Eli
Before I could even slam the door, Preston started to speak. He took the fun out of everything. “Business is up ten percent, traffic to the site has increased dramatically, we’ve already sold out of the panties you posted about yesterday, and your rant last night about him almost caused the site to crash.”
Taking the wind out of my sails wasn’t fair.
“He’s an ass.”
Preston nodded. “I’m not going to argue about that.”
“He’s judgmental.” And he thinks I’m a slut. I didn’t say that part, though. For some reason, I didn’t think I could voice the words without it hurting more than it should.
I had a lot of people in my life who judged, and a lot of trolls online who made stupid comments, but coming from Roman it just made me angry. For someone who took photos for a living, he certainly couldn’t see very clearly.
“You’re right. He’s already caused enough havoc to justify firing him.” Preston gave me a look. “In fact, I tried to do that last week when I walked in on you two screaming at each other. You made it dramatically clear that you didn’t want him gone.”
I’d vetoed him—on the mouth.
Preston had been frustrated with me, but it’d sent Roman right over the edge, so it’d been worth it at the time. “The pictures are good.”
Preston couldn’t argue about that. “You’re right.”
And my blog had never been busier. From the posts to the comments from my fans, it was going nuts. “The panties sold out in twenty-four hours?”
“Yes.” Then Preston finally cracked a smile. “And Merrick immediately stormed in and said that someone else would have to take over the computers or the marketing department was going to revolt.”
“Three people can’t stage a coup.” It had to be at least five.
“They can if they’re the only ones who can run the servers and whatever magic actually runs the website.” Preston and I had both given up when the site had moved past the basic five dollars a month plan that we’d initially signed up for to host the damned thing.
At first, trying to do it ourselves had seemed like a good idea, but as the company had grown, we’d both thrown our hands in the air and said we didn’t care. He could make sense of the spreadsheets and data, and I understood the clothes and the marketing side of things, but the computers were Greek to us both.
It’d made me feel better in the beginning when I’d realized I wasn’t the only one who didn’t like them and didn’t really want to learn how to run the actual website, but I was starting to wish I was more help. However, taking anything else on my plate was impossible, and Preston had even said that if I looked at one more responsibility, he’d send me on a vacation—to my mother’s house.
The threat still sent shivers through me.
Plopping down in my chair, trying to ignore how good it felt to sit, I shrugged. “We knew it was coming soon. You started putting out feelers when he started saying the same thing the last time sales went up.”
Preston nodded. “This time he’s serious. There are evidently some upgrades that need to be done, and I sadly had no idea what a lot of it meant. But the basic threat was that it’s all going to explode if we don’t get a full-time IT guy.”
Letting my head rest against the back of the chair, I tried not to close my eyes. It wasn’t late enough in the day for me to even think about sleep. “You wanted to wait until the numbers looked good enough to support the additional payroll. IT doesn’t come cheap. Can we actually afford the new position and the money that’s going to go into whatever he does with the computers?”
“Yes.” Preston answered without having to think. “We started planning for this last year when we hit our goals so early. Don’t you remember that conversation?”
“No.” I lifted my head enough to give him a you’re-insane look. “I start tuning you out after about twenty minutes in those budget meetings.”
Sighing, he shook his head. “Eli.”
“You know better than to complain about that.” I was doing a lot better than I had when we’d first started the company.
He chuckled. “It was in the same conversation where I made you start taking your salary.”
“Oh.” It was starting to ring a bell now. “Yeah, okay. Didn’t we say we needed the new IT position set up a few months ago, then? You set a new goal and said that once we met it that it was a priority. Right?”
“Yes, we just never did it.” Preston propped his feet up on his desk and leaned back. “It’s one of the to-do list things that kept getting pushed back because we got such terrible people applying.”
“Ohhh, that’s right.” Preston had handled the initial interviews a few months back, but then had decided to pull the position. “You said none of them would work.”
That was code that they were all too boring to tolerate us for long.
We were a colorful bunch, and even Preston with his conservative look and business clothes didn’t want to change it. He might look boring on the outside, but inside, he was just as interesting as the rest of us. He’d always said that it was to give a professional look to the company since I’d made him say he was the owner, but I’d always thought it was some kind of armor for him.
“I’m going to start looking again. Hopefully, we’ll have a few people to interview by next week.” Preston didn’t seem any more excited by the prospect than I was. He was the king of staying cool under pressure, and if he’d gotten frustrated with the IT guys, it had to have been bad.
Which was why I tried to stay out of the hiring process until he’d found someone he thought was halfway decent.
“If they could work off-site it would be easier, but they have to fit in, or it’s just going to be weird.” Occasionally, we’d hired people who hadn’t fit.
Most of the time, it had been easy to see before they were actually hired, but a few had slipped through. They usually started to panic and quit after the first day or two, which was why we didn’t really go easy on newbies, because I wanted to know right off the bat if they were going to bail.
“I agree, but we have to get someone in here. At the rate we’re growing, I think we’re going to have problems on the site in a few months with the amount of traffic that’s coming through it. And Merrick was serious about the upgrades.” Preston stretched and then looked at me, and I could see the conversation building in his head.
