Chapter Five

~Raphael~

I looked to my watch again as I finished answering all the messages I wanted to answer and back-burnering all the ones I wasn’t sure on yet. It was just after ten and seemed like a good a time as ever to drop in on HR.

I hadn’t slept well the night previous. I had ended up at home at about three am, but my mind wouldn’t rest. It was full of images of the mysterious redhead as she danced across the floor so effortlessly. Her thighs as they moved past each other with no undue amount of friction -there was no gap on her- the inset of her waist as she twisted and turned. Her dance was like a movie on repeat in my own skull, and I wasn’t sure I even wanted to escape it.

But what I did want was answers. So, I made my way to HR as quickly as I could without drawing any extra attention to myself. Difficult to do, considering that I was the owner of the company and people either wanted something from me or were terrified from me, but I managed to only be stopped twice -which might have been a record for me.

I knocked before I entered then sauntered right in. The woman at their desks all sat up straight, like a bunch of prairie dogs that was spotted a predator, and I recognized only one of them. Her name was Shelly, and she’d been with the company for about ten years, if I recalled right. I hadn’t hired her, but she certainly had made an impression when she caught three corporate spies while she was an assistant HR admin just off their background checks and social media alone. She was a fairly standard looking woman, overweight with sandy brown hair, glasses and a kind face, but there was something slightly ruthless behind those hazel eyes of hers.

“Mr. Barbos! To what do we owe this surprise?” Her tone was arch and cheery as she stood, but there was an underlying concern. I was sure that after Westin’s dramatic outing, she was blaming herself that she had never caught him.

“I wanted to know a bit about one of our employees,” I answered smoothly, as if this very thought hadn’t been haunting my thoughts all night. “Female, works on the overnight cleaning crew. Red hair, relatively tall.”

“Is something wrong?”

“No. At least I hope not. Just want to check a couple of things. If you could email me her employee file -what’s not private information that is- I’d appreciate it.”

“No problem, sir! And is there anything else we can do for you today?”

“No, that’s about it.”

“Alright then. I’ll try to have it to you before you make it to your desk upstairs.”

And this was why I remembered Shelly. Hard workers should always be celebrated. “That would be most appreciated. You have a good day now.”

I tipped my head to her and headed out, making a beeline straight towards the elevator.

Unfortunately, this time I wasn’t quite lucky enough to only be stopped twice. It seemed every few feet someone was walking up to me and asking some question that could have been sent in an email, but I supposed that was partially my fault for being so available.

Although I didn’t tolerate nonsense, I wasn’t one of those board members who thought they were too good for lower-level employees to interact with. If I was truly needed for something, I wanted to help, and I figured if an employee had summoned up enough guts to talk to me, they deserved to be heard out. But like everything I ever did, there was always those who tried to abuse it, using it as a way to humble-brag about their accomplishments or wheedle favor. Of course, I was well versed at shutting those people down, but they were still tedious to me in the few seconds that they stole.

It was a solid fifteen minutes before I was able to get back into the office and shut the door behind me and a quick glance to my phone revealed that it was already flashing red on line two.

Line two was only for inter-office calls so I knew it had to be Shelly. Heading over, I hit the button to return her call and waited for the ring.

It didn’t even make it through one ring before she answered, voice professional but urgent. I instantly knew that she had to have found something, otherwise she wouldn’t sound nearly so excited.

“The employee you’re talking about is a Maxine Grady. She’s been working here for two weeks and her trainer had only excellent things to say about her.

“Alright…” If that was the case, then why did she sound so excited?

“But when I looked into her work history, I couldn’t find any social media or tax footprints for this woman at all. That’s never happened to me before. So, while this is a little out of my depth, I would guess that this has to be a fake name.”

“A fake name.” My stomach sank, and all those fantasies turned to ash on my tongue. I had known she was too good to be true, but that didn’t stop me from being incredibly disappointed by it.

“What do you want me to be about this, Sir? Should we terminate as a precaution?”

“No, no. While I believe in being proactive, but not over-reacting. I’ll see to this myself.”

“Yes sir. Anything else I can do for you?”

“No, that will be all for now. You’ve been great, by the way.”

“Thank you, sir, you have a good day.”

I put the phone back in the cradle and sat for a moment, thinking. Obviously my first thoughts were on corporate sabotage, but I couldn’t really figure out the angle. If she was here to find secrets, why an overnight janitor? By the time she came to work, all computers were password locked and important files were sealed within safes. I ran a nearly paperless environment, so it wasn’t like she could dig through the trash either.

If she was a daytime cleaner, it would make a little more sense. People often ignored maintenance workers and she could come and go as she pleased while eavesdropping on all sorts of conversations. But an overnight worker? She wasn’t going to overhear anything.

I had too much on my plate to puzzle over a mystery woman, so I whipped out my cellphone and looked for a contact I rarely called.

“Frederick De La Vertra, Private Investigator,” a young but low voice answered, clearly trying to sound professional. “How can I help you today?”

“Hey Freddy, it’s Rafael.”

“Oh hey, Raf! Long time, no hear. You got some competition you need me to scope out?”

“No, actually an employee this time.”

The voice on the phone made a clicking sound with his tongue. “Huh. That’s a new one. What do you need exactly?”

Good ol’ Fred. I had found him seven years ago when he was twenty and just starting to build his own business. He had been wet behind the ears but plenty eager to prove himself, so I had asked him to observe the habits of some execs from a company that was bidding against my own. Was it underhanded? Perhaps. But it wasn’t illegal or hurtful and the information had helped me plan a strategy that had won us three different bids.

