Bound By My Boss: Windy City Heartbreakers

By Mimi Kinley

Lauren

My boss is hot. I'm talking breathtaking, knee-clenching, vibrator-battery-draining hot.

He's also a world-class grump so when we get stuck at an out-of-town convention in one hotel room with just one bed on April Fool's Day, I'm not sure how to handle it.

 

How can I stay in the same room with this man and not touch him? How can I stay in the same room with this man and not touch myself? Because if I see him one more time without a shirt on, I can't be held responsible for how I behave.

 

Heath

This is going to be the end of me. I've been trying to keep my hands off of Lauren since I hired her a year ago and now that she's in the room with me, my sanity is slipping.

 

I can't touch her. I shouldn't touch her. But I'm going to, I just can't stop myself.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Mimi Kinley
• Release date: Sep 13, 2023
• ISBN: 9798223038214

Mimi Kinley

USA Today Bestselling author Mimi Kinley writes short, hot contemporary romance with guaranteed HEAs. She lives in the midwest with her husband and two cats. Her stories are available in eBook format as individual stories or as part of larger anthologies. She also writes full-length contemporary romance under the pen name Mindy McKinley.

Book preview

1

LAUREN

Y ou’re kidding right? I ask, prepping my face for the fake laugh that this super hilarious joke will require. My muscles tighten around my lips, but it isn’t a fucking smile and I can tell by the wide, apologetic eyes of the guest services attendant, that she is in fact, not kidding.

April Fool’s? I ask again, my voice rising to a previously unknown pitch at the end in the ridiculous hope that this whole situation is a joke and god, I hate April Fool’s Day.

The woman lowers her eyes to her keyboard and shakes her head. I’m mesmerized for a moment by the way the blond highlights in her smooth ponytail catch the subtle light. Her name tag reads ‘Nicolette’ and I’m momentarily mad at her for having shiny hair and a cool name.

I’m so sorry, Miss Haver, the only reservation we have for HCP Marketing is for a Mr. Heath Pike. Single room.

That’s my boss, I clarify, though I don’t know why. It doesn’t help me. He’s going to be at this godforsaken convention too, and wherever he is at the moment, I’m sure he’s frowning sternly at something. It’s fine. I place my wallet on the counter and start pulling out my credit card. I’ll pay for my own room and we’ll get it sorted out at the office on Monday.

Nicolette frowns and I know instantly that I’m not going to like what she says next. Somehow all my brain can focus on is how she gets her hair to shine like that. I’m so sorry, Miss Haver, we are completely booked.

I bite my bottom lip for a moment, Cancellations?

She shakes her head. We have a substantial waiting list.

Fuck. Of course, they did.

I’m just about to propose I sleep on the lobby sofa when I hear that voice over my left shoulder. It’s like dark chocolate, gruff, tempting, not to mention oh so fuckable … And it belongs to my boss, making the pulses in my clit feel all the more wrong.

Miss Haver, he says, striding up to me. He’s frowning. He always is, but he also has the air of a man that is going to take a situation by the neck and figure it the fuck out. I wish he’d do the same to me. The times I’ve imagined just that…

It’s a full beat before I realize he’s asked me a question. The full focus of his six-five frame, golden eyes, and yes, that ever-present frown, is focused on me. And fucking hell, he smells good. Like we’re rolling around on a bed of flowers in the goddamn Alps and he’s about to go down on me.

I clear my throat. My cheeks burn and I wouldn’t mind very much if I just combusted on the spot and disappeared. I clear my throat, since my voice seems to be that of a four-year-old child. I’m sorry, I didn’t catch that. I guess I’m a little flustered with the situation.

His jaw twitches and all I can think about is running my fingers through his thick dark hair, across his immaculately trimmed beard. I’ve thought of doing that so often, about how it would feel against my thighs.

I was asking what the problem was.

Oh. Right. His unfaltering gaze makes me fidget. Does he not blink? There was a mistake with my reservation and there are no more rooms.

I didn’t think this man, Heath Pike, could possibly frown more, but he does. His frown is frowning and even Nicolette gulps a little when he turns his attention to her. Is this true?

I’m afraid so. Her voice is a good octave higher than before and her eyes scan his face like she can’t believe he’s real.

Been there, sister. Still there, if I’m being honest. I’ve had the hots for this man since the day he hired me, but I would never admit it to anyone other than my vibrator.

Of course. These things happen. The confidence, the absolute belief that he is in control makes my panties melt as he turns from Nicolette to me. You take the room here, because it’s convenient, and I’ll find another room and catch an Uber in the morning.

Oh, thank you, I gush tucking a strand of hair behind my ear, ignoring the way my heart is pounding. He’s being nice, Lauren,