Much More Than a Mistress Read Free Page B

cup is on my desk.” He unfastened his belt and the button on his pants so he could tuck in his shirt, stifling a grin when she quickly looked away again.
    â€œI—I’ll go get it now,” she said, tripping over her own foot in her haste to get away.
    He had the feeling that, until she discovered that the evidence she was hoping to find didn’t exist and gave up, he could have an awful lot of fun at her expense.
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    The spike heels had been a really bad idea, Jane decided as she grabbed Mr. Everette’s World’s Best Boss cup from his desk and hurried to the break room, heart pounding from a combination of her own horrifying ineptitude and supreme lack of grace, and the sight of her new boss standing shamelessly bare-chested in her presence.
    Not that he had anything to be ashamed of. His body—what she could see of it anyway—was a work of art. And she was betting that the bottom half was no less awe-inspiring. So much for her theory that he was middle-aged and fat. That’s what she got for drawing hasty conclusions.
    Some vampy, sex goddess secretary she’d turned out to be. She couldn’t have made more of an ass out of herself if she’d dressed like a clown and donned a squeaky red nose. Proof that despite her physical transformation, deep down she was just as geeky and awkward as ever. Had she been completely fooling herself to believe that she could handle an undercover position?
    She poured the coffee and added a teaspoon of creamer, mentally shaking away those negative thoughts. She could do this, damn it. She was good enough. She had been working up to this for months. Failure was not an option.
    Squaring her shoulders, she carried the coffee back to Mr. Everette’s office. She rapped lightly on the door before stepping inside, grateful to see that he was fully clothedand sitting at his desk. He was also on the phone, meaning she didn’t have to talk to him. It was both a disappointment and a relief. If she was going to glean the information necessary for the investigation, she was going to have to talk to the man. Get to know him. Earn his trust.
    He gestured her over, telling the caller, “I’m sure it was just an oversight.”
    She crossed the room, the cup cradled gingerly in both palms, and set it on his desk. She started to turn, but he held up a hand, signaling her to wait. “Yes, Mother, I promise I’ll talk to him today.” He paused, looking exasperated, then said, “Well, in all fairness, you ditched us on Christmas. Can you blame Nathan if he’s feeling bitter?”
    She could only assume he was talking about his brother Nathan, who was the CBO of Western Oil. Having worked closely with her own siblings for years, she knew how complicated the family dynamic could be. Especially when one broke tradition and made the decision to leave the fold to pursue their own aspirations. Not that she had a clue how the Everette family got along. Although most men in a decent relationship with their mother wouldn’t have them on an auto callback list.
    â€œThe fact that he was a baron doesn’t make it okay,” he said, holding up a finger to indicate that it would be just one more minute. “I have to go, Mother, I—” He rolled his eyes. “Yes, I will talk to him. I promise.” Another short pause then, “Okay, Mother. Goodbye. ” He hung up the phone, blew out an exasperated breath and looked up at Jane. “Do you get along with your mother, Miss Monroe?”
    The question threw her, and it took her a second to regroup. It wasn’t that she didn’t get along with her parents. They just refused to accept that they didn’t know what was better for her than she did. And she couldn’t helpwondering why he cared about her relationship with her mother. “It’s…complicated.”
    â€œWell, mine is a gigantic pain in the ass. She’s a master manipulator and