His Intern: A Billionaire and Virgin Romance Page 6

  I looked at the crowd and watched the small audience respond to him. His audience consisted of mostly women and they were enthralled by him. I could understand why. He was telling them how he meant to make the world a better place – an equal place – and how he wanted to give women their power back. And they believed him. Hell, I believed him. Everything he said sounded so right, so powerful.

  The press conference was over in less than half an hour and Zach was back with me. He grinned at me, flashing me that cocky smile again.

  “I told you I had it,” he said.

  I nodded. I couldn’t help smiling back at him. “You did. It was spectacular.”

  His smile changed, becoming softer and almost a little sincere. “You were checking me out, weren’t you?”

  I rolled my eyes. “You wish, buddy.”

  Zach was still smiling. “Maybe. For what it’s worth, thanks for the pep-talk.”

  For some reason, I blushed. He was being so nice. Something about him was ridiculously charming. It was like being in public had drawn something else out of him, another side.

  “You did well,” I said, sounding like an idiot.

  A woman approached, smiling.

  “Do you mind if I interrupt?” she asked and bit her lip like she was trying to pick someone up at a bar.

  “Sure. What can we do for you, Miss?” Zach didn’t seem too interested, but he was playing it off well. She was beautiful. There was no way he wasn’t thinking about stripping her out of the tight red dress she wore.

  A pang of jealousy shot through me.

  I shoved it away immediately. Zach was nothing to me; his romantic pursuits didn’t matter.

  “I’m just an admirer,” she said. “I wanted to tell you personally how encouraging your campaign is.”

  Zach had turned his charm to full blast and I realized he hadn’t been giving me much of it at all. He put his hands on his hips. Miss Thang folded her hand over her chest, pressing her breasts together to give Zach a better view.

  Was he going to fall for this?

  “They’re calling you a modern-day hero,” she said. “That’s quite something, huh?”

  “It is,” Zach said. “We all need to do our part.”

  “Oh, yeah. I agree.” She was still smiling and it wasn’t hard to spot the seduction she had going. I looked at Zach again. He was looking her up and down like he wanted to serve her up on a silver platter.

  Zach had just made a speech about how important women were, how men and women were equals, and now he was looking at this woman like she was a piece of ass? This wasn’t going to go down very well if any of the reporters that were still floating around caught a whiff of what was going on. I tapped Zach on the shoulder.

  He looked annoyed when he looked at me.

  “What is it?” he asked.

  “Can I talk to you? Alone?”

  Zach looked back at the brunette. She gave him a half shrug. He shot her a smile and stepped away so that we were out of earshot.

  “I don’t think you should be doing this,” I said to him.

  “What are you talking about?”

  I tried to find the right words. “I mean, you’re not exactly promoting what you were just talking about in there.”

  Zach blinked at me. Was he going to pretend he didn’t know what I was talking about?

  “Look,” I said, throwing caution to the wind. “I know she’s hot, but you just got done talking about women’s empowerment. If I can the lust in your eyes then others can too. You can’t have cheap, meaningless sex after you praised women so highly in your speech. If someone sees you, your Company is done and your dad’s biggest fear will come true.”

  His expression changed. It happened like someone had flipped a switch. One moment he seemed frustrated but that charm was still in the air, and the next he was furious, his eyes blazing, his lips pursed into a thin line.

  “Listen to me,” he said. He kept his voice low, which was a relief. I didn’t need a full-on fallout in front of the media. “I am not going to stand there,” he pointed in the direction of the earlier press conference, “and let you and my father and everyone else that wants something from me, strip everything I am away until all I represent is the business. You don’t get to do that.”

  I was angry now, too. “It’s all well and good to be a pain about this, Zach,” I said. “But if you’re out here, representing, you are the Company and your personal life has to take a backseat. If you can’t see that you need to separate your personal life and your business life, then you’re in the wrong career.”

  Rage flickered across his face, his eyes spewing fire.

  “Don’t you dare suggest I walk away from this,” he said. His voice was low and threatening.

  I shook my head. I hadn’t meant it that way at all. Before I could tell him, someone called his name. I started to explain, but he held up his hand.

  “The moment’s over. Find someone else to tag along with today.” He turned and walked away, leaving me to feel stupid. I’d overstepped my bounds. Kind of. Maybe? Fuck.

  I turned back to the brunette who was standing to the side, watching us like we were her favorite show on HBO. She looked around as if she wanted to ensure no one saw her before she stepped toward me.

  “Are you his PA?” she asked.

  “I’m a PR agent,” I said. “I work with the Company.”

  “Oh, so like the image and stuff?”

  I nodded. Yeah. Stuff. She looked around again. Her eyes were big and brown and she was beautiful in a model sort of way. When her eyes found me again her face was serious.

  “I don’t know who you are, but you won’t be able to stop this.”

  I frowned. “Stop what?”

  “I know all about the women, what he does when he thinks everyone is looking in the other direction. Whatever you’re doing, it’s not working. I’m going to find hard evidence about all the women he’s stringing along and I’m going to expose him for the fraud, the asshole he really is.”

