chapter 1

Cora

Staring at the Colorado Mountains from my hotel room, I realize this corporate retreat is less of a “bonding experience” and more “bored to tears.”

Add in Griffin Blake, my boss and personal sunshine, and I’m officially on vacation from hell.

When I became the personal assistant for the biggest asshole I’ve ever met, I didn’t think my job duties would mean being forced to go on a trip like this.

Although, I didn’t have many options when it came to getting a job.

Griffin was my solution, and I’ve been doing my best to avoid him whenever I can.

Which is why I’m currently locked in my hotel room instead of at the pool with the lawyers.

I let out a dramatic groan, eyes locked on the computer screen as if my stare might magically erase the mountain of debt staring back at me.

It’s like my bank account is mocking me, whispering, “You really thought Victor was a catch, huh?”

It’s going to take a couple of years just to dig myself out of the hole he put me in—even longer if I do anything that causes me to lose my job.

Which I might.

Spending days and nights catering to Griffin’s every whim is getting old. I have half a mind to tell him where to go, and the other half is set on telling him how to get there.

A knock on my door draws me away from the tempting thoughts of throttling the man who has made my life miserable since I was a child.

I glare at the numbers one last time before getting off the plush bed. As I pad my way across the cream-colored carpet, I try to come up with an excuse for why I will not be joining the rest of the staff at the pool.

I only crack the door, but Kaleigh barges her way in with a bottle of champagne in hand.

“I thought you could use a little bit of fun,” She says, setting the bottle on the desk and kicking off her heels. "It’s time to pre-game before we go out to find ourselves a bar.”

“Would telling you that I want to be alone for the rest of the night do any good?” I smile as I grab the champagne glasses from the minibar.

Kaleigh shakes her head and snatches the bottle up to pop it open. “Not even one bit. I’ve been hanging out with the men all day, and I’m desperate for a little woman time.”

“It couldn’t have been that bad.”

She gives me a flat look before her blue eyes roll. “If I have to hear how lucky I am because I got a good position at a prestigious corporate law firm, I’m going to lose my damn mind.”

I laugh as she pours the champagne. “And this is why being a personal assistant is better. I can avoid them all; they happily pretend I don’t exist. Hell, I should be at home right now. I could be curled up in bed with an entire bottle of wine and a good book.”

Kaleigh hums and perches herself on the edge of the desk. “Well, lucky for us, I found a bar that isn't filled with stuffy old men in suits. We can go dancing, and we might even be able to get you laid.”

Sputtering, my cheeks flame, and I almost spit out my drink. “I'm not here to get laid. I don’t have time for anyone, especially after the shit that went down with Victor.”

Kaleigh rolls her eyes. “Screw him. You should be out having fun, not worried about what else could happen if you meet another asshole like him.”

She finishes her champagne and heads for my suitcase. Kaleigh rummages through the few things I brought to the trip.

While she looks for something to force me into, I down my first glass of champagne and pour myself a second.

Kaleigh pulls out a black dress that I know will hug my figure and highlight the best parts of my body. “I like this one. Come on, Cora. A woman not on the hunt for a hookup wouldn’t pack something that screams ‘slinky gothic babe.’”

If I thought my cheeks were on fire before, they’re an inferno now. “Kaleigh, this is ridiculous. Let’s just stay in and order some pizza to the room or something.”

She gives me a flat look and tosses over the dress. “Get ready. We’re going out, and we’re going to have a good time. I’m tired of seeing you mope around.”

“I don’t mope. I have things to do, and I get them done. I just don’t have much time for a social life right now.”

Kaleigh throws her arms in the air. “Which is precisely why I am forcing you out of this room, and we will have fun at the bar. Stop feeling guilty over what happened between you and Victor. Live a little.”

I finish the rest of the champagne in my glass, a buzz flowing through my veins. “Fine. I’ll get ready. But we’ll stay for a little while because I don’t want to be too tired tomorrow.”

Kaleigh cheers as I take the dress and disappear into the bathroom.

It only takes a few minutes to shimmy into the satin material and do my makeup. A quick smoky eye look and a red lip later, I walk out of the bathroom feeling more unsure of myself than ever.

Kaleigh hands me a pair of heels. “You’re hot. Own it. Use it to your advantage.”

I slide on the heels, knowing she’s right. Of course she’s right—I’m just not feeling like my usual self.

Before my ex, Victor, I didn’t have any confidence issues. At least not ones that would have me hidden away in a hotel room with bars and attractive men to dance with.

