Boss: The Encounter With The Bad Boy Billionaire: Bad Boy Billionaire Romance (BOSS: A Contemporary Bad Boy Billionaire Romance) (3 page)

Chapter five

By the time they finished walking the floor, Hart introduced Tony to everyone in the department and tried her best to make the rounds quickly. It was almost lunch time and she desperately needed a break from being in Tony's presence.

"Hart, can I see you for a moment?" She turned around to see Smith running up to her.

"Hi, Smith. How can I help you?"

"I just wanted to let you know that the final figures are in on the last concept that we put together. I can get those to you by lunchtime."

The young boy smiled brightly.

"Thanks, Smith. I would appreciate that. You are a lifesaver."

"Great. I'll get those figures to you."

Smith stood there, still smiling.

"Well, have a good day, Smith. I will contact you after you get those numbers to me. I'm ready to close that project out."

Hart turned to continue toward the elevator. She was walking at such a quick pace, she left Tony behind. She could avoid him in the hallway, but not in the elevator.

"So you know that you can't rush past me and avoid me right?"

He chose to speak as soon as the doors closed, leaving her feeling trapped in such a small space with him.

"I am not trying to avoid you."

"Are you sure?" His eyebrow raised, he waited for her answer.

"I am not trying to avoid you."

"Fine. I get it."

Hart was happy to see Tony back off. Once the elevator door opened, she darted off and went directly to her office. She made sure that Tony did not follow her and when he didn't she felt like for the first time she could get her head on straight that day.

She rushed past Lana and into her office. Closing the door behind her, Hart struggled to gather her thoughts. Nothing about this morning was what she wanted it to be. The only thing that worked out successfully was the fact that she had taken Tony on a tour of all of the departments and given him a once over of all of the components of what went into her doing her job.

All she could think to do was sit behind her desk and massage her temples. Her jaw tightened with stress and frustration. Never had she lost composure like that, on a job or just in life in general. None the less, she had never lost her composure over a man. And a pompous one at that.

What in the world happened? She asked herself the question over and over again, because at some point, she had to come up with the answer. But nothing came immediately to mind. She could not figure out what about Tony Ciarelli had sent her into this free fall. The only thing that was supposed to happen was that he was supposed to come in, get the specifics on the job, and pretend that he cared while she spoke, so he could go back home and let his father deal with him.

Instead, he had added an extra wrench to the plan and had come to her, igniting a passion and a fervor that she had not felt before in her life. Not even for work. There was this magnetism between the two of them and it was something that she was not willing to explore or delve into for any reason.

Tony Ciarelli was the son of her boss. The man was a spoiled heir that had nothing better to do with his time than waste it on whatever billionaire playboys wasted their time on.

Hart shoved the paperwork on her desk back a bit and decided that now was the best time to do a little deep breathing and mindful meditation. She had to change the energy around her and get her mind focused on work. Tony Ciarelli was not serious about anything in his life and there was no need for her to let him get her all out of sorts for any reason.

*

After meditating, Hart started to feel more in control of her feelings. Her head was not swarming with thoughts of what Tony would do to her if he truly got her alone. Hopefully, he would not be back for the rest of the afternoon and she could totally focus before she had to meet with him again for the next day.

Just as she hit her stride with her paperwork, she heard the door to her office open. Looking up, she fully expected to see Lana standing there. She could not help but to frown when she saw who was there.

"I come in peace."

Tony stood there with bags of food.

"Lunch. A working lunch if you please."

Hart bit her tongue. She wanted to spout off in anger, but she was much too hungry to protest. The way that the food smelled, she was in no position to turn Tony's gesture down.

"Fine." She figured if she kept her responses to a minimum, there would be less room for error and she would not yell out something that she did not mean in the meanwhile.

He took her approval and entered the office slowly. Approaching the desk with the food, he at least had a look of apology on his face.

"No. We can sit over there at the table. If I eat in the office, that is where I have my lunch."

"As you wish."

Tony headed over to the table and set out the food.

Hart did not know how to take this newfound attitude of his. She decided to just keep quiet and let it be what it was. There was no conversation at first. Partly because Hart was starving. Then there was the fact that she was not sure what to say to the man.

