1. Callie

If I closed my eyes and prayed really hard, was there any chance the world could open up a giant hold and suck me right down into it?

Lying flat on my back, all the papers I’d carefully carried in my arms rained down around me in slow motion. Perfectly stapled documents, neatly stacked expense reports, and the brochures my boss had asked for became nothing more than confetti.

I’d walked in here so completely proud and confident of the work I’d put into everything, only to trip over an obnoxiously out-of-place chair leg and face plant onto the floor of my boss’s office.

My incredibly attractive boss.

Papers drifted down around me while I forced a slow breath. Heat flared across my cheeks, and when I curled my toes, a soft carpet rose to greet me. I lost my shoe somewhere during my fall. As warmth spread from the tips of my ears down to the hollow of my neck, I contemplated exactly how this could go.

Maybe he didn’t notice. Maybe he was so involved in a business call or some important deal that he didn’t see me enter or hear the undignified screech that flew past my lips the moment I lost my footing.

That was option one.

Option two was the desperate hope that he was somehow in the very best of moods and would see the funny side of things. Sawyer Crane had quite the reputation of being a hard ass. Most of the time, he looked ready to lecture someone, and despite his incredibly handsome good looks, there was a sternness to his features that never softened.

Ever.

The rumor mill always churns about the rich and popular but even within Sawyers”s own building, people would gossip about how he was only hungry for power and so money-focused that he slept on dollar bills.

I knew differently. As his personal assistant, I saw the side of him that no one else saw. I saw the man who gave Linda from accounting a month off - paid - after her mother passed away. I saw the boss who ensures the parking across the street is free for employees and that no one does overtime - if they do, then they must be paid double.

Small things that fell under the radar of most people, good deeds that no one ever repeated. Honestly, that was how my attraction to him started—other than the fact that he was insanely hot and drop-dead gorgeous.

Speaking of – I finally opened my eyes with a soft groan and peered up through the paper confetti to the man who often consumed my thoughts standing above me.

“Callie,” Sawyer said in his rough, deep, throaty voice. “What on earth are you doing?”

From this angle, a few soft strands of brown hair slip down from the rest of his head. They tickle across his forehead for a moment, distracting me almost as much as his gorgeous blue eyes. It wasn’t until he sharply cleared his throat that his question registered.

“Uh…” I had nothing. No excuse. No reason. “The chair leg. I just uh?—”

Sawyer reached for me as I spoke, but when I clasped his warm hand, I wasn’t at all prepared for the sudden show of strength. I’ve always been curvy, but Sawyer helped me up so swiftly that I might as well have weighed less than a single sheet of rice paper.

Back on two legs, I hurriedly smoothed down my pencil skirt and tucked what loose strands of hair I could catch back into my pinned updo.

“Are you hurt?” Sawyer held my gaze and my hand for a few long moments.

Flashing him a smile, I continued to dust myself down. “Yes, yes, I’m fine. I’m so sorry about the mess.”

Sawyer released my hand and strode away with the tail ends of his suit jacket fluttering about him as he moved. He settled into the plush leather seat by his desk while I retrieved my missing shoe. It had rolled under the chair, so I had to return to my hands and knees to retrieve it but being out of Sawyer’s line of sight gave me a few seconds of respite.

I couldn’t believe I did that.

I fell on my face right in front of him. The way he picked me up so easily almost made the humiliation worth it. Down on my knees, I retrieved my shoe and several of the fallen papers then I stood and tucked the chair in against the table so that there wouldn’t be a repeat.

“If you’re quite ready.” Sawyer’s voice was teetering on bored, a hint that he was growing impatient and if I wasn’t careful, he’d send me away. Then my inbox would flood with countless emails two hours later.

“Yes. Sorry.”

Sawyer’s gaze dropped slowly on me when I approached his desk, dragging the heat of my embarrassment with him. I glanced down at myself once more in case I’d missed something—a piece of floor lint, perhaps. There was nothing.

Ignoring my flaming cheeks, I set the skewed papers down on his desk and plastered my best smile across my lips.

“Kane will be arriving soon,” Sawyer said, his attention dropping to the black binder in front of him. “Is everything prepared?”

“Yes,” I answered immediately.

Kane Lewis was the CEO of Golden Dove. I’d been researching them for weeks ever since Sawyer stated he wanted to reach out with an offer. Considering Golden Dove was a rival of Crane Enterprises, I was surprised at Sawyer’s desire to reach out but even more surprised at his request to keep it as secret as possible. It wasn’t my place to make those kinds of decisions but given how nothing seemed to stay secret for long, I knew it had to be important.

“Are you sure?” Sawyer glanced pointedly at the messy papers, then back at his binder.

“Kane will be arriving for your meeting at four-thirty. I emailed both of you last night and sent out information packets as you requested and I’ve made sure that not only is your calendar clear but I chose four thirty because anyone who can’t keep their nose out of your business will be down on the third floor for the bingo draw.”

Sawyer lifted his gaze and locked those hot blue eyes onto mine.

“Bingo?”

“Yes, sir. I uh— I knew this meeting was important, so I reached out to HR, and we held a Bingo event last week. The winners are being announced today on the third floor at four thirty.” It was the easiest way to make sure the gossips were busy. Kane wouldn’t go unnoticed, but he should be unbothered.

