Chapter 3

Mona

It was nearing the end of my second week at Artemis Tech and I was pretty certain I’d managed to get myself under control. All I had to do was keep my head down, get on with my work, and do my best to keep any thoughts of Oliver and me together firmly to the back of my mind.

I was also finding I actually enjoyed working there. The people were friendly, but knew when to let me get on with my work, and the job was easy enough not to be stressful but not so much so that I found myself bored.

I had always been good at organizing. When it came to nights out with our whole, sprawling group from college, I was the one who coordinated everything, choosing where to go and where to stay, making reservations and arranging transportation. This was just an extension of that.

I sat in my office on Thursday morning. I was already personalizing the space, pasting up post-it notes with the little drawings Katya did on my computer and collecting a variety of snacks in the bottom drawer for those nights I had to stay later at the office than anticipated.

I was still in that sweet spot where I had new things to learn, so I wasn’t bored yet, and I looked forward to getting to work each day.

I got to my feet and stretched, standing on my tippy toes and yawning. I was getting used to the early mornings, but I was drinking a lot more coffee than I used to, just to get me going. In fact, I could use another one, now I that thought of it.

I stuck my head into Oliver’s office, but he was still away at the meeting he had scheduled for ten. Now would be a good time to sneak out and grab another cup.

I paused in his office for a moment, looking around the place and smiling to myself. If my place was slowly becoming a space that reflected me, then this place was utterly and completely him.

There was an enormous picture window that sprawled out over the back wall, allowing for a gorgeous view of the city, a reminder of where he was and how far he’d come.

The space was sleek and minimalistic, but there were a handful of objects scattered around that hinted at sides to Oliver I hadn’t gotten to know yet – a tacky magnet pressed to a filing cabinet from a Spanish resort, a framed, black-and-white photograph of a gorgeous forest scene, and a small metal model of a motorbike that sat next to his computer. I wondered what significance they held for him.

Who were they from? What did they mean? Did they make him smile when he saw them? Or were they for show, something to humanize him for the business people he met in here, something to make him seem less the lofty businessman and more a regular, relatable guy?

I knew I shouldn’t have spent that much time lingering. I was just feeding a crush I should have been able to put a pin in days ago. I turned and left down the corridor to get the coffee I so desperately needed.

Kieran, one of the other guys who worked on the floor, was in the break room when I arrived, pouring himself a mug from the carafe of dark roast. He glanced up as I entered and nodded to me.

“You want?” he asked, holding up the jug.

“Yeah, thanks.”

I leaned up against the counter, watching as he filled an enormous mug with the hot, but stale coffee that had likely been made a few hours prior.

I took my coffee bitter and black and instantly raised it to my lips to take a long, satisfied sip.

“Mmm,” I sighed.

Kieran didn’t seem to be in any rush to get out of there. He and I had chatted a little over the last couple of weeks, and he seemed perfectly pleasant. I was happy to have a break from sitting in my office and he looked like he wanted to ask me something.

“So, how’s it going?” he asked, something close to a smirk forming at the corners of his lips. I furrowed my brow.

“It’s going good,” I replied. “Thanks. Why do you ask?”

“I wasn’t sure what being his assistant must be like after what happened the last time”

I leaned forward with interest.

“What do you mean?” I pressed.

He glanced around, making sure we were alone and pushed the break room door shut with his foot.

“You really don’t know?” he murmured.

I shook my head.

“Know what? Come on, you’re kind of freaking me out here.”

What was it? Did the last assistant end up dead in a ditch somewhere? Did she go crazy from having to fit so many meetings into one day? What the hell had happened that he was so wary to share with me?

“I assumed they must have mentioned it.”

He shook his head, and I could tell he was enjoying the power he had over me. I was starting to get annoyed. Why wouldn’t he just come out and tell me? Surely it couldn’t be that bad.

“Nope, no one mentioned anything to me about the last assistant.”

I shrugged. The best way to get the truth out of him was to act as though I couldn’t care less, but that was proving difficult. It was obviously juicy, or he wouldn’t be making such a scene.

“Jeannie,” he said, taking a sip of his coffee, as though to punctuate the word. “That was her name. Jeannie.”

“And what about Jeannie?” I asked impatiently.

I wanted to get back to work, but I also needed to hear whatever it was that had him so wound up.

“There’s a damn good reason she’s not here anymore,” he said, leaning forward conspiratorially. “She-”

Before he could finish his sentence, the break room door opened and someone I didn’t recognize stepped in to join us. She glanced between us, apparently not blind to the tension in the room.

“What’s going on?” she asked, glancing at Kieran, a smile forming on her face as she tried to put the pieces together. “I didn’t interrupt anything, did I?”

“No, you didn’t,” I assured her, my grip tightening on my cup.

The last thing I needed was for people to assume I had some kind of flirtation going on with Kieran. There was nothing wrong with him, but he wasn’t my type, and I didn’t want to give anyone the idea he was.

“I should be getting back to work.”