The quiet was necessary and she loved the fact that the two of them could sit there and not have to say much to one another. It worked out best that way it seemed for the two of them. Finally, she could get things back on track to being all about business.

"Ms. Jacobs. I'll be taking my lunch break now. I will be back in an hour."

"Thank you, Lana," Hart replied over the intercom. "Actually. You can take a little longer if you would like. We don't have our meeting until one. So if you could be back a little before then, that would be great."

"See you then."

"So we have some time together then before we have to get back to work."

Hart looked at him. "Incredible! Is that what you think?"

Tony got up to throw his empty plate away. "Why are you such a prude?"

Hart stood up out of her chair, the chair floating back with the force of her weight pushing it back.

"A prude? Really? Is that in comparison to your immature, man child ways?"

"I guess, if that is the way that you see me. Then yes, it is."

Tony was cool as he cleared the table and wiped it down with one of the extra napkins in the bag. Hart was fuming. She could not believe that he would have the nerve to insult her like that, in her own office at that. Then he had the gall to do it and remain calm about it.

"So you don't consider yourself a rude and immature jerk?" She stood there, arms crossed, issuing him a challenge.

"Sometimes I can be." He looked up in the air as if the answer was going to float down from the ceiling. "Okay. I can be most of the time. And I probably have been toward you." He turned his focus back to her.

"Now, your turn."

"What?" Hart asked. She wanted to make sure she heard him correctly.

He stepped closer, accepting her challenge. "I said, your turn." Tony spoke slowly as if the reason for her question was that she did not understand him.

Hart could not understand why she did not throw him out of the office or call for security. There was something in their exchange that made her want to win. She wanted to make sure that he knew that he was not going to get one up on her.

It was like he was baiting her. Hart did not want to give in.

"I have no clue what you are talking about, Ciarelli."

"So, we are back to being professional are we?"

"We have always been professional." Her tone was sharp.

Tony walked away to the office door. Hart smiled at the thought of him leaving. When he did not exit, she could feel the frustration boil within her.

He clicked the lock on the door and turned back to face Hart.

"You do realize where all of this tension is coming from right, Hart?"

There was that smirk on his face again. And the fact that he used her first name instead of calling her by her last name.

"No. But it seems you are the expert on this situation. So tell me where the tension is coming from."

He paced the floor, making it over to where she stood. With him standing so close again, Hart felt that sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach again.

"I can tell that Smith has a thing for you." Tony was about a foot away from her.

"So what? I've known that for a while. He's a smart kid, good head on his shoulders. He will find the right girl for him. What does Smith have to do with the tension between us?"

In the moment that she replied, Tony had already come even closer to her. Hart did not find herself moving away from him. Her eyes met his gaze.

"Nothing. I just wanted to point out what it looks like when a man has eyes for you."

"Why would you assume that I don't know what that looks like?"

He was confusing her now with his line of questioning.

"I'm not. I'm simply trying to gauge if you are aware of these types of things. Because as far as I see things, you seem to be all work and no play. I wanted to make sure you were the type of woman that could see it coming if a man approached you."

"Are you insinuating that I am blind? No wait, what exactly are you trying to say here, Ciarelli?"

She was pretty sure of what it was that he was saying, but she wanted to make Tony say it out of his own mouth.

He did not speak. Instead, he stood there, in front of her. They were practically chest to chest. She could feel his warm breath on her skin. Hart was pretty sure that his next move was a kiss her.

"Tomorrow morning? Same time?"

His words were like a pin, inflating her balloon.

"What?" Hart was not sure if she had heard him correctly.

He did not repeat himself. Instead, waited for her mind to connect what he had just said.

"No." Hart began to back away. "Nine o'clock." She ran over to her desk, sitting in the chair behind the massive furniture. Her knees were shaking.

She pretended to busy herself with the paperwork on her desk.

He chuckled. "Nine o'clock it is. See you in the morning, Hart Jacobs."

*

It took all that she had to pay attention in the client meeting she had later that afternoon. This man was exasperating. Hart wanted to scream when she thought about how he had barged in and turned everything completely upside down for her.

There had never been a man that had done anything like that to her. When Tony Ciarelli entered the room, she suddenly became weak in the knees and unable to put her thoughts together. That was a stark contrast from the well composed business woman she was. She got paid to keep her composure and think on her feet, yet when Ciarelli was around, she could not seem to find the right words to say or even begin to figure out what was going on in the moment.

