The CEO's Romantic Wager

Chapter Two: Knocking Him Off His High Horse

Jayla Beckett sat at her desk, clicking “refresh” on her email over and over, waiting for something—anything—to pop up on her screen.

She had applied for a job that was everything she had dreamed of, one that was directly linked to publishing, with a position that promised a significant career jump and a chance to finally use her skills in a more impactful way… one that would finally give her the chance to use her English degree like she had always dreamed, as compared to sitting here waiting hand and foot on the infuriatingly arrogant Ajax Creed.

To say Jayla hated her job would be an understatement.

And could you blame her?

Her role as executive assistant to the CEO of Creed Holdings had literally metamorphosed into her becoming his babysitter (where he was the baby, just in case you didn’t catch that), his errand girl, his messenger, and most annoyingly, the one wing woman he called on to mend the broken hearts of the many women he got himself involved with.

Frankly speaking, Ajax Creed wasn’t that bad as a boss.

The pay was quite good, (which was honestly why she had stayed long enough) but they barely spoke outside business, errands, or women-related matters, and being alone on the top floor with him with no one else to talk to, work had gotten pretty depressing for the twenty-eight-year-old blonde-haired woman.

At her age, this was certainly not where she had imagined that she’d be by now.

Being a hopeless romantic at heart and a lover of all the fairy-tale, dreamy stuff, Jayla had imagined herself to be the perfect, rich career woman, with a loving and doting husband and at least one child, and yet look at her, she couldn’t even afford to take holidays because her entire life was messed up.

Jayla refreshed her mail again, letting out a frustrated sigh in the process.

Was it crazy that she was expecting a reply from the new job today?

It was only the first day of November, and she had been assured that she’d get word from them ‘sometime this month’, so why was she already out of patience?

She hit “refresh” one more time before glancing at her wristwatch.

Damn, it wasn’t even noon yet.

Jayla sighed frustratedly, drumming her fingers on her desk, and she was stuck in this position when the door to her boss’s office swung open and Connor Waters, her boss’s best friend and the company’s charming VP, stepped out.

He had that usual relaxed air about him, and when his eyes met Jayla’s, they lit up in excitement.

Shocking.

Jayla could count the number of times Connor had come up here, and not once had he been this ecstatic to see her. She couldn’t help but wonder what that was about.

“Jayla,” He growled out her name happily, in that casual, easy tone he used on everyone, “How’s it going?”

“It’s going alright, not that you’ve ever cared to ask before,” She eyed him suspiciously, “What side of the bed did I sleep today to deserve such favor?” She finished drily, but to her surprise, he burst into a happy chuckle.

“Oh, God, this is going to be even more interesting than I thought!” He muttered under his breath.

It was clearly not intended for her ears, but Jayla had caught it anyway, and her curiosity was rising by the minute.

Before she could think much of it though, Connor leaned a bit closer, lowering his voice playfully. “Well, Miss Jayla Beckett, how about taking a break from Ajax and his crazy? Join me for lunch?”

Jayla raised an eyebrow, amused by his sudden, persistent attempt at friendliness.

“First, you want to know how my day is going? Now, you’re offering me lunch? What’s the catch, Mr. Waters?”

Connor was having a field day at how things were playing out.

With the girl’s natural suspiciousness and intimidating aura, it wasn’t long before he was chilling in his new office… Ajax’s— admiring the beautiful view of Manhattan from his clear, gigantic windows.

He could already envision it!

Connor cleared his throat, holding his hand to his chest as if wounded. “Come on, Jayla, you’re breaking my heart. There’s no catch! Just two coworkers enjoying a break together. Unless… you’re scared I might charm you?”

Jayla laughed, shaking her head at him. “You wish. See, you might be charming, Connor, but I’m immune. I see right through you.” She flashed him a grin. “Thanks for the kind gesture, but I’m going to pass. I’ve got a ton to get through before Mr. Creed drops another ‘urgent’ task on my desk.”

Connor’s eyes twinkled. “Well, your loss.” He gave her a playful salute and headed down the hall, leaving her chuckling softly to herself.

Jayla got serious as the office quieted down again, a part of her pleased at the little fun she had had turning Connor Waters down like that.

