Fighting for her Life

Chapter 10 - Skye

One of the downfalls of being Jess' assistant is that I have my emails connected to my cell and I receive an email from Jess regarding the new account.  I cannot believe he is pointing me as the lead on this account the opportunity is amazing and it happens to be on something I love, how can I turn this down? But part of me wonders why he is giving it to me.  Is it because he wants more from me or does he think I deserve this?  As I sit there and think all these things, there is a knock on my door and I hope it's not Jess, I am so not ready for another battle with him. As I open the door, I see it is Johnny and smile.

"Why hello stranger, did you get lost on your way home?" I can't help it Johnny makes me smile and even though there is no chemistry between us I can't help but wish there were he would be so easy.

"Are you going to leave me in the hallway, or do I get to come in? I brought food!" He responds with a smile that looks weary and lifts the takeout bag.

"Come in crazy person and the food better be good or you're going to have to go." I laugh as we head to the kitchen.

"Well I hope Chinese is okay, but I didn't know what you would like, so I ordered a little of everything and thought we could share.  You sounded frustrated earlier, and I had to let you go but I wanted to make sure you were okay."  

"Yeah, sorry about that sometimes my boss can be a handful, and to be honest I don’t have a lot of people in my life that I can talk to, so I immediately thought of you."  As we load up our plates and sit in front of the TV Johnny looks at me and he has an expression in his eyes I have not seen before.

"Skye, never be sorry for calling me, I will always be there for you no matter what and you need to remember that I will always have your back.  I'm not sure if I should be flattered that you thought of me in your time of need or be hurt that you only thought of me because you think you have no one else." I can tell he's playing with me and I thank the heavens that I have someone like him in my life.

"I didn’t mean it that way Johnny so please don’t be hurt, it's just if you knew my boss you would understand my frustrations."

"Do you want to talk about it? I have been told I'm a great listener." Normally I wouldn't talk to anyone about my personal life but for some reason Johnny is different, so I tell him everything from Jess' attitude and how he is an asshole, to the way I am attracted to him, to the kiss, to him giving me the new account, to him showing up and leaving abruptly to the last email.  Although I told him all this, I left out the company name and Jess' name, but hey for me this is huge I would have just not said anything and avoided the topic all together.  Maybe one day I will be comfortable enough to let someone in completely without the worry of being hurt and let down. Once I am done, I look over at Johnny and wait for him to say something and I can tell he's processing this all.

"Okay, I know you said you were a good listener but are you going to say anything about what I just said?" I stare at him with hopeful eyes.

"Okay well do I get a name or are we leaving it as the asshole you work for?" He says with a smile.

"His name isn't really important, is it?" I hope he says no because then this discussion is over, I'm not ready to let him in fully, s**t!

"Nope not important at all just thought a name would be nice.  Okay first thing first you said he owns the company, and you helped him land this account.  Do you really think he would put his name and company on the line for someone he wants?" As I am about to speak, he lifts his finger and I wait.

"Secondly, you said that he has noticed you covering your bruises and that he pointed out that you never made the connection to his mood. Could it mean that he hates the thought of you being hurt and had no idea until this morning that someone wasn't intentionally hurting you? Thirdly, the fact that he came straight to you to share his excitement and didn't hesitate before kissing you in the workplace where anyone could have seen tells you that he doesn't care and just wants you?  I mean come on it's not that you're easy on the eyes, maybe he needs his eyes checked," he responds and laughs at the same time.

"Wow that is a lot to process, and it's like you had time to think about it.  I know that what you said makes sense but now I need time to process everything you said, thanks a lot." I say sarcastically and with a smile.  We finish dinner and clean up and watch some UFC match that is on TV After the match Johnny is getting ready to head out and asks if I would be going to work tomorrow.

"I guess I will, the bruises are better and easy enough to cover up and sitting at my desk shouldn't be so bad on the ribs as long as I don't need to move too much, maybe I'll come by the gym tomorrow!" The smile never leaves my face because I know he won't even let me in the building.

"Yeah don't assume so but call me if you need anything.  I am training a client late tomorrow so I won't be by and good luck tomorrow with your boss."

"Yeah thanks I going to need it and no worries I'll be okay tomorrow."

After Johnny is gone, I get ready for bed and try to go to sleep, but my head keeps replaying everything Johnny said and I can't help but wonder if there can be any truth it.