Hart spent the afternoon practically racking her brain trying to put the pieces together. Billionaire playboys were not her style. She usually went for the bad boy that was the artistic type. Hart loved the man that was spontaneous and ready to do anything. Maybe that spontaneity was what was attracting her to Tony. He was not as edgy as the other guys she normally fell for, but there was something about him.

He was correct that there was an attraction between the two of them, but she had not wanted to admit that. At least not to him. Hart could see him gloating if she would admit that he had a point and that she was attracted to him and at least slightly interested in who he was as a person.

She wanted to see who was under the playboy exterior, who Tony Ciarelli was when there was no audience. He could quite possibly be a good person, but she would never get to know that if he was always putting on a show.

Hart shook her head in attempts to stop the daydream that was playing in her head. Tony Ciarelli had taken up much too much of her head space today. That was it. She was not going to think about him anymore for that day.

There were better things to do that day then think about a heartbreaker playboy who would do nothing but take up her time and frustrate her.

In all of the time that Hart and Tim had been beneficial friends, she had not once thought of another man. Lying in bed next to Tim, she could not get her mind off of Tony. The fact that Tony lingered around in her mind was aggravating. She thought that a night with Tim would solve that, but it did not. Instead, she spent the time thinking about what it would feel like when Tony touched her, and what it would feel like if he kissed her.

She turned over, hugging her pillow. The only saving grace was that Tim would not spend the night. It was their deal. They could have fun and enjoy each other's company, but spending the night took things a step further than either of them wanted to go.

Tim rolled over and kissed her on the cheek. "What time do you have to be at work this morning?"

Hart smiled. "I have a nine o'clock appointment. How about you?"

Tim stretched and yawned. "Same here. You want some breakfast?"

"That would be wonderful."

Tim walked off to the kitchen to grab something to eat. Hart watched as his back muscles flexed. He was gorgeous; muscular, athletic build, and strikingly handsome.

He was going to be a good man for some lucky woman. Although the two of them had a great sexual chemistry, at the base of it was simply a friendship that had never developed in to anything else. For Hart, thus far, that had been a safe place to be.

She liked their time together, but there was no pressure for it to be anything other than what it was.

Her alarm went off. She always set it for three hours before her first appointment. It gave her time to start her day slowly. Hart hated to rush anything.

"Is that your alarm?"

"Yes. Time to get up and at it."

Hart showered and dressed and by the time she did, Tim had a plate of breakfast waiting with a cup of steaming hot coffee.

"Amazing," she said as she looked at the eggs over easy, the sausage links, and the buttery toast. He knew just what she liked.

They ate in silence, Tim reading something on his tablet and Hart reading through some emails.

"Can you meet me for dinner tonight?" Tim asked.

"Sorry, I already have plans. But I'll call you next time I can get out. This week is extremely busy. I have a new hire that I'm training."

"Alright then." Tim did not ask any questions.

Hart reasoned with herself that what she had just told him was a little white lie. Completely harmless. He would be just fine with the version of the truth that she told.

"I really have to get going. I'll talk to you later."

Tim kissed her on the forehead. "Later."

Grabbing her things, Hart made her way out of the house, not even waiting for Tim to walk her to her car. He stood in the doorway and waved as she drove off. Alone in the car with her thoughts, Tony began to dance through her mind.

Hart banged on the steering wheel. Maybe she was frustrated because she was fighting the inevitable. Maybe there was no need to fight the feelings that were developing for Tony. But Hart had never been the type to mix business with pleasure. And Tony Ciarelli was almost certainly more pleasure than business.

*

Just as Hart suspected, Tony was there waiting on her in her office when she arrived. She was fifteen minutes early, so he had been even earlier.

"Impressive, Tony. I like the fact that you beat me here."

"So we are back on first name basis. Thank you."

"Don't get too comfortable over there. We have a lot to go over today. My day is full of meetings and I would like you to sit in on some of them."

"I'm wherever you need me to be."

Hart shook her head. She reminded herself not to fight the feelings today and see if she felt any less frustration. The key was not to let Ciarelli get to her. She would kill him with kindness instead of putting up walls and challenging him.

"That sounds great. I like the change in attitude. I think that today will be a good day."

