Fire and Honor

  I didn't add that if I didn't get the job, I just might call him up and take him for a ride or two. At least then I'd get something good out of this trip. I looked over towards the pool just as a couple guests stripped off their tops and jumped in.

  “I should get back,” I said. “I have a final interview tomorrow and I don't want to screw anything up.”

  Taylor sighed and I could hear the disappointment. “Come on, I'll take you back.”

  The ride back to my hotel was quiet and a little awkward, but at least Taylor didn't try anything. If I got the job, I'd be able to get past the flirtations and the almost-kiss, but if he tried again, we might have a problem if I had to work with him in the future.

  He pulled up in front of the hotel and put the car in park so he could turn to face me. I really hoped he wasn't going to make a pass after having come all this way without one. I wasn't sure how many rejections he could take before he'd get mad.

  “I hope you get the job,” he said sincerely.

  “Thank you,” I replied, startled. That had been nice of him. I got out of the car.

  As I moved to shut the door, he spoke again, “I'd like it if you stuck around.”

  He waited until I reached the hotel doors before he drove away. Maybe he was more than a gentleman than I'd given him credit for. I smiled as I rode the elevator up to my room. After my encounter with Mr. Ricci, I hadn't been sure those existed anymore.

  11

  You'd think that the third time I found myself sitting in the lobby of Mirage Talent, I'd be less nervous, but that wasn't the case. My plane was leaving in an hour and I'd gotten a call from one of the receptionists saying that I needed to come in for a third interview, at which time a decision would be made. I wasn't just nervous, though; I was pissed. After all the shit DeVon Ricci had pulled and all his talk about honesty, he was jerking me around, asking me to come in again rather than just telling me what he and Mr. Duncan had decided.

  “Mr. Ricci will see you now.” The receptionist's tone told me that she'd had to repeat herself. She waited for me to stand and then followed me to the elevator. “He said to go ahead in without knocking.” She gave me a polite smile. “Good luck.”

  I scrubbed my palms against my hips as I waited for the elevator to reach the next floor. I didn't like the idea of walking into Mr. Ricci's office without knocking, especially not after what I'd found in my hotel room. For all I knew, he'd be in there with one or both of those women again, maybe doing more than he'd been doing before. Snapshots flipped through my brain of DeVon fucking those two women in a variety of positions. Then they disappeared and it was just him, waiting for me.

  “Damnit,” I swore softly. I didn't want to think about Mr. Ricci that way, even if I didn't get the job. My friends often told me that I had shit taste in men, but even I wasn't dumb enough to fall for someone like that.

  When the doors opened, I lifted my chin and walked out, exuding my usual confidence. If I couldn't get rid of the nerves, I could at least pretend I didn't feel them. I didn't even hesitate as I opened the door. Hesitation would've made me think twice, and I didn't want that. I had to pretend I was even more confident than I felt.

  The room was fairly dark, thanks to the curtains being drawn, but this time, the chair behind the desk was empty. The whole room was empty. I didn't let it stop me. I walked over to the chair where I'd sat before and took a seat, crossing my ankles and waiting.

  After a few seconds, I heard a toilet flush and a door to my right opened. Mr. Ricci appeared, his face impossible to read.

  “Ms. Jensen, so glad you could come again.”

  Like I'd really had a choice if I wanted the job.

  “I would tell you to sit down, but I can see you already helped yourself.”

  It was on the tip of my tongue to retort that if he'd really been that concerned about me sitting on my own, he should've been here when I came in, or waited until he really was ready for me to have the receptionist send me up. I didn't say either of those things, however. I wasn't going to give him the satisfaction of knowing he'd pushed my buttons.

  We sat in silence for a few minutes and I wondered if he was waiting for me to break. I thought I'd proven before that I was patient.

  “Congratulations,” he said suddenly. “You're hired.”

  I stared at him for a second, confused. “Excuse me? I'm hired? What about that third interview your receptionist mentioned?”