Skye

I arrive to the office 30 minutes early as per my norm and head into the coffee room to start a pot.   I head back to my desk I start to pull all the information Jess sent me on Customz the new account I will be working on.  I did not have much to go on before since the company wanted to see what we can come up with without their background history which apparently meant knowing the owner of the company was a female.  Since it is a private company there is nothing much on them in any search engine.  Jess' email states they want to launch the new marketing strategies in 3 months which will be tight but doable if we stick to a tight timeline.  To help me figure out what I am working with I start a Gantt chart, as I pull up the Excel spreadsheet, I notice that Jess should be in shortly and go to prepare his coffee.  In the break room I notice that Kim is also making her coffee.

"Hey Kim, thanks for your help yesterday I really appreciate it." I do like Kim, but she can be a bit much and really needs a filter sometimes.

"Hey Skye, no problem anytime, but you're so right your boss could definitely be somewhat of an ass not that I am complaining because he is a HOT ass."  She says waving herself off and once again I scream filter in my head.

"So I understand you’re the point person on the new account we won on Friday, how did you land that? There has never been an assistant that has held an account, are we climbing the friendly ladder? I know you're hot for him, just never thought you had it in you, you go girl!" I am so shocked that nothing comes out of my mouth and I just stand there until I hear the voice of the man in my sweet dreams.

"I have heard more than enough Kim, please head down to HR and I will be there shortly to answer any questions or concerns you may have." I can see the shock in Kim's face, but I know that she is not going to be the only one to be thinking these things she was just the one that got caught.

"Good Morning Ms. Anderson I will make my coffee since I may be awhile in HR."

"Good Morning Mr. Royal, yes of course I will just head back to my desk." I keep my head down and make my way out of the coffee room.

The rest of the day goes off without anything too exciting happening.  I discovered that Kim was given a written warning and sent home the remainder of the day to think about her choices in life and if she would like to keep her employment with the company.  Throughout the day I try to manage my everyday duties along with the new account and so far, not so bad.  Certain magazines I talked to regarding add space emailed me the quotations and deadlines for when they would require everything from our art department to in ready to print files.   I rate which would first give the best exposure to the market we will be targeting then by cost, I do the same for radio ads and commercial possibilities, it close to 7 by the time I get ready to head home and at that moment Jess calls me into his office.

"Close the door please Ms. Anderson and have a seat." Today Jess has not called me Skye at all, and he hasn't said much to me all day.  I'm not sure how I feel about that, I do as he asks and take my seat.

"I would like to apologize for what happened this morning, Kim had no right to speak to you that way and I will not tolerate that in my office.  Please know that I gave you the account because I know you will do wonders for the business and the company, I would not have given it to you otherwise.  You came up with the presentation that won us the business as I see it, you earned it."

"Please Mr. Royal there is no need to apologize on Kim's behalf, the way I see it there are going to be people talking about it, she was the one that said it and you happened to overhear it.  At least she was saying it directly to my face and not whispering behind my back.  Also thank you for the opportunity I don't think I have officially said that to you yet and I hope I don’t let you down." I try to keep it as professional as possible and all I keep thinking is things would get so much worse if I allowed anything to come from that kiss.

"Well if there is nothing else, I am going to head home and get some rest." I stand and grab my purse I am going to call Uber since riding my bike is not an option with my ribs and wow do they hurt.  As I make my way to the door, I hear Jess and stop in my tracks.

"Just so you know Skye, I can see under the makeup and I will always be able to recognize when you're trying to hide something. You still owe me a dinner which I will get once you're better and not in so much pain, and before you deny it, I can also see the pain written on your face." I take a deep breath and head out the door and to the elevator for my escape.

All the way home I speculate about how Jess handled the incident with Kim today and apologizing to me for what happened.  Honestly, he did not have to, but I do appreciate the gesture, then as I sit here, I think about his words in his office, about seeing what I am trying to hide there was something more in his meaning and not just the bruises, and that both excites and scares me.  Thinking that Jess wants more from me makes me feel wanted. Not just wanted but wanted by the one man that has managed to make me want again.  It has been so long since I have had that feeling and this takes me to remembering he is my boss and the owner of the company I work for not just a guy I'm interested in.  This is just too much for me to process, once I enter my home I wash up, put on my comfy clothes and message Johnny to let him know I am home, and that work wasn't so bad on my body. Then I crawled into bed and drift off.

I wake up full of sweat and my heart rate is so accelerated, and I mad at myself for allowing my past to affect me this way.  I get up knowing I will not be able to sleep, strip my sheets and head for a shower. Once that is done, I am sitting on my couch watching whatever is on the TV and message Johnny even though it's late and now he won't respond until the morning.

Hey There Stranger,

Miss me today?  Hope your client did not keep you at the gym too late?  Anyways, I was hoping you would agree to me passing by in the morning and just riding the bike or something.  My body is wound up and becoming tight and I know you're shaking your head no, but I promise I will not do anything crazy.

