A/N: This was inspired by a prompt from welcometonightcourt: "boss/intern au." I cheated slightly, I made it "boss/secretary."

Just another typical spring day in London, Molly Hooper thought resignedly as yet another passing car splashed rainwater on her. The wind had turned her umbrella inside-out, breaking it, halfway from the Tube station. She'd pitched it into the first bin she'd passed and now she was soaked despite her raincoat and chilled to the bone.

As soon as she walked into the anteroom, she hung her dripping overcoat on the coat tree then went over to her desk and sat down in her chair before taking off her squelching shoes and hiding them under her desk. Her boss didn't have anyone scheduled to come see him that day, so she could get away with walking around without her shoes.

Speaking of whom… Molly grabbed her day-planner from her bag and got up then went to her boss's door and knocked lightly.

"Enter."

She opened the door and walked into the spacious office, closing the door behind her, and inwardly sighing as her stocking-covered feet sank into the plush carpet. Khan N. Singh, CEO and owner of Singh Enterprises, was standing by the floor-to-ceiling windows on the far side of the room, looking out over the city. Rain and mist kept him from seeing much and Molly wondered why he bothered.

"The hairdryer in my bathroom, use it," he said simply, his eyes still on the rain.

Good morning to you too, sir. Molly just kept herself from rolling her eyes before she walked into his full bathroom and closed the door behind her. The man has eyes in the back of his head. Still, she was grateful for the chance to dry her hair, feeling warmer by the moment. Between the hairdryer and the humidity, her hair looked fuller than usual. Since she didn't feel comfortable using his comb, it was also disheveled. Molly looked at herself in the mirror and sighed. I look like I just got out of bed. Oh well, "ragamuffin" is better than "drowned rat."

When she walked out of the bathroom, she saw that her boss was sitting behind his desk, looking at her expectantly. For a moment, his eyes seemed to darken but she assumed it was just the light. As always, seeing his face made her insides clench. Khan was simply the handsomest man in London. He was thirty-seven, with straight black hair he preferred to keep slicked back, piercing blue-green eyes, and a deep, rich voice she had more than once mentally compared to black silk.

In short, Molly was crazy about him, but she knew their relationship would never go beyond boss and secretary. Besides the man's personal code of ethics, he simply did not date, as far as she knew. What she didn't know was why.

Molly opened the day-planner and looked over what she'd written for that day. "Board meeting at 10, then lunch with the CPO, a stockholders meeting at 2, finally dinner with the CFO at 8."

He nodded. "Have you confirmed the reservations?"

"Yes, sir. Both restaurants will have everything the way you like it."

"Good. What about tomorrow?"

She glanced at the next entry. "A meeting with prospective clients at 10, lunch with them if the meeting is going well, lunch by yourself if it's not. Nothing for the rest of the day."

He nodded. "Don't let anyone schedule anything I need to be part of – I have a feeling I will need the afternoon to recover from being 'genial.'"

She smiled a bit. "Yes, sir." Molly knew how much her boss hated being around most people. I'm one of the lucky ones – I'm one of the few he tolerates.

It was close to midnight a few weeks later that word of a fire in a block of flats spread on Twitter. Khan didn't think too much of it beyond a general concern for the people in the building, but then he saw that it was on Molly's street. He quickly turned on the telly and he jumped to his feet when he heard the reporter say it was Molly's building. All he could think about was getting to her. Still in his lounge pants and t-shirt, he quickly put on his trainers and grabbed his keys before running to the elevator.

He parked his Jag five streets from Molly's building, which was as close as the police would allow. Stepping out of the car, he made his way through the crowd of onlookers, half of whom were in their nightclothes too. Finally, he came to the police tape and scanned the group of the tower's displaced residents and the first responders, desperately looking for Molly.

If anything's happened to her... He finally saw her standing by herself, an orange shock blanket around her shoulders. She appeared to be fine and he felt something in him break down. "Molly!" he called out. He tried to go to her but a police officer told him to stay behind the police tape.

