I looked at him and frowned. “Of course I eat. Why would you ask me that?”

“Then show me,” he smirked. “Patrick, pull into the next Starbucks. Miss McCarthy would like a coffee and a pastry.”

I sat there in disbelief that he would do that. I was having flashbacks of Brendon and it was making me angry.

“Actually, Patrick. Do not pull into the next Starbucks. I want nothing and I refuse to be late for my first day of work.”

“You’re with the boss. You can be as late as I want you to be.”

“I thought Peter was my boss and he’s expecting me at precisely eight o’clock. I will be there, in his office at eight o’clock.”

His lip curled. “Forget Starbucks, Patrick. Fine. Then you can prove to me that you eat by having lunch with me.”

“Okay. I’ll have lunch with you.”

“Excellent. I’ll stop by your office and pick you up.”

“I have an office?” I asked innocently.

“Of course you have an office. Didn’t Peter show you?”

“No, he didn’t. I’m sure he’ll show me when I get there.”

I honestly thought I was going to be sitting behind a desk in a cubicle like I did at my other firm. The thought of having my own office excited me. Patrick pulled up to the curb and got out and opened my door. As I stepped onto the sidewalk, Simon walked next to me and held the door open. The one thing I didn’t notice when I was here yesterday was the gold lettering that spelled Young International on the brick of the building next to the door. We stepped inside the glass elevator and Simon hit the button for the sixteenth floor and the twentieth floor.

“Is that the floor your office is on?”

“You could say that.” He grinned.

I didn’t know quite what he meant, but I just went with it. As we stood in the elevator, he kept his hands in his pockets the whole time. He stood with confidence and authority. I saw the way people stared at him when we walked into the building. How the women admired him and secretly stole discreet glances while he was in their sight. I watched the men push back their shoulders and smile, almost as if they were going to salute him, like he was some kind of soldier. The elevator stopped on the sixteenth floor. Before stepping out, I thanked Simon for the ride into the office.

“Thank you for picking me up and bringing me to work.”

His lips formed a smile. “You’re welcome. Trust me when I tell you it was my pleasure. Have a good morning, Gabrielle, and I’ll see you at noon for lunch.”

I stepped out of the elevator and walked down the hallway to Peter’s office.

“You’re right on time.” He smiled.

“Of course. Good morning.”