I headed for the door and made my way out of there before I got hit with any more questions. My head was spinning as I walked back to my office. What had happened with the last secretary? How bad was it? What had Oliver done to Jeannie that had forced her to leave this place, and where was she now?

I was preoccupied when I opened the door, and when I saw Oliver, I practically jumped out of my skin.

“Oh, hello,” I burbled. “I was just getting a coffee. I’m going back to work now.”

I wanted to kick myself. Yeah, way to show him what an in-control, on-the-ball woman I was, laying out my schedule for him like it mattered.

He raised his eyebrows at me, a flicker of amusement passing over his face. His eyes flashed and it gave me butterflies in my tummy.

“How’d the meeting go?” I managed, at last.

He shrugged.

“Not bad, but I think I’m going to have to see them again before the week’s out,” he said. “And I’d really rather not.”

“Why?” I said and cocked my head at him. “That boring?”

“Oh, marketing just isn’t something I can get my head around.” He shook his head and raised his eyebrows. “I feel like I should have a better grasp on it by now, but it still bores the hell out of me, and I can’t figure out how they get to the conclusions they do. But fuck it, it works, so I can’t really complain.”

It was the first time he’d cursed in front of me, and it sent a little jolt up my spine, as though I had just heard something I wasn’t meant to.

“You’ve got another meeting after lunch.” I forced myself to continue. “Would you like me to organize any food, or…?”

“No, I’m good,” he assured me. “But thanks. Enjoy your coffee.”

I went back to my office, but I shot a look over my shoulder before closing the door. I wanted to drink him in, enjoy the sight of him one last time. To my surprise, I found him looking back at me.

If I wasn’t meant to hear him curse, then I sure as hell wasn’t meant to see the look on his face. His eyes were darker than before, the polite pleasantness gone as he eyed me. His gaze flicked up to mine briefly, and for a second I was frozen to the spot, unable to move, heated and tense with his attention on me like this.

He cleared his throat and the moment was gone, the spell lifted. I blinked and slipped into my office, closing the door tight behind me.

What the fuck was that?

I placed my coffee down on my desk and paused for a moment to look out the window before picking up where I’d left off. I couldn’t shake the mess of feelings cluttering up my brain.

I forced myself to turn back to the computer and focused my eyes on the schedule for the upcoming week. I’d have to see if there was room for another meeting with marketing at some point, just in case he did need to see them again.

The work wasn’t stimulating enough to keep my mind off Oliver completely, and I found my thoughts drifting back in his direction.

He was warming up to me. I could feel it. The first week, it seemed as though he’d been actively avoiding me, but this week, he was spending a lot more time in his office, even when he perhaps should have been at meetings, signing contracts, or charming the hell out of a new client.

He asked me about my weekend and found little ways to let me know he was thinking about me whenever he could. It was way easier to ignore my crush when he was acting cold toward me, but now that he seemed to be taking an interest my heart pattered at the thought of him.

Why had he looked at me that way? Maybe this was what Kieran had just intimated about Oliver’s last assistant. Maybe this was how he played it. I was just one in a long line of women who worked for him who ended up falling for his charms.

I still couldn’t figure out what it was that had landed me the job. I didn’t have a whole lot of hands-on experience, especially not this high up in the business world. Could it be that I was hired as some sort of plaything for the boss?

If we’d met somewhere else, under different circumstances, I might sidle up to him at a bar. I could slink up to him, look him up and down, and feel that same jerk of attraction I had the first time we’d laid eyes on each other.

He’d buy me a drink, and I’d ask him about the stuff in his office. Maybe I’d sit, crossing my legs, letting him see just enough of my thighs to turn him on. I’d catch him glancing down at my legs, and then I’d glance at his crotch, just for a second, to see if there was a bulge there. If there was a bulge, if his cock was hard, then I’d know where I stood.

I’d lean across him for something, maybe for a napkin from the bar, and let my breasts brush against him.

He’d take a seat then, and dominate me with his eyes. He’d be undressing me in his mind and I’d let him do exactly that. How could I say no to a man like that? A man who knew what he wanted and knew how to get it.

I’d be like prey staring into the eyes of the predator. He’d know he had me and he’d toy with me for a while.

“Can I get you a drink?” he’d say. Or, “what say, you and me get out of here?”

I’d follow him anywhere. He’d take me out of the bar and into a cab, where immediately, he’d start taking liberties.

His hand would be on my thighs before I even realized what was happening. It would slide up, under my skirt, and reach all the way to my panties. My pussy would feel his hand through the thin fabric of my panties and I’d let out a small moan. And he’d kiss me.

That first kiss would be heaven. It would be ecstasy. He’d tease my lips open with his tongue and then explore every part of my mouth, gently rubbing my tongue with his. I’d feel his teeth with my tongue. I’d get reckless and give his lower lip a little bite.

He’d growl then, pulling me closer, and begin opening my blouse, even though the cab driver was sitting right there. I’d protest weakly, but secretly I’d be willing him to do more. I’d be willing him to go all the way, right in front of the cab driver.

Life is too short not to be naughty once in a while.