Molly took a few shaky steps toward him. "It's … it's okay, Officer. He's my … he's with me."

The officer looked skeptical but then he let Khan duck under the tape. He took three long strides then pulled her into his arms, barely able to contain his shaking. I thought I lost you. God, I thought I lost you and I've never-

She tried to pull back but he held her closer, not ready to let go yet. Eventually, she gave up and laid her head on his chest.

"It's gone," she whispered into his shirt and he had to strain to hear her above all the commotion around them. "My home, my whole world…"

"They were just things, Molly," he murmured. "Things can be replaced. I came here as soon as I heard about your building because I was sick with worry about you. You can never be replaced."

She lifted her head and stared at him like he'd grown a second one. "I … um … I need to find a place to stay. And … God, I need to buy toiletries … clothes … everything."

"Leave everything to me," he said firmly. Then an idea came to him. "You'll be staying at my place."

"Sir, I don't-"

"You should know better than to argue with me when I have my mind made up, Molly," he said, smiling a bit.

"O-okay…"

An hour later, Molly was standing in Khan's living room, a place she'd never been before, clutching the plastic shopping bag of toiletries he insisted on paying for to her chest. Just as she had pictured, his flat was decorated in black Italian leather furniture with chrome accents. Everything was modern, all clean lines and sharp angles. The only standout was the grand piano in the corner by the windows.

She ran a hand over the arm of the couch. This is nothing like the overstuffed sofa and chair I have … had… A crushing wave of despair threatened to drag her down and she felt tears slide down her face.

"None of that," he said firmly as he handed her a white linen handkerchief. "I'm going to take care of you."

"I have every right to be upset, sir," she said quietly as she wiped her face. "My flat is a total loss. Nothing is salvageable. Every memento I had of my parents is gone. Every photo, everything they ever gave me, all of it. I can replace my clothes, my books, everything but that." She started to sob, despite being embarrassed by crying in front of her unemotional boss.

After a moment, she felt strong hands guide her to the couch and she sat down. He sat down next to her and encouraged her to lay her head on his chest. She did without much resistance. His arms wrapped around her and she managed to stifle a sigh.

God, what am I doing? This is my boss, I shouldn't even be here. Why on Earth did he invite me to stay anyway? I could've gotten a hotel room. I should've gotten a hotel room. Hell, I'll get one now. She tried to get up but his arms kept her in place.

"No, Molly," he murmured. "You've been through a lot, you need to rest."

"I can't stay here. I can get a hotel room."

"Of course you can stay here, that's why I brought you here. I have a perfectly nice guestroom."

"You're my boss."

"Not right now. I'm giving you a fortnight off to get your bearings. For now, you and I are just Khan and Molly, friends."

She stared at him. "You want us to be friends?" That shocked her even more than him giving her two weeks off.

Something that looked suspiciously like hurt flashed in his eyes then was gone in an instant. "I thought we already were."

"Oh."

"Let me take care of you, Molly. I'll handle everything, it's what I do."

"Sir … Khan … this isn't your problem to fix."

"We're friends, that makes it my problem."

Molly closed her eyes. She was so tired. Tired of thinking, tired of feeling, tired of resisting. She just wanted to curl up and sleep forever. "Fine…"

"Thank you." If she didn't know any better, she would have sworn he kissed her hair, but he let her go and got up before she could ask him about it. "I'll get you something to wear to bed." He walked out of the room.

Bed. Sleeping. Down the hall from my incredibly sexy boss. Why in the hell did I agree to this?

He came back with charcoal grey silk pajamas and a black silk dressing gown. "Christmas presents from … it doesn't matter. They'll, um, be long on you but they should still work."

Is he … nervous? "Um, thank you, Sir."

"Khan," he corrected her gently.

"Khan," she repeated. She got up. "Goodnight."

"Goodnight, Molly."

