My Boss And I

Chapter 8- Jaime Help Line

Tamila's Point Of View:

To say I was stressed on the plane ride would be a light way of putting it. I was completely tense the whole way from LA to Nevada, knowing that Chase was a couple of rows behind me. He had tried so hard to persuade "Jamie" to give him her number, and after multiple tries and fails I ended up giving him the number to one of the local Dairy Queen in Los Angeles... I don't even know how I managed to remember that.

I hoped Chase's mind would be set on things other than the blonde chick in disguise ex girlfriend that he tried and successfully hit on at LAX. That led to another question, why was he flying to Las Vegas? Probably to find his weekend fun at a casino. I remember all the times he stood me up because he decided to take last minute flights out to the place where everything that happens, stays there. And very firmly put.

I knew Chase was cheating, he couldn't hide it for long, he went from highly interested to very much uninterested in a period of a couple of months. The dates were less frequent, the talks, much shorter, eventually the only thing left of us was walking together in front of paparazzi into a car, where the rides usually resulted in me sitting in silence and Chase on his phone. That wasn't the Chase I thought I knew but the Chase everyone else warned me about, including Jaime.

I needed time to think things through, as I sat in my hotel room I decided to talk to my one and only Jaime. God, just the sound of his voice was enough to ease the tension, and his ways of analyzing the situation were always helpful, I mean, he is my assistant.

I took my cell out and dialed Jaime's number, anticipating the sweet sound of his voice any minute through the other end, however, I was shattered with the sound of the automated response.

"You've reached the voicemail of... Jaime Gonzales... at the tone please record your message. When you finish recording, you may hang up, or press 1 for more options. To leave a call back number, press 5. *beep.*"

"Jaime..." I spoke hesitantly..."Could you..." I was inturrupted as a call was coming through the phone, the one and only had reached me before I could send a plea. Jaime Gonzales was calling. Smiling I ended the voicemail and answered the call.

"Hello, Jaime." I felt the tingles in my cheeks as a blush crept to my face. Wait, why am I blushing? Heavens sake! I was just all giddy with Chase this morning and now I'm blushing around my co-worker? He's hot but that doesn't mean that I'm in-

"Hola, Tamila." His sexy accent destroyed my thoughts.

"Jaime, I'm in Vegas, and I was um, you know, I-"

Why was it so hard to talk to him sometimes?

"Is this about Chase and Chester?" Jaime questions slowly, like he was trying to put it all together.

"Yeah. I ran into Chase when I was in disguise at LAX, he was on my flight to Vegas, such a coincidene, right? I mean-"

Jaime abruptly interrupted me, anger saturated in his voice. "Tammy you are blind!" His voice was so sharp I winced at the very sound. "Chester is setting you up, Chase is up to something, and you've got something to do with it."

"I thought maybe Chase wanted a fake on camera relationship. And Chester said he wanted to talk business." I said, starting to worry about where Jaime was coming from.

"Tamila, you're in danger. You're egotistical and my plan was to change you. But apparently, you flew out to Nevada to put yourself in harms way. You know the Dembling's are dangerous!" Jaime sounded sexy mad. Ugh. There I go with the lustful thoughts. And he wasn't finished talking just yet.

"I feel like a father of a teenage girl, he's not a good guy, Tamila. He was sleeping around with other women when you were dating. He never is faithful. He's deceiving and he'll try to ruin you because you didn't give in like all the others, Tammy, your like a daughter to me, I feel like when it comes to personal life I'm always looking out for you."

When those words came out of Jaime's mouth I heard the sound of my heart, beating strong, shattering and crushing me all in one.

"You're like a daughter to me."

He didn't feel anything. I knew it. I knew it. I was just a young woman. He was a man. A 36 year old man that saw his boss as a little senseless kid.

"You're like a daughter to me."

There's love there, but not the kind that should be between me and Jaime. I always thought I was ok with him by being interested. I was only doubting my true feelings.

I had feelings... Towards my employer.

I didn't care he was older. I didn't care about anything, except that I have an attraction towards him. I didn't, I mean, I had an attraction towards Chase too, he broke my heart, and I guess I saw that coming, but this, this was out of the blue, this was 10 times stronger than a heartbreak from Chase.

This made me realize that I did have feelings for him, he did make my heart flutter, and knowing he doesn't even take me into consideration ruins me, and my ego.

Oh, my ego. My pride. My dignity. Everything I love about myself, my egotistical narcissistic self-confident self...

In that moment it was gone.

I swallowed hard, trying to register the fact that I was such a nuisance to Jaime, that he saw low of me. Someone I thought I could trust. Someone who I thought cared, I cared about Jaime. I don't care about most of my employees, as long as they do their work and get payed for doing it.

Jaime saw me as a child! Suddenly I felt something in my eyes. No... It couldn't be...

I stared at the mirror in the wall in my hotel room, across from the sofa I was sprawled on, and that's when I saw it.

A black streak on my left cheek. My makeup was running, making one thing very clear.

I, Tamila Dastanos, was showing signs of something nobody has made me do.

Cry.

I felt so vulnerable, and afraid.

What if Jaime is right? It's bad enough that he already called me a child, now I'm in danger? One thing was certain, I needed Jaime's help. But how could I face him?

Another hot tear escaped my other eye, and that's when the fear was replaced with anger.

"Tammy?" Jaime's voice came back over the line."

"How could you do this to me Jaime?" I snapped, my tone colder than stone. "You... You see me as a child? As a daughter? Jaime at a time when I need you most you turn against me?" I sniffed away another tear.

"Tamila I'm not turning against...are you..." Jaime's tone softened.

"Yes, Jaime." I whispered. "I'm crying. You made me cry, you've done something nobody's ever made me do. How do you feel, Jaime? You just ruined my ego. You just shattered your boss. How do you feel, Jaime?" I breathers heavily, shivers going through me.

"I feel like shit." He said flatly. "Tamila, I never... why do you even care about what I think of you? You don't care about what anyone else thinks, why me? Why your assistant?" I could almost picture Jaime doing that pity look he does, when he cocks his head to the side and raises his eyebrows.

And because at that moment, I wasn't thinking, I was surprised at my own reaction, If someone told me these next words would be coming out of my mouth I would have laughed in his face and told them to fuck off, but I was weak at that minute, the words felt right leaving my lips, rolling off my tongue and into the ears of Jaime.

"Because Jaime," My voice was barely audible to myself, I wouldn't doubt if Jaime didn't hear...

"You just made me realize that I'm starting to fall in love with you."

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