C3 A trip to Puerto Rico

Zoe

"Zoe, we are going to Puerto Rico tomorrow." Mr. MacArthur informed me when he arrived on a Monday morning and went straight into his office barely glancing at me.

"On such short notice?" I asked no one in particular. Oh well, he did say I would be going with him on business trips.

It had been two weeks since I started working for Philip MacArthur and he was like what Dani described him as.

I stood up to prepare his coffee and took it to his office. He was looking through the ceiling-to-floor window and went back to sit on his swivel chair. "Send me the files for Mr. Rodriguez's business proposal." He said as he typed into his desktop.

"Sir, is there any particular dress code I should carry along?" I asked as I gently placed the cup of coffee on the table.

"Office wear and a few casuals," he replied without looking up at me. Would it hurt if he looked at me?

I nodded, "Anything else, sir?"

"No, you can go."

I began to walk to the door and was about to open the door.

"Zoe, that skirt is way too tight," he said without looking at me.

He didn't even spare me a glance so how did he see my skirt? It was even that tight at all. "I'm sorry, sir," was all I could say before I walked out.

There are so many reasons to hate this man!

************

"You're going to Puerto Rico?" Amy asked as we had dinner at my house. Aunt Emilia had already gone to bed, she always loved to go to before 8 am while I would stay up all night watching a series or doing office work and wake up complaining about twenty-four hours was not enough for a day.

"Yeah," I said excitedly.

"Wow, this job is already taking you places. I'm so jealous," she whined, "I, on the other hand, hate my job! My boss is so annoying!"

"Tell me about it," I said. "Philip gets on my nerves sometimes."

"Philip? You are on a first name basis already?" She asked with a knowing smile.

"No, I'm not at work so I can call him Philip."

"Hmm," she smiled like a freak, "but he's hot though."

"So?" I raised both brows. "I've met hotter guys." I stood up to take both our plates to the kitchen.

"Oh, have you?"

"Stop smiling like a freak, Amy," I told her. I washed both plates and returned, drying my hands with a napkin.

"So, did anything interesting happened yet?" She asked.

"Like what?" I turned on my laptop and double-checked everything for tomorrow.

"Like, you know, has he tried to flirt with you or do some, you know?" She wiggled her brows.

"He doesn't even spare me a glance, I don't think he finds me attractive."

"Ooh, that's sad. But you're hot though," her face lit up as if she just got an idea, "I think you should seduce him in Puerto Rico, what do you think?"

"I think it's time for you to go home."

************

Zoe

I stared in awe as we got into Mr. MacArthur's private jet. Everything in here screamed wealth. Mr. MacArthur took a seat, crossed his legs, and closed his eyes. He looked so tired and I wondered if he slept at all. He opened his eyes and caught me staring at him and I looked away immediately. From the corner of my eyes, I could see him still staring at me and I ignored the way my heart kept beating erratically and how my insides were turning into jelly. How could someone have this much effect on me from a mere gaze?

He closed his eyes and minutes later, it seemed like he had drifted off to sleep.

Minutes later, I followed suit and I woke up to Mark tapping me slightly and calling out my name.

A rented car came to pick us up from the airport and took us to a beach house Mr. MacArthur owned in San Juan.

"Sir, Mr. Rodriguez postponed tomorrow's meeting till 11 pm," I informed Mr. MacArthur.

He nodded and went up the stairs taking off his shirt on the way, I looked away immediately.

"I'll prepare dinner," I said to Mark.

"No, you don't have to do that, the maid will arrive very soon." He stood up, "I need to go and freshen up, you can take a tour around the house and pick a room for yourself."

"Alright, thank you."

Mark went upstairs and I looked around the living room. I went to the kitchen and my hands were itching to prepare food for us.

I took a tour around the house. There was a swimming pool outside and I wanted to go in but I didn't know if it would annoy Mr. MacArthur. I ignored the temptation and went back inside the house. I found a room for myself with a nice view and a king-sized bed. I took a shower and changed into baggy joggers and a T-shirt. I laid on the bed and stared at the ceiling. So, this is what having money feels like. The bed was so comfortable that I fell asleep. I woke up later and it was already evening. Did I sleep that long?

I went downstairs and met Mr. MacArthur seated on the couch, typing into his laptop.

"Someone called you," he pointed to my phone.

"Oh," I didn't realize I had dropped that there. It was a call from Aunt Emilia and she texted, asking if I had gotten there safely. I replied to the text and looked at Mr. MacArthur.

"Why are you staring at me?" He asked without looking up from his laptop.

"I was wondering if I could turn on the TV."

"Sure you can. Your food is in the microwave," he informed me. His phone rang, he looked at the caller and put the phone away.

I turned on the TV and settled on what channel to watch. His phone kept ringing and he finally picked it. "Yes?"

I heard a lady's voice and I was pretty sure it was one of his conquests. The woman rambled into the phone, although I could barely hear what she said. Mr. MacArthur was silent as she rambled before he finally said, "We are done, I told you that before," he ended the call and went back to typing. I wondered what he was typing because I always did the majority of the typing.