The guestroom turned out to be bigger than her entire flat. It was decorated in navy blue and cream, with mahogany furniture and an en suite bathroom. She stored her toiletries in the bathroom then went through her usual nighttime routine as best she could before climbing into bed. Unsurprisingly, her last thoughts before sleep claimed her were about Khan.

I hope I can pay him back someday.

The next morning, Molly woke to the sound of knocking. It took her a moment to remember where she was, then the events of the night before came crashing down. She wanted to cry again but the knocking couldn't be ignored.

"Come in, Khan," she called out as she sat up.

The door opened and Khan came in with a tray, grinning proudly. "Good morning, Molly. I thought you'd appreciate not having to get out of bed yet." He set the tray on the bed then pulled the desk chair over and sat down. He was wearing tight, faded blue jeans and a grey t-shirt, his hair falling in his eyes.

Damn, he looks good. "Um, yes, you're right. Thank you." She looked down at the tray – pancakes, eggs, and coffee – then back up at him. "Did you already eat?"

"Yes. I also had a conference call. That's all the work I'm doing today." He added gently, "I want to be here for you, Molly."

She sighed quietly. "That really wasn't necessary, sir … Khan. I'm not sick or injured, I'm perfectly capable of taking care of myself."

He smiled at her patiently, the same smile he gave prospective clients who were on the fence. "Allow me to play the generous host, Molly. It's the least I could do."

"Khan…"

His smile softened. "Please, Molly."

Her heart skipped a beat. I'm in deep. She sighed quietly. "Alright." She ate while Khan told her about the conference call, then about his plan.

"The first thing you should do is call your insurance company."

Molly nodded. "I was going to do that as soon as I get dressed."

He smiled a bit. "The second thing you should do is let me buy you a new wardrobe."

She rolled her eyes, not caring that he saw it. "As soon as the insurance cheque comes in, I can get my own clothes."

"But that could take weeks." Khan smirked. "As charming as it would be, you can't run around London in my pajamas until then."

Charming? "How's it going to look when people find out your secretary is living with you and you bought her a wardrobe?"

"I don't give a damn about what anyone thinks, Molly, except you. If they want to think we're having an affair, let them."

Her mind conjured several scenarios at the word "affair," but she ignored them to focus on the more interesting part. "Why except me? Why would my opinion of you matter? I'm just your secretary."

"You're not 'just' anything to me, Molly. You keep me centered. Before you, I regularly worked to the point of exhaustion, forgetting meals and forgoing sleep just so I could get a deal closed faster. The past three years that you've been with me have been my best years. No, you're not 'just' my secretary."

It took every ounce of her self-control to keep from throwing her arms around his neck and kissing him. As it was, she could feel her cheeks burning. "Khan, I … I don't know what to say."

"Then don't say anything." He grinned. "Finish your breakfast, I have something I need to work on, then we'll go shopping."

"Alright…" She hesitated and he was almost out the door before she said softly, "Thank you."

He smiled at her happily. "You're welcome, Molly."

Khan had no idea women needed so many things. Of course, he had never lived with a woman before, none of his previous girlfriends kept his interest long enough for him to invite them to move in. Yet here he was, inviting Molly in at the first opportunity.

Why can't I just admit I'm in love with her? She's attracted to me, I see it every time she looks at me. There's virtually no chance she'd reject me, yet I can't bring myself to say it. Look at me, the owner of a multi-million-pound international company and I can't tell one petite … adorable … vulnerable … strong … sweet woman I love her.

They had finished at the clothing stores, Khan politely staying outside the lingerie store while Molly shopped, and now they were in the middle of a bookstore. Molly was grabbing copies of all the books she'd lost and Khan was amazed by the variety of her collection.

They were in the history section and Molly was on her knees to look at the books on the lowest shelf.

Khan smiled a bit. "You look like you're worshipping the books."

Molly giggled. "I kind of am." She grabbed a couple of books on the Regency and Victorian eras.

"I thought your collection would be mostly romance novels."

"Oh, I'm a huge romantic, but I love history too."

