The Assistant (27 page)

I admired her work once more before I stepped into the elevators and made me way up to the penthouse apartment, completely forgetting about where I left the text messages with Adrian. I gave him a look of confusion once I found him waiting for me at the door. “What is it?” I asked with concern.

Adrian smirked. “You can’t begin a game and not finish it, Shortcake, it’s the unspoken rule. You said you need help with the dress, and I’m here to offer my services.”

I rolled my eyes and pushed passed him. “It was a joke. But, maybe if you’re a good boy today, I’ll let you help me
out
of the dress when we get back.” I winked, grinning.

“Don’t test my patience with that kind of stuff, Emily,” Adrian growled, looking over at me with the same lustful expression as the one he had in the office. “I can’t take it any longer.”

I put on an innocent face. “Who said I was bluffing?” I asked, cocking my head to the side a little to make the act more believable. Adrian groaned before taking a step towards me, and I placed my hand on his broad chest and pushed him back.

“I just did my hair and you’ll ruin it. I’m going to do my makeup now. I’ll see you when I’m done; get dressed!” I ordered, before disappearing into the ensuite of the bedroom.

My makeup was done in 20 minutes, and it had taken another 10 minutes to put the dress on carefully without wrecking my hair in any way possible. Adrian was nowhere to be found in the bedroom, so I assumed he was already dressed and waiting for me in the living room. I slipped on my nude heels as I walked out of the bedroom clumsily, and almost fell on my face in shock once I found Adrian sprawled across the sofa, asleep, wearing his pants and shoes, as well as a fully unbuttoned shirt and a tie hanging loosely around his neck.

“Adrian, get up!” I exclaimed, slapping his exposed cheek a few times. He groaned and shifted his position before falling silent again.

I sighed before bending down to be at eyelevel with him. “Adrian, you need to get up. We need to leave in 15 minutes!” I tried again, shaking his body.

“I don’t want to go,” I heard his muffled voice mumble, before his breathing steadied again.

I let out a frustrated sigh before another method came to mind. “Adrian… I’m naked and need your help with the dress…” I trailed off in a low whisper, trying to sound seductive. In reality, I probably sounded like I had smoker’s cough and was trying to muffle it.

Thankfully, Adrian didn’t think so, because he was sitting upright milliseconds after the words left my mouth. His eyes landed on my form and any grogginess or lust instantly disappeared from his expression and he stared back at me with an unreadable expression.

I flushed in embarrassment under the intense gaze, and began to button up his shirt. “We have to leave soon,” I murmured, trying to distract him from looking at me in the way that he was.

“Emily…” He trailed off, making me look up at him. His expression was still glazed as he studied my facial features and hair before his eyes landed on my dress again. My flushed face deepened in colour as I continued buttoning up his shirt, and began working on his tie.

Once I was done, I stood up from my crouched position and looked down at my shoes.

“Come on,” I urged him, still feeling self-conscious under his intense gaze. “Grab your suit jacket and let’s go.”

He snapped out of his haze-like stare once I looked up to meet his eyes again, and he blinked blankly. “You look… nice,” he muttered, looking away from me suddenly.

I frowned at his unusual behaviour before clearing my throat. “Thank you.”

“Let’s go,” he ordered, slipping on his suit jacket before grabbing my hand and pulling me out the door.

“You’re suddenly eager to get there. You were sleeping less than 5 minutes ago,” I pointed out in amusement.

“That’s because I can’t wait any longer,” Adrian stated as we stepped into the elevator.

“For what?” I asked, biting my lip curiously again.

“You’ll see when we get there,” he replied flatly.

I frowned, both from curiosity and his sudden mood change just as we stepped out of the hotel into the black car that was waiting for us. Once we got in, Adrian turned to me. “There are going to be quite a few people from the press there. We need them to promote the charity so we’re going to have to answer most of their questions. Just let me do all the talking, you don’t need to worry about a thing, okay?”

My eyes turned wide with shock at the mention of the press, but I swallowed and nodded in response. “Is that the thing you can’t wait any longer for?” I asked, hoping to get a response.

“No, but that will be during that time.” He didn’t elaborate after that, and I found myself burning with curiosity for the rest of the trip.

***

Once we arrived at the reception, my heart began to beat rapidly against my chest. The beating was so intense that I could hear it in my eardrums, and I looked over at Adrian with desperation. “Just go in alone. Can’t you do that? What if they ask me questions because I’m next to you? Adrian, please-”

“Shortcake, breathe,” Adrian said, cutting off my panicked rambling. “I’ll take care of it, okay? Just trust me.” He hooked his thumb around my chin and lifted my face up to meet his gaze.