Sawyer nodded. “I must stress that I cannot be disturbed during this meeting. I need you on top. Do you understand? Nothing but the utmost professionalism.”

“Yes. As I said, I have cleared your calendar and even sent out a few emails so shareholders and other people aware of the meeting know not to disturb you.”

He didn’t look up that time but I didn’t need his thanks.

On one hand, I was simply doing my job but on the other, I was praying this meeting would go well. The gossip mill was already running with rumors that Crane Enterprises was running out of money and that the meeting with Kane was nothing more than the start of a merger.

I didn’t know the details, but I knew that wasn’t the case. Loyalty kept my mouth shut, so I was forced to listen in silence.

“It’s all taken care of,” I assured him once more. “Although I do need your coffee order. I researched Kane, you know, and he’s partial to green tea and ginger snaps. I have them prepared for his arrival.”

“Coffee.” Sawyer glanced up and, this time held my gaze. “Black.”

“No tea to break the ice?” I asked, clinging to the bare threads of our usual stale banter in an attempt to squash down my humiliation.

“No.”

I rolled my eyes slightly. “Fine. Boring.”

Turning on my heel, I stalked out of his office with the shreds of dignity that weren’t scattered across the floor and closed the door on my way out. The moment that wall went up between Sawyer and me, I sagged slightly and groaned.

I cannot believe I fell on my face like some clumsy idiot.

In front of Sawyer.

I’ve fantasized about being on my knees for him but nothing to this degree.

It usually involved both of us being sweaty and naked.

Clinging to that thought, I hurried off to the bathroom to sort out my hair and put myself back together in a far more presentable way. Luckily, the floor was rather empty, and the few people I passed on my way to the bathroom were too busy to look up from their work.

The cool bathroom air was a welcome relief against my flushed skin. Reaching the sink, I spun the tap and cupped a handful of the rushing water. The coldness froze my fingertips for the few seconds I held them under the spray. Then I lifted my damp hands and pressed them desperately to the feverish skin around my neck and glanced into the mirror.

“Oh god.”

The pins on the left side of my head were knocked loose in the fall, and my blouse was so rumbled that my black waistcoat was awkwardly caught on one button. I stood in front of Sawyer like this.

Handsome, sexy Sawyer.

It wouldn’t be so bad if I hadn’t been crushing on him since the day I started here. Time was supposed to ease crushes, but after six months of being his personal assistant, I was certain that was bullshit. My crush had increased every single day.

Puffing out my cheeks, I continued to splash cold water on my neck until the crimson flush slowly faded away from my cheeks. Then, with deft fingers, I set about fixing the crow’s nest my hair had become. A few pins changed positions, and the previously pinned curls fell down around my ears in silky smooth ways. Without a brush, there wasn’t much I could do, so I settled for sprinkling water through my hair and tousling it just enough to be on the sexy side of messy.

Not that Sawyer ever noticed anything I wore. Or anything I did.

With my hair semi-fixed, I moved to the hand dryer and angled the warm blast upward to dry it. Then, I sought out my phone from its place of security in the waistband of my skirt. Bianca should be on break right about now.

I dialed her number in two clicks.

“Hey, chick,” Biance answered on the third ring. “I have thirty seconds.”

“I strode into Sawyer’s office like I was the fucking queen, then I tripped over a chair leg and fell flat on my face.”

There was a crystal clear pause of silence, then Bianca erupted into laughter.

“Oh no. Oh honey, I’m so sorry. That’s amazing, but boy do I feel your pain.”

“What do I do,” I groaned, turning the hand dryer onto cold to keep the heat to a minimum. “Today is one of the most important days and I made a fool of myself, never mind all the work I’ve done to try and get him to notice me and how do I manage it? By falling at his feet.”

“Rich guys love it when a girl falls at their feet,” Bianca pointed out sweetly. “It took you six months to make an impression, and you went all in.”

“I don’t think so. He asked if I was okay but after that, he barely acknowledged it.”

“Lean into it, make a joke or something. Listen, I’ve got to go but I love you, and we can nurse your bruised ego later, okay?”

“Okay, thank you.”

“Love you!”

Hearing Bianca’s voice was enough to calm the flaring heat that wormed across my skin. Turning off the hand dryer, I glanced once more into the mirror and lightly fluffed my hair. It would have to do. I’d already spent too much time in here anyway.

Rushing from the bathroom, I was distracted. Bianca had made a good point. Sure, I’d made a fool of myself, but joking about it with Sawyer might be a good way to work it out if I even have a chance there.

I was growing a little tired of pining after a man who doesn’t even look at me.

“Oof—!”

All thoughts halted when I hurried around the corner and ran smack-bang into someone tall and solid. It was like hitting a wall, and for the second time today, I ended up on my ass with my head spinning and my palms throbbing.

“Oh goodness,” said a voice like deep honey.

“Ow,” I groaned, then I peered up at the man ready to give him an earful about watching where he was going. That fire died a quick death when I looked up into a pair of golden brown eyes set against dark skin and a dazzling, concerned smile staring down at me.

Oh my god.

I ran into Kane Lewis!