Khan looked at the shopping basket he was holding for her. "And art. And cats. And Shakespeare. And inane American telly. And that's just this basket." There were four more filled baskets at the front of the store, waiting for them to finish.

"Hey!" she said, mock-offended. "Don't knock Glee until you've tried it."

He chuckled. "My apologies."

Molly grinned at him and he felt his heart skip a beat. "Just for that, you're taking me out to lunch."

"I'd hardly call that a punishment," he murmured, smirking when he saw her cheeks redden.

She smiled a bit. "I guess I'll have to try harder next time."

Khan raised an eyebrow, unable to hide his Cheshire Cat grin. This could get interesting.

That night, after take-away Chinese, they were sitting on the sectional in his multi-media room, watching Emma. A large bowl of popcorn was on the cushion between them and Molly felt a shiver each time her fingers accidentally brushed his as they reached for more. She was having a hard time focusing on the screen instead of the incredibly sexy man next to her, but she knew the movie by heart so she could afford to let her attention slip.

When Emma and Mr. Knightley kissed under the tree, she let out a happy sigh. "I wish I could find a love like that."

Khan didn't say anything for a moment. Finally, he cleared his throat. "If I may, why don't you date more?"

She sighed heavily. "I've been on more first dates than probably any single woman in London. My nearest and dearest are always setting me up with their neighbor's friend or their doctor's son, something like that. None of those men turn out to be worth my time. Honestly, it's gotten to the point where I'd rather just curl up with a bodice-ripper than go to the trouble of getting dressed up and spending a couple of mind-numbing hours with some bloke I'll never see again."

He smirked. "You just need to find a man who's worthy of your time and effort."

Molly scoffed. "Yeah, the ground is just littered with those. If the perfect man for me does exist, I'm not going to find him on a blind date." Especially since he's sitting right next to me. But nothing will ever happen between us. I need to lower my expectations. She looked over at him. "What about you? You haven't dated the entire time I've known you."

Khan smiled a bit. "I'm afraid my tragic flaw is that I'm a workaholic. I spend most of my free time on social media looking for trends, so even when I'm not working, I'm not exactly sociable. That's how I found out about the fire."

"Maybe we should go to a pub or something one of these nights." She smiled a bit. "If I don't meet anyone, at least I'd still be going home with the hottest man there."

He chuckled. "And I'd be going home with the most attractive woman there."

He can't possibly mean that … can he?

The next day, Khan came home to the most delicious smell coming from the kitchen. He set down his briefcase and loosened his tie as he followed the scent. Molly was sprinkling chocolate chips on a pan of brownies.

He smiled a bit. "If you're trying to seduce me with chocolate, it's working."

She looked up at him and grinned. "Hi. If I was trying to seduce you, Khan, believe me, you'd know. This is a 'thank you' for yesterday."

"Then I accept your 'thank you' and await your seduction." He grinned wide at the blush blooming on her cheeks then leaned over and kissed one. "Work isn't the same without you. The temp has no idea how to handle me."

If anything, her blush deepened. "Like you said, she's a temp, she's only there for another week and a half. I'll be back soon enough."

"About that-"

"I've been looking at the real estate offerings and there's nothing in my budget."

"Then stay here until something opens up."

She raised an eyebrow. "Khan, people are going to talk."

"People will talk no matter what we do."

Molly hesitated. "Aren't you going to want your guestroom back at some point?"

He smirked. "In case you haven't noticed, I don't exactly have people beating down my door wanting to stay with me." His expression softened. "The room's yours for as long as you need it."

"I'll pay rent. And my share of the groceries. And I'll do the cleaning."

"I have people I pay to clean this place. And I certainly don't need your money, Molly." He smiled a bit. "I'm a millionaire, remember?"

"I can't live here for free, I'm not your … your girlfriend."

"I'm not about to let my friend pay rent to stay with me."

"I feel like I'm taking advantage of you."

Khan smirked. "Considering that we're both dressed and nowhere near the bedroom, I don't see how that's possible."