The entire morning, Hart talked and Tony listened. She could not get over the complete change in demeanor. He was receptive, asked questions, and appeared to be a totally different person. She could not get over it, but did not want to ask questions or rock the boat on the matter. At this point, Hart would take what she could get from him. It was merely a short term assignment.

Hart did not miss the fact that Tony did not take his eyes off of her the entire day. Every time she looked up, he was staring directly at her and she knew that it was not all based in being attentive and learning the ropes. When they walked to the conference room for the meetings, she could feel his eyes on her, watching the way she walked and all of her movements.

Even when she tucked her hair behind her ear, Tony was watching. She caught him smiling at her, his eyes sparkling with a passion that she had not known before. Yesterday, he had asked her if she knew what it felt like for a man to truly want her. It seemed that since he calmed down his obnoxious behavior, she had been able to hear him, and clearly see his actions.

It was obvious that the man wanted her. But how often did he walk in to the office of a high powered executive and throw himself at the woman? He had to have all kinds of woman falling at his feet. Being the son of the company's owner had to have some perks. Then just the simple fact that he was a billionaire heir, that had to garner some attention from women of all walks of life.

Hart did not want to compete with the type of woman who would beg for a billionaire's attention simply to live the lifestyle that he could afford her. She had her own and she did not need his. Hart was happy with her life, but what girl did not fantasize about being swept off of her feet by a man that was rich and powerful?

When the last meeting for the day ended, Hart smiled and shook hands with the clients. She grabbed her things and started back to her office.

"So I found you pretty amazing in there."

Hart did not have to look up to know that Tony was directly behind her.

"Thank you," she turned to face him.

"What did you learn today?"

He laughed at her question. "Are you seriously going to quiz me like I'm in high school? Come on now, Hart."

She did not crack a smile. "Yes. I'm serious. What did you learn today?"

"Well, I figured out that you are a huge asset to this company. What you and your team do is such an intricate part of how the day to day operations run. When I first walked in here, I did not have any appreciation for your position. But now, I am completely impressed with the way that you run the show around here."

Hart eyed him for a moment, waiting to see if that genuine demeanor was going to change in a split second.

"I'm serious, Hart." He reached to take the stack of papers out of her hands.

"My father speaks so highly of you. It's nice to see that what he says matches you in person."

She just nodded. There was not much that she could say that the elder Ciarelli told her that was positive about the younger.

Opening the door to her office, they entered in silence. Tony sat all of the papers carefully on her desk. He started toward the door, then turned quickly on his heels.

"Look. Here is the deal. I know my father did not give a shining recommendation of me. I know that I have been painted out to be this spoiled, bratty rich kid that has no sense of responsibility. The ultimate playboy who spends his trust fund like there is no tomorrow. The issue is that while a lot of that is true, there is another part of me that most people don't see.

"I'm not this rude, pompous jerk all of the time. I'm used to dealing with guys like that on a regular basis, so yes, I tend to get out of hand. But I want to make my father proud and I want to make him happy. I don't want him to look at me as a failure, someone too lazy to make his own way in life. That's not what's really going on."

He started to speak again, but then his gaze dropped. Tony was staring at the floor, and Hart could tell that he wanted to say more.

"Look, I think that you are an amazing woman Hart. I apologize for being so difficult in the beginning and I promise that as you continue my training, I will not make things more difficult for you or for myself."

He pulled a white handkerchief out of his pocket and waved it in surrender.

"Can we start over?"

Hart, leaning against her desk with her arms folded, had been listening to every word he said. The problem was that she did not trust that he was going to adhere to all that he said that he would.

"We can't start over. It just has to be some ground rules moving forward."

Tony tried to look serious, though a smirk came across his face. "Ground rules? Hart, that is one thing I am learning about you. You take things way too seriously. Why can't we just let this be what it is? I'm not going to be in your hair too much longer, okay?"

"Fine. We'll do it your way." She threw her hands up. He had a point. This arrangement was only temporary. Why would she have to put that much effort in to it?

"I will see you tomorrow, Tony. Same time."

"Actually, how early can we get here?"

"As early as you would like to. What time works for you?"

"Maybe seven?"

She sighed and started back to work. "Seven a.m. it is, Tony. See you then."