HELEN BROOKS - The Boss's Inexperienced Secretary

The next few weeks had been the worst of her life. Both sets of parents had been beside themselves, the bridesmaids had been heartbroken they weren’t going to get to wear the fairy-tale dresses which had cost a small fortune, all the wedding presents had had to be returned and the reception and all the other paraphernalia connected with a huge wedding cancelled.

In the midst of it all she had talked to David several times. Although she felt he was sorry that he had hurt her, she sensed a great feeling of relief and even joy that everything was out in the open. And of course he had his Francis, with whom he had promptly set up a home in the flat they should have been renting together. He had admitted he’d cheated on her numerous times before but they had just been ‘little flings’.

Kim had hardly been able to believe what she was hearing. The man she had thought she was going to spend the rest of her life with, whom she’d known and trusted implicitly for over four years, didn’t exist. She had been absolutely faithful to him, refusing even a Christmas kiss at work because she felt it took something away from David, and all the time…

A hundred and one things suddenly fell into place the more she thought about it, the chief one being the reason David had never tried to get her into bed. He had talked a lot about honouring her, that he wanted his wife and the mother of his children to be different from all the rest, that, although it was terribly hard to stop at just a kiss and a cuddle, it was the right thing to do. And she had believed him! Respected him for it.

The feeling of rejection and betrayal had cut deep, and the humiliation that had gone hand in hand with it all had caused her to lose over a stone in the first few weeks. She would have followed him to the ends of the earth and she had loved him utterly but everything had been a lie. And she hadn’t sensed it, hadn’t known anything was wrong. That had terrified her.

The beanpole of teenage years had reared her head again and every time she looked in the mirror she had cringed at what she saw. She had felt she was nothing, less than nothing. But eventually, with the help of family and friends, she had started to eat properly and sleep soundly and get back on an even keel. She wasn’t the same, she knew she wasn’t the same, and she felt sad about that, mourning the loss of the trusting, happy girl she’d once been, but she was older and wiser and she would never allow herself to love anyone again the way she had loved David.

Kim came back to herself with the realisation that the coffee was quite cold. She went into the kitchen and tipped it away, standing and looking out of the window into the street below.

It was going to be a beautiful day, she thought. And life was for living. She’d done her period of mourning for what might have been if things had been different. Now she had to get on with life.

CHAPTER THREE

KIM felt on tenterhooks all day, so much adrenaline flooding her body that she fairly ate up the work. By five o’clock her desk was clear in spite of the backlog from the day before.

Her boss walked out to the car park with her. He had asked her that morning how she had got on; now he said ruefully, ‘I’d be surprised if you don’t get the job, Kim. Blaise West has a reputation for knowing a diamond when he sees one.’

‘Thank you.’ She smiled at him. Alan Goode was a dyed-in-the-wool family man who was devoted to his wife and three boys and they’d always had an excellent working relationship. ‘But you didn’t see the competition. Anyway, I’m not bothered either way.’ This wasn’t quite true but she’d rather walk barefoot on hot coals than admit it to anyone. She knew Kate and her cronies were taking an avid interest in events.

‘Now, that might be your trump card,’ Alan said musingly. ‘I’ve only met Blaise once or twice but that was enough to know he’s a man who plays by his own rules. He’s never conformed and he doesn’t ask for conformity in others. He’s an…extraordinary individual, isn’t he?’

‘Oh, yes.’

They smiled at each other, linked by the knowledge of what was unsaid rather than what was spoken.

‘He caught his toe with his wife though—ex-wife,’ Alan continued. ‘She was a free spirit in every sense of the word. Any man, any time, if rumours are to be believed. She took the child when the divorce happened but then a year later she was killed in a head-on crash. Had the kid with her at the time.’

‘That’s awful.’ Kim hadn’t known about these details.

Alan shrugged. ‘The child wasn’t hurt too bad from what I can remember and the accident enabled Blaise to get his daughter back. I doubt he cried any crocodile tears.’

‘How long ago did that happen?’

‘The accident? About four years ago, I think, maybe five. The girl’s ten or thereabouts now.’

Kim nodded. For a second she had a mental picture of the hard, rugged face of the man she had met yesterday. It was a face that had seen life, but it was also a face that revealed nothing of the man behind the mask. But he must have suffered. She felt a dart of sympathy even as she acknowledged it was the last emotion a man like Blaise West would ask for or want. Curiously, for no logical reason she could think of, she felt it was somehow disloyal to be talking about him. Quietly, she said, ‘Goodnight, then, Alan. Give my regards to Janice.’

‘I will.’

Once in the car and driving home, Kim found herself going over and over the conversation with Alan. She was still thinking about Blaise when she entered the flat, walking immediately into the bathroom and beginning to run a warm, bubbly bath. She needed a long, hot soak. Muscles she hadn’t been aware of since her teens when she had been the captain of the school’s netball team—being over half a foot taller than the other girls had meant she excelled in the sport—were making themselves known. She hadn’t realised how tense she had been every time the phone had rung until she’d left the building.

Had she seriously thought she might be in with a chance? She shook her head at her foolishness.

And then the phone rang.

