Amanda Berry - L A Cinderella

“How can this be?” He met both men’s eyes before looking at the paper again. The numbers hadn’t changed. “Night Blooming was number one at the box office for several weeks, plus the early release to DVD. The Golden Globe nominations and the Oscar talk. We should be in the black, not the red.”

Martin shifted in his chair. “There were costs we hadn’t anticipated.”

“How could that be?” Chase leaned back in his chair. Every extra dollar counted. The loss would mean one less project they could back this year. “This isn’t our first film. Robert, you came up with the budget. You’re not green.”

“I don’t know, Chase,” Robert said. “My budgets are pretty tight. The only thing I can think of is to have accounting look into it.”

Chase turned back to Martin.

Martin cleared his throat. “Um. I hired a new assistant who will be auditing this budget first thing. I need to start working on the financial reporting for the month.”

The little accountant. His pulse jumped. “This is our priority, Martin. We need to get to the bottom of this.”

“Natalie!”

Natalie cringed as Martin barreled toward her desk. The CFO liked to yell at her when telling her to do something. He wasn’t demeaning or anything, just loud. If anyone was nearby, they always turned to look.

“Yes, Mr. Morrison?” She placed the papers in her work tray and waited for the next project about to be yelled at her.

“Come into my office.” He pounded past her desk and into his office.

She grabbed her notebook and pen and followed him.

“Close the door.”

She shut the door and sat down across from him, her pen ready. The reams of papers and folders built up on Martin’s desk looked as if at any moment they could topple over. He slammed the files down on top of one of his stacks. She jumped. A few papers lifted slightly but didn’t dare move from their assigned spots.

He turned as if just noticing her. His brown eyes narrowed and then cleared. “Do you remember when I interviewed you how I told you we need to audit the expenses on productions?”

“Yes, sir.” Experience she needed if she wanted to move up in the accounting field. She hadn’t wanted to go into audit or tax after college like many of her classmates. She wanted to be like the man in front of her. Well, maybe not exactly like him, but the opportunity to be more than just a staff accountant had been irresistible.

Reaching behind him, he picked up a large folder and handed it across the desk to her. He leaned down, picked up a binder and another folder twice as thick and passed them, as well. The pile on her lap now reached her chin.

“Print out the expenses on Night Blooming. These should be all the files, but you may have to pull some more out of the drawers. Go through each expense and make sure you have a corresponding paid invoice and that invoice is for Night Blooming. It should have a charge number and be signed by myself or Robert Addler. Any questions?”

“No, Mr. Morrison.”

“You’ve been authorized to work overtime to get this done. I expect you to work at least fifty hours this week and next.”

“Of course.” It was already Tuesday. She’d only worked seven hours yesterday because Mr. Morrison had sent her home early. She’d have to work over ten hours a day for the remainder of the week to catch up. Not that she had much to go home to. Her roommate, Rachel, who had a life, was always traveling or staying out late.

“Put aside everything else. Mr. Booker wants the numbers as soon as possible.”

The sound of his name sent a little shiver through her, but she shook it off.

Martin waved his hand in dismissal, and Natalie hefted the files into her arms. Balancing them precariously, she opened the door and managed to make it to her desk without losing anything. The stack looked imposing as she sat behind it.

Pulling out her keyboard, she typed in the parameters to run the report. She glanced up as Chase’s door opened and he stepped out. Her stomach tightened. So much for an easy week.

Natalie had to go home. The pile of expenses looked as large as when she started, but her stomach growled and her vision was getting blurry. Her computer clock read 8:00. She started to restack her work so she would know where she was in the morning.

Everyone else had already left, including Mr. Morrison. A door opened and footsteps sounded on the tile floor. Her pulse leapt. Who else was here this late?

Startled, she stood to glance down the hallway and saw the broad shoulders of Chase. Her pulse jumped again as she sat back down. She hurried to get her purse from the bottom drawer. Maybe she could beat him out and not have to talk to him. She was so tired she was bound to make a fool of herself.

Sliding the drawer shut, she tried to move away, but her pant leg had caught in it. She cursed silently and bent down to fix it.

“I thought I was the last one here.” Chase’s voice rippled over her spine like a light caress.

