The only difference was just how much of a jerk her boss was, and something told her that Hunter O’Mallery was going to be the biggest jerk of them all.
*-*-*-*
“This isn’t my brand, Miss McDonald,” Hunter said with a heavy sigh even though he hadn’t really looked at the package that his new pet was holding.
Granted, he also didn’t eat soy nuts, but she didn’t need to know that.
“I see,” Kylie murmured, not bothering to mention that he’d called her by the wrong name, again. It was actually entertaining him to watch her reaction. She didn’t say anything, but then again, she didn’t need to when her expression said it all.
Her eyes would narrow, her lips would move ever so slightly while she silently counted to ten as she stood there, clearly struggling against the urge to correct him, which made him wonder why she was still here. He honestly hadn’t thought that she’d survive the first night, but here she was waiting for his next order.
“What’s the name of the brand that you prefer?” Kylie asked with forced politeness when most women would have thrown the bag of soy nuts at his head and told him to go fuck himself, but not her.
Kylie simply stood there, clearly resigned to whatever bullshit errand that he gave her. It made him curious to see just how far he could push her before she snapped. He realized that it was incredibly stupid to fuck with the one person who could send him packing to become big Bubba’s bitch, but he just couldn’t help himself. There was just something about that stubborn glint in her eye that made him want to keep pushing her.
He didn’t answer her, knowing that it was probably going to piss her off to be forced to stand there while he continued to play a video game and that’s exactly why he did it. He had to bite back a smile when he saw her plump little lips started to move again, letting him know that he was getting to her.
There was really nothing worse than an employee developing false hopes about him or their job. It only ended up destroying them when they realized too late that yes, he really was an asshole, and no, he really didn’t fucking care about anything.
Your kitten ran away?
Too fucking bad. Suck it up and get a dog.
The grandmother who raised you since you were five passed away on your birthday?
That’s a damn shame, leave the damn tears at home and suck it up, buttercup.
You caught your wife fucking your best friend and you need some time to get over it?
That’s what you get for getting married.
He didn’t care, didn’t want excuses, and didn’t tolerate any bullshit. He expected you to show up on time, do your job, and keep your sob stories to yourself. It was the reason why he’d never bothered with an assistant before because he didn’t want to deal with their bullshit. As long as she showed up on time, did what he asked without question, kept her drama to herself and stayed out of his way, they would get along just fine.
Chapter 6
“Oh, my God, please make it stop,” Kylie muttered with a tragic sigh as her cell phone continued to chime.
She wanted to cry.
She really did, but crying would require energy that she didn’t have right now. Besides, she was going to need all her energy to drag herself out of bed and see what the horrible man wanted.
Why did she have to sign those papers?
Damn Big Daddy and his love of…
Well, she wasn’t exactly sure what he’d been on when he’d burned the apartment building down, but whatever it was she cursed it for putting her in this situation. Even as she struggled to keep her eyes open long enough to sit up on the bare mattress that she’d passed out on a few hours ago, she knew that the fault was hers and hers alone. She’d made a deal with the devil, literally, and now she was paying for it.
Another chime, this one somehow more persistent than the last, had her whimpering pathetically as she reached for her phone. For a moment, she simply held the phone in her hand, praying that this nightmare would end, but the next chime destroyed her dreams and had her sitting up with a groan.
Office in twenty minutes.
Worrying her bottom lip, Kylie glanced from the text, demanding her presence back down to the bare mattress that she never wanted to leave. After a few seconds of indecision, she took a deep breath as she forced herself to climb off the bed and not look back as she made her way to the bathroom, terrified that if she caught even a glimpse of the pillow-top mattress that she would lose this battle.
But God, did she want to lose, Kylie thought with something close to a whimper as she managed to drag herself the rest of the way to the bathroom. Once she was inside the large room that was twice the size of her last apartment, she made quick work of using the bathroom, doubling up on tasks whenever possible so that by the time that she stepped inside the large shower stall her teeth had been brushed, her hair combed, her vitamins taken, her nails had been quickly filed down to a smooth, efficient length, her clothes were laid out for her alongside a fresh planner, pen, and notebook to help her stay organized. All that was left was for her do was to step beneath the ice-cold spray of water and choke back a scream or two as the brisk water gave her the shot of adrenaline that she so desperately needed.
Once she was wide awake and feeling energized, she finished her shower, fixed her hair, got dressed, placed her planner and aforementioned items in her messenger bag and headed for the door, ready to face the day with five minutes to spare. As Kylie hurried down the stairs, she contemplated making a quick trip to the kitchen and grabbing a yogurt and a breakfast bar to get her through this meeting, but something told her that he wouldn’t appreciate the delay.
Hoping that he wouldn’t make a habit of holding meetings before the sun came up, she paused by the double doors leading into the large office that she’d spent three hours cleaning yesterday, closed her eyes and took a deep breath before pasting a smile on her face, opening her eyes and-
“You’re late,” Mr. O’Mallery announced as he walked past her.
Kylie considered pointing out that she still had two minutes left, but then she remembered what happened the last time that she’d corrected one of her bosses and decided to let this one slide. As she followed him into the large room, she resigned herself to the fact that she was most likely going to have to get used to biting her tongue a lot.
At least, for the next year, Kylie thought as she sat down on the only available option to her, a metal folding chair that was placed directly in front of the only real piece of furniture in the room, a large desk. Hunter walked around the desk, glaring at her the entire way and sat down in a large leather chair that looked a great deal more comfortable than the one she was currently perched on.
When she realized that he wasn’t going to do anything more than sit there and glare at her, she gave him what she hoped was a pleasant smile, clicked open her pen, and looked at him expectantly as she waited for his orders. He continued to keep her waiting until, with a sigh that could only be described as bored, he leaned back in his chair, crossed his arms over his chest, and gestured with a nod towards the planner on her lap as he asked, “What the hell is that?”
Although Kylie didn’t think it was a good idea to take her eyes off him, mostly because of that whole anger management thing that he had going for him, she forced herself to follow his glare.