The Boss (Managing the Bosses 1)

He raised his eyebrows at her.

“Yesterday.”

He swore. “You’re probably dehydrated as well.” He motioned at the cup in her hand. “Drink some more.”

“I just haven’t had time.” She knew it was a lousy explanation. She hated excuses, probably more than Alex Reid did. She took a gulp of the water. “My sister—”

“Your sister can take care of her damn self for once!” He ran his fingers through his perfectly styled hair. “You’ve been here a week and even I notice how much she relies on you. It’s ridiculous! You’re not a doormat!” He sighed and lowered his voice. “Sorry for the outburst. But, you can’t take care of her so

much that you’re unable to take care of yourself. Do you have any idea—” He closed his eyes and shook his head. Slowly he opened them, the bright blue oceans calm once more. At least on the surface. Jamie could tell something else was playing much farther down in what he was thinking. “I can’t have you not functioning at full capacity for me.” He stood. “From now on, you need to eat something—I don’t care what it is—every half hour. And you’re going to stay hydrated!”

“Every thirty minutes! That’s ridiculous.” Jamie swung her legs over the couch. “I’ll blow up like a balloon.”

“But you won’t faint.”

“This happened because I didn’t manage my time well and had to run upstairs. It has nothing to do with my eating habits.”

“It has everything to do with them!” Alex shouted. “And it has everything to do with you running yourself ragged trying to please everybody, including me! I don’t want anyone fainting because of me.”

Jamie flushed. “I hardly fainted because of you.” Her heart pounded, was she that obvious?

“You ran up the stairs to not be late, even though you are clearly exhausted and not feeling well. So yes, I am partially responsible for your fainting, even if indirectly.”

Jamie stood slowly, feeling a little more alert. “I’m sorry, sir.” She set the glass down on the table beside the couch. “But I can’t eat something every thirty minutes. I’ll stay hydrated and make an effort to eat meals, but I cannot afford to gain any more weight.”

“Why not?” Alex asked. “Why’s it so important to you?”

Jamie stared at him, expecting disdain or mocking, but all she saw was genuine curiosity. That made her tell him the truth against her better judgement. “I won’t be my sister’s maid of honor if I don’t lose weight,” she said.

“You’re kidding.”

Jamie shook her head. “Christine told me that upfront. She’s ordering a size six maid of honor dress, which either I’ll wear if I lose weight or her best friend, who’s already a six, will.”

“Unbelievable!” Alex shook his head and threw his hands in the air. “Your sister sounds like a bitch.”

Jamie stared at him in surprise. “Excuse me?”

“Sorry. But that’s ridiculous.”

She grinned, thankful someone else thought the same way as her. “I know, but it’s my family.”

“Well, you need to eat.” He grabbed his phone and began texting someone. “I shouldn’t have been keeping you here every night so late. I forget you haven’t been here very long and you’ve stepped into the job so easily. I hired you to have a PA available twenty-four/seven. Which you do with no argument. However, we can work from the house, that’s the bloody reason I had the suite set up. MacBane is going to start making meals for you as well.”

“Sir—”

“No arguments. He’s my chef, and an extremely good one. I’ll have him prepare your lunch and dinners from now on.”

She felt like she was being spoiled and reprimanded at the same time. “I’ve had Murray’s steak and mushroom pie. It’s a wee bit of heaven stuffed inside clouds of pie crust.” She licked her lips, her stomach rumbling in agreement.

“Who’s Murray?”

“Murray MacBane. Your chef.”

“Oh, I didn’t know his first name was Murray. Interesting.”

“What is?”

He looked up as he set his phone back on the clip of his belt. “His company is Mm. I always thought it meant his cooking was so good, like Mmmm.”