Darn it. “I was just leaving.” Her pant leg freed, she looked at Chase and her breath caught. Even fatigued, he was magnificent.

His smile lit his face. “I’ll walk you out, then.”

Wait…what? “Okay.” She could do this. She’d walked to her car with coworkers before. Of course, none of them made her feel weak in the knees and tingly in places she’d rather not mention.

Her hand shaking, she reached to turn off her desk lamp, but it tilted to the side. His hand reached out and steadied it before it fell.

“I got it.”

Was there a shade deeper than beet-red? She clung to her purse as if it were a shield as she hurried around the desk. She barely came up to his chin. Not that she wasn’t used to being short; it was just that he made her aware of how small she was compared to him.

“So how long have you been working here?” he asked as they started to walk.

“About a month now.”

Reaching around her, he flicked off the light for the hallway they’d just left. Her nose filled with his subtle cologne, spicy and rich, tantalizing. She wanted to lean into him and… Whoa.

“Do you like working for us?” He didn’t seem to notice her distraction.

“Yes, it’s a great opportunity.”

They stopped at the door to the outside. Before he could reach across her again, she flicked off the switch and smiled uncertainly.

The only light came from the emergency backup in the corner. His hand gripped the doorknob, and he stopped. His eyes gazed down into hers, and the air was sucked out of the room.

His mouth opened as if to say something but then shut again. Her heart hammered against her chest. Finally he smiled and turned the knob.

“Sorry, I’m a bit jet-lagged.” He held the door open while she passed through. He closed the door and locked it. “I had to get through some files on my desk. If I’d been at home, I’d already be in bed.”

An image of him on black satin sheets raced through her mind. She swallowed hard. “Well, I won’t keep you. My car’s right there. Good night, Mr. Booker.” She started to walk away.

“Chase. Good night, Natalie.”

She could feel his eyes on her back as she walked. Almost dropping her keys, she finally got the car door unlocked and slipped inside. She glanced back to where he stood in the streetlight.

He appeared puzzled about something, but he smiled and his face cleared. He lifted his hand and waved. She waved back and pulled out of the parking lot.

Ignoring the man in a parked car with a camera strap around his neck, Chase punched in the gate code and pulled through. The garage door opened and he pulled the BMW into its spot next to his Aston Martin. He wasn’t surprised to see the paparazzi on his street. They practically lived here with so many big names on the block.

He’d only let the paparazzi get to him once before he realized that his life really was different from everyone else’s. Back when he was just a boy in love with a girl.

He walked into the dark kitchen. Its massive size and the lack of light made it cold and unwelcoming. Maybe sleep would help get his little accountant out of his head. Natalie’s large brown eyes sat in his mind like a warm beacon. Most likely due to jet lag.

Distraction was needed. In the morning he’d wake up and figure out where to go this weekend, who to go with and who to leak the information to. With a new movie in the editing room, he needed his name to be on the tip of everyone’s tongue.

Going out with him was a first-class ticket to any actress, but hell for a normal girl like Natalie. His high school girlfriend, Becca, had been like Natalie. Not looking for glory or her fifteen minutes in the limelight. Becca couldn’t handle the spotlight. The people digging into her past and her family’s past to figure out why Chase Booker, son of three-time Academy Award-winning Matt Booker and screen diva Madeline Caine, was interested in her.

In the spotlight before birth, Chase grew up and became used to the attention. Unfortunately Becca hadn’t.

He checked the answering machine.

“Hi, Chase. Alexis. I heard you were done filming in London. We should get together this weekend. I’m also available Sunday if you still need a date.”

Sunday was the Golden Globes. Alexis, like so many others, struggled to get ahead in a business where publicity was key. He’d liked Alexis and they had a great time together. He’d been a stopping point on her climb to fame, and when she decided it was time to move on, he hadn’t wanted to stop her.

She knew how the business worked and hadn’t minded the persistence of the cameras. In fact, she’d relished the attention. It had helped her land a starring role, but she wasn’t the kind of woman he wanted to come home to.

When they broke up, he found himself wanting more. He wanted a woman who could be with him for who he was and not for the fame he could bring her. He wanted something simple for once in his life. He wanted someone who made him feel alive. And let him be just Chase Booker.