My CEO Wants Me In His Bed

Landing A Job

Mara's POV.

The scary thing was that I hadn't gone ahead with my plan. I had poured the whole thing out and fixed him another cup because I was terrified that he would still be able to smell it. That I could find a way around this somehow... But right now, the sound his body made hitting the floor was worse than the screaming that followed it.

"Someone call 911!"

I dropped beside him instantly, my knees hitting the cold tiled floors, and his face was already going gray, lips turning blue.

"Mr. Gerald, can you hear me?" I tried calling his name, but he said nothing, his eyes starting past me at the ceiling as if he wasn't in the room at all.

Oh my goodness. Did I cause this? Didn't I wash the teacup well? Were there remnants of the drugs remaining? But even at that, even though there could have been remnants or not, it couldn't affect him this way.

I wasn't thinking as I started the chest compressions, counting under my breath, while tilting his head back to breathe air into his lungs between sets. The same way I did with Ethan every single time he passed out in my arms.

"Is she a nurse?" someone behind me asked, and I couldn't be more furious and disappointed at them.

"I don't know, just let her work!" Another person shushed him, and when I lifted my head up, people were taking a video of everything instead of actually helping!

"Someone should call the f*****g ambulance already!" I yelled and wiped the sweat from my forehead. "His pulse is extremely weak and he could die anytime if care isn't taken!"

"Already on it!" Someone yelled from the crowd.

I kept going, and my hands were aching, and sweat was dripping into my eyes.

Come on. Come on, don't die on me. You're not supposed to die!

He gasped and shot upright, gulping hard for air... The relief hit me so hard my entire body went weak, and I had to grip the leg of the chair beside me to steady myself.

"Mr. Gerald, can you hear me?" I knelt beside him again, checking his pulse, his breathing, and his eyes.

"What happened?" He blinked, slightly dazed. "Was that a heart attack? I forgot my medication this morning, the doctor said I could die in a window like this if I missed a dose. Did I pass out?"

Heart medication? I watched him fumble the bottle out of his breast pocket. It was the same drugs as Ethan, the only difference was that it was a higher dose. So... it hadn't been me, right?

But again... did I actually just save his life?

Before I could answer, paramedics burst through the door and took over, and I stepped back to have the professionals handle everything from there.

"You saved his life," one of them said to me. "If you hadn't started CPR when you did..."

"I think you need to take him to Mount Sinai," I said, barely thinking. "He has a heart condition and he needs a Dr. Harlow in cardiology."

The paramedic blinked at me in confusion. "Do you know him? You know his medical history?"

"No..." I shook my head and pointed at the bottle that was still in his hands. I had taken a good look at it and realized that an old man who could have died anytime soon, and had the best hospital and doctors at his disposal had forgotten to take his medication. On the other hand, my son was begging to have some form of medical attention. "It's on his medication bottle."

Well, such is life, isn't it?

As they loaded him onto stretcher, someone asked if I was coming. It took a while for me to realize that this was my chance. Sure, I wasn't the one who put him in that condition, but still... For Ethan's sake...

"Rosa, I need to go!" I grabbed Ethan from the back room and climbed into the ambulance before anyone could stop me, and from the corners of my eyes, I saw Mrs. Calloway gasp in shock.

*

Three hours passed sitting in a metal chair before the doctor came out, had my butt sore while I was rethinking my entire life.

"He's stable. It was a close call, but he's stable." The doctor looked at me, his eyes bright with thankfulness. "You're the one who did CPR?"

"Yes."

"He's asking for you."

I swallowed hard, adjusted Ethan on my hip, and walked into the private room. Mr. Gerald was propped up in the hospital bed, wires trailing from his chest, monitor beeping steadily beside him. Before I entered his room, I caught the tail end of a conversation between him and the attending doctor through the half-open door.

The doctor flipped through his chart. "This was almost certainly triggered by the missed dose of your heart medication last night and this morning. Your heart simply wasn't getting what it needed to regulate itself."

"I forgot..." Mr. Gerald said.

"You're lucky the young woman knew CPR, or this could have ended very differently."

I let out a breath I hadn't realized I was holding, relief washing through me so fast my knees nearly buckled again. Both men looked at me when I made some noise by holding onto the door for support.