Her cheeks flamed. "Khan!"

He chuckled. "Seriously, I like having you here. I never realized how truly alone I was before. I don't need anything from you except your presence, Molly."

She gave him a pleased smile. "I'll cook for you. Man can't live on take-away alone."

"I could prove you wrong, but that would deprive me of those brownies."

"After dinner."

"What are we having?"

"Lasagna."

He grinned. "My favorite."

While they were eating, she asked about his day.

"The usual – clients either wanting to kiss my arse or wanting my head on a platter, employees who think they know more than I do (I'm promoting the ones who actually do to department heads), and my right hand wasn't there to help me deal with it all."

Molly giggled. "I'm glad you finally see how invaluable I am."

"I've always known that, Molly," he murmured.

She stared at him for several heartbeats while he grinned at her, then she suddenly stood up. "Brownies." She went into the kitchen.

"Right, mustn't forget the brownies," he murmured, smirking to himself.

Molly came back out with a plate full of large, thick, fudgy brownies. They had swirls of chocolate icing and were packed with chocolate chunks.

Khan's eyes lit up. "Those look like Heaven."

She smirked. "They're my Better Than Sex brownies."

He chuckled to cover his moan. "Molly, if brownies are better than any sex you've had, you need a better lover."

"Considering that I don't have one right now, damn good brownies are as close as I'm going to get." She took one and placed it in his hand, smirking. "You're single too, right?"

Khan sighed overdramatically. "Right." He took a bite and didn't bother to cover his moan that time. "Oh God, I apologize – you were right."

Molly grinned triumphantly.

Late the following week, Molly looked up from checking the roasted chicken to see Khan storm in. He was muttering something to himself about lawyers and contracts, a scowl marring his features.

"Hi, Khan. Bad day?" she asked gently.

He finally looked up at her and his scowl dissolved. "Molly, hi. I didn't see you there. It was fine until I met with the lawyers. I want to do something unprecedented for the company and they strongly suggested that I don't do it."

Molly smiled a bit. "But you're going to do it anyway, right? Why bother having a team of lawyers if you don't listen to them?"

"They give perfectly sound advice, most of the time. It's just that this time, they're not thinking rationally."

"Are you sure it's not you who's being irrational?"

He chuckled. "Well, perhaps I am emotionally invested in this decision, but I feel it's a good one for the company."

"So … are you going to tell me now or do I have to wait for the next company-wide email?"

"After dinner, I promise."

As soon as dinner was over, he led her to his office and insisted that she sit down in his desk chair. She raised an eyebrow but did as he asked.

"So, what is this big announcement? Am I going to have to prepare a statement for the press?"

Khan chuckled. "Yes, but I'll leave that entirely up to you, seeing how it's about you." He pulled a contract out of his briefcase and offered it to her.

"What's this?" she asked as she took it and started to look it over. Her eyes widened as one word stood out.

Partner.

He grinned. "I want to make you my partner in the company. No more employer and employee, we'll be equals."

She stared at him. "Khan … are you serious?"

"Completely. You know as much about the industry as I do. You charm everyone – clients and employees alike. The press adores you. More than that, I need you. You balance me out, Molly. We make a perfect team."

"I … I don't know what to say." She thought over the past two weeks. "Is this what you've been working on so secretly?"

He grinned proudly. "Yes. I wanted to work out all the kinks before I presented it to you." His expression turned serious and he got down on his knees in front of her, gently taking her hands. "I can't, I won't do my job without you, Molly. Please, consider it, at least." He smiled a bit. "Just think of the perks – you'll have your own secretary and everything."

Molly smiled back. "It's Friday. Can I the weekend to think it over?"

"You can have as much time as you need."

"Thank you, Khan."

He gently squeezed her hands. "You're welcome."

First thing Monday morning, the two of them were in the main lobby of the Singh Enterprises building, giving a press conference. There was heartfelt applause from the reporters when Khan announced that Molly had agreed to become a full partner in the business.

