“Good lord!” Jay exclaimed to himself, turning to re-enter the coffee shop. He was surprised at himself. He was a true lover of women, but none that he could remember could hold a candle to this one. It was as if she was created just to tempt him. He tried to remind himself that he was here on business, and that he couldn't afford the distraction from his duty to his family. He purchased his bagel and coffee mechanically; just enough of his brain was functioning to count out the money for his transaction. He couldn't stop thinking about Kathryn with an anticipation that was making his cock ache; a mental picture of her stretched out, with her hands grasping a headboard, large breasts thrust upward and exposed to his view, squirming as he dipped between her generous thighs and pleasured her with his mouth…

“Holy shit! Get hold of yourself man, you cannot walk around the streets of New York with a hard on threatening to tear its way out of your pants!” He did his best to keep such carnal thoughts out of his mind as he continued to his destination.

He found the address he was looking for, entered the building, and looked for a wall directory. He found the office he was looking for: Ross, Ross, & Sharpe, and entered an elevator to make his way to the twelfth floor.

Upon exiting the elevator, Jay found a receptionist sitting primly behind her desk; he approached her and told her he had an appointment with Ms. Sharpe.

“Certainly, Mr…” She said as she uncrossed and re-crossed her legs, leaning forward toward her appointment book and looking up at him expectantly.

“Contee,” he supplied.

“Mr. Contee, Ms. Sharpe is expecting you,” The pretty brunette chirped. “Her office is the third door on the left. I’ll let her know you’re on your way in.”

“Thank you, Miss…” He paused for her to give her name.

“Leanne, please,” she said.

“Thank you Leanne,” he said with an earnest smile, and turned to find the door he was looking for. He didn't notice Leanne fanning herself with a sheaf of papers and staring after him. She reached forward to hit the intercom button that would allow her to warn Ms. Sharpe that her client was on his way in, but there was no answering ping when she pressed the button. “The intercom system must be malfunctioning again,” she thought, and began to dial the number to a repair man that they had used in the past.

Jay found the door he was looking for and, expecting to walk into a foyer, he simply turned the knob and walked right in to what was evidently Ms. Sharpe’s office. What was even more surprising was the scene that unfolded before him.

He was astounded and confused to discover Kathryn, the woman he already thought of as his fierce goddess from the bagel shop, but she wasn't alone. A fairly large man, probably in his early thirties and sporting a slight paunch, had her backed into a credenza that struck Kathryn just above mid-thigh. The man had his hands low on her waist, and appeared to be leaning in for a kiss. Jay thought he had interrupted a private moment until he realized that Kathryn had both hands planted firmly on the man’s chest and she was leaning backwards over the credenza to avoid contact with the man as much as possible.

“Todd, STOP!” Anger surged forth in Jay's chest as it became obvious that Kathryn was fending off an unwanted advance which spurred his protective nature into full gallop. Before either one of them had enough time to do anything but widen their eyes, an animal growl erupted from his chest, and he charged the three or four steps required to reach the desk separating him from the pair. He reached across and gripped the offending male by the scruff of the neck, jerking him backwards until he was laying on his back looking up at Jay, who towered over him. The look on his face and the ease with which Jay had lifted the 250 pound male off his feet made it clear that Todd was in a fight he couldn’t win. So he did what cowards always do when not pawing at unwilling women, he put his hands up to block his face and cringed. Jay lifted his hand in a claw to strike the man, which in this position was likely to break his neck, only to have Kathryn leap forward and lock both of her hands around his wrist, preventing him from completing the blow.

“Stop it! Just STOP!” she commanded, causing Jay to freeze in place, hand still raised to strike.

Jay focused on her face, quickly checking her over visually for any sign of injury. When he saw none, he relented and lowered his hand, though he maintained his grip on Todd’s coat collar.

“Are you all right?” Jay asked, “I saw this man accosting you…”

“Yes, I'm fine,” she said, "You can let go of him now."

Jay reluctantly let go of Todd’s coat collar, but not before shaking him like a wet rag as a warning not to do anything stupid. As the man stood, stammering apologies, Kathryn shut him up, saying “That was the last time you pull your shit, Todd! I'm reporting this to the partners, and you’ll be lucky if I don't sue you for sexual harassment.”

