Doreen Roberts - In Love With The Boss

“In the bathroom, underneath a pile of damp clothes.”

“Oh, those.” A look of embarrassment flitted across his face. “I threw them down there when I got home from the hospital yesterday. I apologize for the state of the place. I know it’s a mess but...” His voice trailed off as he looked around the room. “Well, I can see you’ve been busy. Did you perform the same miracle in the kitchen?”

“And the bedroom and bathroom,” Sadie said with a note of satisfaction in her voice. “Now all we have to do is get you clean and fed and—”

“Wait a minute.” He raised his hand as if to ward off any attempt by her to touch him. “Hold on one cotton-picking minute. I’m not moving off this couch. Not for you, not even for the president of the United States. I tried that this morning and I can tell you with absolute authority that the slightest movement of this ankle can cause unbearable, debilitating agony.”

Sadie lifted her chin and fixed him with the same stare she’d used on all five of her younger brothers and sisters when they’d balked at her commands. “You have to go to the bathroom sooner or later,” she said smugly.

Jordan’s dark brows raised a half inch. Before he could answer, she added, “Since your ankle is going to hurt then, you might as well get it all over in one go. You’ll be surprised how much better you’ll feel once you are showered, shaved and dressed.”

He seemed to be having trouble answering her. After a moment or two of spluttering, he muttered, “I asked for an office temp, not a nurse.”

Sadie shrugged. “I’m not a nurse. Not qualified, that is, but I’ve had lots of experience in taking care of injuries. My youngest brother broke his arm three times, and one of my sisters dislocated her shoulder, then there was the time Jason fell out of a tree and broke his wrist...”

Her client looked bewildered. “Jason?”

“My oldest brother.”

“How many brothers and sisters do you have?”

“Five.” She reeled off their names. “And I’m the eldest. I took care of all of them when they were growing up since both my parents worked and...” She let her voice trail off, disturbed by the stricken look on Jordan Trent’s face.

“What’s the matter?” she said quickly. “Are you hurting?”

He shook his head. “No, as a matter of fact the pain is easing, thanks to the pills.”

“You’re not dizzy, are you? I hope I didn’t give you the pills too soon.” Without thinking she stretched out a hand to feel his forehead, but he jerked back, avoiding her touch.

“I’m fine. But I think I need to go to the bathroom.” He started to remove the comforter, and she moved closer, ready to help him up.

Immediately he dropped the corner of the quilt and stared up at her. “I think I can manage this one on my own.”

“I don’t see how you can manage anything in that tiny bathroom.” Sadie reached for the crutches and held them out to him. “It must be quite a challenge, living in such cramped quarters.”

“I don’t live here.” Jordan struggled to lower his injured foot to the ground. “I live in a house at the beach with a master bathroom bigger than this entire miserable tub.” His words ended in a grunt of pain as he tried to stand.

“Of course you do, if you say so.” The poor man was fantasizing. She was beginning to worry that the combination of pills and booze had seriously affected his mind. Grabbing hold of his arm, she tried to steady him. “Lean on me, if it will help. I’m stronger than I look.”

He stared at her, clutching the quilt to his chest as if his life depended on his hanging on to it. “You really think I live here?”

She nodded, feeling a stab of sympathy for him. “Yes, I’m afraid you do.”

“You don’t know who I am?”

“You’re Jordan Trent,” Sadie said soothingly. “Don’t worry, it will all come back to you once the effect of the medication wears off.”

Jordan nodded slowly, as if he didn’t quite understand what she was saying. “And you’ve never heard of Gallagher Enterprises?”

Sadie shook her head. “I haven’t been in Portland long. Three weeks, actually. I don’t know much about the city. What kind of company is Gallagher Enterprises? Is that who you work for?”

She felt uneasy as she watched a strange expression creep over his face. He stared at her for several seconds without uttering a sound. Just as she was about to ask him if he needed to sit down again, he said softly, “Yes, that’s who I work for. Gallagher Enterprises. I’m a draftsman there.”

Sadie beamed in relief. “You see? I told you it would all come back. Now, you’ll need to let go of that quilt if you’re going to use these crutches.”

She looked discreetly away while Jordan dropped the quilt and adjusted his robe. “Thank you,” he murmured as he took the crutches from her. “Now, if you’ll excuse me...”

“Are you sure you don’t want my help?”

“I’m sure. I’m getting real good at this.”

She watched anxiously as he swung his long, lean body around the couch and started for the door. Unfortunately one of the crutches got hooked in the braided rug and before she could do anything to prevent it, he stumbled, toppled over and, with an explosive curse, landed smack on the floor.

Chapter Two

“Now look what you’ve done! Are you all right?” Sadie leaped toward her employer who lay quite still, sprawled inelegantly on his stomach.

“No,” his muffled voice answered carefully, “I am not all right. Not only am I in considerable pain, I am apparently unable to manage something as fundamental as reaching the bathroom. I am also finding it a little difficult to hold an intelligent conversation with my nose buried in this rug, which smells of used cat litter, by the way.”

“Here, let me help you.” Sadie grasped his shoulder with the intention of rolling him onto his back.

Jordan Trent, however, seemed to have a violent objection to being touched. Shaking off her hold, he struggled into a sitting position and looked balefully up at her. “Just give me a minute. I’ll manage.”

There was only one course of action, as far as Sadie was concerned. When someone behaved like a child, he deserved to be treated like one.

Folding her arms, she adopted a tone that had always worked well for her in the past. “Mr. Trent, I’m not here for the fun of it. I’m supposed to help you, and you are making it very difficult for me to do my job.”

“I apologize for that, Miss...whatever your name is—”

“Milligan.”

“Thank you. I’ll try not to forget again. However, I assure you I can manage to get myself to the bathroom. I managed quite well before you got here.”

“You don’t seem to be doing such a good job of it now,” Sadie calmly observed.

Jordan Trent’s face turned a dull red. “Oh, all right. Give me a hand here to get on my feet.” “Please.”

“Please give me a hand to get on my feet,” he muttered through gritted teeth.

Hiding a grin of triumph, she stepped behind him, grasped him under the armpits and shoved. It took a moment or two of struggling—Jordan Trent’s lean build was deceptive. He had to be carrying a lot of muscle weight. Eventually, however, after a lot of groaning and cursing on his part, she had him upright again and leaning heavily on his crutches.

“How did you manage to hurt your foot, anyway?” she asked him when she was sure he was balanced securely.

He avoided her gaze, concentrating on maneuvering the crutches. “I fell off a ladder.”

Poor man must have been trying to fix a hole in the roof, Sadie thought, feeling a stab of sympathy. He probably couldn’t afford to have someone do it for him.