  He met my eyes and I felt a little thrill go through me. “That was last night.” His lips curved into an enigmatic little smile.

  Now I was really confused.

  “At my house,” he explained without waiting for me to ask. “You passed all the tests.” He pressed his fingertips together in front of him. “I liked how you called that prick of a waiter an asshole. After all, he almost fired that poor actress wanna-be simply because she spilled some food.” He chuckled, as if the entire thing amused him.

  “Your house?” I said, my voice sounding faint in my ears. He'd played me? “That whole thing was a set-up? You were behind it all? Made her bump into me?”

  He raised an eyebrow. “I had to see what you would do in a situation like that.” He added, “You did well.”

  I scowled. He'd embarrassed me, almost ruined my new dress, and all for what? What kind of interview was that? She was just applying for an associate position in the legal department, not trying to become CEO. Suddenly, what he'd said clicked. I tried not to sound as pissed as I was, and it wasn't easy. “You said I passed ALL the tests. What else was there?”

  He looked pleased that I'd asked. “Taylor, of course. He's another wanna-be actor I hired to try to seduce you.”

  My stomach dropped even as my temper flared. He'd hired Taylor to try to seduce me? How fucking humiliating! If a guy wasn't attracted to me, that was fine, but to have someone be hired to pretend to be into me...It was one thing too many.

  I stood and turned towards the door, fully intending to storm out and slam the door behind me for good measure. I was almost close enough to reach the doorknob when he stepped between me and the door. I had too much momentum and ended up only a few inches away from DeVon when I stopped.

  “If you leave this office, you go home,” he warned. I could feel the tension between us thicken, making it hard to breathe.

  “Fine,” I snapped. I tried to reach around him, but he was blocking the doorknob.

  “Let me explain.”

  I looked up at him, only now realizing just how big he was. He had to be at least six three, if not taller, and I knew that under his expensive and well-tailored suit was a lean, but defined chest. He was way too close, but I wasn't going to back down. “There's nothing to explain. You're a narcissistic prick.” And there went the job offer, but I didn't care. I'd only said the truth.

  His eyes hardened, turning cold. “We all look after ourselves first. Even you.”

  My fingers curled into fists as I resisted the urge to slap him. How dare he tell me what I would and wouldn't do! “Not if it means hurting someone else.”

  He laughed and the sound was bitter. “You can stop pretending. You already got the job.”

  “I said I'd be honest, remember?” I snapped back. “And you can shove your job. I can find an associate's position somewhere else.”

  One side of his mouth tipped up in a smile. “I'm not offering some little position in the legal department. Do you really think I'd go though all of this if you were just going to work for Duncan?”

  I took a step back. Being too close to him was messing with me. I had no idea what he was talking about.

  “You'll be working for me.”

  I laughed, shaking my head. “As your assistant? No thanks.” I stepped to the side and reached for the doorknob again. He'd moved just enough so that I could reach it.

  He grabbed my arm and it was like a jolt of electricity went through me. I'd never had my body react to a simple touch that way and I told myself it was just because tensions were runni
ng high.

  “You wouldn't be my assistant, Krissy.”

  I swallowed hard as he said my first name. I liked the way it sounded more than I wanted to.

  He continued, “You'd be an associate, but one who was being groomed to become a partner in a few years. Your starting salary would be a hundred and twenty thousand dollars a year.”

  He let go of my arm but I didn't move. I was too shocked to do anything but stand there. He walked back to his desk, nothing in his demeanor to hint at what had just happened.

  “Be here tomorrow at nine a.m. We'll discuss closing your affairs in New York then.”

  I opened the door and walked to the elevator without a word. What the hell had just happened?

  12

  Devon

  I paced from one end of the room to the other, my entire body tense. I'd come back from my late lunch to find that I'd missed three calls from a director saying that one of Mirage's clients had shown up to set late, drunk or high. Now the movie was behind schedule and the director was pissed. The fact that it had gotten to me meant that one of my people wasn't doing his or her job right. Rather than call the director and try to smooth things over – which wasn't my fucking job – I was currently tearing the actor's manager a new one.