“What?” Might as well make him say it so we could move on.
“He’s not nice to you.” Preston winced. “Okay, that sounded like we’re in kindergarten again. Let me rephrase that. He’s polite to everyone but you. With you, he loses his marbles. We’d never let anyone talk to one of our employees this way. Why are you putting up with it?”
That was a damned good question. One I didn’t have the answer to.
Shrugging, I went back to leaning against the chair. “No fuckin’ clue.”
Something about the asshole just made me want to needle him to death. To flirt and tease until his head exploded. Roman was so easy to rile up, and it was like a bad TV show that I couldn’t stop watching. “The photos are good?”
“That’s not a good enough reason…although yeah…they’re fabulous.” Preston sighed, and I knew he was giving me one of those looks where he was trying to figure something out…it was usually me.
“I rub people the wrong way sometimes—it’s a special talent.” I sat up and gave him a teasing look, refusing to seem pathetic.
Preston lifted an eyebrow. “I’m not sure your brand of special should be called a talent.”
I laughed. He was probably right. “It will be fine.”
We’d either explode the building, or I was going to kill him, but giving him the satisfaction of saying he’d been fired…not a chance.
“We’ll give it a little while longer.” Preston seemed ready to switch gears, because he grabbed some papers off his desk. “What did you think about the new clothes?”
So we were pretending the screaming match about hookers hadn’t happened? I was okay with that.
Mentally shrugging and throwing off the stress of the shoot, I tried to shove my brain back in business mode. “Overall, I like the quality and the fit seems good. I want to see what some of the other guys think, though. The stockings are fun, but I don’t know how practical they’d be for most men, and I’m not sure about the sales potential; something that delicate doesn’t always hold up under jeans and men’s outerwear.”
I liked sexy things that were fun to wear for someone as much as the next guy, but I wanted clothing on the site that guys could wear all the time. Not just items that were for special occasions. It was too easy to put them away and never actually wear them if they weren’t for using all the time.
“I agree. But we’ll see how everyone else feels. I told the company that we’re liking things so far, but something about Roman’s comments on the colors has me thinking. Run them through the laundry in the next day or two. I’m going to have several people do the same thing so we see how the colors hold up.” Preston gave me a questioning look.
“Yeah, it’s probably a good idea. Normally, their things wear well, but I think they must have new manufacturing facilities because their new ‘lower prices and new lines’ came with really varied quality. I don’t want our name associated with something that’s just going to fade or fall apart.” We’d spent the last couple of years building the company into something that was not only sexy and fun, but also had quality merchandise.
“Agreed.” Preston looked up from the spreadsheets. “And I think I’m going to make some calls and find out what’s going on over there.”
“Call that guy in the marketing department, the one who thought you were cute. I’m sure he’ll share…information with you.” I couldn’t resist needling him.
Reps from the company had come to visit about a year ago, bringing samples and some of their employees. One had been a cute little thing from the marketing department who clearly hadn’t been into the panties—but had been into Preston. It was too bad he hadn’t realized that while Preston looked conservative, he was really a kinky shit who wanted a sweet little twink he could play dress up with.
Preston moaned. “It took weeks to get him to stop calling. That’s a terrible idea.”
Laughing, I completely disagreed. Sure, he didn’t want to date the guy, but the whole thing had been too amusing to let go. “But he was so funny.”
“Months, Eli.”
“You need to have some fun.” Okay, who could we call? Oh! “The accountant! The sweet one who was so curious! He’d be perfect to call. What was his name?”
I wasn’t a name person, but faces and curiosity always stuck out in my mind.
“Casey.” Preston didn’t even have to think. The name came out almost like it had already been on the tip of his tongue.
Interesting.
The cute little accountant in the boring business suit should have blended right into the woodwork, but he’d stood out. The way he’d watched everything from Preston to the models had made me think his wide-eyed expression wasn’t just shock.
Casey had evidently been dragged along to go over some numbers with Preston, and it was clear that he hadn’t seen the panties and lingerie that his company produced on a live person before. Evidently, Preston had been just as taken with him.
I’d thought I’d seen the two of them glancing at each other, but the annoying marketing guy hadn’t taken the hint to leave Preston alone, so he’d distracted me. “Do you think he might be someone you could call? He seemed nice and didn’t have an issue with any of us.”
“He was polite.”
“And curious.” I thought it was just stating the obvious, but Preston gave a start.
“What do you mean?”
Lord, he could be dense. “He’s either very new to kink in general or he hasn’t explored it but is really curious. Those quick, envious glances of his weren’t because he had the hots for any of the models.”
“I thought he was getting to know Lane.” Preston said it like it was nothing. We’d only spent twenty minutes showing the guys around the building.
“They talked for a little while, and I think Lane mentioned that they’d gone to lunch, but two bottoms do not make a power couple, so they have to be just friends.” I got another weird look from Preston.
I was surrounded by morons.
“You think?” I wasn’t sure if he was hopeful or confused.
“What? That they’re both bottoms? Or that they’re just friends?”
He blinked at me. “Both.”