Todd tried to summon up some dignity to cover his retreat but failed miserably. He quickly exited the door, slamming it behind him. Jay and Kathryn stood staring at the door as if expecting Todd to storm back in. After a few seconds it was obvious he wasn't coming back.

Almost simultaneously, they turned to look at each other. Both of them paused, unsure of what to say for a moment. Kathryn asked the first question,

“What are you doing here?” It was great to have her own personal guardian angel, but if he was stalking her, that was just creepy, no matter how gorgeous he was.

“I have an appointment with Ms. Sharpe” he said, “I did not expect to find you here.”

“I’m Kathryn Sharpe” she said with a smile. “I’m sorry I didn’t give you my last name earlier. You must be Mr. Jelani Contee? But you introduced yourself as ‘Jay’,” she accused.

“That is what my friends call me, and I was hoping to be very good friends” he said with a warm, only slightly suggestive smile.

There it was again, that warm rush that passed through her as she imagined what it might be like to kiss him. “We’ll have to see, won't we, though you’re well on your way already, coming to my rescue twice in less than two hours?”

“Are you so often in need of rescue?” He asked with a raised brow.

“Not normally, no... You just happened to catch me on a good day.”

Jay noticed that her smile, though still radiant, had a slightly tremulous quality to it, showing the strain of the adrenaline that was still pumping through her system. “Please sit,” he said, as he ushered her toward her chair, “is there anything I can get you?”

He took her hand and guided her to her seat, and again he stood waiting for her response while not relinquishing his comfortable hold on her hand. Her hand felt good in his, it was warm and gave her something to focus on as the worst of the adrenaline surge passed. His hands were large, much larger than hers. She was not a small woman, so it was rare that a man could make her feel delicate, like he could wrap her in his arms and protect her. She had the crazy thought that he could scoop her up and hold her to his chest like a child. It was something the feminist movement would deny, but most women liked the feeling that a strong man could sweep them off their feet. It didn't mean she needed him to, she was a modern woman, and had been taking care of herself without the assistance of a man for quite some time, but she couldn't deny the appeal of feeling petite compared to him.

“Have you had anything to eat yet this morning? You look a little pale, and I saw your breakfast on the sidewalk outside the coffee shop.”

“Now that you mention it, no, I haven't, and I am feeling a little out of sorts. Would you mind conducting our meeting over a late breakfast?” she asked.

“Not at all, after our chance meeting this morning, I only had time to grab a bagel and coffee. I feel like I could eat a zebra!”

That struck her as an odd saying. “Wasn't it supposed to be “horse”? Maybe it was an African thing.” she thought with a silent chuckle.

“There is a great diner a couple of blocks away, if that's ok?”

Jay nodded his assent.

“Perfect, just give me a few moments to straighten myself up a bit, and notify my secretary. I'll be right back.”

Kathryn exited the office and went straight to the receptionist. Leanne's eyebrows rose when she saw her disheveled look. “What on earth happened to you?” She asked. “You didn't claim Mr. Contee as yours ALREADY, did you?” she said with a devious glint in her eye.

“Remember the hunk I told you about who helped me out this morning?”

Leanne nodded an affirmative.

“Well, that's him.”

“Oh, you lucky bitch,” Leanne whispered loudly, “can I have him when you're done with him?”

Kathryn laughed and shook her head. “Listen, I need you to schedule an appointment with the partners as soon as possible. Todd finally went too far. Mr. Dreamy in there walked in on it, and almost decapitated him.”

"I saw him run out of there like his ass was on fire.”

“I'm sure he's running to try and get some plausible explanation in front of Roy and Gus, before I make my complaint. There's no way he's getting out of this one though. Let me know when they can see me. I'll have my cell with me; I'm taking Mr. Contee to breakfast.”

“Will do, boss.”

With that, she turned and made her way to the ladies room, straightened her clothing, and refreshed her makeup. She paused in front of the mirror, considering. She decided that losing the top button of her blouse didn’t make her look slutty, but it showed a tantalizing inch or two of skin that she hoped Jay would find appealing enough to want a closer look. She couldn't believe she had just met this man and she was already, not just considering sleeping with him, but actively planning his seduction. She wasn't normally so forward, nor would she be considered promiscuous by most standards, but it had been a while since she'd gotten laid, and she saw no harm in indulging herself.