The Billionaire Biker's Bitch 2 (2 page)

Trevor, Alex’s assistant, stood in the hallway with a shopping bag. Claire watched his eyes flitter to Justin standing behind her and then back to her.
 

“Hello, Claire. Sorry to intrude. Mr. Harriman asked me to bring this to you.” He handed her the bag and turned to leave.
 

“Thanks, Trevor,” she said, and closed the door.
 

When she put the bag on the counter that doubled as her desk and dining table, it toppled over and a shoe rolled out. Claire felt a stab in her gut when she realized Alex was returning the clothes she had worn to work on Friday and left at his house that morning. She pushed the shoe back in the bag.

“You’d better go now, Justin. I’m tired and want to go to bed.”

“What’s in the bag?”

“I don’t know, and it’s none of your business anyway.”

Justin pushed past her and dumped the contents of the bag on the counter. His face darkened as her clothes, including her underwear, splayed out over the countertop.

“Who was that guy?”

“My boss’s assistant, if you must know.”

“What? And is taking off your clothes part of your job?”

Claire opened the door. “Get out, Justin, and take your flowers with you. But before you go, let me tell you the ending to the puppy story. We never could housebreak that little dog, and my mother finally got rid of him. You can’t change either, and I won’t put up with you telling me what to do anymore. We’re through, and don’t you dare come around here again.”

Justin stalked out. Claire grabbed the floral arrangement and ran to the top of the steps, looking over the railing before turning the vase upside down and dumping out the water and flowers, which hit the ground at the same time he reached the bottom stair.
 

She didn’t wait for him to look up. Stomping back inside her apartment, Claire slumped against the door she had just slammed and slid to the floor, curling her knees up to her chest, and resting her head on them. Dumping two guys in one day was exhausting.

For the second week in a row, Alex ended the Monday sales meeting with his staff early because he couldn’t stay focused. He scowled while walking back to his office. Damn Claire! What was it about her that distracted him so? Nothing and no one ever came before his business. But then Claire wasn’t like anyone he had ever known, certainly no woman. She actually had a life plan that didn’t involve him doing something for her.

He glanced at his watch. It was ten o’clock. If she had the balls to show up, she’d be at her desk by now. He thought about emailing her manager to confirm, but that might tip the guy off to his interest. It’s not like the CEO typically checks on the attendance of the showroom receptionist or any other employee.

Alex left the administrative building. If he walked past the showroom, he’d be able to see the receptionist’s desk through the window and find out for himself if Claire were there. Halfway across the lot, he stopped abruptly and turned around. He didn’t have time to waste on this nonsense. The hell with her.

He returned to his office and closed the door, signaling his secretary that he didn’t want any interruptions. Although she knew to hold his calls, he forgot to turn off his cell. When it rang, he was going to let it go to voice mail until he saw the name on the call screen.

“Yeah, Gio. What’s up?”

“Hey, buddy. Where’s your girl? She’s a no-show this morning. Do me a favor and don’t find any more employees for me, OK?”

“Sorry, guy. I should’ve called you yesterday. She wasn’t excited about the position.”

“So, you’re keeping her on at the dealership?”

Alex sighed. “It’s complicated. I don’t know if she’s still here or not.”

“Can I offer a word of advice, as a friend and fellow-employer?”

“Shoot.”

“Hell, I can’t be dating my employees for obvious reasons. But, you don’t even have to cross paths with Claire. So, what’s the big deal?”

“It’s the principle. I don’t ask employees to do anything I don’t do.”

“So, what’s the reason for the rule? Afraid people are going to be distracted or fuck in the supply closet or something?”

“No!”

“Well, then, why do you have the rule?”

Alex took a moment to think about it.

“I don’t know. I don’t get involved with these kinds of things in general. HR came up with the bright idea.”

“Hell, it’s your company, man. Don’t be King Arthur. Change the fucking rule.”

“What are you talking about?”

