“They better be conducted after hours.” I bit down on my bottom lip and grinned.
“I’ll send Gina home early.” He pressed his hands to the desk and got up. “She won’t mind.”
“You don’t think she’ll get suspicious?” I watched as Jon began to get dressed.
“I’m her boss too—what’s she going to do?” He shrugged. “It’s not like either of us are going to get fired for this.”
“I’d rather not become the talk of the whole company…” I sighed and sat up so I could get dressed as well. “Plus, someone could still complain—if they think I’m getting special treatment. You don’t want that kind of negativity in the office…”
“No.” He shook his head back and forth. “You’re right, especially after all the drama we had when I was forced to sell the company to Bryant. A scandal is the last thing Alcott Inc. needs right now—even if I do plan to treat you like every other employee that works here—most of the time.”
“Then I look forward to getting fair feedback when I come for my first performance review.” I picked up my panties and started sliding them on.
“If you do something wrong, Damien will rip you a new one before I ever get a chance,” Jon chuckled under his breath.
“I definitely believe that—based on what I’ve seen so far.” I turned towards Jon. “What’s his story anyway?”
“There was a dispute with his family over who would take over their company after his grandfather stepped down.” Jon shrugged and started putting on his shirt. “Damien thought he should get the reigns—and I tend to agree, but the old man planned to leave the company to Damien’s father instead.”
“Why would Damien get the job over his dad?” I raised an eyebrow. “Surely his dad had been there a lot longer than he had.”
“Yes and no.” Jon reached for his pants. “Damien’s father is a bit of an asshole, and he’s done some questionable things in his life—he also spent some time in prison. Dam
ien didn’t want any part of the company if he was going to be in charge, so when he realized that was the direction his grandfather planned to go, he resigned—and that worked out great for me.”
“So, he’s a good manager?” I finished getting dressed and sat down in one of the chairs.
“Yeah, he’s the best we have,” Jon confided. “You’ll learn a lot from him—and from your new mentor.”
“Lisa does seem to be quite knowledgeable.” I looked up at him and tilted my head. “Is it true that she was supposed to get Damien’s job before you offered it to him?”
“From a loyalty perspective? Absolutely.” Jon shrugged. “I don’t know if she would have been as good at it as Damien, but I would have given her a shot if she wanted it. Honestly, Damien’s too good for that job. I’d make him an officer in the company if I had anyone else that was capable of doing his job—and wanted it. We’re just growing so fast right now that it’s hard to get people hired and trained fast enough to fill the spots we have.”
“Sounds like a good problem to have.” I looked down and chuckled under my breath.
“Yeah, it definitely is—which is why it would have been a damn tragedy if the company got sold off to someone who didn’t want to keep it going,” Jon sighed. “Thankfully, Bryant bailed me out of that mess…”
Jon had some more work to do, and I didn’t want to break another promise to Charley by missing dinner, so I left him after one more kiss at the door. The drive from Alcott Inc. to my apartment was a little further than the drive I made every night from Moretti’s, and traffic was a little heavier on Main Street. I turned on the radio, listened to a few songs, and tried not to get frustrated by the cars in front of me. I was driving home like a normal person—after a day of work—although I doubted the rest of them had sex with the CEO of the company before they went home to their families. Traffic thinned out once I turned towards the side of town most ignored—and it wasn’t long until I noticed that a blue sedan was in my rear-view mirror.
Not again—you have to be freaking kidding me.
The car kept a distance, but it made the same turns I did. I had no way of knowing if it was the same one that was behind me before, but it gave me a similar feeling of panic. Jackson had no reason to follow me—he already knew where I lived. I couldn’t shake the uneasy feeling inside of me, no matter how much I tried. I pulled out my cell phone, tapped 911 but didn’t hit send—instead I slammed on my brakes and waited. If it was Jackson, then I wasn’t just going to drive to my apartment building without knowing for sure. The car came to a stop behind me—waited—and then drove around me. I stared it down until I saw the driver—an older woman with gray hair that looked absolutely pissed and appeared to be yelling at me through the window. I mouthed an I’m sorry, but it did allow me to finally exhale a sigh of relief.
Okay, now I’m just being paranoid…
Chapter Sixteen
Jon
Two weeks later
“How did this happen?” I looked up at Damien after reading the email he forwarded me.
“The new girl fucked up,” Damien exhaled sharply. “You said I needed to bring everything to you; otherwise I would have just handled it myself.”
“Thank you.” I nodded. “I’ll take care of it.”
“You’re going to fire her, right?” He narrowed his eyes. “She just cost us the fucking Martin Construction account.”