Page 161 of Filthy Hot Billionaire
“A cute man working for you. One who’ll make your life easier.” I pretended to ponder it for a moment. “Anyone else see anything wrong with this picture?”
Emily laughed again. “It’s not like that. Trust me, he’s far more interested in how well I paired my outfit with my shoes than he is in me.”
The muscles in my shoulders loosened a bit. “What’s his name?”
“Emmett Ward.”
It was my turn to smile. I’d had the pleasure of working with Emmett a time or two. While I didn’t recall the name of every employee I’d encountered, I did when they made a solid first impression. And Emmett Ward was quite possibly at the top of that list. He’d been working at a temp agency we sourced from, and he’d come in to fill in for one of the receptionists from time to time, so I’d encountered him frequently. He was always pleasant, always smiling, and somehow, he seemed to brighten the day of those he worked with.
Yeah, I figured it was safe to say she’d made a good choice.
The rest of the tension in my shoulders eased. “How many interviews did you have today?”
“Too many.” She smiled up at Stewart when he delivered a glass of iced tea. “Thank you.” Her gaze swung back to me. “Did you know your sister-in-law applied for the job?”
Something in her tone had me looking at her and choosing my words carefully. “I didn’t, no.”
“She didn’t mention it to you?”
“I haven’t seen Steph since your birthday at Obsession,” I admitted. “And we don’t talk on the phone daily.”
“Ah.” She sat back when Stewart delivered her food.
“Eggplant parmigiana,” Stewart announced. “Plus, there’s tiramisu for dessert. It’s in the refrigerator for later.”
“Thank you,” she said kindly. “Both of you. I could get spoiled by this.”
Based on the way Stewart and Guillermo were looking at her, I got the feeling that was their intention. I felt good knowing that she had people who truly cared about her taking care of her.
“Would you prefer chicken?” Stewart asked me.
“Not at all.” I wasn’t picky about what I ate. I had no problem with Emily’s vegetarian diet. Considering she’d spent her entire life being forced to eat meat because her stepmother had insisted, although it broke Emily’s heart to do so, I figured it was a small consolation.
“What made Emmett stand out amongst the others?” I asked as I picked up my fork.
“He’s fun.”
It was my turn to laugh. “I’m not sure that’s what makes for a good personal assistant.”
“No, but it helps.” She took a sip of her tea. “The others were too … uptight, I guess. Well, everyone except for Hannah. She would’ve been a good choice had it not been my history with her.” Emily held my gaze. “I don’t want to mix my past with my present.”
“I can’t say I blame you.”
“So you’re not mad?”
I frowned. “Mad? That you hired the person you felt would be best for the job? Not at all. You do what’s best for you, Em. Screw what the rest of us think.”
“I like Hannah, I do,” she tacked on quickly. “It’s just … I knew she was going to see me as the little girl she took care of. I’m not that girl anymore.”
No, I couldn’t imagine she was. Although she’d only been out from under Rhett and Kitty’s strict parenting for a couple of years, it was apparent she was making her place in the world. And based on the stories I’d heard, she deserved to blaze her own path.
“I’m sure Hannah will get over it,” I informed her, not wanting her to worry about it anymore. “Steph keeps her busy with the clubs, anyway. She won’t have time to fret over not being hired.”
“I thought I was going to have to go with the older woman who came in this morning,” Emily continued. “She was very nice, although a bit bland. Had Emmett not bowled me over, I would’ve had to call her.”
“Well, I’m glad you found someone. When does he start?”
“He said he has two temp positions to fill this week, but he was going to try to get someone else to take them. If he can, he’ll start sometime this week. If not, it’ll be on Monday. Hopefully, I’ll have Zena until then. She’s a godsend.”
