Sleeping With My Boss: A Standalone Novel (An Alpha Billionaire Romance Love Story) (A Dirty Office Romance) by Claire Adams

picked up the remote control and dimmed the lights
in the room before I fired up the projector. I glanced around at each person at
the table. When I came to Asher, our eyes met and he gave me a warm, approving
nod. With me heart in my throat, I began my presentation.
    It felt as if it had taken barely no time, but half an
hour had passed when I brought up the final image and delivered my last line. I
stopped speaking, and for a few tense moments a heavy, almost tangible silence
filled the room.
    And then it happened.
    One of the senior members of the team—a woman in her
late forties—started to applaud. Soon everyone else followed suit. I looked
across at Asher, and he too was applauding with a smile of approval. A heady
rush of adrenalin mixed with pride and satisfaction was rippling through my
veins. The competitor in me wanted to jump up and down like I’d just scored the
winning touchdown in a playoff game. It was all I could do to hold myself back
from doing just that.
    Instead, I calmly closed my presentation on the
projector, turned the lights up again, said a quiet thank you, and went back to
my seat where I turned on my tablet so that I could take notes from the next
speaker's presentation.
    Inside, however, I felt as if fireworks were
exploding. I couldn't believe I had pulled it off so flawlessly; everything,
and I mean everything , had gone exactly according to plan. It felt
surreal, almost dream-like, and I knew that I had to celebrate after work, even
if it was a Monday.
    After the meeting was over, and everyone was gathering
their things together and leaving the room, Asher approached me.
    “Your presentation was absolutely outstanding,” he
said. “Seriously. I think you blew everyone in the room away with that. You've
gone above and way beyond what anyone expected of you. I have no doubt that these
amazing ideas you have are going to turn the Harry Winston campaign entirely on
its head.”
    I was ablaze with pride and excitement at his praise,
which I sensed was absolutely genuine—even though it felt as if there was
something beyond mere professional respect in the way Asher was looking at me
when he said it.
    “Thank you so much, Mr. Si—, I mean, Asher.”
    “I'm just telling the truth. I genuinely believe the
ideas you presented today are some of the freshest ideas we've seen at Sinclair
for, well, for years, to be honest. As a matter of fact, you kind of remind me
of myself in my younger years.”
    I laughed. “Thanks, Asher. But there's no need for you
to talk like you're an old man or something; you're only thirty-two, you know.”
    He chuckled. “Sometimes I feel twice that age, though.
Remember, I've been doing this since I was twenty. There are times I feel like
I missed out on my twenties completely, started my thirties right out of
college, and am now living in my forties!”
    “Come on now, you’re much too good looking to be in
your forties,” I countered playfully.
    “I’ll take your word for it,” he replied with a grin.
“Look, I know it's a Monday, but how would you feel about a drink or two after
work to celebrate the success of your presentation? And, by that, I don't mean
we're going to hammer away two bottles of wine again! Just a drink or two,
seriously.”
    “You must have been reading my mind,” I exclaimed. “Is
that a trick that samurai master taught you?”
    He grinned. “Wouldn't you like to know?”
    “As a matter of fact, I would,” I laughed again,
feeling very at ease in his company. “Jokes aside though, how would you feel
about a little extra company at this celebration? My brother Eddie told me if
my presentation went well today he wanted to buy me a drink. I mean, he was
kind of an idol of yours when you were a young lad, wasn't he?” I cocked an
eyebrow and gave him a half smirk.
    Asher grinned. “The lead guitarist of The Razor's
Edge? Seriously? How could I not want to have a beer with him?”
    I almost said, “I've
told him all about you