I had used him on and off ever since. I paid him generously, and I got the distinct feeling that I was the best business he had. Which was a shame, really. He was a hard worker and always provided results. I valued that quite a bit.

“Her name is Maxine Grady, goes by Max here.”

“Uh-huh, and why are you calling me in for this?”

“Shelly thinks it might be a fake name. Wondering why a janitor might need something like that.”

“Oh! Sounds fun. I’ll hop right on that then. You got any other deets for me?”

“I’ll email them to you. I would appreciate if you were as covert as possible with this.”

“You know how I’ll roll. I’ll call you back as soon as I have something.”

“Good.”

I hung up, but I didn’t feel any happier. It was like my mind was being pulled in two different directions, one whipping itself into a frenzy at the possible mole in our midst, and the other still obsessing how beautiful this Max woman had been.

It was decidedly strange for me to be so caught up in a woman’s looks. Women of every class, ethnicity and body type had been throwing themselves at me since the first hundred grand to my name. While I loved a beautiful, curvaceous female, I wasn’t so blinded by their attraction to miss all the signs that they were trying to use me. But for some reason, this one janitor in her blue jumpsuit was making me lose my mind.

I tried to concentrate on my projects, I really did, but after four hours of working on the same two emails, I gave up and went out for dinner.

Normally I would just order it, but I needed a chance to breathe before I returned to work and actually tried to get things done. So, I headed to my favorite wing place, put in an order and sat in their lobby until they were done. Once I had that, I went to a grocery store along the way and grabbed some beer. I wasn’t one to normally drink on the job, but considering everything that had been going on, I certainly could use it.

When I finally returned to work, I was feeling much more human and in control. Which was exactly what I needed to be the dynamic leader I made myself out to be. How could I expect my employees to follow my lead if I didn’t seem to know what I was doing? I couldn’t afford to show weakness and I certainly couldn’t afford to get all love-stuck over a random woman.

Thankfully, most of my staff had headed home by the time I arrived, leaving maybe less than a quarter of the usual occupants. I made it back to my office without being stopped at all and I began to wonder if this later-schedule was more productive than my normal nine to five.

It was something I would definitely have to check, but it wasn’t like I was going to be able to figure out the numbers after just two nights, so instead I dug into my food and buried myself in a couple reports.

Just like the night before, the quiet of the office allowed me to sink deep into productivity. For a moment, there was nothing but me and the business. No begrudged ex, no loss of time with Dominic, no mystery woman. Just me and the data. At least hard numbers could be trusted.

But still, I found myself losing my concentration right around the same time I had the night previous. A quick glance to my watch told me that -if this Max woman followed a schedule- she would be arriving in ten minutes. I debated for several breaths before sighing and heading right back to the café.

I was lucky that the daytime crew was responsible for both the bathrooms and café area, otherwise I wouldn’t have a place to hide. Not that I was hiding, I was just…

Okay, maybe I was hiding a little. But that was just because I needed to keep an eye on someone who could be detrimental to the health of my company. Or at least that was what I told myself.

Right on the dot, the elevators dinged, and the red-head was pushing her cart out again. I didn’t think it was possible, but she looked even better in this jumpsuit. Maybe it was a size smaller? Or maybe my imagination just hadn’t done her justice compared to the real deal.

“I’ve been looking forward to this all day.”

Her voice caught my attention, pulling me out of my reverie. It was low, lower than most females, but had a decidedly musical quality to it. Like jazz, sliding past my ears, I found myself wanting to hear more of it.

Too bad I was hiding in the café, just sneak watching her and not engaged in an actual conversation.

She didn’t say anything else, instead pulling her headphones from her cart and placing them on her head. I could hear the buzz of the music within them from all the way where I was standing, leaving me to wonder just how loud they were on her own head.

But all thoughts of hearing safety faded as she started dancing again. This time, her movements were less wild and enticing, instead focusing on being more fluid, and elegant. She was still a vision to watch, but seeing her move in such a different way had me enraptured all over again.

Her hair floated around her head like a halo comprised of fire and sunlight, her thick thighs lifting, dropping and propelling her forward as she powdered the floor, mopped, then took the rolling polisher over it all. I felt my body responding urgently, and it took all of my control to keep myself still, lest I ruin the show.

Time seemed to go too fast, and before I knew it, she was packing up everything and trundling towards the elevator. Once more, I was tempted to call out to her, to ask her to stop so I could finally speak to the woman I had been watching two nights in a row. But I reminded myself firmly that she could be the enemy and I didn’t want to tip her off that I was aware of her presence. So, just like the first night, I let her go.

The doors of the elevator closed with a ding and I heaved yet another sigh. Suddenly, all my patience was worn thin and I found myself striding towards my private bathroom, my need straining against my pants.

I couldn’t remember a time I had ever had the urge to touch myself at work, but there was no denying my need now. Dropping my pants, I gripped myself and thought of just how beautiful this ‘Max’ woman had been.

It was far too easy to imagine those luscious thighs finally freed from the coarse fabric of her jumpsuit, and those milky breasts bouncing free from her bra. I could see a pink flush to her cheeks just as easily as I could imagine her mouth hanging open slightly, breath rasping erotically.

I was embarrassed how quickly I came, letting a desperate groan out as I throbbed in my own hand. It really had been too long since I had been with a woman. Even if I wasn’t interested in dating, I still had needs. Desires.

Jerking off in my bathroom certainly wasn’t going to solve that though. Was this rock-bottom? It felt like it might be.

Cleaning up after myself, I headed out and drove home. But even as I slid into my empty bed, I couldn’t help but wonder about the dancing woman that I knew nothing about.