Page 33 of The Damaged Billionaire's Obsession
My desk phone rings, the sound jarring in my quiet office. It’s flashing blue, so I know it's an internal call. Will.
“Systems security, Bonnie here.”
“Hey, it's Will. Mr. Hawthorne’s just left for lunch if you want to come in now.”
Yep. It's not about the timing, it’s about him not being there.
Even though the appointment was booked for 1 p.m., Will instructed me to wait until he called me.
“Okay. What about the other hardware?”
“I’ll move them right into the office if you’re going to be here soon.”
“Yes, I’m on my way.”
I look at the lunch I was just about to dig into and my mouth waters. Crap.I really wanted to eat that.
I grab the sandwich bag and head to Ethan's office.
Will is at the desk and gives me a big smile when I approach. I enjoy the lust I see in his eyes as they rake over me appreciatively. He’s crushing hard.
I’m wearing a regular black shirt, but my pants are leather. I’ve seen what some of the other women wear, and I'm proud to say I’m even more covered up these days compared to my first few days in, but I might as well be in sexy lingerie with the look in Will's eyes.
I make a mental note to take him up on his blatant interest when I'm really needy. He seems like the type I could work with; He'd be discreet, he'd do as he's told, he wouldn't try to push me around, and would go away quietly until when next he's called on.
Will eyes the lunch in my hand. “Oh, were you about to have lunch when I called you?”
“Never mind, I knew it was a lunchtime appointment, I just thought I could quickly gobble up a sandwich while I wait for all the updates to install and carry out testing since I'll be by myself.”
“Er, Bonnie, I wouldn't take it in there. Why don't you keep your lunch here with me and have it later? I was going to have to have lunch after you’re done here, anyway. Do you want to go together?”
I don’t hear anything beyond the “don’t take it in there.”
“Why? What’s in there?” I ask.
“Mr. Hawthorne doesn’t eat in his office. Ever,” Will reveals.
“Because it's filthy?” A part of me wants Will to say yes, if only so I know that Ethan isn’t as perfect as he seems.
“No.” Will huffs out a laugh. “It’s the furthest thing from that.”
“Well, he can't expect me to starve while he’s booked out my whole hour of lunch, especially on one of my busiest days.” And on the day I happened to skip breakfast to beat the traffic because I'd woken up late. I'd had the Clonmel dream again.
“It’s just a sandwich, not Chinese takeout. I’m not going to be making a mess over his computer.”
I don't even wait for his reply, just move towards the opaque, black, glass doors.
“Bonnie… just," he struggles with the notion for a few moments, then gives up. "Okay. Just put your trash in with the empty boxes, and I’ll sort them as soon as you are done. Didn’t you say that you won't be more than half an hour?”
“Maybe thirty minutes tops, and the rest is just updates.” I wonder what the hell is the matter with Will; he’s positively trembling. Shrugging, I push open the doors.
And pause.
It’s dark, very dark. As soon as I step in, the automatic light brightens the place a bit, but I still have to adjust my vision. I look for the light switch on the wall but don’t find one. A narrow beam of light from the glass windows draws my attention, and I realize that there are blackout blinds covering the floor-to-ceiling windows.
Who uses blackout blinds in a corner office?
A weirdo, that’s who.