Your best person Skye

Oddly enough Johnny responded right away, and he instantly makes me smile forgetting about my nightmare.

Best person, who said that?  Okay fine I am man enough to admit you are amazing but that's all I will give you.  No, you cannot come to the gym to work out even if it is just the bike you will cause more damage and then you will need to wait longer to come back and train.  But if you want to just come by and bring me breakfast, I will not complain and let's not lie I fed you, now you can feed me.  How does 7:00 tomorrow morning work for you?  Please note that if you don’t show up, the most important person in your world with go hungry and I know you wouldn't let that happen. 

Night Skye go to sleep, meet you at the gym in the morning.

After I read Johnny's message back, I have a smile on my face and head back to bed for a couple hours of sleep.

Skye

Wednesday runs smoothly, Kim is back to work and has apologized for what she said yesterday.  I let her know not to worry about it, I stayed late since the timeline on this project is crazy tight and they are here on Friday.

Thursday morning I show up super early and am so deep in thought I don't hear Jess come in.

"Good Morning Ms. Anderson."

"Oh Mr. Royal so sorry, I was so deep in the Customz project I totally forgot to turn on the coffee, just give me 2 minutes and it will be ready." Jumping up from my desk and rushing to the coffee room, I head back and give Jess his coffee. As I head to the door before I leave Jess calls me,

"Oh Ms. Anderson, how is the presentation coming for our meeting tomorrow?" Jess is looking all professional and has not once crossed over all week and I am so thankful. (what do you mean crossed over)

"Very good actually.  I have come up with plenty ideas and even though our focus is targeting the female population, I realize we still need to keep the male population interested, I also believe we should lean more towards the millennials.  With Customz being a custom bike shop, and the boost in custom cars that happened a few years back, this could very much have a positive outcome.  I also asked our survey department to send out some questionnaires, and I am hoping to have some feedback before the end of the day.  If what we get back is completely opposite than what I am expecting, I will need to come up with a different direction and quickly since the meeting is tomorrow morning."  I notice that Jess has this great big smile on his face, and he is looking extremely sexy with his hair pulled back, his suit jackets off with the sleeves rolled up to his elbows.  I know he is wearing that damn pocket watch with the chain hooked on his belt loop and leading to his vest pocket.  Damn it!  I need to control myself and my body really needs to get on the same page as my brain HE. IS. MY. BOSS.

"Are you okay Ms. Anderson you seem a little flush?"

"Yeah sorry, I guess I’m a little overwhelmed over this project I just don't want to let you down." That would have sounded so much more believable if it didn't come out so breathlessly.

"Understandable, you do have a little more time than tomorrow morning, not much but the meeting was pushed to 2 pm and if you are really worried why don't we go through what you have once you receive the surveys back."

"That would be great, but I'm not expecting them until end of day and I was planning on staying late to finish up."

"Again, once you having everything ready let me know and we will go through everything with a fine tooth comb and make sure Customz leaves here feeling they are in the best hands."

"Thank you" with that said I head back to my desk and work my ass off.

Jess

I have been the perfect boss the last couple of days trying to give Skye some space and time to come to terms with office whispers. Once the senior management team sees her at work, tomorrow the whispering should die down and then the office will know that she was the best decision for this project. After that I fully plan to make this woman mine once and for all.  I know that she was always an incredibly quiet, keep to herself person but thanks to my brother I now know why and even though I want to find the asshole that hurt her physically, I really want to find her brother for making her build these walls to begin with.  But I need to keep that in check because I will not jeopardize her relationship with Johnny, she will open-up to me that is not something I am worried about I just need to find some patience.  Looking at my watch I realize that I should have her in my office any second since I asked the manager of the survey department to let me know when they send the results over to Skye.  Just as expected there is a knock on the door.

"Come in Ms. Anderson." I yell out because if it was anyone else, she would have called me to let me know someone was here to visit me.

"Hi Mr. Royal I have everything ready for the meeting tomorrow and was hoping you had some time to go through it now." She is looking down at her hands as if she is shy or uncomfortable and this is just not going to work for me, but I also need to remember my game plan to win her over.

"Of course Ms. Anderson, why don't you set up on the table in the corner and once you're ready, we will review everything you have." I watch her place everything in neat rows and into piles with post-it notes, can this woman be any cuter at this moment?  s**t I need to get myself under control before I head over since my little brain has decided to join our meeting and I can't very well walk over to her in this state.

"Once you're set up and before we begin do you mind grabbing me some coffee Ms. Anderson?" Brilliant I am f*****g brilliant. While she is in the coffee room, I take a minute to think of anything other than Skye.

