Total pages in book: 18
Estimated words: 16678 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 83(@200wpm)___ 67(@250wpm)___ 56(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 16678 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 83(@200wpm)___ 67(@250wpm)___ 56(@300wpm)
The app matched us.
And Arden curled my toes with his disarming smile, sweet humor, and bone-melting kisses.
Go on a Valentine’s Day blind date and fall in love with Kaylan and Arden.
The Interview is a prequel novelette for the Executive Suite Secrets series. Read the romance of Arden and Kaylan, then check out the sneak peek of The Bargain, book one of the Executive Suite Secrets
*************FULL BOOK START HERE*************
1
KAYLAN
My boss was a madman.
Insane.
Lunatic.
Meddling old woman.
Okay, so maybe he technically wasn’t any of those things, but right now, it felt like it.
But buying a phone so he could download that ridiculous H2H dating app and enter me into the “Cupid Picks You a Date” Valentine’s Day madness without my knowledge was over the top.
I pulled my wool winter coat tighter around me as the wind picked up, whooshing across the top of Mount Adams. The sky was a dreary slate gray, but what did you expect from Cincinnati in February? From October through March, the area rarely ever saw the sun. The sparkling city became a depressing place of cloudy skies, bare brown trees, and dark-gray buildings.
Whatever. This was already going down as one of the weirdest days since I’d started working as an assistant to Sebastian Courtland, CEO of Courtland Enterprises. Actually, I was more of an assistant to his primary assistant, but I had regular dealings with Sebastian. That had led to the nosy man finding out that I was single and had zero plans for Valentine’s Day. Apparently, Sebastian thought I was too young to be sitting home alone on this most hallowed day.
As I climbed the stairs to the Cincinnati Art Museum within Eden Park, I scanned the area for any sign of the person who was supposed to be my date. The picture included in my meet-up instructions had been of an attractive man with blondish-brown hair, blue eyes, and a killer smile.
Fake.
No way a hottie like that was single.
Somebody had to have taken the time to photoshop the shit out of his picture before uploading it to the dating profile.
Of course, my boss had used the photo from my employee badge, in which I was rocking the “deer in the headlights” look in a suit that was too big for my lanky body. Thankfully, I appeared more disillusioned now than surprised, and I could afford suits tailored to my size.
It didn’t matter. I had no intention of going through with this date. The only reason I’d shown up was to tell the guy it was all a mistake. Yeah, dick move, but ghosting him was an even bigger asshole move.
After that, I planned to pick up some food and head home to binge-watch some of my favorite shows until I passed out and had to go to work the next day. And when Sebastian asked about the date, I’d say it didn’t work out and he’d drop it. Quick. Clean. Easy.
Except the date I was meeting actually was a hottie.
The toe of my shoe caught on the lip of a step as I gawked at the stranger and I tripped, nearly face planting no more than five yards away. Catching myself at the last second, I glanced up to find that he’d pushed to his feet from where he sat on a bench and walked toward me. Of course, he’d caught my clumsy act. The tips of my ears burned as I straightened my coat and suit jacket. Great first impression.
Nope. Didn’t matter.
I’d tell him the truth, and we’d go our separate ways. Never to meet again. First impressions weren’t important.
“Kaylan?” the man inquired as he drew closer. His voice was deep with the slightest hint of a rasp. Was that natural, or was he recovering from a cold? Regardless, it was sexy.
The only turnoff was the dark sunglasses hiding his eyes. It was a gray, dreary day. There was zero call for the shades. Probably hiding bloodshot eyes that drooped from his hangover. Hottie needed a few drawbacks before I did something stupid like go through with this setup.
I was still trying to decide if he was hungover or thought himself too cool in sunglasses when I replied, “Yes, I’m Kaylan Baumgartner. You’re Arden?”
“Arden Fischer,” Hottie introduced, extending his hand. I took it and had to suppress a shiver that tried to run wild through my body. Okay, so he had great hair, a sexy smile, and a big strong hand. Fine. He was sexy. Maybe he was sexy enough for sunglasses on a cloudy day.
“I’ll admit, after reading your profile, I didn’t think you’d show.”
Without thinking, I took a step back and shoved my hands into my pockets while once again cursing Sebastian. My boss was turning into the bane of my existence. “What do you mean? What’s in my bio that made you think I’d do something so rude?”
“No!” Arden waved both hands at me. “I didn’t mean it like that. Just…you’re so adorable and hot. I thought this had to be a practical joke. I mean, it’s not like the app can filter out the jokers and the fakes, right?”
“Yeah, no, right?” I babbled, huffing out the most awkward laugh of my life. At least he didn’t sound as pretentious as he looked.