Total pages in book: 29
Estimated words: 29567 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 148(@200wpm)___ 118(@250wpm)___ 99(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 29567 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 148(@200wpm)___ 118(@250wpm)___ 99(@300wpm)
“You’re two hours early for work today, Miss Locke.” Dominic’s voice cuts through my concentration like a knife. “You left long before I could suggest we come here together. Any reason why?”
He’s standing in his office doorway, perfectly dressed and calm as ever.
“Yes.” I give him a nod. “Lots of final touches on the Skittles campaign.”
“I see.” He smirks. “Would you like to go over them with me?”
“No.” I look away from him. “I would like to only be summoned when you have a real, nonsexual task.”
“Have I ever given you a sexual one?”
“Could you please stop talking before someone else hears you?”
“There’s no one else here.” He moves closer. “Are you about to try to avoid me again?”
“Yes.” I straighten my back.
“Why?”
“Because you and I are currently stuck in a weird Twilight Zone episode where the older man screws his much younger—”
“You’re not that much younger…”
“—intern,” I pick up where I left off. “And then, because he’s done so much nice shit trying to pretend to be a nice guy, she’ll catch feelings off some sexual innuendos and then he’ll be screwing someone else at the end while her heart breaks during the credits.”
He blinks. “What do you think about all that?”
“I think it’s obvious you’ve never watched an episode of The Twilight Zone.”
“I’m being serious,” I say. “I have three more condos to look at with Tracey, and I should have that done by the time the Skittles team comes to see us and… I don’t want to—I don’t want to cross the line again.”
“Okay, Miss Locke,” he says. “Fair enough. We’ll keep it strictly business from here on out.”
He walks away easily, confirming everything I just said.
THE INTERN
IVY
Several Mornings Later
Idon’t remember making the agreement that we would ride to and from work together every day, and yet, despite the fact that we’re barely talking, that’s what’s happening.
And I’m slowly slacking on my apartment search, even though deep down I know this can’t last.
Every morning like clockwork, the Audi pulls up to the curb in front of the penthouse, and every night—after he finishes working like he’s singlehandedly trying to buy the moon—he’s standing in the parking garage holding the passenger door open, waiting to take me home.
He doesn’t always talk.
Sometimes he’s on calls.
Sometimes he’s answering messages.
But sometimes he just watches me. Quiet. Intense.
And even when he says nothing, his presence wraps around me like a warning.
At the apartment, he doesn’t intrude. But things shift.
There’s always hot coffee in the machine.
A charger appears next to my bed, even though I never asked for one.
Fresh towels in the guest bath. My favorite toothpaste. A drawer cleared in the vanity for my stuff.
He doesn’t say it’s for me, but it is.
The tension at the office doesn’t go away, though…
If anything, it sharpens.
He adds more to my plate, sends me tasks he could’ve given someone else, and keeps me on the floor late most nights, under the pretense of “preparation.”
Sometimes I think it’s his way of keeping me close.
Other times… I wonder if it’s his way of keeping me just far enough away.
THE CEO
DOMINIC
“Hey.” Braxton steps into my office without knocking on Friday evening.
“Hey.” I keep typing. “You need something?”
“You’ve been working longer hours than usual lately,” he says. “But it seems like you’re getting less done.”
“I wasn’t aware I had a boss here. You can write me up if you like.”
He doesn’t laugh, just crosses his arms.
“I was wrong about Ivy Locke,” he says.
I stop typing.
“She’s smart. Sharp. Good instincts,” he continues. “Not just a pretty distraction for you.”
“I know that.”
“But I have to ask…”
He leans against the wall.
“Be honest with me. Are you sleeping with her?”
His question makes my head shoot up.
“I’m clearly in an office talking to you right now,” I say. “Do you need to get your eyes checked?”
“You know what I mean.”
Silence.
“We’re down to the wire for time on the Skittles pitch,” I say. “I believe this conversation can wait.”
“It’s not a conversation. It’s a yes or no question.”
I meet his eyes. “No.”
Braxton smirks. “So that’s a yes.”
He pushes off the wall.
“Fire her by the end of the month or else.”
I arch a brow. “Or else what?”
“Or else I will.”
“Because you think I like her?”
“Because she’s affected your productivity in a way I never thought was possible.” He looks at his watch. “And that affects my money, so… she has to go. Sooner rather than later.”
THE INTERN
IVY
There’s one day and twelve hours left until our big presentation.
The team is still grinding, huddled in the war room like our entire existence depends on thirty colorful slides, blown-up balloon candies, and a product video.
We’ve all been chatting nonstop—fixing minor lines and revising where we’ll stand, and Dominic hasn’t said much of anything. He’s remained mute in his chair, watching.
“Do you think we should lead with the montage of our proposed commercials or the montage of their slogan against the stock footage?” Marcus asks me.