Changing the bad boy

Chapter 4

VALERIE POV

Fiona drops me off at work and whistles at the sight of the building. "That's pretty fancy, babe," she says.

"Yeah." It is. At thirteen stories, the sleek black and glass building is very impressive, but also a bit intimidating.

"You sure you gonna be good getting home?" she asks worriedly. "Paul, can get you after work?"

I inhale deeply and nod. My brother somehow managed to get my car started last night and brought it to a body shop owned by a friend of his. I should get an estimate of what it would cost me to get the car working later today. And that is not something I'm looking forward to. In the

meantime, my brother and Fiona have agreed to take turns bringing me to and from work. And to and from daycare.

I hate inconveniencing my friends, but in this case, I have no choice. Luckily Fiona hadn't seemed very upset when she appeared at our door this morning with a box of donuts. Bella had screamed and thrown herself into Fiona's arms.Her grumpy temperament and refusal to get dressed had changed in an instant when she'd spotted her honorary "Aunt Fifi."

Rory hadn't been far behind his sister. His drooling grin and happy squeal had made Fiona laugh.

So, I couldn't even reprimand her for the unhealthy breakfast she

brought. Plus, I'd been too busy drinking the large cup of coffee she handed me.

And hell, everyone deserved a donut sometimes. Even me.

"Thanks, Fiona," I say and step out of her car,smoothing down my dark blue dress as I do.

"I'll see you tomorrow morning," she responds."Have a wonderful day. Enjoy the view."

She means to enjoy the Cartwright brothers, not the view of downtown, even though that's pretty spectacular too. But I've only met one of the brothers, and even though he's gorgeous, I'm nimpressed edI snort, and laughsugns.

Preston Cartwright's car isn't in the parking spot it was in yesterday, and I can't see it anywhere. I smile as I enter the building, happy to be there before him.

Neither Alana nor Lydia is at their desks, and somehow that makes me even happier.I'll have a few minutes to myself, and I'm going to figure out how to work that freaking spaceship of a coffee machine.

I drop my stuff off in the closet, put my lunch bag in the refrigerator, and stare down at the coffee machine.

"You're on," I say to it, like it's a dare, and pull a cup out of the cabinet. I'm determined to get another

cup of coffee before 1 start to work. I make sure the machine is plugged in and press a button that simply says brew, and when it works, I cheer out loud.

"Wow, someone is really excited about a cup of coffee," a male voice says behind me, and I jump.Turning around, I find a man dressed in a perfectly tailored gray suit with a light blue tie looking down at me with an amused expression.

"Oh, well,yeah.I finally figured out how to work it," I admit.

He chuckles.

I know he must be one of the Cartwright brothers, but I'm not sure which one. There's resemblance to Dreston They have the same height and a similar build, and the same bright blue eyes, but this guy is definitely several years older. There is some gray mixed in with the dark hair along his temples,and he has laugh lines around his eyes.

He's attractive, very much so, in fact. Just not as attractive as Preston.But then again, hardly anyone is.

"I'm Valerie Vaughn," I say and stick my hand out. "The new admin."

"Nice to meet you, Valerie,"he responds, and shakes my hand. "I'm Andrew."

Oh, the second-in-command -the oldest brother and COO of the company.

"Nice to meet you, too."

I remove my cup from the coffee machine and add a couple of creamers to it while Andrew proceeds to make his selection.The scent of fresh coffee surrounds us,but then the machine makes an interesting sound, and I turn around to find Andrew pull out a cup that's already mixed. It looks like it even has frothed milk on top.

"Oh, wow. What's that?" I ask, and immediately blush at my cluelessness.

His lip quirks up in amusement. "It's a latte."

And I'm taken aback by how cool that is, even as I remember Alana or Lydia telling me there were all different kinds of coffee

choices. I'm smiling too because how cool is that?

I can have a latte or a cappuccino for free anytime I want during the day without paying five bucks a cup. That's just amazing and very good for my bank account.

Andrew must sense how impressed I am because he offers to make me one.

"No, I'm good with this for now," I respond, not wiling to waste a cup of coffee even if the latte looks better. "But thank you. I will try that tomorrow."

"You got it. Let me know if you need help making it," he teases.

I gulp and force out a smile.

Both because T'm not 1sed

to having attractive, wealthy men offering to help me out, but also because there is no way in hell I'm gonna ask the COO of the company where I just got a job to make me coffee.

He smiles and wishes me a good day. And I'm a bit dumbfounded by how casual and easygoing he is, especially compared to Preston.

By the time Alana and Lydia arrive, I'm hyped up on caffeine. I've already reviewed Preston's and Easton's schedules and finished my cup of coffee.

"Good morning," I greet them.

