Claire replied angrily “I told you I was not a stripper! I work for a party planning company; I do not strip! Why must you continue to harp on that? I think even you’d notice the difference between someone wearing clothes and someone nude.”

“Oh do excuse me, I apologize for the misunderstanding. I’m sure you can see how confusing it would be to see your assistant jump out of a cake at a bachelor’s party in a gentlemen’s club. Then be driving her home because she’s intoxicated outside of a gentlemen’s club, does any of this sound in the least unusual to you Claire?” asked a sarcastic Jason.

“You’re not my mother; I don’t have to explain or justify my actions to you!” replied Claire hotly.

“Actually, Claire, that’s where you’re wrong; you’re my assistant, and as such you’re a representative of Danvers International as well as of me personally. How do you think this would look to our customers if heaven forbid one of them happens to be at a party where you’re performing?” continued Jason.

“That’s not likely to happen,” exclaimed Claire.

“You never expected to see my best friend and I there tonight either did you? That just shows how small the world truly is Claire.”

“You can’t fire me for having outside employment, my contract only states working for direct competition, and I think we can safely rule out that being a problem.”

“If you’d bothered to read your entire contract, you’d find a section about behavior unbecoming of an associate of Danvers and I feel sure that stripping would indeed fall into that category,” Jason replied dryly.

For probably the first time in her life, Claire felt she was entirely capable of violence against another. Having to sit beside Jason in the tight confines of her car while he labeled her as a stripper once again was enough to make someone as calm and mild mannered as her want to reach across the seats and slap him on his smug face. She was in no shape to fight this battle with Jason tonight and win so she settled down further in the seat and closed her eyes pretending to sleep.

Luckily, Jason seemed to be willing to let the matter drop for now. No doubt he was busy thinking up his next reference to stripping. Claire fearfully wondered what she would possibly do if Jason was correct about her contract, and she doubted very seriously if he was bluffing about that.

She was barely making ends meet now with both jobs and there was no way she would be able to find another part-time job with the flexible hours and generous pay that Partiez Plus provided. Without the extra income, she would be forced to sell her mother’s home and find a live-in facility for her. The tears gathered in the corner of her eyes and she prayed that Jason wouldn’t notice.

~~~

Jason was powerless to stop the flow of self-righteous comments that continued to flow from his mouth. Even though he seemed to have no shortage of disparaging remarks to make to her, he was still reeling from the evening. The shock of realizing that the beautiful, sexy, sultry woman that he was unable to take his eyes off of when she’d popped out of the cake was, in fact, his assistant had just blown him away. Never one to spare more than a passing glance at women he considered too obvious, he was completely captivated when Claire had looked at him after jumping from the cake.

He knew those green eyes; he knew the curve of her face, and his body seemed to put it all together before his mind could catch up. The most surprising aspect had been the protective instinct that had almost immediately kicked in along with the recognition. He wanted to run up and drag her behind him until he could cover her up. He wanted to punch anyone in the crowd that dared look at her, including his friends.

Who would have thought that he would be standing in a bathroom stall with his assistant holding her hair back while she retched? At that moment with her obviously in distress, all he wanted to do was take care of her, make every bad thing in her life disappear. She was so small and trusting curled against his chest while she slept at the rest area. This certainly was a night of firsts for him.

Sparing a quick glance at her, he was surprised to see a small hand reach up to her face and quickly wipe what appeared to be a tear from her cheek. Good job Jason, way to make a lady cry. Feeling something inside his chest clench, Jason vowed to find out more about this other life that his assistant was living. Who was the real Claire and why was he suddenly so desperate to have that question answered?

~~~

As they finally arrived at Harold and Liz’s Home Claire asked the question that had been on her mind for the last minutes of their trip. “Are you going to say anything to your friends about tonight?”

“No," replied Jason tightly, "I think the less they know the better. You go straight up when we get in the house, and I’ll make up something to pacify them and no one will be the wiser.” Greatly relieved, Claire murmured a quiet thank you and followed Jason to the door. There was no sign of anyone in the foyer as she made her way up the stairs as quietly and quickly as possible.

Claire stepped inside her bedroom and went straight to the bathroom. She quickly peeled off her clothing and stepped into the steaming shower. With a moan, she closed her eyes and let the events of the evening fall away. She eased into the shower seat and laid her head back able to relax for the first time in hours, the steam from the shower causing her eyes to become heavy and hard to hold open.

Suddenly cold air rushed into the shower as the door was jerked open and Claire was again in the bathroom with her boss. “What’re you doing in here?” shrieked a furious Claire.

“I was waiting in your room to make sure you were ok and when it became apparent that you weren’t coming out and there was no noise coming from here other than the shower, I thought you might have fallen and hurt yourself. Do you know how irresponsible it is to sleep in the bath or, heaven forbid, the shower?”

“Well, add it to the long list of things about me that you find irresponsible! Let’s see, there’s my stripping, my drinking and now my sleeping in the shower; is there anything else you want to add to that tonight Jason?” She knew she was starting to get hysterical, so she jumped up, determined to get out of the shower and away from his prying eyes.

Too late, Claire felt her feet start to lose purchase on the slick shower floor and flinging her arms out, desperate to find something to break her fall; she felt pain shoot through her hip as it connected with the seat she’d just been sitting on. Strong arms were suddenly around her, and she was being lifted from the shower and cradled against a hard chest.

