Chapter 1
“One of the Marrow crews hit a storefront in Queens. Windows, equipment. No serious injuries.”
A captain muttered a curse.
Vincent continued, “I can have people at Victor Marrow’s house before he finishes celebrating.”
Damian did not answer immediately.
Caitlyn knew that silence.
It meant calculations were happening.
Retaliate too heavily, and violence escalated. Do nothing, and rivals smelled weakness.
She tried to remain alert.
The engine hummed.
Rain whispered against the fuselage.
Her eyes burned.
Five seconds, her body begged.
Just close them for five seconds.
Damian was still thinking.
She would not miss anything.
Caitlyn closed her eyes.
The relief was immediate.
Then the aircraft rolled gently through turbulence.
Her body, finally given permission to surrender, did exactly that.
The tablet slipped onto her lap.
Her shoulders softened.
Her head tilted.
And landed against Damian Hamilton.
Vincent stopped speaking.
Everyone saw it.
Damian went rigid.
Caitlyn’s cheek rested against the hard muscle beneath his suit jacket. She exhaled softly and, in the innocent cruelty of true exhaustion, shifted until she was more comfortable.
One of the captains stared at Vincent.
Vincent stared at Damian.
Damian looked down.
He could have moved.
He could have woken her.
Instead, something unfamiliar held him still.
Without fear tightening her features, Caitlyn looked younger.
Fragile.
The circles beneath her eyes were almost purple.
He noticed a faint ink stain on the side of her hand. A small tear in the cuff of her blouse had been carefully stitched instead of replaced.
He remembered her personnel file.
Parents deceased.
Brother receiving full-time neurological care.
No other immediate family.
For two years, she had arrived before him and often left after him.
She had never requested a raise.
Never complained about travel.
Never mentioned the brother whose bills devoured nearly everything she earned unless scheduling required it.
And now her exhausted subconscious had selected Damian Hamilton—the man everyone else avoided—as a safe place to sleep.
The absurdity struck him harder than an insult.
Vincent cautiously stepped forward.
“Boss, I’ll move—”
Damian’s eyes lifted.
Two fingers rose.
Stop.
Vincent froze.
Damian spoke quietly.
“No one wakes her.”
Nobody argued.
Carefully, he took the tablet from Caitlyn’s hands and placed it on the side table.
Then he shifted his shoulder perhaps half an inch, giving her neck a better angle.
The men at the front of the jet suddenly became extremely interested in whispering.
Damian stared through the window at flashes of lightning inside the clouds.
He had spent most of his adult life surrounded by people who wanted something.
Money.
Protection.
Access.
Power.
Permission.
Caitlyn wanted nothing from him in that moment.
She was simply tired.
For the first time in longer than Damian could remember, someone was leaning on him without trying to take.
He remained still for almost two hours.
When the plane began descending into New York, the change in cabin pressure pulled Caitlyn toward consciousness.
Warmth came first.
Then a steady heartbeat beneath her cheek.
Then cedar.
Then memory.
Her eyes opened.
She did not move.
Oh God.
Her cheek was on Damian Hamilton’s shoulder.
Caitlyn’s stomach dropped so violently she nearly became sick.
Very slowly, she lifted her head.
Her tablet was gone.
“We land in ten minutes,” Damian said.
Caitlyn flinched.
He was awake.
Worse, he looked completely awake.
“Mr. Hamilton, I—”
“You fell asleep.”
“I am aware of that now.”
A tiny movement touched Vincent’s mouth at the other end of the cabin.
Caitlyn wanted to die.
“I’m incredibly sorry. It was inappropriate and unprofessional. I understand if you need to document the incident.”
“Document what?”
She stared at him.
“My… falling asleep on you.”
“You completed the agreements?”
“Yes.”
“They’re saved?”
“Yes.”
“Then your work was complete.”
Caitlyn blinked.
Damian picked up his tablet.
“When we land, a car is taking you home.”
Her heart fell.
There it was.
Dismissal.
“And you are not coming into the office tomorrow.”
“Sir, please.”
Her voice cracked before she could stop it.
Damian looked at her.
“I need this job,” she whispered. “Whatever reprimand you believe is appropriate, I’ll accept it. But please don’t fire me. My brother’s care payment is due next week and—”
“Caitlyn.”
She stopped.
