Nina? It couldn’t be…
My gaze jerked up from my iPad. Sure enough, entering our board room in deep purple stilettos, a fitted sleek purple dress, and a black blazer was Nina. My Nina.
Confused by the shock of seeing this woman I’d been dreaming about in person again, I didn’t quite put two and two together—was she here about the lawsuit she was claiming?
Then, Richard said, “Welcome to the Silhouette team, Nina. We’re incredibly lucky to have you.”
“Uh-oh,” Josh muttered beside me.
I was stunned. But more than that, my heart raced and my pants tented considerably beneath the table. I’d never been happier that we didn’t have a glass top table that would reveal the state of my cock to everyone in the room. Because fuck, was I hard.
She quirked a brow in my direction, and in the briefest moment, one side of her plump, ruby lips curved into a smile as if to say, check mate.
Oh, baby. The game is only just beginning. I leaned forward onto my elbows. “Well, this just got interesting.”
“Don’t do anything stupid,” Josh whispered beside me.
I shot my brother a look. “C’mon. Like what?”
“Like fuck your new boss.”
Damn, was I that transparent? Then again, this was my big brother talking. He knew me better than anyone, including Dom and Cal. As the twins, those two were always bonded. Always together. Even though Josh and I were a bit farther apart in age, we were buddies through and through. He was my best friend as well as my big brother.
Beside me, Harley gave a little yip and, as though caught off guard, Nina’s gaze darted to the set of big brown eyes staring back at her, perked ears, and wagging tail. “You brought a dog… to a board meeting?”
She blinked, as though shocked, before dragging her gaze back to me. I smirked and shrugged. “It’s in my contract that my dog is allowed on set and in the studio.”
With pursed lips, she blew out a breath and rolled her eyes, muttering under her breath, “Of course it is.” Then, moving across the room, she took a seat beside Richard at the head of the table. “Morning everyone.” Her voice was so sharp, it could have sliced through glass. “I think some of you might remember me from the other night.” Her eyes once more caught mine, and it was like an electric current pulsed through my body. But she didn’t linger—she rolled her gaze around the table. “I had to admit, when I was looking through the roster for Silhouette’s TV lineup, I wasn’t too impressed by this show. It seemed… juvenile at best.”
“Jesus,” Dom whispered. “Deal it to us straight why don’t you.”
“Juvenile, silly, sophomoric—”
“Yeah, we all know you’re smart and have a thesaurus,” I muttered, interrupting.
“Ah, Mr. Murphy,” she smiled at my interruption. “It’s nice to see you… again. As I was saying. I wasn’t impressed initially. I thought your show was juve—”
“How about inexpensive? Thriving? The network’s biggest ROI?” I said, interrupting again, and I reveled in how her cheeks flushed just the tiniest bit pink.
“Dude, what are you doing?” Cal said. “Stop interrupting our new boss.”
But I ignored him. I wasn’t going to sit here as she talked shit about our show on the first meet and greet that was supposed to be a sign of good will. I pulled up the numbers that I had brought with me. “Our show is the cheapest of all of Silhouette’s current network television contracts. And because we can make the show for so little, it gives us a huge return on investment.”
She chuckled, a condescending little laugh that, if we’d been in the bedroom instead of the office, I would have responded to by taking her over my knee and spanking that pretty, tight ass of hers until it was pink. “You didn’t let me finish. I was about to say that, when I delved more into your show, I realized that it’s an incredibly smart and effective use of a budget. Props and sets are fairly minimal. There is no massive cast, no A-list actors to pay. And frankly, I was shocked to discover your ratings are through the roof. Everyone from ten-year-old kids to soccer moms to frat boys and sorority girls and even grandfathers seem to love your show based on the latest poll.”
Huh. Well that was… unexpected. Then again, around this woman, ‘unexpected’ was basically the new normal.
“But—” She raised a finger.
I groaned. Out loud. Her eyes flicked to me before she continued. “But I am concerned that this show could be a liability. Richard and I had a meeting first thing this morning and we both agree that things need to change. The pranks you pull, the way you talk to people, touch people without their permission, leave this studio open to a potentially massive lawsuit.”
“I will be sending out new guidelines that I expect you all to follow to the letter. Do I make myself clear?” Everyone around the table nodded in agreement… except me. “In the coming weeks, Richard, the executive producers, and I will be making tough decisions about which shows will be renewed for another season and which shows will be cancelled. Your ratings are good, but I need to see that you can clean up your act a bit before this show truly gets my blessing to continue.”
She paced the room, heels clicking dramatically against the marble floor, and all I could think of was the crush I had on my third-grade teacher who always wore heels at school… every day.
Harley gave another yip as Nina paused, standing right next to her. Her harsh demeanor broke, if only for a second, and as she looked down at my dog, she paused and bent to pet her. Harley, the traitor, snuggled and licked Nina’s hand. “Your dog seems to agree. But do you think you can manage that… Sam?”
I rose my eyes to meet hers. They were darker today, reflecting that deep purple of her dress and creating more of a lavender shade than I remembered them being last week. Sam. She called me Sam… not Mr. Murphy. What was that? An act of defiance? Flexing her muscles around me?
The fact of the matter was, if our show got canceled, I had no doubt that another network would scoop us up immediately. We were that profitable. Richard knew it. And she knew it. She couldn’t cancel us and still have a job.
So, I smirked. “Yes, Ms. Miller. I think we can manage that.”
Chapter 4
Nina
My heart pounded the moment I saw Sam. What the hell was it about that guy that had me so worked up?
I knew what—he challenged me. He didn’t just let me steal the Alpha title and hold onto it. He fought me for it. And it was sexy as hell.
My pulse raced as I finished up my last meeting of the day and slid into my office, unbuttoning the top button of my blouse.
I was overheating, flushed, and just a little sweaty despite the fact that the cool air conditioning had kicked on overhead. Boxes still surrounded me, and I had yet to unpack my office and make it my own.
My office door was ajar, and outside of it, there was a giggle that I recognized as my new assistant’s. I hated to be a ballbuster on my first day, but taking personal calls while on the clock was not something I’d tolerate—especially not personal calls that sounded like flirting.
I headed toward the door, ready to give her a warning, when through the few inches that it was open, I saw Sam Murphy, standing in front of my very young, very cute receptionist.