I wasn't even paying attention to the TV, I was so distracted by his presence. He was casually dressed and I had never seen him dressed like that before. He was clad in grey joggers and a white T-shirt that hugged his body, showing every detail of his muscular chest. Some strands of hair fell on his forehead, his jaw was clenched and his eyebrows were scrunched.

How I could see all that from the corner of my eyes was beyond me. How could someone look so hot effortlessly?

He pushed the strands of hair backward and I caught a glimpse of his flexed biceps before the hand went back to typing.

"Are you watching me or the TV?" He asked, this time he looked at me.

"Hmm?"

He smirked and went back to his laptop, "I know I'm a sight to behold but stop looking at me, it's creepy."

"I wasn't looking at you, sir," I said.

Cocky bastard!

"I heard that," he said.

Did I say that out loud? Oh my God, I always knew the mouth of mine would get me into trouble. "Miss Ortega, I'd advise you refrained from using such words on your boss," a smile was lingering on the corner of his lips and I wondered if he was being serious or not.

"I'm sorry sir," I stood up and began to walk to the main door. "I'm going to take a stroll, sir," I informed him and he nodded. I got outside and let out a breath I didn't know I was holding.

Mr. MacArthur sure knew how to get under my skin.

*********

Philip

I was pretty sure I scared her off, the sky was becoming dark a little and she hadn't returned.

A part of me was worried but the other part didn't want to care. I shouldn't be so concerned about my secretary, she was just one of my workers. One who effortlessly distracted me with those ridiculously tight skirts she loved wearing to the office. I had tried so hard not to get distracted by the way those skirts showed off her hips and accentuated her moderately-sized derriere or the way her long, black hair fell on her face when she dropped coffee on my table every morning.

It was over an hour and she hadn't returned. It was dark already, she didn't know anywhere in the area and I wondered where she had gone. The thought of her being in trouble or something made me dial her number. She wasn't picking her phone and the part of me that was worried had the best of me. Mark wasn't home either so I called him since she was picking. "Yes, boss?" He picked on the first ring.

"Is Miss Ortega with you?" I asked.

"No, sir. Is there a problem?"

"She went out and hasn't returned and she has never even been to San Juan," I tried to mask the worry in my voice.

"Should I go look for her?" Mark asked.

I didn't want him to leave his friends so I told him I would do that myself.

I tried her number again and this time she picked up, "Where the hell are you?" I almost barked.

"Relax boss, I'm good," she drawled.

"Zoe, are you drunk?"

"Am I? I don't even know," she laughed, "Everything is spinning, Phillip. Oops, I said your first name."

"Zoe, where are you?" I tried very hard to sound calm but the thought of her drunk amid men had me very worried.

"Somewhere you are not, away from your cocky ass, Philip. Oops, I said your first name again."

Talking to her was pointless, I grabbed my car keys. "Zoe, stay where you are. I'm coming to get you. Do not move from there."

"You're not the boss of me outside work, okay? Don't order me around," she drawled.

I ended the call and went upstairs to take a jacket and put on some sneakers.

This woman was going to pay for making me come get her drunk ass.

I roared the car's engine to life and tracked her with her phone's GPS. She wasn't that far from the beach house, I found her in a bar laughing with a group of men. She was speaking Spanish so fluently.

"Zoe!" I called.

"Oh, mira, mi jefe esta aqui," she pointed to me, and all their heads turned to me.

Nice of her to recognize me in her drunk state.

I grabbed her hand and pulled her up from the chair.

"No, I'm having fun, let me go," she drawled and dried to free herself.

"Shut the fuck up," I told her.

"Hey, dude, she told you to leave her," one of the men stood up.

"Who the hell are you?" I asked him.

He came closer and looked me dead in the eye. He was so short and I could have easily knocked him on the head.

"You wanna know? Huh?" He pushed my chest

"Do that again and I'll fix your face," I warned him.

"Are you threatening me?" He pushed my chest again and I punched his face without a second thought. Zoe gasped, the man fell to the floor and the rest of the men were up.

One charged at me and I sent him flying across the room, the rest raised their hands in surrender.

Bloody cowards!

I dragged Zoe out of the bar. "I didn't know you could fight that good," she said, still very drunk.

I put her into the car and strapped her to the seat with the seatbelt.

"I was having fun, you just came and ruined it," she whined.

"Don't move," I warned her and walked around the car into the driver's seat.

I drove us home and paid deaf ears to her whining. Mark was already home and offered to help me carry her to her bedroom.

"It's okay," I told him.

I carried her into my arms as she could barely walk with her wobbly legs. "You're so strong," she giggled.

I placed her on the bed and she held my face. That threw me off guard a bit and I gently pulled her hands away. She put them back and pulled my cheeks. She was already beginning to get on my nerves.

"You're so hot. I wonder why you don't find me attractive."

You don't know half of it.

"Take off your clothes, take a shower and go to bed."

"Don't you get tired of ordering me around? Huh?" She giggled. At this point, she was already drowsy. I laid her on the bed and covered her up with a blanket. I stared at her and pushed her hair out of her face.

You're in trouble tomorrow, Zoe.

I turned off the lights and left.