“You know the story of Camelot, right? Arthur and Guinevere have a nice little set up, until Lancelot comes along and steals the Queen’s heart. Arthur’s enemies set up the lovers, and when she’s caught cheating, they demand she be burned at the stake, according to law. Arthur hates the barbaric custom, but because he hasn’t intervened for his subjects, he can’t make an exception for his own wife. He prays Lancelot will save her, which of course, he does.”

“Nice fairy tale, Gio. What does that have to do with me?”

“Don’t be an idiot like Arthur, and sacrifice your woman due to some stupid rule you don’t support. I met Claire, remember? She’s a gem. I have no doubt some handsome young stud is waiting in the wings, ready to save her.”

Alex straightened up in his chair. Claire did mention a recent ex-boyfriend. Maybe he was the guy Trevor saw in her apartment on Saturday night.

“You’re right! I make the rules around here. Not HR.”

“Go get her, man. Right now.”

“Thanks, Gio. Talk later.”
 

Alex clicked off the phone and bounded out of his office for the showroom.

“Want to take a break, Claire? I’m slow at the moment, so I can sit in for you.”

Claire raised her eyes and looked at the wall clock. She smiled at Ashley, who as the newest addition to the sales staff relieved her for breaks and lunch.

“Wow! Ten-thirty already! Sure, that would be great. The phones have been so busy this morning, I haven’t had a minute to go to the ladies room.”

As she made her way toward the customer lounge to use the restroom and refresh her coffee, Claire couldn’t help but look across the showroom’s parking lot to see if one of Alex’s vehicles were parked in his solo spot in front of the dealership’s administrative building.

Her stomach did a tiny flip-flop when she saw the space was occupied. It was too far away for her to identify which of his sports cars he drove that morning, but no one else would dare park there, so it had to be his.

Claire supposed she should be grateful. After all, she wasn’t sure if someone would be in her seat at the reception desk this morning when she arrived. Just because she wanted to keep her job didn’t mean Alex wanted to keep her as an employee. He certainly could have called in for a new hire. But all seemed to be normal. No one was surprised to see her, and Monday morning business progressed as usual.
 

Still, she regretted her rash departure. Instead of storming off, she could have tried to reason with Alex and get him to change his mind. Maybe Justin was right, and she was too feisty and independent for her own good. Maybe she should try to curb her impetuousness and be more stable.
Nah.
She shook her head in defiance of the thought.

Claire headed back to her desk with a fresh cup of coffee. She kept her eyes down, intent on not spilling the liquid or making a mess on the shiny floor, yet sensed something was different about the showroom. When she raised her head and saw the reception desk, she was surprised to see a huge floral arrangement anchoring a bouquet of balloons.
 

Were they having a sale or special promotion, and no one told her? She hurried back to relieve Ashley. “Hey, what’s this all about?” she asked. “Is there some kind of event going on today?”

Ashley shook her head. “Nope. This came for you.”
 

She vacated the seat for Claire, but hung around, clearly wanting to know who sent the arrangement. So did Claire.

Her hands shook as she pulled the tiny card with her name on the envelope. Alex wouldn’t risk having their relationship discovered, would he? Who else would send something so grand?

Before she even had a chance to read the note, she caught sight of Justin coming in the entrance.
 

“Shit,” she muttered softly.
 

 
Justin was dressed in a suit and tie. He strode directly over to the desk and got down on one knee.
 

Claire’s eyes widened, and she hastily looked around to see if anyone noticed what was going on. To her dismay, it looked like everyone was watching. Through the glass cubicle walls, she saw phones being placed into their cradles on the desks. Several of the salespeople were exiting their offices to witness what appeared to be a proposal-in-action. She heard one woman call out from a distance.

“What’s going on?”

“Don’t know. It’s either a proposal or a flash mob,” one of the salespeople replied.

Claire saw cell phones positioned in the air and flashes of light going off.
 

“Get up, Justin!” she hissed. “What do you think you’re doing?”

“I think it’s pretty obvious what I want,” he said with a grin.