After him, I don’t know who I am anymore. I lost so much of myself in that relationship.

And tonight, I’m reclaiming a small piece of myself.

I want to go back to being the woman who would go out and have fun, but a thousand cuts Victor left me with when he screwed me over are still healing.

Kaleigh loops her arm through mine and tows me to the door. “Drinks are on me tonight. If I’m going to be the one to drag you away from your work, then I’ll be the one to serve you copious amounts of alcohol.”

I laugh as she opens the door, and we pour out into the hall. She hums with the music playing through the resort as we head for the front doors.

Several of our colleagues are scattered throughout the lobby, having the same meaningless conversations they have at work. They speak about their wives and children as if they wish that they had never tied themselves down in the first place.

Kaleigh leads the way into the night air, the stars shining bright above us. “We’re going to have the best time tonight.”

Though I’m not sure she’s right, this is the first time in a long time I’ve felt like letting my hair down and enjoying myself a little.

We hop from bar to bar, dancing and having drinks bought by men who don’t stand a chance. Kaleigh smiles and flirts with them, wrapping them around her little finger until free drinks come our way.

Once she’s done playing with them, we move to the next bar, and she repeats the process.

By the time we reach the last bar, I’m pleasantly tipsy and can’t feel my feet. Kaleigh makes her way to the bar while I skirt around the edges of the dance floor to one of the open tables.

“Cora?”

The deep voice stops me in my tracks. For a moment, I think I’m imagining his voice. I consider pretending not to hear him above the thudding bass of the music.

“Cora!”

I spin around, eyes narrowing as Griffin towers over me. “Yes?”

“What are you doing here? You should be back at the resort.” His dark eyes bore through me, his jaw flexing. “This isn’t the kind of bar I’d expect to see you in.”

“You were the one who insisted I come on the retreat. If you didn’t want to see me in bars, maybe you shouldn’t have brought me here.”

The liquor makes my tongue loose and curses me into saying precisely what’s on my mind.

Years of hatred towards Griffin have faded, but there is still lingering hurt over the way he used to treat me.

If I had another choice, I wouldn’t be working for him.

My brother, Jake, convinced Griffin to hire me. Jake thought it was a good idea to be the personal assistant to his best friend, the devil incarnate.

Griffin crosses his arms, the sinewy muscles of his biceps flexing beneath the black t-shirt. “If you hate working for me so much, you should have quit before now. I don’t see the point in making yourself miserable day in and day out.”

“That would make you happy.” I glance over his shoulder, but Kaleigh is busy teasing a man at the bar. “I have other things I should be doing right now.”

Griffin steps into my path when I try to step around him. “What things do you have to be doing right now? It looks like you came here alone.”

Kaleigh peels herself away from the bar, two shots of an amber liquid in her hands.

“I’m here with a friend from work.”

He gives me his crooked smile, and my heart skips a beat for just a moment.

I’ll blame my reaction on the alcohol for tonight. In the morning, I’ll wonder whether I'd lost my mind when I looked at him.

“Cora, you don’t have friends.”

Kaleigh steps around him, shoving the shot into my hand.

My glare doesn’t leave Griffin as I toss the shot back, the alcohol burning on the way down. “I’m officially off the clock, and you’re not my boss right now, so understand I mean it when I say piss-off.”

I shove the shot glass into his hand before taking off to dance.

The numbness in my feet is forgotten as I weave through the crowd, finding a spot to dance. Kaleigh joins me a moment later, a wide smile on her face.

She takes my hand, spins me around, and pulls me back against her. I tilt my head back, moving my hips to the beat of the music.

Kaleigh dances with me for a few songs before leaving with a man. I keep dancing, determined to dance away every lousy feeling since the breakup with Victor.

Another song starts, and the people around me shift slightly. That’s when Griffin appears through the crowd, his cheeks flushed and his jaw flexing.

He stops in front of me, looking like an avenging angel. “That’s it, Cora, I’m tired of the shit going on between us. You’re barely civil at work, and the only reason I haven’t fired you yet is because your brother told me that I had to keep you employed.”

Though I knew Jake had gotten me the job, I didn’t think he had forced Griffin to keep me employed.

I’m a good employee, though. Despite disliking Griffin, I go above and beyond at my job.

There isn’t a better option if I want to pay down the debts.

Although, putting up with Griffin Blake will send me to an early grave.

I stop dancing, blood boiling in my veins. “Fire me then.”