I stared back into his hazel irises for a few moments before nodding slowly, letting myself trust him.

“Let’s go,” he said after a moment of silence, grabbing my hand.

“Thank you for driving us!” I called out to the driver before getting yanked out of the car by Adrian.

Flashes of bright light instantly blinded my field of vision, and I felt Adrian chuckle and pull me closer. “Always the nice one,” he murmured into my ear, making me momentarily forget about the blinding lights and blush.

“Mr. Kingston! Mr. Kingston! Over here! How much are you planning to raise for the charity in tonight’s gala?” someone asked, making everyone turn quiet as the flashes continued to erupt from random corners of the crowd.

“As much as I can,” Adrian replied with a ghost of a smirk on his lips.

“Mr. Kingston! How many people are attending the event?” another person asked, and I looked over to find a woman with bright orange hair holding out a recording devise.

“There are over 350 people here today, including myself,” he answered as he dragged me along the long walkway that was set up.

“What do you plan to do with the money raised tonight, sir?” another woman asked, smiling at the both of us.

“Cassandra, lovely to see you again. All the money that will be raised tonight will go towards any families in need of the money as well as funding towards the research that will be conducted in regards to cancer,” Adrian explained, before checking his watch. “I’m sorry, that’s all I have time for. We will take more questions at the end if you are willing to wait. Thank you for joining us.” He gave them all a brief wave.

The cameras instantly began to go off again with bright flashes, and I decided to speak my thoughts aloud. “Why do they continue to take photos of the same people? I don’t get it,” I mumbled to him with a frown on my face.

Adrian chuckled and pulled me closer. “They can’t get enough of how sexy you look. Now put me next to you? It’s a picture worth a billion dollars.” He smirked down at me, making my cheeks turn the same colour of my dress.

“Ms. Emily Johnson, are you more than just an assistant to Mr. Kingston?” A man asked, making my eyes widen in shock once I realised the question was directed at me and turning the entire place quiet again.

I didn’t even get the chance to look up at Adrian for help, because he already began answering the question on my behalf. “I’m glad you asked that question, Joseph.”

I frowned in confusion from his response and looked up at him, waiting for an elaboration.

Adrian looked down at me and smirked. “Remember the thing I couldn’t wait any longer for?” he asked. I nodded slowly, still unsure of what he was getting at, before he continued talking. “This is it,” he declared, before I felt him pull me into his torso as his lips crashed onto mine eagerly; making me forget about the flashing lights and murmurs that instantly burst into life as soon as the contact was made.

I began kissing him back just as eagerly, completely forgetting the fact that there were over 50 paparazzi here taking photos and recording the event. I realised after a moment that I was kissing Adrian – my boss – and pulled away in shock while trying to catch my breath. Adrian kept an iron grip around my waist, preventing me from moving away from being pressed against his body, before he turned back to Joseph.

“Emily is, in fact, more than my assistant. She is my girlfriend. Have a nice night.”

Chapter Twenty

She doesn’t say ‘I love you’ like a
normal person.
Instead, she’ll laugh, shake her head, give you a little smile, and say, ‘You’re an idiot. If she tells you you’re an idiot, you’re a lucky man.

~^o^~How I Met Your Mother~^o^~

Girlfriend.

It took a while for the word to register in my mind. In fact, I’m pretty sure I looked like a deer caught in headlights for the entire first hour of the event while sitting next to an extremely satisfied looking Adrian and a slightly worried looking Allen. When the shock did wore off, however,
anger overcame my entire being; and boy was I pissed.

I ended up glaring at the silverware in front of me every time Adrian decided to even
shift
in his seat, and gnashed my teeth together once he spoke up and replied to someone who spoke to him. I’d feel his eyes on me every once and a while, smirking – which pissed me off even more.

“Allen!” I finally spoke up, squealing in delight as I turned in my seat to face Allen fully and ignore Adrian’s now-shocked expression.

“Well, well, well, if it isn’t my girlfriend,” Allen winked, pulling me into a tight hug. “I’ll bet that corner booth is missing your bright smile and my hilarious humour,” he joked, pulling away slightly.

I beamed before slapping his shoulder playfully. “Please. The only humorous thing about you is your face,” I teased, grinning.

“Get your hands off her,” Adrian growled suddenly, glaring at Allen. “She’s mine now.”

