The Billionaire's $1 Assistant: Love After 8

CHAPTER 1 THE GHOST Monday — 8:29 AM Brown Atlas Tower, Manhattan — 57th Floor The 57th floor of Brown Atlas Tower was considered the most secure floor in Manhattan. Some employees joked that it was easier to break into a bank than to get through the doors leading to Mr. Brown's office. They weren't wrong. The main elevator required a keycard. Only one person outside the executive office was authorized to possess that keycard. Vanessa Cole. At twenty-six, Vanessa had worked as the receptionist and executive secretary on the 57th floor for two years. A Columbia graduate with perfect blonde hair, an immaculate wardrobe, and the kind of figure that made people stare twice, she had convinced herself that she knew everything about the man who owned the building. Cedric Brown. CEO. Billionaire. The most feared businessman in the city. And, in Vanessa's private fantasies, her future husband. There was only one problem. Cedric had never shown the slightest interest in her. He barely looked at her. He barely looked at anyone. That Monday morning, Vanessa was sitting behind her desk when the private elevator opened. She immediately straightened. But her smile disappeared almost as quickly as it appeared. Cedric Brown stepped out. He was six-foot-two, broad-shouldered, and dressed in a perfectly fitted black suit. His expression was cold enough to make an entire room fall silent. Behind him came Ethan Kane. Six-foot-four. Thirty-two. A scar ran along one side of his face, and his expression was even more intimidating than Cedric's. Ethan had worked beside Cedric for nearly ten years. If Cedric was the wolf, Ethan was the man who made sure nobody survived getting close enough to touch him. But neither man said anything. Because Cedric had stopped walking. His eyes were fixed on his chair. Someone was sitting in it. A tiny woman. She couldn't have been more than five-foot-two. She wore a blush-pink dress beneath a white cardigan. Her long black hair fell in soft waves almost to her waist. Her bare feet were tucked beneath her. A bottle of strawberry milk sat beside her. And she was using Cedric Brown's private laptop. Ethan's hand immediately moved toward his weapon. "What the—" Cedric lifted one hand. Ethan stopped. Cedric stared at the woman. "Who are you?" She didn't answer. She kept typing. Ethan stepped forward. "Miss." Nothing. He glanced at Cedric before speaking again. "Do you know whose chair you're sitting in?" The woman finally stopped typing. She slowly looked up. And everything changed. The softness disappeared from her face. The sleepy, almost childish expression vanished. Her eyes became cold. Not nervous. Not frightened. Cold. The temperature in the room seemed to drop. Ethan stopped walking. Something inside him screamed that the woman sitting in front of them wasn't harmless. He had seen killers stare death in the face without blinking. He had watched Cedric walk into rooms where armed men were waiting for him. But this woman— She made him hesitate. Cedric noticed. His eyes narrowed. The woman slowly closed the laptop. "Are you Mr. Brown?" Her voice was calm. Too calm. Cedric walked toward her. "Answer my question." She looked at him for a few seconds. Then the terrifying aura disappeared. Just like that. Her shoulders relaxed. Her eyes softened. She picked up her strawberry milk and took a sip. "I'm here for the assistant position." Silence. Ethan blinked. Cedric stared at her. "What assistant position?" "The one you posted three years ago." "I didn't hire anyone." "I know." "Then why are you here?" She smiled. "Because the position is still available." Cedric's jaw tightened. "There is no position." "There is now." Ethan almost laughed. Cedric didn't. He walked closer until he stood directly in front of her. "How did you get inside?" She looked at him innocently. "I walked in." "Past security?" "Yes." "Past the elevator?" "Yes." "Past the cameras?" "Yes." Cedric leaned slightly toward her. "And how exactly did you manage that?" She took another sip of strawberry milk. "That's confidential." Ethan looked away to hide his reaction. Nobody spoke to Cedric like that. Nobody. Cedric's voice became colder. "Get out." The woman stood. She slipped her laptop into a small bag, picked up her strawberry milk, and walked toward the door. Cedric watched her carefully. At the doorway, she stopped. She turned toward him. "If you change the security codes, I'll see you tomorrow." Cedric's eyes hardened. "Try breaking in again and you'll regret it." She smiled. "I'll see you tomorrow, Mr. Brown." Then she left. Vanessa was standing behind her desk when the