His Dirty Secret - Slave To The Billionaire - Contemporary Erotic Romance (2 page)

Isobel laughed and checked the time,
nodding her head when she saw that it was time for her to take a
break anyway. “That sounds like a great idea. Thank you.” It would
also be the perfect opportunity to try and get him to open up a
little.

She poured herself a very weak vodka
and tonic and then walked around to the other side of the bar,
hopping up onto the barstool next to him with a grateful sigh. She
held her glass up to him in a silent ‘cheers’ salute, and then took
a long pull of the clear liquid.

She turned sideways in her seat so
that she was facing the man. “I’m Isobel, by the way, and I’ll be
your bartender this evening.”

He took the hand that she’d held out,
giving a gentle shake before answering. “I’m very pleased to meet
you, Isobel. My name’s Tyler James and I’ll be your grumpy customer
this evening.”

They both laughed softly, the air well
and truly cleared between them. “Trust me,” Isobel spoke softly. “I
get a lot of grumpy customers. It’s all part of the job.
Personally, I’d prefer a grumpy one to one that makes lewd,
suggestive comments all night long.”

Tyler took a swig of his drink and
raised an eyebrow at her over the top of his glass. “Well that’s a
shame.” For the first time, Isobel noticed that his words were
slightly slurred. Perfect. “I was going to throw a few suggestive
comments at you myself.”

She laughed again. “Feel free to. Off
you I think I could handle it.” She winked back suggestively, her
inner flirt coming to the fore and loving the attention. “So what
made the handsome Tyler’s day so crappy?”

He grinned at her choice of words, and
she felt her stomach do a little hiccup of reaction at the sexiness
of it. “Nothing major, I suppose. Not compared to a lot of people
anyway. It’s just having to deal with a magnitude of so-called
qualified people who have no damn clue how to do their jobs
properly.” Isobel hid her smile at his slurred misuse of the word.
“I mean, I know it’s a huge company and that there’slot to do, but
c’mon, gimme a break.”

“Receptionist problems?” Isobel’s ears
had pricked up when he’d mentioned that it was a huge company. Was
he the boss, or just one in a long chain of managers, she
wondered.

“She’s my personal assistant, and if I
didn’t need one so damn bad I woulda fired her ass today.” His
words were getting more and more slurred with every sip of his
drink. “S’not like we pay her a measly wage either. Hell, Tyler
Morgan Inc.’s one of the most preshtigious comp’nies in the states,
and I take damn good care of my staff.”

Isobel had been finding it
increasingly difficult to understand his words, but she was sure
that she understood the name of the company, and her heart almost
stopped beating in her chest. Tyler Morgan Inc.’s. head office was
a huge building right smack in the middle of town; all glass
windows and at least fifteen stories high. Isobel had often passed
by and wished she could take a peek inside.

“Maybe you should seriously think
about replacing her.” She made sure her tone was understanding and
supportive, smiling to herself when he nodded in agreement with
her.

“I would, but my partner has to have a
say as well, and she’s a grade A bitch who loves to piss me off.”
He started to scowl again, and Isobel could sense that his mood was
rapidly sinking south. “If it wasn’t for the fact that I need her
name on the door, I’d kick her ass to the curb as well.”

It sounded to Isobel as though Tyler
James had a lot of women problems, which, considering his amazingly
good looks and muscular physique, was a surprise to her. “I’m sorry
to hear that, Tyler.” She commiserated with him sympathetically.
“We’re not all bad though. I promise”

Tyler’s laugh had a distinctly
sarcastic ring to it, but his tone was pleasant enough when he
responded to her comment. “Oh, I know you’re not, Isobel. It’s just
that women like her give the rest of you a bad name.”

By now, Isobel had figured out that it
was just one specific woman he was complaining about, but she
couldn’t make out if it was a woman at work or at home he was
referring to.

She was just about ready to
ask him when he checked his watch and got to his feet, leaving
Isobel staring up at him from her sitting position.
Man, he’s even more impressive stood up,
she thought, as she looked him up and down with
vaguely concealed interest.

“I have to go, unfortunately.” He took
out his wallet and retrieved a business card, holding it out to her
with a drunken smile. “If you ever get a night off work and fancy
doing something a little different, call me.” He gave her another
one of his deliciously sexy winks.

Isobel watched him walk away, his
steps just a little on the wonky side as the alcohol he’d consumed
made him struggle with his coordination. She got to her feet and
followed him to the door, just in case he got lost or couldn’t make
it under his own steam. At least that was the excuse she gave
herself. All she really wanted to do was admire his taut ass as he
walked.

Reaching the main door, she opened it
and looked out just in time to see him getting into what looked
like a brand new Jaguar; the driver closing the back door behind
him once he was seated and then going around to the driver’s door
and pulling away from the curb a second later.

Isobel watched the tail lights fade
into the distance and then looked at the business card she still
held in her hand with a thoughtful look. Tyler James: CEO/Owner
Tyler Morgan Inc. her eyes widened at the heading. CEO/Owner? Holy
shit batman, she might have just hit the jackpot. She walked back
into the bar with a determined step to her stride. She couldn’t
wait to get the last hour of work over and done with so she could
get home and think about things.

A few hours later, her plan was
hatched and her mind made up. She was sick to death of working in
the bar. No prospects, crappy wages and horrible customers made the
place a living hell for her, and she would do just about anything
to get out of there. She knew she would be taking a chance, but she
hadn’t handed her notice in at the bar yet, so she knew that if all
else failed she could go back to work there as normal.

