Falling For The Cold CEO

Falling For The Cold CEO CHAPTER ONE: THE MAN EVERYONE FEARED London had a way of making people feel insignificant. Perhaps it was the endless grey sky, the crowded Underground trains, or the towering buildings that seemed to touch the clouds. For Amelia Hart, it was the man sitting on the top floor of Blackwood Enterprises. Alexander Blackwood. CEO. Billionaire. And, according to almost everyone who worked for him, completely unbearable. Amelia had worked as his personal assistant for almost eight months, and she had learned three important things about him. First, Alexander hated lateness. Second, he hated mistakes. Third—and probably most importantly—he hated people. Not in the ordinary way. Alexander genuinely seemed to dislike having anyone around him. He rarely smiled. He didn't make small talk. He didn't attend office parties unless absolutely necessary, and he could make an entire room fall silent simply by walking into it. His employees feared him. His managers feared him. Even some of the company's senior directors avoided meeting his eyes. Amelia? She was supposed to fear him too. And she did. At least, that was what she told herself. "Miss Hart." Amelia froze. She had been standing beside Alexander's desk, holding a folder against her chest. Slowly, she looked up. Alexander was staring at her from behind his enormous black desk. His expression was cold. "What?" she asked before she could stop herself. One of his eyebrows lifted. Amelia immediately regretted her choice of words. "Excuse me?" "I mean..." She swallowed. "Sorry, sir." Alexander leaned back in his chair. "You've been working for me for eight months." "Yes." "And you still don't know how to answer a simple question properly?" Amelia pressed her lips together. There it was. The famous Alexander Blackwood attitude. "Sorry, sir." "You've said that twice." "Would you prefer three times?" Silence. Amelia's eyes widened. Oh. That was definitely the wrong thing to say. Alexander slowly placed his pen on the desk. "Are you trying to be funny?" "No." "Then don't." "Yes, sir." He picked up the folder in front of him and opened it. "Why is the meeting with the Manchester investors scheduled for ten-thirty?" "Because you told me yesterday that you wanted it at ten-thirty." His eyes rose immediately. Amelia's heart skipped. She had seen that look before. The look that usually meant somebody was about to regret being born. "I told you ten." "No, you didn't." Alexander stared at her. Amelia stared back. The silence became uncomfortable. Then she reached for her tablet. "I wrote it down." Alexander's expression hardened. "Are you suggesting I'm lying?" "No." "You just said I didn't tell you ten-thirty." "Because you didn't." The room went completely silent. Amelia mentally prepared herself for dismissal. Perhaps she could find another job. Maybe somewhere peaceful. A little café in Richmond. Anything. Alexander stood. At six-foot-something, he immediately made the office feel smaller. He walked towards her. Amelia instinctively stepped back. He stopped a few feet away. "Give me the tablet." She handed it over. He looked at the schedule. His eyes moved across the screen. Then stopped. Amelia waited. His jaw tightened. "Fine." She blinked. "Fine?" "I said fine." "So... the meeting is ten-thirty?" Alexander gave her a look. "Apparently." Amelia fought the smile threatening to appear. Apparently. That was Alexander's version of admitting he was wrong. She turned towards the door. "Where are you going?" "To prepare the documents." "You haven't been dismissed." She stopped. Slowly, she turned around. Alexander pointed at the chair opposite his desk. "Sit." Amelia stared at him. "Why?" His expression immediately darkened. "Do you have a problem with the word 'sit'?" "No." "Then sit." Amelia sat. Alexander returned to his chair. For the next twenty minutes, they discussed the Manchester meeting. Amelia took notes while Alexander gave instructions. She knew his habits by now. He liked everything organised. He hated unnecessary decorations. He wanted reports printed in a particular order. He hated coffee with sugar. He preferred black coffee. He hated being interrupted. He hated people who talked too much. He hated... Amelia paused. "Why are you staring at me?" Her eyes widened. "I wasn't." "You were." "I'm sorry." "There you go again." She lowered her eyes. "Sorry." Alexander sighed. "You're impossible." Amelia almost laughed. That was rich coming from him. But she kept quiet. She had learned the hard way that Alexander Blackwood didn't appreciate people challenging him. Especially in public. The first time she had witnessed it, she had been horrified. A junior employee had made a mistake during a presentation. Alexander had stopped the entire meeting. In front of twelve people, he'd calmly told the employee that if they couldn't handle basic responsibilities, they had no business working at