She smiled. “Talk to me.”
“Over lunch?” He glanced around. “Things not working out between you and Mr. Reid?”
She felt her cheeks burn but she ignored it. “I told you Nicholas, I work for Mr. Reid. That’s it.”
He smiled. “A beautiful woman like you, and Alex hasn’t put the moves on you? That seems impossible.”
Jamie stared at him, wondering if he knew. She doubted Alex would say anything. Maybe it was obvious on her. She held his gaze, refusing to give away anything.
“Damn! You must be really good at your job for him not to risk losing you.”
Jamie chose to ignore his comment. “I thought you wanted to talk about the investment, not Mr. Reid’s, or my, personal business.” She kept her voice pleasant but there was no mistaking her tone.
Nicholas tugged at his earlobe. “My apologies. I didn’t mean—”
“How about we talk about why you are having second thoughts. Why the hesitation to invest the money?”
The conversation continued and Jamie kept it completely professional. Nicholas commented on her knowledge and apologized again and again for his comment about Alex and her. As they wrapped up, he tried again, “Jamie, I want to apologize again for my earlier comment. It was completely unprofessional and I am not the jealous type. I don’t know why I said what I said and I hope you can forget it or let it go.”
“It’s on the verge of sexual harassment, Nicholas.” She took a moment to gloat when his eyes grew big.
“I know. I know. It was stupid. I didn’t mean it against you. Alex just has a history…”
She raised her eyebrows and he stopped. “I’m going to give you a ‘by’ on this one Nicholas. One time only. You keep your name on the contract and when the deal makes you a few extra million, you remember I gave you a second chance.” She wasn’t sure why she was saying it, but she was using his mistake as a means to force him to not break his contract. Business at this level was lethal and by any means necessary she figured.
Nicholas chuckled and handed her a check. “You got it. But not because of what I said to cover my ass, but because you’re one smart businesswo—person. Alex is an idiot, but I’m not complaining.” He shook her hand. “The dinner offer still stands, if you’re interested in talking business or ever decide you want to look at running your own company one day. I can make that happen.” He smiled and headed out of the office whistling.
Alex flew back to New York a week after his father’s funeral. He looked exhausted and it didn’t seem to take much to tick him off, but he also seemed lighter now, as if a huge burden had been lifted off his shoulders. He asked Jamie to schedule plans to see Mark for dinner in New York in about a month, and to book a few days off over the fourth of July weekend to head back home. He told her nothing else, kept it professional, and Jamie decided she needed to do the same. Her heart disagreed but she tried her best to ignore it.
The incident in the truck was never brought up, and the awkwardness between her and Alex was less apparent as the days progressed. In private, they addressed each other casually and were cordial. Jamie hated that she couldn’t dismiss the feeling of longing she felt for him. No one made her feel as good as he did. Ever.
“Are you all right?” Gina asked Jamie after work one day.
“Huh? Oh, yeah, I am.” Jamie smiled at her weakly. “Sorry, I spaced out for a second. What were you saying?”
Gina shook her head. “You’ve been spaced out for way more than a second. You’ve hardly touched your drink.”
Jamie looked at the margarita on the bar top and realized that while Gina had already drank most of hers, Jamie had only taken a few sips.
“What’s going on?” Gina’s brow furrowed. “Is this about your sister’s wedding? Christine and your mother keep calling the front desk and I just take the message and then toss it in the bin.” She grinned, and then grew serious and tilted her head as she stared at Jamie. “Did something happen with Alex in Philadelphia? You’ve seemed off ever since you guys got back.”
“We’re not supposed to address our boss by his first name,” Jamie said automatically.
Gina rolled her eyes. “Oh, please. It’s after work, we’re at a bar, not the office, and I’m not talking about our boss. I’m talking about the man you have had sizzling sexual tension with ever since you started working there.”
Jamie flushed. “I wouldn’t say anything was sizzling between the two of us.”
“Then you are fooling yourself. And so is Alex.” She polished off her drink and looked around the bar.
“Look, even if there was anything between us, he’s my boss. I love my job too much to risk anything.” She held her hand up to stop Gina. “Nothing happened between us. And no, nothing is bothering me.”
“You’re delusional if you think there’s nothing between the two of you.”
Jamie sighed. “It’s not Alex, okay? Things are actually fine between us. It’s my sister’s wedding that I’m worried about.” She did feel guilty about the wedding and had spoken to her mother. She promised her mother that she would be there and wouldn’t cause a scene. “I don’t want to go. But at the same time, she’
s my sister, you know?”
Gina nodded sympathetically. “Normally, I’d say you should go because it’s good to have a relationship with family. But in your case, I don’t know. Your family has done nothing to support you—hell, they have even tried to sabotage you—so why should you support them? You have a tough decision. I do think you have to go if you want to continue having a relationship with them, though. Show them you are better than what they think you are.”