"You're the woman," Mr. Gerald started.

"Yes, sir."

"Come closer."

I stepped to the side of the bed. Ethan had woken up and was watching him with wide, curious eyes.

"You saved my life."

"Anyone would have..." I tried to be humble about it.

"Nonsense." His voice was firm. "They wouldn't. I saw the security footage. Everyone else was focused on taking pictures and videos while you didn't hesitate to save me."

My blood went cold at the word footage. Had it caught the first time I tried to crush drugs into the tea too? I was sure I had been out of frame, but...

"Actually, sir," I said quickly, gesturing to Ethan, "my son has heart problems too. I know a thing or two about this."

"Oh." His face softened, and he reached for the phone by his bed. "Get me his doctor." Then to me, "I'm sorry, Mara, is it? That's what your name tag says. I would like to cover your son's medical expenses starting today. You saved my life, and I intend to repay that. Whatever he needs, the Voss family will handle it."

I stared at him, certain that I had misheard. "You don't have to do that."

"Nonsense. I insist." He turned to the doctor who'd just walked in. "Take a look at the boy, give him the best care this hospital has." Then back to me. "I'd like to speak with you, Miss Collins."

I handed Ethan off to the doctor, palms sweating, and stepped closer.

"How much do they pay you at the bakery?"

I told him, and his expression didn't change.

"I want to offer you something. Hear me out before you say no." He studied me for a long moment. "I looked into your background. You attended my university but you didn't graduate over some gross misconduct that the file said... though the panel never actually investigated it."

My stomach dropped. His university?

"I'm sorry about that, truly, even if it was five years ago. You deserved better than the life you've had since, especially with your outstanding academics." His eyes didn't leave my face. "I need a personal secretary, someone competent like you. The salary is one hundred and twenty thousand a year with full medical benefits."

One hundred and twenty thousand??? I couldn't breathe.

"There's a catch," he continued.

Of course there was.

"You'd report to my son. He's CEO now, I've mostly stepped back, though I still handle certain personnel matters directly, which means your welfare in that company is my responsibility, not his. He can be... difficult."

"I can handle difficult." I didn't even think about it. Didn't even care anymore about humility. If there was a chance, I was sure as hell going to take it! Ethan needed this too.

"Good. That's what I want to hear." He extended his hand toward me, wires still trailing from his chest. "On monday, my assistant will email you the details, dress code, building access, everything you need."

"Thank you, Mr. Gerald. I mean it. Thank you."

"Thank yourself. You earned this." He gave me a tired smile and leaned back against his pillows. "Now go home and get some rest. You look like you need it more than I do."

*

Monday came faster than I was ready for, and I found myself in front of the company building that stood really tall like a glass tower. This was a different view to what I was surviving every day...

I smoothed down the secondhand blazer I bought with the money given to me after I was fired yesterday, and I gave myself a little pep talk that I could do this.

Inside, the receptionist looked up as I approached the front desk. "Mara Collins?"

"Yes."

"Wonderful, we've been expecting you." She stood, gesturing for me to follow. "I'll walk you up myself. Mr. Voss likes to meet new hires personally before they start."

"Of course."

We stepped into the elevator, and she pressed the button for the top floor. The doors opened onto a corner office with floor-to-ceiling windows and a desk the size of my entire apartment, and I was a bunch of nerves.

"Mr. Voss," the receptionist said, stepping aside so I could walk in first. "This is Mara Collins, your new secretary."

The man behind the desk looked up, and I stopped breathing entirely.

Damien.

His eyes locked on mine, and I watched recognition hit his face in the way his jaw tightened. Again, he wasn't alone. A woman sat half-dressed on the edge of his desk, scrambling for her blouse the second the door opened, and he didn't even glance at her.

"You," he said furiously. "Get out." He stood so fast his chair rolled back and hit the window. "Get out of my office."

"Sir, if I may..." the receptionist started.

"I don't care what my father promised her. She's not working here!" His eyes never left mine. He turned to the receptionist. "Get her out of the building."

The receptionist didn't move. She stood quietly beside me, hands folded, and when she finally spoke, her voice was calm and unbothered by his tone.

"I'm afraid that won't be possible, sir."