Preston was never this nosy. It was fun seeing that side of him again. He worked almost as many hours as I did, and I couldn’t remember the last time he’d gone out on a date. Much less with someone who was remotely interested in the same kinds of things he was.
“Yeah, that little one was just about ready to bend over and beg someone to put panties on him and spank him, and Lane has the hots—well, I’m not supposed to say that part, so just forget it. But let’s just say he’s not looking right now.” I’d promised Lane I’d keep his business private, and I wasn’t going to break it.
Preston’s brows pulled together, worry clear on his face. “But he’s okay? Lane always seems very naïve.”
“He’s fine. I’m keeping an eye on it.” Everyone had to fall for a bad-ass straight guy at least once, but it wasn’t going to kill him. Especially since the bad boy he’d fallen for was the tattoo artist down the street. He might look a little rough around the edges, but any guy who read Harry Potter on his lunch break wasn’t that dangerous.
I was waiting for Preston to get back around to the little accountant, and it only took seconds. “I guess I could give Casey a call then. Not to pump him for information, but just to make sure there isn’t anything we need to know.”
“I think it’s a good idea.” Wheels spinning, I tried to figure out how far I could push Preston. “You know, you might offer to show him around again or take him out to lunch. He might feel less pressured if it’s a casual environment.”
“Possibly, but I wouldn’t want him to get the wrong idea.”
Yeah, like the idea that Preston had the hots for him and wanted to spank him and have sexy fun. Nope, wouldn’t want anything like that to happen. Even in my head, I sounded sarcastic. “Do you want me to email him then?”
“No.” That answer shot out of Preston before I could even take a breath. “I’ll figure something out.”
And I was going to bug Lane and see if he knew more about Casey. Might as well make sure if pushing Preston in his direction was a good idea. It was too late for lunch, but if I remembered things right, I’d seen tattoo guy go to the coffee shop down the street for a midafternoon pick-me-up several times. It might work out well for both of us; I’d get caffeine and gossip, and Lane would get a peek at his crush.
“Alright, I’ll leave that part up to you. And if you want, because I’m feeling very generous, I’ll even look through part of the IT applications that come in.” That would be miserable, but if it helped get Preston a social life I would do my best.
“You actually want to help hire someone?” Preston didn’t bother to hide his shock. He looked like he was ready to start planning for the zombie apocalypse.
“Want to? Hell no, but if I can narrow down the list before you start making calls, that might help.” And might earn me some brownie points for the next time I drove Preston nuts.
“Okay, maybe, depending on how many we get in. I’m hoping this time a few more take five minutes to look us up and actually see what the company does before applying.” Preston gave a half-smile and shook his head. “Some of those conversations were very awkward.”
Rolling my eyes, I scoffed. “The damned company is named Leashes and Lace, how in the hell that doesn’t stand out I’ll never know.”
Preston laughed. “That one poor guy thought it was some kind of specialty pet product company.”
Thankfully, I’d been spared the task of talking to them, but Preston had started to groan every time he’d needed to speak with another applicant. I’d said he needed to delegate some of the work, but he’d said he didn’t want an admin until it was absolutely necessary.
We had a small HR department, two women who actually spent most of the day doing weird stuff with the benefits people and insurance that no one else wanted to understand. So once he hired someone he wouldn’t have to babysit the rest of the process, but it was still time-consuming.
“Maybe we should make everything more clear in the next ad?” I wasn’t sure how, though. The company logo was a pair of panties with a dog collar and leash, for crying out loud.
Preston shook his head, clearly seeing the ways it could go wrong. “No, I think you guys would have entirely too much fun designing the ad in that case. We might end up banned from posting on the online job boards.”
“And we’re back to you’re no fun.” He needed to get laid.
Rolling his eyes, Preston wasn’t offended. “Someone has to be the grown-up around here.”
“Not it.” I had enough real shit going on outside of the company to agree to be an adult there too.
Chuckling, Preston shook his head. “I didn’t think you were going to volunteer. You want to go over the spreadsheets before you go, or do you have class?”
I groaned. “No numbers today. I have all kinds of shit to do tonight, and I can’t use my brain cells now. Depleting them before I start class would be a terrible idea.”
Rolling his eyes, Preston didn’t seem to find me funny. “They’re not batteries. But I’ll let you escape this time.”
Perfect. I had coffee to drink and a Lane to quiz. “See you later, then. I’ve some new stuff to put on the blog. I was going to start posting the pictures from today as soon as Roman sent them in, but do you think I should wait?”
“It might be a good idea, but I want to see the reaction to the new line. Just tease it with a caption that it’s not a done deal yet, but they’re getting a peek anyway.” Preston waved his hand around. “You can play it off like you’re doing something naughty, they’ll love it.”
I smirked. “Because they love me. I’ll just tell them you’re going to spank me or something for showing them things that I shouldn’t be.”
Preston laughed. “Thanks. Glad to be the bad guy for you.”
Smirking and giving him a little wave, I hopped up to go track down Lane. I’d seen him earlier writing his blog post, so I was hoping he hadn’t left yet. Coffee and a sexy man was just what my afternoon needed—even if the man wasn’t for me.