elevator doors opened. The girl stepped out. Vanessa frowned. She hadn't seen her come in. In fact, she hadn't seen anyone use the elevator except herself that morning. "Excuse me." The girl stopped. Vanessa looked her up and down. "How did you get to the 57th floor?" The girl smiled. "You blinked." Then she walked away. Vanessa stared after her. Inside the office, Cedric was already looking through the security logs. Nothing. No unauthorized entry. No keycard use. No elevator record. He pulled up the cameras. Nothing. He checked again. Still nothing. Ethan leaned over his shoulder. "She isn't on the footage." Cedric's expression darkened. "Change every access code." "Already doing it." "And increase the guards." "Done." Cedric looked toward the door. For the first time in years, someone had entered his most secure office without permission. He didn't know who she was. He didn't know what she wanted. But he knew one thing. She would be back. --- Tuesday — 8:30 AM Cedric entered his office. She was there. Same chair. Same bare feet. Same strawberry milk. Different dress. Cream this time. He stopped. She looked up. "Good morning, Mr. Brown." Cedric stared at her. "How?" She shrugged. "The new codes were easy." Ethan closed his eyes. Cedric looked at the guards. "Increase security again." The next morning, two guards were stationed outside the office. By 8:29 AM, both were asleep. A pink note had been placed on one man's chest. Shhh. They were tired. — H. Cedric stared at it. Then at the woman sitting comfortably in his chair. She was wearing another cream dress. Strawberry milk beside her. Laptop open. Ethan looked exhausted. "I give up." Cedric glanced at him. "You've known me for ten years." "Exactly." "And?" "I've never seen anyone do this." The woman smiled. Cedric folded his arms. "Why do you want this job?" She looked at him. "Because I want it." "That's not an answer." "It's the only one you're getting." Cedric's gaze sharpened. "You've broken into a secured executive floor three days in a row." "Technically, yes." "You could be arrested." "Technically, yes." "And you're not worried?" She took a sip of strawberry milk. "No." Cedric stared at her. She turned the laptop toward him. A file was open. BERLIN — CONFIDENTIAL Cedric's expression changed. The file contained information that had never been released outside a handful of senior executives. At the bottom of the screen was a message. TRY HARDER, MR. BROWN. Ethan's expression became serious. Cedric stepped closer. "Where did you get this?" "Your Berlin deal has a leak." "Who?" "I haven't finished tracing it." Cedric stared at the screen. She continued. "But I can." For the first time, he looked at her differently. Not as an intruder. As a problem he couldn't immediately solve. A very interesting problem. Before he could speak, Vanessa stormed toward them. She grabbed the girl's arm. "You've had enough." The girl's eyes dropped to Vanessa's hand. Her expression changed. The softness disappeared again. Vanessa suddenly felt cold. "Take your hand off me." The words were quiet. But there was something dangerous underneath them. Vanessa released her. Cedric saw everything. The girl immediately returned to her soft expression. "I just want the assistant job." Cedric studied her. "You really want it?" She nodded. "Fine." Ethan looked at him. "Boss?" Cedric continued. "You start Monday." Her eyes lit up. "Really?" "Seven AM." She nodded eagerly. "You'll use the main elevator. Vanessa will issue your keycard." He pointed toward a small desk outside his office. "That's your station." She looked at it. "No entering my office unless I call you." She nodded. "No personal laptop." A tiny frown. "No touching my files." Another nod. "You'll handle coffee, phones, schedules, and whatever else I assign." "Okay." "Your salary is one dollar a day." She blinked. Then smiled. "Okay." Ethan stared at her. "You accept?" "Yes." Cedric narrowed his eyes. "One mistake and you're gone." She nodded. "I'll earn my clearance." She picked up her strawberry milk. "See you Monday, Mr. Brown." She walked toward the elevator. Vanessa watched her leave. Five days. Five times the girl had appeared on the 57th floor without Vanessa seeing her enter. Vanessa couldn't understand it. Cedric remained silent long after the elevator doors closed. His eyes settled on his chair. A faint ring from a strawberry milk bottle remained on the desk. He touched it with one finger. Who was she? And why did he have the strange feeling that hiring her would change everything? He just didn't know yet that the girl he'd hired for one dollar a day was the ghost everyone had been searching for.