Telling herself it was almost certainly her mother or one of her friends ringing to see if she had heard anything, she nevertheless found her heart was thudding hard enough to exit her chest as she picked up the phone. ‘Hello,’ she said cautiously.

‘Miss Abbott?’

She’d recognise the deep, distinctly smoky voice anywhere. ‘Yes?’ Now her heart had jumped up into her throat.

‘This is Blaise West. I’d like to offer you the job as personal assistant if you’re still interested after that somewhat intensive interview yesterday.’

‘You would?’ The note of surprise wasn’t the way hundred-watt smile would have responded. Telling herself to be more professional, Kim said quickly, ‘Thank you, Mr West. I would love to accept.’

‘Good. I shall be in touch with Mr Goode tomorrow.’

She knew he had heard the amazement in her voice and was amused by it. Swallowing hard, she had to sit down before she could say, ‘When would you like me to start?’

‘You’re under a month’s notice, right?’

‘Yes.’

‘Well, I’m sure Mr Goode will have no objection if we do away with that,’ he said smoothly. ‘I’d like you to have some time with Pat before she leaves and because she’s expecting twins that could be sooner rather than later.’

So that was why his secretary was so huge. She thought he’d left it a bit late to advertise for a new one.

As though he’d read her mind, he continued, ‘It’s caught us on the hop. Twins were only confirmed a few weeks ago, and it seems they’re both big babies. She seems to be growing in front of my eyes every day.’

She smiled. He couldn’t quite hide the irritation this unforeseen event in his no doubt orderly and controlled life had caused. ‘I see,’ she said carefully.

‘Her doctor has already expressed an opinion that she should be prepared to rest more than is normal, and her husband is anxious that she leaves work within the next month or so. That doesn’t leave much time for her to show you the ropes.’

In other words he wasn’t prepared to do so, or put up with any inconvenience. Still, she supposed that was fair. He did own the company after all. But poor Alan was going to be left in the lurch. It was with this in mind she said, ‘If I could have a few days showing a temp the necessary, I think—’

‘It’s Friday tomorrow. I would like to see you at the office on Monday and I shall make this clear to Mr Goode. I’m sure he will be happy with that.’

Happy wasn’t the word she would have chosen. But, as he paid Alan’s salary too… ‘Monday morning, then,’ she said politely, wondering what she’d let herself in for. She knew from the interview that the staff at the head office started work at nine-thirty, half an hour later than in the Surrey branch, but Blaise West expected his personal assistant-cum-secretary to be at her desk an hour earlier. It meant she was going to be rising at the crack of dawn for the journey into the city, but that couldn’t be helped.

‘Excellent.’ There was a brief pause. ‘I don’t stand on formality, by the way. It will be Blaise and Kim unless there are clients or other personnel present.’

She didn’t think she would ever be able to call him Blaise.

‘The person or persons who prompted you to apply for the job…I trust they’ll be hearing the good news tomorrow?’ he continued.

‘What? Oh, yes,’ she said quickly, surprised he’d remembered.

‘Then savour the moment, Kim,’ he said softly. ‘There won’t be too many of them in life, which makes the ones that come along all the sweeter. Goodnight.’

She heard the phone click even as she murmured, ‘Goodnight, Mr West,’ back.

She thought of Blaise the next day. As luck would have it, she arrived at the office building just as Kate and one of her entourage walked in and they followed her into the lift. She nodded at them but said nothing, but after a moment the girl with Kate glanced at her leader before saying to Kim, ‘You won’t get it, you know.’

Kim had heard her quite clearly but raised her eyebrows, her tone cool as she said, ‘I’m sorry? Are you talking to me?’

‘The job as Blaise West’s personal assistant. You haven’t got a hope. Kate knows someone at Head Office and they said all the other applicants had qualifications coming out of their ears. It was a fluke you got an interview in the first place if you ask me.’

‘I didn’t.’ Kim smiled sweetly. ‘But thanks for the concern.’

‘No, well, just don’t get your hopes up, that’s all.’

Her manner had clearly deflated the other girl. She again glanced at Kate, who, just as the lift came to a halt, said coldly, ‘Personally I’d prefer to avoid the humiliation of an interview where I was clearly out of my depth.’

‘Then it’s fortunate you didn’t get that far when you applied, isn’t it?’ Kim’s heart was pounding like a sledgehammer at the overt aggressiveness but it didn’t show. As the lift doors opened she turned to Kate’s crony, keeping her voice pleasant as she said, ‘Anyway, don’t worry about me. Mr West phoned last night and offered me the job, so all’s well that ends well.’

She sailed out of the lift, knowing she would remember their expressions for the rest of her life. Blaise West was right. Such moments were sweet.

Kim had to keep reminding herself of that over the weekend as she oscillated between moments of euphoria and blind, unadulterated panic. She hadn’t hyped anything up, she told herself umpteen times an hour. Blaise West knew exactly what he was getting. She definitely didn’t have qualifications coming out of her ears, just a fairly respectable 2:1 degree in business studies and some years of experience. She had been honest and straightforward, even to the point of telling him she had taken business studies at university because at the time she hadn’t had a clue what she wanted to so with her life and it seemed a safe option.