We work for hours on polishing up the presentation and now it is perfect and the client is going to have her mind blown with everything Skye has to offer, I call it a night.

"I think we are done here for the night, you have covered everything, more Ms. Anderson nicely done." I get up and head back to my desk while Skye gathers everything for the meeting.

"Ms. Anderson did you bring your bike in this morning?" I question it like I do not know she didn't.  I know she can't ride with her ribs,  and thankfully her face is beautiful and bruise free but I also know that when my brother was fighting and broke his ribs, a few times it took a while to heal completely.

"No not today."

"Well then why don’t you give me a minute and I will drop you off at home."

"No that is really not necessary, I will have an Uber here in 5 minutes." She is such a frustrating woman and if she thinks Uber is an option, she is crazy.

"I actually insist Ms. Anderson, so I will meet you at the elevator in a minute." Without giving her time to fight me on this, I walk away to grab my jacket.

Skye

All the way home Jess is still very professional, and I don’t know what to make of it.  He was very adamant that I call him Jess, and not once tonight did he call me Skye. I if I am being honest with myself, I miss him calling me by my name and not Ms. Anderson. He didn't call me Skye tonight, and I didn’t feel comfortable calling him Jess. Not once did he correct me and tell me to call him Jess, since it was after hours and we were literally the only people in the office.  As we approach my place, I expect him to turn off his car and walk me up but once again he does not.

"Well here you are Ms. Anderson, thank you once again for all your hard work and extra time you have put into this project." I reach for the car door not liking the coldness in our conversation, I know I asked him to be professional and that there would be nothing between us since he is my boss, but I cannot help but feel hurt.

"Thank you for the ride home, good night." I get out of the car and head into my place, suffering like I lost something even though I never had anything, especially him.

I should feel great about the presentation and all the work we were able to accomplish tonight, but the empty feeling deep down just will not let up, so I decide to shower and go to bed. Before I do, I text my overprotective friend and let him know I got home safely, within seconds my phone rings and I smile intuitively knowing who it is.

"Hi Johnny."

"Hey, how was work? You're getting in pretty late still working on that project?" I love Johnny he actually listens to me and cares about everything I say and do.

"The project is now done and ready for the big meeting tomorrow. My boss stayed with me tonight to go over everything with a fine-tooth comb and we made some changes but not many.  He said that he loved everything and assumes we are going to blow them out of the water tomorrow."

"That sounds awesome, so why the sad face?"

"Sad face!  What are you talking about? And how do you know? We are on the phone you can't see me” right, I do have a sad face but not because of the project.

"I would like to consider I know you pretty well, even when you are trying hard to build your walls.  You know I won't push but if you want, I'm here." Johnny is the only person that knows me this well, and I don't lie to myself he is too close, and I will lose him one day too, but since it's not today, I let him in just a little more.

"Okay fine.  I have told you about my boss, how he kissed me and refuses to let up, constantly calling me Skye and not Ms. Anderson and throwing professionalism out the window. This week he has been a great boss and very professional which I really appreciate, but when we were off the clock and in his office alone, I was expecting the professionalism to stop and when he drove me home, I thought he would walk me up and maybe come in for a drink." I take a deep breath realizing this is really bothering me and then continue.

 "He was very nice, totally professional and thanked me for my work and then he wished me a good night with the car still running..." I stop myself from continuing.  "I'm so sorry Johnny, you should have told me to stop talking." Johnny he really doesn't need to listen to my girl problems and is definitely seeing all my crazy come out. 

"Skye why is this bothering you so much?  You said this is what you wanted, and the way you're going off and I do mean going off. it sounds like you really don't want what you thought you wanted." Johnny laughs under his breath.

"Did you just tell me I'm having a girl tantrum without saying those exact words? Because I'm not, I like the professional manner, and this is what I want so there are no issues.  Thanks for listening and now that all is right in the world, I am going to head to bed." Therefore, Johnny is amazing he puts things in perspective and he's right this is what I want.

"Okay fine get some sleep, but before you do and don't freak out, just some food for thought. Are you sure this is what you want? Or do you want more from this mysterious boss of yours? If you do, what are you going to do about it?  With that said, good night Skye."

"I hate you Johnny, good night."

Laying in my bed I curse my friend since I can't get to sleep.  Do I want something more with Jess? Is that even a possibility? He is my boss which means this is crazy, the office is already talking about us and there is no us.  What if I get another job then can there be us? How long would it last before he thinks I am too much work and leaves and then I become that girl again just like Tommy and my brother said I am?  I am not even going to let myself go there, I'm a fighter and I go for what I want.