Blackwood Enterprises. The employee had gone pale. Nobody had spoken for the rest of the meeting. Amelia had hated Alexander that day. She really had. So why was she now sitting across from him, secretly watching the way his dark eyes narrowed whenever he concentrated? Why did she know exactly how he took his coffee? Why did she notice when he skipped lunch? Why did she sometimes find herself waiting for the sound of his footsteps in the corridor? Why did her heart beat strangely whenever he said her name? Amelia didn't know. Or perhaps she did. She just refused to admit it. She had fallen for him. Quietly. Stupidly. Completely. And Alexander had absolutely no idea. Which was exactly how Amelia wanted it. Because falling for her boss was already complicated. Falling for a boss who seemed to dislike humanity itself was worse. She had no intention of becoming another office rumour. Especially not after what had happened with the previous assistant. Alexander had fired her after discovering she'd been discussing his private life with colleagues. Since then, he had made it very clear that personal relationships had no place in his company. Amelia respected that. Besides, she knew better than to imagine Alexander would ever look at her that way. He barely looked at anyone that way. Her feelings were her problem. And she intended to keep them that way. "Miss Hart." She looked up. "Yes?" "You're distracted." "No, I'm not." "You are." Alexander closed the file. "Are you listening to anything I've said?" "Yes." "Then tell me what I just said." Amelia opened her mouth. Nothing came out. Alexander stared at her. She looked down at her notes. "You're going to Manchester tomorrow." "I said that?" "No." He stared at her. Amelia's face heated. "I mean..." A knock interrupted them. The door opened before Alexander could answer. His younger brother, Daniel Blackwood, walked inside. Unlike Alexander, Daniel had an easy smile and a much friendlier personality. "Alex." Alexander looked irritated immediately. "What?" Daniel glanced at Amelia. "Morning." "Morning," she replied. Daniel looked between them. "Am I interrupting something?" "Yes." "No," Amelia said at exactly the same time. Daniel smiled. Alexander's expression became darker. "Get out." Daniel laughed. "Nice to see you too." "I have work." "So do I." "Then go and do it." Daniel looked at Amelia. "How does she tolerate you?" Amelia immediately looked at her tablet. Alexander's eyes narrowed. "She doesn't have a choice." Amelia's head snapped up. "Actually, I do." Daniel's smile grew. Alexander looked at her. There was something in his expression Amelia couldn't understand. Surprise, perhaps. Nobody spoke to him like that. Amelia suddenly realised what she'd done. "I'm sorry." Daniel laughed. "Don't apologise. I'm starting to like you." Alexander stood. "Daniel." "Fine, fine." Daniel walked towards the door. Before leaving, he turned back to Amelia. "See you later." "Bye." The door closed. Amelia returned her attention to her tablet. Alexander was still standing. "What?" "Nothing." "You're staring." "I am looking at you." "That's called staring." His jaw tightened. "Do you always talk this much?" "Only when I'm nervous." That answer slipped out before Amelia could stop it. Alexander's expression changed slightly. "Nervous?" Amelia immediately looked away. "Never mind." He watched her for another moment. Then his phone rang. He answered. "Blackwood." Amelia began organising the papers on his desk. She didn't listen to the conversation. At least, she tried not to. Alexander's voice was low and controlled. Then, suddenly, his expression changed. The colour seemed to disappear from his face. Amelia looked up. "Yes," he said quietly. He listened. His hand tightened around the phone. "Where?" A pause. "Send me the address." Another pause. "I'm coming." He ended the call. Amelia stood. "Is everything okay?" Alexander grabbed his coat. "Cancel my meetings." "What?" "All of them." "But the Manchester investors—" "Cancel them." "Alexander—" He stopped. Amelia realised she'd used his first name. His eyes met hers. For a moment, neither spoke. Then his voice became colder. "Don't call me that." Amelia's stomach dropped. "I'm sorry, Mr Blackwood." He walked towards the door. She followed. "Where are you going?" "Home." "Should I come with you?" Alexander stopped again. "No." "But—" "I said no." He opened the door. Amelia watched him leave. Then something caught her attention. A small white envelope had fallen onto the floor. She picked it up. There was no name on it. Only one sentence written across the front. FOR ALEXANDER BLACKWOOD — URGENT. Amelia stared at it. She turned towards the door. Alexander was already gone. For the first time since she'd started working for him, Amelia wondered whether the cold, cruel man everyone feared was hiding something much bigger than his bad temper. And somehow, she had a feeling she was about to find out.