Fixed on You Read Online Free PDF Page A

Not
anyone as yummy as Hudson Pierce, but yummy nonetheless.
    I shook my head as I hopped off
David’s desk. Why did my thoughts keep leading back to Hudson? Even in the
middle of a sorta-not-at-all break-up, I was thinking of him. And Hudson was
exactly the kind of guy I shouldn’t be thinking about. At all. Ever. Not if I
wanted to maintain the modicum of control I’d managed to acquire in the past
few years.
    “Are you okay, Laynie?” David’s
voice brought me back to the present awkwardness.
    Damn it. I’d been so sure of a
relationship with David that I’d pictured us sending Christmas cards together.
Okay, maybe I’d fixated on him more than I wanted to admit, but not so intently
that I was going to wig out about ending it. The biggest bitch of the whole
situation was that now I didn’t have a safe guy to hide behind. Now I was
vulnerable to notice other not-so-safe men. Men like Hudson.
    Oh, god, was this the beginning
of an obsessive episode?   
    No, I’d be fine. I had to focus
on my promotion. I was stronger than this.
    “Yeah. I’m fine. If you’re almost
done, I’m going to get changed.”
    David nodded. I hurried to the
staff break room across the hall. Stripping out of my corset and tight pants, I
changed into sweat shorts and a sports bra, stuffing the troublesome outfit
into my duffel bag. Since there wasn’t a straight subway line from Columbus
Circle to my apartment at Lexington and Fiftieth, I usually ran it. Sometimes
after a long shift I’d take the bus or cab, but with all the stressors of the
night, I needed the cardio to direct my focus.
    Fifteen minutes later, I hit the
pavement, taking in the fresh morning air with the rest of NYC’s early morning
joggers. I loved the feeling of unity it gave me, even though most of the other
runners were starting their day, not ending it as I was.  
    Quickly, I got into my groove,
running along the south border of Central Park, but the steady rhythm of my
body wasn’t enough to drown the thoughts of David and my future at The Sky
Launch. Wasn’t enough to drown my thoughts of the gorgeous new owner who had
demanded I meet with him later that night. Worry set in again. Was Hudson
planning to fire me? Or did I still have a shot at promotion?
    One thing was certain—I’d be a
lot more thoughtful about my choice of wardrobe in the future.

Chapter Three
     
     
    I took a cab to the club that evening,
which had been a mistake. Unusual traffic had me arriving at three after nine.
I hurried toward the office but was stopped at the upstairs bar by Liesl.
    “David and hot owner boy are
already in there,” she said over the club music, playing with a strand of
purple hair. “Hudson told me to have you wait here. He’ll let you know when he
wants you.”
    “Dammit! I’m not that late, am
I?”
    “No, they went in there about ten
minutes ago. They have no idea what time you got here.”
    I relaxed, thankful that my exclusion
from the meeting wasn’t because I’d been tardy. I hopped onto a bar stool
nearest the office and set my computer bag on the floor at my feet.
    “Hold on, Laynie,” Liesl said
coming around the bar. “Let me see you.”
    I stood up again and turned
around, displaying my bodycon dress. I’d picked it because the white tie color
had a business style to it, but the tight black skirt said nightclub instead of
office secretary.
    “Fuck, girl, you look good!”
Liesl’s validation calmed me more than she could ever know. Or maybe she did
know. She was a good friend.
    “Thanks. I needed that.
Especially after Mr. Disapproval last night.”
    “He is now known as the Bar and
Wardrobe Nazi.”
    I laughed and hopped back onto my
stool. The same stool Hudson had sat on the first time I saw him. “Hey, you
know he’s the suit I was telling you about, the one who gave me the hundred.”
    “You’re shitting me!”
    “I’m not. Do you think he wants
me to blow him to get the promotion?”
    “Would it be that bad if he