Allen looked up at Adrian with a sceptic look before shaking his head and giving me a brief smile. “I guess we should wait for the event to start,” he murmured, before pulling away from our embrace completely.

“Hey Allen, do you know what I’ve noticed about you?” I spoke up again, ignoring Adrian’s anger.

I watched as Allen cast a look of surprise in my direction, then wariness in Adrian’s over my shoulder, before he settled a smug smile at me. “What have you noticed, Emily?” Allen asked, catching on with the fact that I was trying to ignore Adrian all together.

“You look a
lot
like Dave Franco. Practically twins. Has anyone ever told you that?” I asked curiously, smirking slightly once Adrian cleared his throat from behind me.

Allen nodded. “I get that a lot, actually. Is that a good thing, or a bad thing?”

“Oh, a good thing for sure,” I reassured him. “He’s really hot.”

Allen laughed before waggling his eyebrows in my direction. “So you think I’m hot as well, then?” He grinned.

I rolled my eyes to attempt to cover my blush before pushing him away slightly. “Stupid head,” I grumbled, trying to fight my own grin from escaping.

Adrian cleared his throat again before I felt a familiar arm wrap itself around my waist. “Shortcake, what is your favourite colour?”

I raised an eyebrow at Allen while ignoring Adrian’s random question and Allen spoke up. “Shouldn’t you know that? You know, since she’s your girlfriend, and all?”

“Shut up,” Adrian growled, making me turn to him with a look of disbelief. He was glaring at Allen just as his grip around my waist tightened. I squirmed to wriggle out of it angrily, catching him off guard.

“Are you hungry, Shortcake? Let’s skip this dinner and go get some takeout,” Adrian suggested with a grimace once he noticed my glare.

I let out an angry huff and was about to reply when I was cut off by an all too familiar chuckle. “If this is how I’m going to see my son every time we meet Emily, I must force you into marrying him. You’ve made him your bitch!”

I turned around to find Mason Kingston grinning down at his son and me. “Well?” he demanded with a fake frown, “Where’s my hug?”

I laughed, temporarily forgetting my anger towards Adrian as I got out of my seat and was forcefully pulled into a suffocating hug by Mason, who lifted me off the floor and spun me around.

I let out a squeak of surprise before Mason chuckled and set me back onto the solid floor, laughing. “As light as a feather. Even with those big boobs attached. It’s nice to see you again.” Mason smirked, making my eyes grow wide in mortification as a blush spread through my cheeks.

“It’s… uh… nice to see you again too, sir,” I mumbled, still embarrassed from his previous remark.

“Come on, Emily. You should know to call me Mason by now. How is my son? Is he still being a little slut? It looked like he was your bitch just then, so I’m hoping you’ve changed the idiot’s ways with women.”

Adrian groaned from beside me, darkening my mood once again. “I’m
right
here, dad.”

Mason smirked down at me for a few more moments before slowly pulling his gaze away and looking at Adrian. His expression turned to one of surprise, like he hadn’t noticed his son standing there before. “Well, if it isn’t Emily’s bitch in the flesh!” Mason cheered, making a few people who were sitting within earshot turn to look at the reunion.

Adrian glared at his father before shaking his head and pulling him into a hug. “Hello to you too, dad,” Adrian grumbled once he pulled away.

Mason waggled his eyebrows. “Did you get some from the lovely lady yet?”

Adrian sighed and shook his head. “It’s killing me, but it’s her decision in the end,” he replied, making me frown. Both men chose to turn their heads over in my direction just then, and I flushed from the unwanted attention.

Mason grinned at my reaction before lazily placing one arm over my shoulders and shaking me lightly. “Keep him on his toes. I want to see how long he lasts. He’s never done this before, you know. He usually would’ve given up on a challenge a long time ago. My son must really like you if he’s stayed this long.”

I frowned and opened my mouth to respond when an ice cold voice beat me too it with a dissatisfied grunt. “I’m sure he does.” All three heads turned to the direction where Katherine Kingston was standing, glaring icily in my direction.

I looked over to Adrian out of habit, and found him glaring at his mother with the same coldness she was currently aiming at me. “Funny you should mention that, father,” Adrian began slowly, tearing his gaze away from his mother. He pulled me out of his father’s grip and into his own, making me flush as mental images of the kiss we shared earlier came to my mind. “I’ve forgotten to tell you. Emily and I are now a couple, we’ve just made it public. Oh, and, she’s moved in with me.” He looked at Katherine as he said the last part, and her gaze – if possible – grew colder.