"Does that mean you'll change the company name?" one reporter asked.

Molly glanced at Khan then back at the reporters. "We hadn't discussed that yet, but I'm sure that's the next step."

"Rumor has it you two are romantically involved," another reporter said. "Care to comment on that, Ms. Hooper?"

Molly opened her mouth but before she could respond, Khan said firmly, "No comment. Ms. Hooper will be following my example of not commenting on my personal life. Now, if you'll excuse us, we have a lot of work to do." Khan grabbed her elbow and they made an escape to his, now their, private elevator.

She sagged against the back wall as soon as the steel doors were closed. "Oh God, that was nerve-wracking…"

"I'm sorry about that last question," he said gently. "The press knows better than to ask about my love life, I didn't realize you were still fair game."

Molly smiled at him weakly. "It's alright, I should've expected it."

"Well, other than that, our first joint press conference went very well." He smiled a bit. "How shall we celebrate? Take the rest of the day off and watch nothing but period dramas?"

She laughed softly. "Tackling all the emails and phone calls we're bound to get."

"Spoilsport," he muttered, but his eyes were dancing.

"Work now, play later."

They had been partners for about a month when Molly noticed that things were changing. Whenever she brought up changing the company's name, instead of giving some excuse like he did after the first press conference, Khan now simply changed the subject. She wanted to seriously talk about it, but as it was the only problem they had, she decided it could wait, again.

Other changes happened at the flat. Even though she could now afford a much nicer flat than the one she had lost, Molly realized she was reluctant to leave Khan's. Her things were slowly invading rooms beyond the guestroom, but he wasn't complaining.

"You can redecorate the guestroom if you want, you know," he said over dinner one night. "I don't mind."

Molly smiled a bit. "But then I'd be officially crossing the line between 'guest' and 'resident.'"

He grinned. "Like I said, I don't mind."

A few days later, they were in the multi-media room again, watching Persuasion. At least, he was. He could feel her eyes on him instead of the screen.

"So," she said, "tell me what sounds better - putting a hyphen between 'Hooper' and 'Singh Enterprises' or an ampersand? I thought about putting 'Hooper' between 'Singh' and 'Enterprises,' but it didn't sound right."

"I don't want to change the company name," he said flatly, his eyes fixed on the screen. "There's no need to."

She stared at him, shocked. "Are … are you having second thoughts?"

Khan finally turned to her. "God, no, I want you to be my wife," he blurted, then immediately regretted it when he realized what he'd said.

Molly's eyes were the widest he'd ever seen them. "What did you say?"

He sighed quietly. "I'm going about this all wrong, I apologize. Molly … I love you. I've known it for quite a while, months, perhaps even a year, but I thought I had time, that it could wait. The fire made me realize that we don't have time and that I can't wait."

"Khan … you're saying that you love me and you want to marry me, yet we've never even been on a date."

"I couldn't let myself get involved with you while you worked for me, it would be unethical, but since you agreed to the partnership, well, that changed things."

"This is all so sudden. I mean, really, really sudden."

He smiled weakly. "Why don't I give you some time to think about it?"

"Um, yeah, I think that would be necessary." She looked dazed.

"Take all the time you need," he said gently.

Three AM found Molly in the kitchen, unable to sleep. Every time she closed her eyes, she saw Khan offering her his heart and she just didn't know how to respond.

Do I love him? Yeah, I think I fell in love within five seconds of meeting him. Do I want to be his wife? "Yeah, I do, actually," she muttered as she started on a pint of Half-Baked. She was about to take another bite when she heard soft music coming from the piano.

Khan looked up when she approached him and smiled gently. "You can't sleep either?"

She smiled softly. "Well, when the love of your life says he wants to make you his life partner in addition to being his business partner, it gives you a lot to think about."

His eyes lit up. "Are you thinking about saying yes?"

"I am saying yes, no further thinking required."

Khan pulled her into his lap and kissed her deeply. Molly kissed him back and knew that she had made the best decision of her life.