  I shook my head, trying to wrap my mind around what she was saying.

  “I don’t think…”

  “No, save it,” she said. “Whatever you want to say, you’re wrong. I know what I’m talking about. You’re not going to be able to save him, no matter how much he pays you. This man has dug his grave a long time ago. It’s just a matter of time.”

  She turned around and walked away, leaving me stumbling over the words I could have said. What was she talking about? Fragments of her sentences bounced around my mind. All the women he’s stringing along, hard evidence, expose him for the fraud he is.

  I connected the dots – his charming way of being around women, the campaign, how flirty he was, how worried Mr. Nettles was. This was a lot bigger than I thought.

  Zack was a womanizer. Maybe he wasn’t aware of it? Or better yet, maybe he didn’t see it that way. He seemed dead set on the desire to live his life as he saw best. Not that I could blame him a bit. It was his life. The only one he got. To be ruled by his father’s company and the demands of that life had to get old – fast.

  If anyone caught wind of this – even if the brunette had been nothing more than a heartbroken ex, even if it was all a lie – this could be detrimental to the business. I had the feeling, though, that she wasn’t just a heartbroken ex. She was talking at least a little bit of truth. Her accusations and the intensity with which she delivered them sounded too intense. We were at a press conference for the company’s empowerment campaign.

  I had to get Zach away from there. There were people out there who wanted to burn him, and their Company image would suffer. I had to talk to Mr. Nettles.

  I looked down at my notes again. I’d circled the name Zach had mentioned. Nora. I needed to find out exactly who she was and what she’d started with the company. It was time for me to consider exactly who this family was and what they had to lose.

  Because they were about to lose it, and they didn’t even know it.

  Cha
pter 7: Zach

  My weekly schedule had changed since Hailey came into the picture. Instead of rolling out of bed, throwing on something comfortable, and going into the office when I was ready, I had to start waking up early. I showered and shaved – the three-day stubble look just didn’t work so well with the suits I put on – and got dressed to the nines before stepping out of the house. I once hated the idea of having to dress up all the time. I didn’t like the concept of doing something for the sake of the Company when I felt like I was fighting so hard to keep my own identity.

  All that changed, though. I felt good in a suit. If I had to say so myself, I liked what I looked like in suits. I was ten times more attractive and that was saying something.

  I went into the office at seven every morning to start with my day with Hailey. She expected me to be punctual, and slowly, that was what I became. For myself, not her. Or so the story rolled around in my head.

  I was still angry with her for interfering with my game on Monday after the press conference. If she wanted to mould my image for the sake of the Company that was one thing – I could somehow find it in myself to meet her halfway – but she interfered in my personal life and that was unacceptable.

  Of course, she did have a point. Flirting with someone just after the press conference when there were still so many reporters around probably was not the best move, but I never asked her or my father to change who I was. The fact that she’d pulled me away in front of that brunette just made it so much worse. And I wasn’t exactly going to admit Hailey that she was right. I hadn’t fallen that far from grace.

  Thursday morning brought another change. I had gotten strict instructions from Hailey to pack enough clothes for a week and meet her at the car after work. I still put in a half day’s work – if we were going somewhere I would have preferred to miss work altogether, but she needed to iron out a few things with my father first. I didn’t even want to know what those were.

  I waited for her in the lobby of my building. The doorman helped me with my suitcases. A moment later, a black car pulled up, and Hailey stepped out.

  “Always on time,” I said, stepping toward the car. Hailey nodded, looking like the angel she probably was. As always, I found myself wondering what she was like outside of the office, like naked, bent over in a shower. Was she giving? Did she like to give head?

  “Hey. Did I lose you?” She touched my arm and smiled.

  “Yep. I was trying to figure out how to get into your panties.” I shrugged as she laughed softly.

  “Not happening, and you know that.” She took a deep breath and gave me a stern look. “Now, come on. Let’s get your bags loaded.”

  “What? Why? Where are we going?” I bristled at the thought of being told anything, especially if it meant I was leaving town without knowing ahead of time.

  “We are going to Aspen.”

  I frowned. “You’re coming on this trip, too?”

  She nodded and directed the doorman to load the suitcases into the trunk of the car. I noticed her suitcase was already packed and lying in the trunk. I walked around to the driver’s side and got in behind the wheel. Hailey took a moment to talk to the doorman, thanking him, before she got into the car. Hailey was the kind of person that knew everyone’s names and treated them like they did her a favor every time they did their jobs.

  When she got into the car and closed the door, she programmed the GPS.

  “Right,” she said. “Let’s go.”

  I glanced at the GPS. It told me we would be driving for three and a half hours, just about.

  “I feel like this might a good time for you to explain why we’re going to Aspen and why I’m just finding out about it,” I said as I put the car in gear and pulled away from the curb.

  Hailey shrugged and looked out of the window. I weaved through the streets of Denver, heading in the direction the GPS told me.

  “It will be good to get away for a bit,” she said. “Everyone needs a break and I think things have been piling up so much that you could use one.”

