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My flight is uneventful. The flight attendant continued to bat her eyelashes at me and her uniform, which was buttoned prim and proper, suddenly became obscene after she brought me my first drink. Not wanting to deal with her, or anyone for that matter, I closed my eyes and pretended to sleep.
I spot the driver Cassidy has sent for me. He eagerly takes my bags as I follow him to the limo. Even though my hair is now cut short and I’m wearing my Oakley’s, the paparazzi and fans still spot me. I hastily slide into the back seat and pull the door closed behind me. I just want to be home.
As soon as I walk through the door of my house, Jones is there waiting. I expected him to be here as well as my new assistant. I hope Cassidy was able to bring him up to speed as to what is expected.
“Jones,” I say in greeting.
“Kacen, good to have you back.” He reaches out to shake my hand.
He looks nervous. “What’s up?”
He places his hand on my shoulder; that’s never a good sign. “Kacen, listen, there’s been a slight misunderstanding. It’s not a huge deal,” he rushes to explain.
I don’t say anything as I shrug his hand off my shoulder and cross my arms over my chest. I stand stock-still waiting for him to drop the bomb on me.
“You see, when you said you wanted a male assistant, I took you seriously. I went through all of the applications and there was only one male applicant. I forwarded the resume to Cassidy and told her to hire him.” He laughs nervously. I continue to stare him down, waiting for the punch line. “Turns out he is not really a he. She has a name that I have since been told is unisex. Your new assistant, her name is Logan, and she’s extremely qualified. She’s been with the band the entire day and she’s holding her own. Their charms don’t seem to work on her. If anything, they treat her . . . like an old friend.”
“I asked for one thing, Jones. One. I’m not one to harp on demands, but I’m so sick and tired of going through assistants every couple of months.” Releasing a heavy sigh, I run my fingers through my hair. Fuck! “All right, you need to make it clear to her that this is a probationary period. If I get even an inkling of suspicion that she has a thing for one of the guys, she’s gone. Make sure she understands.”
“Done. Let me introduce you.”
I follow him into the living room. I see all three guys sitting around, and then I see her. Her long brown hair reminds me of Paige. I bite back my irritation. She’s gone. She was a good time, but I need to get over that shit.
“Kacen, this is your new personal assistant, Logan Andrews. Logan, this is your new boss, Kacen Warren.”
“Holy shit!” the words fly out of her sweet mouth.
“Paige.” My voice is gruff as I say her name. I thought he said her name was Logan?
“Michael?” she breaths my name, and the memory of that exact sound flashes through my mind. I was buried deep inside of her.
The girl who has captivated my mind for the past week, the one I shared unbelievable sex with, is standing in my living room, with my bandmates. Paige, or Logan rather, is my new assistant.
What the ever-loving fuck?
Chapter 9
Logan
In and out, in and out, three words that are on repeat in my mind, reminding me to breathe. I’m standing stock-still in his living room staring at him, Michael. Then it hits me . . . he lied to me. I’m angry long enough for my brain to catch up to the fact that I also omitted the truth. I gave him my middle name.
“Out, now!” he roars. Cole, Gavin, and Tristan linger around me. Cassidy and Mr. Jones leave without another word.
“Leave,” he says again through gritted teeth.
I feel an arm come around my shoulders. Looking over, I see that it’s Gavin. He smiles down at me, winks, and turns his attention to Mi—Kacen.
“Welcome back, man,” Gavin says.
Kacen’s blue eyes flame with anger. “I need a minute with, Pa—Logan.” He looks from me to Gavin.
“Don’t think that’s a good idea, my friend. You seem to be standing on the cliff of anger, and our girl here”—he pulls me closer—“doesn’t need to be on the receiving end.”
Kacen lets his arms hang at his sides. His fists gripped tight. “I’m not going to hurt her, or yell at her. I just need a fucking minute with her.”
“It’s obvious the two of you know each other,” Tristan pipes up.
“You could say that.” Kacen answers him, but his eyes never leave mine. “I met Logan in Hawaii.”
“Ah, so she’s the one.” Tristan laughs.
“K, you good?” this from Cole.
His answer is a simple nod, eyes still locked with mine.
Cole steps next to me and gently squeezes my arm. “We’ll just be in the kitchen. Guys.” He jerks his head toward the door. Tristan follows obediently while Gavin releases me, but doesn’t move to follow him.
Once he’s no longer touching me, Kacen moves his heated eyes from me to his friend. They have some sort of silent conversation that has Gavin releasing a heavy sigh and retreating toward the kitchen.
Then there were two.
“So, Logan . . .”
“So, Kacen . . .” I mimic him.
Running his fingers through his hair, he sits on the couch. “Come sit,” he says without looking at me.
Slowly, I walk to where he’s now sitting on the couch and sit on the opposite end. I clasp my hands in my lap and stare at them, just waiting for him to tell me that I no longer have a job.
Kacen surprises me when he clears his throat, gaining my attention. He holds his hand out for me. I slip mine into his and we shake. “My name’s Kacen Michael Warren. It’s nice to meet you.”
My eyes find his, our hands still locked. “Nice to meet you, Kacen. My name’s Logan Paige Andrews.”
His shoulders relax when he hears Paige is my middle name. Without knowing, we both omitted our first names, wanting to be someone else without the lie.
Realizing I still have a grip on his hand, I release my hold and place my hands back in my lap.
“You were gone.” His voice is thick as he speaks softly. I’m sure he’s worried about his bandmates listening in. Although it sounded like they had already heard about me, about Paige.
“I’ve never been much on goodbyes. Besides, we both knew it was a fling.” Something I’ve never done. I don’t exactly know the protocol on this type of thing.
“Yeah,” he agrees. “I still would have liked to have been able to say goodbye to you.”
Me too. “Hawaii . . . was a first for me. I wasn’t exactly sure on the protocol and just figured slipping away was the best bet.” I decide I might as well be honest with him.
We’re both quiet while the words I had just spoken lay between us.
“So, you’re my new PA?” he asks.
“Well, yes, I guess as long as you decide that I can keep my job.”
“I requested a male. Jones looked at your name and assumed.”
I nod. “He explained that you would be upset and there would be a chance that I could possibly be . . . relieved of my duties.”