“Thanks so much.”
He turned to go but paused and shifted her way again. “Do you need any help unloaden’ yer car?”
She smiled. “Thanks but I’ll be okay. I didn’t take much... for tonight. Just the basics.” Why did she feel embarrassed that everything she owned fit into her car?
“Good luck then missy!” Murray waved and headed back the way they had just come.
Jamie reached for the door and turned the knob. It was locked. She pulled the key Alex had given her out of her purse. Mr. Reid. She needed to make sure she called him that. Apparently everyone else did.
Unlocking the door she stepped inside, lights automatically switching on. Her mouth fell open. Simple grays, whites and creams furnished the massive apartment. Just from the door, Jamie had full view of the open concept space. It had to easily be two thousand square feet—and that was just the kitchen-living area. A slightly opened door showed a bedroom. Jamie started laughing. What did Mr. Reid want her to do? Whatever it was, she didn’t care, she’d do it!
Slipping her shoes off, she ran across the hardwood floor and twirled in the living room. So much space! She’d bloody work for free just to live here! She ran her hand over the granite counter and then opened the fridge, curious about the pie Murray had been talking about.
Inside the stainless steel, double-door fridge was a small type of meat pie and a bottle of white wine. Perfect! She turned the oven on to reheat the pie and pulled a wine glass off the rack that hung beside the fridge. Reid wasn’t kidding when he said the place was furnished!
Pouring a glass of wine, she raised it in cheers to herself and the room.
“The bedroom!” She set the glass on the counter and hurried to check it out. Inside was a king size bed and a walk-in closet that was the same size as her room in her parents’ basement. An ensuite bathroom connected to the bedroom equipped with a Jacuzzi bath and a shower that could easily hold four people. Jamie almost grabbed her phone to thank Stephen. Then the oven dinged to say the temperature had reached the selected level and she went to put the pie in the oven. As it heated, she carried her boxes and belongings into the apartment.
She unpacked a few things while eating the delicious steak and potato pie, enjoying another glass of wine, followed by another. It was after midnight before she finally sank down on the luscious soft, but perfectly firm, bed just to close her eyes for a moment.
Chapter 6
Jamie woke up to the shrill ringing of her alarm. She got up in a daze and walked across the room to where she had stashed it in a plastic cup to amplify the sound. After switching it off, she looked around at her boxes to find the one she had marked with an “X” for her work clothes. She found it and was almost finished with her hair when her phone rang. She answered it quickly. “Hello?”
“I need you to bring two medium coffees, one black, one with three cream two sugars to the office. Don’t be late.” The line went dead before she could respond.
Jamie finished getting ready in a hurry, waiting for the GPS app on the phone to load so she could find the nearest coffee shop. She pulled her hair into a tight bun and grabbed her purse, hoping she hadn’t gotten the buttons on her blouse wrong in her hurry.
She walked into the office, juggling opening the door and holding the coffee tray with three coffees. The secretary, Gina Campbell, got up and took the tray from her. “I’ll show you to your desk real quick,” she said. “You got here just in time.”
Jamie’s desk was in a small office beside Alex’s. There was a connecting door between the two offices, as well as a door into the main area. “Mr. Reid’s planner is in the top right-hand drawer. He’ll want you to sync your phone with his so you’ll know where he is and where you need to be at all times. I can show you around later, but right now you should go and deliver the coffees. He doesn’t like them to get cold.”
“Oh, isn’t one of them for you?” Jamie still hadn’t met any of the employees here, but since Gina worked the front office, she had assumed the coffee was for her.
Gina shook her head. “Girlfriend,” she whispered.
“Oh.” Jamie nodded. “Thanks.”
“They’re in his office now. Knock first.”
Jamie nodded. “Thanks!” She knocked on the connecting door as Gina went back to her desk outside.
“Come in,” Alex said quietly.
She opened the door and stepped inside. Alex sat at his desk while a very beautiful woman sat on top of his desk. She couldn’t have been bigger than a size four. She had perfect red curls spiralling down her back without any hint of fringe. She smiled cordially at Jamie, but Jamie could see the arrogance and general expression of distaste in the rest of her face.
Alex cleared his throat and she turned to look at him, her cheeks warm. “Coffee, sir.”
“The black one is mine,” he said. “The one with cream and sugar is Annette’s. Who’s the third one for?”
“That’s mine... Mr. Reid.” Jamie handed him the black coffee and gave Annette the other. Next time she’d make sure to leave her coffee on her desk. It looked like she was trying to join them.
“You definitely asked for three cream and two sugars, right?” Annette asked. “It tastes disgusting with any other combination.”
“Yes,” Jamie said, smiling sweetly. She could be Christine’s best friend.
Annette took a sip and wrinkled her nose. “It’ll do,” she said. “I’d prefer the coffee from Starbucks. Not Java crappy Joes.”