Read Online Next Stop: Love by Miranda J. Fox - Free Book Online Page A

well.” His gaze rested heavily on me; I felt like his X-ray eyes were boring directly into my soul.
    I cleared my throat, disconcerted. “No, fortunately I don’t.” I wasn’t sure whether he bought my lie, but rather than pushing the issue, he asked me to continue with my morning report.
    After twenty minutes, we’d discussed and adjusted all of his appointments, and I stood up from my chair.
    “Oh, one other thing,” he said. “Can you send a pot of chamomile tea my way?”
    Casting a glance at the cup I’d assumed had contained coffee, I suddenly had to stifle a laugh.
    He noticed and asked, “Did I miss something?”
    I bit down hard on my bottom lip but couldn’t suppress the grin, and I ended up snorting loudly. “Excuse me, please,” I said, amused, but also shocked that I was actually laughing at my boss. “I’ve just never seen a businessman drinking chamomile tea.”
    He stared at me for a moment, and I thought he was going to complain about my behavior, but then he gave me a roguish smile. “I’m no ordinary manager. Anyway, chamomile tea has a number of benefits. I’ll show them to you when I have the chance,” he added before turning to his laptop.
    Show me? What did he mean by that? And what was that undertone in his voice?
    When I returned to my seat, Mary studied me through narrowed eyes. Good Lord, what was her problem? Did she think I’d just gone in there for a quickie? If she was so into Luca, she should tell him so, rather than acting like I was trying to steal him from her.
    I finished work promptly at four in the afternoon, and apart from the fact that Mary had tried to murder me with her eyes, I’d really enjoyed my first day. Pleasant work environment, nice coworkers. I would definitely be back.

CAFÉ CON LUCA
    The next two weeks flew by, and I settled in nicely at Marcs Entertainment. After just three days I no longer needed Aileen’s help, and I worked conscientiously and confidently. Luca and I became a well-coordinated team as well; my morning office visits were still accompanied by a slight fluttering in my stomach, but over time I learned how to deal with it and ignore his scrutinizing gaze. Even Mary seemed like she was starting to feel bad about her snide remarks, or else it annoyed her that I hardly reacted to them. At any rate, she made fewer and fewer comments, contenting herself with staring daggers at me when I emerged from his office.
    “What’s that?” I asked Aileen as she clapped a yellow envelope onto my desk.
    “Your invitation to the company party,” she said, and dropped into her chair. “We all got ours weeks ago, but they weren’t sure whether you’d be staying,” she added. “So that’s why you’re just getting yours now.”
    “Oh, so they thought I did well during the probationary period?” I smiled in satisfaction as I opened the envelope. “The day after tomorrow?” I asked once I had read the invitation. “So soon?” There was little enthusiasm in my voice.
    “And you need to wear formal clothes,” Aileen said from her desk.
    “But I don’t own a ball gown,” I said. “And here it specifically says you should bring your partner, but I don’t have one.”
    “Then you’d better get both by Saturday.” She grinned. When my face remained serious, she said, “Just joking. Of course you don’t have to bring anyone, but you can ask your roommate. And surely you’ll manage to scrounge up a nice dress somewhere.”
    So after work I went looking for an appropriate dress and struck gold in a secondhand store. A chic designer dress at a giveaway price—that was my kind of shopping.
    When I got home, Lisa had dinner waiting for me. Lasagna, her favorite food. “So? Did Mr. Rolex bother you again?” she asked as she scooped a much-too-large serving onto my plate.
    “His name is Luca,” I replied, annoyed at how she never called him by his real name. “How often do I have to tell you that? And, no, he doesn’t bother me.” I