Lines of Truth

Chapter Six

Kellan's POV:

The lunch with Nadine was going fine but I noticed that Mel was being very quiet and would not look up from her plate. Nadine kept looking over at her and I was afraid that she felt insulted by Melanie's silence. Just as I was about to pull Melanie to the side and ask her if everything was alright, Nadine spoke and asked her questions about high school. I had no idea they knew each other but the conversation seemed to make Melanie uncomfortable.

At the mention of someone named Matt, Melanie excused herself to the ladies room. I went back to eating and then Nadine spoke up, "So, when did Melanie start working for you, Kellan?" I hated when she used my first name. I also, hated how her fingers began walking up my forearm and trailing to my bicep where she gave a gentle squeeze. I angled myself away from her and answered.

"This is her first day, Mrs. Clark," I said, putting emphasis on the Mrs. She looked taken aback and...concerned? She thought for a moment before she spoke again.

"Well, be careful around her. She is bad news. I have known her since high school and wouldn't trusted her with a piece of trash. If you will excuse me, I need to powder my nose," she said with a flirtatious wink. She got up quickly and went towards the restrooms where Melanie was. I waited about 5 minutes and when neither woman returned, I decided to go check and see if everything was okay.

On my way, I thought about what Nadine said. There is no way that Melanie is the type of person to not be trusted within the company. It's true that we didn't have the best meeting when we ran into each other but since then, she has been nothing but reliable, punctual and extremely smart when it comes to figuring things out. She had to have been mistaken.

I decided to go to the side of the restaurant so I didn't have to deal with any unwanted female attention and saw Nadine walking back to the table through the center of the tables. I quickened my pace so I could find Melanie because my gut was telling me that something was wrong.

I got to the bathrooms and didn't hesitate to open the door. I saw no one inside but Melanie. I was shocked to find tears running down her face. She looked up and saw me in the mirror and immediately tried to wipe her tears away. "I'm so sorry, Mr. Martin! I will be right back to the table, ready to take notes. I am so sor..." I engulfed her in my arms and couldn't help but to breathe her in. Vanilla and honeysuckle. This just became my new favorite scent. What the fuck am I saying? Stalker much, Kel?

"Shhh, it's okay. I don't know what happened between you two but I can tell you're dealing with a lot. You can always talk to me. I will always listen. I'm not just your boss but I'd like to be your friend as well," such a lie. I wanted her for more than just friends but that would be extremely unprofessional. I couldn't help but to use my thumbs to wipe away her tears. She was truly beautiful and didn't need an ounce of makeup to make her that way. She was all natural.

Like the good assistant she is, she was more worried about getting back to the meeting but I wasn't having it. Nadine did something to her and I would not put Melanie in a room with her again. I will just bring someone else. After leaving the bathroom, I went to our table to apologize to Nadine even though I was mad.

"I'm sorry to cut this meeting short Mrs. Clark, but I have another meeting to get to. If you would like to reschedule, please call Ms. Loxner and she can get another meeting set up for you. Again, I'm very sorry for the inconvenience," I said.

With that, Mel and I walked outside and get into my town car. When she got in beside me, I asked if she would like to tell me her story, which she did. I was seething by the end of it but I decided to grab her delicate hand and offer comfort instead of punching something. Holding her hand in mine seemed to calm my nerves. It was the strangest yet most exhilarating thing I have experienced.

Once we were back to the office, the day proceeded without incident. Melanie was turning out to be an amazing PA. She was always one step ahead of me when telling me about meetings, filing cases, bringing me coffee and just anticipating my every need.

It was now late in the evening and I was the only one in the building and decided that It was time for me to head home. I shut down my computer and turned out all the lights except for a small, dim lamp on my desk. I walked out and locked my office and froze when I heard the sound of rustling papers coming from Melanie's office. I walked over to see her sitting in her floor amongst piles of papers laying all around her. I thought she had gone home hours ago.

"Ms. Loxner?" she jumped at the sound of my voice and held her hand over her chest which I found really cute and couldn't help but smile.

"Oh! Mr. Martin. I'm sorry. I thought you had already left," she said with a slight blush coating her cheeks.

"I thought the same of you, Ms. Loxner. Why haven't you gone home yet? It is almost nine o'clock."

"Is it really?! I had been so focused that I didn't realize the time. I was trying to organize all of these files so they would be easier to file tomorrow and lost track of time. I'm so sorry! I will put that I clocked out at five so that you don't have to pay me for my mistake! I'm sorry, Mr. Martin!" she looked as if she was on the verge of tears.

"First of all, you will put your hours on your time sheet, ALL of them. You will be paid for your work whether you stay late or not. Second, you need to head on home. You need your rest. Come on, I will walk you to your car."

She blushed again and sat down the folder that was in her hand and she grabbed her bag and picked up her blazer. I looked at her attire and noted that she was one of the sexiest women I had ever laid my eyes on. She was thin but toned in all the right places. She walked towards me and waited but looked amused at me. Shit, she caught me staring at her.

I led her over to the elevator with my hand on the small of her back which made her blush more. She was so responsive to my touch. I think I even saw her shiver when I touched her. She was so tempting for me but I was her boss. I had to think with my head and not my dick.

We reached the lobby and I placed my hand on her back again. There was a lot of tension in the elevator. Sexual tension. She kept glancing at me from the corner of her eye and blushing. Her blushing had become my new favorite thing.

There was only one car in the parking lot and it looked like it had seen better days but I wasn't going to judge. Once we reached the car, she slowly turned around to faced me. "Thank you, Mr. Martin. That was very kind of you.

"Kellan," I said.

"Excuse me?"

"Please, call me Kellan when it is just us. Save the Mr. Martin stuff for in front of clients," I told her.

"Only if you call me Mel," she gave me a bright smile that lit up her face.

"Okay, Mel."

"Well, thank you again...Kellan, for walking me to my car. I appreciate it."

Then she did something that I wasn't expecting. She leaned up and kissed my cheek. She got in her car and drove off and left me standing there.

This woman will be the death of me.