Law #2: Don't Play with a Player: A Sweet Office Romance Story (Laws of Love) by Agnes Canestri (i am reading a book TXT) 📗

The door opens, and Laia steps in.

My words stick in my throat.

Her eyes dart to mine. “Sorry, I didn’t realize you were still on the phone.”

“No problem,” I say.

“Is everything okay?” Wyatt asks.

“Sure. It’s my assistant. We need to go through an urgent report together.” I don’t know why I called the Leonic discovery project urgent. I’m not meeting the client until Thursday, so I still have plenty of time to check Laia’s notes. But somehow, after seeing Laia, I can’t focus on my buddy’s voice anymore.

Laia is still standing at the door, undecided whether she should leave.

I gesture her to come over to me. She walks to my desk, holding a folder pressed to her chest.

“I don’t want to disturb you any longer,” Wyatt says. “But, please do speak to Mike, okay?”

“‘Kay, will do,” I murmur without paying attention to my words. I could have agreed to convince Ellie to make a cheerleading performance for Wyatt at the Super Bowl. Anything really to cut the conversation with my friend short so that I can finally turn my attention to the report Laia brought me.

Mr. Leonic’s company is a crucial acquisition for us, of course. It has nothing to do with Laia’s flustered expression that makes her seem so charming.

Laia steps beside me as I lower the phone back to its place.

She puts the papers in front of me. “I’ve applied the color-scheme we agreed upon. I also took the liberty to look up some background information that you might find useful about the company’s previous branding and ad campaigns.” She points to the margins, which are filled with round, tightly scribbled letters. “I also summarized some of the passages. Here and there, I added my own thoughts when something appeared important.”

My jaw drops. “You did this in only two hours?”

Her cheeks tint with a rosy hue. “Yes.”

How is this even possible?

I scan her notes quickly, and my surprise deepens. All of Laia’s comments about Mr. Leonic’s branding problems hit the nail on the head.

Hayley could spend an entire afternoon on a task like this and only come up with half of what Laia delivered.

I like that Laia’s handwriting is neat and easy to read. I can’t help but notice she puts little fat dots that look like a heart shape on all her i’s. Her calligraphy seems in line with her slightly dreamy personality.

My lips twitch as I stifle my smile.

Laia’s face tenses. “Sorry, I probably should’ve asked if you wanted those comments at all.”

She must be thinking that I find her zeal amusing. “Ah, no,” I say. “That’s not what I’m smirking about.”

“Then, about what?”

“The particular way you seem to punctuate your letters. It’s very…girlish. But not in a bad way,” I add hurriedly because Laia bites on her lip.

“I learned to write before I formally started school. From my cousin, Eva, who’s only two years my senior. It seems that not even two decades of proper academic training can cancel out the teachings of an eight-year-old role model.” Laia smiles, obviously relieved that I wasn’t making fun of her initiative.

I roll my chair back slightly so I can peer up at her. “Is your cousin your role model?”

“Partially, yes.” Laia nods. “She’s a strong, resilient person, and I admire her for that.”

“And I admire you,” I say but correct my slip immediately, “…your talent of synthesizing. You did a great job with this report. And very fast, too.”

“I’m glad you like it.” Laia’s forehead smooths. “I’m used to reading long texts and identifying the strong and weak points in them. Therefore, this discovery report was fun to do.”

“You see, Laia? My gut told me you would enjoy your job as my assistant. And that you’d be good at it. I just didn’t expect you to be this thorough.” I add a grin to show that her overachievement is appreciated.

“You’re weird.” Laia claps her hand to her mouth. “Oh, sorry, I didn’t mean it in the rude way it came out.”

“Then which way?” I tilt my head to the side as I observe her.

She licks her lips and swallows. “I just meant that you aren’t like I expected a boss to be.”

“What was your expectation?”

Laia shrugs. “I certainly didn’t think a CEO would give people a chance based on his instincts, especially if those hunches aren’t backed up on paper.”

“Well, you see…” I straighten because I’d like her to take my words seriously.

She steps back when I get to her eye level and interlaces her fingers in front of her belly. I smile, hoping her defensive posture is only a sign that she’s still new here and not because I make her uncomfortable.

“I value personality even more than specific job experience. When things get rough, it’s always one’s character that pulls them through the hard times.” I tap my chest. “Take me, for example. I dropped out of college because I believed that I had an idea worth going after. Many said I was crazy… But look at me now. It worked. And those who doubted me? They had to realize what a mistake they made.”

Laia’s shoulders go rigid. Her back is so straight it’s as if someone were holding her at gunpoint. Slowly she raises her eyes to meet mine. “I think I owe you an apology.”

“Why?”

“Because I do. I assumed that…”

“What did you assume?”

The eagerness in my voice surprises me. How bad can what she thought about me be? And why am I so curious to know?

“When you singled me out among the other candidates and invited me to the interview despite my will…”

I wince, and she gives me a small smile.

“Don’t worry,” she adds, “I’m not complaining that you did. But back then, I assumed you were one of those hotshots who has to have everything they want. The tabloid article I read about you didn’t help. It depicted you as someone who believed he was…la última Coca-Cola del desierto.”

“Coca-Cola?” I chuckle. “I’ve never been compared to that. What does it mean?”

“Sorry, when I get nervous, I sometimes switch