Chapter 11

Mandy had cut her commute time to the office a little tight. She ended up having to run from the bridal shop all the way to the office. She took the stairs to save waiting for the elevator and stopped outside her office, breathing hard. A wave of dizziness washed over her and she reached for the wall to steady herself. She blinked rapidly, trying to clear the fog and her blurry vision. As she tried to reach for the doorknob, she missed and stumbled, then everything went black.

“Ms. Connors? Mandy!”

Mandy gasped and sat up, only to seriously regret the sudden movement. She moaned and laid back down on the couch. Strange. She didn’t have a couch in her office. Only Carl had a couch in his office.

“Mandy?” Carl’s voice was clear as day now. He had to be very concerned if he was actually using her first name. Fan-fucking-tastic. “Are you all right?”

Mandy turned her head and opened her eyes slowly. Carl sat right in front of her, holding a glass of water. “Mr. Salvo?”

“You fainted. Here.” He handed her the glass. “What happened?”

“I’m not quite sure.” She sat up slowly, grateful for the water. “I helped my sister with her wedding dress fitting and then had to rush back here. I must have taken the stairs too fast.”

Carl tilted his head slightly. “When’s the last time you ate?”

“Um,” Mandy thought back through all of the mealtimes she had had. “Lunch?”

He raised his eyebrows at her.

“Yesterday.”

He swore. “You’re probably dehydrated as well.” He motioned at the cup in her hand. “Drink some more.”

“I just haven’t had time.” She knew it was a lousy explanation. She hated excuses, probably more than Carl Salvo did. She took a gulp of the water. “My sister—”

“Your sister can take care of her damn self for once!” He ran his fingers through his perfectly styled hair. “You’ve been here a week and even I notice how much she relies on you. It’s ridiculous! You’re not a doormat!” He sighed and lowered his voice. “Sorry for the outburst. But, you can’t take care of her so much that you’re unable to take care of yourself. Do you have any idea—” He closed his eyes and shook his head. Slowly he opened them, the bright blue oceans calm once more. At least on the surface. Mandy could tell something else was playing much farther down in what he was thinking. “I can’t have you not functioning at full capacity for me.” He stood. “From now on, you need to eat something—I don’t care what it is—every half hour. And you’re going to stay hydrated!”

“Every thirty minutes! That’s ridiculous.” Mandy swung her legs over the couch. “I’ll blow up like a balloon.”

“But you won’t faint.”

“This happened because I didn’t manage my time well and had to run upstairs. It has nothing to do with my eating habits.”

“It has everything to do with them!” Carl shouted. “And it has everything to do with you running yourself ragged trying to please everybody, including me! I don’t want anyone fainting because of me.”

Mandy flushed. “I hardly fainted because of you.” Her heart pounded, was she that obvious?

“You ran up the stairs to not be late, even though you are clearly exhausted and not feeling well. So yes, I am partially responsible for your fainting, even if indirectly.”

Mandy stood slowly, feeling a little more alert. “I’m sorry, sir.” She set the glass down on the table beside the couch. “But I can’t eat something every thirty minutes. I’ll stay hydrated and make an effort to eat meals, but I cannot afford to gain any more weight.”

“Why not?” Carl asked. “Why’s it so important to you?”

Mandy stared at him, expecting disdain or mocking, but all she saw was genuine curiosity. That made her tell him the truth against her better judgement. “I won’t be my sister’s maid of honor if I don’t lose weight,” she said.

“You’re kidding.”

Mandy shook her head. “Claudia told me that upfront. She’s ordering a size six maid of honor dress, which either I’ll wear if I lose weight or her best friend, who’s already a six, will.”

“Unbelievable!” Carl shook his head and threw his hands in the air. “Your sister sounds like a bitch.”

Mandy stared at him in surprise. “Excuse me?”

“Sorry. But that’s ridiculous.”

She grinned, thankful someone else thought the same way as her. “I know, but it’s my family.”

“Well, you need to eat.” He grabbed his phone and began texting someone. “I shouldn’t have been keeping you here every night so late. I forget you haven’t been here very long and you’ve stepped into the job so easily. I hired you to have a PA available twenty-four/seven. Which you do with no argument. However, we can work from the house, that’s the bloody reason I had the suite set up. MacBane is going to start making meals for you as well.”

“Sir—”

“No arguments. He’s my chef, and an extremely good one. I’ll have him prepare your lunch and dinners from now on.”

She felt like she was being spoiled and reprimanded at the same time. “I’ve had Murray’s steak and mushroom pie. It’s a wee bit of heaven stuffed inside clouds of pie crust.” She licked her lips, her stomach rumbling in agreement.

“Who’s Murray?”

“Murray MacBane. Your chef.”

“Oh, I didn’t know his first name was Murray. Interesting.”

“What is?”

He looked up as he set his phone back on the clip of his belt. “His company is Mm. I always thought it meant his cooking was so good, like Mmmm.”

She giggled. “Really?” Then she quickly dropped the smile when he looked at her straight faced. “Murray’s—MacBane’s food is delicious but it’s not going to help me lose weight.”

“I’ve already let him know you want salads and lighter side foods for dinner. He’ll take care of everything.”

“Oh.” What was she supposed to say? “Okay. Uh, thanks.”

“You’re welcome. Take it easy for the rest of today. If you feel ill, just let me know and I’ll get my driver to take you home.”

“I’ll be fine. Thanks again.” She started to head back to her office.

Carl cleared his throat.

“Yes?” She paused halfway across the room.

“Don’t forget to stay hydrated.” He came around and walked over to the couch, picking up her glass of water and handing it to her.

“Yes, sir.” Mandy looked at him, sure that he was going to fire her just for being a pain in the ass. She clearly didn’t really make his life easier if she was fainting all over the place. She paused at the door between their two offices. “Thank you, sir. I promise this won’t happen again.”

As she turned to leave, Carl called out to her, “Mandy?”

She turned back around to face him. “Yes, Mr. Salvo?”

“Eating a snack every thirty minutes is still non-negotiable. If your sister objects to you being her maid of honor over something as trivial as a dress size, then she clearly doesn’t deserve you,” he said.

Mandy gritted her teeth and nodded. “Yes, sir,” she said, and then left. He clearly didn’t understand the importance of dress size. It wasn’t trivial at all.