Mason, oblivious to the tension between his wife and son, lit up like a Christmas tree. “That’s wonderful news! I’m so happy for the two of you! Now you play sex games in the security of your own four walls without any of our workers walking in on you two.” He winked, before bursting into a fit of laughter at his own joke.

Adrian gave his father a flat look before shaking his head and looking back at his mother, who was still staring at me with a cold glare. “Aren’t you happy for me, mother?” Adrian asked, sarcasm lacing his question.

“Of course I am, honey,” Katherine replied, smiling tightly at the both of us. “You couldn’t be with a more suitable woman.”

“Katherine,” Mason said, making me turn to him in shock. This was the first time I’ve heard Mason Kingston be serious, and boy did he sound scary. “I don’t know what you have against Emily, but you’re taking it too far now. Adrian has chosen her - accept it.” He gave her a strict look.

Katherine’s gaze sliced through me as she went to look at her husband, before tightly nodding her head. “Of course,” she replied in a crisp tone, before taking her seat on our table. Adrian’s stiff posture relaxed slightly against my own, just as we returned to our own seats.

I turned around to start another conversation with Allen before I felt a warm breath on my ear.

“I’m starting to regret seating you next to Allen, Shortcake,” Adrian murmured.

I pushed him away before turning back to Allen. “How’s Lisa?” I asked, remembering the bubbly teenager who made surprisingly good coffee.

Allen rolled his eyes before his expression turned desperate. “Help me, Emily. She doesn’t shut up about that boy band. I don’t know what to do!” Allen gripped both my arms tightly and shook me, making me laugh.

“One Direction? Allen, she’s a teenager, what do you expect? Plus, they’re pretty cute. Especially the one with the curly hair… what’s his name again?” I asked, biting my lip curiously.

Allen gave me a flat look. “Harry Edward Styles. Born on the 1
st
of February, 1994,” he recited in a deadpan voice, making the volume of my laughter increase dramatically. Allen glared at me in an attempt to shut me up, but ended up laughing with me once I didn’t stop.

A loud bang erupted from beside me, abruptly cutting our laughter short.

“We’re leaving,” Adrian scowled, glaring down at me as he got up from his seated position.

“What? Why? This is your event!” Allen pointed out with a confused frown.

“No, this is an event to raise money for the cancer foundation in the company’s name. It was
his
idea anyway,” Adrian snapped, briefly inclining his head in Mason Kingston’s direction, “So he can say the speech. We’re leaving,” he repeated, looking down at me.

“No, we’re not,” I responded, glaring in response.

“Emily,” Adrian growled.

“No, Adrian,” I retorted. “
You
dragged me here; so we’re staying until the event is over. End of discussion.” I kept my gaze firm.

Adrian stared back at me for a few moments, before his jaw clenched in defeat. “Fine, but get up. I want to talk to you in private.” I raised an eyebrow at his blunt tone and he sighed in frustration. “
Please,
” he added in a half-mocking tone, making me roll my eyes at his immature display.

He led us to a secluded corner in the wide reception room, and I crossed my arms once we stopped moving. “What.”

“Why aren’t you talking to me, Shortcake?” Adrian whined, pouting.

I tried to mask my surprise with a look of disbelief. “Are you kidding me right now?”

Adrian shook his head with a smirk, before he changed his expression back to the pout. “You’ve been talking to Allen all evening, and ignoring me!”

“I’m going to point out a few things to you as to why that is the case. For one, you made Allen cut all contact with me ever since that day you found us having lunch in the diner together-”

“That’s because you liked him more than a friend,” Adrian interrupted with a stern look.

I opened my mouth to respond then closed it once the words registered in my mind. “No I didn’t! I liked him
as
a friend, and that was all! Anyway, let me continue, number two; you’re way too controlling and demanding all the time-”

“Amy told me you like dominant guys, so I’m perfect for you,” Adrian smirked, cutting me off again. “That means sexually as well, if you want me to be.” He winked, making me choke in mortification.

“Just-
Stop
!” I squeaked, flushing the colour of my dress. I had told Amy that before; and now my best friend’s murder was going to be on my hands.

Adrian chuckled at my reaction to his comment, making me glare in return. “Number
three,
” I continued, ignoring his sexual indications, “You just announced to the entire population of paparazzi out there, that you and I are dating, when we’re not! You’ve said it to my parents, and now to yours as well; but did you ever stop and think to ask
me?!
” I asked, huffing slightly from anger.

“I love when you’re angry,” Adrian said, taking a step closer towards me.