My CEO, My Temptation
Chapter 19

Jessica

I arrived at the office at a quarter past seven and Kayleigh had put stacks of paper on my desk for my signature and review. But basically, she had done the work, the launching party is scheduled and details had been taken care of.

“I’m impressed Kay, you managed to pull this off without me…okay, I’m feeling unneeded here.”

She smiled sweetly and put my morning coffee on my desk.

“Boss, I’m just dusting off your work they’re all still on you, every mistake that I’ve done will reflect on you. For sure.”

I finally laugh and sit down in my boss chair while I start going through the pile of documents.

“So, are you feeling better? I think you are, I think you’re glowing, and I think you have gained a little weight. You look good.”

I looked at her and spilled my thoughts on him, on me, Tyler, and everything between us.

“I’m feeling stuff for him.”

“Oh, Jess, that’s good, wait…it’s good, right? you wanted this?”

“I do, I like him a lot, but I have baggage Kay, he may be a good kisser but he’s also a very good player. Look at Elsie, I don’t know how she goes to work every day with her ex and he discarded their thing and act as if nothing happened.”

“Jess,”

“I mean, she’s a PA she can quit if she’s not comfortable, but I can’t, I have my people depending on me for my good work and here I am playing house with the boss.”

I looked out my office windows, people are working like busy bees, Elsie was looking sexy in her tight yet modest office dress while she walked into his office with some files.

“I can’t be here when things fall apart.”

“Oh Jess, maybe it won’t. Why are you thinking this far ahead?”

Kayleigh got up and decided to closed the door behind her and I let her be, I know I needed to vent and Kayleigh has been my confidant for years and her words usually calm me down before I go and see Dr. Sheridan.

“I met his mom yesterday,”

“No…” she gasped in shock.

“Yeah, she basically said she knows me, she knows what people are saying about me and she didn’t think that my relationship with her son will last.”

“What the f**k?!”

“Yeah, I’ve heard about her from Amanda, she also got the same treatment from her. I know she’s a controlling mother figure and I did handle the situation quite well, but still, she did make me think.”

“Jess, maybe you shouldn’t. Maybe he’ll be different with you?”

“I’m broken Kay, you think any reputable man, family, will have me as their wife, their daughter-in-law?”

My own words were making me realize that it was my first time to think that far ahead. I was suddenly feeling the tightness in my chest, I took a deep breath but I was still hyperventilating. Between my feelings for him and the newfound knowledge that my thing with him won’t go anywhere the situation was making my vision blurry.

“Jess, oh, shit…” Kayleigh was to my side, helped me to the sofa and swiftly go out the door. She left me alone until the specs of black in my vision were invading quickly.

I could hear his words in my ear, my body was being lifted, his familiar scent was making me comfortable when my eyes were getting heavy and I somehow knew I’ve lost consciousness and create a hell of a morning in the office.

*****

“Jessica,”

“Tyler? where am I?”

The white surroundings were making me nervous, I don’t do well in hospitals, all those times I’ve spent answering, lying about my broken bones and bruises it made me mentally tense.

But there I was, lying in a hospital bed with him beside me. I was ready to bolt when I saw a nurse carrying a thick file and a doctor who was ignoring me and continue talking to Tyler.

“…I would like her to stay the night for observation,”

The usual speech that they gave me when I used to come here with my bruises. Still, I didn’t want to stay there, so I sit up in panic and started trying to take off the IV connected to my hand. My hands were shaking, I can feel the coldness sipped into my body.

“Jess, baby, it’s okay. I’m here.”

Tyler hugged me tightly in his arms, telling them to give us some privacy. The nurse leaves after she adjusted and secured my IV.

“I don’t like it here, please…take me home, I don’t want to be here. Rebecca, she’s on my speed dial, she’s my doctor.”

“Ssh…okay, I’m taking you back, you just need to calm down. We’ll be out of here as soon as Kayleigh takes care of the administration and you finish the IV drips. She’s outside right now, you’re going to be just fine, Jessica.”

