The Big Boss

Or so they think.

Her obvious disdain for me and my wealth is refreshing. Enticing. I want more of it. To hear the story of why she hates it. Because she must have a reason. Most people do.

The phone on my desk rings, and I sigh. It’s Brandon, I can guarantee it. One of the only people who would call me right now. He’s looking at the same documents on his desk.

“Hey Brandon.”

“You knew it was me?” He sounds amused.

I chuckle and take a sip of my whiskey as I sit at my desk. “It’s Monday and we’re both workaholics. Of course I knew that it was you.”

He laughs before clearing his throat. “Just looking over the plans for the development. Do you think we’re going to get pushback?”

I frown. “Why would we?”

“There will be some displacement. Losing greenspace. To be clear, I don’t think we should stop or anything, just wondering if you think they’ll put up a fight.”

I search until I find the paper with the more detailed plans for the development. We’re demolishing an old building. Pre-1900. I’ve seen it, and it’s pretty. We considered converting it, but it would cost more to convert it than it’s worth. Starting fresh is faster. A small park is also going to be taken over. “I think it’s fine,” I say. “The numbers all add up, it will benefit the local community. And the residents were all compensated well.”

“Some of these preservation groups don’t always listen to that kind of logic.” He sounds worried.

“What’s going on?”

Brandon makes a sound of uncertainty. “Nothing for certain. Just some rumors that one of those groups is going to start targeting our projects. Again, not a reason to stop, but it’s something to be aware of.”

“Fair enough,” I say. “Hopefully this one will be too fast for them to organize anything. Demo is scheduled for two weeks, provided the permits go through. And I’m having Marcy push them through tomorrow.”

“Good,” Brandon says. “I’ll let you know if I hear anything else.”

“Please do,” I say, laughing. “Now go the fuck home.”

“Only if you do.”

We both know that neither of us is leaving the office anytime soon. But oh, I wish that I could. Because that damned daisy catches my eye again and I’m trapped in the circle of thoughts about the girl. And the fact that I’m an idiot and I didn’t even get her name.

All I’m left with is the perfect image of her. Soaking wet and looking angry as all hell. I’m not sure why I find it so alluring, but I do. I can’t remember the last time that someone came into my office angry. Usually people appear with masks of perfect pleasantness, hoping to charm me.

Her thin t-shirt showed every line of her generous curves and the bra I wasn’t sure she meant to be on display. I wished I had been able to see it in more detail.

I wanted to see every part of her in more detail, from the way her face twisted in disdain to the way her lips parted when she didn’t realize she was staring. I saw the curiosity, desire, and excitement hinted at in those gorgeous green eyes. She seemed to be out of breath, and I could only hope that it had something to do with me.

Fuck, I’m not getting anything done, and now I’m hard thinking about her. I need to see her again. There’s no question. It should be easy enough, given her employer. My mind is already making the plans.

My entire life I’ve worked toward what I wanted. Laser focused. The office around me and the house that I own, and all the rich luxury that she seems to loathe are all results of my ambition. I pursue what I want. I reach all my goals. And my current goal is to see her again.

Because there’s something between us, and feeling that so quickly is a rarity. Yeah, I’m going to see her again. This time I’m going to find out her name. And I’m going to show her that all the things that come with this life aren’t so bad.

4

Justine

I groan as I round the stairway on the fourth floor. These older buildings don’t have elevators, and sometimes the grocery loads we have to carry are a bit too heavy for jogging up so many steps. And I can’t leave the bags sitting on the sidewalk because they’ll get snatched. I made that mistake once. Never again.

So now if it’s too heavy, I ferry them inside and then do it in parts, half the load up one set of stairs to drop them at the landing. I end up getting a full workout every time I do it, but it’s worth it for my clients. A lot of them are homebound with health problems, and the only way they get groceries is through me.