CHAPTER 10

Anna walked out of Cayden’s office with her head held high, even though her heart had just sunk to her shoes while her body was still recovering from ecstasy.

She wouldn’t ask him about the way forward, she wouldn’t let him know how desperate she was to know what was going on between them. Or to let him know how she thought of him every day and every night.

No, she grabbed her purse and headed home. She wouldn’t humiliate herself. Anna wanted to glance back and see if he was as stunned by their interlude as she was, but she refrained. Because if he was watching her, too much would be revealed in her eyes at that moment.

She drove home with warbled thoughts and once she arrived she had no recollection of the journey. But she had a play by play recollection of what had just happened between her and her boss.

Cayden was her boss, she reminded herself. Anna had always loathed woman who used sex to advance their careers and now she feared being one of them. Although he only fucked her after congratulating her on a job well done. Fuck. It was such a crude word but what they had just done had been driven by lust, not love.

When she walked into his office this afternoon, she wanted nothing more than to get in and out quickly before the others left. But time had flown as they had discussed the various options and taglines. While they were going over the options Anna had felt her opinion was valued. His praise had both satisfied and shocked her. He chose one of her hooks without any changes, not even the artwork needed to be modified.

So was it really sleeping your way to the top if you did your job well and there wasn’t a promotion in sight? Anna unlocked the door to her apartment and stepped inside.

Finally the fragrant candles she had placed throughout the apartment had transformed the scent from industrial cleaner to home. She placed her bag on the kitchen island and headed straight to the shower.

She needed to wash away the sex along with all thoughts of Cayden. Although she wasn’t sure her soap would be strong enough.

The following morning Cayden wasn’t in his office when Anna arrived. It didn’t bother her; she tried to fool herself as she repeated it over and over in her mind. He was the boss; he could come and go as he pleased. And yet she missed him.

Obviously her thorough soak and scrub last night didn’t work. She still wanted him. Wanted to feel his hands glide along her body, feel him rock inside her.

“Anna.”

Anna’s head bobbed up straight at the sound of Elizabeth’s voice. “Yes? What can I do for you?”

Elizabeth narrowed her eyes before smiling tersely. “Not for me for Cayden, he asked me to ask you to meet him downstairs, now.”

“Now?”

“Yes, he’s waiting for you.”

Anna nodded and pushed away from her desk. This couldn’t be good. Why would he want to see her in the restaurant at 9am in the morning? It wasn’t even open yet. Shit, she thought as she headed downstairs, he’s going to fire me.

Anna swallowed the fear down and started thinking of a comeback. He was eager the first time and all but jumped her last night. He can’t fire her for wanting her can he?

As Anna walked into the restaurant she noticed Cayden sitting in the furthest corner by the window. The restaurant was eerily quiet. No chatter of guests, music from the stereo or the clatter of pots from the kitchen to break it. Only a few lights were switched on in main areas, the rest would be switched on at 10am when the kitchen staff arrived. In the eerily quiet restaurant with morning light highlighting his features, he took Anna’s breath away.

She walked towards him letting her eyes travel over the interior of the restaurant, anything but eye contact.

“Hi Anna, thanks for joining me.” Cayden said and stood to welcome her.

“I’m not sure why I’m joining you, something wrong with your office?”

His mouth stretched wide in a sexy smile as he sat down, his delicious scent drifting over her. “No, please sit down.”

Anna nodded and sat down across from him.

“The reason I asked you to meet me here is because my office tends to have eyes and ears.” He winked and Anna realized he spoke about Elizabeth.

Even though she sat on the opposite side of the building, Elizabeth knew everyone’s business.

“Right, so what so confidential? Are you firing me?” Anna asked petulantly.

Cayden laughed a sonorous sound in the empty restaurant. “And why would I fire you Anna? You’ve proven yourself to be an essential part of my team. You basically single-handedly arranged a Tuesday Night Special from concept to execution and you’ve given the storage room new life.”

Anna smiled relieved. “Alright, so what is it?”

Cayden chewed his cheek and narrowed his eyes. “I can’t stop thinking about you.”

Anna flicked a look over her shoulder and leaned forward whispering, “Cayden you can’t talk about that here?”

“The security cameras are off for maintenance, the staff is only coming in at ten and to be quite fucking frank Anna, I can’t wait until tonight to talk to you. I barely slept last night.”

Anna kept quiet and watched him.

“And to be honest I wasn’t sure you’d agree to see me tonight.”

Anna nodded and cocked a brow indicating he should continue.

Cayden took a deep breath and rested his forearms on the table. “I don’t know what this is between us, but I know I can’t ignore it. I can’t ignore you.”

“Cayden, you’re my boss. I’m not sure this is a good idea.”

“I know, and that’s why I’ve come up with a plan.”

“A plan?”

“I want to sleep with you Anna, as frequent as I possibly can.” That arrogant smile of his turned her knees week under the table and had heat pooling to her groin. “So I don’t think we should stop. Let’s just keep it separate from work. No one needs to know, it can be our secret.”

Anna wanted to say no, she wanted to deny him if only to ensure her reputation would be safe, but she found herself nodding, “me too.”

Cayden let out a deep breath. “Shit, I’m glad you agreed. I’ve been hard for you since you walked out on me last night.”

Anna couldn’t help the smile that tugged at her lips or the satisfying feeling that swept through her. She affected him as much as he affected her.

“Can I see you tonight?” Cayden asked reaching for her hand across the table.

Excitement pulsed through her system at the thought of having a whole night with him. “I’d like that,” Anna said trying her best not to jump him.

“Great.” He checked his watched and flashed her a grin. “Only ten hours to go.” Cayden stood and smiled at her briefly before heading upstairs to the office.

As Anna sat and digested what had just happened a feeling of shame or something close settled over her. It would be their little secret. Somehow it felt like Anna was his dirty little secret, and the first time in years she felt like the girl from the trailer park no one was allowed to know about.