  “I don't care if you have to clean up his vomit, shower and dress him to get him to the set ready to go. You fix this, or you won't only be fired, you'll find yourself blackballed from every agency in town. You won't be able to book a porn star for Blow-job Betty 6, you understand me?”

  I saw the door open and turned towards it. Duncan came in, giving me an impatient gesture that said he wanted to talk.

  “Can you wait a fucking second?” I snapped at him.

  “What?” The manager on the other end of my bluetooth now sounded confused as well as scared.

  “Not you,” I said. “You do whatever you need to do to make sure your client does his fucking job or we're through with him, too. Pretty-boy actors are a dime a dozen in this city. You tell him that if he fucks up again, he'll be bottoming in gay porn again to pay his rent.”

  I hung up before my almost-ex-employee could say anything and then turned towards Duncan. He didn't even wait for me to ask him what he wanted, which pissed me off almost as much as what he had to say.

  “I hear you offered the job to Ms. Jensen. You didn't think it would be a good idea to discuss it with me first, since she'll be working for me?” His tone was terse.

  “Calm down,” I said as I sat down in my chair. I motioned to one of the chairs but Duncan stayed standing. “I didn't hire Ms. Jensen for your position. You can have your boring little what's-her-name. I have other plans for Ms. Jensen.”

  Duncan's eyes narrowed. “Like what? Your mistress?”

  I laughed. “Do you honestly think I need to pay women to have sex with me?” I shook my head. “Besides, I don't shit where I eat.” My smiled faded. “Now get the fuck out of my office.”

  I leaned forward and pressed my intercom. “Monica, get Clark Morris from ACU Pictures on the phone.” I had damage control. I glanced up and saw that Duncan was still standing there, staring at me, his mouth hanging open as if what I'd said had shocked him. “You're still here? Don't you have work to do?”

  Duncan's jaw snapped shut and he turned and hurried away.

  I leaned back in my chair, waiting for Morris. I wasn't thinking about Clark Morris, though. I was thinking about my newest hire. Krissy Jensen. I liked the way her name felt in my mouth, like it was meant for me to say.

  She hadn't said yes to the offer, and she had walked off without acknowledging my instructions to come in tomorrow, but I knew she'd accept. No one in their right mind would turn down an opportunity like this. And no one said no to me.

  A part of me wondered if Krissy would be the exception to that rule. The idea of this beautiful woman being strong enough to go toe-to-toe with me turned me on. She was the kind of woman a man like me dreamed about. My cock hardened at the thought of doing exactly what I'd said I wouldn't do and taking my relationship with Krissy far beyond employer / employee.

  Fuck. Just the thought of her on her knees, her calling me Sir and Master, taking her against a wall hard and fast...

  I grabbed my cell phone and scrolled through my contacts until I found the one I wanted.

  “Hello?” The woman's voice was sultry even with that single word.

  I didn't bother with any pleasantries or greetings. “Meet me at our usual place in an hour. I need a release.”

  13

  Krissy

  He made me miss my fucking plane. I'd been so rattled when I'd arrived at the airport with barely enough time to get through security that I'd gone to the wrong gate. And even better than that, there wasn't another normal flight out until tomorrow afternoon. I was supposed to be back in the office tomorrow, ready to tell Mimi if I was putting in my two week notice or not. I had two options. I could take the redeye that left later that evening or call Mimi and tell her that I'd missed my flight and take an extra day's vacation, which would mean going back to the hotel to see if I could have my room back, or trying to find another one on my own dime. After what I'd said to Mr. Ricci, there was no way he could be serious about me still having the job.

  And losing it didn't bother me at all. I didn't want to work with someone who'd told me he valued honesty, then lied about everything. He'd played me, manipulating the situation, trying to provoke whatever response it was his twisted little mind wanted. I still couldn't believe he'd hired Taylor to try to seduce me. I had to give Taylor credit for being convincing, I thought bitterly. I'd really thought he wanted me and finding out that it had all been a lie hurt.

