Wesley
I can’t believe this. It’s only lunchtime, and I’m already close to losing my damn mind. I showed Lily to her desk after we arrived at Brooks Industries. She has a small office that you need to walk through to get to mine, and therefore, I keep all of my folders inside her office. The only problem is that my old secretary, whom I fired, didn’t sort them. Therefore, I ordered Lily to sort my folders and arrange them on their bookshelf, something I would expect of my new secretary.
But what I come back to almost gives me a heart attack.
Every white and professional-looking folder has been replaced with a new shiny, and pastel-colored one. There are glittering animals and stars everywhere. It honestly looks like a unicorn puked over the bookshelf, and I take a step back, placing my thumb and forefinger between my eyebrows as if that somehow will help ward off my incoming headache.
I can’t believe this...
How could my grandmother betray me by convincing me to hire this person? Just look at her! She is humming “Baby One More Time” by Britney Spears and dancing while putting stickers on the back of the folders! And why did she choose bobble-headed dogs?! Gah! This rogue is clearly out of her damn mind. The warning signs were all there this morning, yet my grandmother still took a liking to her!
I take a deep breath, trying to compose myself as I approach her. As I walk through my door, Lily turns around, still swaying to the music like a psychopath, something which I call all those people that are happy for no goddamn reason.
“Good afternoon, Mr. Brooks!” I’m surprised Lily is managing professionalism while addressing me, but it’s not enough to quench my fire, and my irritation grows when she flashes me a radiant smile. “Isn’t it such a lovely day? I found these adorable stickers and thought it would be a great way to add some creativity to your folders!”
I feel a vein pulsing on my forehead as I grit my teeth. “Lily, these folders are unprofessional. I hired you to sort my folders, not to decorate them with glitter and cute animals.”
Lily’s smile falters momentarily before she quickly recovers and straightens her shoulders. “I’m sorry, Mr. Brooks. I thought adding a touch of whimsy would make them stand out and make you smile.”
Is this woman for real? She wanted to make me smile—I call that bullshit. Lily can’t possibly care about me. If she does, then it’s a waste of time. We will never be on friendly terms with each other, and if that’s what she is hoping for, then her dream will be shattered by reality because I hate rogues after what they did to Mirelle.
I shake my head, feeling more frustrated by each passing second I’m faced with the sparkle in her eyes. “A touch of ‘whimsy’ isn’t what I’m looking for in my business. I expect professionalism, not unicorn vomit.”
Lily’s smile vanishes entirely, replaced by a look of shock and pain. “I understand, Mr. Brooks. I will take them down right away. No worries.”
She starts peeling the stickers off the folders with care, setting them aside neatly so as not to damage the designs. But it’s not enough to quell my anger.
I cross my arms over my chest, glaring down at her. “And I don’t want to see anything like this again, Lily. Is that clear?”
“Yes, Mr. Brooks,” she says quietly, avoiding my gaze.
I turn on my heel and make my way back to my office, slamming the door behind me with enough force to make the walls shake. This whole hiring-a-new-secretary thing is starting to feel more and more like a huge mistake. Maybe I should just go back to doing everything myself. At least then, there wouldn’t be any surprises.
With a loud exhale, I sit down at my desk and start going through my e-mails, gasping when I notice the e-mails Lily has already replied to in my name this morning.
The first one is from Courtney Wolf, some woman in my company and pack I’ve never even heard of. In her e-mail, she is asking for time off because she lost her dog, and Lily, the little brat, responded by writing her a heartfelt letter. I would NEVER write such a thing!
I can’t believe this. I hired Lily to be my assistant, not to give my employees emotional support. I take a deep breath, trying to calm myself down and begin to read the e-mail Lily wrote on my behalf.
“Dear Courtney, I am so sorry to hear about your terrible loss. My heart is breaking for you, truly. Losing a pet is never easy. Take all the time you need to mourn and remember the good times you had with your beloved furry friend. Brooks Industries is here to support you in these dark times, and so am I if you ever need someone to talk to. Love, Mr. Brooks—your kind and understanding Alpha and CEO.”
I shake my head in disbelief. Who does Lily think she is?! I’m unsure whether to be more upset about the fact that she referred to me as a “kind” Alpha or the fact she gave Courtney the day off. What if I need her? Whoever she is...
I growl to myself, gasping when I realize there are more e-mails Lily has responded to.
The next one is from a client who has been demanding a meeting with me for weeks. I had been putting it off because I was busy, but Lily took it upon herself to schedule the meeting without consulting me first. And not only that, but she also confirmed that I would be attending a charity auction that I had no interest in attending!
I slam my fist down on the desk, the anger boiling inside me. Who is she to decide my schedule for me? I hired her to assist me, not to take over my life! I won’t stand for this.
I storm out of my office and march straight to Lily’s desk. She looks up as I approach, and the fear in her eyes sends a small thrill of satisfaction through me. She has crossed me far too many times, so it suits her right.
“Lily,” I growl, “We need to talk. Now.”
She jumps at the tone of my voice. “Y-yes, Mr. Brooks!”
I wait for her to stand up and lean against my door as she walks past me into my office with her head held low.