Chapter Two

~

The following morning she woke early
and jumped out of bed eagerly. Today could be the start of a
completely new life for her, and she wanted to be prepared for it.
She ran herself a hot bath, cleaned her teeth, plucked her eyebrows
and checked that she didn’t need to shave anywhere, making sure
that her under arms and legs were smooth. She’d had a bikini wax
just two days ago, so even her pussy was well trimmed, although she
didn’t think that would be applicable for what she had in mind
anyway.

A short while later she was finished
with her bath and her long auburn hair was dried and put up in a
neat chignon, giving her a sincere but sexy look. She applied the
minimum of make-up; a hint of eye-shadow and a sweep of mascara
accentuated her almond shaped green eyes. A faint dab of blusher to
highlight her cheekbones and she was ready to put her clothes
on.

She walked back into her bedroom and
started to get dressed. A lacy white bra and matching thong with
thigh-high hold-ups went on first, followed by a crisp white blouse
that was just a teeny bit see-through. A black skirt that ended
just above her knees and a matching black jacket were finished off
with a pair of patent black leather stilettos. She walked over to
the full length mirror, gave her clothes a tweak here and there and
then nodded in satisfaction. She looked professional, but sexy;
exactly what she wanted.

She grabbed herself a quick cup of
coffee after checking the time. She wanted to be there early, but
not so early that she’d stand out like a sore thumb while she
waited. Grabbing her keys, she locked her front door and made her
way to her car.

Her nerves started to get to her a
little on the short trip into town, but it was nothing she couldn’t
handle and she was of the opinion that it was a case of nothing
ventured, nothing gained. She parked her car in the underground
parking lot beneath the Tyler Morgan office block and rode the
elevator up to the lobby, smoothing down her skirt and taking a
deep, calming breath as the door opened.

Isobel walked into the lobby towards
the reception desk and looked around her in awe. Black marble tiles
were beneath her feet and leather chairs and couches lined the
wall-papered walls. The whole place had an air of opulence to it
that took her breath away. She pinned a smile to her face that she
hoped hid her nerves and asked the receptionist if Mr. James was in
his office yet, to be told that he was yet to arrive.

She walked across to the seating area
and sank down into one of the chairs that faced the main door and
elevator. She wanted to make sure that she could see him when he
walked in otherwise her plan would be shot before she’d even had a
chance to put it in motion.

She didn’t have too long to wait, as
just a few minutes later the man in question walked out of the
elevator, striding towards the reception desk with purpose. Isobel
got to her feet and walked towards him, waiting until he’d finished
talking to the woman behind the desk before she said
anything.

“Good morning, Mr. James.” She made
sure that her voice was neutral. Tyler James turned to look at her,
frowning briefly as he tried to place who she was and obviously
coming up blank. “Isobel Cairns? We met last night and you told me
to meet you here this morning to start work?” She made her voice
sound as though she was questioning his memory, and he immediately
looked abashed and put out his own hand to take hers in a
handshake.

“Isobel. Of course. Please forgive me.
My mind was elsewhere.” He had been shaking her hand slowly the
entire time he was speaking, and Isobel firmly pulled her hand back
and out of his grasp, smiling to herself at his obvious
discomfort.

“Excuse me just one minute, Isobel.”
He turned back to the receptionist. “Has Jenny put in an appearance
yet?” The receptionist shook her head indicating that the woman in
question had not arrived. “Good. Call her please and tell her that
her services are not required today.”

Isobel felt a pang of guilt at the
possibility that Jenny might be the person she would be replacing,
but she quickly quelled it. From what Tyler had told her last
night, the woman didn’t do her job properly anyway, so it would be
no great loss.

“Come with me Ms. Cairns.” He turned
and walked back towards the elevator, and for one horrible minute
Isobel thought that he was going to escort her from the building.
Her fears were unfounded, however, as he pressed the button that
would take them up to the top floor.

As the elevator made its ascent,
Isobel cast a furtive glance in the direction of the man stood next
to her. She couldn’t believe that he looked so fresh and alert
after the copious amount of alcohol he’d consumed the night before.
Hell, he looked better than simply alert; he looked positively
gorgeous, she thought as her pulse gave another little jerk of
awareness.

He didn’t say a single word to her on
the short journey up, and Isobel was starting to think that maybe
he knew that she was lying about him telling her to come to the
office. But, as the door opened he stood to one side and smiled
warmly at her, indicating that she should exit the elevator before
him, and she breathed another small sigh of relief.

The elevator had opened up into what
Isobel assumed was his office, judging by the huge mahogany desk
and extensive plate glass windows that ran the whole length of one
wall giving an amazing view of the city spread out beneath it.
Thick carpet muffled their footsteps and expensive light fittings
and artwork that was probably real and not prints adorned the wall.
On the wall to the left was one door, and on the opposite wall was
another, and Isobel would bet her life that the lush plants were
real rather than fake. The whole room had an air of luxury that
left her breathless.

Tyler walked around the desk and sat
down in the huge leather executive chair. “Please, take a seat,
Isobel.” He indicated the chair on the opposite side of the desk
and she sat down nervously, crossing her legs demurely. “I seem to
recall you telling me that you have typing experience and office
administration skills?” He raised an inquiring eyebrow at
her.

She did, but only just, and it had
been a long time since she’d worked in an office environment. But
how hard could it be? “Um, yes I do Mr. James.”

“Tyler, please. Mr. James sounds like
you’re talking to my father.” He smiled in a friendly way and
Isobel felt herself relax a little. “So, I thought that I’d give
you a trial shot at being my personal assistant. If all goes well,
then we’ll see about making the position more permanent. How does
that sound?”