speak in full sentences again.
“Ok, girl, you’ve made up for years of being boring by doing the deed with Ronan Turner. All is forgiven. How did this morning go?”
“Awkwardly? You know Ronan, he’s pretty particular about work stuff. I made a mistake yesterday, even before I was otherwise occupied, and he found out this morning. It was tense when he left, and I feel horrible.”
Robbie snorted dismissively. “Mr sexy, type A control freak can get over it. You’re on your notice period, and you were sick. Don’t even worry about it. Just start planning your next great adventure and remember to put that you sleep with the boss on your linked-in profile.”
“Shut it. Anyway, I just did this little quiz that says I would be a good fit for marketing, so maybe I’ll try something like that. Maybe I should study, or something?”
“Studying is a waste of time these days, especially for marketing. That’s my field, as you know, and let me tell you, an entry-level position will teach you much more about marketing than any course. Oh my god, this has to be fate,” Robbie suddenly exclaimed.
“What does?”
“We are recruiting a marketing assistant at the gallery. The pay sucks, and you’d have to work with me every day, but it’s an in. What do you think? I bet Heath would take one look at you and hire you.”
“I’m not sleeping with Heath”
“Don’t tell him that till after you sign the contract,” Robbie said breezily. “Anyway, I’m mostly joking about Heath, he’s seeing someone, and apparently it's serious. Come down on your lunch break and interview.”
“Are you serious?”
“I couldn’t be more serious. You could have a job to go to, in the field you want to try out, what could be better?”
I chewed my lip, turning over Robbie’s words. He was right. This was a great opportunity for me, and besides, I really couldn’t stay at Turner Tech after what just happened with Ronan and me. It was too embarrassing. How could I run and get his lunch, and make his copies, after I could still remember the feeling of him coming deep inside me? Plus, I wanted a real life again. Ronan didn’t have a carefree, non-work mode, and I couldn’t live my life like that.
“Ok, I’m coming in.”
CHAPTER14
Ronan
Putting out the fire with Capital Finance wasn’t a big deal, as I’d reassured Sienna. It was one blip in an otherwise impeccable reputation, and it didn’t bother me. What did dawn on me, however, was the fact that Sienna couldn’t be my assistant anymore. As soon as I’d realized that my feelings for her were far from professional, it had been time to find a new assistant. I didn’t want to be Sienna’s boss. I wanted to be her husband. Catching up with work, in the car on the way to lunch with Capital’s CEO, I chose the candidates for the assistant position. If Sienna thought they might be a good fit, I trusted her judgment. I sent the email off, and focused on work for the next hour.
By the time I strode into the office in the afternoon, I was beyond ready to see the woman who had ensnared me so effortlessly. I headed to the top floor. I’d told her to take it easy today, but HR had already told me that she’d come in. Of course, she had. She was responsible and hard-working. I’d never find another assistant like her, and I accepted that because in the end, I’d go home to her every night, and that was even better.
During that year where I’d resisted the realization that I was utterly head over heels obsessed with Sienna, I had told myself that she was off-limits. Now, as I headed toward my office, I didn’t feel the guilt I’d expected. Her father was gone, and yes, he’d tasked me to take care of her. What better way to take care of her than to marry her and provide for her emotionally and financially for the rest of her life? It might not be what Richard had meant when he’d asked me, but there was a sense of kismet to the entire thing. There might be more than ten years between us, but when we were together, it didn’t matter. Sienna wasn’t an empty-headed new graduate who couldn’t apply herself to things, even if she’d tried. She was brilliant, capable, and wise beyond her years, and I was a man who only remembered women existed around her.
Reaching her desk, I was disappointed to find it empty. She must be taking a late lunch. I went to my own office instead, checking my phone to see if she’d called. Nothing.
With an irritable sigh, I sat down and got to work on the notes I’d made while talking with Capital Finance, my eyes straying to the cameras that overlooked Sienna’s desk now and again. After half an hour, I called HR, suddenly worried that she’d felt ill again.