"Good morning," Alana responds with a smile while response with a smile would

Lydia says, "Hello."

They continue towards the storage area and return a couple of minutes later with coffee cups in their hands.They are laughing about something that happened when they went out over the weekend and I'm slightly taken aback by how much older I feel. Maybe not in years. It can't be more than eight, ten max, but by life experiences. They don't seem to have a care in the world, other than this job, and maybe men, if I interpret the conversation correctly, and part of me is jealous.

They've both been here for a few years, so I know they make good money, especially for being so young.And I can tell by the way they dress that they can clearly afford designer clothes.

I find myself thinking that they look more like models than secretaries.They are both slightly above average in height and slender.Lydia is curvier and her raven-colored hair is long and thick, while Alana's is shoulder-length,pin straight and highlighted.

I remind myself that I love my children even though Bella threw her clothes on the floor this morning and stomped her little foot because she wasn't allowed to wear her princess nightgown to the daycare.They are the reason I'm trying so hard to make ends meet, and why I am at Cartwright & Sons. I don't

have time to be jealous or intimidated by others. I have a family to support.

After giving myself a pep talk, I review my emails and get lost in some work but look up when the door opens at the end of the hall and Preston walks in like he owns the place, and I guess he kind of does, followed by yet another attractive brother.

Damn, I'm starting to get what Fiona is so wound up about.These Cartwright brothers have a helluva gene pool.

"Good morning, Preston,Hayes," Alana says in a sugary sweet tone I haven't heard before. It instantly piques my curiosity, and also answers the question about which brother this is.

"Morning," they respond in tandem, and I mumble the same, all while my eyes bounce between Alana,Hayes and Preston. I'm not sure which brother she's attracted to, but the big smile on her red lips and the way her eyes flutter are dead giveaways. Interesting. This girl has the hots for her boss.

I can see why based solely on looks, but not when you add the cocky attitude. It's probably Hayes. He might be more like Andrew. Friendly and charming.

I can't wait to tell Fiona.

"Valerie," Preston snaps and ito bi ofeo

like I'm a misbehaving dog.And I'm wondering if I did something wrong already.

"Does that mean I should follow him?" I ask Lydia,who sits closest to me.

"Yes," she giggles like it was a stupid question.

I hurry to follow him, just to stop myself after a few steps, and return to my desk to grab a pen and notebook. I'll need to be better prepared today. As I turn back toward his office, yet another equally attractive brother -who has to be Easton- enters Preston's office ahead of me. Four for four. I wonder what the father looks like? Fiona had said something about a silver fox. Based on what I'm seeing, she must be right.

A couple of hours later, I have a lot of things to do.Easton's list is as long as Preston's, but he was nicer about it.

My day goes great.I accomplish all of Easton's requirements before lunch,and in the afternoon, I'm working my way through Preston's when he shouts my name from inside his office.

"Oh boy," I sigh and get up.I stick my feet back into the black pumps I wore to work and hobble uncomfortably towards his office.

"Yes?" I ask as I stick my head through his doorframe.

He's in front of the window with his back to me. His coat is off, and I'm momentarily dazed by the width of his shoulders, and how his back tapers into a pair of well-fitting slacks.And especially how they fit over a very perky ass.

"Come in and shut the door."

I puff out a silent breath but do what he says. He's the boss, after all.

When a door is shut,it usually suggests that something private is going to be talked about, so I'm expecting it's going to be something confidential, or that I screwed up somehow and am about to get reprimanded. But as far as I know, I haven't done anything wrong.

"I asked you to book lunch for today, correct?" he asks.

"Yes." Which I had done. I watched both him and Easton leave the office shortly after noon. And I was pretty sure I'd seen Andrew and Hayes leave as well. Preston nods his head as he turns around. His stance is casual. He has his hands in his pockets and the tie is gone. His shirt has a couple of buttons open at the throat, showing some tanned skin, and I hate the fact that I find him attractive. Not just because he's my boss, but because he acts like everyone should obey him. I have been there and done that, and I'm not looking to do it again. Not that I would, because he's my boss. My much younger boss. And he's an asshole.

Not that he'd ever consider giving an older single mom a second look.

I give myself a mental head slap. Get with it, Val. He's attractive, so what? You're not here to find a date.

The expression on Preston's face and the way his eyes are glaring att me haves had me.

And I realize this is not a classified meeting. He's not about to divulge some serious issue he needs me to take care of.

"And did I, or did I not, ask you to move the meeting with Mr. Demer to Wednesday instead of Thursday?" he demands in a tone I've never heard from him before.

The uneasiness in my stomach gets worse.

"Yes," I say again, although a bit more timid this time.

"Then why exactly did Mr.Demer show up at my grandparents' anniversary luncheon?"