  I couldn't work with a person who cared that little about other people's feelings. Most people thought divorce lawyers were vicious, sharks who attacked when they smelled blood in the water. DeVon made us seem like cuddly puppies.

  I bought my redeye ticket and went to the bar to wait. I had some time to kill, but I didn't want to risk being late again. Having a couple drinks while I called Carrie to ask her to pick me up sounded like a good idea.

  “I thought you'd be in the air now,” Carrie said as soon as she answered.

  She sounded out of breath and I wondered if she was busy moving boxes in her new office or if she and Gavin were enjoying their more flexible schedule to have a bit of afternoon fun.

  “I missed my flight,” I said. “But I'm catching the redeye home.”

  “What's wrong?” Her tone changed immediately. “You sound upset.”

  “Pissed about my flight,” I said.

  “You didn't get the job.” Carrie wasn't fooled by my explanation.

  I sighed and took a sip of the drink I'd ordered. I wanted to down it in one go, but I had some time to kill and if I drank like that the whole time, I'd have to be carried onto the plane.

  “No, I got it,” I said. “But I can't work for someone like that. He's a total perv.”

  “A perv?” Now Carrie sounded mad as well as concerned and I mentally scolded myself. I should've known better. She was going to think DeVon was like our former client, Howard Weiss, who'd used and abused women before selling them as sex slaves. “What happened?”

  “It's not what you think,” I said. “But he's an ass. I'll tell you the whole story when I see you.” And now came the real reason for my call. “Can you pick me up?”

  “Sure,” Carrie agreed. “What time will you be in?”

  “Three in the morning.”

  “Shit,” she grumbled. “Guess it's a good thing I'm my own boss, right? I'll be there.”

  “Thanks, Carrie,” I said.

  “No problem. I'll see you then.”

  We ended the call and I turned to the serious business of drinking and reading a new romance novel I'd downloaded a couple days ago. That, at least, should keep me distracted enough not to get too wasted. I just wanted to take the edge off, not be black-out drunk.

  I was pleasantly buzzed by the time I was sup
posed to board the plane. I could walk without stumbling, speak without slurring my words, but I also wasn't feeling much of the tension from the past few days. Unfortunately, I wasn't relaxed enough to sleep on the plane. Every time I'd close my eyes, I'd get these images. Taylor trying to kiss me. DeVon on the couch in my hotel room, his shirt open enough to expose his six pack. The admiration in Taylor's eyes when he'd seen me in that dress. The heat in DeVon's eyes when he'd stopped me from leaving his office. None of these made for a pleasant flight.

  I was exhausted by the time the plane landed and hoped that Carrie wasn't running late. I just wanted to go home and sleep. As soon as I stepped outside, I saw her car and gave a sigh of relief. I tossed my bag in the back and climbed into the passenger's seat. She leaned over to give me a quick hug before speaking.

  “Spill.”

  I didn't need her to clarify. I knew what she wanted to know. She started to drive and I started to talk. I was tired enough that what little filter I had between my brain and my mouth was gone, so I didn't hold anything back, including every detail of what I'd seen in my hotel room and the whole elaborate interview scheme. It wasn't until she started laughing that I realized how completely insane it all sounded.

  “Wow,” she said when I finished. “He's completely crazy.”

  I had to laugh at that. She was right.

  “But,” she continued. “That probably makes him normal for Hollywood, right? We've all heard the stories.” She grinned at me. “Besides, I thought the crazy was part of the attraction for you.”

  I glared at her, but wasn't really annoyed. This is why I needed Carrie. She and I helped each other not to take things so seriously all the time. “Funny,” I said. “You haven't met the guy, though.” I sighed. I had to be honest with her. “It'd be a much easier decision if he wasn't hot as hell. I don't think I can trust myself around him.”