I finally sobbed in his arms, holding into his navy suit jacket, wetting his crisp white shirt while he kept on rubbing my back and told me that he’s not going anywhere.

He was still holding onto my hand when I opened my eyes, I must’ve fallen asleep.

“Can we go now?”

“Of course,” he looked at the empty IV bag.

“…let me get someone to take off your IV.” He got up, kissed my forehead telling me to stay and that he’ll be right back.

I was seated in the back seat of his car, he wrapped his arm around me while his driver takes us into the late afternoon traffic.

“Don’t you have meetings this afternoon?”

“Larry is covering for me. I’m the boss, Jess, I can be absent from a few meetings.”

“Yeah, but you still need to oversee them. Just drop me off at my apartment, and…”

“You’re going to mine, I already asked Kayleigh to bring your stuff to mine. All of them.”

“Tyler, you don’t get to decide stuff for me.”

“Jessica, we’ve been together for a while now…”

“Barely a month.”

“Feels like I’ve known you longer, but why can’t we do this? you can always go back anytime you want. The apartment is not going anywhere, I’m just thinking about being practical. We’re both adults here, I want to keep you safe, take care of you.”

His words are too good to be true, but he was not wrong. I’ve been going back and forth just to do my laundry then sleeping a couple of times a week at my place when I know I don’t like sleeping without him beside me.

Tyler rubbed my arm and kissed my hair and I took a deep breath before I told him I will try it.

It didn’t take long before we reached his place, then the awaited discussion was finally voiced.

“They have files on you, your broken bones, bruises, scans, the nice doctor was just making sure you’re good now.”

“I know, I’m working on the hospital issue with Dr. Sheridan. I’ll let her know about today.” I tried to end the conversation but he was not letting it go easily.

He joined me on the sofa giving me a cup of coffee, while he relaxes with a bottle of cold beer.

“Okay, we’ll deal with the hospital issue later. But why did you have a panic attack in the first place? Kayleigh wouldn’t tell me, saying I should ask you about it.”

“It’s nothing, silly, we shouldn’t even talk about it.”

“I’m sure it wasn’t that silly to give you a panic attack.”

I drink my coffee then put it down and rest my head to the backrest of the sofa.

“About your mom, how her words actually affected me,”

His jaw tightened and he took a big gulp of his beer and told me to continue my words.

“Your mom told me that I should take a step back, let you be with a better woman, a woman who doesn’t have a dark past.”

Tyler took another gulp of his beer but didn’t say anything, so I continue to let it out.

“You know that I have dealt with your mom, I was good. But then this morning I look at Elsie, how she’s able to deal and work with you. I know she can quit anytime she wants. But if we’re done I can’t stop working with you. My company is your company,”

I took a deep breath, feeling that I start suffocating again. But Tyler put his empty bottle down and took my hand in his, rubbing it slowly, silently telling me to continue.

“What I’m trying to say is, I have feelings for you, and with you being a player, I don’t know how to deal when we’re done and I need to keep on working with you.”

“Wait, you’re worried about me being a player?”

He looked agitated, then disappointed at my words.

“Jessica, I don’t know what you’ve heard about me but what I’m feeling for you is real. I think I’ve been in love with you for a while now, I…”

“Love? I don’t think…”

“I think I’ve watched enough chick flick to know that this is it.”

I smiled when he cuts my words, telling me about his reference to love. Though I was still worried, but looking at his handsome face surely made my heart beats faster.

“So us being in love is based on your research on chick flicks?”

“Yeah, and we have time today to prove my point.”

He took the tv remote and start to chose some titles from a certain romance genre.

“You watch these kinds of movies?”

“This is me drunk dialing Netflix with Larry, come on sit next to me and enjoy the ride.”

I shook my head but scoots closer to his side as our talk was temporarily forgotten when he kissed the top of my head, telling me that he loves me while wrapping me closer to his side.

Love…is it? really?