Despite her protests, Jason gently deposited her onto a chair in the bedroom and quickly went back to the bathroom for her robe and towel. She grabbed the robe from his outstretched hand and tried to put it on without standing and giving Jason a better view of her naked body. With a muttered oath, Jason pulled her into a standing position and slid the robe on her arms and belted it around her waist. When this was completed to his satisfaction, he pushed her back down into the chair and began drying her hair with the towel.

“I can take it from here Jason,” said Claire as she tried to get the towel from his hands.

“Just sit still for a minute; we don’t need yet another mishap to add to the evening.”

Claire replied angrily, “There would not have been a mishap if you hadn’t barged yet again into the bathroom with me, were you raised in a barn?”

“If you were more responsible, I wouldn’t have to check the bathrooms to ensure your health. I’m sorry for startling you though.”

Since she knew that the admission must have cost him, Claire decided to let the matter drop. As her boss dried her hair while she sat in front of him in nothing but a thin robe Claire had to wonder where exactly she lost control of this weekend. What would happen to her if she lost her job with Danvers over this whole mess? Jason was not one to tolerate any excuses or anything that disrupted the smooth flow he preferred at work. Even if she was none of the things that he currently believed she was, she’d little hope of ever getting him to believe it. Maybe her only option was to throw herself on his mercy; if that existed.

“There, I believe that’s close to dry. How is your hip feeling? You don’t feel as if anything is broken do you?”

“No, it’s sore but I’ll be fine, thank you. Jason,” began Claire tentatively, "I want to explain about tonight and the nature of my job with Partiez Plus.”

Jason ran his hand through his hair wearily and said, “Claire, we will talk about all of this tomorrow; I’ve reached my limit tonight, and if you insist on doing this now, I’m not certain the outcome will be what you’d hoped.”

She felt greatly relieved to end the evening while still technically employed so she quickly agreed, “Ok, tomorrow then.”

Claire jumped up from the chair, and in her haste tripped on the edge of the robe and landed in a startled heap again his chest. Her cheeks began to flame in embarrassment at displaying yet more of her clumsiness. Suddenly, his hands slid to her shoulders as if to help her. Looking up into those beautiful blue eyes, Claire felt her whole body come to life for the second time that evening.

As Jason started to pull her closer, Claire suddenly remembered that she hadn’t brushed her teeth before getting in the shower. Not willing to risk letting him close enough to realize that, she stiffened and pulled back. Still holding on to her, Jason seemed to be fighting an internal battle before almost reluctantly setting her away from him with a curt, “Sleep well Claire, I’ll see you in the morning.”

She couldn’t help but feel a little lonely as the door closed quietly behind him. After brushing her teeth and finding her nightgown, Claire settled gratefully between the cool sheets. The room was spinning slightly as she closed her eyes and hoped that somehow she would be able to sleep tonight.

Chapter Eight

Claire was shocked to see from the bedside clock that it was 9:00am. Pain pounded in her temples as she stumbled out of bed and to the bathroom. She cringed at the image looking back at her from the mirror. Hair sticking out at all angles, dark circles under her eyes, she looked exactly like someone with a hangover. Well, hello beautiful. Claire grabbed a towel and made quick work of showering knowing Jason would be ready to work at any moment.

Claire returned to the bedroom for fresh clothing and was again brought up short by Jason standing in her room. “What’re you doing in here, do you pick locks now?”

“The connecting door was not locked, big oversight on your part.” Even in her current state of undress as well as being generally pissed off that Jason had once again violated her privacy, Claire couldn’t help but notice how good he looked.

Despite probably having no more sleep than her, he looked well rested and fresh. Another pair of low slung faded jeans and a polo shirt made him look good enough to eat. Wonder if I could get a coffee with those sweet buns on the side? She tried to inject disdain in her voice, asking, “Do you mind? I would like to get dressed.”

“No I don’t mind at all, please go right ahead.” The look of amusement on his face made her want to take off her towel and choke him with it.

“I thought we’d have breakfast in my room this morning while we work. It might be less awkward for you than having to lie to Liz and Harold about your evening with your long-lost aunt.” Despite the sarcasm dripping from his voice, Claire was indeed happy to avoid the prying eyes of Liz and Harold and gratefully jumped at the opportunity.

“Is Liz here in the same house as Harold with the wedding today?” asked Claire.

“Yes, she has the top floor and Harold the bottom. I believe she’s gone to get her hair done or whatever women do before the wedding now.”

“Oh, ok, I’ll be dressed in 10 minutes, Er… thank you.” Jason gave her a leisurely look from head to foot lingering on where the short towel ended. He flashed her a rare smile and headed back through the connecting door.

At this rate, I’ll never be able to be in a bedroom again without expecting my boss to come barging in the door. Claire pulled out a pair of jeans and a soft green tunic and then returned to the bathroom to dry her hair and fixed it in the usual weekend ponytail. With a dab of lip gloss and a light coat of concealer to hide the dark circles under her eyes she was as ready as she was going to be. As she pushed open the door and walked into Jason’s room she refused to allow herself time to worry about whether this would be her last day of employment with Danvers.

“Have a seat Claire, and help yourself to whatever you’d like from the tray.” Claire was impressed to see that the tray contained coffee, juice and a variety of pastries. “I thought you might prefer a lighter breakfast after your late night.” Refusing to be drawn into that conversation, Claire fixed herself a cup of coffee and liberally added cream that had been provided. She selected a croissant and lowered herself into a chair taking a grateful sip of the coffee. She looked up to find Jason studying her with what appeared to be real curiosity. She could feel her cheeks go red as she waited for some snide comment about her being a stripper.