Alpha Billionaire Series

ALICIA

I stepped out of Christopher's office. Had what just happened, really happened? I had to be hallucinating. It was like magic or special effects in a movie. Christopher Hayes, serious and stoic, had melted and morphed into a party boy from my past. His face softened and that smile, damn that was CJ's smile. It wasn't as if his hair, currently in a sharp fade, had suddenly grown into a wild mess. Or that his perfectly maintained beard had disappeared into short unshaven scruff on his strong jav but he had taken his glasses off, and I found myself getting lost in his eyes. I had been looking into those eyes every day for just over the past three years. They were my baby's eyes. And my son had his father’s eyes. My son looked so much like his father it hurt at times.

Christopher Hayes wasn't some distant relation to CJ. He had to be CJ. Had to be. That wink, the knowing glance. That comment. How else would he know I liked to party?

Oh my God, I was working for Ceejay’s father. And he knew I was me. He knew! My hand covered my mouth. I didn't know whe to do with this information. Should I turn around and confront him right away? Had he recognized me during the interview? groaned. How stupid did I look spending all that time trying to impress him, and not recognizing him? He must have gotten : real laugh out of it.

Is that why I had the job?

I stumbled back to my new desk.

“Are you okay?” Valerie asked.

I'stopped and stared at her for a moment. “Did Mr. Hayes, I mean, Christopher tell you why he picked me?”

Valerie gave me a very disarming smile. “He didn't. I did. He let me make the final selection based on what I knew about working with him. You were on his short list, but I made the final call after our interview. Is he trying to shock you already? He can have a bit of a dry sense of humor.”

She picked me? She couldn't possibly know that Christopher and I had a past. I let out a long breath. Maybe this wasn't such a dire situation as I was making it out to be. I was qualified for the job. I wasn't here because I had slept with Christopher years earlier, and he thought it would be fun to tease me. Right? Right, Valerie just admitted to being the one who chose me, not him.

“How short was the shortlist?” I bit my lip. I really needed to know this wasn't a setup.

“Iinterviewed four people. By the time you got to me, you had already been through several interviews. Austin, who just started as the admin for the marketing department, was my second choice”

I nodded and then shook my head. If she hadn't thought, I could handle this job I could have been working in the marketing department. I really wasn't sure how I needed to react. But that did make me feel better.

“Well, he just gave me a task and framed it in a way that made it rather intimidating. And then admitted it was a test. I guess ¥'m curious why he would pick me and then throw random tests at me.”

She scoffed. “That sounds like him. Don't let him intimidate you. He's been cranky ever since I told him I was moving.”

“Must be nice to have an employer value you so much. My last one pretty much threw me under the bus for all of his mistakes.” I sighed. I was still upset about how Thomas had let all of that transpire. “I liked working for him too."

“Well, Christopher can be a bit of a hard ass, but he can also be a lot of fun. I think the two of you will get along really well. What's this test he's set you upon?”

Ishook my head and shrugged. “Top secret," I said.

“In that case, my favorite color is orange, my favorite flowers are sunflowers, and I really like carrot cake. He thinks he’s bein clever. He's transparent as a cling wrap.”

I laughed. I would have loved working with Valerie, too bad she was only here long enough to train me and get me up to speed before she left.

“Does he do these special tasks often? Or is the day-to-day pretty much the same thing all the time?”

“Working for Christopher is never boring. Things are very much the same at the end of every quarter. In between, the variety is endless. Sometimes he travels, sometimes he hosts. The president of the board will make random appearances.”

“That's his mother, right?”

Valerie nodded. “The best way to handle her is to be one step ahead of her. We have a system in place for that. The receptionists all know to call here immediately if she steps foot in the building. When it comes to luncheons, you are expected to know what she wants. She will not give you a food order”This content provided by N(o)velDrama].[Org.

I could feel my eyes bugging out of my head. I had seen women like that in the movies. They always had these top-notch assistants who were part psychic. I was not psychic in any way.

With a thud, a three-ring binder was dropped in front of me. I looked up into Valerie's smirking face. Damn, she was one of those psychic super assistants.

“This is what saved my ass." She flipped over the front of the binder. It was full of notes.

Iran my finger down a page. It was preferred drinks based on time of day and weather conditions.

“Agatha Hayes is a creature of habit. I inherited this list from her late husband's assistant, and I've added my own notes. She doesn't ever ask for a drink; one is handed to her. And you are expected to know exactly what." Valerie pointed to the pages in the binder. “This is your cheat sheet. It will not steer you wrong. For example, in the summer, she wants salads for lunch, and she loves those watermelon or strawberry and feta salads. But you can't give her the same salad twice in a row. It's all i here. Study it like it's a pass or fail exam. It kind of is."

I gulped. It wasn't as if this job wasn't intimidating enough. Sure, I had been the admin to a VP. But Thomas had been a cut- rate underhanded sneak at a local printing company. The scope of what I had gotten myself into was making itself obvious every other time I turned around. And now I had the added bonus of realizing Christopher was CJ. This was not my definition of fun.

“Is Christopher this complicated?”

Valerie shook her head. “That's what is so great about him. He will tell you exactly what he wants. He may leave the details up to you. But if he wants a roast beef sandwich he'll say so. If he doesn't care and says get him a sandwich, he'll be happy with anything from asiago chicken to peanut butter and jelly. If only my toddler was that easy.”

“You have one at home already?” I looked at her obviously pregnant belly.

She rested a hand on the top of her belly. “Yeah, this is number two. I got started a little later in life. I didn't meet my husband until I was thirty-six. We have a girl at home, all she eats is chicken nuggets and french fries.”

“And mac and cheese,” I said. I clamped my mouth shut after that had slipped out.

“You have a toddler?”

“My roommate.” It wasn't exactly a lie. Ceejay was a roommate and a toddler. I wasn't comfortable telling Valerie that I had a kid at home. Especially not now that I was certain Christopher Hayes was CJ. CJ who had curled my toes and ruined me for men for the rest of my life that night in Nashville four years ago.

“Well, managing Christopher is a lot easier than handling a toddler on most days. Look, I'm going to take a break, get out of your hair so you can tackle part of that super-secret task he’s given you. You'll probably want this information.” She droppec another binder in front of me. The title on this one said catering.

She was good, really good. I began flipping the binder. It had everything I needed. If Valerie wasn't a psychic super assistant, I didn’t know what she was.

In less time than it took her to run off on her break I had made arrangements with a caterer to provide a charcuterie spread of cheeses, cured meats, and the other assorted finger foods that made those work. I had a bakery set up to deliver a speci carrot cake with a farewell and good luck message for Valerie, and a tower of assorted cupcakes. And I had an order for silk sunflowers and other decorations ready to be picked up at the local craft store on my way home from work this evening.

My superb party planning skills were a direct result of the resource binder Valerie had given me. Essentially, she had planne her own party.

Now I just needed to know what her secret was. She said to be one step ahead of Agatha Hayes, but how was she already on step ahead of me? I needed to know her magic before she left me alone with Christopher.