Billionaire Undone ~ Travis (Billionaire’s Obsession #5)(4)
Author: J.S. Scott

“Not possible,” he dismissed. “I’ll be in Colorado one of those weekends, and I need you there.”

Ally gritted her teeth. “I put in for that time for my wedding. You’ve known that for a damn year.” She leaned over his desk, placing her palms on the edge, furious now. “I haven’t taken a single day off in the four years I’ve worked here. I cash in my vacation time and take the money. Just once, I actually need the time off. I’m taking it.”

Travis folded his arms stubbornly. “Making coffee might not be in your job description, Ms. Caldwell, but traveling with me when I need you definitely is a condition of your employment. And I haven’t needed that assistance in the four years you’ve been working for me.”

Travis was right. He had never asked her to travel with him, and it was part of her job should the need arise. He did everything alone. So why did he need her now? “This is important,” she muttered.

Ally knew she needed the time off for her sanity. She needed to rip the scab off her wounds and deal with the mess Rick had left behind. Her credit card statements had come yesterday, and she was reminded that she’d never bothered to cancel Rick’s user privileges. The bastard had charged up the cards immediately after she’d closed the sale on the house and caught the ass**le cheating on her, probably to buy expensive gifts for his new girlfriend. In her wildest imagination, she never would have thought that Rick would do that to her. Of course, she hadn’t thought she’d find him banging another woman in their home either. And the house needed to go up for sale. Not only did she not need the reminder of her failed engagement and five wasted years, but there was no way she could carry the expensive mortgage without him contributing for any length of time. Not with the other debt he’d run up in her name. And she didn’t want to be house poor, killing herself working two jobs just for a home she no longer wanted. This wasn’t where her life was supposed to be. She was supposed to have a fiancé—soon-to-be husband—who was finally working in his profession, contributing to their life together. Instead, she had a mess to sort out, her dream of finally having a normal life completely shattered.

Don’t think about it right now. You’ll figure it all out when you get a minute to breathe. Focus on work.

Travis snorted unpleasantly. “You’re marrying a loser. Better if you don’t get married. You’ll be divorced within a year.”

Ally gritted her teeth, fuming. How many times had Travis said that? And God, it really annoyed the crap out of her that he was actually right. “I’m not getting married,” she answered, her voice clipped.

Travis’s head jerked away from his computer, giving her an intense stare. “Since when?”

“Since about a month ago, when I found my supposed future husband boinking some young, attractive, probably barely legal, big-breasted Barbie doll in our brand new bed,” she answered loudly, her words completely uncensored. Travis made her crazy, but for the first time in four years, she found herself genuinely losing control. “So excuse me if I need some goddamn vacation time that I’ve genuinely earned from your company to deal with that. I don’t have a second to breathe between working here and at Sully’s. I have personal things I have to take care of. I have a house I now need to sell, and I need to bail myself out of credit card and other debt that I had no part in creating.” Ally gulped and took a deep breath, panic beginning to swamp her for the very first time. “I need some time to figure everything out.” Where did she go from here? Her whole life had revolved around her plan and Rick’s education for years.

“You didn’t tell me,” Travis answered calmly.

Ally threw her hands up in the air, trying to keep herself from going for Travis’s throat. Like he really invited warm and fuzzy conversation? He spent most of his time barking orders at her. “I didn’t realize that I needed to share my personal life with my self-centered bastard of a boss. I keep my troubles to myself because I know that’s the way you like it. You pay me to work, and I do my job. Now I want to take my earned vacation time.” Had she really just called Travis a bastard? They fought constantly, and she’d certainly wanted to say those words to his face about a million times in the past, but she’d never been that blunt or unprofessional. She really was beginning to lose it. “Please. Just give me the time off. I’ll come back a better person for it.”

“He hurt you,” Travis stated neutrally.

Ally dropped into the chair in front of Travis’s desk, depleted. “My whole life revolved around his career for years. I stopped going to college after my bachelor’s degree instead of trying to go on for my MBA so he could finish first. It made sense at the time. Or I thought it did. I sacrificed everything I wanted, but I had a plan to make everything work out. I’d work hard, help him finish school, and then it would be my turn. Except, now that it’s supposed to be my turn, it isn’t,” she answered quietly, her anger spent.

“I didn’t realize you worked another job. What do you do?” Travis leaned back in his chair, but he didn’t look away from her, his dark eyes watching her intently.

“I’m a bartender. I work at Sully’s Oasis almost every night of the week. I started as a cocktail waitress, and the owner taught me to make drinks. Eventually, I got good at it. The bartending pays better.”

Travis lifted an eyebrow. “Better than I pay you?”

“No. Better than being a cocktail waitress. I had to work my way up to bartending.” It had taken her two years, but she’d gotten a raise at Sully’s. “The tips are good. You pay me a very good salary. I could never match it with bartending. But the extra job helps to pay the bills. I need to sell the house, get clear of the debt my cheating fiancé racked up, and get rid of the extra job so I can go back to school part-time.”

“You look tired, Alison,” Travis observed, his eyes traveling over her face.

“I’ve been exhausted for years. I’m used to it.” Ally laughed, trying to make light of the situation. This wasn’t the type of conversation she usually had with Travis, and she was feeling raw and awkward. She was much more comfortable fighting with him.

“She better be a good temp.” Travis finally spoke after a moment of silence. “I still need you in Colorado, but you can have the time off before we leave. Just bump it up a week so you’re back before I have to go. I assume since you’re not getting married, what time you take off doesn’t really matter.”