Her days were mostly boring, and so this was a much-welcomed respite.

The executive assistant was in the process of drafting a letter for her boss when the office phone rang. She hurriedly answered, switching to her professional voice, “Creed Holdings, this is Jayla Beckett speaking. How may I help you?”

There was a brief pause before a woman’s voice, dripping with irritation, came through. “Is Ajax there?”

Ah, another scorned woman.

Right.

Jayla’s eyes flicked toward her boss’s office door. “May I ask who’s calling?”

“Oh, he knows who this is. He’s ignoring my calls, so trust me, he knows.” The woman replied coldly. “Just let him know I called, will you? And tell him I said to go f**k himself, and that he’d pay for what he did to me last night.”

Oh.

Jayla’s eyebrows shot up, a part of her wondering how she was going to relay the words to their intended recipient. “Uh, very well. I’ll pass along the message.”

The line went dead even before she could finish the sentence.

Wow.

See the errand s***h wing woman thing she was just complaining about?

Seriously, Jayla couldn’t wait to leave this job and move on to better things.

She took a moment to gather herself and her thoughts, and then refreshing her godforsaken email one last time, she got up and walked over to Ajax’s door, knocking once and entering.

Ajax Creed looked up at his assistant, the woman he was counting on to save his office space and his position as CEO.

Honestly speaking, she didn’t look so bad as a woman.

She just… needed a major makeover, and like he had mentioned earlier, she was so not his type.

But as Connor had mentioned, his type really wasn’t going to convince his parents to reconsider their decision to instate Simon as CEO, meaning he was just going to have to make do and see this bet through.

There was also something incredibly satisfying about the thought of beating Connor at his own game.

He couldn’t wait to wipe that stupid, condescending smirk off the bastard’s face when he claimed his beautiful motorcycle all for himself.

“Uhm, Mr. Creed?”

Ajax looked up, his usual composed expression snapping right in place.

“Yes?”

Could you believe he had forgotten about the girl?

“What is it, Ms. Beckett?”

“You had a call,” she said, keeping her voice neutral. “A rather…unhappy one. Sounded like you missed a date last night or something to that effect?”

The CEO’s face froze for a fraction of a second—just enough for Jayla to catch a glimmer of surprise in his eyes. It was rare to see him off-guard like that, and she couldn’t help but find it a little amusing.

“Flowers as usual?” she asked, trying not to smirk.

This was usually where her role as his errand girl came in, but for the first time, he seemed genuinely puzzled.

“What?”

Jayla raised an eyebrow. “Well, you usually have me send flowers when someone calls with…an attitude. I just wanted to check if I should get something together for her too.”

Ajax’s eyes widened as understanding dawned, but the ashamed look he sported was gone in a flash. “Uh, thanks, but that won’t be necessary.”

Jayla shrugged, turning to leave, but before she could reach the door, he called for her.

“Ms. Beckett,” he started, almost as if he were testing the waters. “Would you be interested in grabbing lunch with me?”

The blond woman paused, taken aback for a second.

He wanted her to join him for lunch?

The idea of Ajax Creed, notorious CEO, and serial playboy, casually inviting her to lunch was certainly unexpected.

But rather than feel flattered or intrigued, Jayla felt something else entirely well up inside her. Before she could help it, she burst into laughter.

Ajax’s brows knitted together, the unexpected melodious sound filling him with what felt like… nervousness, something he hadn’t felt since his youthful days as a mere intern.

“What is it, Ms. Beckett?”

“Oh, no, Mr. Creed, it’s nothing,” she said softly, still chuckling as she shook her head. “Thanks for the offer, but I’m good, thank you.”

Without another word, she left his office, still smiling as she returned to her desk, totally oblivious to the dumbfounded look on his face as the door closed behind her.

Ajax Creed sat in stunned silence long after the girl was gone, wondering what that entire exchange had been about.

You see, most women would jump at the chance to have lunch with him, and yet Jayla… Jayla Beckett had flat-out laughed in his face.

Did… did she not find him attractive?

Or maybe…

A thought struck him.

Maybe she had a boyfriend?

That would certainly explain the humorous disgust.

Right there and then, the CEO made a mental note.

He was going to have to investigate the enigma that was Jayla Beckett, to be certain.