“I am not firing you.”
She stared.
“You’re taking a paid day off.”
“But—”
“That was not an invitation to negotiate.”
Relief hit so fast that tears almost reached her eyes.
She blinked them away.
“Thank you.”
“It’s practical. An unconscious executive assistant is inefficient.”
Vincent turned toward the window to hide a grin.
Damian continued reading.
Then, without looking at her, he added, “Next time you are forty-six hours into a workday, tell me before your body shuts down.”
Caitlyn swallowed.
“Yes, sir.”
“I prefer to know when my people are falling.”
The word followed her all the way home.
My people.
She slept fourteen hours.
The following afternoon she drove to Pennsylvania to see Noah.
He looked thin beneath his blankets, but when Caitlyn sat beside him and placed her palm under his fingers, they moved.
Once.
Twice.
Her throat tightened.
“Hey, little brother.”
His eyelids fluttered.
“You would not believe what I did yesterday.”
She laughed quietly.
“I fell asleep on my boss.”
Noah’s fingers moved.
“I know. Horrifying.”
A nurse passing the doorway smiled.
Caitlyn leaned closer.
“And apparently I still have a job.”
Noah squeezed again.
For one full day, Caitlyn allowed herself to believe the strange incident on the plane had meant nothing.
Then she returned to work Friday morning.
Vincent was waiting at her desk.
He leaned against it with both hands.
Caitlyn stopped.
“Good morning, Mr. Russo.”
“You’ve got nerve, Elmore.”
Her stomach tightened.
“I’m sorry?”
“I’ve known Damian eleven years.”
Caitlyn opened her laptop.
“That sounds exhausting.”
Vincent laughed.
Actually laughed.
“I’ve seen men lose teeth for entering his office without knocking.”
“How encouraging.”
“I’ve watched him end business relationships because someone touched his watch.”
Caitlyn looked up.
Vincent pointed at her.
“You used him as a pillow.”
“I suffered an exhaustion-related loss of consciousness.”
“And he gave you a vacation.”
“A paid recovery day.”
“Same thing.”
“Mr. Hamilton is practical.”
Vincent stared at her.
Then his laughter filled the reception area.
“You keep telling yourself that.”
Damian’s office door opened.
Vincent immediately stopped laughing.
Damian’s gaze moved from him to Caitlyn.
“Coffee.”
“Yes, sir.”
“And the Marrow file.”
She entered his office five minutes later carrying both.
Damian stood at the windows overlooking Manhattan.
He turned.
His gaze stayed on her longer than necessary.
“You slept?”
“Yes.”
“How long?”
“Fourteen hours.”
“Better.”
Caitlyn set down the coffee.
“The harbor representatives arrive at ten.”
“Cancel them.”
She paused.
“Sir?”
“Victor Marrow escalated last night. One of our storage buildings was attacked. Two employees were injured.”
The warmth left the room.
Caitlyn immediately shifted into professional mode.
“I’ll notify legal and prepare emergency compensation.”
“Vincent is handling the business response.”
“What do you need from me?”
Damian came around the desk.
“The Marrows are looking for leverage.”
“Financial?”
“Human.”
Caitlyn’s mouth went dry.
“They know they cannot reach me directly, so they will look at people near me.”
“The executive team?”
“Anyone they believe matters.”
Silence.
Caitlyn lowered her voice.
“I don’t matter.”
Something changed in Damian’s face.
Very small.
Very dangerous.
She quickly added, “To them. I mean, strategically. I’m an assistant.”
“You know my schedule. You control access to my office. You know which meetings are real and which exist only on paper.”
“So this is an information issue.”
“Yes.”
It was the answer she expected.
Why, then, did disappointment sting?
Damian turned away.
“A driver will collect you each morning. Security will be placed in your apartment building.”
“That’s unnecessary.”
“It wasn’t a question.”
She almost argued.
Then remembered the two injured men.
“All right.”
For four days, nothing happened.
That was almost worse.
Security became routine. A quiet man named Frank waited in Caitlyn’s lobby. A black sedan brought her to work. Vincent appeared at strange times, checking hallways.
Damian spoke less.
But Caitlyn noticed him watching her.
Not constantly.
Never obviously.
May you like
Just enough.
Tuesday afternoon, Damian and Vincent were scheduled to leave for a private negotiation downtown.