“Are you crazy? Why are you embarrassing me like this? Please, stop it!” She kept her voice low, but gave him a look that said she wanted to strangle him.

The staff and the few customers on the sales floor closed in around her, and the noise level increased.
 

Claire looked desperately at Ashley, hoping for some help.

Ashley nodded and held up her arms. “Hey, everyone. Give the happy couple some room, and quiet down so Prince Charming here can speak his mind.”

“No!” Claire exclaimed, raising her voice above the din of the crowd. “That’s not what I meant!”

“What’s going on here?”

The deep, loud voice silenced the room in an instant.
 

Claire knew immediately the voice belonged to Alex. Evidently, the showroom manager also recognized his voice and came running out from his office in the back.

She sank into her chair and watched as the two men rushed over to her desk. Thank goodness she had just come from the restroom, or she surely would have wet her pants.

Justin stood up and looked from the manager to Alex. He turned to Claire, his grin gone and his eyes dark. As the two men reached the desk, he shot her an accusing look.
 

“So which one of these two clowns is the boss who sent your panties home?”

Alex lunged for Justin and proceeded to hoist him bodily out of the showroom. Claire watched in horror as her manager intervened, evidently trying to prevent Alex from inflicting harm on Justin.

One of the salesmen went outside and offered to escort Justin to his car. Alex straightened his suit and re-entered the showroom, followed by the manager.
 

Claire realized she was toast when Anna Brigham, the HR manager, rushed through the showroom entrance.

Anna approached the manager and spoke in hushed tones, but there was no mistaking the angry energy that raged through her. When she was done, she stormed toward Claire’s desk.
 

“Everyone back to work, please,” she said with a wave of her hand.

But, of course, no one moved. She glared at the crowd, appearing to become more frustrated by the minute.

She came around the desk and stood next to Claire, who wished the ground could open below her.
 

“Well, Ms. Davenport, you haven’t returned your signed release stating that you agree to observe our rules. Clearly, that’s a mute point now, because I have been informed that you’ve already broken Rule Number 5 by dating an employee.”

Claire was silent, not knowing what to say.

“Please confirm that it’s true, and disclose the name of the other party.”
 

Claire shook her head.

“If you have nothing further to say, then please gather your things. You will be escorted out immediately.”

Claire turned her eyes to Alex. He was silent.

She pulled her purse from the bottom drawer of the desk and slammed it closed.
 

“No need for an escort. I quit.”

Claire pulled her sweaty tank top away from skin and reached for the hair clip on her dresser to pin her long hair up off her neck. The air conditioning wasn’t working in her unit, and the management said the repair people wouldn’t be available for several days. According to them, the heat wave in Miami was causing an overload of energy being accessed, and many of the older units couldn’t handle the power surges.
 

She sighed. They probably weren’t motivated to get it fixed for her since she was moving out. She glanced around at the cartons spread out around the small studio apartment. She’d be finished packing shortly, and could take one last jump in the community pool before she moved her stuff over to Danica’s. It wasn’t the best of all possible solutions, but at least she could sleep on Dani’s couch until she found a job and could rent another apartment.
 

The place was eerily quiet while she worked, so she plugged her earphones into her phone and listened to music. Streaming the music doubled as a way to block out her thoughts of Alex. It had been a week since the blowout at the dealership, and there hadn’t been a word from him. She wanted to apologize for the embarrassing scene Justin created, but couldn’t bring herself to call. The phone was dead silent on her end as well.
 

At least she’d taken steps to prevent Justin from turning up again. She’d blocked his calls, and given his photo to the security guard at the gate so he’d be refused entrance to the complex. She sent him one last text, threatening to report him to the police as a stalker if he tried to contact her. The next day, she got word from his best friend that he understood it was over.
 

A half hour later, Claire taped up the last box, holding her most important belongings—her books, journals, and manuscripts-in-progress. She had left out a bathing suit and a towel, and peeled off her clothes, looking forward to plunging into the cool water of the pool. She changed and was headed out when the doorbell rang.