As my breasts fell out of my blouse, he’d cup them in his big hand, while his other hand reached up under my skirt and pulled my panties out of the way.

A long, thick finger would slide up into my pussy, which would be so wet for him by this point. I’d thrust toward him, forcing his finger deeper inside me, and as his kisses moved toward my breasts, as his mouth fell on my nipples and began to suck them, he’d bring me to the point of orgasm with his finger.

I’d glance forward to see if the cab driver was watching. He’d be trying not to. He’d be pretending his attention was on the road ahead.

I’d shut my eyes again, and let the pleasure of Oliver’s touch overwhelm me. The orgasm would be pure perfection. It would be the best orgasm of my life. I’d muffle my scream in Oliver’s hair as his finger continued to work its magic, bringing me through wave after wave of orgasmic ecstasy.

“Oh, Oliver,” I’d moan.

“I’m just getting started, baby,” he’d whisper, as the cab pulled up outside his elegant, fancy apartment building. The night would be pure bliss.

I sighed, forcing myself to return my attention to the work in front of me. He was tempting, and yes, the way he looked at me made me feel something open up deep inside me, but I couldn’t and wouldn’t let it get in the way of my work.

What kind of idiot would I be if I slept with him. Then I’d be forced to spend the next five and a half months working along side him and trying to pretend like nothing happened?

But at least we’d have done it. Maybe the only way to get him out of my system was to get him into it first.

I left work as early as I could and decided to walk most of the way home, getting off a few stops early and enjoying the cool evening air as I cleared my head. When I got back to the apartment, I found Katya flopped down on the couch watching TV after a busy shift.

“Oh, hey!” she greeted me perkily. “Good day at work?”

“Not bad.”

I shrugged and sat down to join her on the couch.

“What’s up?” she asked, nudging me with her leg. She could always tell when something was wrong.

“It’s been a weird-ass day.”

I shook my head, and she flipped over, turning the volume down on the TV, and giving me her full attention.

“Oh, yeah? Like how?” she asked.

“I had this conversation with someone I work with. Well, half a conversation.”

I tried to put the pieces of the day into words, hoping she would be able to make sense of what I couldn’t.

“With who? What did they say”

“This guy Kieran. He said something had happened with the last assistant,” I began. “I don’t know what it was, but it must have been a big deal because the guy was really surprised I hadn’t heard about it yet.”

“Really? What do you think it is? You think she fell out of a window or something?”

“No, it had to do with Oliver.” I said. “That much I know.”

“Oh?”

Katya raised her eyebrows, instantly interested. “What do you think it was? Was it bad?”

“I honestly have no idea, but it seemed like some serious gossip, whatever it was, and I’m not sure I want to know.”

“Oh, come on, you totally do,” she chided, propping her chin up in her hand. “What’s he been like with you? Any indication there?”

“He’s been fine.” I shrugged. “I mean, he was a little cool with me the first week, but he’s been pretty nice to be around since then.”

“How nice? Like, wants-to-get-in-your-pants nice?” she prompted, and I wrinkled my nose.

“I don’t know about that,” I said, dismissively. “Though we did have…”

I trailed off, and she bugged her eyes out as I came to a halt.

“Oh, come on, you can’t leave it there,” she complained. “What was it? What happened?”

“I was coming back through his office today, and we had this… moment.” I paused. “I don’t know how to describe it. He was just looking at me, and it felt kind of…”

“Hot?” she said and grinned widely. “I’ve seen those pictures of him, Mona. I know he’s hot.”

“I could just be reading into things.” I said dismissing the idea. “I don’t want to assume more than is actually happening.”

“Yeah, and hooking up with your boss isn’t the best way to go about advancing your career,” she said in agreement. “Still, you’re only there for, what was it, six months?”

“I’d like to be there longer than that,” I shot back.

“If you end up hating the job and want to get out, you should go for it.”

“Except for explaining to my next employer why I didn’t work there for longer,” I pointed out. “I don’t want “sex with the boss” on my permanent record.”

“What about this old assistant of his? Do you know anything about her?”

“Only that her name was Jeannie,” I replied, closing my eyes and pressing my head into the couch. “I don’t think I want to know anything more.”

“Well, I do, so keep your ear to the ground for me. I love gossip when it has nothing to do with me.”

“Me too, but maybe there’s a reason I don’t know yet,” I pointed out. “Maybe I’m not meant to know.”

“But the rest of the staff seem to,” she said cocking her head at me. “So why shouldn’t you? If you work there, you have as much right to know the gossip as anyone else does, especially if it concerns the person you’ve just replaced.”

“I guess you’re right.” I agreed, nodding. “I’ll see what I can find out.”

“Do that.”

Katya turned back to the TV.

“You want me to catch you up on this? Might take your mind off everything.”

“I think it’s important you do,” I agreed, and soon enough, we were both fully engrossed in the drama unfolding on the television.

I found my mind mercifully distracted from work, from whatever happened to Jeannie, and most importantly, from Oliver.

At least for now.