In Love With The Boss. Doreen Roberts

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СКАЧАТЬ couch without his crutches, but when she looked in the bathroom she found him sitting on the toilet, his face white and drawn.

      “Are you all right?” she asked anxiously.

      “A little light-headed, that’s all.”

      “I’ll cook you a meal just as soon as you get dressed,” she promised. “You’ll feel better when you’ve eaten something.”

      He looked up at her, and she felt an odd tug at her heart. Right then he looked for all the world like a helpless, sulky little boy. “That’s if I manage to survive this torture,” he muttered.

      She smiled. “Don’t worry, I’m quite sure you’ll be able to handle things just fine.”

      He studied her in silence for a long moment, then said quietly, “Your family must miss you a great deal.”

      Surprised by the comment, she shrugged. “I know I miss them, but I have to admit, it’s nice not to be constantly at their beck and call.”

      “They don’t live here?”

      “Lakeview. Still in Oregon, but not close enough to drop in on me every day.”

      “Your husband must like that.”

      “I don’t have a husband,” Sadie said, ignoring the little skip of her heart. She handed him the towel, then edged past his knees to turn on the faucets in the tub. Her mouth twitched when she envisioned Mrs. Simpson’s reaction if she walked in on them now.

      She’d probably lose her job, Sadie thought as she tested the water gushing out of the tap. After adjusting the temperature to her satisfaction, she placed the stopper in the freshly cleaned drain, then straightened.

      Unnerved to find Jordan Trent watching her with intense interest, she dried her hands on the hand towel. “There, that should do it.”

      “Thank you, Miss Milligan.”

      She frowned. “I’d rather you call me ‘Sadie’ if that’s all right with you?”

      “I think I can manage that, if you’ll call me Jordan.”

      She thought about that. “I guess that’s okay, though I don’t think Mrs. Simpson would approve.”

      “Mrs. Simpson?”

      “The battle-ax who owns the Helping Hands Agency. You know, Helping Hands. You must have talked to her when you called.”

      He shook his head. “I didn’t call. That was Amber. She’s...er...the boss’s secretary.”

      “Oh.” She wasn’t going to say so, but it seemed to her that if the boss could afford a secretary, he could at least pay his employee enough for him to find a decent place to live instead of this damp, rundown old boathouse. Obviously draftsmen didn’t earn as much as she’d thought they did.

      “I didn’t see any soap in here,” she said, watching the water rise steadily up the sides of the tub.

      “There’s some in the kitchen.”

      “I’ll get it. Don’t move until I get back.”

      “I have no intention of moving,” he said grimly.

      Sadie hurried back to the kitchen, wondering what on earth she’d do if he couldn’t get himself out of the tub. She wasn’t feeling nearly as confident as she’d like him to believe.

      In spite of his shabby surroundings, Jordan Trent still managed to present a formidable front. She couldn’t help wondering just what tragedy had reduced such a seemingly powerful man to living apparently on the edge of poverty.

      Perhaps he was paying out alimony and child support to an ex-wife, and that was why he couldn’t afford a decent place to live.

      Deciding that was it, since he obviously didn’t have a wife to take care of him, Sadie found the soap and headed back to the bathroom. Jordan sat where she left him, watching the water gushing into the tub.

      Sadie dropped the soap into the water and turned off the faucets. “Now,” she said, beginning to feel more than a little awkward, “you should be able to manage the rest by yourself.”

      He uttered a grunt of derision. “I’ll yell if I get stuck. Just remember this was all your brilliant idea.”

      Praying that she wouldn’t have to help him out of the tub, Sadie scrambled out of the bathroom and left him to it.

      She spent the next several minutes pacing back and forth in the tiny bedroom, listening to the sounds of splashing from the bathroom and tensed to leap in there at the slightest sound of distress.

      To her immense relief, when the summons came, Jordan was already out of the tub. Still looking far too pale, he sat once more on the toilet seat. With nothing but the towel wrapped around his waist, he still managed to intimidate her.

      Tiny drops of water clung to the dark fuzz on his chest, Sadie noticed before she snatched her gaze away. “Are you all right? Can I get you anything?”

      “Clothes would be nice.”

      “Oh, of course. Where will I find them?”

      “I keep a sweat suit and clean underwear in the chest where you found the towel.”

      “I’ll get them. Do you have an electric razor?”

      “In the kitchen.”

      “I’ll get that, too.”

      Glad for an excuse to leave, Sadie hurried back to the kitchen. She was fast discovering that all her years of administering to her brothers and sisters had not prepared her for this particular situation.

      Being enclosed in a small space with her half-naked employer was a challenging experience. She only hoped she could carry this off with as much composure as he seemed to enjoy.

      While he was getting shaved and dressed, she examined the contents of the refrigerator. There didn’t seem to be much else in there except eggs, bacon and a carton of milk.

      The freezer, however, held several frozen dinners, a couple of packets of hamburger, frozen vegetables, and a large carton of ice cream. Sorting through the packages on the counter, Sadie found a box of spaghetti and a jar of pasta sauce.

      At least she had the makings for a decent meal, she thought as she collected what she needed. The microwave, much to her surprise, actually worked. It looked so ancient she imagined it had to be one of the first ever made. She threw the hamburger in there to thaw it out, then went back to the bathroom to check on Jordan.

      He was waiting for her in his usual spot on the toilet seat. Freshly shaved and with his hair neatly combed back, he looked a lot more presentable. In fact, now that she took the time to really notice, Jordan Trent’s dark good looks would rival any of those hunks in the TV commercials.

      Even the black sweat suit couldn’t detract from the imposing air with which he greeted her. “I was beginning to think you’d quit.”

      “I СКАЧАТЬ