As soon as we are inside, I slam the door behind us, the sound echoing through the room. Lily flinches, and I see tears gathering in her eyes. But I don’t pause to consider that, I’m way too angry to care.
I make my way to the chair behind my desk and motion for Lily to take a seat in front of me. She sits down hesitantly, fidgeting with her hands as she avoids my gaze. I take a deep breath, trying to compose myself before I speak.
“Lily, I’ve noticed that you’ve been responding to my e-mails without my approval or consent,” I begin, my voice low and measured. “And not only that, but you’ve also been scheduling appointments and events without consulting me first. Do you have any idea how unprofessional that is?”
Lily’s eyes widen in shock, and her voice shakes as she responds. “I’m sorry, Mr. Brooks. I was just trying to be helpful. I thought you would appreciate it if I took some of your workload off your shoulders.”
I scoff inwardly, wondering if she’s really that naive. “Taking initiative is one thing, Lily. But taking over my life is another. I’m the Alpha and CEO of this pack and company, not you. I expect you to respect my authority and my decisions.”
Tears stream down her face now, and I feel a small sense of satisfaction at her display of weakness. “I do respect you, Mr. Brooks. I’m sorry if I overstepped. I just wanted to make things easier for you.”
I lean back in my chair, my eyes narrowing as I study her shivering form. “Do you usually cry this easily?”
To my surprise, she glares at me through her tears. She looks afraid, but there is also a burning flame in her eyes. “No, but I’m pregnant, you asshole. And since the child is yours, you should be kinder. Upsetting me probably isn’t good for our child, Wesley.”
Wesley.
I smirk and lean forward. “So the professionalism and respect only lasted while we were outside the walls of my office?”
“It lasted until you no longer deserved it.”
My eyes narrow. “What do you mean?”
“It means I chose to start over this morning, forget our rocky past and be the best secretary I could possibly be. I wanted to be useful to you, but then you started barking at me.”
“Because you put stickers on all my folders...”
“I was only trying to help.”
“You made me angry instead.”
“You still didn’t have to raise your voice.”
I dig my nails, which have turned into claws in my state of anger, into my thigh, hating that she’s got a point. I change the subject. “And the e-mails—”
“Will help you be more liked around the office,” Lily intervenes with her arms crossed over her chest. “People here don’t like you. They respect you, sure, but only because everyone is scared of you, Wesley.”
That’s the last straw. I’ve had it with her and stand up from my seat to tower over her, hoping it will scare her into submission, but it doesn’t. The little rascal instead kicks off her shoes and climbs up to stand on her chair.
I squint up at her determined face, my throat turning dry at her crazy antics. “What in the world do you think you’re doing?!”
“You thought you could use your height against me,” she quips and lifts her nose. “So, I took the liberty to make it more even by standing on the chair.”
“Get down from there.”
“Never.”
I’m so angry that I’m shaking. “Lily, get down from there before you fall down and hurt yourself and our baby.”
“I won’t fall,” she says, her chin raised defiantly while her arms are crossed over her chest. “And I won’t let you tell me what to do. I may be your assistant, but I’m still a person, and I deserve to be treated with dignity and respect.”
I sigh. “Okay, I’ve had enough of this...”
She just stares at me in response, and I can tell that the stubborn mother of my child isn’t going to budge until I do something about it. She is such a pain in the ass...
Taking a deep breath, I walk up to her, not the least surprised that she isn’t taller than me on the chair but has to stand on her tiptoes just to look me in the eye. It makes my lips twitch in amusement before I carefully pick her up.
“Down you go.”
“No!” Lily tries to fight me by struggling in my arms. I’m holding her like a bride. “Put me back on the chair! I liked it up there. I was tall!”
I roll my eyes at her childish behavior, gritting my teeth as I tighten my grip on her waist. “That’s enough, Lily. You’re acting like a child.”
Her whole face closes off at that, and I silently wonder if I’ve struck a nerve as I set her down. I have my answer when she grits out her next sentence...
“I’m not a child.”
“No, but you’re acting like one.”
Lily growls up at me, and my eyes betray me by traveling down to her breasts. They are perfectly perky. I’m forced to avert my gaze and bite down hard on my lower lip to fight off the memory of Lily moaning underneath me when I sucked on her nips. This little rogue is so seductive when she wants to be that it wouldn’t surprise me if she were half-siren...
“I’m sorry.”
I blink. “Pardon me?”
Lily blushes. “I said I’m sorry, okay? I know it’s not an excuse, but... I never had a family growing up. At least not a very good one, and it caused me to act out a lot. Some of that fire still remains.” A sad smile crosses her features, and I’m immediately hit with this out-of-character emotion of wanting to make her feel better.
“Maybe I was too hard on you...” I mutter.
She smiles. “Is that your version of an apology?”
“No.”
“Alright,” she looks down at the floor, still smiling. “Anyway, I’m sorry for acting childish, but I can’t promise it won’t happen again. This is just the way that I am. But hey, at least I’m aware of my flaws...unlike someone else.”
I almost smile at her last sentence. Almost.
To hide my moment of weakness, I turn around. “Get back to work, Lily, and for the love of God, do not use any more of those stickers.”
Lily breathes a laugh. “You’re the boss...”