  I didn’t feel like I was burnt out. Everything had changed, though, and I hadn’t had a single woman since Hailey and I started working together. It was horrible, and yet, I felt great. I was getting sleep again, and feeling less like a failure.

  She was the most effective cockblock I had ever met.

  “And my father was good with us just jetting off like two lovers in the night?

  She laughed, but ignored my come-on. “Oh, he’s very encouraging,” she said. “I booked the place on his expense actually, and he gave me a card. So, with your dad’s blessing, we are good to go.”

  I glanced at Hailey. “How did you manage to convince him that slacking off is a good thing?” I asked.

  Hailey chuckled but didn’t answer my question. It was for the best. I didn’t really need to know. A vacation was a vacation. No matter how we scored it.

  We left Denver and headed into the mountains of Colorado. I hadn’t been to Aspen since I was a kid, since before my mom died.

  “Why did you choose Aspen?” I asked, wondering if my father put her up to it.

  “It wasn’t too far and seeing that your dad made sure money wasn’t a problem, I didn’t have to search all over the place. Besides, we’re only going away for a week. It’s nothing serious, just a quick break.”

  I nodded and looked ahead. I had the feeling she wasn’t telling me everything, but Hailey had arranged a little get away for me.

  After everything she’d made me do – and I’d done it with little complaint – this felt like a reward and I would take it as such. Besides…it would be a good time to test the waters with the pretty girl. See if she were interested in something more than a working relationship. Sex. Sex would be bliss.

  The only downside about going to Aspen with Hailey was the fact that I was getting away with the only woman who didn’t treat me like I was God’s gift to mankind. My idea of fun was between the legs of multiple women, not with a constant companion that told me how to dress and how to act in public. Still, I could work around that part. Maybe, if I gave her an evening off, I could pick up someone in Aspen and locate that part of me that had been put on the backburner for the last two weeks.

  “So, what’s it like working for the Nettles?” I asked.

  Hailey glanced at me. “You mean aside from you being a pain in the ass?”

  I shook my head, but I couldn’t help smiling. When I glanced at Hailey her blue eyes were on me but I couldn’t tell what she was thinking. These were very rare moments – her expressive side usually told me everything I wanted to know.

  “I mean, what’s it like to know us personally as opposed to what you’ve read about us?”

  We were everywhere on the internet and in the news, of course, but my father went to great lengths to make sure that information was screened before it went live, so that our image wasn’t tainted in the public. Most of the time, anyway. When I wasn’t snapped off guard.

  “I don’t know,” Hailey said, shrugging. “Do you really know anyone? I mean, whether you’re online or not, everyone is different than they come across as first, I think.”

  “That was very vague,” I said.

  I felt her eyes on me. “You didn’t ask me a very specific question,” she said.

  I breathed in deeply. “Okay, fair enough. What did you search about us before you started working for my dad?”

  She was quiet for a moment. “To be honest, I didn’t have a chance to Google you before I started working with you. I did have a chance to do it later, of course, but I didn’t learn anything that could have helped me. At least, not about you. Your dad does a good job of keeping it in the family. Like keeping everything in. I can see why he hired me. Not that you’re fucking things up, but you could. Anyone could. Easily.”

  I narrowed in on her last words. “What did you learn then, Hailey?”

  Another short silence. “I learned a little about your Mom. After the press conference, when you�
�d spoken about her so highly, I Googled her.”

  “And?” I asked.

  Hailey shifted in her seat. “She seems like she was a great woman. Powerful. Her visions were spectacular and she did so much before she passed away.”

  I nodded. My mom had been all of that and more.

  “She was so much more than what they say about her online, though,” I said.

  “I can imagine.”

  I glanced at the GPS. We had miles to go on this endlessly straight road.

  “They don’t say anything about the kind of person she was,” I continued. “I guess, they’re not required to. It’s the legacy she left behind that they’re really interested in. But she was great. She cared for people, you know? Even when she had a lot of money. Even when people shouldn’t have mattered that much, she always cared.”

  I paused, Hailey kept quiet and the atmosphere in the car was warm and comfortable. We sat side by side, instead of facing each other. The silence in the car, the lack of eye-contact, asked for more and without thinking about it, I filled it.

  “She used to tell me that everyone was worth the same, that money meant nothing. I didn’t understand what she meant then. I’d grown up with money my whole life and because of it, I’d been classified by everyone. People react to you differently when you have money and I guess it goes to your head.”

  I glanced at Hailey. Her eyes were on the road ahead. She nodded, her eyes sliding to me.

  “She used to put her family first. Even after she’d created the NWF and there were so many women that needed help, even when she’d changed direction and started Daybreak. It never felt like work was something that got in the way. Sometimes, I think that my father and I don’t have the right balance.”

  “Your father cares very much about the Companies,” she said.

  I chuckled without emotion. “Yeah. He cares about them so much because they’re all he has left of my mom and he sometimes forgets about me. I know it sucks that she died, but we can’t change that. I’m still here, though, and he doesn’t seem to see that.”